Vintage Thingies Thursday: MY Kitchen

Finally have another Vintage Thingies Thursday to share with you!

I don't know how vintage this particular item is, but it is definitely a vintage concept.

I stumbled across it at a local thrift store.  At first all that I saw was "Virginia" so I assumed it was yet another Virginia state memorabilia piece.  I had to double check and upon un-burying it, I saw that it wasn't a Virginia state item, but my name clearly stating who was the queen cook in the kitchen.  I know it's a tad on the ugly side, but it's vintage-esque and mine!

The lovely cashier sold it to me for all the change in my car...$0.87!  I mean, how many more Virginia's were going to come along looking for a kitchen plaque?  It's placed on my wall next to my stove and I just love it!  I don't have any personalized Virginia items so it's quite special.  Thanks for stopping by my VTT post!

For more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts, be sure to check out Coloradolady's blog.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Vintage Yard Sale Hunting

This Vintage Thingies Thursday I'm showcasing some of the vintage pieces I've picked up at the yard sales I've visited in the past few weeks. I absolutely love browsing yard sales. My dad always said he wanted a bumper sticker that said "I Brake For Yard Sales" and I've totally followed in his footsteps! I see that neon colored yard sale sign and my car is whipping a u-turn in the blink of an eye. Anyone else a die-hard yard sale person? I know I'm not alone!

So here's what I've found in the past few weeks:

10¢ measuring vase. "Italy" written on the bottom, six sides for rice, sugar, flour, mL, fl. oz., and cups. Rice, sugar, and flour are all written in 3 languages. (Blue paper inside to try to show off the markings, didn't work well!) Picture doesn't do this piece justice...
Pyrex container. Air tight seal. $1
Gemco sugar and creamer set (50¢ total). Green votive for size comparison. I think I'll put maple syrup in the creamer.Anchor Hocking 3-piece Avocado Chip & Dip Set. Like new condition with original box. $3

Pristine Autumn Harvest 1.5 pint casserole dish. $2 (This is the third and last pattern I collect. The other two are Spring Blossom and Butterfly Gold).

Vintage avocado green Tupperware Pick-A-Deli, 25¢

I also snagged a large pot with a canning rack for $2 and 13 jelly jars with rings for $3. I can't wait to start canning!

For more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts, be sure to check out Coloradolady's blog.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Baby Listens

It's been awhile since I've participated in Vintage Thingies Thursday! I recently re-found (you know those boxes of clutter in your house?) this Baby's First Book by Golden books and I just had to share. I remember when hubby and I first saw saw this book and we remarked at how much the baby in the book resembled our daughter Lucy. It was uncanny! To the right is Lucy at 9 months old.

This book is so neat because it has wipeable pages that are drool and chew-proof. I wish they made more of these types of books nowadays. Also the sweet little details of the book make it so enjoyable to read and look at. The book is copyrighted 1960. Here are a few pages from the Golden book "Baby Listens" by Eloise Wilkin:

Look at all those sweet baby rolls and the little dolly!

The text and illustrations are darling.

Look at that mixer! Does anyone know what brand of mixer that might be? This is by far my favorite page in the book.

This is the last page of the book. Doesn't it resemble my little Lucy?

Thanks for visiting my blog and be sure to check out other Vintage Thingies Thursday at Coloradolady's blog.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Breakfast

Here's my hodgepodge Vintage Thingies Thursday post! Enjoy the chaos of this entry!

First off, my scrambled eggs recipe. My mom has been making this for us since we were kids. She kept telling us while growing up that there was a secret recipe. Well she finally told me the "secret" when I started my own household. It's NO MILK! Just straight eggs, cheese and a bit of butter (and a dash of salt if you like).

Mom's Scrambled Eggs

Any number of eggs you like (mine are local eggs from Elf's Garden Center)
1 slice of cheese per 2 eggs
Small pat of butter
NO MILK!

Whisk together the eggs in a bowl. Melt the pat of butter in a skillet pan over medium heat (5 on my stove). Pour eggs into the skillet. Tear the sliced cheese into pieces and add it to the eggs (there's no science to this, just smaller to allow it to melt easier).

Keep the mix moving, constantly stirring. Take the eggs off the burner right before you think they're done (slightly shiny still). Keep stirring and they'll finish cooking off the burner.

Serve with your favorite breakfast meat (I didn't have anything in the house) and these:

Banana Corn Muffins

1 box corn muffin mix (I used a Jiffy mix)
1/2 cup milk
1 squishy ripe banana

Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine banana, milk, and mix in a medium bowl; stir just until moist. Spoon batter evenly into 6 muffin cups coated with cooking spray (batter will be slightly thin). Bake at 350° for 22 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes.
Add a cup (or mug) of orange juice and there you have it, a very simple nutritious breakfast! Just remember, don't add milk to your scrambled eggs!

Now you're going to ask me, what's so vintage about this post? Well, ok, not that much, but I did find my new scrambled egg pan pictured about at a flea market this week for free. It is a Le Creuset skillet and it does appear vintage. And the plate in which I have pictured my meal is a piece of Butterfly Gold Corelle. I picked up about 6 small bowls, 6+ lunch plates and 5+ dinner plates in this pattern at our local Salvation Army Thrift Store for a mere $7.99. And the crazy vintage mug is part of what I picked up for free at the flea market. Isn't it wild? The kids loved the novelty of drinking out of it!

Here are my other FREE flea market finds. If you have any information on any of the pieces, I'd love to know more!Nine Syralite by Syracuse (marked 100-D U.S.A) mustard yellow cups, unmarked brown plate in front of those, robin's egg blue Le Creuset pan next to that, two basket weave clear glass mugs above that (marked: Forrecrisa Mexico 21), Bluegrass Pyrex platter in the back, unmarked tan/green enamel bowl to the right, behind that a green and yellow plated (marked on the back: Stonybrook Stoneware, Oven to Table, Dishwasher Safe, Japan), in front of that a brown mug (marked underneath: Homer Laughlin Best China, USA, VD IIII), and lastly my crazy orange flower mug (marked 310-5 underneath).

So does anyone know anything about any of those items? I got it all for free and I love every piece!

Head over to Confessions of an Apron Queen for more Vintage Thingie Thursday posts!

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Donuts

Donuts or doughnuts, however you spell it, I bought this vintage donut cutter at a yard sale this week. I had in my head that I'd make this lovely spread of homemade donuts, take gorgeous pictures and post a wonderful recipe... Well, we're all human, right?

The recipe (or how I manipulated it) was a total flop! I was hoping to find a good baked donut recipe so I could avoid frying in oil. I came across what I thought was a simple and straight forward recipe, and while it was, the dough was way too sticky to manipulate and cut. It was a mess! (In this photo, it looks as if I'm playing with playdoh!)

Oh and the few lumps of stickiness that I was able to shove in the oven decided to burn on the bottom so I had to open my kitchen window to air out the poor place. Poor husband is going to come home to a stinky burnt smelling house! Time to break out the pumpkin spice candle. Do you think that will fool him?

A few recipes I'll try down the road

• 101 Cookbooks - Baked Doughnuts Recipe
• Vegan YumYum - Mini Donuts
• Scribbit - Baked Apple Donuts

Alas, Friday is payday so I am hoping for a very nice vintage find this week! Come on vintage bargain! Well, head over to Confessions of an Apron Queen for some more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts guaranteed to be better than my post!

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Robin Hood Flour Cookbook

Here we go again, another Vintage Thingies Thursday! I found this quaint little cookbook at a yard sale last week. The title is "Let's Bake: the Robin Hood 'No-Sift' Way" dating back to 1964. The graphics drew me in immediately, I just had to have it. (And at $.50, who could say no?) Aren't these images so sweet?

Cover

Inside cover
Pies and Pastries (how much cuter can we get?)
And last, but not least, Cream Puffs, my favorite image!

So which illustration do you like most? Be sure to head over to Confessions of an Apron Queen for more Vintage Thingies Thurday posts!

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Fire-King

Phew! I think I'm actually going to get my Vintage Thingies Thursday post up in time! Life has been so busy lately.

So here we have just a little 1.5 qt Peach Lustre Fireking round casserole dish. It's a really pretty peachy color with a nice sheen. And...the best part is that I picked it up at a local thrift store for only $1! You have to love a bargain. I do think it's missing its lid though.

And can anyone tell me why the Fire-King markings on the bottom are backwards? I've been wondering.

So it's not a real thrilling vintage thingie, but my collection is slowly growing. Also, as you see by my "under construction" post, life has been quite busy and I haven't had much time to go vintage hunting.

Hopefully I can return next week with a really amazing vintage thingie! One can dream, right? Head over to Confessions of an Apron Queen for more Vintage Thingie Thursday posts.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: What's that other Scoop?

Wow, two Vintage Thingies Thursday posts! I totally didn't expect this one. I casually stopped by a yard sale today (a yard sale on a Thursday, I know!) and much to my amazement this smaller scoop was hiding in a box of kitchen gadgets.And who'd have thought that it'd match the scoop I bought at the thrift shop! I'm in love! How cool is this? This second scoop has the word "Hygia" on the front of the handle and "50/145 Germany" on the back. So it seems that it might be a newer version, maybe? Anyway, I thought it was a neat find.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: What's the Scoop?

So this is my "little" Vintage Thingies Thursday post. I found this sweet little metal scoop at my local thrift store and I almost passed it up. But I turned it over and saw it had a few numbers and then what appears to be "W Germany" which I can only think is west Germany (which would make it vintage, right?) So for $.50 I picked it up.

There's no real big post this week, just a little mystery of its origin and my new flour scoop! Hope you enjoy looking at the pictures and if you have any more information, I'd love you to share.

Stroll on over to Confessions of an Apron Queen for more fun Vintage Thingies Thursday posts.

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Vintage Thingies Thursday: Shepherd's Pie in Pyrex

Welcome to another edition of Vintage Thingies Thursday! Today I am showcasing my new collection of vintage Pyrex, well at least one piece! And I'm offering up a great recipe to fill your Pyrex or other baking dishes.I've started collecting the Spring Blossom line of Pyrex and the matching dishware by Corelle. I'm a big fan of green (can you tell?) This pattern goes great with my dark red and yellow kitchen. I love the vintage look as well. It's fairly easy to find at yard sales and thrift stores and the prices of the pieces aren't that outrageous.

So check out this yummy Shepherd's Pie in my vintage Pyrex casserole dish. (And be sure to check Pyrex Love for more great vintage Pyrex info).

Shepherd's Pie
from "The Harlow's Bread and Cracker Cookbook" ©1989 (located in Epping, NH)

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds hamburger, ground lamb, or ground turkey (I used 1.4 lbs of local ground moose)
• 2 medium onions, finely diced (used local onions from a veggie stand on Oak St. in Rochester, NH)
• 3 TBSP tomato paste
• Thyme (for beef version) or rosemary (for lamb version) or sage (for turkey version); season to taste
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 3 cups beef stock (chicken stock with ground turkey)
  
• 2 cups (or 1 frozen 10-ounce package) whole kernel corn (I used my frozen corn that I sliced off the cob this summer)
• 2 cup (or 1 frozen 10-ounce package) green peas (I used my local frozen green beans since we prefer that vegetable)
• 3 pounds potatoes (local from Wally's Farmstand on Rt. 236 in S. Berwick, ME)
• 2 eggs (local from Elf's Garden Center)
• 2/3 cup milk (local from Brookford Farm)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Saute the meat with onions. When it is cooked, stir in the tomato paste and herbs, then spread the meat out in a layer in a large (or several small - as I did) casserole dish(es). Make a gravy by cooking the oil and flour together to make a roux, then stirring in the beef stock. Sprinkle the corn and the peas (or veggies of your choice) over the meat, then spoon the gravy over them.

Peel and boil the potatoes, then mash them, whipping in the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper a little at a time. With a cooking spoon or a spatula, spread the mashed potato over the top of the casserole(s) so that it makes a smooth top layer. Just for good looks, mark a cross-hatched pattern in the potato with a fork.

At this point, the casserole(s) can be wrapped and frozen if you are not ready to cook right away. To finish the dish, it may be microwaved or baked in a conventional oven at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes. I prefer to use a conventional oven so that the potatoes crisp up on top. In either case, cook the casserole so taht it is piping hot all the way through.
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So there it is! A very yummy casserole to make as the fall season continues to set upon us. Give it a try and feel free to play around with the meat and veggie choices.

Oh and here's a quick picture of my large serving bowl in the coordinating Corelle pattern. The biscuits are beer biscuits, but I refuse to give you the recipe as these things were one big flop! Let's just say they were bland and very rubbery! Just enjoy the pretty picture...

And be sure to stop by Confessions of an Apron Queen for more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts!

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Vintage Thingies Thursday

I happened upon a great blog this week. It's called Confessions of an Apron Queen and every Thursday she hosts a "Vintage Thingies" day. Well, I so happen to be falling in love with all things vintage so I thought I'd share one of my new vintage kitchen tools.

Behold, my Gemco food chopper! Now I must admit, upon further research, I'm not 100% sure this exact chopper is vintage, but I know there are vintage Gemco choppers out there and it does have a vintage feel to it, considering it uses manual labor and not a plug and outlet!

Anyway, I picked it up at a yard sale for $2 and I've used it once to mince garlic. It worked great. I'm excited to mince more garlic and try it with onions too. It's easier than hauling out and cleaning the food processor. Definitely a nice convenient kitchen tool to have around!

So happy Vintage Thingies Thursday and be sure to head over to Confessions of an Apron Queen to view the other vintage posts. Oh, and be sure to enter her weekly apron giveaway. Oh how I want the "Good Golly Miss Molly" apron!

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