Kitchen Cabinets - Setting the Style For Your Kitchen

By Annie Endwhistle

Kitchen cabinets are a vital consideration for any contemporary kitchen, whether you are constructing a totally new kitchen or just redecorating it. It is not always as straightforward to install cabinets as it appears. Sometimes you need to bring in a professional to help you with the best choices. A qualified carpenter can also be necessary to redesign your kitchen to get the most from the space you have and to visualize how many cabinets you will need to store your crockery and kitchen utensils. Bringing in a professional can also mean you get a better deal on premium materials.

You can often find experts who will help you redesign your kitchen or bathroom at retailers, wholesalers and building contractors. Kitchens advisers can also be found at home centers and some of these will be qualified architects. Getting an expert on-board a project means that you will benefit from their understanding of how kitchens are used, how to locate important kitchen fixtures in the most appropriate place and can recommend particular brands to suit your requirements.

What you can expect from your cabinets varies. There are manufacturers who offer a tailored product where the customer can choose from a range of possibilities. But this degree of pick-and-choose freedom is not likely if you buy wholesale or from a home center - these outlets will have a stock which you can choose from instead. The typically you will be offered a choice of cabinet doors. For example, many suppliers offer at least maple, cherry or simple blond wood stain. This kind of choice is easy for the builder to offer and would even be available in new building projects where the kitchen fittings have already been ordered in bulk and the choice is relatively limited.

If you do have the freedom to choose your own cabinets, you can select from a wide range of materials either for the entire cabinet or just the cabinet doors. Below is a sample list of some choices:

- Alder

- Ash

- Birch

- Cherry

- Hickory

- Maple

- Oak

- Pine

- Poplar

- Walnut

- Decorative laminate

- Metal


When you pick out kitchen cabinets on your own or even with an expert, ask if the kitchen cabinet brands are approved by the KCMA (Kitchen Cabinets Manufacturing Association), and have the KCMA seal on the inside of the cabinet. Only kitchen cabinet manufacturers from the United States and Canada that have passed rigorous testing on each and every brand that is manufactured by an approved company can display this seal. You can tell the manufacturer by the code on the seal. Below are kitchen cabinet manufacturers and their codes currently approved by KCMA:

- American Woodmark Corporation, Code X.

- MasterBrand Cabinets, Code MBCI.

- Continental Cabinets, Inc., Code CC.

- De Pere Cabinets, Inc., Code PJB.

- MasterBrand/HomeCrest Cabinetry, Code HA.

- Kitchen Kompact, Inc., Code I.

- Republic/Legacy Cabinets Inc., Code LE.

- Prestige Acquisition Corp., Code PI.

- Republic Industries, Inc., Code RI.

- Rosebud Manufacturing Co., Code RK.

- Armstrong Cabinet Products, Code H.

- Eurocraft, Code EUC.

- Texwood Industries, LP, Code QJ.

- KraftMaid Cabinetry, Inc., Code GA.

You can get plenty more kitchen cabinet ideas in the big kitchen sections of your local department stores. But why not save time by starting at http://www.anekitchencabinets.com/

Copyright 2006 Annie Endwhistle. All rights reserved.

Annie Endwhistle's new website ANE Kitchen Cabinets makes it easy for visitors to check their options, find example design, and get help locally. If you are planning to upgrade your kitchen, don't miss out on Annie's helpful site: http://www.anekitchencabinets.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Annie_Endwhistle

Cooking - Can We Really Trust TV Cooking?

By Michael Russell

Cooking seems to have developed into a major way of life rather than something that was necessary if we were going to receive sustenance to get us through our days. We look at television programs and see that almost every type of cooking is demonstrated - sometimes ad nauseam - to us, the ever watching viewing audiences. Let us look at what television cooking does for us and how it compares with the every day variety.

We see that all forms of cooking are portrayed as simply something we all could do in the blink of an eye. The need to really look at what is involved becomes very necessary, as we will see. Well dressed young men and women demonstrate their expertise, some showing us a small portion of meat garnished with a couple of vegetables which have been lovingly cooked and prepared. It is evident that their presentations are not geared for the husband, wife and three kids brigade. And if an honest observation is to be made, offering that meal would be looked at with a degree of consternation if only to think: is this all that's going to be served? What would you think if a builder, home from an extremely hard day on the site, was offered this miniscule treat for his evening repast? Expletives will be understandably left out here.

The thought of meat and three veg takes a completely different meaning when we look at how our television gourmets prepare their brand of "home cooking".

Let's first look at the ingredients they use. It immediately comes to mind that the range of sauces that are used in these culinary presentations would far outweigh anything mere mortals would have in their larders or refrigerators. Understandably, the budgets that are given to these food designers completely exceed any reasonable household budget.

It is fair to say that cooking and food in general, is all a matter of taste. How food is cooked is of great concern to the person who does like only the "meat and two veg". On that note, take an item of cooking that is commonplace now - garlic - this is used in almost every savoury dish we can imagine, with the possible exception of fish and chips.

Yet it isn't such a long time ago that many people would cringe at the thought of this item being included in any culinary offering - particularly in the British Isles. However, times change and so do tastes and the way we look at cooking certainly has changed over the last 20 years.

Although this is the case, it is to be hoped that the producers of these cooking extravaganzas will come down to earth and look at what "mere mortals" have in their kitchens. Utensils, valued at thousands of dollars, are not the order of the day. Nor are the different types of ingredients used in the dishes we are instructed how to cook.

Television cooking - indeed all cooking, is interesting and informative. We have to eat, so why not learn how to cook something a little more than the Sunday roast. It is after all entertainment and we need to see something pleasant as well as eat something pleasant.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Cooking

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Russell

Using Fresh Herbs In A Variety of Ways

by Mary Hanna

Herbs are fun and easy to grow. When harvested they make even the simplest meal seem like a gourmet delight. By using herbs in your cooking you can easily change the flavors of your recipes in many different ways, according to which herbs you add. Fresh herbs are great in breads, stews, soups or vegetables. Every time you add a different herb you have completely changed the taste.

If you are a beginner start slowly, add just a little at a time adjusting as you go along until you have it just right. You will see in most instances that an individual herb is associated with a particular food item. Basil is paired with tomatoes, Oregano with sauces, Rosemary with lamb and Chives with butter or cream cheese. Of course, none of them are limited to these items, but you will see them paired most often with that particular food. Use your imagination and experiment, experiment, experiment!

You can make herb vinegars for salad dressings, marinades, or soups. Herb oils are very useful in cooking whenever a recipe calls for it. Fresh herbs as garnishes dress up any dish making it look truly spectacular. Lay individual sprigs of rosemary over broiled lamb chops. Chop fresh parsley and sprinkle it over the top of your potato salad.

The combinations are endless and the outcome delicious. Fresh herbs will keep in the refrigerator for several days but then you must freeze them. They can be frozen by laying them a paper towel and putting them in a plastic bag. Once they are frozen only use them in cooking not as garnishes. A friend of mine washes them, puts them an ice cube tray, covers them with water and then freezes them. When she needs them for soup, stews or sauces she just drops a cube in.

My favorite herbs to grow are basil, oregano, lemon balm, parsley and mint. Mint is great but be careful, mint can over run your garden. A tip here would be to bury an empty coffee can and plant the mint in it. The can prevents the mint from “creeping” all through your garden.

I love to make herb butters. Take a half of a cup of softened butter and mix in about 4 tablespoons of a fresh herb. Lay out a piece of Saran Wrap, place the butter in the middle roll the saran wrap up to form a “log” out of the butter. Put in the refrigerator and anytime you need a pat of butter just cut it off the “log”. (Hints for “log” butter: potatoes, bread, steaks, noodles or any kind of sauce).

A fresh herb in any salad dressing really makes it sparkle. You can use any herb or a combination - be creative.

I learned a trick a long time ago using basil, lemon and avocados to create an instant natural face mask. Put a big handful of basil in a blender and run it on high. Once the basil has been pulverized, throw in a half of an avocado and a large teaspoon of lemon juice, mix until smooth. Wash your face, pat it dry and gently rub the avocado mixture on. Leave it on as long as you like, then use warm water to it wash off.

These are just a few ways you can use fresh herbs from your garden. I am sure you will come up with many more. Happy planting.

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved. About the Author: Mary Hanna is an aspiring herbalist who lives in Central Florida. This allows her to grow gardens inside and outside year round. She has published other articles on Gardening, Cruising and Cooking.

Visit her websites at http://www.GardeningHerb.com ;

http://www.ContainerGardeningSecrets.com, and

http://www.CruiseTravelDirectory.com or

contact her at mary@gardeninglandscapingtips.com

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