Photo by elana

As the leaves on the trees transition from green and gold to bright oranges and reds, my cravings shift from ice cream and cold sandwiches to soups and baked goodies. It’s time to fire up the oven instead of the barbecue, and to bake with reckless abandon. Along with the perk of fresh baked bread, cookies, and pumpkin muffins, the house smells delicious and the heat from the oven cozily warms up the place.  I especially like to add cloves to my autumn dishes, for that slightly warmer, spicier flavor. Fall cooking combines the delicious with the necessary. Our house isn’t all sugar and carbohydrates, however–I’m also a soup fiend.

There’s nothing that warms the body and soul like a bowl of soup on a chilly day, and I’m a fan of soups from around the world. I make borscht with fresh beets from our community-supported agriculture (CSA) box, which is enough to convert any beet-averse person to come to the purple side. I have my own version of chicken soup, where the secret ingredient isn’t just love, but also liberal amounts of ginger, a jalapeno pepper, and garlic. It comforts the soul, soothes the stomach, and is just what the doctor ordered whether or not you’re feeling under the weather. Just this last weekend, I was at the New York State Sheep and Wool festival, and had the most amazing lamb and barley soup, which I’m hoping to replicate at home.

I’m also experimenting with a recipe for Pho, the Vietnamese beef and noodle soup, but I haven’t quite perfected it yet. I love experimenting with recipes, because when they work out well, it’s amazing, and when my experiments in gastronomy end up to be disasters, they make for great stories.  We have a fully stocked take-out menu drawer for just these types of occasions.

What are you cooking this fall season?

Photo by Carey Tilden

I have a secret addiction, and it’s something I used to harbor a lot of guilt about. Recently, however, I decided that I will no longer feel ashamed. I will confess loudly and proudly for the whole world to hear that I am a 37-year-old man who eats peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Lots of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I indulge at least two or three times a week — which seems excessive for anyone over the age of 9, I admit — but there you have it.

The lowly PB&J has always been a fixture in my diet. I’m a purist and still appreciate it in its basic form, although the components have evolved slightly with age. Gone is the classic Wonder Bread of my youth: now it’s got to be double-fiber wheat bread serving as the platform for the gooey insides. Where I used to insist on crunchy Skippy or Jif peanut butter (or worse yet, sugar-laden Goober), these days it’s the all-natural peanut or almond butter that I enjoy, straight from the refrigerator of course. Lately, I’ve been opting for the low-sugar fruit spread instead of jelly, but one thing remains the same: strawberry always has been the only flavor for me.

I wonder how PB&J became saddled with a “for kids only” reputation. I’m sure I can’t be the only adult out there who defies the stereotype and relishes a well-made peanut butter and jelly sandwich now and again. And the truth is, I’m not. It seems that lots of adults are in on the peanut butter and jelly craze. With dozens of different variations to experiment with, the advent of peanut butter-themed sandwich shops, and even an Internet song phenomenon, PB&J is doing OK for itself. No need to be ashamed — enjoy! Just don’t get caught with a milk mustache.

How many other adults out there still indulge in the sinful goodness of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? And what’s your favorite variation on the original?

Photo by Hamed Saber

The time has come for me to upgrade my digital camera, but if you’ve done any camera shopping recently, you know how incredibly confusing choosing one can be. The options are overwhelming and everyone you ask seems to have their own favorite brand or camera type. I’m having trouble determining what options and specs I should be considering when selecting a camera that will best suit me and my picture-taking habits and that won’t make too large a dent in my wallet.

There are so many options to consider, but the first and most obvious is size. I left my last camera behind much more often than I would have liked, simply because of its bulky build. This time around, I’d like to get something that can easily slip into my pocket, but is still powerful enough to take significantly better pictures than the sad little excuse for a camera that’s on my phone. When I bought my last digital camera, the choices were much more limited—you could either choose a compact camera that took mediocre pictures, or a bulky model with much more power and clarity. I’m assuming the technology has improved since my last foray into camera shopping, but I’m not certain. Is it possible to find a small pocket-sized camera with all of the power and capability of its bigger, bulkier siblings?

Megapixels seem like an ever-popular spec to compare, but a photographer friend of mine confessed that it’s really the sensor that determines the clarity and color of your picture. That might be the case, but I have no idea how to tell a good sensor from a bad one—or even what a sensor really does, for that matter. Can anyone help illuminate that point? How does one know if their camera’s sensor is up to par, and how does the camera’s megapixel count affect your photos?

Most of my personal photography habits center around shooting family and friends and documenting special occasions, but I do occasionally delve into some art photography. I especially enjoy the macro feature on my current model—is that something that comes standard on most of the latest cameras? What other special-effect modes or options do you find are important and useful? And what advice can you offer for navigating the many zoom options? What’s the difference between digital and optical zoom, and what should I be considering when making a selection?

If the busy photography and camera categories on Yahoo! Answers are any indication, there are a lot of knowledgeable amateur and professional photographers lurking around. Can you share any of your expertise?

What are the most important factors to consider when purchasing a new digital camera?

Photo by gapplewagen

A few weeks ago, Richard blogged about unseasonably inclement weather. Today I’d like to offer some tips to those of you who live in places where temperatures are spiking.

If you’re like me, and declare that as a “delicate blossom” you positively cannot tolerate extreme heat, you’re always finding more ways to keep yourself cool. Sure, if you have air conditioning you can keep your house cool, but that gets spendy, and isn’t nearly as fun as some of the other ways I’ve found to beat the heat. For example, there’s nothing that’ll cool you down like taking off your shoes and socks and walking through some grass, or (to take a page from nature’s other critters) mud—if it’s available. Skipping through the sprinklers can give you a quick endorphin boost and cool you off. (Really, nobody is ever too old to play in the sprinklers. It feels good!)

You don’t have any grass nearby? Try misting your feet (or the rest of you, for that matter) with a spray bottle. (If you have stinky feet, adding a touch of peppermint oil to the water will act as a natural deodorizer.)  Alternatively, you could search Yahoo! Answers for a local swimming pool to refresh yourself in.

If the outdoors holds no appeal for you, there are ways to keep the heat at bay without cranking up your air conditioner. For example, I’ve found that libraries, coffee shops, and movie theaters are often all air-conditioned. Staying cool is the added bonus when reading a book, stimulating the local economy, or catching a summer blockbuster! Alternatively, if you’re a do-it-yourself-er (and don’t live in a place that has AC) you could make your own, homemade air conditioner or prepare some cool meals to eat during hot weather. (I’m a big fan of lavash, tomato, feta, cucumber, and walnut sandwiches.)

Remember, if you’re a pet owner, our pets need to stay cool, too! Make sure that they are adequately groomed and brushed for hot weather, walk your dogs when it’s cooler outside, and keep their water bowls full. (My dogs especially like an ice cube in their water bowl, to keep it cool.)

How do you stay cool when temperatures are high?

More than a delicious mix-in, the chocolate chip is an example of a great result from an idea that didn’t quite pan out the way it was envisioned. The story, the way my mother tells it, is that a woman was going to make chocolate cookies, but didn’t have the right chocolate. Thinking outside the box, she chopped up some other chocolate and tossed it in the dough, assuming that the chocolate would melt and disperse itself evenly throughout. Though the intended result wasn’t achieved, a delicious product of ingenuity was born!

Inspired by this story, I’ve used all sorts of alternative sweets in lieu of chips: Cadbury Mini Eggs, hand-chopped Swiss chocolate, M&Ms, Reese’s Pieces, and once, candy corn (whose outcome was not as delicious or successful as I had hoped). Since necessity is the mother of all invention, there are now recipes for vegan, gluten-free, and even sugar-free chocolate chip cookies. This way, not even dietary restrictions can keep us all from enjoying them hot from the oven with a glass of milk straight out of the fridge.

The only thing I enjoy as much as eating chocolate chip cookies is baking them. Now that the temperature is starting to climb, I have moved from baking cookies in the oven (which heats up the whole house), to using the toaster oven for those urgent I’m-having-a-craving times. As far as ingredients are concerned, I always use butter and eggs (as opposed to their more-healthful but less-delicious alternatives); I’d rather eat fewer cookies that taste better. I also prefer to grease my baking sheets with butter (as opposed to a nonstick cooking spray), mostly because we always have butter on hand for baking, but also because I don’t like the taste of the cooking spray.

To avoid a tedious and lengthy clean-up process, while the stand mixer is beating the wet mixture “until creamy” and while the eggs are being “beaten well,” I put away the ingredients that have already been used. Once the first sheet of cookies have gone into the oven, I start to clean up the mixing bowls, assisted by anyone who has volunteered for the coveted task of licking the batter off of the beaters. This way, once the cookies are adequately cooled, the kitchen has also been cleaned up and the dishes are done.

What is your favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies?

Last week my daughter started a project for her archaeology class. She had to keep a log of every activity that took place in the kitchen. At the end of the week, she had to go through the garbage bags layer by layer to catalog and correlate the remains with the activity log.

She taped notes up everywhere to remind us to write down each kitchen task as we did it, whether or not it resulted in something getting thrown away. As we didn’t want to screw up her chance of getting a decent grade in the class, we complied.

Looking over the log yesterday, I was amazed at all that went on in the kitchen. I expected the usual stuff: fixing meals and cleaning the dishes. But this list included everything: feeding the dog and cat, opening mail, cutting tags off of clothes, planning the front garden, general discussions, talking on the phone, applying a bandage, making coffee, taking aspirin, washing hands, watering plants, reading, doing crosswords, cleaning shoes, paying bills, getting a glass to trap a bee, etc.

Granted, it wasn’t a very exciting list, but it was extensive and filled up many pages. The kitchen is definitely the hub of our house. Whether it’s just us or a group of family and friends, we always end up in the kitchen somehow. Our huge golden retriever likes to lie down in the middle of the kitchen floor so that we all have to constantly step over him–he likes to be in the center of all the action.

I don’t know how the archaeology project will turn out, but after seeing my daughter–armed with yellow rubber gloves-stoically picking through the garbage, I hope she gets an A. But I guess we’ll also find out if we’re really eating enough fruits and vegetables, and if we’re being as conscientious as possible with our recycling.

How about you? Is your kitchen the place to be? What do you think your garbage will reflect about your lifestyle years from now?

But let’s face it: When the sun is shining, I would rather be doing pretty much anything else than cleaning indoors. Since I don’t like cleaning (but do like living in a clean environment), I have devised a few ways of making the whole process more manageable, and a little less tedious:

I’ve swapped my commercial cleaning products for homemade solutions . I’ve found that simple household items like vinegar, baking soda, and ammonia  are very effective in place of their more-expensive commercial counterparts. For example, cleaning my windows with ammonia and newspaper gets them cleaner and less streaky than Windex ever has! With homemade concoctions, it is incredibly important to follow the directions carefully. After all, chemistry is not for wimps.  The “chemical” smells that come with cleaning products — homemade or otherwise — are unpleasant, and occasionally dangerous, so I open all the windows to maximize ventilation.

In our house we start the spring-cleaning process by dividing up the chores based on preference. While I may not love scrubbing floors, I loathe dusting; the chores get divided up on that basis. I put this to-do list someplace where it will be visible, along with a red pen for crossing off completed tasks. Is there anything more satisfying than proof of a task completed? Pardon my wistful sighs; I love lists. And pens.

Next we schedule the chores from our lists into manageable time frames. (Doing a marathon house-cleaning session may be effective, but can also cause serious burnout. Setting reasonable expectations when approaching large tasks is key — that way you can feel good about what you have accomplished, rather than disappointed in all the tasks yet to be done. We crank up the tunes and set forth working on our ascribed tasks. Sure, spring-cleaning takes a week or so from start to finish, but over the course of that week the house gets progressively cleaner.

What are your spring-cleaning tips and tricks?

I stared at the yeasty bag of slime in horror. My husband doesn’t remember this, but many years ago, a coworker gave me some friendship starter–and it was a monster that soon took over my life. I made the first batch and packaged up some starter for my own friends. What a great idea! I made a second batch–nice! On my third batch I started becoming anxious–did I stir the bowl today? Was it day six? Did I need to add sugar, flour, and milk today? Do I have any more friends to give this mess to? I can’t just dump it down the drain–what a waste! I wonder if our mail carrier would like some?

Finally, I found myself holding my bowl of the food equivalent of Star Trek’s tribbles over the sink–hovering over the gaping hole of the garbage disposal. Should I keep it going or just end it now? I faced the bubbling batter and won. I rinsed the remains down the drain with a sigh of relief and swore to myself that never again would I be caught up in the friendship bread obsession.

I gingerly took the toxic bag from my husband’s hand and tossed it in the bin.

Have you ever been caught up in a friendship bread loop or something similar? Please provide all the gory details.

As I lay in bed this morning, bemoaning that awful sound, I got to thinking: What would happen if no one shoveled their snow? Well, things would quickly turn into a great big dangerous mess-that much is certain.

Having grown up in sunny California, this whole snow shoveling thing is fairly new to me, and I wondered what Answers users had to say on the subject. Apparently, depending on where you live, there are specific laws holding homeowners and businesses responsible for keeping their public-access sidewalks free of snow. Many places, it seems, even require snow to be shoveled within 24 hours of a big storm. I found that many of you who rent apartments aren’t sure whether the onus is on yourself or your landlord to keep driveways and sidewalks snow-free. That, too, is dependent on each situation, but the best answer is to check your rental agreement or lease.

For those of you stuck with the painful task of shoveling, I found some great tips to help make the job a bit more bearable. For one, try to avoid lifting and throwing as much as possible-your back and shoulders will thank you for it. The best method seems to be starting in the middle and working your way out to the sides. If you find the snow sticking to the shovel, try using a little car wax, silicone lubricant, or cooking spray to keep things moving. Many of you find that using a snow blower (if you can afford it) is a heck of a lot easier (although no quieter!). Of course, if you are willing to throw a little money at the situation, there are always eager entrepreneurs ready to do your dirty work for you.

Fortunately for me, my landlord takes care of the shoveling. And now that I’ve read up on it, instead of whining about the noise, I guess I should be thankful that it’s not me out there at 6 a.m. making it.

What’s your experience with shoveling snow, and what tips can you share to make the chore more bearable (and less noisy)?

Tip 1: My mother has always said, “A place for everything, and everything in its place.” I find it much easier to file paperwork if there is a file drawer, to shelve books when there is adequate shelf space, and to put clothes away when there is a place to put them.  If you’re not into getting rid of stuff, having the right kind of storage is critical. Personally, I’m a big fan of modular storage; but really, this is a case of finding storage solutions that you can get excited about.  (I love places like Storables and The Container Store, but IKEA has some interesting storage units, too.)

Tip 2: Look at what is cluttering your house with a critical eye.  How much extra paper have you accumulated? Every time I clean, I find a metric ton of paper. After I moved, I realized how many softcover novels I had. Now, some of them are favorites that I’ll revisit, but most of them are not really the types of books that I’ll reread. Our softcover policy now is that once we’ve read it, it either gets traded in at the used bookstore, or it gets donated to the library.

Tip 3: Stick with it. Once you have everything organized and in its place, don’t get too comfortable. Stay on your system by filing paperwork as it comes in, and putting things away immediately (instead of dropping them on a table). Another gem from my mother is, “A mess you don’t make is a mess you don’t have to clean up.”

What are you doing to get organized this year?