In the galley...

Since we we were talking about money well spent...

Just about the most used item on the boat in the galley department is our pressure cooker and we use it for everything from chili and other bean dishes to BBQ ribs and roasts. Lately we have been cooking breads and cakes (Check out Simply Spicy for this great Walnut Bread recipe). Fact is, there is so much you can do with a pressure cooker, that one of the things on my want list is a second pressure cooker/fryer!

Another thing that pressure cookers do extremely well is it makes cooking dried foods, like beans, easy. But these days with it getting ever harder to find decent and affordable vegetables while cruising, we are finding that a stock of dried vegetables is a great way to provision for long term voyaging while keeping our budget happy.

Of course getting used to using dried vegetables, just like pressure cooking, has a somewhat steep learning curve. So, before you take off into the sunset, it makes a lot of sense to work both into your cooking pattern and menus gradually. For example, the whole TVP (textured vegetable protein) thing is new to us so in the not too far distant future we are trying out some of Harmony House's TVP products to see how they work and taste for us. What is really nice about Harmony House is they have sample kits of all their various products so you don't get stuck with a lifetime supply of dried beets if you decide they don't work for you... YUCK!

We'll keep you posted...