Kitchen sinks that make sense.

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Perhaps the Costliest Kitchen Mistake You Can Make!

Hammered nickel sinks or simply hammered nickel sinks are stunningly gorgeous - for a while. The only time you should consider getting one of these stunning beauties is if you don't plan on using the sink as a sink. 

I had one customer order a hammered nickel sink from arguably the most well-known imported copper sink companies in the US, and the finish turned black even before the sink was installed. They called me for advice. I said that I knew the owner of the company and I felt she ran a very reputable company and I felt the company would take care of her. I suggested she call the company. As I imagined, they did just that. They allowed the sink to be returned and a new sink was sent without any hassle at all. Sadly, the second sink started turning black in areas within a few days. She was able to get her money back - again without argument and ordered a hammered stainless sink from me. 

If you order one of these sinks from a reputable company, they will generally take care of you like this one did. The problem lies in the related costs - both in time and in actual labor costs for uninstalling, reinstalling, etc. 

Please note that my contention that "ALL nickel plated sinks will fail over time" is based on dozens of calls from people that this has happened to and from doing research online. Perhaps there is some magical process that I am not aware of for preserving a nickel plating over copper. I doubt it though...

I invite any company who feels this information is incorrect to contact me at dino@rachiele.com with factual information. If my claims are proven to be incorrect, I will print a retraction immediately. I do not want to cause harm to my fellow sink manufacturers, but I do want to point out what, apparently, is not being told to potential buyers!

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Dining out in style is nearly impossible these days...

As technology invades our everyday tasks, we find more and more restaurants eliminating servers and have replaced them with iPads. The order is placed and runners deliver the food. That idea is starting to creep up the ladder toward the finer restaurants. For me, a great deal of the satisfaction gleaned by dining out is the service. More and more, a good server is difficult to find. There are a few establishments who train their servers well, and it shows. In the good old days, a high priced meal came with exceptional service. Now, that is a rarity. 

I have a prediction. As restaurants find the significant savings of eliminating servers, we will see more and more restaurants following - until the need reappears for fine service with fine dining. I believe restaurants, in the near future, will be able to distinguish themselves by their service as well as by their food offering. In fact, the service aspect may trump the food quality a bit. For me, I would rather have a good meal with excellent service than have an excellent meal with mediocre service. 

Timpano

Timpano has been our Christmas family meal for generations. The recipe has been handed down over and over by way of conversation. Finally, the recipe has been captured in writing so that everyone can enjoy this fabulous meal.

My early Days as an entrepreneur...

I became an entrepreneur early in my life. While in college, in Pittsburgh, I was driving by a cemetery and noticed a large pond with what appeared to be hundreds of goldfish in it. I drove into the cemetery and was standing by the pond when the grounds-keeper came over to say hello. I asked him how all of the goldfish found their way into the pond. He shook his head in dismay and said the darn kids get sick of them at home and dump them here. I inquired if it would be okay if I took some. He said, "Take them all - they are a nuisance". I promptly went to the store, purchased some garbage bags, a large net and a loaf of bread and returned. The grounds-keeper was so enthralled by what I was doing that he actually helped. I ended up with well over 200 large goldfish - which I promptly sold to the local aquarium shops. 

I then noticed that the plants that were sold at the aquarium shops were the exact type that was growing in the pond. I returned a week later to the cemetery and found the grounds-keeper. I inquired about the plants. He laughed and said, "You really want to pick the weeds out of the pond?" I said "Sure!" I filled several garbage bags full of the "weeds", took them home, cleaned them and wrapped them into small bunches and tied them together with rubber bands. I sold each bunch for 49 cents - I had hundreds of sprigs and sold out quickly. There were enough plants at the cemetery for several trips over several months. The main plant life in the pond was lily pads and flowers. They were truly beautiful and were being choked out by these "weeds". 

One last find... I noticed an area on the side of the road where the hillside had been blasted to make room for the road had some interesting looking rocks. I stopped to inspect them and found that they were green shale. They would look terrific in an aquarium. I loaded up my car with as many rocks as the car would hold and went around selling them (for months) to the local aquarium shops. They would actually put in orders for the rock delivery! So, those were my first ventures into capitalism and I had a ball!

Cooking the perfect steak - Every Time!

One of our custom sink clients used to own 7 restaurants. He told me a trade secret that perhaps you already know. In case you don't, this is how he cooked perfect steaks in his restaurants and didn't even have steak knives offered! The steaks could be cut with butter knives.

Many of you know that I love to cook. My background comes from an entire Italian family of amazing cooks. I am the cook in our home and I love every part of it - including the clean-up. 

First, to always cook a steak perfectly, you need a Sous Vide. I prefer the brand Anova. Get the model that has Bluetooth and wifi. So... what is a Sous Vide?

You are looking at one to the left. This gadget hooks on to just about any tall pot or container. Make sure the pot is plenty deep. You can use ziplock bags, but I find the vacuum seal bags are best. Before you start, season the steak well. Use a generous amount of salt and pepper, or best yet seasoned salt. Place the steak in the bag, remove all air and place it in the pot. The Sous Vide will clip on to the pot. Plug in the Sous Vide and set the temperature. I have found that 134 degrees will be medium rare (shown above). Here is the best part. Leave it to cook for several hours. It will not overcook. The steak you see above cooked for 4 1/2 hours. Pick the doneness you like. 132 will be rare, 136 medium and 138 medium well. 

I have found that leaner meats work best. I believe a strip steak or a filet would be best. The steak in the photo was a ribeye. It was terrific, but the fat areas were unappealing. The ribeye is easily my favorite for grilling though. 

So, when you are ready to eat, take a cast iron skillet and put it in your oven at the highest temperature possible (around 550 degrees). Once hot, remove your steak from the bag and DRY it thoroughly! Put the steak in the skillet, shut the door for about a 45 seconds, flip the steak, shut the door for another 45 seconds. Take the steak and skillet out of the oven and place on the cooktop. Sear the sides of the steak quickly and you will have the perfect steak!

It is impossible to overcook or undercook if you leave the food in the Sous Vide for at least 2 hours. Read some online recipes, you will be amazed. 

My son actually made "Poached Eggs" in the shell in the Sous Vide and he said they came out perfectly. 

Who has two hours to cook a meal? Well, this is the best part of the Sous Vide. Let's say you would like steak for dinner tonight. Before leaving for work, set up everything and put cold water and plenty of ice in the pot. This will keep the meat from sitting at room temperature. Remotely (from a smartphone) turn on the Sous Vide at 3pm. Your steaks will be ready any time from 5:30 or so through 9pm. The longer the time, the more tender the meat. 

I hope you learned something fun today! I have had a ball cooking with my Sous Vide. 

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