Friday Things #419
1. Yesterday was the last day of 3’s preschool for Dominic! I am so proud of this guy; he loved school, loved his teacher, and learned so much. And he looks so grown up compared to that first day in September ❤️️
2. Isabelle has been using the potty this past week!! We are not at full potty-trained status yet, but she’s asking to go, she actually does go, and oh boy, we are VERY excited at the prospect of finishing our 6+ year non-stop stretch of diapers very soon 💃
3. All of the kids have been so loving and wonderful with the dogs, which makes my heart so happy. Joseph has been sitting on the couch and petting Judith for the longest time and he always looks so completely relaxed.
4. Talk to me about air fryers… I’ve had multiple people ask me about creating air fryer recipes, but I don’t have one. Are they worth it?
5. The Best Pizzas in Every State… do you have a favorite??
6. If you need some dessert ideas for Mother’s Day, these are a few of my favorites for springtime special occasions >> Hummingbird Cake / Carrot Cake / No-Bake Banana Split Dessert / Angel Food Cake / Cream Cheese Pound Cake / New York Crumb Cake
7. I love following Clean Mama and she started a new series on her blog called “Simple Shortcuts”; I’ve really enjoyed her posts on meal prepping and morning routines!
8. Is anyone else getting excited to watch the Olympics? Give me all the gymnastics and swimming!
9. What have you been watching? We tried another show after we caught up on Yellowstone but lost interest pretty quickly, so now we’re back to catching up on seasons of Doc Martin on AcornTV.
10. TGIF! Judith wishes she could snuggle with everyone!
Aren’t you just dying to see what happens next on Yellowstone????
We have the Ninja (Air Crisp, Roast, Bake, Grill), in December the Ninja with pressure cooker and a whole lot of other features was on sale so we have that one too. Last summer our house burned down with all of our stuff in it so we bought a Ninja Air Fryer. We cooked in it all last summer and now at least three times per week. In the big machine we have successfully roasted full chickens and turkey breast. Made really good yogurt and with the dehydration feature made jerky. We love both of them and would recommend the Ninja brand because last summer/fall we used the small one every single day, twice a day. It was our only appliance for about 4 months; it is still going strong.
It is so sweet to see your children share your love of your furry friends. If we could all be like our dogs the world would be such a better place.
Just finished Endeavour on Prime last night. Loved it. Season 8 is currently being filmed in the UK. Great character development, lots of twists and turns…I’m a sucker for a British cop show! The episodes are 90 mins long which is the perfect length for us in the evening.
We have one of those older big black bulbous air fryers that works great but doesn’t cook much at a time and is a pain to store. Our current toaster oven has an air fryer setting but doesn’t produce nearly as good results. If I was to buy another, I would probably go for the Ninja 8in1 from Costco so that I could ditch the crock pot and Instant Pot.
Hiii, we have owned an airfryer for some years now and use it on a weekly basis. We love it to heat up fries or cook them in their. It’s awesome for sausages … we often bake a Brie in it for brunch. Chicken wings come out nice and crisp. To sum it up: we love our airfryer and will be upgrading it soon.
Thank you for all the amazing recipes you share with us. Love from Atlanta, anja
We just finished the 7th season of Endeavour (Masterpiece Theater) on Prime. Loved, loved, loved it! Great characters and lots and lots of moving parts and pieces and twists and turns. The episodes are 90 minutes each which is the perfect length for us in the evening. Season 8 is currently being filmed. I’m a sucker for a British cop show!
We have an air fryer, one of the older big black bulbous ones that doesn’t cook much at a time…so it doesn’t get used much. I will say that our current toaster oven has an air fry setting and it is NOTHING like the air fryer. Making “fried” fish in the air fryer is delish…in the toaster oven on air fry setting it is blah and doesn’t crisp up like the air fryer.
I bought an air fryer about 4 months ago and it sits unopened in my garage. I’ve been meaning to try it out, but alas, like my bread maker will probably end up gifting/ donating it. As for television shows, on Amazon Prime I just binge watched, “Them” and I will say it certainly is not for the weak. Scary as heck, frightening on many levels; psychological, physically, mentally and sociologically. Honestly, so much to digest, but well worth it as it will certainly start a, or several timely discussions about race relations in our country.
It’s so irresponsible for these Olympics to go ahead!
We had both an air fryer and an instant pot. used them a lot. Hubby decided to upgrade to a Ninja that is a pressure cooker, crock pot, instant pot and air fryer. We love it and use it at least 5 times a week. sometimes a couple times a day, if making perfect hard cooked eggs, or heating leftovers. Got one for our daughter and family – also three kids – and she just loves it. Huge time saver. I highly recommend it. Good luck! Thanks for sharing your lovely family with us, along with yummy recipes. Are Sunday dinners going to return any time soon?
As an animal lover I think you would like All Creatures Great and Small, It was a great series on PBS. I really enjoyed it. My kids bought be an air fryer a few years ago when they were popular. I don’t love it, it big and hard to store in my kitchen. Maybe they have improved since this purchase. My daughter has a small one made by DASH and she loves it.
Debris on NBC has been good. The last two episodes in particular were great.
I am coo coo bananas for my air fryer! We use it a lot. Fresh veggies are amazing in it. Little olive oil, salt, and pepper make it all delish. I was surprised at how juicy chicken is as well as steaks. It’s nice for frozen foods as well. Bit heats up way faster than the stove and cooks it much faster. You definitely want something larger for the whole fam. We have this one:. https://www.amazon.com/Instant-Vortex-Plus-Rotisserie-10/dp/B07VM28XTR
I loved Doc Martin. There is going to be a 10th season. There are many great shows on Acorn. I watch it quite a lot.
Derry Girls on Netflix is hilarious! So much fun! Call the Midwife is on Netflix too.
IMO air fryers aren’t worth the money. It doesn’t do anything that you can do with a stove. I have a 6 qt. one that I got for free from Kohls. I use it for frozen things like french fries & tots, and for baking small cakes & meatloaves. It works when cooking for one, but I don’t think it would be practical for a family since you have to cook things in small batches. Have a Happy Mother’s Day!!
Love that your kids love the doggies. Your showing them doggie love n care to last a lifetime❤.
Pizza–oddball “find” was actually a frozen pizza that was on coupon at my local store. Freschetta brick oven cheese pizza…omg so surprisingly good. I just added my own fresh sliced mushrooms.
Sweet pic of Judith. Such pretty dogs.
I started with the bucket air fryer & have now progressed to large double door ones. I have the Kalorik Maxx. It’s sold on AMA on. It’s worth every penny!
I keep finding new uses for it every day.
Fast lower fat foods, or put cold take out fries in it & in minutes they’re perfect again. Fresh chips, oh so yum!
I air fry a chicken breast to have fresh cooked chicken for a recipe. Very fast. Air fried veggies are great in flavor. I like my Kalorik Maxx because it’s also a rotisserie & a mini oven & a dehydrator, air fryer too.
Yes get one!
Reading Clean Mama made me feel tired, I am not a morning person😉. I love Acorn TV. Just finished Newton’s Law and Keeping Faith and am now making my way through a second Dutch series The Schouwendam 12, subtitled and very intriguing. Loved 800 words made in NZ. Having lived in Australia for 30 years, I love being able to watch some quality Australian stuff. I too would love to know about air fryers.
Happy Mother’s Day!
I agree Wendy about reading Clean Mama.
I don’t want to race my coffee pot in the
morning. Life is too short to not slow down a little sometimes.
I just bought an air fryer this week. I haven’t used it yet, Nap time Kitchen on IG had a review of the Cuisinart one that also acts as a toaster oven. I purchased that one so I can replace my current toaster oven and not lose countertop space.
I have the air fryer made by Instant Pot? It’s ok… I don’t love it. It’s big and noisy. It has trays instead of a basket and it can be a little messy trying to switch the trays halfway through cook time. They go in the dishwasher, which is nice. I use it for things like cheese sticks or tater tots, but I guess I’m old school and just find that stove/oven cooking is easier. Also, it did not come with a book with suggested cook times, so I have to do internet research whenever I want to use it.
I love my air fryer! I use it at least twice a week, even more during the winter. Pork chops, chicken legs, asparagus, broccoli, homemade potatoes of any kind and frozen fries. Taquitos, and any kind of frozen food to make my life easier such as breaded chicken cutlets and chicken nuggets. It’s surpassed my instant pot as my new favorite appliance! Give it a try, I just have a basic one. When I wear it out, and I probably will, I’ll get a fancier model that does other things too. I love to see the pictures of your kids with your goldens. Goldens are the best!
I love seeing Judith in your Friday posts. Always look forward to them.
Secrets of the Whales looks good but haven’t seen any episodes yet
Watching The Nevers.
Condor
Some people like Britannia
Van Helsing but that is like vampire zombies. If you’re into that stuff.
I don’t care for the walking dead. But I watch this. 😲
I have a very strong opinion on air fryers! LOL When they started getting popular 3ish years ago I bought a small one and quickly realized I should have done more research. It was too small for a family of 4 as you have to leave space around the food (so the air can circulate). It took forever to get enough food prepared. I was really frustrated with it and never used it again. This past Xmas I decided I wanted to try again – I did a TON of research and decided on the Ninja 8-in-1. It is large capacity and it air fries, bakes, broils, dehydrates, etc. We use it almost every night. Last night we baked brownies in it. I hardly ever turn on my oven. I love it so much, I bought a 2nd one. With the two, I should be able to easily avoid turning on my oven during the full heat of summer. I highly recommend the Ninja 8-in-1 because it does a great job with air frying and so much more!
Love Wire in the Blood. Oldie but goodie Law and Order UK. And non cop show Mount Pleasant
What Tamara said…A Place to Call Home is a must watch.
And IMO an air fryer is a must have. We use ours nearly every day. French toast, bacon, roasted potatoes, crispy tofu, french fries, etc, etc. The air fryer is a rock star for fish. My only advice is not to go too small for capacity. The first one that we got was just too small so we got a larger one and are very happy with it.
The picture of Joseph on the couch with Judith really shows what he’s going to look like as an adult.
All the dog cuddles! It makes my heart happy and sad at the same time. I miss cuddling with my (or any) dog.
We LOVED All Creatures Great and Small! Great series. We watched it on PBS.
I just sold my air fryer. I thought it would be handy, but honestly it took up a lot of space, was awkward to clean, and didn’t do anything my oven can’t do – especially with the oven on convection. I know a lot of people love them, but for me it wasn’t worth it.
Michelle,
Love your blog and all the recipes that come with it. Totally enjoyed reading about pizzas. Having lived in the Detroit area for several years, we are very familiar with Buddy’s pizza. The best, still after all these years. Now living in Tucson Arizona, whenever we crave a good pizza, believe it or not, there is a Detroit style frozen pizza, sold at Walmart of all places, That comes pretty darn close to our favorite. It’s called authentic motor city Pizza Company, described as Detroit style deep dish pizza. Several flavors offered Four Cheeese, Three Meat, and one other…….They run about $7.00 .. Quick meal, easy to prepare and very satisfying. Give it a try. Happy Mother’s Day.
We really like Wire in the Blood. Also oldie but goodie Law and Order UK. And non “cop” show Mount Pleasant.
Nit really watching anything right now – have been doing audio books. Your kids look fabulous and are growing up so quickly. I can imagine your joy at being done with diapers. Have a great weekend and a good Mother’s Day.
I live just outside of Detroit, Buddy’s pizza is just how the article described. Nothing like it. I could actually go for a slice right now. Also been watching Atlantic Crossing on Masterpiece/PBS. It takes place at the start of World War 2. Quite a bit of subtitles but I’ve really liked it so far.
1. LOVE my air fryer. From chicken nuggets and fries to burgers and salmon. I’ve even made churros in it. So good.
2. YESSS. Can’t wait for the Olympics
3. Good Girls and Killing Eve are the shows I’m on right now.
What brand of air fryer do you have? I also love Killing Eve…so good!
OMG! Food and Wine has mentioned DiCarlos Pizza in Steubenville! (Shout out to Dean Martin)This was my Mothers favorite pizza although we would get it from DiCarlos WVA. The uncooked cheese and pepperoni gives it a cleaner taste but that crust is the star in our family. I still am trying to duplicate it at home since we don”t live in the area anymore.
Thank you for pointing out the article.
Hi! Yes, buy one big enough. DO NOT buy the Emeril Lagasse 360. Everyone’s has gone bad 1 week after the warranty and they do NOTHING!!
Experiment with it, you won’t be sorry.
love acorn tv! I loved a place to call home and I’m currently watching the heart guy and enjoying it.
I’m enjoying binge watching “Doctor Doctor” also know as “The Heart Guy”. It’s an Australian series and contrary to what I always thought about Australian TV it’s really good. You see, I’m an Australian born Italian now living in Italy (almost 40 years now), so when it came on it was like returning home. The Australian accent together with the witty Australian humor makes it irresistible (well to me!). Give it a try if you haven’t already. There are 4 series. The 5th is being filmed now.
I lived in Oz for 30 years before returning to my native Canada. I too love Australian shows (as well as British, Kiwi (have you watched 800 words?) etc). Acorn is the best place to watch them as far as I know. I also love Aussie humour…have you watched Kath and Kim? So many good shows to watch!