In our house, both my husband and I enjoy cooking.  In fact, we love a lazy Sunday where we can spend the afternoon in the kitchen making a variety of culinary creations.  However, until last weekend we had an obstacle or two when cooking.

The biggest obstacle was our stove, which was in sad shape.  The broiler didn’t work, and the gas burners were temperamental.  As it is with appliances, these ailments were degenerative, getting progressively worse with time. Since we were ready to replace the stove, we decided we should have a few small kitchen repairs done and have the kitchen repainted at the same time.  So for a couple weeks, we had diminished cooking abilities, as the kitchen work was completed and we awaited our stove’s arrival.

With the kitchen work finished and the stove installed last Thursday, we were excited to put it to use.  Over the weekend, we tried the stove portion, making an assortment of scrambled eggs, paninis, and tea for the family, and the oven portion, baking a cheesecake and some brie.  Last night, I finally got to use the broiler for one of our Monday night tapas dishes, Greek Eggplant Dip.

Having our new stove makes the kitchen feel whole again.  We have returned to our world of menu planning without considering if the recipe requires a broiler or if a temperamental burner will work.  Our culinary creating can begin again.