Adding to the Kitchen, Step 4: The Oven

When I was 20 years old, I moved into my first apartment, which did not have a microwave.  My roommate bought some bacon, and I asked her..."How will we cook it without a microwave?"  My parents let me cook once when I was 11 years old, and when the recipe said something that I didn't know what it meant ("brown the meat"), I skipped that step.  And my parents let me skip cooking pretty much from then on.  I just didn't grow up cooking.

Waiting tables all through college (and thus, plenty of meals from the restaurant) continued that absence in my life.  However, when I moved to Portugal, and did not have access to Hot Pockets (and other microwavable meals), and the only way to stay warm in the winter was to stand in front of the stove, I figured it might be time to learn.

It wasn't until I moved to France, however, that I really began to thoroughly enjoy cooking.  Julia Child was right--there's just something about the butter in this country that makes you want to be in the kitchen!  The last few years have seen me growing in my cooking skills.

The only time I've blogged about cooking is when I made Eggs Benedict.  I have, however, taken many a photo of some of the things I've made.  I told my dad recently that I am not going to be the next Pioneer Woman who's cooking and blogging end up combined to equal a show on the Food Network.  Why?  Well, because first of all, I cook the Pioneer Woman's recipes instead of creating my own.  Haha.  Second, because I don't want to be on TV.  (Which is also, by the way, why I refuse to acquiesce to Yoda's request to sign up for the Amazing Race with him.)  So, now that I have an oven, and as much as I love cooking and blogging, don't expect to see recipes end up here.

The first oven I ever fell in love with was at the Wise family's house.  For three months, I drooled over this guy:

The left side (with the orange glow) was a real fire that was used to heat the whole house, and the rest of the range.  It is the old-school glorious predecessor to this guy:

If I could buy any oven I want, I'd buy him.  Five gas burners plus an electric double hot plate.  Two ovens and a grill.  Plus he's gorgeous.  The Falcon Classic 110 in red.  Oh my.  I drool for that the way most men do for some fancy car.  But alas.  I don't have the space, the gas hook up, nor the 2500 euros for that.  Nor the need.  But maybe my mansion in glory will have him?

Deciding on a range was difficult, which is why it took me 15 months to do it.  Once I'd decided to remove the cabinet/counter so that I could put in a one-piece range (instead of a separate oven and stovetop), the decision became much easier.  I just had to find out if I had a gas hook-up or not.  I have a city gas line that heats my water and my apartment, and was told at the lease-signing that it would hook up to the oven as well.  Once we moved the cabinet/counter, we realized that was not true.  The gas hook up is about six feet away from where the oven would go.  While I do love the gas stove top, electric oven range that I had picked out (it's the same as Mrs. X's), I went with an all electric.

Let me introduce the newest member of the bettercountry household: the Scholtes CI66 in black!  The decision making process was actually rather simple.  When I put what I wanted into the search engine of the electronics store, (60cm, which is the largest without being a dreamy big guy), vitroceramique stovetop, non-white, with four burners instead of three), this one came up with the highest rating within my price range.  I purchased it about 2 weeks before the semi-annual sales started, and was nervous that I should have waited a few more weeks.

Well, guess what?  It went up in price by a hundred euros since then!  That makes me like him even more.  He was delivered today with absolutely no problem and looks all comfortable nestled into his spot in the kitchen.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go prepare for the cook-off I was challenged to by Relentless, who has been waiting almost as anxiously for the range to arrive as I have.  I'd like to add, that all these years since that very first apartment, and um...I still don't have a microwave.  And I'm totally okay with that.

(Stay tuned for Step 5 of Adding to the Kitchen, in which I purchase cabinets with no counters because nothing ever makes sense in this country...)