Cherry Cabinets Worth Recycling

The Re-Use People just sent out their monthly newsletter and there are some nice cherry cabinets up for grabs at their San Leandro warehouse. There's even a 48" built-in fridge with panels! Must have been a BIG kitchen...Wonder if they changed it out because the fridge panels wouldn't fit?

Here's an image:


























The Oakland warehouse has received several large sets of handsome kitchen cabinets.

Location and Contact Information

TRP Retail-Warehouse
9235 San Leandro Street
Oakland, CA 94603
(510) 383-1983; toll-free 888-588-9490
Hours: Mon through Fri 10:00 to 6:00; Sat and Sun 10:00 to 4:00

Peggy

Warm Chocolate Tart

~These are perfect for entertaining - chill the uncooked tarts until you're almost ready to serve, then quickly cook them. The only rule with these is to eat them straight from the oven while the centres are still gooey.~ (BBC Good Food Magazine)

The good thing is you can make this in advance, just tuck it into the oven from frozen and enjoy your dinner before the oven "ding". Hassle Free!

Serve the warm chocolate tart with some homemade oreo ice cream. Yummy!

Recipe for 4 x 10cm tart pans

For Shortcrust pastry:
220g plain flour
110g unsalted butter
20g sugar powder

pinch of salt
2 egg yolk + 2 tbsp cold water

For chocolate fillings:
200g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
2 tbsp double cream
1 tbsp brandy (optional)
2 large eggs, plus 1 yolk
50g caster sugar
85g almonds, chopped

1. Mix the eggs yolks with 2 tbsp cold water stir with a fork until well combine. Place the flour into the bowl of a food processor, followed by the cold butter and the salt.
2. Turn the processor on and pulse several times until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.Add the egg yolk/water mixture and pulse again. Be careful not to overwork the pastry. Stop pulsing when the mixture has the consistency of chunky breadcrumbs.
3. Turn the pastry out onto a clean, floured work surface and, with floured hands, bring together to make a dough, but don't knead. Shape into a flattened ball, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. You can keep the pastry at this stage for 2-3 days if not using it immediately.Remove the pastry from the fridge. On a clean, floured work surface, roll it out with a floured rolling pin until it's slightly larger than the flan ring. Using the rolling pin, lift the pastry and lay it over the flan ring.
4. With your fingers, lightly press the pastry into the sides of the ring. Run a rolling pin over the top of the ring and pull away the excess pastry at the edges. Using your fingers, gently press the pastry up to slightly build up the height of the pastry at the edges.
5. Line the tart with a piece of parchment and chill it for 20 minutes so it doesn't shrink when you cook it.
6. Heat the oven to 200'C. Add baking beans or rice and bake it for 15 minutes, then lift out the parchment and beans and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the pastry is dry and a good brown colour.
7. While the pastry is cooking, melt the chocolate, cream and alcohol, if using, in a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
8. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolk and sugar until light and frothy. Briefly whisk the melted chocolate into the eggs and fold through most of the chopped nuts.
9. Divide the chocolate mixture between the cases and scatter with the remaining nuts. Uncooked tarts can now be frozen. Bake for 12 minutes or 20 minutes from frozen. The tops of the tarts will souffle up and they should still be soft in the middle. Serve with some berries, cream or ice cream. Enjoy!

A Note About Paneled Appliances

Kathy Passarette, over at Creative Home Expressions,
has a beautiful post with lots of great images of refrigerators blended into the cabinetry, mirrored, made to look like armoires, etc.

One thing to note about paneled appliances, typically dishwashers and refrigerators, is that eventually you will have to replace the appliance.

We HAD a paneled refrigerator until it died and we had to buy a new one.

Even though we bought the same make, size and configuration refrigerator, the panels would not fit and could not be re-used. A $1000 investment, useless and in the trash.

I LOVED those panels too >:-C

I actually kept them in the garage for months before I would let my husband dispose of them...And we are not keepers of "stuff".

Our cabinetry is stained wood. Perfectly matching old stained wood is difficult if not impossible. In a kitchen it has been exposed to all those vapors and such for years.

The cabinet company was no longer in business.

For all of the above, we now have an un-paneled refrigerator.

















Imagine if it was and armoire investment...With TASSELS no less.

A further note:

Refrigerators have been growing in height ever since I became a kitchen designer.

Back in the '80's they were no more than 69" high. Nowadays more like 72" high.

Sub-Zero is the only company that still makes their refrigerators the same height as in the '80's - 84" high.

That means the "built-in look" your designer so carefully tried to achieve with the cabinet over the top coming right down to the top of the fridge, won't allow you to install a new fridge without replacing that upper cabinet.

I learned my lesson on this issue years ago and started specifying a space above, with a removable valance to close the gap that could be easily trimmed.

In spite of what you are thinking about the longevity of your appliances when you plan your new kitchen; they are never going to last forever.

What a shame to have to tear out a perfectly good kitchen just to replace your armoire...oops - fridge. Kinda shows where we are as a society. Doesn't it?

Peggy