Since it has been a couple of years since receiving the set, I’m out of most of them – and almost out of the few I have left.  I’ve been meaning for a while to go to the store to replenish  my supply.  And then came Mother’s Day…  As always,  I had no idea what to get for a few of the moms on my list and then it hit me – a gift box from Penzey’s!  The perfect gift for the mom who loves to cook!  No, not my mom (mom’s more of a baker than a cook – I ended up getting her some jewelery and a CD that she wanted).  This would be a great gift for my Aunt Karen, who is quite the cook.

So last Saturday morning, I called up my mom to see if she wanted to join me on my adventure in West Hartford Center, where the nearest Penzey’s is located.  Of course she did, because who wouldn’t want to spend their free time on a Saturday looking at various spices with me?  She had to spend her morning logged on to work, but she was finally able to join me around 2PM and when we finally got there, the place was hopping!  Who knew?  But I could see why it’s so popular – we probably could have spent an hour or more in there!  There was so much to look at and to choose from!  I also didn’t realize that they had so many different gift sets.  It was really quite difficult to pick out the right one.

In the end I chose the 4 jar Grill and Broil set for my Aunt Karen and mom ended up getting the same set for my father for their anniversary.

I didn’t  end up grabbing anything for myself  this time as we just didn’t have that sort of time on our hands.  I honestly  think I would need at least a solid hour to poke around and figure out exactly what I wanted, but I definitely plan to make a trip back there very soon!

So anyway since I moved out on my own a few years ago, many of my gifts are now kitchen items.  As you may recall, I have a birthday coming up in a couple of weeks – and in my family we frequently get early birthday gifts – mostly because my mom doesn’t want to wrap them.  This year, I’ve gotten a Le Creuset enameled cast iron French oven from my parents –  oval 9 1/2 qts  in Salsa Red.  It is one sexy beast!

I have been looking at these for years –  long  before I did any cooking or had any desire to cook.  They’re just beautiful to look at and and I’m  told they last forever!  They look lovely from the stove top to the oven and onto your dining room table.  Now I have my very own!

I’ve already made a few things in it – and it works just wonderfully.  Everything cooks  perfectly and the clean up is simple – much easier than I’d expected.  It is, of course, a bit heavy, but that’s how you know it’s of good quality.

Thanks Mom and Dad!