What NOT To Do with a Pressure Cooker

For Christmas this year, my brother got me a pressure cooker. I'll spare you the brand/make, but it did NOT come with an instruction manual. Normally, manuals are all over the Internet, but my husband and I had no luck finding one.

So, we started making phone calls. The manufacturer transferred us around until they finally admitted there was no online manual. No wonder our searching had returned void!

Long story short, the customer rep authorized a return to the retailer and said the only way we were getting a manual is to get a new pot.

I was excited about the thoughts of having a manual, until I started thinking about what was going to happen to the pot we already had. I had used it once, it had no manual, no packaging left (already trashed it), and no future if it was returned. I just knew the store would trash it after it was returned because who is going to resale a used pressure cooker with no book off the shelf?

So I kept it, determined to learn how to use it. I wanted to be a good steward of what I was given.

Let the trial and error begin.

The Internet has lots of websites devoted to recipes for the pressure cooker, but none of the recipes tend to match my southern home-cooking (and affordable!) style. As I create more recipes I hope to include them on here.

So far, I've managed to make lasagna, meat loaf, pork chops, and a few other things with success. In fact, I have used it nearly every meal since I got it for veggies or meat, and I'm very happy with the progress.

Until tonight...

Tonight I decided to cook rotini. I'm not sure if you can cook pasta in a pressure cooker or not, but I decided to give it a whirl.

Insert one pound of whole wheat rotini, covered in water, lid locked, set on the pre-programmed rice setting (this seemed to be the best match).

It took a while for the pressure to build, and when it did, it auto-defaulted to 15 minutes. Any cook knows that this is TOO LONG for pasta, so I watched the timer until 11 minutes had passed. I hit the stop button and flipped open the pressure valve to quick-release the pressure.

BIG MISTAKE.

Water started shooting out of the cooker all the way up to the top of my cabinets...a good three feet above where it was sitting. I had Brother in my arms so we took a good jump back and threw a rag on to the top but by this point it was too late. Water was pooling on top of the lid, cabinets were dripping, and it just kept coming. I knew this couldn't be good.

By the time it stopped, I knew that I was going to have to spend some extra time flushing the starchy water out of the valve. The starch would definitely be a clogger which would cause some malfunction.

Fast forward 15 minutes when the mess is cleaned up. I have a pot full of rotini cooked right to the point of perfection...plus five minutes. My whole wheat masterpiece turned into a pot of slimy pasta. My supper turned into a pasta bake in the hopes that the oven will dry some of the slime out. Cover it in cheese and nobody will ever know.

Let's throw in a spiritual connection...

How many times do we do things our way only for them to wind up, well, slimy. Recently, I've had a plan for how my life should be going. I had everything planned out just the way I wanted it. Quit job, move away to designated spot, find job, live happily ever after for now.

Funny how God has a way to shut doors. Every door I had opened on my own just got shut. Slimy!

So I spent a few weeks moping about my situation and let my joy dwindle to crying jaunts and bad attitudes. I suffered, my family suffered, and I definitely fell under conviction. I knew that God was working on something else, probably assuredly even better than my plans. God opened my eyes to see that my situation wasn't a bad as I was making it. He has encouraged me to (and work with my analogy here) put some cheese on this and make the best of it.

We never know what is coming tomorrow, whether good, bad, or ugly. But what God does want from us is to make the best of the situation. I have endured many tears and pity parties to come to this conclusion. And I still can't do it on a constant basis. Next trial, I'll probably stare at my slimy mess and wonder where I went wrong, but for now, I've got a pretty awesome cheesy pasta bake to enjoy. Not what I wanted for supper, but I'm excited to have it for now.

So, tune in for some recipes and maybe some more "What not to dos".

I'm praying for God to help you lay some cheese on your gloom.

  Bon appetit!

The Mom...unveiled

The Mom...unveiled

I have been on both sides of motherhood...the working mom & the stay-at-home mom. I have huge respect for both kinds of moms. It takes a lot to turn your back away from your pride and joy and head to work, and it takes a lot to stay home and pick up the constant whirlwind of toys, clothes, dishes, etc. that your darling(s) leave behind.

There are lots of websites dedicated to how to make the working mom and the stay-at-home mom more efficient. How to keep your chores and laundry caught up while working 40 hours a week. How to meal plan like a boss. How to plan lessons to begin teaching your preschooler at home. These are great resources...

BUT...

Nobody tells you how to beat the loneliness of motherhood.

Lonely isn't a word that you might use to describe being a person who is constantly surrounded by little bodies. But there is a specific loneliness that crept in on me that I have only felt when I was a mom. Sure I have felt lonely before...flashback to middle school! New kid in school ain't got nothing on being a mom.

Let me see if you can relate.

Working mama: You walk into work and are surrounded by happy faces and challenging tasks where you are constantly engaged in activity or conversation...but your child isn't there. Even in the middle of chaos, something isn't quite right knowing that your child is in someone else's care. You might have the best baby sitter in the world, and they can be fully competent...but your child isn't with you, so loneliness creeps in.

SAH mama: All day long, little bodies are begging you for something. I'm hungry, I'm thirsty, I need a change, I want to watch a movie, Let's play a game, I'm sick, Let's go outside... The demands are never ending. You are never alone. Not even in the bathroom. But something isn't quite right. There are needs for adult conversation. Needs for a pat-on-the-back. Needs for affirmation that someone else somewhere understands what you are going through.

There is NOTHING that is easy about being a mom, except for loving your children (and I've been told that gets harder in the teen years and beyond!). There is no amount of parenting classes that could prepare you for motherhood and nothing that could prepare your nerves for the beating they are enduring on a daily basis.

Loneliness is a tool from Satan. As a child of God, scripture promises that we are never alone.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. from Matthew 28:20


Feeling alone is a lie whispered straight into our ears. We have power and strength to overcome this through our Savior...but the real question is HOW?

How do you overcome anything when you feel so beat down?
How do you move from feeling alone to feeling surrounded by love and affirmation?

I heard a preacher this week speak on discouragement and he made a good point:
"It's ok to feel this way...It's not ok to stay feeling this way."

So how do you beat loneliness? I'm learning every day and planning (with God's direction) on sharing what has helped me. I am in no way a pro, and in fact, I may just be writing these points to myself...

Mama: Be encouraged. You are not alone. 

And if you're not feeling lonely, whisper a prayer of thanks right now. Our struggles are all different. Maybe mine can help you with yours.