The Orange Strainer: How To Do Simple Kitchen Things

Today I had to take life by the horns. There are a few simple things I have yet to learn to do in my kitchen:
1. I had to get over my fear of pineapples.
2. I had to get over my fear of big knives.
3. I had to cut a pineapple.
4. I had to make hard boiled eggs.

Therefore, I've chosen to take a pause from my ordinary Orange Strainer food posts, to give a brief how to lesson.

You may be wondering the connection between the pineapple related items and the eggs. It is a simple matter of chance. The pineapple that sat on my kitchen table was beginning to rot and was therefore in need of being cut up so it could be enjoyed. The comment was made, not by me of course, that the pineapple needed to be cut. Moments later another comment was made, again not by me of course, that we were out of hard boiled eggs and how nice it would be if someone made some.

Ordinarily, I would find no guilt in refusing to do tasks that I have never done before and therefore do not know how to do. However, I'm home. All summer. Just me. Hubby is working. And I'm here. Not working.

Therefore, it was time.

You might wonder why I'm exposing myself like this. My thought is, there must be someone out there who can relate. Therefore, if I can help just one person with this post, I've succeeded. (And, if I've at least entertained the rest of you, it is a double success!).

How to cut a pineapple:

First, twist the crown off.

This was fascinating to me. Something I thought impossible and improbable happened with just a tiny twist.

Then, cut the pineapple in half from root to tip. Another fascinating development. I was sure that a pineapple would be ridiculously hard to cut into. Turns out it is pretty simple.

Then, cut it into quarters from root to tip.

That big honkin' knife is big (hence, why I used the word big twice to describe it) but it's not the biggest one of all.

Cut off the ends and cores of the quartered pieces.

Next, cut off the prickly skin of the pineapple quarters.

Yay for prickles!

Then, chop away at the remaining goodness.

Whew! That was a cinch! Why was I so afraid?

How to hard boil eggs:

First, it helps to have the Egg-Perfect Egg Timer. This is the first time I've used it, but my hubby doesn't ever boil eggs without it.

Put eggs in a pot. My mom's recipe tip is to cover the eggs with hot water. So, I put water in the pot, started the flame to get it a little warm, then added the eggs and the egg timer.

Once the water is boiling, turn the heat off and wait until the egg timer gets to the desired setting.

I was told by hubby to let it get down to medium. Notice the difference in color now from the earlier picture?

And this is what the egg timer looked like after being it the water past the time I kept my eggs in the water.

Make sure to put your hard boiled eggs into a container marked "Hard Boiled" or else you might have some messy situations in your kitchen. You can also cool the eggs in cool water if you want, but it isn't absolutely necessary.

Because if it was, I'd tell ya.