Monday 25 November 2013

Stovetop Potpourri




Since starting Caker Cooking in 2011, I’ve made some pretty unappetizing things. Who could forget the terribleness of “This is Terrible - The Soda is Overwhelming” Cherry Pudding or the nothingness of Cheese Snacks or the horror of Special K Meatless Roast?

Just when I thought it wasn't possible, the caker elevator plummeted another floor down.

When I saw this recipe, I figured “potpourri” was some kind of French gourmet word. And it looked easy enough to make.

Let me go on record by saying this is the worst soup I ever ate! It tasted like someone stirred it with a sweaty gym sock. The caraway seeds got caught in my teeth and the cinnamon stick was impossible to gnaw through. (I gave up after an hour and then made a dentist appointment.)

While it made my kitchen smell nice (for once), I wouldn’t recommend you make this soup. Ever. Just do yourself a favour and stick to Campbell’s cream-of-anything.

On a brighter note, Caker Christmas, my month-long extravaganza leading up to my annual Caker Christmas party, starts Monday, December 2. I’ll be posting three times a week. Recipes! Crafts! Thought-provoking essays! (Okay, two out of three.)

In the meantime, don't forget to check out the crap treasures I've scored so far during Bazaar-o-Rama. Click here or click the upper right hand tab. I'll update the page this Friday with my final haul.

2 bay leaves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tablespoon each – whole allspice, cloves, caraway seeds

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Add above ingredients and boil 5-10 minutes. Simmer as long as desired. Add water as necessary. Refrigerate and reuse.


Source: A Taste of Friendship, Woodbridge United Church Women

14 comments:

  1. A Taste of Friendship... genius... ;-)

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    1. Ironic, isn't it? Just like that Alanis Morrissette song where she talks about 10,000 spoons when all she needs is a fork. Or something like that.

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  2. Seems like something you might want to bottle and spritz around to freshen up, like a crime scene, or something. Loving Bazaar-o-Rama -deffo need to know how to make those crochet coat hangers.

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    1. You're right. My god, I just invented Febreze. Off to the bank (in other words: Mother) for a small business loan.
      I wish I knew how to make those coat hangers. I didn't pay close enough attention to my grandmother when she was making them.

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  3. Love it!!! For those of you who are CBC listeners - this reminds me of the Vinyl Cafe Christmas Episode in which Dave eats a big handful of the neighbours potpourri thinking it is a fancy snack mix. I'm still laughing.

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    1. Hold on. Someone else fell victim to this pot pourri thing? We've got to sign a petition of some kind. Enough is enough.

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  4. No wonder it tasted bad--you forgot the Dream Whip!

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    1. You raise a good point. There's nothing I won't eat provided it's got a good dollop of Dream Whip on top. Remind me to tell you about that kitchen sponge some time.

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  5. Are you sure this is meant to be consumed?? Seems like something that should be set out in a bowl with a tea light underneath to make a room smell Christmas-y. Or just left to simmer on the stove to make your guests think you've actually been baking something. But eat it? I think not.

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    1. Shirley, here's the thing - if you put something in a cookbook and it's not supposed to be eaten, then put in the recipe instructions "Do Not Eat!"

      I'm not a smart man. I need guidance.

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  6. LMAO dude! You obviously did not spend enough time in the 90's researching in those giftshops that sold all those tchochkes including boatloads of that smelly stuff. (Of course you were likely 10 at the time) I can just imagine the thrifty cakers of the Woodbridge church ladies guild feeling so clever having done their own potpourri although it probably originally came from such journalistic powerhouses as Women's Own...

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    1. Oh, I fondly remember those gift shops. Pot pourri. Hand-painted signs that read "Grandparents are special." Shot glasses. Copper. Lots and lots of copper. And who could forget the homemade fudge that never looked homemade?

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  7. What Shirley said. I don't think that was for eating.

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    1. "I don't think that was for eating" is a line I've said to myself far too many times.

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