I'll be honest with you — I had this thing for a while before I ever touched the pizza oven function. I'd been using it as a regular grill and griddle, and it was handling that job just fine. But the pizza oven part? I kept putting it off. Setting up the stone, sliding pies in through that little front door... it just seemed like more steps than I wanted to deal with on a weeknight.
But I finally did it. I shot the whole thing on video so y'all could watch along, and I want to give you my full thoughts here too — because a 30-second clip doesn't cover everything you'd actually want to know before buying or using this thing.
I had just picked up the Cuisinart 3-in-1 pizza oven, grill, and griddle, and right away I could tell it needed a proper home outside. It's a tabletop unit, which is great for portability, but you still need something sturdy to set it on — something at the right height, with room to work. I wasn't about to spend money on a new cart when I had an old grill base in the garage and a stack of leftover wood just waiting to be used.
So here's what I did, why it worked, and what you should know if you want to try something similar.
Fast forward almost a year, and I pulled those jars out to show you what happened. If you haven't seen dark vanilla extract before, you're in for something. That clear rum we started with? Deep, rich brown. Almost like molasses. You can see the vanilla specs still floating in it and the beans right there through the glass. That's when you know you did something right.
We bottled it all up as Christmas gifts — and this video is us doing exactly that, with Tytus helping every step of the way, a year older and still just as much my kitchen partner.
We got there early, which I'd recommend. The morning light was beautiful, the crowds were still thin, and the whole place just had that crisp fall atmosphere you can't manufacture. By the time you're reading this, you might already know about Lyon Family Farms — they've been drawing families from all over the Tennessee Valley and North Alabama for years. But if this is your first time hearing about it, let me give you the rundown.
Early morning at Lyon Family Farms — the best time to arrive.
Last year I decided Tytus was old enough and mature enough to start coming alongside me for real. Not just watching, not just tagging along — actually working. Cutting, prepping, cooking, serving. And he has risen to it every single time. I'm proud of him in a way that's hard to put into words. Watching your son understand at a young age that his time and his skills are worth something to other people — that's the kind of thing that sticks with a kid.
Tytus putting in work — this is what showing up looks like.
This is one of those kitchen habits that once you start, you can't stop. Tytus and I knocked o
ut a whole jar of mixed pickled vegetables in the time it takes to chop everything up. Here's exactly how we do it.
We have grilled hotdogs, hamburgers, chicken...On gas grills, charcoal, and smokers.
Sometimes we setup assembly lines and make packed lunches with some of the best sub sandwiches available anywhere!
On cold days we like to make chili or one of my favorites, white chicken chili. We make this with chicken quarters smoked and pulled. And then made in a big pot on a propane burner.
I have included two links below if you'd like to check out areas to serve in the Huntsville / Madison area. The groups do car mechanics, bicycle mechanics, landscaping/yardwork, painting, all kinds of construction, art and any kind of fun projects with the kids. And this is not an exhaustive list! - Come serve! (Not just cooking)
Because of this, I have also created a few new t-shirts for her to be able to wear to work. Now the last one I made for her when she first started in the ER (the leopard print one) and it has been a best seller along with Tie Dye being trendy again. The retro vintage Nurse one is also HOT right now! To check out all the designs follow this link to my TeePublic store... https://bit.ly/NurseDesign
On TeePublic they have a few different things available like stickers, more cell phone cases, buttons, magnets, laptop cases, journals...
Earlier this year Ezra decided he wanted to take karate. We were quite surprised! But he loves to go and has been sticking with it for a few months now. He has even made a few stripes and one belt.
