{"id":56052,"date":"2015-08-15T00:09:18","date_gmt":"2015-08-15T07:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.raisingjane.org\/journal\/?p=56052"},"modified":"2015-08-15T00:09:18","modified_gmt":"2015-08-15T07:09:18","slug":"get-it-together-merit-badge-expert-level","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raisingjane.org\/journal\/56052","title":{"rendered":"Get It Together Merit Badge, Expert Level"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\tThe adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our<\/span> Sisterhood Merit Badge program<\/span><\/span><\/a>, now with\u00a06,571 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far\u20149,327 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Wondering who I am? I\u2019m Merit Badge Awardee Jane (MBA Jane for short). In my<\/span> former life<\/span><\/span><\/a> \u2026\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/b><\/div>\n

For this week\u2019s Farm Kitchen\/Get it Together Expert Level Merit Badge<\/span><\/a>, I was a little wary. A little concerned. Perturbed, if you will.<\/p>\n

Sharpen all my kitchen knives, and keep them razor sharp at all times?<\/p>\n

Sounds terrifying.<\/p>\n

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Photo by N\u00f3\u017c u\u017cytkowo via Wikimedia Commons<\/p><\/div>\n

I mean, wasn\u2019t I the epitome of safety, the guru of precaution, the wizard of cautiousness, by keeping my knives at the blunt end of the spectrum?<\/p>\n

Turns out \u2026 not so much.<\/p>\n

Actually, a little note from me to you, chickadees, a sharp knife is much less dangerous than a dull one. <\/em><\/p>\n

Guess I wasn\u2019t the sharpest tool in the shed.<\/p>\n

Haha!<\/p>\n

When I first discovered that little fact (the one about the knife, not the one about what\u2019s between my ears), I was startled. It just didn\u2019t make sense. But here\u2019s the deal, peeps:<\/p>\n

If your knife is so blunt and dull that it can\u2019t even slice a tomato without making Grammy\u2019s famous marinara sauce, then you\u2019re probably going to use a lot of excess force. And excess force, however good for your forearms and biceps, is not so peachy keen when you\u2019re chopping and dicing and slicing and peeling and julienning and etc, etc.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Knightia13 via Wikimedia Commons<\/p><\/div>\n

Also, dull knives slip around quite a bit more (probably because they\u2019re gleefully somersaulting away in their fiendish attempts to never <\/em>mince the garlic) and that\u2019s never a good thing either.<\/p>\n

So, color me late to the party, but I\u2019m here now. And guess what I brought? To our imaginary party, I mean?<\/p>\n

Sharp knives.<\/p>\n

I feel like a ninja.<\/p>\n

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Photo by St\u00e9phane Gallay via Wikimedia Commons<\/p><\/div>\n

My tomatoes are sliced to a paper-thin degree, my garlic is finely minced, my apples are quartered and peeled and diced (did somebody say pie?), my bread hasn\u2019t been hacked to death, my roast chicken looks like it was butchered by Julia Child herself, and I am one happy camper.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll never go back to those dull-as-dishwater knives again. I\u2019m a changed woman!<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re interested in sharpening up your cutlery, here are a few ideas and methods to get you started on your way to culinary delight:<\/p>\n