The Innkeeper's Kitchen Helpers

Many an innkeeper or inn sitter working in a bed and breakfast kitchen has looked at a piece of equipment and thought "what else can I use this for?". Here are some of my favorite items and their alternate use

Rolling Pin - Place food items in a heavy-duty self-sealing plastic bag and then use the pin to do one of the following:
- Flatten skinless chicken breast halves to a uniform thickness for even cooking
- Grind nuts without using a food processor to use in dips or for crumb toppings
- Crush spices for the freshest flavor to add to your dishes.

Pastry Blender: works best with soft foods.
- Egg or Tuna - use it to slice up eggs and flake tuna more quickly for use in salads or sandwiches.
- Avacados for Guacamole - the avocados are soft enough to mash with the pastry blender. It will add body and chunks to the dip.
- Mashed Potatoes - use to break up cooked potatoes. Then you can add some butter and warm milk for a smooth creamy side dish.

Paper Towel Roll - flatten this tube when all the paper towels have been used up and insert a knife that won't fit in a butcher block. It sheathes the blade safely when stashed in a drawer.

Bamboo Steamer - since these items have holes in them to let air in and out, they are also well suited to storing onions, garlic, and shallots. All these items require ventilation and should not be refrigerated. Set on the counter for quick access.

Seam ripper - while not usually found in the kitchen, this handy sewing item makes fast work of removing plastic packaging from around bottles.  Slip the sharp pointed edge under the wrapping to break the seal.

Chopstick - use a chopstick to measure the height of liquid in a pan when you are reducing it.

And, last but not least, use large coffee filters between two sauce pans or frying pans to keep them from scratching each other.

Lynda and Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Breakfast Recipe For Late Risers - It's All In The Planning

Innkeepers, or their inn sitters, are generally early risers due to the nature of the bed and breakfast business. After all, one of the things that a guest expects is a good bed to sleep in and a tempting breakfast.  How long does it take to get breakfast ready?  For those who like to sleep as late as they can, I would say about an hour from when you hit the kitchen to food on the table for guests to eat.


How does the innkeeper manage to get it all done, and on the table, sometimes as early as 8am?  Planning!  Much can be done the day before, in preparation for the next days breakfast. All of the juices, in their containers, can be placed in the refrigerator ready to serve.  Condiments such as jellies and butter can be filled and in their containers (or single serving packets) and placed in the refrigerator, just waiting to be brought out. The table can be set and the coffee service stocked ready to go.  Coffee and water can be measured and in the coffee pot waiting for the innkeeper to push the start button or for the automatic timer to turn on.

All well and good, but what about the food portion of the meal?  This is when many innkeepers, when faced with a full house, will opt for an overnight egg dish.  These dishes are assembled the night before and covered in their baking dishes.  Usually, whether it be for a strata or French toast, there is a need for the entree to soak overnight so that the egg is absorbed into the bread.  All that the innkeeper needs to do is take the dish out of the refrigerator and put it in the oven to cook. While this dish is cooking, the fruit course can be prepared, bread can be sliced, and meats can cook on the top of the stove.

One thing that any organized innkeeper needs is a timer that has two or sometimes three settings.  This will help keep the innkeeper on track, especially if they are the only one doing all of the food preparation.  If you are a lucky innkeeper who has two ovens, you might even be able to make fresh cooked muffins.  All it takes is planning.

If you would like a copy of our Overnight Green Chili Strata Breakfast Recipe, let me know.


Lynda and Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Social Media for Your Business

I came across this in a Hub Spot e-mail that came in my in box this morning.   It made sense and I wanted to share it with others.  Monitoring your business' social media presence daily is very important. You need to respond to people talking about your brand and understand how people view your company. However, it does take time.  This is important whether you are an innkeeper or inn sitter  If you set up a solid routine, monitoring your online presence doesn't have to be a hassle at all.

From Hub Spot, here are five free, easy steps you can take to get things started. Do each task in the morning when you start work, and you should be good to go.

1) Check Twitter for chatter about your company (takes maybe 2 minutes): Use tools like TweetDeck or Twitter Search to monitor conversations about your company in real-time. To check once a day, set up an RSS feed for a specific Twitter Search to go straight to your Google Reader. Do this by clicking the little RSS icon after you complete a search. Now, ongoing search results will be sent to your reader.

2) Scan Google Alerts (should take about 1.5 minutes): Check your Google Alerts for your company name, products, executives or brand terms. To set this up, enter your search terms and select to receive updates as they happen or once daily. Now, when people blog about your products, an alert will be sent to your inbox. You can read the articles and respond right away!

3) Check Facebook stats (should take about 1 minute): Visit your Company Page's Facebook Insights. This can be found by clicking "more" under the page's main photo. Scan your fans and page views count. If you are a member of a group, check to see if any new discussions started.

4) Answer Industry-related LinkedIn questions (should take about 3 minutes): Search for questions on LinkedIn that you or members of your company can answer. You can set up an RSS feed for specific question categories to go to your Google Reader as well. When you find a relevant question, respond and include a link to your website.

5) Use Google Reader to check Flickr, Delicious, Digg and others (should take about 2.5 minutes): Also set up RSS feeds for searches on your company name and industry terms in other social media sites. Similar to monitoring LinkedIn and Twitter, your Reader will serve as a great place to centralize your other searches too!

So, whether you own a bed and breakfast or are the temporary inn sitters paying attention to social media is very important.

Lynda and Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

What Can A Burned Out Innkeeper Do?

When you are burned out by the demands of your chosen innkeeping profession and feel overwhelmed by the many hats you are required to wear as a bed and breakfast or other lodging property owner or manager, let a professional Interim Innkeeper or Inn Sitter step in and give you some much needed rest. Renew that freshness you once had by allowing yourself the down-time you deserve, and require, to give a genuine welcome to your guests. How can you pamper your guests and give them a sense of peace and relaxation if you need that very thing yourself ?

Interim innkeepers or inn sitters will run your bed and breakfast or other lodging facility your way. Their mission is to ensure that your inn continues to operate at the same standard of excellence that you provide when you are there. You can feel comfortable leaving your property in the care of experienced, trustworthy professional interim innkeepers or innsitters.

These professionals will continue to answer your phone. They will be there to take that reservation for next month or maybe even next year. Why miss out on short term and long term revenue? There is no need to give that guest to your competition if you have hired an interim innkeeper or inn sitter to continue running your lodging operation.

Most Basic Daily Inn Sitting Fees Usually Include The Following
* Check-in and check-out of guests
* Making and confirming future reservations
* Concierge service for your guests
* Breakfast Preparation and service (including clean up)
* Limited outdoor services - sweeping porches, cleaning patio furniture, watering plants & lawns
* Credit card processing, deposits, etc.
* Innsitter Reports-activities presented to you upon your return

For innkeepers who have no outside housekeeping staff, or may require occasional housekeeping during staff days off, there may be an additional cost.

So, don't get to the point where you don't like what you are doing because you are so tired and overwhelmed. Plan to take that time off and it doesn't have to be only during your slow time of year. It actually is more cost effective to schedule your innkeeper time off when your bed and breakfast or other lodging property is busy. There is greater income being brought in to offset the cost of having an inn sitter running your operation.

If a short vacation will not do the trick and you need to sell your facility, this can take time.  Consider hiring an Interim Innkeeper to run your facility full time acting as the manager doing everything that you normally would do.  This will allow you the time to pursue other interests, or business opportunities, while still maintaining your operation in a normal manner until a buyer can be found. 

Please contact us if you have other questions on Innkeeper Burnout. 

Lynda and Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

What to do Valentine's Weekend in Colorado

As Interim Innkeepers or Inn Sitters, we still try to keep track of what is going on in our own backyard even if we happen to be staying and taking care of  another B&B in different part of the country.  Having been former owners and innkeepers of a bed and breakfast in the Colorado Springs area, we have first hand knowledge of some interesting events which take place. 

So if you are trying to stay close to home and keep your costs under control,  try this staycation in the Colorado Springs area over Valentine's Weekend.  You can either visit for the day or plan on staying overnight, at one of the many bed and breakfast or other lodging facilities in either Colorado Springs or Manitou Springs.  

The event will take place in Manitou Springs, just a few miles from downtown Colorado Springs.  You can be part of the Carnival Parade and Mardi Gras celebration on February 13th!  There will be a Mumbo Gumbo Cook-off with fabulous chefs competing with their secret recipes starting at 8:00am in Soda Springs Park.  Starting at 11:00am, following the judging, the public can purchase tastings of the gumbo for a nominal cost.  A Mardi Gras Carnival Parade through Downtown Manitou Springs will follow the cook-off at 12:00 noon.

After the parade, you can visit any number of restaurants along Manitou Avenue.   However, one of the best kept secrets for non-locals is the Keg Lounge Bar & Grill.  Located at 730 Manitou Ave. they have been at this location for over 25 years and are family friendly. 

They are home to the "Best Buffalo Burger and Famous Berry Salad".  What is really neat to view is the collection of patches from Law Enforcement, Fire, Rescue departments brought or sent in by patrons from throughout the United States.  There are even some international patches.  As a patch collector, I can appreciate all the patches all over the walls even if my collection is totally different.

The food is wonderful, as well as priced right, plus the service is exceptional.  However, don't plan on paying by credit card - cash only.  If you are desperate, they do have an ATM machine to help you out. 

Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Should you buy a Bed and Breakfast and become an Innkeeper?

Here are some things to consider when you are thinking of buying an existing bed and breakfast or starting one from scratch:

1. Do you have a business plan and start up money to carry you through the first few months?   Even if you are buying an existing B&B you need a war chest to begin with so that you can make any desired changes or additions. 

2. Do you have good planning, organizational, and management skills?  All of these are needed even for a small inn owner.  Whether you have 3 rooms or 20 rooms, the skills you need are still the same.

3. Are you a work-a-holic or, at least, have good stamina?  You will be up early and going all day.   Sometimes, your day ends late in the evening when the last guest arrives, or you finish getting the dining room set for the following day.  Of course, there is always that late evening reservation that comes in and needs to be processed. 

4. Are you disciplined and have a slight competitive streak?  When you own a B&B you own a small business.  You have to check what your competition is doing and figure out what you need to do to stay competitive or come up with a niche market. 

5. Can you multitask, focus and manage your time well?  You will wear multiple hats at the same time.   Many things will need to be done during the course of the day.  You have to be a good time manager to make sure they all get done.

6. Can you entertain a variety of people, even those you don't like?  You never know who will be staying with you.    You have to be able to deal with those that are over demanding as well as those that are extra needy.   Your own personal views on race, religion, and politics should be left back in your own quarters. 

7. Do you have passion? Will you do whatever it takes to make your business work?    This is not only your business, but your life.  You will live and breath the bed and breakfast business.  It is not something that you can do half way.  You always have to be "ON" and willing to do what is necessary to have satisfied guests. 

So, if you are considering making a career change to innkeeping, then our Inn Caring hands on Aspiring Innkeeper seminar is just for you.  Making a decision to become an innkeeper is an important one. The insightful information, hands on experience and interaction with innkeepers all provide you with the information you need to come to a conclusion about the right course of action to take.   Owning a bed and breakfast is not for everyone.  However, education can provide you with the knowledge to make an informed decision. 

We would love to have you as students and help you wade through the ins and outs of bed and breakfast ownership. 


Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Hint about Clothes Dryers Can Save You Money

I read somewhere that "Dryer Sheets" can cause us to loose some of the effectiveness of our clothes dryers. We always clean the lint from the filter after every load of clothes. However, the article suggested that if you take the filter over to the sink and run hot water over it after you have removed the lint you will be surprised. I know I was.

Most dryer filters are a fine mesh. I went to the sink and ran water through the mesh screen of my filter. Some of the hot water just laid on top of my mesh filter!!! The water didn't go through it at all!!

It seems that the dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh and that's what burns out the heating units more often than not. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. The best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months. It will make the life of the dryer last much longer!

So, I got my brush and hot soapy water and gave the filter a good wash. The flow of water increased dramatically. No more puddles of water on top of the mesh.

Sources ranging from manufacturers to consumer agencies agree with the recommendation to wash clothes dryer lint filters occasionally with warm, soapy water and a soft brush to remove chemical residues left by fabric softener sheets. A clogged lint filter not only hampers dryer efficiency, experts say, but can cause overheating, which increases wear and tear on the appliance as well as the risk of fire.

Learn something new everyday that can save you money!
 
Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Honey - Did you know?

As Innkeepers we often come across interesting information.  Here is what I have found about about honey:

Honey is the only food on the planet that will not spoil or rot.  It will do what some would call turning to sugar.

In reality honey is always honey.  However, when it is left in a cool dark place for a long time it will "crystalize". 

When this happens loosen the lid, boil some water, and sit the honey container in the hot water, turn off the heat and let it liquefy. It is then as good as it ever was.

Never boil honey or put it in a microwave To do so will kill the enzymes in the honey.


Honey is reported to be very healthy for you, especially when combined with Cinnamon.  I knew there was a reason I liked both of those items.

Have a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year.

Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

Granola with Dried Fruit - The best ever

We serve Granola every day along with our breakfast main entree and fresh fruit courses.  Guests love the dried fruit we put in the Granola and are constantly asking for the recipe.

Artists' Inn Granola      

Yield:  Approx. 14 cups     Oven Temp: 350 degrees


Ingredients
8 cups of Old Fashioned Quaker Oats
1 cup shredded  Coconut
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 cups Raisins
1 1/2 cups Cranraisins
3/4 cup Canola oil
1 cup Honey
1 tablespoon Vanilla
2 cups chopped Dried Fruit  (Sams Club has the perfect mix)
8 ounces Dried Banana Chips

Directions
1.  In an extra large mixing bowl combine Oats, Coconut, Brown Sugar, Raisins, and Cranraisins mixing together thoroughly

2.  In a small sauce pan combine Canola Oil, Honey, and Vanilla.  Heat a few minutes until honey has become a thin liquid. DO NOT BOIL.

3.  Pour liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix together until dry mixture is coated well.

4.  Spread mixture out on two large jelly roll pans and place in 350 degree oven for no more than 15 minutes.

5.  Remove from oven and place mixture in a large plastic container.   Add dried fruits at this time.  Mix occasionally until cool.  Break up any large lumps.

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:   If this mixture is for your family's personal use, you may want to add 1 cup of nuts (chopped walnuts or sliced almonds) at the same time as you add the dried fruits. 

ENJOY ! ! ! 

Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com

New at the Huntington Library -

It has been at least 40 years since we have visited The Huntington in San Marino, CA   It is just a hop, skip, and a jump from South Pasadena and the inn we are currently interim innkeepers at the Artists' Inn.   We had a quiet day and so set out to explore the impressive Library, Art Collections, and Gardens.   As the resident innkeepers, we pride ourselves on being able to give our guests extra tips to help make their visit to area attractions special.  

One thing I will now remember to tell guests is to wear comfortable shoes.  The buildings are grouped fairly close together, but the gardens definitely take you farther afield.   The other tip is that it is less expensive to visit The Huntington during the week than on weekends.  Or, if you can plan your visit to the first Thursday of each month, your visit is free (tickets are required and can be reserved online). 

We had previously been in the European building where the famous paintings of Pinkie & Blue Boy are housed.   This time, we viewed the new Scott Galleries of American Art.   Not only do they have some wonderful pictures, but also silver, glass, and wood pieces by famous American artisans.  Howard would have loved to take home the modern Frank Lloyd Wright dining room table.  The one thing most guests don't realize is that when you view the galleries there are free audio tapes available at the buildings main entrance to enhance the viewers gallery experience.   It is much nicer to listen about the various paintings etc. and be provided with more information than you can possibly read under the various captions. 

If you love the outdoors and gardens, then the grounds of the Huntington are special. The Botanical Gardens are an ever-changing exhibition of color and are a constant delight.  More than a dozen gardens cover 120 acres.   There is a fairly new Chinese Garden which was completed about 2 years ago.   This garden is inspired by the centuries-old Chinese tradition of private gardens designed for scholarly pursuits.  It is serene, and peaceful with water ponds and streams, rocks, plants, bridges, and small structures.  Docents are available to give you history and background of why and how the gardens were created.   

Two of my favorite flowers in the gardens are the Camellia bushes and the Rose bushes.  The Camellias are just starting to bloom and will be in their full glory in February - May.  The roses will be cut back in January but should be starting to bloom once again by March.  On the second Thursday of each month, garden enthusiasts can enjoy a free garden talk and plant sale.

I'll save further discussion about The Huntington for another time.  Hope you get to visit this wonderful area attraction if you are in the Los Angeles area.    


Lynda & Howard Lerner
Inn Caring
www.inncaring.com