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Caraway Cookware Set - My Honest Review

FX's The Bear Inspired Me To Level Up My Kitchen

After cranking out I’d say a thousand dinners in my COVID-Kitchen, I must say that not only am I sick-sick-sick of cooking, but my cookware is sick-sick-sick of my cooking too. The pots and pans are totally beat - how many lids got lost behind the fridge, how many nicks, how many dings. And my Our Place Always Pan has more recently turned into a Never Pan.

One positive about the pandemic is that I learned to chef. I drank Bon Appetits YouTube Channel dry. Not only did I watch Stanley Tucci’s Searching For Italy seven times, I devoured his book, Taste, cover-to-cover. And then I started following Matty Matheson.

It was a mix of the tattoos, dry humor, and overalls with no shirt underneath that drew me to Matheson – he’s effortlessly chic by being the abso opposite of chic while maintaining a certain je ne sais quoi.

Thinking the man could do no more – cause evidently Matty’s done it all – he goes and co-produces and stars in The Bear. This smash hit, FX original series follows Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), a world-class chef who returns home to Chicago to run his family’s sandwich shop after his older brother’s suicide.


My boyfriend, Dalton, just told me that The Bear’s been renewed for a second season! So I gotta dump the old cookware and get in the spirit. It’s time to chat up Caraway's Cookware Set.

Typically priced at $545, Caraway’s currently offering $150 off their cookware and bakeware sets.

Before we start cooking with gas, first . . . the recipe: Caraway’s 100% non-toxic cookware is free from harmful chemicals like polytetrafluoroethylene that can leach toxins into your food – looking at you, Teflon®. Their cookware and bakeware is naturally smooth, non-stick ceramic, and slick enough that cleaning only requires a touch of hot water and soap.

To begin, the packaging – Chef’s Kiss.

It arrived in a massive box. Each elegant piece has its own (recycled) cardboard nook and a pamphlet laying out the dos and don'ts to keep these babies pristine.

The full Caraway Cookware Set includes:

  • 10.5” Fry Pan
  • 3 qt Sauce Pan
  • 4.5 qt Saute Pan
  • 6.5 qt Dutch Oven (the pièce de résistance)

Each piece comes with its own lid which nestles in the Canvas Lid Holder. Dalton and I took one out, placed it in the magnetic pan rack, and stared. Frankly, we were mesmerized by the delicious, buttery cream color that totally matches our kitchen.

Caraway has five other rich shades like Perracotta, Gray, Navy, Sage, and Marigold. The Cookware Set is also available in Caraway’s premium and luxe Iconics Collection with glossy gold handles in both black and white for $595 ($150 off full price).

Caraway
Non-Toxic, Ceramic Non-Stick Cookware

Save $150 Plus FS on Orders $90+

We used to use the 8-in-1 Our Place Always Pan which fit our budget (and small apartment). While a multi-use pan is innovative, Caraway and its easy storage solutions prove you don’t need an all-in-one to save on space.

The rack sits on our countertop and it’s so exquisite, I’m not even bothered that it’s taking up prime kitchen real estate.

I Slacked my co-workers, fretting about cooking with our gorgeous new pots. I worried I’d ruin them. So I put them to work on Molly Baz’s Chickpea Chorizo Carbonara which is no walk in the park for any old pan.

I mashed and fried up chickpeas, layered in the chorizo, and turned my stovetop into a gustatory battleground. With our Caraway Dutch Oven front and center on the range and the Sauce Pan on the back right, I felt like Selena Gomez in Selena + Chef. And hey-presto! I’m the chef.

We devoured our pasta and were left with a sink filled with Caraway carcasses. Damage was done. There was chorizo grease and crispy parmesan that I fully expected I’d have to chisel off the pans.The pamphlet that came with our set advised that pieces should cool before submersing in water. So I waited ten minutes and got to work. I barely needed soap – everything simply slid off. I’m talking crusty carbonara – an egg and parmesan-based sauce – gone. With ease.

To clean both the Dutch Oven and the Sauce Pan only took five minutes. My station was clean. Yes, Chef!

After cooking our first meal with Caraway, we’re absolutely hooked. From serving eye-candy vibes on my counter to lessening my oil intake to feeling safer because I’m not baking toxic chemicals into our meals, I’m just about hitting Matty Matheson and The Bear levels.

In the show, Carmy calls everyone Chef as a sign of respect. And now, as the highest form of respect, I’m only calling my Caraway set, Chef.

Start chef-ing it up with Caraway now and get Free Shipping on orders of $90+ - Free Returns & 30-Day Trial! Don’t forget – Cookware & Bakeware Sets are $150 OFF NOW!

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7 Films and TV Shows to Celebrate Pride Month

Queer representation means more than just a queer character plopped in a plot line.

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Photo by Margaux Bellott on Unsplash

Pride month is here and Drag Race is over, and unfortunately, it's hard to find many other shows for queer people by queer people. Supporting and celebrating pride month isn't just buying a rainbow shirt from Target; it's buying directly from queer artists and giving back to the culture. With representation more important than ever, these TV shows and films place queer characters right in the center where they belong. Here are some to look out for and catch up on.

Now Apocalypse(Starz)

Gregg Araki, known for his great contributions to the New Queer Cinema Movement, is at it again with this bizarre new show. Avan Jogia (of Victorious and Twisted fame) stars as Ulysses, a gay man who has disturbing, premonitory dreams that the world is ending. Ulysses's romantic and platonic relationships are explored with consideration for sexuality and fame in Los Angeles. Now Apocalypse takes LGBTQIA representation to the absurd and it couldn't be more fun. All episodes are now available for streaming on Starz.

Pose (FX)

Ryan Murphy's latest phenomenon is back for its second season on June 10th. The show centers on POC queer, cis and trans men and women as they navigate different NYC scenes and find purpose through the African American and Latinx ball culture. The show also investigates each character's place in society during the AIDs crisis, reclaiming the narrative and the hysteria of the era. If you're not caught up yet, the FX show is now on Netflix.

Rocketman

Executive produced by Elton John himself, Rocketman was released last weekend to a surprisingly solid first weekend. Bohemian Rhapsody's fill-in director, Dexter Fletcher, captures the life of a queer icon. Besides Rocketman being the first major Hollywood studio production to show a gay sex scene, the film does what Bohemian Rhapsody wanted to do but Queen would not allow: put a global icon's sexuality on display, explore the creative depths of a genius, and feature a lead actor that actually sings. Sing along and enjoy the breadth of great performances and direction.

Queer Eye(Netflix)

Ok, this is an obvious one, but season 3 only premiered in March! If you haven't already watched the fantastic makeovers and heart-warming stories that have come out of the reboot, you're missing out. Celebrate love and life by embracing those who are transformed by the Fab Five. While you're at it, preorder Tan France's book, Naturally Tan: A Memoir

Euphoria(HBO)

Not many know what this show is actually about, but the trailer seems to center on the complicated lives of youth today. Sexual and gender identities are at the forefront of conversation today, especially from adolescents aware of their pertinence in a way previous generations were not. LGBTQ activist and trans woman, Hunter Shafer, will star as a trans girl who befriends Zendaya's character and their relationship potentially becomes something more. Down the rabbit hole viewers will go! Premiering on June 16th, Euphoria gives everyone a reason to keep their HBO subscription.

Booksmart

White feminism aside, Booksmart is an important film because of its lesbian representation. Beanie Feldstein, break-out star of Lady Bird, explained how important her co-star's character is to her and society, "For me in my life, it is a part of who I am but it is not at all my defining feature. It doesn't mean I don't love my girlfriend, it's just part of who I am. And [the character]'s the same way. To see that in Amy and how beautifully Kaitlyn plays her and how beautifully Katie [Silberman, screenwriter] and Olivia [Wilde, director] crafted her, it's gonna change a lot of people's lives." Booksmart is still in theaters nationwide.

One Day at A Time (Netflix, for now)

The 70s sitcom reboot came with reevaluations. The showrunners, Kellet and Royce, decided to change the two daughters to a daughter and son. One of the main characters, the daughter Elena, did not start off as a gay character. It wasn't until Royce's real-life daughter came out that he realized he needed to tell this story. His writer's room invested their own experiences to shape a character and an on-going storyline that provided insight into a coming-out story and its realities in a fresh, familial context. It's done beautifully and truthfully. While Netflix has canceled the show, the creators are fighting to revive it on another platform or channel. #SaveODAT!

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SPOILER ALERT! Don't read this if you haven't seen the first episode yet — unless that's what you're into.

I've been a fan of American Horror Story since the beginning days of 'Murder House' — and of course, problematically 'shipping' Tate and Violet. 'Asylum' definitely followed the first season well, but 'Coven' broke the trend with its messy plot lines and random directions. After watching the first few episodes of 'Freak Show,' I broke it off with AHS — the seasons were definitely getting worse and worse.

However, when I heard that 'Apocalypse' would be a crossover between the first and third seasons, I was more intrigued — very rarely do shows with this format crossover their seasons or episodes. Working with viewers' nostalgia is always a good way to go to get views — and tie up loose ends.

In this first episode, we don't really get anything yet — the show starts out in Santa Monica where everyone gets the same 'end-of-the-world' text. Leslie Grossman plays Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt, a socialite with a billion dollar inheritance who is bent on becoming an Instagram influencer. She's tended to by her assistant Mallory, played by Billie Lourd, and her hairdresser Mr. Gallant, played by Evan Peters — kind of disappointing as I expected him to reprise his role as Tate Langdon.

After receiving the texts, Coco gets a call from her family in Hong Kong that alerts her of a plane with four tickets to carry her to safety — she manages to take Mallory, and Gallant wiggles his way in with his suspiciously Trump-supporting Nana, played by Joan Collins. In all the chaos, Coco leaves behind her husband Brock — a very fun cameo by Billy Eichner.

Other quick scenes happen — two teenagers are taken to the shelter for their DNA, one that just got into UCLA and one jailed for leading protests on campus, and a replayed clip of a newscaster saying goodbye to his children — then, we're introduced to 'The Cooperative.'

Ignoring for a second the strangely compliant sounding name, 'The Cooperative' is a converted all boys boarding school run by Wilhelmina Venable, played by our queen Sarah Paulson, and her right-hand woman Ms. Miriam Meed, played by our other queen, Kathy Bates. The Outpost is organized by the grays — the help — and the purples — the elite. And of course, they wear their respective colors.

The Outpost seems like it transported back a hundred years rather than in the expected future — everyone's clothes are colonial-era, the food is vitamin-enhanced gelatin cubes, and the same song plays over and over again. Oh and also, Venable and Meed torture and kill guests for their amusement.

One scene that was particularly upsetting was after they washed/tortured a man named Stu and Gallant for having radiation — a gimmick by Meed — they killed Stu for having more radiation and, well, made him into stew for the others to eat as a 'treat.' Nana, not so surprisingly, didn't have a problem with it.

Flash forward 18 months later, teens Emily and Timothy have of course fallen in love and everyone else is on the verge of a breakdown. A mysterious stranger comes to the gate in a carriage carried by two horses — his name is Michael Langdon, played by Cody Fern.

Die-hard fans will definitely recoil at the name — he's the satanic baby made by Vivien and Tate in Murder House and has come to judge who he'll take to his shelter, one that has 10 years of food. Isn't it sweet — all grown up and killing horses!

Langdon's directions to kill his horses was a bit of a shock since it was his only way of travel — but it did end the episode with an ultimatum that viewers will probably be haunted by until the next episode. I know I will be — perhaps AHS is turning around on its bad seasons and finally challenging us with its psychological thrills again.


Amber Wang is a freelancer for Popdust and various other sites. She is also a student at NYU, a photographer and intern at the Stonewall National Monument.


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​THE REAL REEL | Better Things​

Sam Fox's depiction of single motherhood

BETTER THINGS Trailer SEASON 1 (2016) New Louis C.K. FX Comedy

Better Things focuses on having a sense of humor, the necessity of friendships, hard work, and most of all love and gratitude…you know the Better Things.

Watching Pamela Adlon's Better Things makes me feel like I am marching in the Women's March all over again… except really I'm just watching Sam Fox (the lead character played by Adlon) go about her day, working, mothering, and navigating the mind field of being a woman. Adlon gives us realistic insight into what it might be like to be a woman over 40, have a career in Hollywood, and be the single parent to three girls, all the while resisting the allure of Hollywood cosmetic surgery, which her line of work makes a strong case for almost every hour of every day. The FX website, calls the show a "semi-autobiographical series" which after a little digging around proved to be more true than not. This realistic bent is likely why the show has a laundry list of awards attached to its name, because it's so freaking believable. Clearly the bones of this show are a reflection of Adlon's real life experience. Adlon not only stars in the show, but also directs and executive produces it. You likely will never notice that she is juggling three different roles, as her performance is effortless. At the end of each episode, you want to hug her (and I hate hugs) and say YEAH GIRL! I FEEL YOU!

Much like the show, Adlon's parents are divorced, her father is Jewish, and her mother (who converted to Judaism) is British. Adlon's character, Sam Fox lives just across the street from her single, spacey, and nothing short of hilarious British mother. It is not uncommon on the show to see her mother pruning trees topless, or stopping by Sam's house for a nightcap wearing only a 1920's bralette and underwear. Other key relationships on the show are of course Sam's relationships with her daughters, each of whom is extremely different from the other. While her oldest daughter Max fills the role of femme, spoiled, teenager, her middle daughter Frankie appears gender neutral/possibly trans. The beautiful part about the story line with Frankie is that they barely touch on Frankie's appearance. She is just Sam's daughter in the first season…not "the trans kid."

The other stars of the show are Sam's colleagues and girlfriends. While this is not a "mommy and daddy family," the father role so to speak, is not missing; it's simply occupied by other characters, mostly women. It is a true joy to watch the intricacies of so many female relationships play out. It's also a true joy to watch a single mother be caught off guard by her teen and tween daughters, and rarely have a well thought out, "television-mom" response. The show avoids well-rehearsed (and unrealistic) perfectly timed sarcastic quips (think Gilmore Girls, which I love and respect, but this show is different). It's not that Sam is not sarcastic, it's just that Adlon does a great job of portraying realistic parenting moments, the one's where you're in the car with your kid and they suddenly bring up a big question about sex, drugs, or death and you have 4 seconds to come up with some "parental" response. (This is why my kids now believe you can have a conversation with dead people…I just didn't have the time to read an article about how to talk to kids about death between 39th street and home…so now we talk to dead people…it's fine).

The show also tackles seemingly "big" topics like abortion, divorce, and teenage sex. Again, it does an amazing job of showing the realities of modern families…the kinds where a bunch of single/divorced/married/re-married/ people are sitting around Sam's house drinking wine and talking, and Sam's oldest teenage daughter Max happens to be there. Max becomes privy to conversations about abortion, relationships, and other topics adults tend to avoid discussing around teens. It's awkward and unrefined… but the viewer is compelled to see that in reality, Max is the perfect age to be hearing these topics discussed by older people who have actual life lessons to share. It is rare that we get to see the benefit of multigenerational communities on television as it's usually the "kid plot" verses the "adult plot," but if you were raised by a single parent, you know that you often spend much time around a different kind of family… a family that is created out of friends of the parent that is currently parenting you.

Our society (and thus our media) is often so focused on the negative affects of divorce, we rarely discuss the benefits of being raised outside a nuclear model. In fact, just the phrase "benefits of non-nuclear model" sounds like an oxymoron… but of course nothing is all good or all bad… not marriage, not divorce, and not nuclear family-hood. The children in Sam Fox's life have issues, challenges, hardships, ect… but they also have opportunities and perspective, insight, and community. Sam Fox curses in front of her children, tells them things about adulthood that likely they don't need to hear, and doesn't pretend to have hall her ducks in a row…but she has a minivan full of appreciation. Even with all of the work and none of the time, you get the sense that Sam appreciates her role as a mother. The viewer never doubts that Sam wanted to have kids…she mothers as thoughtfully and purposefully as she can, and she loves her girls with gusto. Sam Fox's depiction of single motherhood focuses on having a sense of humor, the necessity of friendships, hard work, and most of all love and gratitude…you know the Better Things in life.

By Rachel Hall, Rachel has a Masters in Cultural Gender Studies, and a BA in Communication & Culture, is a Certified Life Coach, and can often be found hiding in her laundry room from her two children. More about her on her website.


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