A couple weeks ago I posted about the kitchen tools I could live without; those items in my cupboards that I’m not always sure why I’m holding on to. Come to find out, a lot of people need cocktail shakers. Anyway, the only acceptable follow-up would be to share the kitchen items I love and use all the time, the ones I couldn’t live without (although, technically, I’m sure I could). For the purposes of this list, I opted to leave out obvious things like silverware, dishes and pots and pans, in favor of slightly more interesting things.
Tea kettle – I have friends that don’t own a tea kettle. I have a hard time relating to them. Granted, I’m a tea addict who hasn’t consumed coffee in over a year, and I do realize that water can be boiled in a saucepan or the microwave, but I love my whistling tea kettle. My first act every morning is to go to the kitchen and put the kettle on, an act that is repeated at least once more before the day ends. The fact that it whistles and I can get other things done in the meanwhile is probably its best feature.
KitchenAid Stand Mixer – I feel like I’ve said this a thousand times, so I’m sorry if you’re reading it again, but I love my KitchenAid. When my mother-in-law bought it for me as a wedding gift, I had no comprehension of how useful that tool was going to me. I use my KitchenAid to make bread dough, cookies, pizza dough, muffins and whipped cream. I don’t have a hand mixer and I have no plans to get one.
Good mixing bowls – With frequent cooking comes frequent ingredient mixing. Brian and I started off our marriage with just a couple metal mixing bowls and a few plastic ones. It didn’t take long to realize that the plastic ones were hard to clean and since then we’ve added a few more metal ones and these fabulous 1970s Pyrex bowls to our collection. I use the Pyrex ones all the time; they’re awesome.
Storage containers – I cook more than the average person, but I do try to give myself a few nights off each week. I also try to make lunch for the upcoming week every Sunday. As a result, I find myself using a lot of containers to keep leftovers and lunch portions fresh. There’s quite a bit of Rubbermaid in the pantry (it all stacks together!), but I’ve also been transitioning to using more glass containers, including mason jars.
Quality knives – When Brian and I were setting up our registry, I couldn’t understand his insistence that we ask for good knives. A knife was a knife, right? Turns out it’s a lot easier to prep food when you own knives that actually cut. Our entire knife block gets a lot of use, but the knife pictured above, a gift from my aunt and uncle, gets chosen more often than most.
I love my tea kettle too, but I’m also interested in getting an electric kettle. My parents have one, and it works really quickly, and just gets plugged into the wall. I’ve always wondered which one uses less energy, but it probably depends on whether your stove is gas or electric.
Those mixers are always tempting too! I don’t have one, but they’re so pretty to look at.
I had an electric kettle in college and I really liked it. I’m not entirely sure why I got rid of it, actually. Yeah, those types of energy questions are always difficult; let me know if you figure it out :)
Is that a Global? When I lived with a roommate, I used to use his Global all the time and LOVED it!
It is a Global. If we haven’t gotten it as a gift, we wouldn’t have one at all, but it’s pretty awesome.