Hello friends!
I do A LOT of cooking. Some days I feel like I live in the kitchen!
But there are a few kitchen tools that, when I don’t have them, I miss them dearly.
And tonight, instead of sharing a recipe, I thought I’d share those tools that are my absolute MUST HAVES. I promise you, they will make cooking so much easier, more efficient, and more fun!! How about that!
And the best part: is that these won’t break the bank! (And I’ve put links to all of them here, so just click on the picture to learn more!)
I love garlic, but I absolutely HATE having my fingers smell like it when I cook with it!
Enter: the garlic rocker!
This little gadget was recommended to me by my mother, and boy, am I grateful she introduced me to it. It creates the perfect “mince” every time, and when you’re done, you can just pop it in the dish washer. Count me in.
This isn’t as much a kitchen tool as it is a kitchen LIFE SAVER. When I say nothing sticks to this, I mean NOTHING STICKS. Every time I’m baking veggies or fish in the oven, I always line the baking sheet with this nonstick tin foil, and not only does it literally eliminate having to wash the baking tray, but it just is so nice to not have to use messy cooking sprays (that are just full of chemicals and seed oils), or excess oil!
This tool, I use at least once a day. Truly. I make banana ice cream with it. I make my pumpkin ice cream with it. I make sauces. I make pesto. I make cauliflower rice. I make almond butter. I make soup! Seriously, not a day goes by where I’m not using this at least once or twice.
They have mini food “prep” processors which can chop up veggies or garlic…but honestly, those are a waste of time. You’re going to want to get at least an 11 cup food processor. This is the one I have. I get about four years out of it with daily use.
Ok, this one is a new…obsession. We got this Nutr Nut Milk Maker of our wedding registry, and I have used it every day ever since. FRESH, HOMEMADE ALMOND MILK WITH ONLY TWO INGREDIENTS: almonds and water! (I also add a pinch of sea salt and cinnamon).
But this is such a game changer! You see, with the Specific Carb Diet, you can’t have gums or stabilizers or added sugars or corn syrup etc…all of which are found in your normal almond milk cartons found at the store: like Silk, Almond Breeze, etc. There’s only one brand of nut milk that I can have, that only has almonds and water as the ingredients…and it’s close to $12 for a bottle. Highway robbery to say the least.
This Nutr machine has literally paid for itself 100 times already. And the milk is so good. You can add different nuts, you can add a little cinnamon and nutmeg, a date, a little honey — it is amazing. Five minutes and you’ve got fresh almond milk for lattes, for drinking, for recipes — I love it. A MUST if you’re dairy free. Truly. The Nutr is the best thing ever.
This, again, has been a game changer…especially now that I’m cooking for a meat eater. I was always SO SCARED I’d be undercooking chicken or steak, so I’d always cook the crap out of it, and it would be like a leather shoe sole. This digital meat thermometer instantly reads the internal temperature…allowing for perfectly juicy chicken, tender salmon and that iconic medium rare steak.
They say that the most dangerous tool in the kitchen is a DULL knife. And oh my gosh, that is so true. A sharp knife is a safe knife. (That and a cutting board that doesn’t slide around.)
My cooking did a 180 when I invested in a good chef’s knife. And yes, I said “invest” because a good chef’s knife — one that lasts, with good craftsmanship, and has good weight and balance — is not $40. It’s over $100. But this is definitely something worth investing in.
Before I got this knife, I would cut everything with a serrated steak knife, or a really dull paring knife that I think was bought from a door to door salesman back in the 90’s. Sound familiar? Do yourself a favor and get this knife!
So there you have it! These are the tools that I simply cannot live without in my kitchen! I will have a new recipe for you next week, but this week, I wanted to share some tips on HOW to cook efficiently, and not just WHAT to cook ?
I hope you have an awesome day!
Best,
Caralyn