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Let me start by saying I got a fabulous deal on this processor a couple of years ago at TJ Maxx.  It was the last major (countertop) appliance I wanted for my kitchen, but I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of spending $200 or more, so I put it on the side burner for a while.  My husband and I happened to be roaming through a TJ Maxx and More one day and they had my processor pictured here for $100 with the small bowl, big bowl, shredding discs, and dough hook.  I couldn’t resist and bought it immediately.  I am so glad I did.  I really love this processor, granted it isn’t the prettiest one out there, but it has tons of power and can muscle through any job I give it.  I use the main blade and the disks frequently, but have not used the dough blade.  I use my stand mixer’s dough hook for those jobs.  I think the funniest thing when I took it out of the box was turning it on the first time and seeing stuff jump across my counter.  I didn’t realize the motor was going to be quite so powerful.  It makes the lights flicker in the kitchen, granted that might just be faulty wiring, but this machine is a beast.  I love using the discs for big grating and shredding jobs.  I know I can’t make my slices this even with my knife.  It makes quick work of cheeses, carrots, you name it.  The pulse feature is great and easy to use.  It’s very simple to run with three buttons - off, on and pulse.  It’s not to difficult to understand.  The grating discs are attached using another piece, but I had no difficulty in figuring out how it fit together.  The feed tube is quite wide and works pretty good for my needs.  All around it’s a great machine and who could resist at that price?

Ever start baking and run out of mixing bowls?  This won’t happen with a 10-piece glass bowl set.  I use my glass bowls from Duralex all the time.

I really love this glass bowl set.  The bowls go in size from very small to large. The small size bowls are great for setting out baking ingredients.  I like to get all my ingredients measured before I start baking to make cooking easier.  The set was very inexpensive at $30.00 for ten bowls.  I nest them into each other in the cupboard to save space.

This bowls are also great for setting up an inexpensive double boiler.  Put a little bit of water into a saucepan, bring up to simmer, find a glass bowl that fits the top and you have a double boiler.  Be sure to not allow the water to touch the bottom of the bowl or it can scorch the ingredient you are trying to heat. 

Just so you don’t think I like every single kitchen gadget out there, although I do like a good number of them, today I am talking about the Chef’n EZ Squeeze Can Opener.  I have had this can opener for a couple of years now after not having much success with the old hand crank can openers.  I have never been a big fan of the electric ones, so I use the hand held ones.  The best thing I can say about it is that it hasn’t broken.  These can openers are designed to be used with one hand, one very strong, manly hand.  I can’t imagine a poor little old lady trying to use this, her hand would get very sore.  The cranking mechanism is doggy to say the least.  The pressure it takes to get the can open is a lot more than what I would consider easy.  I find I often use two hands.  But like I said before it is the only hand held that has worked for more than 1 year for me, so I guess everything has positives and negatives. 

Do you have one of these at home?  Please feel free to leave your comments.

Well, if you have read any of my posts you realize that I am a die-hard tea drinker.  In fact, as I type, I am finishing my second pot of Earl Grey in the last 3 hours.  I just love the stuff.  One of the best gifts I ever got was from my older sister.  She knows how crazy I am about tea and bought me my first electric tea kettle and the rest is history.  I don’t travel without one.  I have even taken it with me when I have gone to visit my parents.  I love electric tea kettles - they come up to boil so much quicker than a stovetop kettle.  The best thing is once the tea water is ready the kettle usually turns it self off, now how is that for easy.  If you love tea or know someone who does I suggest purchasing an electric tea kettle.  They range in price from $10 - $100 or more.  Not too bad a price for something you use everyday.

I remember the first time I heard the term spoonula, I thought someone was trying to be funny.  I didn’t realize that they actually existed.  If you watch any Food TV you will find they make up words all the time, like Paula’s meltedy.  I have since gotten a couple as gifts and couldn’t live without them.  The first thing I love about them is how inexpensive they are.  These little tools work great at getting mixes out of bowls.  They can reach into corners well, especially the spatulas with their flat heads.  They also remove mixes cleanly from the bowl, nothing left behind.  The other great thing about them is their silicone design.  These babies can withstand heat up to 500°.  They are great in non-stick pans, as they won’t scratch. The silicone is also great because it resists odors and stains.  The Williams Sonoma variety have removable heads that can be placed in the dishwasher or handwashed.  They come in a variety of sizes and shapes and at less than $10 a piece make great gifts.  During the holidays I often see them sold in sets.  So if you want a great mixing partner, check them out.  You can find them at a number of home and kitchen places including:  www.crateandbarrel.com, www.williamssonoma.com, and www.stonewallkitchen.com.  Happy Mixing! 

Today’s, What’s in my kitchen?, is about my flour sacks.  This may sound like a funny review, okay she’s talking about flour sacks, I am not sure she’s okay, but seriously, my flour sacs are one of my favorite kitchen tools.  Everyday I use my flour sacks, that can’t be said for all of my kitchen gadgets.  I purchased my flour sacks at Williams Sonoma for $10, now that’s cheap!  I use flour sacks in the place of kitchen towels.  I found kitchen towels to be too thick to use and not very absorbent.  The other thing I love about my flour sacks is, unlike my kitchen towels, they are large enough for me to wrap in my aprons or through over my shoulder (which is what I do most of the time).   I love the thin nature of these towels, they make it easy to dry out dishes (without the fear of lint) or my knives.  The only real drawback that I can see is they are white.  These towels do not stay white for very long in my kitchen.  I have more than one set so I can be continually washing the ones I use.  I think these make a great, thoughtful, inexpensive gift for the cook in your life.  I would definitely love to get more flour sacks as a present.  If you think you might like these towels click on the photo above. 

I think it’s incredibly interesting to talk with other foodies and get personal reviews of all the kitchen gadgets out there.  So in the spirit of sharing, I am including a segment I like to call - What’s in my kitchen?  Today I am going to talk about my knives.  I have found my favorite knives are the Wusthof Classic series.  I have three of them right now - including - the Santoku (I believe it’s a 7″, but don’t quote me on that), the serrated bread knife (9″), and the hollow edged paring knife (3″).  I purchased each of these knives at Williams Sonoma.  I will have to say that each of these knives was pricey, but well worth every penny. 

When I first started buying things for my own kitchen I couldn’t afford the pricier knives, so I started out with some good quality knives from a discounter (TJ Maxx/Homegoods).  The very first knives I bought myself were a cheaper line of Henckels.  I used these knives for years, they were a great start, but spoiled me on the idea of having really great quality knives in my kitchen.  A chef’s best friend is a really great knife, it makes kitchen work so much easier. 

After I realized that I wanted even better knives I decided to look around.  I went to Williams Sonoma because I knew I could hold the knives and get a real feel for what would work best for me.  I immediately fell in love with the Wusthof classics, the way they fit in my hand, I knew they were the knives for me.  I started simply with a Santoku knife, that I still use today.  It is one of my absolute favorite kitchen tools.  I quickly realized that I needed a nice bread knife - I choose the non offset Wusthof.  The offset knife, seemed a little awkward to grip and a little bit heavier to handle.  My bread knife is a great knife, reminds me of the old ginsu knives, really durable and simple to use. 

To complete my set I knew I needed one more knife.  I spend many hours in the kitchen working on baked goods - with all the peeling and detail work - I knew I needed a paring knife.  I decided on the 3″ hollow edged paring knife, it looks like a mini Santoku.  I haven’t regretted my decision.  This little knife makes peeling an apple so quick and easy, it was well worth the $40 or so I spent on it. 

I love my knives and recommend them highly to all my friends and family.  If you are in the market for some good knives check out Williams Sonoma and try a few different brands in your hands and I am sure you will walk away with the knife that is just right for you.  If you aren’t sure ask around.  Each knife has it’s purpose and depending on what you do most you may find a classic chef’s knife works better for you than a Santoku.  In the end, it’s all what you like best, whether that be a good quality discount knife or a great Wusthof knife there are lots of options out there for the at home cook.