Time to Talk about Toys - My Kitchen Toys

I can't believe I haven't written about my new Cuisinart Elite Collection 12-Cup Food Processor. My old one died after living a long and useful life. So I had to buy the newest version... of course! It's got two bowls! A large 12 cup bowl (big enough for a huge coleslaw or anything else you might be thinking about) and smaller bowl for those little jobs... four cups, which is perfect for chopping nuts or an onion or two without larger pieces stuck to the sides of the bowl and a paste forming at the bottom for the rest of the ingredients. It also has a slicing blade that's adjustable so it slices from 1-6 mm. And a reversible shredding disc as well as a dough blade. The large bowl and shredding & slicing blades made the prep for this Indian Spiced Coleslaw a snap. But the food processor isn't the only tool to make it out of the cupboard. The Cuisinart SPB-600 SmartPower Deluxe Blender has been dusted off and makes my morning fix of Handfuls of Sunshine Smoothie. And the Microplane Professional Series Large Shaver now slices garlic and ginger so thinly, it just melts into the dish. I can't remember which TV chef I saw use a mandoline for the same thing, which was too scary for me, but the microplane is perfect. Check out my Lemony Shrimp & Garlic Pasta that I made last night... which will obviously be my entry for this week's Presto Pasta Night, hosted by Kirsten of From Kirsten's Kitchen to Yours.... for the FOURTH time, I might add! With or without lots of kitchen toys, please send your entries to kirstenmlindquist(at) gmail (dot)com cc ruth (at) 4everykitchen (dot) com by Thursday, June 9.... but I digress... the kitchen toy used... the microplane for the garlic.
One last toy... I forgot to take a photo, but now that I discovered Spatchcocking.... my kitchen shears, sharp enough to cut the backbone out of the chicken have come out of the back of the tool drawer. This Roasted Herb & Garlic Spatchcock Chicken is... as Jamie Oliver would say...BRILLIANT!

And because all these tools and all these dishes make me feel good... right to my soul... I thought I'd share them with Hearth and Soul's Blog Hop, over at A Moderate Life.

Now that I've shared my favorite kitchen toys with you... what are some of the ones you choose to play with in your kitchens?

Great Resource Sites - A Work In Progress

Kitchen Equipment

• Culinary Direct
• Quisinart - has recipes
• Weber BBQ - also has great recipes

Magazines & Newspapers

• Bon Appetit
• Epicurious - my favorite recipe site
• Gourmet - virtual magazine only these days
• Donna Hay
• Food & Wine
• Waitrose
• LCBO's Food & Drink
• Food Network Canada - you can even find some of my recipes & articles here
• The Telegraph - UK
• LA Times
• NY Times
• San Francisco Chronicle

General Cooking Resources

• CosmoPages
• Indian Herb & Spice Guide
• Herbs, Spices & Seasonings - great lexicon
• The Spice Trader - great spices from around the world
• Hot Smoke BBQ - lots of great bbq tips & goodies
• Easy Dinner Recipes & Guide
• InfoMonkey.net - follows all things great in Halifax (I especially like the foodie section)
• Kozlik's Mustard - Toronto based
• Tangled Garden - herb jellies, oils, vinegars and liqueurs
• Williams Sonoma
• Food Blog Diary - great roundups & other food blog events
• Food 52
• StillTasty - let's you know how long is toooooo long to keep food fresh.
• Another Herb & Spice Guide

Some of My Favorite Cooks & Cookbook Authors

• Jacques Pepin
• Gourmania - Norene Gilletz is one of my favorite Canadian cookbook authors
• Jamie Oliver - what else is there to say
• Nigella Lawson
• Donna Hay
• Mark Bittman

Great foodie apps for iPad & iPhones

• epi (from Epicurious)
• How to Cook Everything (from Mark Bittman)

Some of my favorite blogs

• A Moderate Life
• Equal Opportunity Kitchen
• Eats Well With Others
• GirliChef
• More Than Burnt Toast
• The Food Blog Diary
• Thyme for Cooking
• Two Lazy Gourmets

More Technology -iPhone apps

Although I've been a blogger since 2005, I always consider myself a non-techie. So... for all of you who are much more in tune with the tech toys of today... I've finally arrived. You can breathe a sigh of relief. And for those of you who are not quite there yet, let me assure you that it's a lot more wonderful - and way easier - than you can imagine.

Yesterday I wrote about the latest technology that actually tracked my lobster purchase from the time & place it was caught, until it reached my table - less than 24 hours!

Today, I thought I'd share another great tool - my Apple iPhone 4 Black Smartphone that is resting on my trusty Acer Netbook (which travels with me everywhere - it's light, small and awesome).

First - don't you love my background photo - two of the cutest boys anywhere. And my very first real "app" It's from Epicurious.com - and you know I love their site. It costs $1.99 and no -I get no commission, gift or rebate for sharing here. But let me back up a bit. If you're like me, you bookmark great recipes you see on magazine and foodie websites... and then a) never look at them again or b)... and this is worse... can't find them.

The thing I love best about Epicurious.com is that I have my very own recipe box. It even remembers me when I log in! ... and forward to my iPhone app - complete with recipes and - more important - shopping lists for each recipe, complete with quantities.
These Wild Mushroom Crostini were the appetizers to last night's lobster feast. Extra vinaigrette was tossed into the salad - delish!
And extra filling made the perfect mushroom & cheese omelet this morning. So what's your latest, greatest foodie app for me to add?

After Time - There's My Top Gadgets List

Time has come up with their Top 100 Gadgets since 1923, and while I'm not disputing some of their choices. Certainly Apple should be there with ipods, ipads, iphones, ieverything else. And it's natural that technology ranks high, but nowhere on the list is a kitchen gadget. So I decided to come up with some of my own and I hope you add yours to the comments. Here in no particular order....

Electric Spice-and-Coffee Grinder
KitchenAid Artisan 5-Quart Stand Mixers
FOOD PROCESSOR
Microplane Grater & Zester
Crock-Pot Programmable Touch Screen Slow Cooker,
Mandoline Slicer
The Easy Chop Food Chopper
Nonstick Bakeware 9-Inch Springform Pan
Silicone tools
Mortar and Pestle
Pizza Stone
Immersion Blender
Breadmaker
... non-stick pans, frost free fridges, microwave ovens... I could go on forever, but, more important... what is on your list of favorite kitchen toys?

Sometimes It's the Little Things...

Sometimes in life, it's the little things that really make the difference. For weeks now, I've been looking for the little non stick skillet that I can make my favorite frittatas for two in. I love frittatas, that perfect, fluffy egg dish, started on top of the stove and ending in a hot oven. My problem is that my pans are too big for just the two of us and our frittatas come out looking like pancakes. Not that they taste bad, just that...well if I wanted an omelet, I'd make it on top of the stove, flip it and voila! See how skinny...and this is a "fat" one.
So lately, I've been making "scrambles" - just sauteing whatever I fancy like this Diner Scramble that I make often. In fact I just made it last weekend.

And so lies the seeds of the story...

I need a nonstick 8" pan that can withstand 400F/200C. Not easy to find. Most of them seem to require 350F max! I did find an All Clad one that even on sale was $59 at Cucina Moderna and so over my budget. Since I was in a mall, with Stokes - mid range kitchenware store, always with bargains/sales of one product or other. In fact, this week it was 20% off (of course I didn't read the fine print that said "over $50, but hey) even so The Remy Olivier 8" ceramic coated pan that can stand a 400F oven was only $25! Naturally, I snapped it up.
Sunday came and it was time to use it...I realized as soon as I picked it up that perhaps it wasn't heavy enough. I usually go for heavy bottomed pans -even heat and no burning, so I was leery. But it was fantastic. No burnt bottom, no sticking to the pan, and wonderful. In fact, my Honey kept telling me how fantastic it was. When I told him, we had exactly the same thing as a scramble the week before and a flatter frittata version not long before that...he was surprised.
See what a difference a little thing makes? What's your favorite "little thing makes a difference" item?

Sunday...No Mussels But Perfect Pizza & Soup

Well, Sunday didn't quite work out as planned either...the day was sunny and bright, but I wasn't. Somehow during the night I was visited with a whopper of a cold...so the plan for the day...stay home close to Kleenex and bed. No trip to the Mussel Festival this year. Nothing to do all day but read, nap and watch old movies. Isn't life hard!?!

So what about food? Well, fortunately for us, I have a stash of Split Pea Soup in the freezer...always nourishing of body and soul.

And, fortunate indeed, I had whipped up some Whole Wheat Pizza Dough on Saturday...thank goodness for the bread machine. Toppings...some grilled veggies (done on my Griddler)...red peppers, asparagus, sweet onions and oyster mushrooms over some left over Chunky No Cook Tomato Basil Sauce (again, thank goodness for freezers!). Cheese of choice this time....bocconcini.

All in all, a satisfying food day thanks to my favorite kitchen toys.

The Griddler - No Longer on the Wish List

Finally, the Cuisinart Griddler is off my wish list and sitting happily on my kitchen counter!

Just in time for me to use whip something up from my newest cookbook, (published by DK Publishing who put out some great cookbooks) ...Grilled Pizzas & Piadinas. I know what you're thinking...either she's moved or she's lost it completely. Afterall, I've been whining about the no barbecue here since August so what's with a grilled pizza cookbook?

First of all, this book understands me and all those out there who wish to grill but don't have a bbq sitting outside their door. There are the usual instructions for those lucky enough to do outdoor grilling and lots of photos and tips regarding charcoal and gas options, but more important (at least for me), is the conversion to indoor grilling with detailed options for cast iron skillets and grill pans, regular skillets, flat griddles, panini grills, contact grill presses (like George Forman's), open faced electric grills, Tuscan or fireplace grills, and if you're rich or just lucky...built in gas or electric grills. See what I mean about loving this book already and I haven't gotten to the great recipes yet.

But hold on...because I must mention the other thing I love about this book...detailed photos for every complex step plus the just plain gorgeous photos of pizzas and piadinas (soft flatbread sandwiches), salads (to accompany pizzas and piadinas) and there are desserts too. There's no stopping the creativity.

And did I mention that I really love the way the authors share options for actually making the dough or the sauces or how to combine everything for the perfect meal...YOUR way.

So on to the dough - the choices...stand mixer with dough hook, food processor with plastic blade (I chose this route) or hand kneading. The hands on part...less than 5 minutes and rising on the counter - 2 hours...then an hour or overnight (my choice) chilling time...grill time with my new Griddler - 3 minutes and a final (hardest part was choosing what to top it with) 3 minutes under the broiler to melt the cheese.

Since I couldn't decide I went with pepperoni, mushrooms & onions on one and shrimp with pesto, but not your average pesto...this one has pecans in it. One word...AWESOME!!

So rather than share the actual pizza toppings (because I used the book as a jumping off point for toppings) I'm sharing the secrets for any pizza - the dough, herbed grill oil, chunky no cook tomato basil sauce and basil pecan pesto. All three sauces will now be a staple in my fridge for pizzas, paninis, pastas and ....the list goes on. What can I say...no excuses, no whining any more about not having a bbq!