Kitchen Goodies and other Toys

All available on Amazon! Product title and image links are to Amazon and description links are to my blog demos.












 We use this constantly for Smaller Vegetables or wack of chopped Roasted Veg on the BBQ.  Absolutely essential. :^)
You have seen this in the background of lots of my photos.  I prefer using it to the built in to the oven ones which I do not always hear go off. :^)




This is my next buy! We have a few pumps but this one will tell you when you are done pumping!  How cool is that?




So easy my Dad can use it and believe me that is saying something.  I still get questions about the Blue Ray player that HE chose!



Calphalon Stainless Skimmer
I could not live without this little tool. I prefer this to a standard slotted spoon.  I actually have two other slotted spoons depending on what I am doing.  I use this skimmer for making poached eggs as well.  I find it a bit more delicate than just a slotted spoon.  As well, I uses this to lift most things out of poaching liquid where quick complete drainage is not a rush.  Calphalon has a lifetime warranty on their products!






WMF Clever and More Champagne Bottle Stopper
This little beauty is magic, pure magic.  There are often days of course that we might drink the whole bottle, more days than we should admit since it is all sugar. :-D  But if you are not the big drinker but like the bubbles.  There are the smaller bottles but often they are not the best value and they will not taste the same.  I have used this to store a bottle upto 3 days and the bubbles are still quite vibrant.  Yay!


If you want to save your relationship and your fingers, these are a must.  They are non stick and though still work to clean, stream or lake-side, they are worlds better than the standard.  More often than not, the cleaning water wherever we go is COLD even in the summer so I'm usually on the verge of frostbite trying to get camping dishes cleaned so every minute saved is a blessing.




I use these constantly.  Constantly.  Flush to the top is 1 c and to the ridge marks is 1/2 c.  So if I am chopping several vegetables for a stew, soup or stirfry, I mound them into these bowls.  It is also awesome for risotto or any rice dish.  Flush to the top is perfect for both of us.  To the ridges is perfect for 1 of us.  Flush to the top and a handful is what I do to make sure I get enought rice ;-) 
 


These are the real deal.  I have the other cheaper solid silicon ones that are a opaque colour.  Alot of baking products come in that variety.   I also have a bundt cake of that  type and though they are heat resistant they are CRAP as far as non stick.  This SILPAT is wonderful.  It is reusable time and time again and is totally worth the investment.  Your other option is parchment which works really well as well but it can be expensive and is not reuseable.



When I first got this, I was buying mangos by the basketful just to play with it.  It really works no matter the size of the mango.  It works best for the 'typical' green/red larger ones.  It will cut down right up against the pit.  It will work for the smaller, yellow, filipino ones too but the pit is smaller so you may still have some meat on them.  The only thin is that it does cut the pit down a channel, obviously, so there is still some meat on the ends of the pit.  That's okay. 


 
My baby.  I drag this thing everywhere.  In fact, I made a neoprene case out of a wine bottle carrier so that I could so so with most bags I carry.  I do not use it to its fullest potential.  I have some semi-professional photography friends who use this model.  It is the best camera on the edge of going much further down the path of a professional model which would cost more than double. 


This so sharp that I'm sometimes scared to use it too vigorously :^P.  It is fantastic for hard cheeses, zesting, nutmegs.  Do not use it for softer cheeses.  You will have cheese mush.  Dishwasher safe and durable.  All the curly tufts of cheese you see on my pasta or risotto is as a result of this.
RSVP International Endurance Salt Server With Spoon 8-oz.
We bought this because of Alton Brown.  He uses this all the time on Good Eats, my favourite cookshow.  We use coarse seasalt so a shaker does not work.  You can access salt one handed and is super handy!
It is the best Point and Shoot on the market right now.  Full HD video which is the distinction from the ZS2 which is just about the same otherwise.  I let my photog friends do the research and then I buy.  The photos are stunning and you get in nice and tight!