Kitchen Things

I wasn't much of a cook until I became gluten free. My grandma and I joke about how I used to describe kitchen utensils as 'kitchen things' because I didn't know the actual names haha. Being gluten free has gotten me into the kitchen and I'm thankful for that. In honor of my grandma and my love of cooking, I want to do a weekly series on my favorite kitchen utensils, cookware, etc.

1. Middle Finger Fork

This is one of my favorite (and probably most funny) kitchen utensils. I use it to get food out of jars (i.e. pickles, olives, sun-dried tomatoes). It's also fun to set out for parties for your guests to add cocktail garnishes. If you don't get one for yourself, gift it to your friends that have a great sense of humor.

2. Wooden Spoon

I got this wooden spoon on my first international trip to England 9 years ago. From making scrambled eggs to browning ground meat, it's my most utilized kitchen tool. You can see the burn marks and scrapes but I like how you can tell it's been used.. a lot! I'll be sad if/when the spoon breaks from too much usage.

3. Hand Held Citrus Juicer

I love using citrus in my cooking (or margaritas) because it really elevates flavors in any dish whether it's savory or sweet. This hand held citrus juicer is easy to use and you don't have to mess with the seeds or pulp.

4. Le Creuset Dutch Oven

I love all things Le Creuset! They have high quality products that never go out of style and are easy to mix and match. My most used Le Creuset cookware is my dutch oven. I mainly use it for soups, gluten-free pasta, and mashed potatoes. It's definitely worth the money and you can always find deals if you aren't looking for a specific color.

5. Silicone Egg Ring

I used to be just a scrambled eggs kind of girl but have recently started enjoying fried eggs. I bought this silicone ring at my local grocery store to cook my egg in a circle shape. Amazon has silicone rings for purchase in other fun shapes too!

6. Bakers Blade Dough Cutter

This may seem odd that a dough cutter is one of my favorite utensils since I'm gluten-free but I don't use this tool for it's intended purpose. Instead I use this to move food round my cutting board or to transport cupped food from the cutting board to cookware. Once you start using it, you'll wonder why you haven't been using this all of the time!

7. Herb Stripper

Fresh herbs are relatively inexpensive and can really elevate a dish. However, stripping herbs from their stem isn't my favorite food prep so that's why I love this herb stripper!

8. Lazy Susan

I've been looking for a Lazy Susan for awhile now. At first I thought I wanted something smaller than 12" because of my lack of counter space. Now that I have one this size, I'm so glad because it's not super crowded and I can still add more frequently used oils and spices. I also think it would be fun to use for dinner parties to put on the dining room table for easy reach. Not only is this kitchen thing practical but it's fun to spin around... I mean we're all big kids at heart, right?!

I purchased mine from Amazon and love it! But here are some other ones I liked. Each picture is linked to the site for purchase.

Crate&Barrel French Kitchen Marble

Crate&Barrel Bamboo Lazy Susan

Crate&Barrel Wood and Marble Lazy Susan

World Market White Marble Lazy Susan

Wayfair Stone Lazy Susan

9. Pan Scraper

The first time I saw this kitchen thing, I had no clue what a 2.5" square piece of plastic could be used for. My aunt had us guessing for about 10 minutes.. then she revealed it's a pan/bowl scraper. I use it to scrape pans when doing the dishes and it works SO well! I can't imagine not having one in my kitchen. This one has lasted me years!

10. Parchment Paper Sheets

I love using parchment paper to protect my baking sheets but I hate how the ends always curl when I tear off a piece from a roll. When I found out that Amazon sells parchment paper baking sheets I was so excited! I will always use the sheets vs. a roll from now on.

11. Garlic Press

This is my newest kitchen thing. I used to buy minced garlic in a jar because it was easy. I'm sure all professional chefs would say the convenience of jarred minced garlic doesn't outweigh the test of fresh garlic. I also just read that garlic in a jar doesn't have the same health benefits as fresh garlic. With a garlic press it makes mincing fresh garlic SO much easier and I wish I purchased one sooner.

12. Silicone Bowl Lids

Aluminum foil and saran wrap are useful in the kitchen but when using them to cover a bowl, I find them to be hard to reuse. I also try to be as green as I can be so not only are these silicone lids convenient and cute, they are also better for the environment.

13. Colander Pod

Isn't this little colander so cute?? My mom gave me this 1 pint colander pod to wash, strain, serve and store fruit. This is the "blueberry" pod but I've been using it with strawberries!

You can get this on Amazon or I found something similar at The Container Store.

14. Tea Infuser

I love tea and drink about 1-3 cups every day. I typically drink a flavored green tea but love trying all kinds. Some of the best tea I've had has been in the loose tea form. I love my new unicorn loose tea infuser because it doesn't spill out and well because it makes me smile!

15. Microwave Plate Cover

I hate dirty microwaves! It seems to be inevitable that microwaving anything with sauce will end up making a mess so that's why this microwave plate cover is one of my favorite kitchen things. It's made with food-grade plastic, is dishwasher safe, and has magnets on the lid so that you can store it in the microwave when not using it.

16. Silicone Muffin Molds

I love making egg cups either to meal prep breakfast for a few days or for entertaining. Last night I made egg cups to bring to work and it's so much easier cooking these in silicone muffin molds. I sprayed them with an olive oil spray, made my egg mixture, and baked for 30 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. I recommend placing the silicone on top of a baking sheet. The egg cups left no residue so it was an easy clean up! Check out these that purchased on Amazon.

17. Brown Sugar Saver

I don't use brown sugar a lot in my cooking so I'm so thankful for this kitchen thing because I was tired of buying more each time I used a recipe that called for brown sugar! My brown sugar saver prevents sugar from becoming rock hard. I soak the terra cotta disc in water for 5 minutes, dry and then place into sealed container with brown sugar.

Here are some brown sugar savers I found:

Hummingbird Terra Cotta

Brown Sugar Bear

Owl Brown Sugar Saver (pictured below)

18. Whetstone

I've been wanting a whetstone and finally got one for my birthday from my wonderful sister and brother-in-law. The most dangerous thing in a kitchen is a dull knife. The best way to sharpen a knife is with a whetstone, not to be confused with a honing steel (think of those long rods you see chefs on TV run their knives on before cooking) which actually doesn't sharpen the blade. Check out this article about sharpening vs. honing.

Here is the whetstone I have. First step is to soak the whetstone in water for 10-15 minutes and then you're ready to start sharpening.

19. Milk Frother

My latest obsession is trying to create the perfect matcha latte from home! I've tried a couple of methods before buying this handheld milk frother from Amazon. It's kinda fun to use and froths my almond milk super quick so it's a great improvement in my search for the perfect method! It comes in 4 colors and is under $13 if you're a prime member. Check it out!

20. Reusable Sandwich Bag

I don't even want to think about how many plastic bags I've used throughout my life. Any way I can easily recycle I'm IN! I use this silicone reusable sandwich bag to bring snacks to work. This plastic free kitchen thing is dishwasher and microwave safe! You can even use it in boiling water or the oven!