Food News: My top 10 kitchen must-haves

"Last week, the Living section featured an article about 10 must-have kitchen gadgets.

While all 10 might be nice to have, I disagree with their importance. In fact, in my well-equipped (over-equipped, some might say) kitchen you'll find only four of the 10 - and of those four, only the balloon whisk and hand-held grater get regular use.

So this week, I'm departing from my usual format to share my top 10 list of must-have kitchen gadgets. And I invite you to tell me what gadget you can't live without - and share a recipe that takes advantage of it.

Before I get to the list, Patsy Cooper of Haslett has a request. She is looking for ways to prepare jicama, which she first enjoyed in Mexico. She usually just peels the vegetable and eats it raw, but she'd like some new ideas. Who has some suggestions?

Now for the list, in no particular order:

• Adjustable measuring cup. This wonderful gadget is made of two pieces: a clear cylinder marked with measurements, and a sliding "plunger." It's perfect for measuring semi-solid, runny or sticky ingredients, such as mayonnaise, shortening, salsa or honey. You simply slide the plunger part down to line up with the measurement you desire, then fill the cup. Then push the plunger to dispense every bit of the ingredient into your mixing bowl - no scraping required. I have two of these; one holds up to 1 cup, the other 2 cups."

Full article here.

May 22, 2006

Food News: My top 10 kitchen must-haves