Kitchen Hints

In our book and on this web site, we hope to share with you our adventures in cooking. As we learn and grow, we want to pass along what we have learned, so that you can learn and grow with us, avoiding some of our mistakes. If you have experiences or suggestions that you would like to share, send them to us and we will post them as appropriate.

Kitchen Toys

Cathedral Bundt Cake Pan

This Gothic-architecture-inspired pan is nicely constructed, made of heavy cast-aluminum. The inside is non-stick, an absolute must for a pan with nooks and crannies and pointy bits. When trying out my first cake, I greased and floured it anyway, because all the pointy parts on the inside made me feel like something might be torn off when I unmolded the cake.

I had a little trouble putting the cake pan into my oven, because the top surface (or is that bottom?) is so uneven that it wobbled around on my oven rack. It might be worth exploring setting the pan on a cookie sheet first.

The finished cake slid right out of the pan like it was on rollers. Maybe the nonstick coating itself is good enough to release a cake without any torn parts -- I'll try that next time. The finished cake looked fantastic, and a sprinkling of powdered sugar really brought out the details.

The Cathedral bundt cake pan by NordicWare is available at Williams-Sonoma stores for about $28.

Food Processor

Even though I just purchased it a few months ago, my food processor is turning out to be my favorite toy. It makes quick work of chopping veggies, and it's perfect when you are cooking for a crowd (more than two, in my case). Because chopping and prep time can be a deterrent to cooking at home -- and a good excuse for going out -- the food processor takes the edge off. It's great for meals which require longer prep time, such as Tex-Mex cuisines (chopping pico de gallo, making guacamole, shredding cheese) or slicing veggies for a stir-fry. And the food processor turns out to be just as efficient and a lot less messy for making breads. Who knew?!

Stand Mixer

My stand mixer is the first fancy kitchen tool I ever bought. I have a soft spot for it because it started me on the road to finding my unique cooking style. Having used it for so many years, I can’t understand why everybody doesn’t make cakes from scratch. With the right machine, scratch cakes are no more complicated than boxed cake mixes, nor do they require any more cleanup. They also don’t have the additional chemical preservatives of boxed mixes. And the best part is that you can make any flavor of cake you want if you make it yourself, and with the freshest ingredients. Try it and you’ll never go down the cake mix aisle again.

Strainers

A strainer bowl is a handy all-purpose tool. Not the same as a colander, which has large holes, a strainer is usually a coarse mesh and proves excellent for draining pasta and vegetables and for storing fruits.

If you find yourself liking ultrasmooth sauces and soups, such as my favorite gazpacho recipe, a chinois is worth the expense because of the time and labor it saves. This cone-shaped strainer uses a pestle to push ingredients through the steel mesh, which is fine enough to prevent lumps, seeds and skins from passing through.

Bamboo Cooking Utensils

Ten years ago, I bought a couple of bamboo paddles from Wal-Mart for $1.69. I still use these two utensils EVERY single day. They are heat and stain resistant, and withstand a lot of stress. You can even put them in your dishwasher. Beware of wood imitations, which will wear out quickly. Bamboo utensils have a unique, beautiful grain to them. In fact, their resilience and utility inspired me to put down bamboo flooring in my house!

Chopsticks

Unless you were raised in a family where everyone uses chopsticks, you have probably had to teach yourself how to use them. They are not only handy for eating, but also for cooking. They are great for picking up bite-sized items and for turning things on a hot stove or in a hot oven. Your local Asian supermarket will also carry “cooking-size” chopsticks that are larger versions of the ordinary ones.

Recipe Inspirations

Arushi's favorite place to find recipes online is the New York Times Dining & Wine section. They feature recipes from around the world and from a variety of well-known chefs. The recipes are not always “Quickies,” but they usually give good results. You may have to register on the site, but this is fairly painless and highly recommended. As a bonus, you get to read the New York Times!

Katy's two favorite places to discover new recipes are Epicurious and Cooking Light Online. Epicurious draws its recipes from a variety of sources, most notably Bon Appetit and Gourmet magazines, and has a great search engine where you can enter ingredients you're interested in and get a list of recipes in return. Cooking Light offers easy and delicious meals that are lower in calories and fat. Both sites allow you to rate and comment on recipes, and read other people's reviews.

Serving and Presentation

We cannot emphasize enough how important serving and presentation are to a meal. This can be as simple as putting food into a pretty serving dish instead of serving it out of the saucepan, or lining a bread basket with a bright napkin or kitchen towel. Simple things like this can make all the difference!

At the risk of sounding old fashioned, take the time to organize and arrange your meals. It may make for a few extra dishes at the end, but if you wash or at least rinse as you go along (as we do because we have small kitchens), then there’s that much less to do after the meal. Also, as you find out what works and what doesn’t, it will also get easier.