If you are going to spice up the dishes you serve your family, you will need to think about adding utensils and other items to your kitchen. Gone will be the days when you can have just the basics. Instead, you will need to know about – and purchase – gourmet kitchen utensils.
The first item you should have is a juicer. Sure, you can pick up a gallon of orange juice at the store. It is simpler and, ultimately, less expensive to buy it at the grocer’s place instead of making your own. A juicer, though, will allow you to serve your guests the freshest juice available.
Even if the juice is just as an add-in to a dish, you will want fresh juice. Not only will you get a better taste, but it will not have preservatives, making it healthier. It also will have pieces of the fruit for a little extra kick.
After you have your juicer in place, turn to your baking. Loaf pans are an absolute must for the baker’s kitchen. You can use it for breakfast breads, such as a banana nut loaf, or for sweet loaves. Loaf pans also come in handy to help you shape your dinner loaves. You will need several sizes so that you can adjust for the texture and size of bread you need.
Baking brings up options for a wide variety of kitchenware. If you bake cookies, or plan to start, then you should think about getting cookie cutters, baking sheets, and special cake pans. Pound cakes and bundt cakes, among others, require special pans to get them right. You do not want to sweat over your recipe only to find that your pans will not accommodate the cake.
Think about children when you are planning for cookies and other goodies. Amanda will like a cookie in the shape an A just for her, and Jason may enjoy taking a bite out of a baseball from the cookie plate. Even without children, you can add spice to cookies through shape, not flavor. Your basic sugar cookie recipe looks a lot better if it is in a shape other than a circle. Remember that much of cooking is about presentation, and cookie cutters can make that part simple.
The pasta machine is the next kitchen item up for you to purchase. This item is really a luxury item for your kitchen, but homemade pasta can be a great treat for your guests. You can find one in various price ranges, from small hand-cranked versions that you can use if you are having only a small gathering to a larger electric pasta machine for many people.
A final item you should get is a springform pan. This type of pan will help if you are going to make cheesecake or tarts. The benefit of this type of pan is that the bottom comes off. The sides have a spring release so that you can remove the side of the pan instead of pulling the cake from a pan and risking ruining the cake.
Also, read:
- Ingredients That Every Good Cook Should Always Have On Hand
- Cooking Gifts for the Burgeoning Chef on your List
Buying these four pans will help you to begin your gourmet kitchen. These items will allow you more options in your cooking and will let you impress your guests!
