We’re remodeling our kitchen in a couple of weeks and so I’ve begun the process of cleaning out cabinets and drawers in preparation for the new cabinets. It’s amazing what kitchen tools we’ve accumulated over the years. As people who love to cook, we’ve become “gadget and appliance freaks,” always loving to try new tools.
But the process of purging and sorting has really made me think about what the essential tools of the kitchen really are. What are the things that I could not do without? Here’s a list of my essentials — which I’d highly recommend adding to any registry!
All Clad Measuring cups and spoons — I am in love with these measuring cups and spoons and am still grateful to the friends who gave them to us as a wedding present! I love that the 1 cup measuring cup has marks for smaller quantities like 1/4 cup and 3/4 cups, that way I don’t have to dirty multiple measuring cups. They are also very sturdy and feel substantial in the hand.
All Clad measuring cups and spoons
Kitchen Aid Mixer — Makes the perfect batch of chocolate chip cookie dough. Need I say more?
Kitchen Aid Artisan Stand Mixer
Heat-resistant silicone spatula — I use this when I cook, when I bake… it is my go-to mixing spoon and I love that I never have to worry about it melting.
OXO heatproof silicone spatula
Nesting bowls — I use these every day. Ev-er-y-day! I keep them in the cupboard in two sets so that they are easier to lift out.
glass nesting bowls
Colander — I prefer this type of colander to the large mesh colanders as the latter are very hard to clean — especially after draining pasta.
Footed Colander
Creamer — My Apilco Creamer comes in handy for not only serving up cream with coffee, but also when making small batches of vinaigrettes or for serving sauces.
Apilco Porcelain Creamer
Zester — We use this microplane zester way more than I ever would have imagined. It is easy to use and washes fairly easily, too.
Microplane Rasp Grater
Whirly Pop — OK, this may not be an essential, but I really can’t live without it! My husband and I love homemade popcorn and the Whirly Pop makes the best popcorn we’ve ever had.
My husband and I recently returned from a wonderful trip to Paris. He extended a business trip into a vacation and we were able to “unplug” from the world for a few days in an amazing city. What a blessing!
Tops on my itinerary was to hit the organic market at Boulevard Raspail in the 6th Arrondissement. I had read a review of it by Ina Garten and knew I needed to check it out.
We decided to go to the market late morning and pick up some items for a picnic in nearby Jardin du Luxembourg. I salivated over the amazing bread, produce, cheese, and butcher stands. There is something about the freshness of the ingredients in France that doesn’t seem to compare to the U.S. (though we are certainly beginning to hold our own here).
We picked up an amazing baguette, some goat cheese, fresh strawberries, and some jus du pomme and headed to the park. We set up a little picnic on a bench with a lovely view, including active Parisians playing tennis, practicing tai chi, and learning martial arts moves. Just another Sunday in Paris!
I had packed some picnic essentials from home — knives, forks, napkins, cups… — so we were able to have a lovely meal and relax in the park for a while.
Summer picnics are one of my favorite things to do when the weather is nice. It doesn’t take much to create a little feast to enjoy on sunny day with friends: a blanket, some victuals, a few beverages and voila! Al fresco dining!
A great place in DC to picnic is at Wolf Trap. What could be better than reclining in the grass on a breezy summer evening listening to great music?! Here are some ideas for setting up a great picnic at Wolf Trap this summer.
French fries are a weakness of mine. I wish I could be as disciplined as my friends who choose a side salad over fries with their sandwich or burger… but I just can’t! And when they are labeled “frites” on the menu, forget it — they somehow become even more irresistable!
Serving “cones” of fries at parties is not a new thing. Caterers often fold parchment or other paper into a cone and present the fries in the cones. That’s easy enough to do at home, as well, but now it’s even easier…
I spotted these wire containers on Crate & Barrel’s site recently… just in time for summer BBQs! I am pretty sure the Truffled French Fries featured on Epicurious would fit very well in one of these!
Bon Appetit!
French Fry Holder & Burger Basket with Liners, from Crate & Barrel
french fries presented in a wire cone with fun paper
My guest post for the DC Ladies Blog today focuses on the rising popularity of French Macarons in DC. I, myself, have a growing obsession with them, fueled by a dear friend who also adores them.
Check out the post for scoop on where to find great macarons in DC and how to incorporate them into your next social gathering!
If it is not evident to readers by now, I have a major sweet tooth. So when, this past week, I had the chance to sample B. Hall, Baker’s amazing spring whoopie pie flavors, I was over the moon. My report? They are AMAZING! A+ all the way!
The whoopie pies arrived safely in an adorable container embellished with dotted ribbon.
B Hall, Baker Whoopie Pie tin
The six whoopie pies included some B Hall, Baker’s classics as well as their spring flavors:
Dark chocolate
Raspberry Red Velvet
Sour Cherry
Chocolate & Vanilla
Ginger Cake with Lemon
Coconut
6 whoopie pies from B Hall, Baker
Don’t ask me to pick a favorite — they were all divine. The Raspberry Red Velvet tasted of fresh raspberries; the aroma of the Ginger Cake smelled as if I just peeled fresh ginger; the Coconut was so light it melted in my mouth. The cake was moist and the filling soft and gooey — in the best of ways.
Other Spring flavors offered by B Hall, Baker include French Lemon Cake, Carrot Cake and Pineapple, and Peach Mango.
The whoopie pies, which I have mentioned in an earlier post, would be wonderful treats at an Easter brunch or other Spring gathering. And they are so en vouge right now — how could you go wrong?!
I just got back from a quick trip to New York City where I made a stop by Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery. I think I left ten pounds heavier, but it was totally worth it. Like many other top tier, artisan bakeries, Bouchon is tinkering with the past — serving nostalgic treats that take us back to our childhood.
Two of my favorite nostalgic treats offered at Bouchon Bakery were the TKO and the Ho-Ho.
Thomas Keller's version of the Oreo with chocolate sable dough and a white chocolate ganache filling
TKO from Bouchon Bakery
Bouchon's take on a Ho-Ho
If you are in Yountville, Las Vegas, or New York, be sure to check out Bouchon’s playfully tasty treats!
With my grandparents on the occasion of my first communion (after which I am sure we ate very well!)
My Nana would have been 97 years old today. She died two years ago just shy of her 95th birthday.
She was the matriarch of our large Italian family. Growing up on the North Shore of Massachusetts, our house was right next door to my Nana and Grampy’s. After school was often spent on my Nana’s porch, being fed cheese and crackers…. or cream cheese and jam sandwiches… or some sort of weird tuna and pickle sandwich combination or…. spumoni ice cream. (No mystery which treat was my favorite.) I didn’t always love what she was feeding me, but I never left hungry. “Eat! Eat!” Isn’t that every Italian grandmother’s refrain?
My Nana’s home was the gathering place for every family event — birthdays, anniversaries, holidays — and those occasions always included lots and lots of food. In fact, my Nana had not one but two kitchens for preparing these feasts. The main kitchen was for everyday cooking and the downstairs kitchen was for making homemade pasta and traditional Italian desserts, like cannoli.
I attribute my undying affection for cannoli to my Nana’s baking skills. A trip home to Boston is not complete without picking up some authentic cannoli from Modern in the North End. Locally, I am always content with cannoli from The Italian Store in Arlington.
Nana’s two-kitchen household spoke to the primacy of food in our family. We were always well-fed at family dinners. Lasagna, baked ziti, spaghetti and homemade meatballs, eggplant parmesan… the list goes on. And I think, for my Nana, hospitality meant good food and lots of it. Her table settings were always lovely. She managed — despite us messy kids — to always keep her linens white-white-white. But I think, for her, hospitality meant that no one left the table hungry. The highest praise to my Nana was going back for seconds and thirds and leaving a clean plate every time.
While I believe I inherited that view of hospitality — feed them well — I know that food is not the only way to make guests feel welcome in one’s home. Good conversation, comfortable spaces, casual elegance all go a long way in showing gracious hospitality to your guests. OK, I guess lasagna and cannoli can’t hurt either!
My husband and I are not big fans of Valentine’s Day. It’s a little too commercial for our taste. So from the start, we vowed not to make a fuss of the holiday. Instead, we created our own tradition: staying home and cooking lobsters — one of our favorite meals.
This year, our lobster feast was fairly low key. We had spiced shrimp with cocktail sauce to start, a mixed greens salad, lobsters, all followed by strawberry shortcake for dessert.
I often blog about the presentation of a meal — the place setting, the tablescape — the little details that make the event special. While those things are important, the practical work of preparing and cleaning up after the meal should also not be overlooked. Here are a few practical matters we ran across when preparing our Valentine’s Day lobster feast:
serveware and lobster tools
Our lobster platters aren’t used everyday so we keep them stored in a sideboard rather than in the kitchen. Items you don’t use regularly need not be crammed into your kitchen cabinets. Make sure they are clean before you store them and set them in a sideboard or your storage room. If the item is decorative, you might wish to display it in a hutch or elsewhere in the dining room.
The lobster tools were on our registry. Knowing we loved lobster, we knew they would be useful to have on hand. We only registered for a set of 4 tools, realizing we probably wouldn’t be having large lobster dinners at our home. And in the case of lobster and crabs, not everyone always needs their own set of tools. When registering for or buying speciality kitchen items, linens, or serveware, consider how you will use them and only buy what you need.
lobster rolls
We decided to cook four lobsters and eat two for Valentine’s Day and prepare the meat from the other two for lobster rolls — another all-time favorite of ours. I always buy Pepperidge Farm top split buns for the rolls — the sides of the buns are perfect for buttering and toasting. Fill them with some lobster meat mixed with chopped celery, a little mayonnaise, salt & pepper and voila! Decadence!
lobster shells
After cleaning all of the lobsters we were left with a mountain of shells. My husband suggested we make lobster stock. Brilliant! We added the shells to water, chopped onion, celery, and carrots, and a little white wine and let it simmer for a couple of hours. Now, we’ll have homemade stock on hand when we need it.
freezer label for lobster stock
We often end up with a ton of things in our freezer and sometimes it’s hard to tell how long something has been in there. (Scary!) So I’ve started using freezer labels to mark the date on each item. Martha Stewart’s template for freezer labels came in very handy. I printed the template onto full-size label sheets and cut them with paper cutter. I keep a stash in my drawer near my freezer for when I need them. No more guessing how long something has been in the freezer!
Simple things like properly storing serving pieces, making full use of every food item in your kitchen, and keeping food organized and well-stored can make the behind-the-scenes preparations of any party much more enjoyable.
While my NFL team did not make it to the SuperBowl, I did find myself cheering rather loudly last night. It was hard not to cheer for the Saints. After all, it was their first time ever making it to the Big Game. And with all that the city of New Orleans has been through, how can you not cheer (even a little bit) for them?
New Orleans will go from celebrating the Saints sweet victory right into Mardi Gras, which starts on Fat Tuesday, February 16. While I am not big into Mardi Gras, it does remind me of some of the amazing culinary creations New Orleans has to over. My favorite is beignets.
Beignets are a wonderful morning, afternoon, evening… well, anytime snack. Serve them in honor of Mardi Gras or even as a sweet treat for a sweet someone on Valentine’s Day. Here’s a recipe to try:
Buttermilk Beignets from Epicurious
Ingredients
3/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
4 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 cups bread flour plus extra for flouring work surface
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Peanut oil for frying
Confectioners’ sugar for serving, as much as you think you’ll need—then double that!
Preparation
Heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until small bubbles form at the surface. Remove from the heat, add the buttermilk, and then pour into a stand mixer bowl. Whisk in the yeast and the sugar and set aside for 5 minutes. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt, and mix on low speed, using a dough hook, until the dry ingredients are moistened, 3 to 4 minutes. Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue mixing until the dough forms a loose ball and is still quite wet and tacky, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set the dough aside in a draft-free spot for 1 hour.
Pour enough peanut oil into a large pot to fill it to a depth of 3 inches and bring to a temperature of 375°F over medium heat (this will take about 20 minutes). Line a plate with paper towels and set aside.
Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough out on it. Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour, gently press to flatten, fold it in half, and gently tuck the ends under to create a rough-shaped round. Dust again and roll the dough out into a ½-inch- to ¹/³ -inch-thick circle. Let the dough rest for 1 minute before using a chef’s knife, a bench knife, or a pizza wheel to cut the dough into 1 1/2-inch squares (you should get about 48).
Gently stretch a beignet lengthwise and carefully drop it into the oil. Add a few beignets (don’t overcrowd them, otherwise the oil will cool down and the beignets will soak up oil and be greasy) and fry until puffed and golden brown, turning them often with a slotted spoon, for 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the prepared plate to drain while you cook the rest. Serve while still warm, buried under a mound of confectioners’ sugar, with hot coffee on the side.
Make ahead:
The beignet dough can be made up to 8 hours in advance of frying. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray it with nonstick cooking spray. After cutting the dough, place the beignets on the paper and place another greased sheet of parchment paper, sprayed-side down, on top. Wrap the entire baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate. The beignets can be fried straight from the refrigerator.
I am so excited to be a guest blogger on the fabulous new blog, DC Ladies, which covers wedding trends to restaurant reviews to interior design all from DC bloggers. My first guest post on the site deals with the top five trends in entertaining for 2010. I’ve posted it here also. Be sure to visit DC Ladies often!
Casual entertaining takes center stage in 2010.
This year I’ve heard from many people that their New Year’s resolution is to entertain more. Opening up one’s home is not only a gesture of hospitality and graciousness, but it also provokes an intimacy that can’t be had at a noisy, crowded bar or restaurant. Around the table, we have real conversations and authentic community –- things that everyone seems to be craving right about now.
At-home entertaining doesn’t need to be daunting or overwhelming. Simple food and casual presentations are all it takes to create a comfortable, chic atmosphere. As we look at entertaining in 2010, one of the most commonly cited and important trends is locally-sourced and sustainable foods. Here are five more trends I’m seeing for the year ahead:
1.) Micro courses.
Outlandish portions are out the window. Smaller, more manageable plates allow guests to savor the ingredients and enjoy the taste and flavor of each dish. Courses need not be complicated (think mac-n-cheese served in a demitasse cup); a series of several simple offerings creates variety and livens the mood. Finish the meal with a sampling of bite-sized desserts.
2.) More sweet treats.
Dare I say it? Cupcakes are so 2009. Move on to the new trends in satisfying sweets: whoopie pies (gooey marshmallow sandwiched between chocolate cakelike cookies) and homemade marshmallows in every possible flavor.
3.) Potluck dinners.
They’re certainly economical, but potluck dinners can also be stylish, sophisticated, and fun. Ask each guest to prepare a dish featuring the same ingredient a la Iron Chef. Or have everyone cook a dish from the same cookbook (Thomas Keller’s new Ad Hoc at Home cookbook would be perfect) and compare notes on the preparation.
We’re done with crazy, over-the-top cocktail concoctions. And energy drinks? Those should not come within fifty feet of a highball glass. A well-stocked bar in 2010 will include classic spirits and fresh, natural ingredients — things like organic agave nectar, freshly-squeezed Meyer lemon juice, or homemade grenadine (recipe via cocktail expert Jeffrey Morgenthaler.). Cheers!
5.) Casual chic wins over stuffy and formal.
Put away your Haviland china. Formal entertaining is out in 2010. Instead, think no-iron organic cotton napkins and bright white dinner plates. Casual is in.
All these trends speak to an appetite for simplicity and community in 2010 and a desire to shift our investments toward things that last -– like spending time at home with friends and family.
I subscribe to a lot of e-newsletters, feeds, e-zines… you name it. One of the ones I always look forward to seeing pop in my inbox is GOOP, actress Gwyneth Paltrow’s digital collection of food, beauty, and lifestyle tips and trends. The posts are always novel, pleasantly practical, and generally inspiring. Today’s post particularly caught my eye as it featured amazing winter recipes from Big Little Get Together, a chef service in NYC. All I can say is,
What.
Could.
Be.
Better.
Than.
Eggnog.
Popsicles????
I can’t wait to try them!
eggnog popsicles (via GOOP, recipe from Big Little Get Together)
Eggnog Popsicles
Yield: a dozen popsicles
½ pound cream cheese
1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons nutmeg
1 cup sugar
pinch of kosher salt
2 tablespoons brandy
2 tablespoons bourbon
2 cups heavy cream whipped until just stiff
Beat the cream cheese in a standing mixer or with a whisk until completely smooth. Thoroughly stir in all of the remaining ingredients except for the whipped cream. Fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Fill popsicle molds with the mixture and allow to set and freeze for at least two hours (if you don’t have popsicle molds, you can use paper cups and popsicle sticks). The texture will be semifreddo-ish.
