First Kitchen
If you're just starting out (or want to help some who is), here are the basics to help get started.
- Progressive Fruit and Vegetable BrushWhy It's Cool: Both soft and firm bristles to clean all kinds of fruits, vegetables and mushroomsBefore you can cut, slice, chop or dice your beautiful produce, you need to wash it. I know we sound like your mother, but regardless of where you got the produce - your garden,...Chef'n StemGem Strawberry Stemmer - C34Why It's Cool: Grabs and removes strawberry stem and hull easily...fun and safe for kids to useIt's summer... and we're surrounded by wonderful strawberries! And if you have strawberries, and if you’re going to serve them over a dessert like Guilt-Free Panna Cotta or...Progressive Collapsible Mini FunnelsWhy It's Cool: Large enough holes for most jobs, stores easilyThe funnel is the Rodney Dangerfield of the kitchen--it gets no respect! But if you don’t have one, you wind up chasing peppercorns around the kitchen counter or wiping up a lot...Norpro Stainless Steel Scoops-1 TbspOne of my favorite hors d’oeuvre to make when I have company is gougères: those airy, cheesy puffs that melt in your mouth. The hardest thing about gougères is dealing with...Charles Viancin Silicone Lids - CV28Why It's Cool: Use instead of plastic wrap for a better seal and greener kitchen...and it's a universal lid on the stove or in the oven or microwave.I’m pretty much a disaster when it comes to plastic wrap; it seems to stick to everything except the bowl I'm trying to cover. And the green side of me hates to use it once...Joseph Joseph TriScale - J21Why It's Cool: Fully functional scale with tare capability using very little spaceHere’s the dilemma: you know that weighing your ingredients is a much more reliable practice than than any other form of measurement (see this week's Cool Tip, and even when...OXO V-Blade Mandoline SlicerA mandoline is both awesome and scary. Awesome, because it really can do things a knife can’t (at least not when wielded by a mere amateur), like julienning a couple of pounds...Dreamfarm Citrus Juicer ("Fluicer") - D20Why It's Cool: A unique approach to juicing citrus that both is more efficient and saves space.What dish isn’t improved by a splash of citrus? We love lime in Asian or Mexican dishes, orange in chocolate or with chicken, and lemon in just about anything. We’ve tried a...Dreamfarm Regular and Mini Cooking Spoons ("Supoon") - D22Why It's Cool: Many innovative features make these spoons true multi-taskers.In the process of preparing any dish, we often find ourselves using multiple tools, looking for that ‘just-right, what I need right now!’ tool in the middle of cooking, and...