Author: petebakes

how-to

the most valuable tool in my kitchen, or, in defense of the wooden spoon

Post author By petebakes
Post date August 9, 2008
16 Comments on the most valuable tool in my kitchen, or, in defense of the wooden spoon

have you ever seen those people in bed bath and beyond or sur la table wandering around the kitchen appliances? staring longingly into the stainless steel bowl of a kitchenaid mixer, drool pooling up at their feet – you know the type. well, stop staring at us, it’s not polite.

really, it’s harder than it looks to resist the shiny gleam of kitchen gadgets. how many times have you been walking through the store, hefted some industrial marvel of kitchen gadgetry in your hands and thought, “i make pretty a good sandwich, but if i had this panini press then i could make a really professional sandwich,” or “why get a regular toaster when i could have one that makes 10 slices at a time and cooks eggs and bacon for me when i wake up – and does my taxes while i wait!”

the at-home amateur cook is tempted by the promise that somehow an elaborate and expensive tool can help their cooking rise out of mediocrity. the only problem is that good chefs and bakers don’t get better by using gadgets – they get better by practicing and testing themselves, mastering simple techniques and experimenting to break through culinary barriers that they or others have put up. in other words, it’s got nothing to do with gadgets.

the only gadgets i need are wooden spoons. the three above have saved me countless times in the kitchen. the one on the far left is the longest, my soup spoon, used exclusively for my giant soup pot (it’s about time i made some summer corn chowder…). the middle one is…pink. why? black cherry kool-aid! this spoon is used only to mix kool-aid which, if you didn’t know, stains anything it touches before it’s completely dissolved.

the spoon on the far right – this is my best friend. this one, the smallest, was used in every single recipe on this site. even with a food processor and standing mixer, this wooden spoon is still my perfect kitchen tool. we’ve been through everything together – doughs, icings, sauces (tomato and alfredo), stir-frys, cakes, cookies, soups, custards, tarts – i’ve even whipped cream with it and gotten stiff peaks. i can say with confidence that no matter what the recipe says, it can be done with little more than a wooden spoon and a bowl.

so tell me, what’s your most indispensable kitchen tool?

bread

french baguettes

simple french baguettes were a mainstay in my kitchen growing up. slathered with butter, pieces were used to sop up every type of sauce imaginable.

it’s an all-purpose bread that can go with almost any meal. grab some cheese and have a picnic, toast it and add chopped tomato. the recipe itself is very simple, using a pre-fermented dough that gives the final bread the taste you would get from a professional bakery, who usually allow their dough to ferment for a longer period than the home baker.

the dough is just as versatile with shaping. we made two traditional long baguettes and one spiky ring (made simply by forming a baguette, snipping the sides with kitchen scissors and meeting the ends).

there’s something entrancing about the smell when you open the oven to these golden loaves of goodness. it recalls memories of hundreds of family dinners. get started tonight and begin making new memories tomorrow.

lemon bars

i don’t know if you noticed, but it’s HOT outside right now. so hot, in fact, that when people ask what i’ve made in the kitchen lately, i’ve actually found myself saying “it’s too hot to even think about making food.” while i wish i was a bit more motivated, i’m having a pretty good time just snacking on fresh fruit constantly because it’s easier and more refreshing. fact: i can eat an entire watermelon without even realizing, and with juice still dripping off my chin, ask for another. bananas, strawberries, oranges – there are few lazier foods for hot summer days.

kids aren’t really troubled by the heat. they’ll stay outside all day playing just because they can. meanwhile, i’m racing from one shady air-conditioned place to another in a desperate attempt to stay cool and keep from getting skin cancer (my skin has two settings: pallid white and lobster red). wow, i’m sounding really old here. anyway, the kids in my neighborhood have taken to selling lemonade on the corner, and while i haven’t indulged them yet (2 bucks a glass?!), i found myself thinking, during my sprint from the bus stop to my apartment door, about how delicious lemon bars would be.

the girl pointed me to this recipe, and i’m eternally grateful. they have oatmeal in the dough, which is something i’ve never seen before. it’s a great excuse to eat oatmeal, since the only time i use it is in baking. i got my fill of mushy hot oatmeal on boy scout camping trips growing up. it’s also an incredibly simple recipe that doesn’t require any eggs. really, you can have this in the oven in less than 10 minutes.

what’s so great about lemon bars? how about the combination of sweet and sour, the refreshing bite of the filling, the realization that you are going to finish the entire tray of bars before they make it out of the kitchen…