My Favorite Kitchen Essentials

In a 'real foods' kitchen where meals are made from scratch, there are many essential tools I use pretty much every day that make food prep faster, easier, and a lot more efficient. I sometimes take it for granted, but every time I visit someone and use their knives, can openers, or dish washing sponge - I realize what gems I've found to use in our kitchen! 

These items are either really good or simply amazing and I never regret having spent money on them. In my photo (top to bottom) you can see some of the items that are on the list, followed by other favorites not pictured.

1. Breville Ikon Stainless Electric Tea Kettle: We love drinking tea and actually haven't had a coffee maker in our house in over 5 years. We've had this one for over four years, best decision ever after burning one stove top tea kettle. I love that it doesn't have an exposed heating element for mineral deposits to get stuck on. With a flat, stainless interior base it is really easy to clean. At just under $80 I feel that the quality is there, it's lasted us a while and shows no signs of giving up. Breville also makes the much more expensive One-Touch Tea Maker that I think is awesome and our friends love, but it is over $240 [gasp!]. It heats to precise temperatures for different types of tea - for gourmet tea drinkers!
   
   
2. Flour Sack Towels: These cotton flour sack towels have so many uses around the home, but in the kitchen they are simply magical for straining and I've used them for my farmer's cheese recipe. They are also great for drying dishes, which I usually don't bother with unless I'm putting away the nice 'guest dishes' and don't want water spots on them. They aren't very cheap for under $15 for four towels, but reasonable. For some reason they remind me of my Culinary Arts class and France!
   
   
3. Goodbye Detergent Spaghetti Scrub: We don't use a dishwasher and I always thought there is no other way to wash dishes other than with a sponge or cloth. Then I got one of these spaghetti scrubs and I'm telling you, there is no going back! I never liked sponges to begin with. Even when wrung out and left to dry, they would get smelly fast -yuckiness. Not to mention we were spending too much money constantly replacing them. I've used one spaghetti scrub for a year before switching to a new one - and it still looked almost like new! It scrubs very gently, so it never scratched my non-stick ceramic and our dish-washing soap use went way down since it really only needs detergent for extra greasy pans and dishes.
   
   
   
   
   
4. IKEA Tea Infuser: We really enjoy loose leaf tea, but I don't enjoy brewing a whole tea pot just for the two of us. That's where these handy tea infusers come in. Just big enough to brew a cup of tea. It's just a perfect little gadget and has never failed, plus the price can't be beat at $1.99.
   
   
5. Kuhn Rikon Can Opener: I've discovered this dream can opener when I still lived with my parents, I think my mom bought it at Marshalls. When I got married and saw all the cheap, pseudo can openers that didn't work, I went on a quest to find one of these for our kitchen! I was excited when I finally found one - best can opener ever! It leaves smooth, child-safe edges on the can. That alone is priceless. Totally worth the $14.
   
   
6. Cutco Knives: These are an absolute must have in our kitchen. I've tried many knives. Expensive ones. Nothing compares to Cutco and nothing can compare to their lifetime guarantee and free sharpening for life. I know people who have been using them for 30, 40+ years and they still are good as new. You get what you pay for! It's just such a pleasure working with them, I realize that every time I use some other brand at someone else's house and I wonder how in the world anything can get done in a kitchen with dull knives.
   
   
7. Bamboo Cutting Boards: Plastic cutting boards harbor bacteria, bamboo and wood ones do not. I love my bamboo cutting board and use it every day. It's held up well to rigorous use. There are a ton available on the market, so I would just go by online user reviews of particular brands, some are better than others. I also love my bamboo utensils, use them every day as well - they are great for being non-scratchy to keep my pans like new.
   
   
8. Ceramic Diamond Non-stick Skillet: Literally used every day, I have peace of mind knowing there is no toxic, carcinogenic teflon in my non-stick pan. You really don't need a whole set, I find it sufficient to have one large one for everyday use and I also have the smaller non-toxic skillet for when I need two at the same time, which is rare.  
   
   
9. KitchenAid Stand Mixer: I was really fortunate to be donated a vintage KitchenAid stand mixer and although it doesn't look up to date for the 21st century, the performance is flawless. It saves me a lot of time when making cakes, cookies, dough - all the things I used to do by hand prior to 3 years ago.
   
   
10. Toaster Oven: Our toaster oven has seen better days, it still works but it's been through a lot! We are contemplating replacing it with a larger capacity one when/if it finally dies (probably this one). We don't have a microwave, so I use it to reheat leftovers and I often make quick dinners in it by throwing some chicken with spices inside and not having to think about when to turn it off as the timer does it for me. 

These are our essentials, things I use every day and it would be hard to do without. By no means do you need these to create meals from scratch, but it does make it easier. I will also be sharing with you my kitchen splurges and my wish list in the future! 

Now if only they made an affordable kitchen robot to make all the gourmet meals from scratch... For now we're sticking to me as the chef, it's hard to beat a meal made with love. 

What are your kitchen essentials?

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Plan Toys Chalet Dollhouse Review

My kids love open ended toys that leave a lot to the imagination. As a parent I appreciate it too. I also love toys that enable them to play together, a little boy and his big sister. Toys that will keep their attention longer than five minutes on long New England winter days. 

We received the Plan Toys Chalet Dollhouse to review and the little ones have been playing with it for a month. There are so many things they love about it. To start, we love that it is two separate pieces and can be configured any way you wish. It can be a two family home. It can be a house in the city and a summer cottage in the country. It can be a train station and a hospital is they wish. Possibilities are endless! The awesome thing is that they can play with it not that they are 4.5 year old and 18 months, and they'll be playing with it for years - it's not something that will be outgrown any time soon. We will let the pictures do most of the talking in our review, it's gorgeous as you can see...

Not only is the house itself open to rearrangement, there are also so many possibilities with the two sets of stairs and the furniture (shown in photos below). I still remember when I was about eight years old and I didn't have a dollhouse for my dolls, I made one out of the shelves on our gigantic, wall-size bookcase. My favorite thing was arranging furniture and reconfiguring the interior space. I wonder if my enthusiasm for that has anything to do with the fact that I got by Bachelor of Science in Interior Design many years later! I do think that it's great for their development to play with the interior space and pretend little people live there.

Baby T seems to be too young to really appreciate the dollhouse, but Baby E is thrilled with it! It's really a little girl's dream. She loves the modern design of the house and the furniture. When Baby T isn't bothering her and pulling out all the furniture, she can be found lost in her imagination playing with this dollhouse, making up stories, and orchestrating the lives of little dolls down to fine details. The furniture for the dollhouse is wonderfully designed, there is only minimal assembly involved. You'll need a little wood glue for the beds to be put together, but you can do without it if you don't have an 18 month old that just takes things apart whenever he handles them. The rest of the furniture is really all one-piece items, no assembly required. 

When the furniture arrived

Peekaboo!

The Plan Toys Chalet Dollhouse is easy to move around the house if the kids choose to play in different rooms, it is fairly light and can be grabbed by the top roof part without falling apart. It is something I would recommend putting together and never taking apart though, unless you absolutely have to for moving or something. It is easily accessible on all sides, so it's great when kids are playing alongside each other, there is no shortage of access space = less fighting, more sharing. 

I have to admit, assembling this dollhouse wasn't easy as it came without directions (probably lost somewhere because it was an open-box item, not an issue that you would face as a customer). Assembly took almost an hour, so Baby E and Baby T were getting a little impatient - and hubby a little frustrated. When my husband was finally done the kids were thrilled to start playing with it! Don't you just love those 'new toy' moments and watching the kids exploring something new? They were playing with it for a good hour.

Plan Toys has an amazing selection of wooden toys, both classic and modern. You'll find everything from stackers, pull toys, and puzzles, to ride-on toys, musical toys, and kitchen toys. Out of all the dollhouse options, we think the Green Dollhouse is a pretty neat concept as well. These are the kind of toys that are worth splurging a little more on and will last for generations!

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The Eczema Company Review and Giveaway

I was recently contacted by the wonderful store owner at The Eczema Company and thought that their great products would be very helpful to moms who struggle with keeping eczema at bay with their children. The owners are a family with a child who suffers from eczema and they started the business as a way to help other parents that struggle with the same challenges of childhood eczema. 

My four year old daughter has very sensitive skin, though she has never had recurring eczema, thankfully. About a month ago she was complaining about itching on the back of her legs, this was before the warm weather hit and she was wearing pants. At bedtime when she was changing into her pajamas and complaining about the itching I saw the dry, red, crusty patches on the back of her thighs, knees, and calves. I've never dealt with anything like that, so I was surprised. She has had rashes before from foods she ate (mostly sweets with additives), but nothing like this. After some reading and looking at photos I was convinced it's classic eczema. I still don't know what triggered it, but I'm sure it was something she ate when we visit grandparents and I couldn't pinpoint one thing since while there she has consumed everything from GMOs to food coloring, preservatives, and the usual allergens (nuts, eggs, wheat, dairy, soy, etc). 

The Eczema Company sent us some wonderful items to review that I cannot praise enough! First, the amazing Calendulis Natural Eczema Cream from Homeopathie Quebec, it is nothing short of incredible. Until it arrived, I was applying a natural balm that we had on hand for soothing dry skin/irritation and it didn't seem to do much for my daughter. The eczema on her legs didn't budge and I really hoped the Caledulis Cream would work better. When it arrived we applied it right away, a thin coat in the evening with merino wool pajamas she wears to sleep. She finally slept well and the itching didn't bother her, in the morning the dry, red patches were significantly clearer and in two days all the inflammation was gone with twice daily application! Don't just take my word for it, read all the other awesome Calendulis Cream reviews from parents whose children had major eczema flare ups. At $18.75 for just over an ounce, it's not cheap, but as others will agree, it's a price worth paying for clearing up eczema and minimizing the need for driving to doctor's visits and getting prescriptions for chemical based creams that don't always work. It also comes in a large tub of 4.2 ounces for $46.75. 

For a child with sensitive skin or sensory issues, finding clothing that they do not complain about wearing can be a challenge. Baby E has a slight problem with tags and seams on some clothing. She prefers everything that's soft and super comfy to wear, so she was really excited about the Dundies Elastic Free Underwear ($10.89, below). We got the size 4/5 and they are perfect on 4 year old Baby E - though she is small for her age and still wears a lot of size 3T clothing. I would say you can size up for these undies if your child is average or bigger than average for his/her age. They shrink just a tiny bit in the wash.

For Baby T we received the small (3-5 years old) Soft Seamless Unisex Boxer Brief ($10.89, above). Since he is potty learning this summer, I thought that would be great for him. I love that they are organic cotton, with just a little nylon and spandex to make them stretchy. They are also perfect for children on the autism spectrum. Baby T is 18 months but wears a lot of 2T clothing and these briefs actually fit him well but Baby E stole them from him and wears them for now! They fit her like little bike shorts and they are actually a perfect solution for little girls who like to wear dresses to the playground and need something under the dress for modesty. They are soooooo stretchy! I'm pretty sure they would fit me if I tried to pull them on! ツ 

If you are a parent of a child with allergies and/or eczema, you may find a lot of helpful information on the It's an Itchy Little World blog. The family that owns this small business has tried many eczema friendly products with their son who has eczema and it is these tried and true products that are available in their store. You will find wet wraps, natural laundry products, clothing, and skin care products, among other things. Shipping is always free for orders of $75 or more in U.S. and Canada.

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