I thought I’d quickly share my favorite splurge-worthy kitchen gifts. Of course, you can buy these easily on Amazon (there are affiliate links for reference), but I also encourage you to look for them from your local small retailer if you have one. Where I live, the Kitchen Engine is my go-to!
My Favorite Dutch Oven – This white 7-quart Staub is so elegant! It has a black interior, ideal for bread baking. For more on Dutch ovens, please read this in-depth Dutch oven post!
My NEW Favorite Knife – I recently tried this 8-inch Blond Shun Knife and fell in love. I’m not going to lie, I don’t own this yet- but I’m hoping Brian sees this post and buys it for me! Ha!
This Electric Kettle makes coffee and tea feel like a ceremony! I use it twice daily, morning coffee and afternoon tea – and it feels luxurious. I figure the amount I save in making coffee at home versus buying it out, justifies it somehow. 😉
This commercial Otis Whipped Cream Dispenser makes whipped cream so easy ( just pour the cream in and voila!) but you can also use it for frosting, savory fillings, foam, froth and mousse. It’s incredibly handy! A good friend bought this for me and I’m in love with it!
Say hello to your new favorite mini blender—the BEAST! It is designed for smoothies, dressings, sauces, homemade mayo, and pretty much anything made in small batches. It makes me happy every time I use it!
People always ask me which non-stick pan I like. This Caraway enamel non-stick pan non-toxic, PTFE and PFOA free, oven safe and compatible with all stoves, even Induction. I only own one non-stick pan, and this is it.
Spice Jars! I am a sucker for these wooden top spice jars. I love jars with a wide enough opening, big enough to dip a whole tablespoon into. These come with ample preprinted and blank labels (top labels too). A little secret…when life feels overwhelming, sometimes I’ll spend an hour organizing my spices, which somehow puts my mind right. A little piece of chaos, that I can control. Haha!
This Spray-Oil Canister is the best! Fill it with a good quality extra virgin olive oil for spraying instead of god-knows-what. It sprays lightly and evenly.
This Immersion Blender! I am trading in my glitchy old Immersion Blender for this happy guy! What a fun color- but it also comes in many other colors if pistachio is not your thing. They also make a cordless one which I am also considering…
It took me a while to jump on the Vitamix Blender bandwagon, but ever since then, I’ve never looked back. I love how the dial can be rotated at any point during the blend, so you’re in complete control! I love that I can blend HOT liquid without an explosion. The size and shape of the 64-ounce container is ideal for blending small to large batches. And, you can even heat soup in the blender- with its powerful motor.
Cuisinart Food Processor Because I am a hummus girl through and through, this is probably the most used small appliance in my kitchen. I use this more than my vitamix, for sauces, pesto, so many things! This 14-cup vegetable chopper for great for mincing, dicing, shredding, puree & kneading pie dough, in stainless steel.
My favorite Toaster Oven During the summer months, we rely on this little guy to keep our kitchen cool, rather than firing up our big commercial gas Wolf. I love how small this is- but has 8 different cooking functions: Toast, Bagel, Bake, Broil, Pizza, Roast, Cookies and Reheat. I use it for reheating, toasting small batches of nuts and making small batches of cookies.
KitchenAid Stand Mixer – The Classic Series 4.5 Quart, Tilt-Head Stand Mixer in white. I have one with a glass bowl, which though tough, I have managed to chip repeatedly. The metal bowl is probably more durable. Because I probably only use this 1-2 times a month, it is a bit of a splurge.
My husband bought me this Air Fryer for Christmas one year which I thought was quite funny, since it was really a gift for him. I was resistant to using it at first, but it won me over in the end. This one is affordable, sleek and works great!
My favorite Ice Cream Maker This little guy has a built-in compressor and makes ice cream or frozen yogurt in 30 minutes—no freezing of the canister. I love it and use it nightly for healthy frozen yogurt. They also have it in white, but the pink makes me happy.
This Breville-Smoking Gun food smoker adds natural cold smoke flavor and aroma to cheese, meat, fish, vegetables, sauces, and cocktails without using heat. Here is a pretty glass smoking cloche that you can place on a plate or pedestal.
This Butane Torch Gun is great for quickly browning or caramelizing the tops of things, like salmon, goat cheese, or creme brûlée.
Cookware
This Caraway Non-Stick Ceramic Cookware Set (12 pieces) is a great option if you want non-toxic, non-stick cookware. It’s affordable, smart looking, and comes in fun colors. Oven safe, and even works on induction! You do have to baby it a bit though- no metal utensils!
If you are looking for a stainless option, this All-Clad D3 3-Ply Stainless Steel Cookware Set (10 Piece Set) is a great option. A step up from this is their 5-Ply Stainless Cookware.
Grill
This is my favorite little gas grill if you cook for small groups (1 to 4 people) or want a small portable grill to take camping. It heats up quickly (because it is small!), cooks really evenly, and cleans up easily. I find it is perfect for Brian and I, easier than using coals when time is short.
Pizza Ovens!
If you are looking for a pizza oven, we researched all of them here! Here are our 6 favorite outdoor pizza ovens!
Favorite Kitchen Gadgets
- This Zester
- Silicone Spatula
- Knife Sharpener
- Fish spatula
- Stainless Mixing Bowls with Lids
- Cherry Pitter
- Metal Pizza Stone and Peel Set
- Pastry Mat
Have a great week,
You may also enjoy
The 4 Best Dutch Ovens for Bread Baking
I don’t know if you have Dollarama near where you live, but I found the spice jars you recommend as well as matching larger ones for everything else there for a reasonable price. I agree that they are really useful, easy to clean, and just look lovely!
Thanks Norma!
Hi Sylvia, we love our Fontana Forni Wood Oven. We now have a Friday or Saturday Night sourdough Pizza Tradition .❤️
Thanks so much Nikki!
Hi Sylvia,
I recently purchased a Green Mountain pellet grill, the Trek Prime. It has an add-on pizza oven insert. I haven’t purchased the insert yet, but I absolutely LOVE my pellet grill!
I will look that up! It sounds really interesting! Thanks so much!
Hi, Sylvia, Do you have a recommendation for a knife sharpener? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Oh, how funny, Carole, so my husband just suggested I add our knife sharpener because he loves it. He does the knife sharpening in our house! It’s a Wusthof- I’ll find a link to the exact one and add it. 🙂
Thank so much, Sylvia. We are just back from a cycling trip in Sicily where the food was amazing! Pistachio pesto, busiati pasta, eggplant. Oh my! I’m wondering if you have any recommendations for a cappuccino maker?
How fun! No sorry, I don’t have a cappuccino maker but maybe someone else out there has some ideas?
I really like my Brevilie Bambino. It’s very simple – no bells and whistles. I’ve had it about a year and a half and it’s holding up well.
Great to hear!
I have/want many of this list! I’ve had the roccbox pizza oven for 4 years now / absolutely love it. I only use the propane (not wood) it makes phenomenal pizza, also great for naan pita tortillas etc. mainly vegetarian here, but it cooks steaks and burgers etc really well in a cast iron skillet – I get lots of compliments and I definitely don’t do meat well!!! It’s a sturdy, compact, non fussy workhorse! Highly recommend- also a great Facebook group of users skilled in sharing dough making of all levels!
Thanks Louise- have you tried the wood in that model? Just curious. I love the idea of being able to use both.
HI! We recently purchased a Gozney Dome: https://us.gozney.com/products/dome
…and LOVE it! You can cook from gas or wood, you can bake and roast in it too. Hope this helps. Best, Julie & Joel
Thanks so much Julie! I’ll look into it. I like that it works for both gas and wood!