TeresaSaysLet me preface this by saying I am a picky eater. However, I love to cook and have what some would consider an irrational need to have kitchen gadgets. To each their own, but I do feel the need to have a utensil crock filled with 12 whisks of different sizes. I for one, do not want to have to wash and go when I’m in the middle of cooking. It’s dirty? Ok, I’ll just grab another one!
I absolutely loved being a “prep cook” for my mom growing up. I would peel potatoes and carrots, cut up veggies, stuff mushrooms, clean fish, mix cookie batter, etc. whatever I could help with. I could help make a 3-course meal and then have a grilled cheese because I wouldn’t eat any of it.
You know how in some families when it came to dinner time, if you didn’t eat what was prepared then you go to bed hungry? My family wasn’t one of those. If I didn’t want was being prepared for dinner, I could choose something easy like grilled cheese or cereal. It was even like that when I would do extended stays at my grandparent’s house during winter and summer break. My grandpa always made sure to have my favorite cereal on hand as well as Spaghetti-O’s and a package of Kraft Singles. I was (am) spoiled even to this day.
My palate has grown some since then. For instance, I no longer eat my steak well done, I prefer it medium-well. I know, I know, it should at least be medium, but I just cannot do meat that’s pink all the way through (I don’t eat prime rib for this reason)! I absolutely do not eat seafood/fish and I like most of the vegetables I eat to be raw. I am a textural eater so things like tomatoes or guacamole are a hard no for me.
Anyway, back to kitchen gadgets! I have a ton but some I have never used. I may not ever use them or maybe I’ll just use them once. I’m of the mindset that I’d rather have it and not need it than not have it and need it! I do go through my kitchen stuff every so often and give away (if I can’t justify keeping) the things I have not used or are gently used. The people who take these items are cool with it because they know it won’t be broken or worn because I take care of my stuff.
My love of cooking led me to take culinary courses at our local college. I wanted to learn new techniques, brush up on old ones, and learn the how’s and why’s. I took a total of 8 classes over 2 semesters which included American Cuisine, Basic Food Prep, Nutrition and Menu Planning, Sanitation and Safety, International Cuisine, Advanced Food Prep, Garde Manger, and Baking. I had so much fun a learned a lot! It was mostly hands-on learning which was perfect for me. In most of the classes, I was the more “experienced” one due to my *cough* age *cough* but I didn’t care. I rocked it and completed my certifications!
As I was going through school, I was just kicking ass and taking names! As a celebration/reward for doing so well, my husband bought me my first piece of Le Creuset cookware. I fell in love with it! I loved the way it cooked food, I loved how easy it was to clean, and I loved the way it looked. One piece of their cookware quickly became two, then 5, then 12, and I got addicted to it. So much so that after I completed school, I went to work at one of their outlet stores so I could get a discount!
Well, that was a mistake… I went from having a metal rack for storage in the kitchen to emptying out the dining room so I could have a space dedicated to all of the pieces I’ve acquired. We bought some nice shelving units to store everything but even then, that wasn’t enough, so my husband built me a beautiful butcher block island to store the larger and heavier items. For the love of all things, it still wasn’t enough, so we got a freestanding tiered shelf to store the special edition pieces. I seriously can’t put anything else in there, so I haven’t bought anything in a while and I’m ok with that.
