Having woken up an hour before the alarm, I grabbed the day by the horns and spent the very early hours of the morning kneading pie dough, trying to make Thanksgiving headway before getting ready for work. And as I rolled balls of dough into completely imperfect circles, hoping they'll make flaky crusts, I thought... This is the way it's supposed to be.
Our kitchen is equipped with some great gadgets. But we've been paring down for a while--we just passed along our electric juicer and unplugged our espresso machine. Why?
Because we're enjoying going back to the basics. I could have whipped up the dough in the food processor this morning, but not wanting to wake the household, I quietly worked it by hand.
I think about all the plug-in kitchen gadgets, from can openers to mixers to coffee machines, and think that maybe--just maybe--eliminating some of them (I refuse to give up my hand-me-down KitchenAid stand mixer, c'mon!) would do a little bit of good.
There's a lot to be said for some good old-fashioned human power in the kitchen, especially around the holidays. It adds a certain flair to whatever's being cooked. And, let's not forget the obvious... it may take a little more time, but it also saves a little bit of power.
What do you think?
I could never give up my KitchenAid or a blender/food processor. Other than that, take away all of the other electronic stuff.
view hipersons's profile
I've never had a big electric espresso maker and am currently very happy with my old-school stove-top one. And with the addition of my own frothy milk whipped up by my inexpensive (and tiny) Aerolatte frother I have cappuccinos and lattes that rival Charbucks any day!
I also make dough by hand since I don't have a food processor.
view Monica's profile
I never use many electric powered kitchen tools not because of the green thing, but I was never raised knowing about them. we always mixed our doughs by hand with a big spoon. I also think they come out better mixed by hand. Handmade pasta vs. machine made pasta is so much better.
view Maffei's profile
I have very few electric gadgets. But the ones I have I really USE. Like a lot. And it takes me really wanting something for quite some time before I actually ask for it or buy it. Either that or it's replacing something that's died because it's been worn out.
And give up my KitchenAid stand mixer? Are you kidding? I think I violated the "do not covet" commandment for 5 straight years before I finally got one. I'm taking that baby to the grave with me.
view Shana Lee's profile
I'm all for simplifying down to what is really needed and used. However, I am always hesitant to determine what someone else needs or uses because so often that "human power" is actually "woman power".
I resent most of Thanksgiving meals that I have attended because it was a day off for the men but the women (who all had full-time jobs outside the home as well) were preparing for days/weeks beforehand and woke up at dawn on the day of to start cooking and baking. They also had to coordinate the guests, clean the house, and get us kids ready.
I realize that not every household is like this, but I think that it is good to remember whose skill, labor, and time is used to make delicious items from scratch.
view Erica in DC's profile
I'm just starting out on my own, so the only things I have in my kitchen are a convection toaster oven, microwave and I just bought a blender. I only use the microwave to sanitize sponges, never used the blender and use the convection toaster instead of my oven. I have a strange satisfaction chopping up cheese/veggies since i don't have a shredder and cooking on the stove instead of nuking it. Also, I cannot believe how well I'm doing without paper napkins/towels. Didn't have any when I moved in and never bought them. I'm not a green person, but it makes me proud of how little I consume.
view chusmabilly's profile
In the kitchen, I don't have too many electrics. I once worked at a kitchen store and "won" a rice cooker (I didn't even know we were having a contest), so I have one of those. I don't use it though—I make my rice on the stove. My husband uses it.
Other than that my husband has an ice cream maker. I have an electric beater I use once a year.
We don't have a microwave (I prefer cooking on the stove), we don't have a toaster, and we don't own any other electric gadgets.
One thing we are going to get is a blender/food processor—the two things share the same base and you can swap out one for the other.
view mniche's profile
I will be making crust tonight in my food processor due to a hand injury. It will be weird not doing any kneading.
view Anne (in Reno)'s profile
where are those measuring spoons from?
view witchbaby's profile