Vegan Kitchen Wish List (VeganMoFo #3)
For being a grad student, my kitchen is relatively decently equipped--I inherited some nice pots from my mom, some basic dishes from a garage sale, and bought a nice set of glass baking dishes... and slowly I've been accumulating some gadgets and other things here and there, like my awesome Kitchenaid hand mixer. But there are some things I really want that I've been considering "luxury items," and therefore haven't set aside the funds to get...things that might be especially useful for a *vegan* cook...
1. Rolling pin. Okay, so any cook needs this, not just a vegan one... but I've been using an Absolut Vodka bottle as a rolling pin for FOUR YEARS now. And I use it for pizza, homemade crackers, cookies, pie dough for pot pies, and lots more. There's kind of no excuse because I don't think rolling pins even cost very much.
2. Mortar and pestle. What could make vegan cooking--especially vegan Indian cooking--better than freshly ground spices? I've been looking at both marble and granite versions and I think the granite looks best, and while I did some research before to come to that conclusion, I can't remember exactly what my reasons were. More durability, perhaps. But this would be so supercool to have.
3. A mandoline. It would be so cool to bake my own vegetable chips and potato chips. And slicing with a knife just doesn't get things thin enough. I know if I had one of these I would use it a LOT.
4. A preseasoned cast-iron grill pan/reversible griddle. One that covers two burners, if that will fit on my little stove (I think it will). Since I don't have an outdoor grill, this would be great for grilling up veggies and marinated tofu. I'd probably eat a lot more tofu if I had one of these. And I've never had a griddle before for making pancakes and stuff; I just use a skillet. The bad thing is, cast iron and I didn't get along so well when I got a cast iron skillet, as it already got rusty when I left in a hurry one day and left water sitting in it... I am going to scour and reseason it maybe tomorrow, but that whole experience has me slightly nervous about buying something cast iron with lots of grooves in it.
5. Tiny ice cube trays. I throw out a lot of fresh spices that spoil; it would be neat to have some of those little trays so I could try to chop and freeze little blocks of fresh basil, cilantro, etc.
6. A wok. I saute a lot, and I'd like to try using a wok to saute veggies. I like my veggies hardly cooked (just enough to make them bright colored), and it seems like it would be easier to achieve this without overcooking in a wok...but I have no idea really since I've never tried one.
7. A bamboo or nice wood cutting board. I have an icky plastic one now that's been with me since my first apartment, and I use it several times a day so it would be nice to have a good one.
8. A soyquick machine. These things are expensive. I'd like to try my hand at making homemade soymilk and tofu, though....especially after reading the bit over on fatfreevegan about it
9. While we're on the topic of machines I can't afford, I really want one of those AeroGardens if they actually work. I don't know if this should stay on my list or not though, because I finally got around to getting something this weekend that's making it complicated to have plants around...
Meet the new kitty, as yet unnamed. She's 2 years old and adorable and she'll be winding herself around my legs as I cook from now on. It's so wonderful to have a kitty in my apartment now!
1. Rolling pin. Okay, so any cook needs this, not just a vegan one... but I've been using an Absolut Vodka bottle as a rolling pin for FOUR YEARS now. And I use it for pizza, homemade crackers, cookies, pie dough for pot pies, and lots more. There's kind of no excuse because I don't think rolling pins even cost very much.
2. Mortar and pestle. What could make vegan cooking--especially vegan Indian cooking--better than freshly ground spices? I've been looking at both marble and granite versions and I think the granite looks best, and while I did some research before to come to that conclusion, I can't remember exactly what my reasons were. More durability, perhaps. But this would be so supercool to have.
3. A mandoline. It would be so cool to bake my own vegetable chips and potato chips. And slicing with a knife just doesn't get things thin enough. I know if I had one of these I would use it a LOT.
4. A preseasoned cast-iron grill pan/reversible griddle. One that covers two burners, if that will fit on my little stove (I think it will). Since I don't have an outdoor grill, this would be great for grilling up veggies and marinated tofu. I'd probably eat a lot more tofu if I had one of these. And I've never had a griddle before for making pancakes and stuff; I just use a skillet. The bad thing is, cast iron and I didn't get along so well when I got a cast iron skillet, as it already got rusty when I left in a hurry one day and left water sitting in it... I am going to scour and reseason it maybe tomorrow, but that whole experience has me slightly nervous about buying something cast iron with lots of grooves in it.
5. Tiny ice cube trays. I throw out a lot of fresh spices that spoil; it would be neat to have some of those little trays so I could try to chop and freeze little blocks of fresh basil, cilantro, etc.
6. A wok. I saute a lot, and I'd like to try using a wok to saute veggies. I like my veggies hardly cooked (just enough to make them bright colored), and it seems like it would be easier to achieve this without overcooking in a wok...but I have no idea really since I've never tried one.
7. A bamboo or nice wood cutting board. I have an icky plastic one now that's been with me since my first apartment, and I use it several times a day so it would be nice to have a good one.
8. A soyquick machine. These things are expensive. I'd like to try my hand at making homemade soymilk and tofu, though....especially after reading the bit over on fatfreevegan about it
9. While we're on the topic of machines I can't afford, I really want one of those AeroGardens if they actually work. I don't know if this should stay on my list or not though, because I finally got around to getting something this weekend that's making it complicated to have plants around...
Meet the new kitty, as yet unnamed. She's 2 years old and adorable and she'll be winding herself around my legs as I cook from now on. It's so wonderful to have a kitty in my apartment now!