Oct 28

Beer and Pretzels are a Perfect Mix

Posted by Inspiring Kitchen | Favorite Finds, Foods, Kitchen Tools | 18 Comments

When you are in the mall and you start smelling that sweet, salty baking aroma coming from Auntie Anne’s pretzel store, have you ever stopped to ask yourself: “why can’t I make these at home”? Well, you can now! And Boardwalk Food Company makes it so easy.

They offer three different varieties of pretzels to make: Original, Cinnamon Sugar, Rosemary and Sea Salt. The secret ingredient is just what you would think of when you have a pretzel….beer! Yes, you add your choice of craft, domestic or imported beer to give that extra boost to the already yummy pretzels. If you prefer to not use beer, you can choose a carbonated soda like Sprite for a similar effect.… Read more

Jul 22

5 Favorite Fruit and Vegetable Tools

Posted by Inspiring Kitchen | Favorite Finds, Kitchen Tools | 27 Comments

Since I am fortunate to be surrounded by so many useful, fun and sometimes delicious products as a part of my day, I thought I would begin sharing my 5 favorite finds on a regular basis. Today we are talking fruit and vegetable tools for the kitchen. Summer is the perfect time to put these various items to good use. So, let’s get started!

Paderno World Cuisine Spiralizer

This machine is totally worth the money spent on it in my opinion. If you are looking for ways to creatively incorporate more vegetables into your or your children’s diet, this will do the trick.… Read more

Feb 03

19 Inches of Snow Potato Shallot Soup

Posted by Inspiring Kitchen | Appliances, Housewares, Kitchen Tools, Soup, Winter Recipes | 3 Comments

You have all seen the news that Chicago and other parts of the Midwest have been buried in a snowstorm. Official totals as of this morning bring the snowfall to 19 inches. Beautiful, white snow. Until you have to leave the house. So, my solution is to make a warm, comforting pot of Potato and Shallot soup.

Step 1: saute onions:

Like most of the recipes that I offer, variation is the key. Personalizing to fit your tastes, time and available ingredients makes this a super easy meal. If you have read any of my other blog posts, you will see that I am a fan of Penzey’s Spices.… Read more

Oct 31

How to Choose the Best Pepper Mill

Posted by Inspiring Kitchen | Housewares, Kitchen Design, Kitchen Tools, Pepper, Recipes, Seasonings | 5 Comments

Salt and pepper. The two ingredients in just about every recipe. The key to using pepper in a recipe is having a pepper mill with strong grinding capabilities. Have you ever bitten down on a chunk of peppercorn that hasn’t successfully been ground down enough and your whole mouth is now on fire – let alone how your tooth is feeling? Ouch.

When it comes to certain kitchen tools, sometimes you need to spend a bit more to have quality materials so the equipment or gadget will do a great job on the task it is assigned. In this case, we are talking about the grinders used in pepper mills.… Read more