Utensils - a constant search for perfection

I love kitchen stuff - not just food, but all the toys. The knives, the china, the glassware, the cookware, the cutlery.. everything. But what I love the most is probably the gadgets - the fun stuff. Sam asked us to post a little bit about our fave utensil, since she wanted some ideas. Well, my fave and most extravagant gadget is definitely my Kitchen-Aid (deep glossy red!) but since I know that Sam already has one, well, no use in talking about that one.

Instead, I will talk a bit about a sharpening stone. See, many of us spend a whole lot of money on knives. I know that I certainly do. So, when I saw a guy from Japan visiting one of our department stores, I asked how I could keep them sharper. I already had a small handheld sharpening device, but I wanted something better. Something fiercer. And he showed me the stones. He taught me how to use them, and of course, I couldn't very well leave without one. He said that they were selling a lot of Global knives in Sweden - so many that apparently people didn't know how to sharpen and just bought new knives instead. Amusing. Global knives are really popular here - mostly because of their "coolness" and appearance. Not that I don't love mine though - it's absolutely perfect for my small chubby hands.



The whetstone is expensive - I paid about 600 SEK for mine. But it's SO worth it. I spent a whole morning sharpening all my knives - I have a bunch, as you can see in the picture above. (Hey - see that neat knife holder? That's also one of my favorites, and all the more meaningful to me since it was made for me by an inmate a couple of years ago when I spent a summer working as a prison guard. Thank you Mikael, wherever you might be.) Anyway. The knives became so incredibly sharp again. And it was so much fun! And they've staid really, really sharp for this past month. I'm truly impressed. And every kitchen fanatic should have one! There, I'm done with the selling. :) It's called a Mino Sharp Whetstone, and I have the medium one. There is a coarser one if your knives are really dull and damaged, and then there's a fine one which is apparently just for real fine-tuning.



Now, for something a bit cheaper. I was going to talk about my stick blender - but what's there to say? It's excellent, and everyone should have one. The picture is blurry - sorry about that. In it, you can see my latest toy, a Misto oil sprayer. Very neat! I love it already! But, I'll turn to something a lot more basic. A wooden spoon. The Perfect Wooden Spoon.

I have one. It's the one on the very left. It's perfect. For everything. Unfortunately, it is broken. The handle broke when I was making gingerbread last winter, and I'm in serious mourning. I'm on the hunt for one JUST like it, but so far, no luck. You can see that I've acquired a bunch of other spoons so far, but none of them is perfect. So, the search must go on. (If you find a spoon that might fit the bill - please let me know!) Anyway, a wooden spoon is a true essential in any kitchen, and I encourage all of you to go out and hunt for your perfect spoon!