Top 5 Gadgets for your Kitchen

Sundays are my big prep days for the week. I take out my favorite appliances and gadgets to prepare sauces, salad dressings and anything else that I want to eat for the week. I make an extra effort to prepare a big meal for dinner so that we can plan to have leftovers for lunches. After dinner, I prep my lunches for the week and try to make sure they are all food sensitivity friendly!
 
There is nothing worse than being at work and not feeling well, rushing to the bathroom, or just wanting to curl up in bed and be a hermit. Anybody else feel me on that one?
 
Last Sunday I was thinking about all the appliances and gadgets that I use and thought I would share them with you guys!
 
So here are my favs (in no particular order):

1. Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer

I got this mixer from my parents a couple years ago. It’s beautiful, lime green, and I use it almost every week. Most stand mixers (especially Kitchen Aid) will come with many mixing attachments.
 
The paddle attachment is for making standard cookie, brownie and cake mixes. I don’t make these foods too often but I do appreciate some good desserts like everyone else.
 
The hook attachment is to knead breads and pizza dough. I make these at least once a month! We don’t buy sandwich bread anymore because of all the ingredients and we don’t order pizzas because I can’t eat tomatoes, garlic or cheese so it’s best to make our own!
 
The whisk attachment is for whipping. Last year I made homemade marshmallows for 4th of July because my Dad was not able to eat regular marshmallows due to his food sensitivities. This was a fun but messy project! Maybe I will post a recipe in the future!
 
Recipes that I make using my kitchen aid stand mixer: Crusty Dutch Oven Bread
 

2. Silicon Mat

Have you ever used a silicon mat? This was another amazing gift! When I opened it on Christmas, I was expecting to see (link silicon baking mat). I wanted to put it in the oven to bake on instead of wax paper or foil. Instead I got this mat (link to my mat) and it is so much better!
 
There are ruler guides on the edges, little tips about conversions, etc.
 
I use this mat to roll out bread dough, make cookies on Christmas, and shape my pizza dough into whatever sizes that I need – personal pizzas or big pizzas! And so many other things. Definitely a keeper in my book ?.
 
Recipes that I make using my silicon mat: Homemade Thick Crust Pizza
 

3. Immersion Blender

Last year was a big year for kitchen appliances. This immersion blender was on my list for a while! I love making soups and sauces this blender saves you from having to transport items into a blender in batches. Saves on time and clean up! Win-Win! They are not that costly either, I believe this one was only about $____
 
Recipes that I make using my immersion blender: 6-Ingredient Zucchini Pizza Bites, 5-Ingredient Cauliflower Soup
 

4. Food Processor/Blender combo

A couple years ago I bought this food processor/blender combo and it has been great! My old food processor was very small and it was hard to make a lot of things in it. My new one isn’t huge but it is big enough to make hummus, no bake bars, sauces, and other recipes!
 
Everyone knows what to do with a blender – SMOOTHIES! Smoothies are great, especially on hot days. I have also made banana ice cream and other fruit purees, but the food processor is great for these too!
 
Recipes that I make using a food processor/blender: Vegan Protein Bars – Cherry and Apricot,  
 

5. Crockpot

The crockpot is our saving grace during the work week. Making bulk meals is key so that I have leftovers to take to work throughout the week. With food sensitivities and a sensitive stomach, it is almost impossible to go out to eat or buy food from the work cafeteria. Not knowing how the food is prepared or the ingredients in them makes its hard to know how you will tolerate the meal. Usually this means that you have to spend extra time in the kitchen every day preparing food for the next day. I like to make my protein in the crockpot – pulled chicken, pork or beef and even “rotisserie” chicken. My grains and vegetables are easy to prepare but the protein is what I find takes the longest! And I am all about making things easier!
 
Recipes that I make using my crockpot: Crock-pot Whole Chicken, Crockpot Quinoa Enchilada
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What’s your favorite kitchen appliance?

Enjoy!