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Table Scraps: Kitchen Tools I'd Rather Not Live Without

Photo by LYNN KESSEL

This easy, chickpea salad, a favorite of mine, has only five ingredients. Place a piece of crusty bread alongside, and lunch is assembled before you can say "Parmigiano Reggiano."

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 3, 2008

My kitchen is organized according to the things I use most.

So every time I move into a new kitchen, I'm motivated to weed through the useless gadgets and rarely used accessories, which I call clutter with a capital C.

The hard part is it requires some tough choices. For me, my latest move meant parting ways with my gravy boat, egg slicer and glass, boil-alert disc, which rattles when the water starts boiling. Now that's a real essential. I think I got that one as a gift.

After purging the nonessentials, I'm left with two categories of kitchen stuff - the things I want to keep because I use them occasionally and others I need to keep because I use them daily. The so-so stuff goes to the highest shelves and farthest corners. The valuables are kept within easy reach.

Here are a few of the indispensable tools that keep this cook happy.

I buy only black kitchen towels, the heavy cotton ones. One or two are always hanging from the oven-door handle, and there's a folded stack at arms-reach on my bakers rack.

Why black? With all the hand wiping and quick cleanups I do, I found most of my kitchen towels becoming unsightly - fast. But, not my black ones; once washed, they look as good as new.

Then, there are my cutting boards; one is a small acrylic and the larger one is wood. I frequently use them both. The small board is great for chopping garlic and shallots. I keep them in the top drawer of the kitchen island, where I do most of my food prep.

Cook bacon? Then a nonstick, square griddle pan is a must. I don't know why it took me until last year to buy one. Cooking turkey bacon several times a week, I can fit six strips onto the flat surface without any of them crawling up the sides. When the bacon is done, I wipe the pan with a paper towel and move on to my eggs.

Every cook knows the value of good-sized mixing bowls. My Pyrex, primary- colored nesting set is circa the 1950s. It belonged to my Grandmother Kessel. The sturdy, four-bowl set is an excellent multitasker for batters, doughs, sauces and every size salad known to man.

Several years ago, I purchased a rugged, commercial quality blender, which sits on my countertop. The wear and tear of making smoothies every day wore out my previous blenders to the tune of one per year. I don't own a food processor, so the pricey sales tag was justified because the appliance serves a dual purpose. I must confess, though, I bought it for the same reasons a car fanatic chooses to splurge on a Porsche: for the look, the feel, the ride - and the awesome horsepower.

I recently had some leftover chickpeas from a batch of homemade hummus. I went the extra mile by using dried chickpeas soaked first and then boiled. True, the use of canned peas demands less effort, but I like the taste and firmer texture of the fresh beans.

Anyway, I found this amazing recipe at a food blog. The salad is now a favorite, and it has only five ingredients. Freshly grated parmesan, olive oil and lemon juice enliven the taste of the chickpeas in this easy salad. I upped the amount of lemon, cheese and oil. Place a piece of crusty bread alongside, and lunch is assembled before you can say "Parmigiano Reggiano."

CHICKPEA SALAD WITH LEMON AND PARMESAN

2 cups cooked chickpeas (or one 15-ounce can)

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 cup loosely packed shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir gently to mix. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Serve immediately, or cover and chill until serving. Serves 2.

Source: Adapted recipe from www.orangette.blogspot.com

Lynn Kessel can be reached at lkessel@mac.com or P.O. Box 913, Ruskin FL 33575-0913. For more of her recipes, go to southshore .tbo.com and enter the search words: Lynn Kessel. Readers are encouraged to send in recipes, comments and suggestions.

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