For a true friend

Megs Inspiration 

Megs is my very ,very best friend. We started our life- long friendship as tow- headed toddlers, at a small Waldorf Preschool in Amherst, MA. We have been best friends from our very first fairy hunt. We communicate though eye rolls, giggles and sometimes tears. We enjoy bad TV and cheap white wine and could spend weeks talking about the same subject ten different ways. 

Last week Megs was here on a best friend visit. I promised her I would teach her to cook and help her take back her kitchen. I also promised  her a blog post every week to inspire and encourage her journey.  I hope that other readers  will find something inspiring in these words as well. 

First things first: 

You need good equipment. You would never go for a five mile run in high heels. I think about cooking the same way. A good cook needs the proper quality equipment to make it happen. This week , my own personal challenge was to purchase a good knife and butcher block cutting board. 

Before I dive into the good knife and cutting board challenge I must recap what Megs has already invested in this challenge. She has already purchased some good stainless steel pans. Stainless steal pans are a must for anyone who is serious about cooking. They give meat a good sear and can be transferred from the stove top to the oven to finish meats or roast vegetables. Megs and I looked into a couple different sets.  Stainless steel sets can get pretty pricey but we found a great set at Target by Giada De Laurentiis for $149.99.  Plus, they are very pretty, which matters to me, and  they have hooks so they can be hung. 

Now to the knives: 

I, personally, like Global knives. In my opinion, they remain sharp longer then other professional knives and they are light and fit my little hands. Another feature that I love is that it is forged from one piece of metal, meaning the handle is not wooden. This produces an even and balanced knife.  For your first knife, I suggest a little guy. No need to go straight to a meat cleaver and head off to the butchers shop to cut down an entire animal. I found a great Global on sale on amazon  -Global GS-3 -5 inch, 13cm Cook's Knife for $57.06.  You can also find them at William Sonoma and Crate and Barrell.  Get ready to spend about $75 dollars but I promise you will never regret it. Use common sense in the care of your new knife, sharpen when needed and never put in the dishwasher.   Look for an upcoming blog from my husband on sharpening a knife properly.

Cutting boards:

I love the feel of a wooden butcher block. My family rents a house in Florida every winter for a couple of weeks. I live for this time of year; the sun, the beach, the pool ,the warm air. The one downfall to this vacation is you have to cook with average to inferior cooking equipment. This past winter we rented a house that only had one cutting board and it was glass. The sound of the knife hitting the glass made me run from the kitchen.  Back to my plea for wood, I found a great wooden cutting board at IKEA.  It has a lip so it clings to the edge of the counter to prevent slipping and it is plenty big. If you want to splurge, check out Old Yankee Handcrafted cutting boards online. Wooden cutting boards require a little more love than plastic.  Once again, no dishwasher and every once in awhile rub them down with a food grade mineral oil. Never leave them in a pool of water for they will warp. One final note before you start shopping, don’t throw out all your plastic gear. Keep  one or two for cutting raw meat. You may even want to label these cutting boards “raw meat only”.

Good luck everyone. Any questions please feel free to comment.