This all came about because of my love of the Adjusta Cup Measuring Cup (that is the item in the forefront of the photo above). I find myself reaching for this gadget almost every time I bake – it is designed to measure sticky and goopy ingredients, like peanut butter, molasses and shortening. With Thanksgiving next week, I am already gearing up for pie making and this tool is indispensable. I use it to measure out shortening and then freeze the shortening before making the pie crusts.

The Adjusta Cup is a great kitchen gadget to have on hand; simple to use, well labeled and dishwasher safe (although I wash mine by hand). I love the 1 cup version so much that I recently ordered the 2TBS version for small amounts of goopy stuff. At $9.95, it is pretty much a no-brainer, great for the cook on your list or perhaps Santa might put one in your stocking.

When I asked King Arthur Flour for help in putting together a giveaway box, we decided to include a couple items to help the busy baker and anyone interested in healthy family eating. The Gingerbread Cookie and Cake mix works for either cookies or cake (magical stuff) and we were able to mix up the cake after school this week for a quick treat. The kids liked how easy it was to follow the directions and work the project themselves; I liked that the kitchen was not a disaster after their cooking adventure!

A 5 pound bag of King Arthur White Whole Wheat flour is included in the giveaway as well, and is ideal for anyone interested in taking a small step towards healthier eating this holiday season. Much lighter than regular whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour is much closer to standard white flour, yet offers the health benefits of whole grain goodness. We use it at home in our pancake and waffle mix, substituting out 1/4 – 1/2 of the called for flour. I like it in brownies and cookie bars, places where the kids don’t notice the difference and where there is a good amount of moisture. I also like to use it for any of my Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day recipes – sometimes the straight whole wheat recipes are too dense for us, and the white whole wheat adds a nice lightness to the whole grain recipes.

Finally, the rules!

I am going to make it easy – all you need to do is comment on this post to be entered to win. That’s it. You can write anything you want, does not necessarily need to be on topic, although to make it easy, how about you tell me about your favorite food to bake during the holidays. Or tell me about a recent kitchen disaster (or success). Or just tell me what you had for lunch.

Winner will be chosen by random from among the comments; entries will be accepted until Wednesday, November 23, 2011, midnight PST; limited to the U.S. only; one entry per person.

Disclosure: King Arthur Flour provided for my review one box of Gingerbread Cookie and Cake mix and one 5 pound bag of White Whole Wheat Flour. The Adjusta Cup I purchased myself and would have written about without the giveaway, I love it that much. Really, a great tool, one that makes many things in the kitchen easier. Thank you KA for sponsoring this giveaway. If you are interested in more KA products, please visit the King Arthur Flour website and sign up for their newsletter. For great baking suggestions, visit the King Arthur Flour Blog!

“If you were limited to having only one electrical outlet in your home, what device would you plug into it?”

I am going to chose to modify this by asking:

“If you were limited to having only one electric kitchen gadget, what device would you chose?”

Wow, so many choices. Stand mixer, food processor, immersion blender, coffee maker, toaster, waffle maker, electric teapot, slow cooker. What to chose, let’s discuss the options:

Stand mixer: Useful for cookie dough and cake batter. Great for bread (but I can make bread by hand easily enough with Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day). Good as a juicer, if you have a tree-load of lemons. I guess you can use it grind meat, but I have not tried that particular attachement on my machine. Verdict: I can pretty much do everything by hand that my mixer does, it would just take me longer but it would probably help me buff out my pecs. Not a necessary gadget.

Food processor: Great for shredding and chopping foods to small bits. Good for pesto, sauces and making the pre-cooked pumpkin pie recipe I like from Cook’s Illustrated. A sharp knife could do some of the same activities, but it sure is convenient. Don’t love washing the work bowl, however. Verdict: I can cut most things I need with a sharp knife, and shred with a upright shredder. Not a necessary gadget.

Immersion blender: Love this tool for pureeing soups in the cooking pot. With attachments, also is good for milkshake making, and chopping of herbs. Verdict: The soup pureeing part is the most important, and cannot be imitated by hand. I guess you could use a potato masher and a hand blender, but then you would need to run the soup through a fine seive. Not worth the extra effort. This is a keeper. 

Coffee maker: Coffee is important, no denying it. But the coffee maker is used once a week, tops, and the espresso maker is used once or twice on the weekends. The non-electric way of making coffee works just as well, providing a nice product that can be individualized. Does help save money because we are less likely to go out for special coffee drinks since we can make them at home. Verdict: We could do without this device and use a French press or drop cone to make coffee most mornings. Not a necessary gadget.

Toaster: Toast is pretty awesome in the toaster, coming out all nice and brown. Plus, toasters are important when you freeze bread and need a quick thaw. It is a one-trick pony however, unless you count toasting bagels and poptarts as separate activities. A toaster oven might be a good investment, especially for smaller families and singles who want to bake a quick batch of cookies. Verdict : Hard to replicate elsewhere in the kitchen, unless you want to turn on the whole oven, but I am pretty sure that takes more energy. This is a keeper. 

Waffle maker: Ours doubles as a panini press (fancy name for a grilled cheese maker), so we do get double duty out of the gadget already. And it is pretty difficult to get your waffles to look as pretty as they do when they come out of a waffle maker. In fact, I am not sure you can make waffles without this gadget, correct me if I am wrong. Verdict: You cannot make waffles without a waffle maker. This is a keeper. 

Electric teapot: This convenient device boils water quickly in a self-contained pot. Yes, water could be boiled on the stove, but this one works so much faster. Good for boiling a quick cup of water for your recipe, or water for tea or coffee (see above). Verdict: Water can be boiled other ways, but this gadget sure in handy. Not a necessary gadget.

Slow cooker:  I seriously don’t know if I could live without this gadget, I use it quite often. Soups, chili, chicken stock, taco filling, ribs, pulled pork, applesauce. Definitely a well-loved gadget in my house. That said, I could do much of this cooking in the oven on low in a Dutch oven. Not quite as easy to set-and-forget, but definitely a solution. Verdict: In my kitchen, this is an important appliance, one I could probably make do without, but why, I have my husband’s Crock Pot from 1983 and it is working just fine. This is a keeper.

Well, looks like the electric gadgets I am unable to live without include the immersion blender, toaster, waffle maker and slow cooker.

Which device would you chose in your kitchen?

This is not so much a review as it is a comparison post. My old anodized pans were looking shabby, so I removed them to the camping supply box and brought out my trusty cast iron. But my dear husband doesn’t love cooking with cast iron; he has trouble modulating the heat and these pans are tricky for omelettes. I have been studying stainless options (maybe a Christmas gift for the omelet man) but have not been able to narrow down the choices. At this point, it is coming down to how the handle feels.

I digress. The biggest thing I am interested in understanding right now is the best way to use the cast iron pans vs. the stainless pans. And I have a number of questions that I thought might be of interest to others, so here is my comparison:

When do you add the oil to the pan, before heating or when hot?

Cast Iron pans – Add oil before heating the pan, or heat without oil to sear meat. The meat can be brushed with a little oil before hitting the pan, but some cuts will not require extra fat.

Stainless steel pans – Add oil to the hot pan for best results.

Can cast iron and stainless steel pans go in the oven?

CI – Absolutely, straight from stove top to oven to table. Use a hot pad; handles are very hot!

SS – Only if the handle is heat resistant. Some pans are only oven safe up to 400F, check the manufacturer’s recommendations.

What is the best way to clean a cast iron or stainless steel pan?

CI – Hot water, as hot as you can stand it, with a strong scrubby brush. Don’t use soap, it can take off the seasoning of the pan.

SS – Soap and water for most everyday; Barkeeper’s Friend on burned-on messes. Barkeeper’s Friend is also great for the bottoms of pans!

When to use stainless steel vs. cast iron?

CI – Great for searing steaks, upside down cakes, bacon, fritattas. Not good for acidic foods cooked for long periods of time (ex: spaghetti sauce). Least expensive option, but heavy, and handles can get very hot.

SS – Great for items that need a little browning, or slow-cooked sauces, or poaching lightly. Good all around pan, and generally not as heavy as CI. More expensive, however.

Lately when we travel, we like to stay in short-term rental apartments. We like the extra space and the flexibility of having our meals in, rather than out at restaurants. We have stayed in fabulous vacation rentals in London, Paris, Healdsburg and Lake Tahoe.

Our recent vacation to Donner Lake reminded me that there are things I like to bring from home to make our rental kitchens more comfortable. Here are 5 I would consider throwing in my carry-on the next time we hit the road.

1. Knives

Rental home knives are notoriously dull, and by that, I mean, not sharp. I would rather bring a small set of sharp knives to make cooking easier and less dangerous. If traveling by plane, I would consider a sharpening rod or small knife sharpening tool as an alternative.

2. Salt

On vacation, when buying things for a temporary kitchen, most people go for the cheapest product available. Most of the kitchen cabinets I have seen in rental places have Morton’s Iodized Salt, or even worse, generic brand salt and pepper shakers. Now I pack my own little container of sea salt, which is fine even in a carry-on. I also buy salt when traveling, especially overseas, as it is a great, non-perishable souvenir.

3. Coffee

We have been doing this for years, even when traveling to visit family in the midwest – we bring a pound of decaf and a pound of regular coffee from Peets when we travel, along with a single-cup drip basket. Allows us to enjoy tasty coffee from many balconies on our adventures.

4. Peanut Butter

When our kids were young, this was more of an issue, especially when traveling overseas. Peanut butter is very comforting to my family; perhaps your family has something else equally as important. I am sure there are Italians who never leave home without a jar of Nutella tucked under their arm. Whatever it is, having a jar along can make a cranky kid instantly happy.

5. Corkscrew

Nothing worse than wanting to explore the local wine without a cork. I know you could probably pick one up at the wine shop where you purchased the bottle, but isn’t being prepared the Boy Scout motto?

What do you pack for your vacation kitchen? Other non-kitchen things I cannot live without; small containers of clothes detergent, gallon-size Ziploc bags and earplugs. Lots and lots of earplugs!