New kitchen stuff

I love Sur La Table. There is one right by Fashion Square on the South side of Cameback and Scottsdale Rd. I picked up a few kitchen things that I have recently seen on Food Network. I am currently obsessed with the food network.

Salt pinch pot from Sur La Table:

A zester from Sur La Table....this one is great because you can put it face down over the bowl or plate you want to zest over, or you can have the zest collect above the item you are zesting. I prefer #2.

I bought an oil spritzer from Sur La Table. All you do is pump the bottle 6-7 times, then it is ready to spritz.

 I can never find the right measuring spoon when I need it, even though I have like 2 of every measure. I found this on sale and it rocks! It is a foldable measuring spoon from Sur La Table.

I have been obsess with Giada's kitchen on the Food Network. Since her 3 tiered basket from her set is sold out everywhere (look to the left of her on the counter), I am now using my 3 tiered serving tray as a way to keep lemons, limes, garlic and avocados at hand..

Mandoline take 1

My first attempt with the mandoline this morning prompted Matt to insist on doing the slicing from here on out. He is always thinking I am going to cut my fingers off with knives and sharp kitchen utensils.
I have been buying pre-packaged fruit cups from Fresh and Easy. With my mandoline, I can make my own, perfectly, every morning. So, this morning it was thinly-sliced apples, strawberries and grapes with my 1/2 Ezekiel english muffin and organic peanut butter. The handheld food grabber stabs the end of the food you are slicing, hence the little poke marks on the apple. Paired with my fair trade blueberry coffee....heaven.

I bought a mandoline and some awesome coffee cups yesterday!

I sometimes need inspiration to get back into action. I have been so busy over the last month that I haven't had much time to dedicate to my kitchen and trying new recipes. It took trying something new from one of my favorite restaurants yesterday to get me back in the swing of things and excited to try new recipes. Once I find something I like, I rarely stray from it. At Green, I am never disappointed with the mock chicken kung pao. I hadn't eaten lunch there before, and I really wanted something lighter. I decided to order the Balsamic Picnic salad, which is fresh greens, strawberries, figs, pecans and a balsamic syrup (on the side).
 I was determined to re-create the salad at home. The apples were so thinly-sliced, I knew I needed a slicer of some sort to achieve the same result. I went to Crate and Barrel after a lunch with my sister to find a mandoline. I walked out with an oxo mandoline slicer.

I also got some reusable straws in fun colors.

Amie and Chris took us out to True Food Kitchen on Monday and the boys got coffee with dessert. The coffee was served in these glass-in-glass cups, without handles. I was intrigued because the glass wasn't hot, but the coffee was. Turns out they are Bodum pavina tumblers and Crate and Barrel carries them. They can be used with hot and cold beverages and they don't sweat. I love green iced tea (with yellow straw) and Matt loves root beer (with orange straw). We are so matchy-matchy. ha.

I have a thing for tiny spoons...I know, weird. I like to eat food with the tiniest spoons possible. So, naturally, I bought these cute sorbet cups with matching spoons. I got a green one and a blue one. They were only $2.95/each....I couldn't resist. They are super tiny.