Hello my Foodie Friends!
This weekend is Father’s Day. Not sure what to get dad since he already has a bazillion ties? A home cooked meal with some of his favorite foods is a great way to kick things off. How about cooking something special for him? Many of us have been lucky enough to grow up with dads who love to cook, who have mastered crème brûlée or grilling or taught us to make perfect rice. Others have dads who just love to eat, who will dig into a shared plate happily and are always ready to share a meal. This Sunday, we’ll honor all of them, maybe with pancakes or a special dinner or a thoughtful food-related gift. In preparing that special meal, there may be some cool culinary tools you need to help.
One tool that has become a “must have” in the kitchen drawer is the bench scraper. A bench scraper, which is also called a pastry scraper or dough scraper, is also used in working with pastry, bread, and other doughs. But even if you don’t bake regularly, it can still be a worthy investment for general cooking prep. It’s also space-efficient and easy to stow away in a prep drawer, and is a crazy-easy-to-clean, dishwasher-safe tool that can last you for decades. A bench scraper is one of those inexpensive utensils that lasts a lifetime and has a million uses.
When chopping vegetables, a bench scraper makes short work of transferring the veggies from the cutting board to the skillet or soup pot without losing half the veggies onto the floor during the transfer. Think of that flat piece of metal as a wide extension of your hand. Imagine the joy you would feel by only making ONE journey from your cutting board to your soup pot instead of your usual six trips as you balance those diced veggies on your knife or in your hand. You can also use your trusty scraper to smash whole cloves of garlic or to smash boiled potatoes before frying them.
My dad loved my mom’s cooking and my wife’s dad still enjoys a special meal presented to them on Father’s Day. I have to admit, I love a home cooked meal. I was recently thinking about what was my Dad’s “dream meal.” He was a meat and potatoes guy. My wife’s dad’s favorite part is the dessert at the end!
Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place to find those cool tools that can help you as you plan out your menus and get chopping. For Father’s Day, eat together as a family! Relish the memories and show Dad how much you love him. Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”
Take Care,
John & Paula
