Kate’s Stocking Stuffer Gadget Ideas

As I recently learned (when I was gifted with one!), no serious cook should try to live without a Microplane zester. Essentially a stainless steel version of a carpenter’s rasp, it makes such quick (and bloodless) work of grating citrus zest, Parmesan cheese, and even hard spices like nutmeg, that you will positively look forward to fine-grating. Available at Ace Mart for $11.95.

The BonJour Mini Frother is another winner: you can make milk foam for homemade cappuccinos and hot chocolates every bit as creamy and tall as that made by your favorite barista. This device is a real technological breakthrough! A steal at Sur la Table for $10.

Another innovation is the Danesco garlic peeler. Just place a garlic clove inside this silicone tube, roll on the countertop two or three times, and your garlic is peeled of its papery skin without breaking the clove or getting your fingers sticky. $8.95 at Sur la Table.

The one gadget that gets more use than any other at my house is my pair of kitchen shears. I didn’t know I needed them until I got them, but I’ve barely put them down since. Wüsthof kitchen shears are available at Sur la Table for $19.95; Ace Mart has Mundial Take-a-Part Kitchen Shears for $7.95. – Kate Thornberry

This article appears in December 11 • 2009.

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Mick Vann is a retired Austin chef who is a food writer and restaurant critic, cookbook author, restaurant consultant, and recipe developer. He moonlights as a University of Texas horticulturist with a propensity for ethnic eats and international food, particularly of the Asian persuasion, but he also knows his way around a plate of soul food or barbecue.

Kate Thornberry worked in renowned Austin restaurants for 30 years while pursuing a reasonably successful career in music. She began contributing to the Chronicle in 1988 and became a regular contributor to the food section in 2006.

Rachel Feit is an archaeologist by trade who worked her way through college in kitchens in Chicago and Austin before discovering that dishing up words was more satisfying that dishing up meals. She has been writing about food and restaurants for The Austin Chronicle for more than a decade, but still loves to cook.

Wes Marshall is the author of What's a Wine Lover To Do? (Artisan) and The Wine Roads of Texas (Maverick), as well as the Executive Producer of the PBS television series of the same name. Wes has written for The Austin Chronicle since 1999, covering wine, cocktails, food, and travel.

Mexico City native Claudia Alarcón has made Austin home since 1984. She worked her way through college in the local restaurant industry, graduating from the University of Texas in 1999. She has been a Chronicle contributor for 15 years and presents lectures and workshops on topics related to the foodways of Mexico, both locally and internationally.