Plant-Power Up Your Kitchen 2.0 A Green Guide to Miscellaneous Tools
In part two of our plant-power series, here is a full list of all the miscellaneous tools you’ll need to prepare your favorite plant-based meals.
Converting to a plant-based diet can take a lot of creativity, but the right utensils make it all a little bit easier. We’ve already briefed you on everything from salad spinners to tea kettles. Keep up with all the fresh flavors of the new season by introducing some new tools to your arsenal… And your kitchen cabinets.
Late summer-early fall is a wonderful time to get into the kitchen. In my opinion, it is also the best time of year for produce. Summer fruits and vegetables like berries, peaches, eggplant and tomato are still around. Meanwhile, the first tastes of fall are starting to emerge: Apples, pears and squash. Not to mention the ephemeral, yet exciting fig season! Here are a few items to boost your fummer (summer + fall = fummer) cooking game.
Tools for All Your Slicing & Dicing Needs
- Kyocera Ceramic Peeler: Your fingers will thank you.
- OXO’s Etched Garlic and Ginger Grater: One of those things you don’t think you need until you have one. Luckily, this grater is a 2-in-1 tool designed for both ginger and garlic. Now, isn’t that just grate?
- Betty Bossi Maxi Spiralizer: Meals like Zucchini Spaghetti Marinara and Pesto Carrot Linguine will turn your kitchen into cross between an Italian Trattoria and a raw vegan wellness retreat. As the weather cools, lightly steam the noodles for a hearty transition into the cooler weather.
- Betty Bossi Veggie Sheet Slicer: Make easy veggie lasagnas! Fill with cashew cheese, pesto and tomato sauce for a delectable feast made in minutes. On the other hand, you can also use it to slice apples for delectable desserts.
- Williams Sonoma Ceramic Mortar & Pestle or Tera Stainless Steel Mortar & Pestle: I am quite aware that it’s 2020 and kitchen technology has never been more innovative. However, an old-fashioned mortar & pestle is still one of my favorite daily accessories. I use it to mash toasted pumpkin seeds or walnuts to make easy “faux-mesan” cheeses. Just add nutritional yeast and pink salt – so easy, so crunchy, so good! In addition, you can make chunky pestos or guacamole. Crush toasted fennel seeds to add extra flavor and a digestive boost to any meal.
Drink Up!
- Eco Collective Nut Milk Filter: Yes, it’s a thing! Basically, this is a mesh cotton bag that makes nut milks effortless. It also makes you feel like you’re a pioneer woman milking an almond cow.
- Breville Juice Fountain Plus:Green juices infuse your body with nutrients to detoxify and energize in an instant. If your neighborhood juice bar is closed until further notice, open up shop at home!
- Ball Canning Jars or Le Parfait Glass Jars: Store pantry items and keep things like cooked quinoa, rice, soups or nut milks in the fridge for days.
Tools for Savoring Summer
- BK Grilling Pan: Keep summer alive this season and dress to grill.BK’s grill pans can quite literally take the heat. Their non-stick grill pans heat quickly, evenly and safely. In addition, they were designed to be used anywhere and everywhere, from stovetop to grill top. Whether you’re spending the summer in your backyard or in an RV exploring the country, the BK Grill is the most reliable summer kitchen tool to have at your side. Use them for veggie burgers, grilled corn, eggplant, zucchini, pineapple, watermelon, cauliflower steaks and more. (This includes non-plant-based foods too – I won’t judge.)
- Ecozoi Popsicle Molds: For an eco-friendly and refreshing ice cream break! Pour smoothies or colorful nut milks into your ice pop molds for delicious at-home, healthy alternatives to those pints of Ben & Jerrys in your freezer. Again, no judgement here. It’s been a long year!
Tools for Fall(ing) into the Kitchen
- Farberware purECOok Hybrid Ceramic Muffin Pan: Two words: Blueberry. Muffins. ‘Tis the season.
- OXO Good Grips Cornholders: Because have you tried eating corn-on-the-cob without them? Also, try adding coconut oil and pink Himalayan salt for a plant-based twist on a classic. Or, have a cow… corn pick from Williams Sonoma because they’re cute.
- Fissler Souspreme Multi-Pot: Slow with the flow. This essential kitchen appliance has 18 one-touch cooking programs for any slow cooker dish. In fact, you can make yogurt, ferment foods and prepare meals sous vide.
Rebecca Leffler is a Paris-based writer and journalist who, after a career as the French correspondent for The Hollywood Reporter and as a film critic on Canal+, traded red carpets for green smoothies. She’s written five books about healthy lifestyle from Paris to NYC and beyond, including Très Green, Très Clean, Très Chic: Eat (and Live!) the New French way with plant-based, gluten-free recipes for every season, and most recently Le Nouveau Manuel de la Cuisine Végétale. Rebecca has pioneered the “vegolution” in Paris, where she continues to organize events focusing on healthy eating, yoga and la vie en rose… And green! You can keep up with Rebecca on Instagram!
Converting to a plant-based diet can take a lot of creativity, but the right utensils make it all a little bit easier.
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