Kitchen Utensils Wedding Presents and Bridal Shower Gifts Under $10

Good food depends on quality cooking utensils. Here is a list of must-have kitchen tools. Give these gifts to your favorite chef this holiday season. These kitchen utensils make ideal wedding gifts and bridal shower gifts. Each is priced at $3-$10 and easy on the budget.

mesh dipper: large scoop used to separate foods from hot water or oil. Also called a "spider"  in Asian cooking.

bamboo cooking utensils: Bamboo, unlike wood, is a quickly-renewable and great cooking. Use in place of wooden spoons; bamboo resists stains and food contamination.

silicone or rubber scraper: Scrapers made of plastic are useless. To cleanly scrape, the paddle must be made of silicone or rubber. Choose sets with several sizes, including a small, narrow scraper for getting inside containers with small openings.

palm chopper: Sharp crescent cutting blade works great for fine chopping nuts, vegetables, onions, tomatoes. Sheath keeps blade sharp and prevent cuts.

silicone/wire whisk: Whisks make excellent kitchen tools for mixing. Silicone whisks are easier to clean and don't rust. Wire whisks do a better job of thoroughly mixing.
 
 

cook's knife with honing case: These knives are sharpened by squeezing the sheath or cover and pulling the knife through. Available from The Pampered Chef in three sizes: paring, utility and chef's knife.

IKEA utility "slitbar"--Swedish for "knife"-- IKEA's products organized by Swedish name--mine's stayed sharp for four years!

Chop and scoop cutting board I have two sizes of these remarkable cutting boards. For the cook who likes portable cutting boards, they are ideal. Edges are curved up to prevent spills. The cutting board has a silicone handle and a narrowed edge for pouring chopped foods into cooking pan. To clean and sanitize this nylon cutting board, soak it in bleach water.


 Extra large stainless steel mixing bowl: Extra wide is good too--diameter of 18- 24 inches. Extra diameter provides plenty of work space. Dollar General sells a basic large stainless steel mixing bowl for $5.


For more on food and food preparation, visit my blog at www.greatfood4u.blogspot.com.

Digital Receipts for Wedding Budgeting, Savings, Returns

Picture this, brides and grooms: the wedding flowers aren't right. You paid a bundle and need the receipt to return them. Annddd, you can't find it. Here you are trying to save money, keep in budget, not go into debt. But for lack of a tiny piece of paper (in the ocean of paperwork), that refund might be lost. Commence panic attack, argument, blaming over whose job it was to organize the receipts...in short, chaos! Well, with digital receipts, accessed from your smart phone, that crisis can be averted. I first used them at Menard's.  Read on  Digital Receipts Help with Returns, Book-Keeping

Our Under $800 Wedding Reception, Frugal Yet Memorable

My husband and I paid for our own wedding and reception. Grandparents paid for food, but we covered everything else. And even though they bought food, we kept costs frugal. We paid everything off in advance, incurred no debt and charged nothing. Our cheap wedding reception cost under $800 for 150 people, including food, cake, decorations, music, flowers, equipment and hall rental. This was 27 years ago, but I could still do it today and so can you. Just follow our penny pincher example. My Cheap Wedding Reception Under $800

Planning a Wedding Rehearsal Dinner on a Budget

The rehearsal dinner allows you to thank your wedding party for helping to make your big day special. Typically the groom's family pays for the rehearsal dinner. However, not everyone understands this protocol (my in-laws didn't). If your in-laws aren't forthcoming about whether they will pay for the rehearsal dinner, proceed under the assumption that they aren't. It's not worth creating drama over (weddings usually cause enough drama to go around!). Plan your own rehearsal dinner and consider these budget friendly options.  Planning a Wedding Rehearsal Dinner on a Budget