Appliances and Kitchen Gadgets

We're somewhat dubious about any machine that serves cocktails but, the way things are going, we may be faced with a robot the next time we belly up to the bar. Still, a martini--now that's something sacred.

So we pray that Hammacher Schlemmer did its research before coming up with "The Perfect Temperature Martini Maker," a digital appliance that shakes or stirs its stainless steel tumbler "until it reaches the optimal drinking temperature of 34 degrees Fahrenheit, ensuring perfect homemade martinis at the touch of a button."

The ritual of mixing the ingredients, … Read more

Poor R2-D2. Once everyone's favorite chirping bot, it's now reduced to serving as a lowly desktop accessory or novelty USB key. And as if this weren't bad enough, it's beheaded on a regular basis. We can hear Tim Moynihan weeping as we speak.

But all that pales in comparison to its latest incarnation--as a soy "source" bottle. "All you have to do is pour some soy sauce into his orifice, close him up, and then pour," Tokyomango says. The horror.

Today we close out our three-part series on Thanksgiving cooking (read about gadgets for cooking the turkey here and gadgets to help with side dishes here) with--what else?--sweets. An informal poll of eaters around our office revealed that pumpkin pie is far and away the preferred closer for a Thanksgiving meal, though apple and pecan pies also have a respectable following. And while I considered dishing up tools for such alternative desserts as cr?me brulee and fondue, it seems prudent to stick with tradition; some folks I talked to view even pumpkin cheesecake with suspicion. So I focused … Read more

Today, we forge ever forward in an attempt to bring you the kitchen gadgets that will make your Thanksgiving preparations go as smoothly as possible. You can read our previous entry on cooking the turkey here. And Friday we'll satisfy your sweet tooth with a feature on gadgets used to make desserts. Today, we focus on the all-important side dishes.

Multitier oven rack A chronic problem with Thanksgiving meals is managing oven space, namely, finding space in the oven for all the side dishes and dips that need baking while your 25-pound turkey hogs all that prime real estate. … Read more

By now you've probably heard of Twitter, the popular messaging service that lets members broadcast short messages to friends and followers. Twitter's subscription price (free) makes it a prime candidate for broadcasting more than just personal updates, and the past few months have brought two food-related Twitter feeds to our attention. The first, foodrecalls, rolls an RSS feed of FDA food recalls--along with links to complete recall details--to its followers. It's a useful way for Twitter members to stay up to date on possible dangers lurking in their refrigerators. The second, cookbook, provides basic recipes in fewer … Read more

Now that Thanksgiving's just around the corner, it's a good time to take stock of the equipment in your kitchen to make sure you have everything you need to pull off the big feast. We've put together a three-part series of gadgets that can help with every stage of the meal. Today we'll focus on cooking the bird, with side dishes on Thursday, and desserts on Friday.

Dual baster/injector The bulb baster is a tried-and-true turkey tool used to keep the skin of the turkey moist and flavorful. Recently though, there's been a trend … Read more

The fact that eating too much sugar is unhealthy isn't exactly breaking news. But CNN reports that it might be even worse than previously thought. If a recent study in the British Journal of Dermatology is correct, eating sugary foods can actually contribute to developing wrinkles.

When glucose enters the bloodstream, it latches onto proteins in the body. As it turns out, collagen and elastin, the proteins that help keep skin elastic, are two of the most susceptible proteins to this process, according to the study.

As if there weren't reason enough to cut back on sugar intake, … Read more

Now that the clocks have been set back and winter is nigh, it's getting dark mighty early. But that doesn't mean you can't still get outside and grill. It just might take a little more effort and some good lighting.

Fortunately, there are plenty of BBQ accessories available to help make that possible. Steven Raichlen's "Lumatong" is a set of tongs with an attached LED flashlight that shines light wherever the tongs are pointed.

Brookstone's grill light clamps onto the handle of a large grill to produce a wider lighted area. And the … Read more

Digital timers can be invaluable to a cook, especially for slow-cooked food like stews or for roasting large portions of meat. But most of them can be used for only one dish, potentially problematic if you're working on a big meal with lots of individual parts.

This "triple timer" from Williams-Sonoma lets you set a timer for up to three dishes, which would be especially useful during the holidays when you might have a turkey in the oven, potatoes on the stove, and a rainbow-colored Jell-O marshmallow mold chilling in the fridge.

The timer is portable but … Read more