Wusthof Gourmet 6-1/2-Inch Offset Slotted Spatula

While this spatula is shaped and traditionally used to turn fish filets, I've found it to be a good general purpose spatula including for folding omelets. The metal has just the right balance of flex but yet is stiff enough to hold up to heavy meats without bending. The angled and wide shape of the tip plus the length of the spatula all works to make this a better metal spatula than many of the other spatulas I own including the Rosle 12.6" Perforated Angled Spatula.

So far I've used it for cooking omelets, chicken breasts, scallops, and even salmon fillets and this spatula handled every task well with no problems.

PROS:

About the right balance and feel in one's hands making it comfortable to use.

The angled and thin metal blade has the right amount of stiffness and flex to get underneath whatever food you need to turn. The wider tip provides more area for supporting your food item.

CONS:

The plastic handle is not heat resistant (will melt slightly if left on a hot pan).

The spatula does not have a full tang which could add slightly better balance and justify the cost.

Yeah, it is expensive. But I got mine when the Amazon price was about what Cooks Illustrated listed as the cost.

It is designed for a right-handed cook because of the angle of the blade makes it awkward for left-handed cooks. So if you are left handed you may want to consider the Rosle spatula Rosle 12.6" Perforated Angled Spatula.

We bought this based upon Cooks Illustrated's recommendation as the best fish spatula, and were not disappointed. It is wonderfully thin yet sturdy, and has a sharp leading edge for getting under fish, cookies, whatever. A great addition worth the space in the gadgets drawer. Be aware, though, that the sharpness makes it inappropriate for use with non-stick pans, which it will scratch.

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I just received this item. But if you are used to the quality of Wusthof knives be prepared for a let down. This is the Gourmet line not the Classic.

Metal portion is a metal stamping with only the front/back surfaces polished. The outside edges and the edges in the slots are still rough. A good place for bacteria to grow.

However, I suspect it will work well.

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I originally purchased this slotted spatula as a "fish spatula", but it has worked well as a general purpose spatula (except for non-stick surfaces). My only small gripe is that the black surface on the handle is a plastic with a relatively low melting point I leaned it against a hot pan and it melted slightly after a few minutes.

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I have used this spatula for pancakes, toast, and omelets. It has served me well in all three scenarios. The handle is not heatproof, and for the price, it really should be, thus the four stars.

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Griddle/ Hotplate for CIG 22.5

Because craycort doesnt sell all their products on amazon I will review the inserts I have on this review. My first suggestion is since there is really no benefit of buying any of craycorts items on amazon itself, I would just buy directly off their website. Its almost exactly the same price (only shipping cost will vary). I have put my review of the 22.5 inch grate already. This will be just for the inserts.

The Griddle/Hotplate: Ill start with the Griddle side. On the griddle side it works exactly like a grill pan. I find I like to use this side for burgers as opposed to the grate because they dont dry out quite as fast and the griddle protects it from flare ups when cooking bacon next to them. I also use this side for paninis which works perfectly i might add. Works great for toasting buns or bread. Pretty much anything you want hot but not singed from the direct heat.

Hotplate: When you flip the Griddle side over you will see a completely flat side. The hotplate. This works just like a pancake griddle. Its perfectly flat with raised edges to keep food on the griddle. I use it to make pancakes, saute vegetables, and even cook eggs. I own four griddle/hotplates and the only thing you need to keep in mind that is if you do place all four griddle/hotplates on the grill you will severly reduce the amount of air that gets to your coals. So in hind site i probably would have only bought three at most. Also as a 411 the griddle/hotplate has raised edges on both sides of the insert so you cant say cook a pizza on the grill using these because its not completely flat. The raised edges are also thicker towards the font than the back causing a slight slope to the back of each inserts. It is designed that way so the grease,fat, oil etc will go down the draining hole which is the same place you put the lifter.

The Vegetable Wok: I have two of their vegetable woks. They have about half inch sized holes bored throughout it. It is a pocketed insert. It doesnt serve a function on the opposite side like the griddle/hotplate. Youll notice on craycorts website it says that it is ribbed on the other side. That is wrong. There would be no place to put the ribbing first of all and 2ndly everything would just slide off of it anyway. It serves as a deep pocket, I actually use this to smoke my vegetables. I fill the pocket with homefries, dump some olive oil on them which when the oil leaks thru causes a flare up and smokes the homefries. Anything vegetable cooked over direct heat with this insert will achieve a smokey flavor. It is the insert I use least often. In hindsight I probably would have only bought one of these since i prefer to saute most vegetables on the hotplate.

The only other insert for the craycort ring is the pizza stone. I do not own any of these. I bought a 14 inch cast iron pizza pan from Lodge Logic which I will be reviewing later. The pizza pan was a much cheaper option over the granite inserts. I love the idea but I really do prefer just cooking on cast iron. Maybe I will pick up the granite stones one day.

Panasonic NN-CD989S Genius "Prestige" 1.5 cuft 1100-Watt Sensor Convection Microwave with Inverter

This new Panasonic Convection Microwave machine is hands down the best appliance in my kitchen and worth every penny. Here's why:

Positives:

1. Extremely well built Solid precision latches make it sound like a Mercedes car door when you close it.

2. Intuitive Very user friendly. Easy to figure things out without having to pour over the owner's manual, unlike a lot of other microwaves. The time knob lets you quickly dial in 10 second increments of time, or you can let the machine autosense when it's hot using the reheat mode. It has a digital readout which tells you the next step in the process on certain options and provides status of where you are at in the cooking cycle as well.

3. New Technology The Inverter Technology provides much more even heat, with very few hot spots. When I warm hard refrigerated quarters of butter in the morning so I can spread it on my toast, it softens evenly, unlike my previous micro that melted a big hole in the middle and left the rest hard. In the defrost mode, the food is thawed evenly, unlike the cooked edges that some micro's leave.

4. Performance This machine cooks quickly and evenly and when you combine the micro and convection its extremely fast. In the combination mode the micro power is dropped to 30% and then combined with full convection heat to cook quickly and evenly. Lots of other features...the keep warm option, the broil and bake options, the easy to use dials, digital temperature guage, great recipe book, cooking recommendations, and owners manual.

5. The Look Very sleek and very professional. Easy to clean and a kitchen show piece. You'll gets lots of compliments on it.

Negatives:

1. Size As with all of my appliances I wish it was a bit larger, but it WILL allow a 9X13 rectangular glass casserole to rotate.

2. Trim Kit Mine is also a built in, so I had to buy a separate trim kit which was not included in the price.

3. Customer Support Panasonics only big mistake with this product, as they appear to have outsourced customer support to an overseas group. I had inquired about use of the wire rack when doing straight microwaving. Conflicting answers. Agents hard to understand and not very knowledgeable. Not sure my first contact even knew what a microwave convection oven was. All she could do was read a script. I know Panasonic feels that have to do this to remain price competitive (like many other companies out there) but it's certainly the weakest part of their product. Lets hope congress takes away the incentives and starts penalizing companies that ship jobs overseas.

All in all, it's a great second oven for baking, cooking, reheating, defrosting, letting bread rise, keep food warm during meal prep, etc. Great purchase. Highly recommended if you're looking for the best.

This is a very user friendly microwave. If you only use the microwave function, I am sure you'd be happy with it. But it's also a handy little oven. I have made pizzas, cookies, and even a pork loin roast in it! I cooked the pork loin using the combo cooking function (microwave plus convection) just to test it out. The results were very good; a nice moist roast. A 14-in round pizza pan or stone fits in it and also (just barely!) a 9x13 baking dish. And yes, you CAN put metal pans in it when in oven mode. When we first got it we set it up on the counter in our main kitchen for a couple weeks and played around with it. Then we moved it to our newly renovated "bar" in the basement which truthfully is a small, very functional kitchen. This oven is a great solution as we can use it for popcorn, etc. in microwave mode, but also bake pizzas. Another idea I haven't actually done yet is to use it to bake or warm a casserole for a big holiday dinner when my main oven is busy cooking a turkey or something. In fact I like this oven so much I've decided that when we renovate the main kitchen I am NOT going to opt for the double wall ovens but instead get a regular range plus another one of these and then I will have 2 ovens plus a microwave, basically! I think it's a wise investment and a very excellent product.

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I purchased and installed this microwave for a family member. We looked all over for a high quality built-in (above the oven, aka cabinet mount) convection microwave. The GE Profile and Advantium lines were very poorly rated online and did have a very good repair history. It's tough if you want a large microwave (capable of spinning a 9x13 dish) that is convection and has a good repair rating. After seeing that the selection available in the marketplace is poor (We looked at Sears, Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowes, and at a "Factory Direct Appliance" store). All basically sold very few cabinet mount microwave and those that they did have were either a.) small and very cheap or b.) GE Advantium and very expensive ($1200). Since the Advantium has a very low customer rating all over the web, we decided it wasn't worth the money.

After reading online we noticed that approval ratings of Panasonic Microwaves were very high. They use a different style of microwave element that they call an inverter. This means that, when using lower power levels, the microwave doesn't turn on and off the element. For example power level 5 on almost every microwave means the element turns on for 2 seconds, then off for 2, then on again. This means that delicate foods come out screaming hot in places and cold in others. The Panasonic has a proprietary element that actually has adjustable amounts of power it can output. This is something that sounds like marketing but in this case it is truly unique and directly beneficial to the customer.

The "sensor" cook option works really well. We followed the directions to bake a potato. The microwave instructs you what to do on the display. The result was a large perfectly well baked potato in about 90 seconds all managed by the sensor. I was shocked at how well it worked and how fast it was.

Be purchased the mount kit (the unit is for countertop use out of the box). The kit, while expensive, is very high quality and well designed. It was easy to install and looks great. It matches the Samsung fridge perfectly and is neither cheap looking nor "showy". It, like the microwave, is very austere and modern looking without being too "high tech" looking.

I'm VERY pleased about this microwave and think that its a good value for its price. It comes with racks and ceramic turn table. The interior is all stainless steel. Overall I can't find a place that Panasonic cut a corner in the microwave, accessories, or the trim kit. For the price (less than half the price of an Advantium) the build quality is perfect.

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I purchased this convection microwave because my Sharp gave out after no less than twenty years of faithful service. Thanksgiving is two days away and my family has always used the convection microwave to heat or re-heat casseroles, appetizers, etc. I was thrilled by Amazon's fast shipping! It came right on time, but sadly the product just isn't what I need it to be.

The first thing I did (after set-up, of course) was test the convection temperature using a regular oven thermometer. I set it to 400 degrees, but it beeped to tell me it was preheated at 350 degrees. The family joined me in consulting the microwave's directions again, and finding no error there we considered a problem with the thermometer. After several shuffles between our oven and the new microwave we decided the thermometer was fine (even after it's tragic fall from the counter days earlier), but bought a new one just to be sure. Again, with a brand new oven thermometer, we had the same result. The bottom line is the oven heats 25-50 degrees lower than it says it can.

While this may not be a problem for many, it certainly is for me. Has anyone else experienced this problem? I am trying to decide if I should call out for repair service, or if I should send it back and find another product. I'll update if a call to the repair service fixes the problem.

**********UPDATE**********

First, I'd just like to say that Amazon is great! They took the defective product back with no problem, and shipped another one immediately! Thanks, Amazon!

I got it on Friday, and it has been doing great! The first must have been defective, so make sure you give yours a test run with a thermometer!

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Had it for 3 weeks now and it is great! Much quieter than the Viking we had before, and microwaves and defrosts a lot more evenly. The convection oven heats up quickly and does a great job. Easy to use, too, and looks great. Couldn't be any happier.

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Char-Broil 3584810 Sure Fire Electric Charcoal Starter

There is no easier, more hassle-free way to start a charcoal fire than by using one of these. As long as you have access to an electric outlet somewhere in the vicinity of your grill, you'd be foolish to use any other method.

You place the heating element on the grate, with the plastic handle resting on the barbecue's edge. Cover the element with your briquettes, plug it in, wait 12 minutes, and then remove it. By that time, any charcoals that were in contact with the red-hot element will have started. Mound up the coals, wait a few more minutes, and you're good to go. No smelly, dangerous lighter fluids, no chimneys, no newspapers. What could be more simple?

The electric cord is quite short, so if your outlet isn't close by you'll have to use an extension cord. Just make sure it is a heavy duty one like the kind used for power tools.

It's quite durable if used correctly. I bought the one I have now 6 or 7 years ago and I use it at least 30 or so times a year. The heating element is beginning to crack now, so it will fail soon, but 200+ uses for this inexpensive item is pretty respectable, I think.

I can't understand why everyone doesn't use one of these. If you like to barbecue in your backyard or on your patio or deck, this is indispensable equipment.

This starter is wonderful. But don't get lazy and leave it under the charcoal, like I did. You need to remove it after the fire starts. The plastic near the cord melts and the thing is ruined. I am ordering another one because I find I don't want to start charcoal without one.

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this is the best charcoal starter we have ever used. the last one purchased is still working but is over ten years old and is used regularly every summer. I just purchased a new one as a back-up, but may not need it for a long time. Very reliable and very easy and safe to use.

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I have a Big Green Egg. And these are recommended to start the charcoal in them.

It does the job, flat out. I have only had it a few weeks, but it does indeed start the charcoal.

Quickly too! About 5-10 mins get the coals read hot!

I gave it 5 stars because this thing does exactly what it's supposed to do, start coal.

Now, for my commentary.

This thing makes me NERVOUS AS HELL.

I have kids, and they are goofy. This is basically every toaster/counter-top oven heating element in the world, with a plastic handle. Haha

So when you take this thing out of the coals, it is this red hot heating element. Where do you put it? It has to cool off for a few mins. On the table? Patio? Where out of the way, that someone isnt going to touch it?

I am not knocking the product, it is what it is, but think about this stuff before you buy it. I wouldnt want to see someone get hurt from this thing.

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In my area this is alot of wind(since i live close to the windy city chi) so everytime i get some kind of fire going the charcoal wont light. I tried the charcoal chimney and paid 15 bucks for it and it did nothing for me. So after trying for 2 hours to light using that dumb chimney I borrowed one of these wands from my mother and in 5 minutes the charcoal started smoking. This the best starter for a barbeque hands down.

Texas Irons Double-Barrel Chicken Cooker

This cooker works great! Easy to use and clean up is not to bad, either. I like that I can pour the liquid right into the cups instead of putting a can under the chicken.

I put this inside of a larger pan so the juices don't leak (had to bend the handles to make it fit). 400'F gas oven for 2 2 1/2 hours (depending on the chicken sizes). I fill up the "cups" with beer & citrus or cran juice & citrus and put the chickens over it, season the chicken skins, dump 2 bags of baby carrots in water in the pan and leave it be. Then we have a delicious, juicy chicken and carrot dinner. I hope to make some other variations later. Right now, I use it once a week. It's a little difficult to clean, and you definitely have to put it in a pan so it doesn't leak while cooking. Also, the 4 stars I gave it was because after pulling it out of the box (from TX, supposedly made in USA), I found a sticker saying "made in Taiwan" stuck to the stainless steel. Now, I don't know if it means the steel if from Taiwan or maybe the steel is American but the pan is made in Taiwan??? Anyway, it is great to be able to put a fulfilling dinner in the oven, go outside and work in the yard for a couple hours, and come back in to a delicious cooked dinner.

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Smart Planet BM-1 Brownie Bar Maker

I love kitchen toys, and when I saw this on a Groupon deal for $19.99, couldn't resist getting it. I make home made baked good which I sent to troops, and having something like this in addition to my regular two oven stove makes the work go a lot faster...at least, that was my rationale for buying it! :o)

I first tried it with a brownie mix, and filled the wells about 1/4" from the top that gave me about 12 brownies (2 batches in the machine). As far as timing goes, I see someone wrote a review in which she said that she baked her cake for as long as was indicated on the box from the mix; common sense should tell you that a smaller size produce will require less baking time...but some people just don't think. I looked at the recipes in the included booklet, even though I wasn't making them at the time, to get a rough idea of baking time, and started to check my brownies at the minimum recommended time. As you get more familiar with the machine, you'll learn how much time is needed for various different things.

The first time I used my brownie bar maker it was a little tricky to get them out of the pan, but then had an idea: I now turn the machine upside down (with the lid closed) and lift the bottom (which is now on top); the perfectly intact bars can then be easily removed with a non-metal spatula, and the machine is ready to go again right away.

I use a butter flavored spray in the wells for each batch; a damp paper towel is really all you need for clean-up.

This is a fun little gadget well worth the price. I'm thinking it's a nice item to use to introduce a little girl to the joys of baking.

Enjoy the size of bars. Is not quicker than oven baking (17 min) but saves

heating the oven. Enjoyable way to have fresh baked goods in hot weather. Per my infared temp gun, this bakes at 350 degrees. Made excellent johnny cake bars with precooked ground sausage. Plan to make snack sized cake bars and freeze for later. Works very well.

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Works really slick, biggest complaint I have is getting the brownies out of the maker without breaking them because the bottom is more narrow than the top. I ended up turning it over and they fell right out, which worked the best.

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So far I have only tried the "Brownie Bar Maker" for oatmeal muffins, but they came out great!

The bars are the a nice portion size, slightly smaller than a regular (not jumbo) muffin and rectangular, of course...about 4 bites worth. Works as described. My 22-minute oven recipe took 13 minutes in this machine. Muffins came out uniform, tender, and perfectly baked all the way through.

A few notes: You can overfill the slots a little bit. I like my baked goods a little brown on the top, but don't overfill too much or it will drip out the sides. There is no timer on this (use a kitchen timer and check the brownies/muffins a few minutes ahead of time with a toothpick). Also, grease with Baker's Joy between every use, I didn't and had a hard time digging the crispy remnants out of the corners.

Easy clean up, super easy to use. I am not a baker so this is perfect for me.

Also recommended for someone who lives alone. This way you can enjoy baked goods without all the effort. I plan on doing mini breads, brownies, and energy bars in it and freezing them for later.

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This is great and works like it should but it should have a shut off timer, other than that it makes great corn cakes (got it for my Mom who recently starting makin corn bread muffins.

So you don't have to limit yourself to brownies.

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Speaker Grill Cloth Gray Yard 70" Wide

Bought this material for my JBL L150A's. Color was accurate as compared to the picture, and the material was easy to cut and work with. I used a fabric adhesive that recommended letting it dry and get tacky before fastening the fabric down, and I can recommend this method as it worked well. The only thing I wasn't ready for is that the material is not only acoustically transparent, but is also visually transparent. The drivers in the JBL's have silver-colored frames, and the woofers have white cones, and both the housings and cones show through this material. Perhaps the black or brown material is not visually transparent, but this gray color allows the drivers to be visible.

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