Christmas Shopping

T-Fal Cookware: Their Non-Stick Pans are a Personal Obsession

May 13, 2019 By Joi Sigers

This beauty is a personal favorite, my 12″ Non-Stick Fry Pan from T-Fal –the inventor of non-stick! This beauty came from Target, but T-Fal can also be ordered (easily) on Amazon.

T-Fal “Thermo-Spot” technology is something that was new to me, but now I’m completely hooked on it. The Thermo-Spot shows when your pan is ready to use… kind of like the red light that lets you know when your oven is good to go.

It’s amazing to me that someone hadn’t thought of this long ago. Leave it to T-Fal.

I also love that T-Fal Initiatives take the non-stick game to the next level. Seriously, everything slides right off of these pans. I love to make “cheese clumps” for salads and soups – which is simply putting little mounds of shredded cheese onto a skillet and letting them brown and crisp up a little. You’d think these guys would spell DISASTER for clean up, but T-Fal pans, they literally slide right off the skillet and into the dish.

As you’d expect from someone who has a food blog, I cook every single day of the week. In fact, when our cats need to find me (to play, feed them, scratch their heads or cater to them in any manner), the first place they look is always the kitchen. Come to think of it, the same’s true for every member of my family… except for the scratching heads part, the human members of my family seldom as for such a thing.

As an avid cook, I have had up close and personal experience with all manners of pots, pans, and cookware in general. If a new cook were to ask me to recommend ONE pan she/he should buy to begin their kitchen collection, I would recommend T-Fal. I love many different pans (including my beloved iron skillet collection), but this is the brand I’d most often recommend.

Why? In a word – perfection. T-Fal cookware is perfect in every single way.

Read more about T-Fal non-stick pans and their ingenious Thermo-Spots on Amazon.

Infinity Jars: Perfect Vessels for Food, Spices, Herbs, Dressings, Oil, Soap (Hey, Why Not?!)

February 21, 2017 By Joi Sigers

Infinity Jars Glass Dish with Lid

I recently had the great pleasure of selecting a couple of Infinity Jars to review on my food blog and tea blog (Crazy Tea Chick). As soon as I saw their gorgeous collection of premium glass jars and containers, I knew the decision process was going to be a pain-staking one.

I honestly wanted everything I saw! It reminded me of walking into a a Japanese restaurant… what do I NOT want!?!

Infinity Jars features the largest collection of ultraviolet glass products you’ll find anywhere. Their unique jars, containers, and bottles are created and backed by scientists and health advocates around the world. Extensive research has gone into each product.

Not only does each container maintain the optimum freshness of nearly any food, dried good, lotion, or essential oil…. they look gorgeous going about their business.

The heavy duty jars are of the highest quality – and this truth rings home as soon as you hold one. These aren’t the food or herb containers you find in your local department stores – this are the type of containers celebrity chefs would have in their own kitchens.

The first jar I decided upon was the gorgeous Infinity Jar Glass Dish with Lid, pictured at the top. Not only is it uncommonly beautiful, I wanted to use it for “pinchable” black pepper and spice blends. There’s just something about “pinching” the spices you want to use when cooking.

In the picture above, I had a blend I use daily (seasoned salt, paprika, parsley, and garlic powder). It makes cooking faster and even funner to keep these “pinchables” handy.

I’ve also used it to store dry tea leaves. I buy a lot of tea leaves and love to combine them, creating a mixture (for example) of Blood Orange and Vanilla leaves. In the picture below, it was a blend of Raspberry and Peach tea leaves (it was out of this world, by the way).

I could also see using the Infinity Jar Glass Dish with Lid for beautiful carved soaps in the bathroom or by the kitchen sink, to hold potpourri, to store cinnamon sticks or dried herbs, or even as a gorgeous dish for softened butter on your holiday table.

It is simply gorgeous and its uses are many and varied.

I also chose the equally gorgeous Long Neck Glass Bottle. This beauty would be IDEAL for olive oil – or any other kind of oil or vinegar you frequently use, but I have bottles in use already for these kitchen staples. When I selected this bottle, I had one thing in mind, my vinegar-based salad dressing I always have made up… and I mean always.

What can I say, we eat a lot of salads in this house.

The jars come with a very cool cleaning cloth (pictured above) that keeps them shiny and beautiful. They also come with cool little labels which, quite honestly, I don’t use. The jars are just too darn pretty to mess with, in my opinion.

Head over to Infinity Jars to see all of their MANY beautiful products – but pour yourself a tall glass of iced tea first. You’ll be there a while deciding which you want first.

Last Minute Christmas Shopping for Cooks and Foodies on Target.com

December 15, 2016 By Joi Sigers

A few days ago, I was taking a few pictures for the food blog and it occurred to me…. most of my dishes and a lot of my gadgets and small kitchen appliances come from Target! Somewhere along the way, Target stepped up to be one of the best places for buying dishes, kitchen gadgets and small kitchen appliances – and, it would appear, pretty much my “go to” place for each.

While I have a gazillion and seven things lined up to do today, I HAD to take a few minutes to tell you about a few special savings events going on and coming up on Target’s website.

Now: When you spend 75$ on Kitchen Items – EVEN Sales stuff- you earn a 15$ Gift Card for yourself (or a great stocking stuffer for someone else!)
From the 18th (this Sunday) – the 24th (next Saturday): You can take an extra 25% off anything you buy in the Kitchen department by using the code KITCHEN when checking out.

While I’m wild at the thought of saving 25% (that ends up saving a lot of money), I think I’m even more excited by the thought of a 15$ gift card. More dishes!

Click through the link above or any of the images to see all the wonderful things in Target’s online Kitchen Department.

Also… while this isn’t remotely “kitchen” or “foodie” related (unless, of course, we’re talking about taking great food pics), Target also has another crazy deal going on from the 18th -24th: Earn yourself a Free $200 gift card when you buy an iPhone 7! Do you have ANY idea how many dishes you could buy with a $200 gift card??

Adorable Gift Idea for Foodies and Cooks: Le Creuset Stoneware Honey Pot

December 7, 2016 By Joi Sigers

I can’t decide which I love more about this beautiful Stoneware Honey Pot from Le Creuset – the gorgeous Dijon color, the name Le Creuset on the dipper, the bee on the front, or its overall great looks. I’m calling it a tie and I’m calling it something I need in my kitchen badly.

Stoneware pot holds up to 16 ounces of honey
Non-porous enamel finish; resists odors, staining, chipping, and cracking
Special cut-out lid to fit its accompanying Silicone honey dipper
Dishwasher-safe; microwave-safe; oven-safe up to 500 degrees F
Measures approximately 5.0 IN 4.0 IN 4.0 IN

If you order soon, you can still have this Stoneware Honey Pot delivered by Christmas. Le Creuset has an unreal number of gorgeous stoneware lovelies for the kitchen – many of which are also available in this Dijon color. Or, if you’re like me and pretty much go with every color of the rainbow, that’s more than possible too!

Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion

December 2, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Inevitably, after months of shopping and planning, my best-received gifts are the cookies and candies I’ve made for my loved ones. That’s why, in the days leading up to Christmas, you can only find me if you look in my kitchen. I’m the one covered in powdered sugar, chocolate, and corn syrup – dancing around to Christmas music.

Man, I love this time of year!

If you love giving gifts you’ve made in your own kitchen, too, here’s a cookbook you’ll want to add to your library right away. Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion, by Annie Rigg, is an uncommonly beautiful book. As a cookbook collector, one of the first things I notice about a cookbook is how good it feels about itself – the cover, artwork, and photographs let you know, right off the bat, if the cookbook feels really good about itself or if its heart is only half in it.

Gifts from the Kitchen feels amazingly good about itself – we’re talking “supermodel” confidence, here.

Naturally, for a book to be a great book – there has to be more than just great looks going for it. Thankfully, Gifts from the Kitchen comes through in the personality department, too – it’s not just a pretty face.

{Continued Below…}

While I’m telling you about Gifts from the Kitchen a few weeks before Christmas (timing is everything, guys), this book is actually off the charts useful throughout the year. Why? Because people LOVE homemade gifts all year long! The book covers all celebrations and all seasons. Not only can you use the beautiful delicacies for gift-giving, you can also use them to celebrate special occasions.

Special Occasion Recipes Include

Fortune Cookies (Chinese New Year)
Chocolate Valentine’s Cakes (Valentine’s Day or Anniversaries)
Love Heart Sugar Cubes (Valentine’s Day)
Double Dark Chocolate, Pecan and Ginger Cookies (Father’s Day)
Easter Nest Cupcakes (Easter)
Rugelach (Jewish Celebrations)
Baby Shower Cakes
Wedding Cake
Raspberry, Lemon, and Almond Friands (Mother’s Day)
Stained Glass Snowflake Cookies (Christmas)
And More…

Recipes for Gifts That Fit Any Occasion Include

Chocolate Truffles
Peanut or Madadamia Brittle
Creamy Vanilla Fudge with Chocolate and Nuts
Pickled Beets
Pickled Shallots
Spiced Cranberry Jelly
Florentines
Chocolate-Coated Candied Almonds
Mango Chutney with Chili Pepper and Ginger
English Muffins
Cherry Jam
Strawberry and Vanilla Preserves
Chocolate and Hazelnut Spread
Honeycomb (look especially perfect for Halloween)
Pesto
And Many more….

In addition to the clear and simple recipes, Gifts from the Kitchen provides beautiful examples of ways to present many of these food gifts to your lucky foodie.

This is not a “gluten free” cookbook, but many of the candies and other recipes are, in and of themselves, gluten free. I have not tested any of the other recipes with gluten free flours, so I can’t say how well they’d take to substitutions. It is, however, in my opinion, more than worth having in your collection. The candies, spreads, jellies, etc. outnumber the cakes and cupcakes… and even they provide inspiration and ideas for the gluten free cook.

I’m especially excited about a recipe for “Wholegrain Honey Mustard.” Wholegrain mustard is an obsession of mine – I add it to more recipes than you can imagine (potato salad, BBQ sauce, deviled eggs, egg salad sandwiches, salad dressings…). I can only imagine how amazing this homemade Wholegrain Honey Mustard will be!

See Gifts from the Kitchen for more information.

While you’re on Amazon, check out the other beautiful cookbooks by Annie Rigg.

Cast Iron Paleo Makes a Perfect Gift Idea for the Gluten-Free or Paleo Foodie in Your Life

November 15, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Cast Iron Paleo by Pamela Ellgen

A recent cookbook I was sent (in exchange for telling you about it) has become an instant classic in my kitchen. How could it not? It fits perfectly in my wheelhouse:

I have to eat gluten free and aim for three “Paleo” days a week. Paleo is inherently gluten-free, but it also eliminates sugar and dairy – making it one of the healthiest ways to eat. Why, then, do I not commit fully to the Paleo diet? Because potatoes. Because Pasta. Because Cereal. Mostly… Because Potatoes.
My cast iron skillets are the cornerstone of my kitchen. My main cast iron skillet sits on the stove at all times – ready for duty at a moment’s notice. My Cast Iron Grill Pan and smaller Cast Iron Skillets are perched on a nearby shelf, also ready for their “calls to action.”

It’s almost as though this cookbook were created for me personally.

Anyone who follows a gluten-free diet knows it can be a bit of a challenge to find recipes that address our personal needs. Can you imagine how much tougher it is, then, to find recipes for a Paleo diet?! That’s like taking our needs and doubling them.

Thankfully, there are great cookbooks (just like this one) that take the stress out of the equation and simplify cooking. Come on, life’s stressful enough – we don’t need extra hassles in the kitchen, right?

Here’s the think, fellow foodies, you don’t even have to follow a Paleo diet religiously or even “part-time” to enjoy… make that love.... Cast Iron Paleo. Think about it, we ALL should be cooking more healthy meals and less unhealthy ones, right?

Cookbooks like this are golden on two fronts:

They inspire us to cook healthier meals for our family.
They’re filled with so many flavorful and delicious recipes that we’ll keep on pulling from them for more meals – and our family will love us for it.

{Review Continued Below….}

Just a Few of the Flavorful and Creative Recipes

The first recipe I made from Cast Iron Paleo was the Meatloaf on page 133. I normally make my meatloaf with gluten-free breadcrumbs but this particular recipe didn’t even call for them! It uses ground beef, pork, eggs, a few seasonings, and vegetables…. mixed and placed in an iron skillet, then topped with 6 slices of bacon.

I went with a basket-weave pattern with my bacon because it was Monday and I was feeling artsy. Yes, that qualifies as artsy for me.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect. The entire time the meatloaf was cooking, I kept thinking, “But no breadcrumbs?…. But no breadcrumbs?… but.. but…” My meatloaf anxiety was through the roof. But frequent peeks into the oven showed me (again and again) that all was well and the meatloaf was coming together beautifully.

I will say this, if you buy this cookbook (and you really, really should), this particular recipe does not mention an oven temperature. I simply went with the one I use for my regular meatloaf recipe, 350 degrees for the specified time (1 to 1-1/2 hours) and it did beautifully. All the other recipes gave specified temperatures. Perhaps the cookbook printer was sidetracked like me – “But no breadcrumbs?…. But no breadcrumbs?… but.. but…”

{Review Continued Below….}

Gluten Free and Paleo Cast Iron Skillet Meatloaf from Cast Iron Paleo

Gluten-Free and Paleo Meatloaf – Look, Ma, No Breadcrumbs!

Chapter One gives a beautiful primer on cast iron skillets: benefits, history, seasoning, care, etc. Basically, anything you need to know about owning cast iron skillets is right there in one brief chapter.

Chapter Two lays out for the reader the dos and dont’s of the Paleo lifestyle. What to eat (and why) and what not to eat (and why).

After the first two chapters, you get to the meat of the matter (sorry, couldn’t help myself), the wonderful recipes. It’s been my experience that Paleo cookbooks (for whatever reasons) are always just filled with creatively flavorful recipes. Perhaps, since the Paleo cook’s resources are a little different that other’s, they look at food a bit differently. I can’t put my finger on it, but Paleo cookbooks are flat out packed with flavor and I’m loving every second of it.

Recipes Include:

Sausage and Sweet Potato Hash
Green Beans with Caramelized Shallots (would be amazing for Thanksgiving and Christmas!)
Pan-Roasted Carrots and Onions
Sauteed Mushrooms
Sesame-Crusted Tuna
Pan-Seared Salmon Over Mixed Greens
Lemon Garlic Aioli
Rustic Chicken Pot Pie
Maple Almond Pork Chops
Swedish Meatballs
Kale Carbonara
Marinated Steak Fajitas
Guacamole
Flat Iron Steaks with Mushrooms
Tomato Rosemary Burgers
Bacon-Wrapped Filet Mignon with Vegetables
Braised Short Ribs
Berry Cobbler
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Cast Iron Apple Pie
Black-Bottom Chocolate Cake
And more!

{Review Concludes Below….}

Cast Iron Paleo and a Few Stars in My Own Kitchen

Why I Have This Cookbook Listed in the Christmas Gift Guide:

First of all, Cast Iron Paleo, alone, would be a great gift any foodie would appreciate – especially a foodie who eats gluten-free or Paleo. However, if you wanted to “step up your game,” you could gift this cookbook along with a great cast iron skillet. My own personal preference is Lodge Cast Iron Skillets. Come to think of it, every cast iron skillet (I have an obsession, guys, I’m not lying) and grill pan I have is Lodge.

Read more about Cast Iron Paleo on Amazon today.

The Pioneer Woman on Amazon: Colorful, Beautiful, and Fun (and Her Merch is too!)

November 10, 2016 By Joi Sigers

The Pioneer Woman Flea Market Oven Mitt and Pot Holder Set

The Pioneer Woman Kitchen Set Pot Holder and Oven MittSigh. As if I don’t spend enough money on Amazon on Rachael Ray products, now they have another obsession of mine right there in plain sight for me to splurge on – The Pioneer Woman is primed to jump in my cart a few times a week.

Everywhere you look in my kitchen and dining room, you see Rachael Ray and The Pioneer Woman. Ironically, they’re two of the celebrity cooks I turn to the most for recipes and television entertainment as well. I love that their kitchen merch compliments one another so beautifully.

Everything is so bright, colorful, and happy – like the ladies, themselves.

My family knows that when it comes to buying gifts for me, they can’t possibly go wrong with these two collections.

The Pioneer Woman Cast Iron Cookbook Holder

The Cast Iron Cookbook holder above is definitely something I need. It’s already available on Amazon, so no waiting is involved. Whoot!

The Pioneer Woman Flea Market Salt and Pepper Shakers

The Pioneer Woman Flea Market Salt & Pepper ShakersWhile a lot of The Pioneer Woman is already on Amazon, others – like the salt & pepper shakers above – are coming in just a few days (you can go ahead and throw merch in your cart, though, of course – a trick my husband often wishes I hadn’t figured out).

Click through any of the links above or below for more gift ideas for cooks in your family – especially the one you see in the mirror. You know that one’s on the “nice list” after all!

Chocolate Desserts to Die For: Beautiful Cookbook with Mouthwatering Recipes and Pictures

November 1, 2016 By Joi Sigers

Chocolate Desserts to Die For! Cookbook Recipe

The links in this post are affiliate links, meaning I earn a small amount when you click through and make a purchase. This (of course) costs you nothing extra – it simply allows me to support my cat in the lifestyle they’ve become accustomed to!

As a chocoholic, my cookbook collection includes plenty of cookbooks with one thing in mind – chocolate! A received a new one recently (Chocolate Desserts to Die For!) to review and I’d love to tell you all about it.

Now that Halloween has come and gone, thoughts are turning rapidly to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m featuring cookbooks (such as this one and Celebrations) on the food blog recently that pull double duty:

They’ll be invaluable to you when you’re cooking your holiday meals.
They make excellent gift ideas for cooks and foodies in your life.

Chocolate Desserts to Die For! actually pulls triple duty as it adds this to its resume: This cookbook is filled with beautiful and delicious gifts you can make for people in your life – after all, gifts don’t get any better than chocolate!

{Review Continued Below the Mini Chocolate Turnover…}

Chocolate Desserts to Die For! (Mini Chocolate Turnovers)

This is not a “Gluten Free” cookbook, obviously, but its recipes are either gluten free in the first place (such as the candies) or can be made gluten free with easy substitutions.

Some of the Recipes Include:

Not My Momma’s Rice Pudding with Cranberry Compote (would make a GORGEOUS Christmas dessert!)
Chocolate Cranberry Oat Cookies (again, perfect for Christmas)
Bev’s Hot Fudge Sauce
Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting
Chocolate Chocolate Chipotle Fudge Milkshake
Strawberry Saute’
Warm Chocolate Raspberry Pudding Cake (when I make it, I substitute the chocolate cake with a gluten free cake mix.. can you say easy?!)
The Kid in All Adults Marshmallow Truffles
Triple-Decker Chocolate Cookies
Fudgy Goes Latin Bars
And many, many, many more chocolate recipes.

Take a closer look at Chocolate Desserts to Die For! by clicking the link.

Montana Mex Avocado Oil: Review of a Complete Obsession

October 17, 2016 By Joi Sigers

A while back on the food blog, I wrote a glowing Montana Mex Seasoned Salts review. I still use them daily and love them wildly. If you aren’t familiar with these world-rocking salts, read the review – then try them for yourself. They’re found, conveniently, on Amazon.

It turns out Montana Mex has more than just badass seasoned salts. They also bottle their badassery. Because I’m one lucky food blogger, I received a bottle of their Extra Virgin Olive Oil to review. I will also be reviewing a few of their other better-than-they-have-a-right-to-be condiments in a follow up post.

But let’s stick with this addictive, smooth and flavorful EVOO for now – as it deserves our full attention. See the picture above? If you see a photo of something I’ve reviewed, pictured alongside the product I bought on my own, you know it was a huge hit. I ordered my own bottle before my review bottle even ran out!

Montana Mex Avocado Oil is a 100% natural, cold pressed, extra virgin avocado oil with omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids. Not only is it (naturally) gluten free, it’s non-gmo verified and kosher certified to boot. See the words “… with high levels of antioxidants” on the front of the bottle? Yeah, I’m crazy wild about that.

‘Cold pressed’ simply means that all the goodness is still inside. It has not been treated or heated. The avocados are simply handpicked, mashed and then pressed to give you nutrient rich avocado oil.

Simply delicious and deliciously simple.

Roasted Asparagus and Carrots with Montana Mex Avocado Oil

My Favorite Ways to Use the Montana Mex Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Avocado Oil

It is ideal for frying eggs – which I then season with one (or a combo) of the seasoned salts (Chile Seasoned Sea Salt, Sweet Seasoned Sea Salt, Picante Seasoned Sea Salt). I have always loved a mixture of butter and EVOO when frying eggs. The butter brings the flavor to the party, while the EVOO keeps the butter from embarrassing itself. This beautiful Avocado Oil doesn’t need any butter, thank you very much, as it has plenty of flavor on its own.
I also love this Avocado Oil for sauteing onions and other vegetables. It gives them an extra subtle flavor that brings out their best.
One of my favorite ways to cook chicken strips is to marinate them in a mixture of Italian Dressing, honey, and lime juice for a few hours. Then I fry them in an iron skillet with a little olive oil. Montana Mex’s Avocado Oil gives these strips even more flavor. Somehow the lime and honey (two of my personal culinary obsessions) work with the avocado oil in a way they don’t work with any other oil. The flavor combo is like a match made in culinary Heaven.
Vinaigrettes – This is a fun and tasty new way to add excitement to your tired old vinaigrette recipe.
Drizzled on top of vegetables before roasting, it gives them an extra layer of flavor.
When I made a huge taco salad a few weeks ago, I drizzled a little Montana Mex Avocado Oil in a dish and added a little lime zest and fresh black pepper. It made a delicious dip for heated tortillas.

Basically, I use it anywhere I typically use EVOO. The above are just a few that come to mind (because I make them so often).

Why I have this review listed under “Christmas Gift Guide Ideas”

Foodies and cooks get a special kind of excited when we receive gift baskets filled with new ingredients, foods, condiments, etc. Placing something unique and extra cool like Montana Mex Avocado Oil (as well as their salts and condiments) in a bag with colorful dishtowels or a great looking set of salsa bowls is thoughtful… heck, it’d give you hero status. Trust me.

Visit Montana Mex‘s Official Website for more information and read more about their delicious Avocado Oil here.

You can also follow Montana Mex on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.