I hope that all of you had a wonderful Christmas and are continuing to enjoy the season. I do apologize for the blog being sparse over the last week or so, but Christmas gatherings, holiday orders and enjoyment of the holiday with loved ones kept me unplugged much of the time. But, I’m back and have some exciting things planned for the new year, so be sure to stay in the loop by subscribing through
RSS or email (use the box in the right sidebar for email subscriptions). For now though, I wanted to share with you the wonderful kitchen items that I received for Christmas.
The Grand Daddy of Gifts
My Chief Culinary Consultant Santa brought me this sexy mama:
That’s right, a KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer
with a monster motor. I can’t even begin to tell you all how excited I am. While my Artisan hasn’t quite died yet, it may have started to march toward the light a couple of weeks ago when I was kneading dough for dinner rolls and plumes of smoke rose from the mixer. It has only been a matter of time for quite awhile now, so I am beyond grateful for this wonderful gift. So far I have made soft pretzels (recipe coming soon – they were the best I’ve ever made!) and a pound cake with the new mixer and it lives up to all its hype. I just want to keep making things so I can see it in action!
Cookbooks
I received Gourmet Today
and The Cake Bible
. I haven’t had a chance to go through them in detail yet, but they are both books I’ve been eyeing up for quite some time, so I’m excited to dive into them.
Food Photography Books
I also received two books dedicated to food photography: Digital Food Photography
and Food Styling for Photographers
. I am excited to go through these books and start to put new ideas to work!
More Kitchen Toys
A new baking stone! You may remember back in the summer when I made calzones that my beloved pizza stone cracked in half. I finally have a replacement for it and I can’t wait to make some homemade pizza and rustic breads on it. This is the stone that Cook’s Illustrated rated the highest in its review of baking stones.
A Williams Sonoma apron and oven mitt. I just adore aprons and can’t get enough of them. And I’ve been in dire need of a better oven mitt too!
A beautiful cake pedestal. I’ve been in need of more pedestals and I love the scalloped edging on this one.
Williams Sonoma Gift Cards
Because, really, you can never spend enough money in that store! Some things on my W-S wish list:
Oxo V-Blade Mandoline Slicer
Cuisinart Popcorn Maker
Kitchen Aid Pasta Press Attachment
What did Santa bring you? What was your favorite gift?
Tags:
Christmas,
Christmas,
cookbooks,
Gift Ideas,
Holidays,
Kitchen Equipment
I got the food styling book also. I love it so far!!!!
Man o man! You hit the jack pot this year! Hurray for you :]
Santa (aka the Hubs) gave me the New AB cookbook and lots of good comments on my dressing (which finally turned out right). There was also a kitchen scale under the tree and two more cookbooks. My family love me.
Love your new kitchen aid.
I think that’s the EXACT mixer I have (see here). It’s the 600 series as well. It’s all I have ever known, but I have since seen other Artisans, and they seem really small!
I LOVE the color (like I said I think it’s the same as mine), onyx. I like that it’s not shiny, but more matte.
Do you have an ice cream attachment? I LOVE mine!
Three Le Creuset pieces and a Kitchen Aid mixer ice cream maker attachment.
Whoa, Santa REALLY likes you! I got the Kitchen Aid Stand mixer (Pro 500) in silver. I love this baby! And the one who gave it to me, but of course!
I bought myself that Digital Food Photography book too!
Congrats so exciting! I received a KA immersion blender, and several cookbooks from my husband:)
Would you recommend the Artisan, or is the Pro series the way to go?
You made out well this year! Santa brought me a shot-glass measuring glass, macadamia nuts, a renewed subscription to Fine Cooking (my favorite cooking magazine) and Tom Colicchio’s Think Like A Chef (which I’m loving!). My big gift for the year was an e-reader and the gadgets that go with that.
Hi Dani – It really depends on what you’ll be using it for. I think that if you know you’ll just be using it for cookies, muffins, quick breads and things like that then the Artisan is just fine. But if you think you may be doing a lot of yeast bread recipes (especially ones with stiff dough like bagels and French bread) then I would definitely recommend the Professional.
hubby got me the “chocolate bar” cookbook – can’t wait to make something! And to burn off the calories I will be consuming, my mom got us a wavemaster punching bag!!
Teeee heeee! Santa brought me the same exact mixer but in stainless. Aren’t we lucky?! I also got a black and decker food processor/blender. Now I am set! As for Gourmet Today, you are going to LOVE it! It is fabulous! Merry Christmas Michelle!
Wow! Santa was playing favorites with you! The Digital Food Photography and Food Styling book are both excellent…Really like that mixer!! So many great things!! =) Happy Holidays!
I, too, got the Gourmet cookbook and am reading it cover to cover! Love the Kitchenaid! May you use all of your new goodies with joy!
I got tons of fun new kitchen stuff too. A few years ago when I got my Kitchen Aid for Christmas, I just wanted to watch it whip egg whites because I’d been doing it for so long with a hand mixer. So I made meringues that day. Been put to GREAT use since. Love the black!
You scored this Christmas!
Happy New Year!
You are a woman after my own heart. All the women I know would rather die before receiving a kitchen item for a gift. But my Santa bought me the Wii. But I have to say it really was one of the things I wanted so badly. So I am happy! My mom did buy me a bunch of pans. So I have to love her for that. Already had the kitchen-aid. So I guess it was too much to hope and get another one in a different color lol. But being my birthday is right before Christmas I could not get too picky and I was spoiled then too.
Nice! Merry Christmas to you! Santa (in the form of my mom) was kind this year and got me the dutch oven I’ve been coveting!
Beautiful collection of gifts you got there…very nice! I was really hoping for KA mixer big time, I certainly hinted enough, but I guess Santa wasn’t paying attention. (I know, poor me). Oh well, I’ll have to try to be a better girl this next year.
Awesome! I got a new crockpot and was pretty happy with that!
Wow, what a jackpot of gifts. They’re really nice and inspiring to create more delicious treats in your kitchen. Happy New Year.
Ooh, those books look great! I got 2 SilPats, didn’t have one, so I was happy about that!
My favorite gift was my new computer which was part gift and part necessity sort of like the new washing machine we had to buy when ours died two days after Christmas… sigh.
In terms of food though, the only gift I got related to that was a mini-bundt or bundtlette pan which I promptly baked with. Once I get this recipe good enough to share I’ll do so on my blog.
I LOVE my kitchen aid and cake bible
Totally checking out those photog books, they look awesome!!
Ohh boy, you made out like a bandit! I’m so totally jealous! I did buy myself that mixer (in silver) for Mother’s Day…or whatever holiday was around that time, I don’t remember…but I am digging that cake pedastal and those photography books!
I’m totally jealous! My mr. and I took the plunge and bought a small set of all-clad pans… and I could not be happier! I didn’t get any new baking goodies, I got my Artisan repaired (stripped gears) instead.
Santa sure did spoil you this year! I got an awesome external flash for my camera, that’s pretty much kitchen related, right?
Wow, what a haul! I’m particularly interested in the cookbooks and the food photography books! Happy New Year!
I love, love, love my Kitchenaid stand mixer. I also love, love, love my Cuisinart food processor. I can even talk on the phone while it’s on – so quiet & efficient.
Shazam — the Kitchen Aid is a rockstar gift that will truly keep on giving for a lifetime. And the pizza stone looks fab — I need to get one just to keep our oven temperature even. Let us know what you think of the food styling book!
Fantastic gifts! I’ve got a fully paid 3 days/2 nights holiday with spending money thrown in…now isn’t that great?
I received that mixer for Christmas last year and fell in love with it immediately, enjoy!
I received Rose’s Heavenly Cakes book, I can’t wait to get started!
Happy Holidays!
Man, I am so jealous….you got quite a haul!….Unless I write out a SPECIFIC list….my man didn’t really know what books I have my eye on…he did get me The Deen Brothers Cookbook and it wasn’t too shabby.
You will love your KA mixer for I got the exact one (color too) for my birthday. Love it!
Nice gifts. It’s pretty obvious there’s a foodie in your house! I’ve been using the same mixer for 1 1/2 years with nary a problem. Bake on!
Oh, I bow to you and your wonderful gifts! Your family must truly enjoy your cooking to honor you with such wonderful gifts! I must have done a little something right this year too, I was given a Vita-mix! I am still amazed by all the many things I can do with it, and so much quicker than before! BTW, your site is absolutely awesome! You have such great recipes! I really like how there’s a picture with everything (that’s more than a lot of cookbooks have).
Enjoy the 600! I have one, and I absolutely love it. It may be the one non-living thing I would save if there were ever a fire. Forget my wedding photos — I need my stand mixer! (Of course, the darn thing would probably survive the fire…lol.) I have one of the pasta attachment kits, and it’s well worth the money!
The cake book is awesome! A friend let me borrow hers, but I’ve yet to pluck up the courage to make anything. Cakes have generally not gone very well for me.
Enjoy the bounty from Santa!
Wooh! Santa sure is spoiling you! Lucky girl
What great gifts!
I have this mixer in gunmetal grey color and LOVE it! I’m sure you will also! I am enjoying reading your blog!
Hi Michelle, (I’m working my way through all of your posts. Can you tell?) I have Rose’s Christmas Cookie Book by Rose Levy Beranbaum. It is falling apart, I use it so much. I just shove it all back together and keep baking. I haven’t seen the Cake Bible, but what what great recipes…. (I love your blog.) Jane