Gabriella, Author at Sous Beurre Kitchen

Best Super Absorbent Coaster for Sweaty Drinks

Wooden beer house emblems retro style beverage drip mats coasters icons collection print abstract isolated vector illustration

We all love to have our friends and family over to enjoy good conversation over a few drinks of our favourite alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage.

However, entertaining can soon become a nightmare if your guests accidentally leave water marks on your prized furniture pieces. These marks can be almost impossible – and very expensive – to repair.

Sometimes, we are even guilty of this ourselves – a carelessly placed glass can easily ruin a wooden surface. Therefore, it is important to have proper coasters to protect your valuable possessions from unsightly marks.

Unfortunately, not all coasters are created equal. Some coasters might do the job of keeping water off of your furniture, but manage to damage it themselves with a sharp underside. Other coasters may look great, but are almost useless once damp.

Therefore, we have found some of the best options available for you. These coasters will not only keep your furniture safe from water marks or scratches, but they also look great, and fit all décor styles.

Best Home Milk Steamer

closeup milk frother and half cup of milk

Do you love a good cappuccino or latte? Wouldn’t it be great if you could get the same great quality at home, without needing to pay out a good few hundred dollars for an espresso maker or kidnapping a barista?

You can get similar results at home without paying a fortune or committing a felony by investing in a milk steamer. In this post, we are going to have a look at your top options in this area so that you can make coffee like a pro in no time.

Shouldn’t I Look for a Frother?

Milk frothers have become pretty popular over the last few years. They offer a convenient way for you to create a creamy topping for your coffee.

The problem with frothers is that all they do is to whisk the milk up very fast. If you want your coffee to be hot when you drink it, you’ll need to heat the milk up first and then froth it. It’s a pain.

That’s why it is a lot better to simply start off by using a steamer from the outset. A steamer will both heat the milk and get it all frothy. You get your coffee and milk piping hot and nice and creamy.

Are you ready to look at the best options?

Best Concentrated Margarita Mix for Your Machine

Homemade Classic Margarita Drink with Lime and Salt

You’ve got the invites out, you know what you are going to serve, your margarita machine is on standby – all you need now is the best margarita mix for your machine.

Using a margarita mix helps you to spend less time in the kitchen and more time with your guests. With some culinary ingredients, like lemon slices, there really is no substitute for fresh. Fortunately, the same is not true for margarita mixes.

With the mixes that we will be going over in this post, no one is going to notice that you didn’t make the drinks from scratch – They’ll be too busy enjoying them and complimenting you.

All you need to do is to stock up on ice and tequila and get your mix on.

Best Lasagna Pan

Photo of a freshly baked lasagna, sitting on an old wooden table with a portion cut out and waiting on a plate.

Lasagna is a staple for a lot of us. It is a versatile dish that is simple enough to whip up for even the least adventurous cook.

It’s a dish that is hard to mess up – cook the mince and layer it with the pasta, pour the sauce over and drench in cheese. Bake until golden and bubbling.

It’s not rocket science -once you find the perfect recipe, it can quickly become your favorite party dish. The key to getting it baked evenly, and in making cleanup a breeze afterward is in using the right pan.

In this post, we’ll look at what to look for in a lasagna pan and some of the top options to use for a party. We’ll round things off by choosing the best lasagna pan on the market.

Best Cookie Dough Hand Mixer

Cookies are undoubtedly one of the most popular recipes you can make! Loved by young and old alike, they are a beloved treat for people all over the world.

Plus, they are super fun to make, too – especially if you get to snack on the dough along the way!

There are many options for how to make cookies. Whether you’re a plain vanilla fan or you prefer something that bit fancier, you can really let your creativity run wild making and decorating these sweet treats.

If you’re not quite ready to step into the world of creating your own cookies from scratch, you can also buy an enormous variety of ready mixes that take out most of the guess work and lead to perfect results every time.

You normally need to add only minimal ingredients, such as butter and/or eggs. Your friends and family never need to know it’s from a packet!

However, no matter how you’re making your cookies, chances are you will need to mix the dough. While some people prefer to do this with their hands, there are many good reasons to use a mixer.

Best Kitchen Torch for Sous Vide Cooking

Sous vide is a type of cooking which produces very high quality results. For many years, it was restricted to professionals only due to the cooking accessories required.

However, in recent times the overall cost of these tools has reduced significantly, making sous vide cooking accessible for everyone!

Sous vide is French for ‘under vacuum’, but it refers to the act of cooking where produce (usually meat) is kept in a temperature controlled environment until cooked to perfection.

Produce is put in a sealed bag under water or steam, so as to closely control the temperature.

The results of this style of cooking are usually excellent, as it prevents the food from overcooking and also retains many of the natural juices.

It’s no wonder that this has become such a popular style of preparation!

While it is not strictly necessary, using a kitchen torch to sear meat that has been cooked in the sous vide style is highly recommended.

This is because it adds an extra level of deliciousness to your meals – adding that lovely crispy exterior to dishes such as steak.

When compared to other options such as pan searing steak, cooking with a kitchen torch results in a much better finish.

Pan searing can be unpredictable and lead to overcooking, whereas skillful use of a kitchen torch leads to absolutely perfect results every time.

The key to getting the perfect look and taste to your sous vide steak is selecting a kitchen torch that reaches the correct temperature and also gives you complete control over the size and shape of the flame.

Plus, given the heat we are talking about – it is important that whatever torch you use has appropriate safety features.

Therefore, we have put together this helpful list of the best options available for you to get that perfect, restaurant quality charred steak.

Best Non Stick Cheese Slicing Knife

Whether you’re entertaining a group of friends, or having a romantic evening with your significant other, a cheese platter is always a good choice!

Cheese platters are almost universally loved, look great on a table, and best of all, take just a few minutes of preparation to put together.

Plus, you can show a bit of creativity in putting together your ideal cheese platter. The options are endless – you can pick as many, or as few, cheeses as you like.

Many experts suggest choosing a theme for your cheese platter to keep things consistent; you could try a location (such as French cheeses), or a type of milk (such a goat or cow’s milk). However, there are no hard and fast rules.

Of course, there are a few popular cheeses that are known crowd pleasers. Classic hard cheeses such as gouda, or even cheddar, are classics for a reason.

Then again, creamy soft cheeses like delicious brie or camembert are unlikely to last long on their platter! For a more adventurous choice, blue cheese or goats’ milk cheese offer some good options.

Other accompaniments you may like to include on your platter are olives, dried fruit, nuts or cured meats. Each of these go beautifully with cheese, and add extra colour and flavour to your platter. Don’t forget to also include the crackers!

One rule we definitely recommend sticking to is making sure you have a proper knife for each cheese. The correct knife will make it easier for your guests (or yourself) to serve your delectable cheese, and assigning one knife to each cheese type will prevent the flavours from getting mixed.

Not sure where to start with choosing some knives? No need to worry, here we have selected our top 3 cheese knives which will make you seem like an entertaining professional!

Best Cake Bench Scraper for Icing

Baker portioning dough with bench scraper at bakery

Have you ever looked at a cake and wonder how they make it look so beautiful compared to what it looks like when you attempt it at home? We have the secret to making a cake look like it just came out of a fancy bakery.

I used to use your typical butter knife to ice my cakes until a friend of mine put me onto a bench scraper. At first, I looked at her like she was crazy and asked, “Why would I scrape my cake with a tool that scrapes the paint off benches, that’s disgusting?”. Once she stopped laughing she showed me hers. It kind of looks like a miniature sled to me.

Best Hot Plate for Boiling Water

Many times we may find ourselves in a situation where we need to use a hot plate. Hot plates are handy in that they are a portable alternative or an addition to a traditional stovetop setup.

If using one powered by flame, microwave, or propane, they can be a real boon in places where electric is not readily available. If you’re cooking for a large amount of people or just need different size burners, they can be a lifesaver for your cooking and water boiling needs.

Right now, there are quite a few different hot plates on the market. It can be a little difficult choosing which one is best as many seem to have the same features, yet differ quite a bit in pricing. Here is a review of the top three:

Best Pot for Making Caramel

If you’re a fan of delicious creamy caramel, and you want to create such delightful goodness for yourself, you’re going to need the right tool for the job, and in this case, the right device is a saucepan.

The perfect caramel sauce requires the ideal saucepan, and as the temperature drops, there’s no better treat to warm yourself, your family and your friends than a rich caramel sauce. You can dribble it on a freshly picked apple or make it into solid candies.