Favorite Things: Baking Essentials

Since baking is one of my favorite things to do and I have a lot of desserts and baked goods that are on here, I thought I would share a few of my favorite things.  I buy a lot of my kitchen stuff and baking supplies at Sur La Table (favorite store!) and Crate & Barrel - my top 2.  Other stores I frequent include: Pier 1 Imports, Bed Bath & Beyond, and William-Sonoma. 

A Few of my Favorite Things

{1} Pier 1 Glass Chalkboard Jars - these jars are fabulous! Not only are they practical, but they are stylish and affordable!  I use them for flour, sugar, etc.  I highly recommend these glass jars, but any type of a jar or container for your ingredients is a must have. 

{2} Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer - I know these are pricey, but they are worth it if you bake and cook a lot.  There are all sorts of attachments you can purchase, which creates all sorts of ways you can use this.  I love my mixer - the only thing that is unfortunate is that I don't have much counter space or storage in our kitchen for it.  However, Chris knows how much I want an appliance cabinet in our next house! :)  And that will allow for it to be more convenient for me to use!

{3} Adjustable Pie Crust Cover - if you bake pies a lot, definitely go out and purchase one of these!  It will prevent your crust from burning.  The adjustable ones are highly recommended because you can use them on all different sizes.  I used to try to wrap my crusts with foil, but this works so much better!

{4} Baking Mat - I purchased this from Crate & Barrel and it's wonderful.  Another popular one is the Silpat ones which you can find at Bed, Bath  & Beyonds, Kohls, Target, etc.  Plus, they are dishwasher safe, which is always a perk! 

{5} Spatula Spoon - I recently purchased this from Sur La Table and love it.  I need to get another one! I use it for baking and cooking.  It's super strong and is great to mix things with or scrape bowls.  (Also dishwasher safe!)

{6} iPad Easel - my sister bought this for me from Bed, Bath & Beyond and it comes in handy.  I find a lot of my recipes online, so if I haven't printed it out then I use the iPad to follow the recipes. 

{7) Parchment Paper - I don't know how I just discovered parchment paper in the past year.  It's amazing! I use it mostly for baking with cookies but it allows for easy clean up and it helps protect cookie sheets.  It won't burn your cookies either.  You can purchase this at any kitchen store, Target, or even your local grocery store. 

{8} Brown Sugar Terracotta Bear - Before I put this bear to work, I used to go gather my ingredients for what I was going to bake only to find that my brown sugar is rock hard.  I now use these terracotta bears to prevent that from happening and to keep my brown sugar fresh.  I have 2 of them because I have both light brown sugar and dark brown sugar in my cabinets. 

{9} Marble Pastry Board - I just got this for Christmas this past year.  If you are looking to purchase one, I recommend the one from Sur La Table.  I found that it is the most reasonably priced, it's a great size, and great quality.  The only problem is that is weighs a ton!  I keep it in the basement at this time because it's too large to store in our kitchen and it's pretty heavy to haul up and down the stairs.  I use this when I'm baking with pie crusts mostly.

{10} Better Batter Whisks - recent purchase from Sur La Table, as well.  These work as whisks, spoons, and a beater.  It is great for mixing ingredients and keeps your mixture fluffy.  (Dishwasher safe, too!)

{11} Cookie Spatula - these are nice to have to transfer cookies after baking them.  It prevents cookies from crumbling or falling apart. 

{12} OXO Non Slip Mixing Bowls - I got these bowls at one of my bridal showers and they are from Bed, Bath & Beyond.  They are coated in a non slip material, which is great when your mixing ingredients.  They are very durable, too.  Another perk, once again, that I love is that they are dishwasher safe!!

Those are just a few of my favorite things that I have for baking that I would recommend.  As you can see, I love gadgets and tools that are dishwasher safe.  It is always a nice option to have!  One more thing I recommend that I don't have in the picture is regarding your cookie sheets - make sure that you invest in some nice cookie sheets - it will make such a difference!! As well as other bakeware - pie pans, bread pans, cake pans, etc.