My Tools

Are you a Dyno-mom? Want to be one? Curious about what I use to feed my family of twelve traditionally prepared, from scratch foods three times a day? Here's the 411 on what to get, when, and why:

Cuisinart Food Processor

 *Sturdy Food Processor Save up for a good one because the cheap one at Target will only frustrate you. You can grate cheese by the 5# log from Costco, you can grate carrots, slice veggies, knead small amounts of dough, "grind" meat, make butter, cut butter into flour, make hummus, make bread crumbs, spin straw into gold...you get it. I would sooner part from my left leg than the Cuisinart. Well, maybe just the foot. Save up for it, buy it with the income tax refund, sell a kidney but get one and get it now!




7qt Enamled Dutch Oven

 *Enamled Cast Iron Dutch Oven I have two and use them constantly. Bake bread, slow cook stew in the oven, braise meat, deep fry, make pin-head oats overnight, spin straw into gold. One can't have too much gold! Plain, not enamled, is much cheaper and Lodge is a good brand and can be found at Target. But enamled is way easier to clean. This is a priority so sell the other kidney.

6qt Bread Dough Pot

*Cheap Enamled Pot and Lid This is for bread dough. Get the New York Times bread recipe from the Sullivan Street Bakery and try it. Check it out on Google; it is so smart it will find it right away. The awesome book "Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day" is better and has so many helpful hints you will be the awesome baker you were meant to be! My personal grain connection, The Family Baker, has class and classes so you can learn how to make really awesome bread. Nadine even has FREE recipes! I bought my pot for $10, so it WAY cheaper than a bread machine. I do at least four loaves like this a week in the winter. In the summer, it is more like eight on the grill.

6qt Steel Pasta Pot

*Steel Pasta Pot with Draining Lid Steel in only important if you have something against Alzheimer's Disease. This way you can rinse beans, drain potatoes, drain pasta (of all things), and pour out bone broth and keep the bones in the pot. Add several tablespoons of acid to your water when you make stock, it pulls all the gelatin out of the bones for super jiggly stock. I use raw and unfiltered apple cider vinegar. You can't taste it. Pour the stock into a ceramic pitcher, cool on the counter, and then refrigerate. Force a kid to pick over the bones; I bribe them. This is also a priority but since you are out of kidneys, you will just have to figure it out.



10qt Steel Pressure Cooker

 *Pressure Cooker Yes, I know "Nourishing Traditions" prohibits them. But in my world ten kids, their school work, activities and the importance I place on my sanity make it a deal killer. A little phytic acid is better than a LOT of Prozac. I do soak the beans and even rice first, though. Go ahead, tell Sally Fallon, I double-dog dare you! She won't know or even care who I am. This can wait if you have a Dutch oven, but it is so fast you might want it pretty soon.

Handy Dandy Grain Mill

*Wheat Mill Because grinding my corn, beans and grains in between two stones turned by one of my mules is time consuming and the darn harnesses never fit the kids right. Fresh flour is cheap, healthy and smells so good it MUST be good for you. In the Denver Metro area, you can buy your mill and grain from Nadine. She is a Christian homeschooling widow with nine kids and is quite fabulous. She is in the North Denver suburbs and has a cute store in her garage. Visit Family Baker and tell her I said hi! Nadine also ships machines free! It can wait until after the Dutch oven and bread pot, but when you start baking more bread you will need it.



Bosch Universal

 *Heavy-Duty Mixer If you have a smaller family than mine, a Kitchenaid rocks the party. Bosch also makes a smaller, budget mixer. If you have more than six in your brood, get a Bosch Universal. Most of my bread comes from this, at least six loaves a week. This can wait if you have a Dutch oven and a cheap bread pot.



Stick Blender

*Immersion Blender It makes creamed soups, refried beans, apple sauce, and other wet and goopy foods. Soup is cheap and can feed a mongel hoard and creamed soups enable baby to feed himself so that you can finally eat your own dinner while it is still hot. A hot meal does a hot mama good. I suppose it is not critical, but I like it and since this is my blog only my opinion counts.



DishwashersSafe Cup Spice Grinder

 *Dishwasher Safe Coffee Grinder To grind spices and flax seeds. Nothing says "freak" like my tiny yogurt-jar spices filled with my whole spices which I freshly grind in small amounts. I even take them when traveling and yes, it is embaressing to pull them out at the in-laws'. But I refuse to be ever again caught off-guard without a micro-plane and whole nutmegs in a small town with only nasty tinned nutmeg available! Also pretty nice but not really necessary, it can go far down the list.

8in Chef's Knife

 *Good Quality 8 in Chef's Knife As always, avoid the cheap stuff - especially the serrated ones! 8in is long enough to get the job done but not to unwieldy that you'll have a hard time getting to know it. Avoid high carbon steel knives which do get sharp as heck, but rust terribly. Get a steel to refresh the blade but know that it doesn't actually sharpen. Get a knife sharpener to really bring back the edge. Mine are Henckel Twins. I also have other knives, but the 8in is my go to guy. No need to fill a block or blade holder, just start with the champ. Bat your pretty little eyes at hubby and sigh, he'll get it.

10in Cast Iron Fry Pan

*Cast Iron Frying Pan A well seasoned pan can fry eggs, no need for Teflon and the risk associated with it. Just remember to use plenty of fat and turn down the heat. Clean with a little water, a little more elbow grease and dry on the burner. We got ours at a garage sale. The things fools throw away!