Nice-to-Have Baking Tools

‘Nothing says home like the smell of baking’…goes a popular quote

But baking not only requires a knack but also some handy tools to make your most tried-and-true baking recipes quicker and easier. Here’s presenting a snapshot of them -

• Pastry Blender for cutting cold butter or shortening into flour much easier (alternative: two butter knives)
• Offset Spatula/Spreader for putting the perfectly smooth finishing touches on cakes or a pan of brownies 
• Zester/Rasp Grater the best possible way to rind a lemon (alternative: sharp knife)
• Pastry Wheel for smoothly cutting pastry dough (alternative: sharp knife)
• Slotted Spoon for quickly and easily spooning out large spices like a cinnamon stick or vanilla bean
• Citrus Juicer for juicing every last drop out of a lemon; with the sieve straining the pulp and seeds (alternative: hands or fork)
• Knives like serrated bread knife, tomato knife, chef’s knife and paring knife 
• Springform Pan as this has a latch that opens so one can remove the sides, making it perfectly convenient for authentic cheesecakes and deep-dish pizza
• Fluted Tube Pan for those home chefs fond of preparing a traditional bundt or angel food cake
• Pizza Pan for the perfectly round pizzas 
• Jelly-Roll Pan for whipping up jelly rolls, cake rolls, pumpkin bars and also for toasting nuts and roasting veggies
• Ramekins for preparing custards and puddings
• Food Processor for crushing cookies and crackers for crusts; mixing up piecrusts;  albeit bowls, pastry cutters, knives and rolling pins may suffice this requirement

Blender, Tart Pans and Soufflé Dish are other nice-to-have baking tools