Grandparent Diary: Bumpy Knives!

Gadgets galore! Enter any kitchenware store and utensils ranging from apple corers and avocado peelers to citrus zesters and zingers and every letter in-between bombard you. There’s a slicer, dicer, shaper, picker, or grinder for every fruit, vegetable, meat, or cheese. Seeing a “peanut butter and jelly spreader” years ago, I wondered how any of us had ever made a successful sandwich without one.

I do have my favorite essentials: an ice cream scoop, a garlic press, and a carrot peeler. Add a couple sharp knives and I’m set. (Ok, add the food processor too).

Then there are what my eldest grandson dubbed “bumpy knives.” Also known as crinkle knives, they give vegetables ridges, and are often used to make French fries. I first discovered these knives when my eldest son, then about 5, ate over his friend Mitchell’s house. His mother, Robin, used this knife, making vegetable eating so much more fun. Robin bought me such a knife that has been used for countless vegetable platters, often delivered to the kids while they were doing homework before dinner.

When the grands were big enough to start helping in the kitchen, they’ve used my bumpy knife, so of course I bought them each their own. They love helping make salads and eating while they cut. They prefer cutting cucumbers and apples as carrots, as I’ve been told, “fly all over.”

Anticipating some summer visits, I wanted to get a couple more of these “perfect for little hands” knives. I was in NYC last week and couldn’t find any after searching several stores. Fortunately my local Bed & Bath still carries them; I bought two in red to prevent arguments about who has which color. When I went to pay, the cashier tried to convince me to buy a new gadget—a hamburger stuffer—a contraption that presses ground meat around whatever you want inside. Only $9.99.   I declined.

What’s your favorite kitchen gadget?

 

Busy with the Bumpy Knives