I have a confession.
I didn’t want to wait too long before admitting it, leading my readers on, then telling everyone and getting awkward. So here it goes: My kitchen tools aren’t up to par. I don’t own a stand mixer, or a food processor. My double-boiler consists of IKEA pots and bowls stacked on each other. I use a tea infuser to sprinkle confectioner’s sugar on baked goods. Don’t even ask about pans or a knife set. The only reason I use good knives now is because my roommate has a set of Henckels. Which, as a side note, is ironic since his idea of cooking is using a keypad (phone or microwave). I made a berry pie recently and to grind the graham crackers and puree the berries, I had to put small batches into my [roommate's] blender. Which then had me thinking. When did people actually start using some of these items? I seem to be ambling along just find without them, so I’m sure others have for generations before me.
Well it turns out, the first food processor wasn’t developed until the ’60’s and the first Cuisinart was introduced into North American homes in 1973. In fact, the blender was created in 1922 by Stephen Poplawski for the sole purpose of creating malts and shakes. The ever-coveted stand mixer celebrates its 100th birthday this year after it was created by an engineer for the Hobart Manufacturing Company (which later changed its name to KitchenAid in 1919 when the Company started producing mixers for home use). It’s unfortunate the KitchenAid Experience store (yes, it exists) is in Ohio. It’s a bit of a long trip to see the mixer assembly process, although I’m sure it would be interesting. Another intriguing fact, the overarching design of the KitchenAid has not changed since its introduction. The above mixer is one of the original Hobart’s, while the one below is a modern model. In fact, the KitchenAid is so beloved, people have taken the time to further pimp out their appliances.
Alas, I am without a tricked out mixer for now. I will one day purchase the necessary items* to make my entire kitchen kick-ass, but until then, I am a graduate student getting by on make-shift appliances.
