New Toys For The New Year

Since the holidays and my birthday are usually wrapped into one, I get tons of new things (from myself also, hehe) by the second week of January.  This time around almost everyone got me something kitchen-related, which I was very happy to receive.  I <3 new toys!

KitchenAid Classic 250-Watt 4-1/2-Quart Stand Mixer, beautiful white.  This gift was courtesy of work, because of the many MANY trips I've been on in the last 6 months, I was able to accumulate enough BofA credit card points to get this baby.  Remember, hard work has its rewards. :)

The first time I christened this machine was last night, when I made pizza dough.  It was wonderful!  I barely got my hands dirty or gooey from the dough, and didn't have to pant and sweat from kneading the damn dough.  Amazing!  More products to come from this machine...

Oneida Round Pizza Stone from Bed Bath and Beyond, $14.99 (but 20% cheaper from using their coupon!)

So what's the best thing?  Playing with TWO toys in one night!  I used this pizza stone the first time last night also, baking a Tuna, Onion, and Mushroom pizza and a Margherita pizza.  I have to say this is one of the best things I have bought!  The stone completely changed the texture and taste of the dough, as it evenly cooked the pizza and added a great crunch to the crust.  Amazing amazing.

Panasonic Rice Cooker (carried by my relentless Dad all the way from Taiwan!).  A great Christmas gift from the parents... as they've been over the house many times and laughed at my dinky and old 2-cup rice cooker and shook their heads everytime.  I was content with my small rice cooker, but am now spoiled with this bigger one, so there's no going back.  Surprisingly, I haven't cooked any rice from it yet, but I've steamed many meat buns and dimsum in it.  It made my steaming life so much easier!

Martha Stewart Red Enameled Cast Iron Round Pot.  A Christmas gift from sister L.  I hugged this pot (really, I did) after opening it, so happy to receive something I've been wanting for a long while.  Although I'm not sure if this is a gift for me or for the family, because soon after L stated that she wanted me to make Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon, and wanted it fast, I am happy either way!  I will be happy to make it (and post, I hope) and adding the cast iron pot to my collection.

Garlic Press, a Christmas stocking gift from sister S.  If you hate mincing, get this baby.  No arguments.

Paella pan!  A birthday gift from EH.  I actually gave a friend a paella set (included paella pan, rice, seasoning, and olive oil) from World Market over the holidays and really wanted one myself, and EH read my mind!  I hope to use this sometime soon.

Chinese Food Cookbooks (all in Chinese!), a gift  from Mom's recent Taiwan trip.  You can hope that I will soon actually cook rice in my new rice cooker and making some of the delish dishes from these books!