Culinary school graduation!

Going to culinary school was hands-down one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Besides learning the butter-loaded art of classic French cooking, I got to experience living abroad in Paris, made an international roster of friends that I still keep in touch with, and even met my boyfriend (now husband) there. It was a whirlwind dream come true.

I still use many of the cooking techniques and recipes I learned in school when I develop recipes, cook for photo shoots, or cook at home. But almost 10 years after graduation, I’ve realized there were a bunch of lessons about cooking that culinary school didn’t teach me!

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There are some kitchen tools that are just universally indispensable, but there are also favorites that vary from person to person. While one cook might have never used a mandoline, another may reach for theirs several times per week.

With that in mind, we scoured our archives to find some of the best kitchen tool recommendations from some of our favorite chefs. We have the standards, like vegetable peelers and food processors, and some suggestions that are a bit more obscure — speed grill, anyone? Take a look and then tell us what’s on your must-have list.

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In February this year, Beyoncé partnered with her trainer, Marco Borges, to create an organic, vegan, gluten-free, soy-free meal delivery service called 22 Days Nutrition. Beyoncé and Jay-Z went vegan for 22 days in December of 2013 with the help of Borges and both became enthusiastic supporters of the challenge. Thus, she went into business with her trainer to help other people feel as magical as she does. Sounds great, right?

Well, if it’s good enough for Bey, it’s good enough for me. Would I become closer to her if I tried the meal plan? Would I truly feel flawless? I decided to give her vegan meal plan a shot for 48 hours. Here’s how it went.

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Who cooks and eats here: Ed Cotton, Executive Chef at Sotto 13 in New York, Top Chef Season 7 runner-up, and former sous chef for Cat Cora on Iron Chef America
Where: Long Island City, Queens, New York
Read the series: Part One, Part Two

While visiting Ed Cotton at his home kitchen in Queens a few weeks ago, we couldn’t help but notice his range. It’s a gas stove, but the oven controls are in the front, next to the burner knobs, instead of at the back, which is more standard.

What a great feature! So we looked into the make and model.

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In the nineties, I went to college in Canada, a long way from my home in South Carolina. One snowy weekend, my mother came for a visit. Because I was in class when she arrived — and you can’t skip class the day your mother arrives — I left her a key. When I walked in the door at the end of the day, knocking the snow from my boots and shaking it from my scarf and coat, I inhaled a smell I had forgotten; my mother had a pot of what we called “spaghetti sauce” on the stove. Our spaghetti sauce, I now understand, was a cross between bolognese and puttanesca, and it was delicious.

Making lasagna in the slow cooker lets me pretend my mom is home.

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