TopPicks Index
Top 10 Gourmet Cooking Gift Ideas for Men
Looking for gift ideas for a guy that likes to cook? Here are my top ten gift suggestions that will please any would be chef. Somewhat unique and kind of cool, these kitchen tools are still useful enough to be used on a regular basis. Sure to be appreciated.
Top 10 Gourmet Cooking Gift Ideas for Women
Know a woman who loves to cook? Here are some gift ideas for the special woman in your life that will make her smile, kitchen tools and equipment that are not only fun to use but truly useful. Not only will you be remembered for your thoughtful gift every time she uses it in the kitchen, but you will most likely be the recipient of many delicious treats in the future.
Top 10 Chocolate Bunnies for Easter
What is Easter without a chocolate bunny rabbit? Among a basket of jellybeans, chocolate eggs, and marshmallow chickens, only the chocolate rabbit stands alone. Towering over the other treats, the bunny surveys all he sees and decides he is the most worthy of being eaten. Rightly so, but all bunnies are not created equal. For a truly gourmet chocolate experience, you must go to the artisan chocolate maker. Here is a list of my favorite chocolate rabbits from world class chocolatiers.
Top 10 Gourmet Chocolate Makers
Chocolate is the voice of passion and love, whether it is the love of chocolate itself or as an expression of love for another human being. Valentine's Day or Saturday, chocolate is the perfect gift for those we care about or just want to impress. Here are some online chocolate shops with some truly extraordinary products.
Top 10 Online Gourmet Cheese Shops
Gourmet cheeses are a world apart from the factory produced cheeses found in the chain supermarkets. Gourmet cheeses can be hard to find locally if you don't have a specialty market or cheese shop. Here are some online sources where you're sure to find some fantastic tasting cheeses.
Top 10 Places to Buy Seafood
Finding great seafood can be more difficult than the actual cooking itself. If you live far from the ocean or in a small town, your choices can be very limited. Luckily, with modern shipping and online shopping, high quality seafood is available to everyone. One word of caution with buying seafood online, check shipping costs. Overnight shipping can be very expensive, especially when half your package is ice. But if you're looking for some great seafood, here are the companies I recommend.
Top 10 Places to Buy Gourmet Salts
All salts are not created equal! As most cooks know, using sea salt rather than iodized or kosher salt adds more flavor to a dish. Sea salts, however, come in a variety of flavors and colors. Experiment with different salts in your recipes and see what happens. For best results, many of these salts should be sprinkled lastly on a dish like a garnish. Sea salt is a product of the minerals found in the seawater where it is harvested.
Top 10 Small Gourmet Gifts for Cooks & Chefs
Don't know what to give your favorite cook? Here are some gift ideas in a range of prices to fit any budget. All are useful items to have in the kitchen, yet unique enough that most people aren't likely to have them. Most of these items can be found in gourmet shops, kitchen stores, department stores, and even discount stores like Target and Walmart.
Top 10 Places to Buy Gourmet Gift Baskets
Gourmet gift baskets make a wonderful gift any time of the year but are especially welcome around the holidays. Don't know what to give someone or short on time? Almost everyone loves and appreciates the gift of food. It's hard to go wrong. There are thousands of gift basket companies, a few good ones and a lot of not so good ones. Here are some of my favorite companies that are reliable, feature high quality gourmet foods, and have good customer service.
Top 10 Gourmet Food of the Month Clubs
"Of the Month" clubs make a great gift for food lovers. Many of the top gourmet companies now feature various food-of-the-month clubs that spotlight some of their best products such as cheese, chocolate, wine, fruit, jam, cakes, cookies, pasta, salsa, olives, and even gourmet popcorn. These clubs are a convenient, yet unique (and delicious!) gift idea that the recipient will appreciate for months to come.
Top 9 Places To Buy Kitchen Tools Online
Fancy cookware or kitchen tools aren't necessary to cook great food. They can, however, make your life a whole lot easier. Here are five of my favorite online stores for kitchenware, in no particular order. So whether you're looking for a chef's knive or a cherry pitter or that whatchamacallit that does that thing, look here first. These shops often have sales, so check around for the best price.
Top 10 Online Gourmet Shops
Looking for the best places to buy gourmet foods? Let me show you my favorite online stores for getting the best specialty foods at the best prices.
Top 10 Drinking Chocolates
"Drinking Chocolates" are made from real chocolate as opposed to "Hot Cocoa" which is made from cocoa powder (the powdery remains of chocolate liquor after cocoa butter is removed). Drinking chocolates are not instant like hot cocoa. You must add hot milk, cream, or water . Because of the higher cocoa butter content, drinking chocolates will also be richer and often thicker than hot cocoa. Here are my favorites.
Top 9 Gourmet Chutney Brands
Chutney is a traditional Indian condiment that is made from fruit, sugar, and spices. It's a wonderfully versatile ingredient to have in the kitchen. Chutneys are good for more than just Indian dishes. Try chutneys as an accompaniment to cheese, as a sauce for meats (especially pork, lamb, and chicken), stirred into rice, as a sandwich spread, or even over ice cream.
Top 10 Mail Order Appetizer Companies
When planning a party, especially a large one, using prepared foods can be a huge time saver. Cooking for 5 or 6 people is one thing, but what about cooking for 12 or 20 or 50! Talk about stress. If you can make it yourself, great. Other options are recruiting some help (good luck) or hiring a caterer (not cheap) or buying the food premade. Here are some companies that will deliver high quality appetizers right to your door. Just heat and serve.
Top 10 Places to Buy Quality Meats - Beef, Pork, & Lamb
Trying to buy good meat can be a frustrating experience. Butcher shops are almost nonexistent anymore and we are stuck with limited choices at our local supermarket. The only time we see the butcher is when he comes out of the back to restock the cooler. If you know of a good butcher in your city, make him your friend. There are few things more important than a great steak. If you can't find a real butcher locally, check these online shops for incredible meats and respectable service.
Top 8 Places to Buy Truffles
Prized since ancient times, the "Food of Kings" has a richly deserved flavor reputation. It's grand taste is only matched by its price tag. Luckily, it only takes a small slice to flavor an entire dish. Oils and pastes that contain real truffle are an affordable alternative.
Top 10 Artisan Cheesemakers of Vermont
Only recently, in the past 20 years or so, has the craft of American cheesemaking been able to compete with the Europeans. A revolution has occurred with major hotspots for cheese developing in California, Vermont, and elsewhere. The small state of Vermont hosts dozens of artisan cheesemakers. With so many great cheesemakers creating a huge variety of cheeses, it's impossible to say who's the best. This list only reflects some of my favorites.
Top 9 Vanilla Extract Brands
Vanilla is an essential cooking ingredient for which there is no true substitute. The flavor of real vanilla is made up of over 250 organic components, which gives it great depth and complexity, compared to only one flavor component in artificial vanilla. There are three main types of vanilla: Madagascar Bourbon (named after the Bourbon islands not the liquor), Tahitian (fruity),and Mexican (spicy). Here is a list of premium vanilla extracts that I consider to be the very best.
Top 10 Chocolate-of-the-Month Clubs
Why give someone a box of chocolates when you can give them chocolates every month of the year? Well, price is the biggest reason. Chocolate-of-the-month clubs are not cheap and will likely cost you hundreds of dollars. But considering the price of buying boxes of chocolate individually, the price is fairly reasonable. That said, if you or someone you know is a chocolate lover, the chocolate-of-the-month club is a delicious gift that will be appreciated all year long.
Top 10 Places for Gourmet Tableware
Company's coming! Having appropriate tableware: plates, bowls, glasses, flatware, and whatever else adds to the general well-being of the party. Although we could all survive with paper plates and cups, having beautiful dinnerware makes life all the more enjoyable. Here are some places to start looking.
Top 7 Chef's Knives
Every cook needs a good knife. It's the one thing you can't do without in the kitchen. If you can only have one good knife, a chef's knife is what you want. A chef's knife has a blade between 8- and 10-inches long and is the most suitable for the greatest variety of tasks. A high quality chef's knife will cost you around a hundred dollars, but if properly taken care of it will last a lifetime.
Top 5 Places To Buy Wild Game
A few decades ago wild game was a huge part of the average American's diet. As people moved away from the country and into the cities, however, we lost this connection to the land. Consumers relied more and more on factory farms and our meat choices were reduced to beef, pork, chicken, and lamb. Today several companies specialize in game meats and have made these once rare products readily available to consumers.