Local Heroes: 15 Made-in-America Kitchen Classics - Remodelista
We work hard to source our food locally, but what about the tools we use to prepare it? Despite all the advancements in kitchen equipment, the classic American-style wood rolling pin is still the baker’s staple. Another classic for bakers, the Jacob Bromwell All-American Flour Sifter offers tried-and-true sifting technology; $84.99. If you inherited a whisk from your childhood kitchen, chances are that it came from Oregon’s Best Manufacturing. Our favorite purveyor of classic cast-iron pans is Lodge (it’s the oldest family-run foundry in America), founded in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee by Joseph Lodge. Made in Iowa, the Rada Cutlery Stainless Steel Pizza Cutter has an aluminum handle (hand-wash only) and a super sharp and strong blade that cuts through the toughest of crusts (as well as pasta, cookies, and dough). John Boos & Co. has been manufacturing high-quality wood cutting boards, butcher blocks, and countertops in Effingham, Illinois, since 1887. The John Boos 20-by-15-Inch Reversible Maple Cutting Board is a longtime best seller; $70.56 at Amazon. A great culinary tool borrowed from the wood shop: the made-in-Arkansas Microplane Classic Zester Grater is as ideal for zesting a lemon as it is for grating Parmesan cheese. Invented in the US in 1941 by a German immigrant, the simple Chemex Coffeemaker is made from nonporous borosilicate glass and fastened with a wood collar and tie. Jacob Bromwell (makers of the sifter shown above) has been manufacturing kitchenware since this country was a mere 22 states, it’s the 34th-oldest owned-and-operated company in US. The stainless steel Zim-Ade-O-Matic Two-Purpose Baster, a Thanksgiving essential with its own cleaning brush and injector attachment, is made in Chicago. An American ice cream parlor fixture since its creation in the mid-1930s, the ingenious Zeroll Ice Cream Scoop is made in Ohio of corrosion-resistant aluminum alloy, which draws on the natural warmth of the hand to ease the scooping; $19.95 at Williams-Sonoma. Synonymous with door-to-door sales, the Fuller Brush Company is still around (but no longer knocking). They’ve released a new collection of vintage-style brushes, including the Fuller Dish Brush with a wooden handle and stiff memory bristles; $14 at Restoration Hardware. A never-fail classic, the manual EZ Duz-It Can Opener of heavy-gauge chromed steel with carbon steel cutting blades is $9.95 at Williams-Sonoma. Singled out in the Remodelista 100, the Eena Work Apron by Beckel Canvas Products of Portland, Oregon, is a hardworking basic that hides stains; $38 at Canoe. An American kitchen-counter icon, the Kitchen-Aid Artisan Series Five-Quart Mixer is made in Greenville, Ohio; $324 from Amazon.