The Soup Makers Gift Guide

Soup making doesn’t require that many tools. Beyond the actual food items all you really need is a good sized pot, a ladle, some knives, bowls and spoons. For the holidays, I was thinking about some wish list items to enhance my soup making and with the help of my Facebook fans/friends, I complied a holiday soup makers guide for 2011. If you know someone who is attending California culinary schools, any of these things would make a great gift.

Please feel free to add your suggestions and picks in the comments section.

Cutting boards and Tupperware. I always use cutting boards and Tupperware or storage containers for storage. Check out this beautiful 3-piece bamboo cutting board on Amazon. The price is certainly right at $12.99 but I also love the various shapes, which would be great to vary between smaller and larger pots of soup. Thanks to Carolyn Larsen for the tip!

Bamboo Cutting Boards

Also, to store dry goods I have been eying the 10-piece Good Grips set by OXO. At $99.95 this set is a bit higher than your average set of Tupper but its containers are “airtight, stackable, and space-efficient,” which can help with organization of things like spices, rice and noodles for your soups.

Good Grips set by OXO

Reference Cards. My bud and fellow soup enthusiast, Heather Cathcart of What’s the Soup suggested this item so that you can track all of the “great soup sites/recipes out there.” Great point, Heather!

Timer. Heather also suggested a timer since it can be easy to forget that a soup is simmering. I like this Mini Green Magnetic Timer that affixes to any metal surface. It also counts down to the minute and second based on what you choose. I know this would be great for me since there were many soups – especially my bean ones – that I didn’t check on quick enough and ended up with some burnt beans on the bottom.

Mean Green Soup Timing Machine

Spoon Rest. Soup making gets mess and requires a lot of stirring. In-between the chopping, mixing and twirling of the ingredients, you need to give your spoon a rest. I really love this cute Chantilly Spoon Rest that is said to “save your kitchen counters from saucy splatters.”

Chic Spoon Rest to Clean Up the Mess

Bowls. Yes, I have bowls but I love checking out Etsy and the handmade items you can find on the site. I love these simple handmade green and tan bowls that would be perfect for any soup – or even a bowl of ice cream.

Inspiration. I am not really one to follow a recipe with soup making BUT I do love to look at other books and think about how I would modify a recipe or even look at the pictures and try to make my own version of the soup by guessing what I think what ingredients are in it. Recipes also help me to think outside of my soup comfort zone as they inspire me to try out new ingredients and techniques that I am unfamiliar with. I am really interested in checking out Splendid Soups: Recipes and Master Techniques for Making the World’s Best Soups and The Best Soups in the World,which may just help me with the creative jolt I need.