Cooking with Calphalon

I was recently asked to review some Calphalon products - a 10" non-stick omelette pan and three knives (8" chef's, paring and a utility). Honestly, I'd never used Calphalon and have never been too picky about my cookware or tools: my favorite cooking vessel is my Lodge enamel cast-iron dutch oven (thank you, dear hubby, for that Mother's Day gift) and I love my Cuisinart santoku chef's knife (purchased at TJ Maxx). I like quality but I don't have a ton of money to spend. And, frankly, Calphalon cookware has always been out of my price range. But that's why I was sooo excited to try it (and keep it)!

Lemme tell ya, quality cookware does make a difference. I am convinced of this after using the Unison omelet pan. Its non-stickedness was phenomenal compared to my analon cookware. The omelet could literally slide right out of the pan and I used very minimal butter - just enough for flavor. And it's one pan I can just throw in the dishwasher and know that it will be okay - it says so on the package! So I did it. And it survived. It worked just as perfectly for my next omelet.

I like the knives, too. They came at the perfect time as I just downsized our knife supply and gave several away to Goodwill that we never use. These are sturdy and have a bit of heft. The 8" knife is actually a bit large for me to use for chopping onions, but it was an expert at cutting through the ham for Easter (below) and trimming the pork shoulder I made yesterday. Likewise, we like the fruit and veggie knives and have used them on everything! I know my santoku's are feeling a little left out... and maybe a little scared that they may be headed to Goodwill soon!

And while we're talking about knives, I want to share one of my other favorite kitchen tools: the Wusthof 2-Stage Pocket Knife Sharpener. At $6.99, it's the cheapest, fastest, easiest way to keep my knives sharp and ready to chop! Sharp knives make all the difference. If you invite me over and I use a dull knife, you can be guaranteed to have one of these arrive in the mail, courtesy of me and Amazon Prime (just ask several members of my family).