Hey, Maine Course readers! Today, reader Leslie Lavender of Stockton Springs shares her quest to get the one cooking appliance she truly wanted. It also includes a photo of a Cuisinart, which isn’t Leslie’s but is cherished as well. Enjoy!
Do you have a favorite dish? A favorite cooking tool? If you want to share a short ode to your favorites, drop me a line at scaron@bangordailynews.com.
Why I Love My Food Processor
By Leslie Lavender
Photo by the lovely photographer Sonja Zinke, who writes: “This is a photo of my grandmothers Cuisinart. It was one of my most treasured of her possessions. I love it and use it weekly and she has been gone for 15 years.”
About 30 years ago I was a young wife and mom living on my husband’s school teacher salary. We lived on a small plot of land with a garden, fruit trees and some chickens. I had learned how to can and preserve from a lovely neighbor. The one thing I wanted was a food processor. I drooled on them in stores, read about them in magazines and was totally convinced this was the one kitchen appliance that would change my life. But I didn’t want just any food processor; I wanted a Cuisinart. I wanted the heft of that metal motor that would last forever.
I saved my pennies. When I got birthday or Christmas money, I socked it away. One day, I saw that our local department store was having a Saturday-only sale on all kitchen appliances. I’m pretty sure I didn’t sleep that Friday night. I was up, bright and early for the trek into town to be waiting when the doors opened as I was sure that every other lady in town would want to lay claim to “my” food processor. Well, they didn’t and I did.
Fast forward to the present day. My trusty Cuisinart has been with me through major life changes, moves across town and half-way across the country. No one in my family is allowed to touch it until they have passed through my extensive training on the care and use of the Cuisinart.
I still love it. It pulverizes, kneads, grinds, grates, shreds, slices — you name it. The lexan bowl has one small chip, but otherwise it is almost showroom perfect. I have seen the bowls for sale on eBay, and periodically think about buying one, just in case.
It is absolutely my favorite appliance (and I have a KitchenAid mixer or, as my family calls it, the world’s most expensive whipped cream maker), and unlike a couple of men, my food processor has never let me down!
