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A decent stand mixer ... and the counter space for it.

LunaPierCook, I trashed two KitchenAid Stand mixers before I finally got peeved and opted for a Viking 7 quart mama-jama...no regrets yet and I've been putting that baby to task for over two years now. So if you want a recommendation that's mine for your future stand mixer. :)

Lemons, I'm gathering you consider Anthony Bourdain a tool? -Or a machine? ROTFL! He [Anthony] is one tall drink! My hubby's name is Anthony... I love Bourdain's show on the Travel Channel...he cracks me up. I refuse to consider him a gadget though... :))

Kiana, noooooooooo! KitchenAid mixers and built the same any more...it's a shame too...they used to be commercial under the name "Hobart" and they were real workhorses...now I think they cheap out and make 'em (for the home cook anyhow) CRAPPOLA. :(

Save up your dough [double entendre, I know] for a Viking...they are worth every penny and I love mine! :D

I have loved my Kitchen Aid (and my Mom's) and we still use Grandmother's at our "cabin". Mine went through 4 years of daily heavy use as a caterer, had it reconditioned at "home base" in Greenville, OH(fun trip if you get a chance) and it is going strong!

Right now I want a freezer, an ice cream attachment and triple the counter space so I can have all my equipment at arm's reach (even if it is just to see it...I like to give them all a little pat now and then)

I'd love to get my very own ice cream maker, too, CanadianFoodieGirl ! Wouldn't it be dreamy to open up the freezer and choose from dozens of unique fruit sorbets on a sweltering day like today? Alas, I don't have quite enough space for one.

You should consider buying a cheap mandoline as a test before you commit to a fancier one. I just got one for $4 at a Japanese food store for that reason and it's worked off its price after two uses, so I think I might upgrade when it wears out. Or you could claim your mother's mandoline since she doesn't use it.

The kitchen wouldn't be the room I'd select for Bourdain. Ahem. I would like an ice-cream maker to replace my Donvier. Have been looking for a new one, but can't find it. Tons of electric ones out there, but no Donvier (which was a huge fad a few years back). One cooking-equipment store actually had the Donvier cookbook, but no Donviers!

I have a Kitchenaid and absolutely LOVE it. I have never had the first problem with it and use it quite a bit. What I want is a good deep fryer. My sights are set on the one Alton Brown chose during one of his shows but I don't live anywhere near a decent kitchen supply store. Five quarts, stainless shell, digital thermostat and an immersion element. SWEET! And maybe an ice cream maker and pasta roller. Yeah, I don't want much. lol
TG

I would love to have a wood-fired pizza oven and one of those steakhouse broilers that cook at 1600 degrees!

Cary, my Kitchenaid is 28 years old and still going strong, with daily, yes, daily use. I recently bought the ice cream bowl, and love it. That workhorse Kitchenaid motor is perfect for the job of ice cream.

I don't think there's anything I want - I'm on my 4th food processor, my second Cuisinart. My knives are from 1 to 30 years old. I guess I'd like a cutting board from a single piece of wood, at least 24"X18". I am pretty hard on cutting boards. They need to be able to stand up to water and bleach.

Oh! I 'd also love a used, well-seasoned cast-iron fry pan, 12". At least 10 years old.

I don't really want anything at this point...but I wanted to add that at one time I wanted some of these name brand items (and I do have some of them now) but I got used to buying what I could.

I bought a lot of black and decker kitchen appliances and had one food processer that I could not kill, it was the greatest. When I gave it away (so I could finally approve of buying myself a new one) the clear plastic was cloudy white and pieces were cracked out of the base casing but it was still kicking years later...I used it almost daily at home, and then brought it in to work for a few years to do smaller jobs that didn't require the full on robo coupe.

Now if only I could get the blender to die...hmmm maybe a rock smoothie.

Okay, no one laugh---I have never owned a blender :( Any recommendations? Or should I just get an immersion blender?

Commercial-quality stand mixer with all the attachments, especially the meat grinder and dough hook. I always talk myself out of it because of the price, even though I can totally afford it, and I have lots of empty cabinet space. Dumb.

Mandoline. A really good one that juliennes, does paper-thin slicing, etc. Haven't found one yet that meets all my criteria.

Toaster oven. I know. Weird. But I hate firing up the broiler or oven to bake just a couple of biscuits, or to brown a couple of slices of cheese toast.

Regarding granite counters. I have them. You might consider quartzite instead (e.g., Caeserstone, etc.). We put this in our kids' bathroom and it is amazing stuff. Super easy to maintain, virtually indestructible, much more sanitary (non-porous, rated for commercial kitchens, whereas granite is not), similar cost. I'm passing on the granite next kitchen, even though it is spectacularly beautiful.

Re blenders. Whatever you do, get one with a wide-based glass jar, not V-shaped. I have three blenders (combined households), two are high-end commercial grade, but the only one I ever use is the one on my mid-size Cuisinart food processor from Costco. The wide base doesn't get jammed or clogged up as easily, which is really important for puree-ing thick soups, crushing ice, etc.

My dream machine: The Texas Legend. Scrool down to the Texas Legend.

Apprx. 25,700 sq. cooking inches. 3/8" thick 38" diameter x 8 foot double door horizontal smoke chamber, Six 1" angle framed sliding food trays in each horizontal door, Upright smoker is 1/4" thick x 38" x 48" tall with five angle framed sliding food trays and is gas fired with brass needle valve for better control, 3/8" thick x 36" side grill with three angle framed sliding food trays and sliding baffle to serve as additional heat/smoke source to the upright. Firebox is double 1/4" wall plate with 2" 2300 degree insulation for better heat retention and longer cooks with gas assisted log lighter and front control valve, Firebox 1/4" thick top flat plate for heating foods.

I cooked on the orignal Texas Legend a couple times. It was a truly awesome cooking machine. I'd also need a new truck to pull it. I think it weighed just under 10,000 pounds.

On blenders: Avoid the Black and Decker blenders. I have one and the lid is soft rubber/plastic. It has a tendency to flex when you turn on the blender, allowing the contents of the blender to escape.

Cheffy---thanks--I am thinking it is time to treat myself & buy a good blender!

I love my kitchenaid, although I killed it and had to send it back when making pasta using their pasta roller accessory. The new one seems to be holding up just fine *knocks on wood*. The cool thing with them is that if you kill it, they will replace it at no charge.