Equipping a Diabetic Kitchen

    We've been getting lots of e-mail from all over the world asking
    us how to equip a kitchen once one is diagnosed as having
    diabetes. I took stock of my kitchen and here's what I most often
    use:

       * nonstick cookware and bakeware (buy the best you can afford)
         in assorted sizes
       * a soup pot
       * a Dutch oven
       * a variety of heavy baking sheets and oven-proof casseroles
         in different sizes

    We both have built-in 900-watt microwave ovens in our kitchens.
    We also use a wok, a vegetable steamer, and a well-seasoned
    cast-iron skillet for crispy flash-in-the-pan cooking of chicken
    or fish without fat.

    Other kitchen essentials to make our recipes:

       * food processor or blender
       * kitchen scale sensitive to 1/4 ounce (7 g)
       * a good set of knives and a knife sharpener
       * a couple of sets of measuring spoons; glass and metal
         measuring cups in assorted sizes
       * wooden spoons, rubber scrapers, and wire whisks in assorted
         sizes
       * stainless-steel, glass, and pottery mixing bowls in
         graduated sizes
       * citrus zester, kitchen shears, potato peeler, brush to scrub
         vegetables, pastry brush, rolling pin, melon baller, garlic
         press, and hand-held grater

    Handy, but not essential:

       * electric mixer
       * spice grinder

    Come back next month when we'll give you a list for turning your
    pantry into a healthy pantry for cooking our diabetic recipes.