What do you keep on your kitchen counter?

[Darienne]

Shalmanese and others raised the subject of kitchen counters and what's kept on them in a recent topic:Things lots of people buy...

I am currently having kitchen counter problems, in that I don't have enough counter space to keep out my food processor and/or my stand mixer, two items which I would like to have on hand.

A major consequence of this is that I use a hand mixer when a stand mixer would be preferable.

Permanently on my limited counter space: blender, bullet, carousel holding many utensils, toaster oven, fruit which is ripening or being on hand, coffee maker, coffee carafe. Everything else is: in cupboards in the kitchen, on shelves in what was my studio, in the breezeway in a large cabinet which will be moved into the new dining room when the new living room is finished, and in the garage either in a tall cabinet or on open shelves.

What do others do? Where do you keep stuff you have no room for in your kitchen as it is configured? Tips? Tricks? Etc.

Thanks.

[robirdstx]

I am fortunate to have a good deal of counter space, so I have most of the heavy items out and available, but for the lighter items that need an electrical outlet, I have a spot that serves for whichever appliance is needed and cabinet space close at hand where the others are stored until needed. The coffee maker, rice cooker, food processors and blender are all in that rotation.

For the longest time I kept my stand mixer in a cupboard and I rarely used it because it was a hassle to get it out. It does take up a good chunk of space but I also use it much more often.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

New house, limited counter space here (and limited cupboard space as well). The only things that live permanently on the counter are the coffeemaker and grinder, and the spice chest. For everything else, I have a piece of furniture called an Aparador, which is similar to a china cabinet on top, and a mobile cabinet on the bottom (the whole thing's on casters). My stand mixer, hand mixer, scale, rice cooker, blender, all of my mixing bowls, measuring cups, and all baking vessels, live there.

If you'd like, I can take a picture of this thing; it lives in my dining room near the pass-through to the kitchen.

[thock]

Please do. I'm interested to see what it looks like.

I keep my stand mixer, coffee maker, dish drainer, toaster oven, bread maker, knife blocks and BoardSmith cutting board out ready for immediate use, and my vac sealer on the counter, but not readily usable (it sits sideways, so I have to rotate and plug in to use it, but since it's heavy, this is acceptable). Or, well, I did in the house, but since we're still not back in there, I'm not sure what we will do when we move back. I keep other small electrics in the bottom of a corner cabinet, close to an outlet, but not actually close to where I use them. That might change when we move back (use location, not storage location, I mean).

We have a microwave shelf in the house, so that's not on the counter. My HUGE granite countertop piece that I got at a yard sale lives on the kitchen table, because it's too large to move every single time I want to use it.

In the apartment, I have a microwave, toaster oven, and my Big Berkey out. The Big Berkey sat on a microwave cart in the house, but I don't know where it will go when we move back, because we haven't replaced the cart. Don't know that I want to replace it, either.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

OK, for better or worse, this is my Aparador; I actually have a second one that I keep dishes and extraneous pots and pans in.

[Mjx]

We're in temporary quarters, now, but when we were living in our own place, the counter had sitting on it: electric kettle, the Silvia, coffee mill, two cutting boards resting against the wall behind these, knife block. Other things (e.g. the slicer) were sometimes camped out on a temporary basis, but these were the permanent residents. I have a bit of a fetish for keeping down kitchen clutter.

[Darienne]

Thanks so far. I have pushed myself 5" worth and moved a number of things.

Fruit is in what will be the dining room moved into reed baskets.

Stand mixer takes the place of the fruit in the kitchen. One grinder and the tiny food processor are in a kitchen cupboard, from the studio shelves, which Ed built into the kitchen when he built the room out of the amorphous huge area which was the apiary. (Century mostly destroyed farm house. A renovator dream come true. Not so for the wife, me.)

Unfortunately at the time of kitchen building: a) I still hated cooking and didn't have much 'stuff' and b) he built the cupboard about 4" more shallow than I specified [we don't discuss this. Ever].

The dog bowls and dog pills are moved.

The blender, which I don't use all that much as I use the bullet or the BlenderBottles for shakes, can go into said shallow cupboard when the shelves are repositioned in their brackets.

Ed also built a small "between the studs" built-in cabinet for my spices which is SO handy.

I can't do anymore thinking without going crazy. Renovations, especially gigantic (unwanted) ones are mind-blowing and especially when your main builder, the DH, simultaneously destroys 3 ligaments in his two rotator cuffs. Poor guy.

Enough from me for now. I'll take a few photos.

Oh, PanaCan, your Aparador is exactly what Ed wants to put in the dining room where I want a built-in closety type thing. Except I could not live with glass doors. (Nope, he says 'close, but no cigar'.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

I was unable to find one without the glass doors - I'd have preferred a true hutch with solid wooden doors like the ones on the bottom half, but it was not to be. I'm adapting to 'em, and really, my guests know that I'm a working baker and forgive the visual clutter in there.

[Darienne]

I was unable to find one without the glass doors - I'd have preferred a true hutch with solid wooden doors like the ones on the bottom half, but it was not to be. I'm adapting to 'em, and really, my guests know that I'm a working baker and forgive the visual clutter in there.

Enclosed is a photo of our cabinet in the breezeway currently. It had glass inserts in the upper doors and Ed changed the glass for wooden inserts which he made and which look very nice.

Kitchen bits: The new table which isn't finished but incorporates a piece of marble which solves a lot of problems in one blow.

Spice cupboard. And also large shallow cupboards which I will simply have to replan in their use. Too shallow for any full size appliance, but the small processor and the mills fit into them. ...hmmm...could move the other mill, the hand mixer, the hand blender.

Get the mind in gear, that's all I need.

(Yes, it reads: Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get caught in jet engines)

[Kim Shook]

I have about 7 feet of counter space, plus a 36x43-inch island. The island was made for me by my stepdad – Ted Fairhead who used to post here. I adore it and will never give it up as long as I live:

P1100810 by ozisforme, on Flickr

The top is used for prep work, staging things (oftentimes my mise ends up here), breadbox, fruit basket and mail sorting/note taking/etc. Except for the Easter basket and the rack of decorative plates behind it, nothing is really ‘for show’.

It has bookshelves on three sides – perfect for cookbooks, magazines and a low liquor shelf:

P1100811 by ozisforme, on Flickr

P1100813 by ozisforme, on Flickr

P1100812 by ozisforme, on Flickr

Also room for seldom-used pitchers. Yes, the currently-in-use drink bottles end up on the floor. Please ignore the Godawful vinyl flooring which we have been meaning to replace since we moved in over 15 years ago. The toaster lives under here, which is fine with me since I don’t use it very often. The vacuum sealer (known as the Suck Thing around here) is under there, too. Which means that I forget to use it as often as I should.

When I measured the counters, I was surprised that there was 7 feet of it. Because it is so awkward, I guess. The first section:

P1100807 by ozisforme, on Flickr

is just less than 2 feet long and dominated by my beloved convection/toaster oven, which I use a lot.

The second section:

P1100808 by ozisforme, on Flickr

Is the always problematical corner section which houses the KA, the coffee maker and coffee accoutrements and the famous utensil forest. This is also where most of my prep work happens. Each of the ‘arms’ of the counter is about 19 inches long.

The last section:

P1100809 by ozisforme, on Flickr

is nine inches long and houses salts, oil, garlic and Mr. Kim’s instant coffee. Pot holders hang on the side of the fridge.

All I can say is thank God for wall mounted microwaves! There are things that have to be stored elsewhere in the house – blender, food processor, etc. that don’t get used very often because they are a PITA to get out/find. Any tips would be GREATLY appreciated!

[Jaymes]

I was unable to find one without the glass doors - I'd have preferred a true hutch with solid wooden doors like the ones on the bottom half, but it was not to be. I'm adapting to 'em, and really, my guests know that I'm a working baker and forgive the visual clutter in there.

There are many things you could do with those glass doors. You could frost or etch the glass, so that you couldn't really see the stuff inside. You could paint them, on the inside, or silver them so that they look like mirrors. You could line them with fabric, or put up shirred curtains. You could glue bits of colored glass to make them look like antique stained glass panels. You could replace them with wood panels.

Seriously, if you don't like the clear glass, there are many ways to change that, and all it would take would be a kind of fun, crafty, weekend project.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

I know, I know - and I've actually grown to like the glass, because it means I don't have to remember what's where. Besides which, with the way my business has picked up this year, I haven't had a spare weekend in several months (not complaining!)

However, my auntie, who is a world-reknowned stained glass artist, is coming down in October. I think I'll talk to her about helping me design some panels for both that aparador and the one the dishes are in - that would be both a fun family project and a good solution.

[Snadra]

I've moved from a small kitchen with little counter space to one with even less. The only things that live out now are the coffee grinder, kettle, knife block and the cutting boards which are tucked behind the block. That leaves me with about half a metre next to the stove and about an arm span on the other side of the U. There is a microwave spot above the oven, the (dead) kitchenaid lives in the hall cupboard along with a few dry ingredients, and the food processor will also live there when it comes up from Sydney. No mug tree, no utensil jugs. There is a fruit bowl that lives on the pseudo-breakfast bar that is behind the longer expanse of counter.

[ElaineK]

I have just under 6 feet of counters (70 inches), broken up into three chunks. Keeping them relatively empty is a priority.

The smallest one (14 inches, near the stove) has two utensil holders, a salt dish and the pepper mill. The largest one (31 inches) has a paper towel holder, a fish platter that's usually pressed into service to hold fresh fruit/vegetable that shouldn't go into the fridge (currently two bananas and a potato) and a berry bowl that usually holds allium (currently two heads of garlic).

The third one is always empty, unless it's accumulated some dishes for the dishwasher underneath it. Fortunately, it's a small kitchen, so tugging things in and out of storage never involves much walking.

[Shalmanese]

One thing that's helped me was that I installed bar seating for my dining table so I can use the dining table as a countertop in a pinch.

[Kim Shook]

My dining room table is used as extra counter space more than dining space! I also have a card table that lives behind the piano that I set up when I need even more space.

[annabelle]

What Jaymes said about the cabinet doors, that or just take them off since you use the items all the time. Tap the door pins out with a slot screwdriver and a small hammer.

[TheTInCook]

Kim, you really need to clear cut that utensil forest.

[Kim Shook]

Kim, you really need to clear cut that utensil forest.

Yes, I do! It is one of my now-that-I've-quit-working projects that I need to get to. One of my problems is that many of them were stocking stuffers and Santa lives with me .

[Panaderia Canadiense]

What Jaymes said about the cabinet doors, that or just take them off since you use the items all the time. Tap the door pins out with a slot screwdriver and a small hammer.

I wouldn't do that here. There's too much free-floating volcanic ash in the air - the doors are a necessary evil to keep it off of the stuff in the cupboards and hence off of the food, and I'm not crazy about washing and drying stuff that should already be clean before I use it. I swept my floor yesterday and picked up about 1/4" of black grit that wasn't immediately visible. Yay, volcano.

[Darienne]

Kim, you really need to clear cut that utensil forest.

Yes, I do! It is one of my now-that-I've-quit-working projects that I need to get to. One of my problems is that many of them were stocking stuffers and Santa lives with me .

You are a good Grandma and Mother.

And when they finally leave home, you can begin to unload some of the extras. Trust me.

[Kim Shook]

Kim, you really need to clear cut that utensil forest.

Yes, I do! It is one of my now-that-I've-quit-working projects that I need to get to. One of my problems is that many of them were stocking stuffers and Santa lives with me .

You are a good Grandma and Mother.

And when they finally leave home, you can begin to unload some of the extras. Trust me.

Yikes! Just Mother so far! And she has left home - but comes back a LOT . Plus there's that other guy who hangs around here. But I'm determined to get rid of a few every so often - if it happens slowly, maybe they won't notice. That's how I got rid of the plaid pants that Mr. Kim moved in with when we got married. "Are you sure they aren't in the closest? Hmmm. That IS odd." :laugh:

[CaliPoutine]

My dining room table is used as extra counter space more than dining space! I also have a card table that lives behind the piano that I set up when I need even more space.

Kim,

I have the same tablecloth as on your island. It doesnt fit anymore because I know have a round table.

I loved it though.

[CaliPoutine]

I have a brand new kitchen with so much counter space and its all jammed full. 2 big crocks with utensils, toaster oven, coffee maker, stand mixer( same as Dariennes), seltzer maker, food processor( huge cuisinart), vita mix, wine bottles( in a holder on the side, this is wine I use for cooking), cutting boards, fruit bowls, salt box, electric peppermill, salt mill, dish drainer, 2 knife blocks...... I could go on and on. Its so cluttered, I need to clean it off.

[Darienne]

I have a brand new kitchen with so much counter space and its all jammed full. 2 big crocks with utensils, toaster oven, coffee maker, stand mixer( same as Dariennes), seltzer maker, food processor( huge cuisinart), vita mix, wine bottles( in a holder on the side, this is wine I use for cooking), cutting boards, fruit bowls, salt box, electric peppermill, salt mill, dish drainer, 2 knife blocks...... I could go on and on. Its so cluttered, I need to clean it off.

Lovely to have a new kitchen!!! Lucky you, CaliPoutine. (Photos please!)

My stand mixer is bigger than I ever wanted. My food processor is now in that set of shallow cupboards along with the blender, the mini-processor. My crock pots are in my studio. One item a day until the new living room is finished and all the furniture is moved. (Geez I hate renovations.) Cutting boards are in a cupboard in a slotted thingy that Ed built. Fruit bowl in what is to be the dining room. Dish drainer in the cupboard. No knife blocks...knives are all lying scratching each other in a drawer.

I have this obsession with bareness on my counters. Can't help it. An old friend once said to me that she expected to come to the house one day and not be able to find it because I would have put it away in a cupboard. I had forgotten that. My walls are a different thing. There is NO room on any wall in the house for anything else.

Edited April 16, 2012 by Darienne (log)