What are your top ten essential homemaking tools? If you had to reduce your equipment down to bare bones what would you choose? Fortunately most of us have plenty of room for lots of gadgets but I bet you have some go-to tools that would make your list.
Here are my top ten essential tools that I have come to depend upon to manage my homestead.
1. A can-do attitude: Theodore Roosevelt stated, “Believe you can and you are half-way there.” Many times as I face a full day, trying to manage all that life is throwing my way, if I start by adjusting my attitude, I am more than able to press on mid-way through the project to finish strong. This tool, this skill set is learned by building upon your successes no matter how big or small. You really can manage.
2. Sharp knives: Not a dime store special but a well-honed, well balanced knife is needed. My dad always got out his knife stone before butchering as he said that a dull knife was a dangerous knife. Buchheit carries an automatic sharpener that hones and sharpens the blade to perfection. 
3. Stainless steel stock pot: A stock pot made of stainless steel will not add any odious chemicals to my fresh chicken stock or bone broths.
4. An eight tray dehydrator: I run mine all year long. Not only is it invaluable for preserving the garden harvest, it also allows me to save seasonal items for later use. Right now I am drying pineapples for my Christmas Care packages.
5. Cast-iron cookware: The first and best form of non-stick cookware is a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet. Don’t forget the Dutch-oven. Here is some of the selection at Buchheit. I have my eye on a new griddle.
6. A stainless steel percolator: I had a great friend who was light-years ahead of her time when it came to healthy eating. The last tip she insisted I do was move to a percolator for my coffee as the plastic in the coffee machines were not BPA free.
7. A water-bath and a pressure canner: Canning my own harvest is one of the joys of homesteading. When winter comes and I pull jars of tomato juice or homemade applesauce off my shelf, there is warm comfort in the knowledge that I am providing foods for my family that I know have been raised and preserved correctly.
8. A Seal-a-Meal food saver: I resisted this one for a long time but now that I have one, I use it often especially when we are butchering or packing up bulk purchases.
9. Heavy gauge stainless steel mixing bowls: I learned on the mission field that a steel mixing bowl worked well for every task from rising bread to washing socks and will not break in the process. I have a nesting stack of three bowls that I use daily.
10. Crock Pot: It’s not off the grid but I would put a Crock Pot in my top ten simply because I can put a whole meal into that unit, and if I remember to turn it on, we will have a hot meal waiting for us when we come home.
I know that your list is probably different than mine. Some might ask why I didn’t include my Kitchen aid mixer or a pizza stone! That’s another list for another day. The goal of this blog was simply to stimulate you to think about your own list. What tools might you need to add to your kitchen to help make you more productive? I am thankful for all the tools that make cooking so enjoyable.
Have a productive day. Annie
