Lakeland - retail therapy for foodies!

Yesterday I set off to visit Lakeland - the home of creative kitchenware™ as I was in need of an oven thermometer.  I did have one before moving to this house but somewhere in the move it got mislaid.  My husband ‘decided’ (was coerced if I was being honest!) to cook a roast chicken during the week and complained that the oven wasn’t hot enough and that the chicken and roast potatoes were not browning in the expected timescale. I decided I would get a new oven thermometer as it is always a good idea to have one in any case as many ovens do not run at the temperature you think you have set using the oven dials.

I love any excuse to go to the Lakeland shop for a browse around even if I am not looking for anything in particular.  It is my equivalent to my husband enjoying a wander around a Maplin store looking at unidentifiable (to me) bits of electronics and tools. The Lakeland catalogues are fine and even looking at their online store is a nice way to spend some time if feeling bored, but nothing beats actually being able to see and touch the real life items.  I was not disappointed and spent best part of an hour browsing through the shop looking at all the new kitchenware and gadgets.  Lakeland seem to have thought of everything, with some help from creative ideas from their customers, and sell “must-have” kitchen goods that you didn’t know you needed till you see them!

Part of a buffet spread I did when dabbling in private catering

My kitchen already has an overspill area into the utility area of the garage for all the gadgets and cooking paraphernalia that can’t fit into the bulging cupboards or stand on the worktops – I like to keep the limited worktop area I have relatively clear. From my time when I was a stay at home mother with plenty of time on my hands for entertaining often, to the hospitality and private catering on a hobby scale I did when the children were little and then to the 3 years of running the pub, I have accumulated kitchen stuff that I couldn’t bear to part with even though I now just cook mainly for my husband and myself with the far less frequent dinner party or barbecue. Naturally when we left the pub trade the commercial catering items were sold as part of the inventory but I kept a few treasured items.

I personally do find Lakeland a little pricey but the benefits of being able to find most things culinary that the average home cook needs, desires or aspires to, all under one roof compensates a little.  Some of the ideas do seem a little over-the-top but I guess Lakeland wouldn’t produce these things if people didn’t buy them!

Zyliss® Smart Guard Mandoline

I came away with the oven thermometer I set out to buy, £4.99 and £40 worth of other things I didn’t know I needed – no wonder Lakeland stores continue to grow and expand throughout the country ;-) . One of the other items I purchased was the new Zyliss® Smart Guard Mandoline at £24.99 which included a free Zyliss® peeler (worth £7.99) as a special offer.  I have used mandolins in the past and am always a little apprehensive about using them but this one for the modest price apparently will prevent any slices of nails and fingers and blood being added to your recipe inadvertently! The reviews of this mandoline on the online store are varied from 3* to 5* but I shall make my own mind up over the next few weeks no doubt. 

I can foresee a period of time dedicated to cooking things which require vegetables to be finely sliced or julienned until I get bored and relegate the mandolin to a dark corner of the gadget cupboard ;-D – I’m sure I am not alone in this trait?!