"williams sonoma" news and stories

There's nothing like a wobbly stack of thick, fluffy pancakes spilling over with melted butter and maple syrup on a weekend morning (or early afternoon, if you prefer), but there are occasions when we need to be a little more refined. That doesn't mean you can't have pancakes, though. It just means that you might want to dress them up by molding your pancake batter on the griddle with a set of molds in floral shapes. Williams-Sonoma has a set of three in different sizes for pretty stacking for $16. Williams-Sonoma also provides a recipe for Praline Pancakes (pictured above) so that your Sunday morning brunch will feel a little bit fancier than a truck stop (not that truck stops aren't absolutely delicious).

Though it may be a touch early yet, I've started the search for the perfect (kitchen-related, of course!) Father's Day gift. Since all dads are different, this search could be quite extensive, but I had to start with this Monogrammed Steak Brand I found at Williams-Sonoma online. Without further ado:

The Profile:
Mid-to-late-fifties, organized, slight control freak. Before his early retirement he often went on business trips, frequented Michelin 3-star restaurants, and had his initials embroidered into his bath towels. Now, on long weekends he can be found in the backyard, standing at the grill, indulgently sporting the 'Kiss the Cook' apron his grandchildren bought him as he grills NY Strips to perfection. He'll joke about anything except good scotch, fine cigars, and prime cuts of steak.

Have you seen something kitchen / cooking / barware related that would make a good Father's Day gift? Let us know.

When the holiday season comes around, I find myself pulling out plates with snowmen and little colored lights, as well as variously shaped cookie cutters and a few other choice holiday pieces. I don't usually intend to let the holiday spirit bleed into my regular cookware collection, however. After all, a spatula is a spatula is a spatula - right? Well, that may be true, but the snowman and snowflake spatulas that Williams-Sonoma is offering this year are pretty tempting. They have nylon heads that are heat resistant to 400°F, stainless steel handles and are dishwasher safe - just like my standard spatulas, but with the added bonus of an adorable design on each. A snowman and snowflake seem like seasonal icons that could be enjoyed all winter, as well as for much of fall and spring, without seeming inappropriate, so it might not be a bad idea to tuck these into someone's stocking this year. I know I wouldn't complain if I saw one.

Source

Gingerbread houses are fun to make but because they require very hard, sturdy cookies that will hold up to several weeks of display, they are not necessarily the dough used to make them will probably not produce the tastiest holiday cookies that you'll have. If you bake smaller gingerbread cookies, you can get a better consistency and flavor, but you have to give up on the idea of having a three-dimensional cookie showpiece. Unless you use the holiday storybook cookie cutters from Williams-Sonoma, of course. These cookie cutters give you the chance to play with your food without having to worry about finding a recipe will produce a sturdy enough cookie to support the weight of a whole house. They have notches on the pieces so that after they are baked, the cookies can be fit together to form three-dimensional holiday shapes. The 8-piece set allows you to create a perfectly seasonal scene on a small, managable scale and the cookies can still be stored in an airtight container if you want to keep them fresh.

Source

The fact that you can buy artisan panini breads - good for making any number of sandwiches - seems a bit odd. After all, the image that one usually associated with the hand-crafted and carefully baked artisan breads is of a small, local baker dedicated to high quality and not some online store. In this case, the store in question is Williams-Sonoma and they're offering sandwich panini rolls from New York's Balthazar Bakery. The breads include (3)ciabatta, (3) potato and caramelized onion rolls, (3)multigrain baps and (4)olive rolls, for a total of 13.

Actually, the idea doesn't seem so odd when you consider that cakes, cookies and other baked goods are shipped across the country all the time, but breads do tend to go stale faster than other baked goods (these stay fresh for only 3 days), so you'll have to get overnight shipping and eat them quickly once they've arrived. The rolls are $29+shipping.

Source