Kitchen and Baking Tools

Which acetate cake collar height do you need?

Choose a collar at least as tall as the finished cake, with a little extra room if you top it with mousse or cream. Every roll is cut to length, so one roll works for any cake diameter. The 3 in roll, the 4 in roll and the two-roll set are 125 micron thick.

How many collars does one roll make?

Each collar needs the cake's circumference plus about 1 in of overlap for tape. As a rough guide, a 32.8 ft roll makes about 19 collars for 6 in cakes, 15 for 8 in cakes and 12 for 10 in cakes.

How to use acetate collars

Cut a strip with scissors, line the inside of a cake ring or springform pan, and tape the overlap. Build the layers, chill until set, then peel the strip away for straight, clean sides. Acetate is for cold work, not the oven; the 3 in roll is specifically listed as not heat-resistant. A fresh strip curls from the roll until the ring or the cake holds it in place.

Garlic press, straw brushes and other kitchen helpers

• Garlic press rocker: a curved 7.5 x 1.65 in stainless steel plate you rock over peeled cloves or ginger. It crushes to a mince or paste rather than neat dice, has no hinged basket to clog, and rinses clean or goes in the dishwasher. A silicone tube peeler is included.
• Straw cleaner brush set: 10 brushes in mixed diameters, about 8.2 in long, with bendable stainless steel handles, nylon bristles and a storage ring, for straws, tumbler lids, sippy cup valves and bottle spouts. For a whole bottle interior, use a wider bottle brush.
• Popsicle drip catchers: two cat-shaped plastic holders, about 3.6 x 2.8 in, one yellow and one green. Two slots take wide or thin sticks, and the tray catches the drips. Top-rack dishwasher safe. They hold a finished ice pop; they are not molds.
• Clean/dirty dishwasher magnet: a 3.54 in round sign with a black and white marble finish that you flip to show Clean or Dirty. Test your door with any fridge magnet first, since it won't hold on non-magnetic stainless steel.
• Silicone soap dish: a beige shell-shaped tray, about 5.9 x 4.7 in, whose raised ridges hold bar soap or a sponge above the water that collects underneath. It sits on a flat shelf or counter and doesn't mount to the wall.