Hello my friends! I hope you have had a great week! I don’t know about you, but I feel like the last weeks of summer have arrived so quickly and we are now counting down the days until school starts again. It has been a busy summer for us at the ranch with lots of visitors, which means many meals prepared in our kitchen. As I was getting ready for the week ahead, I was thinking about my “go to” kitchen essentials…you know, the things you just can’t imagine not having in your kitchen, that you use almost daily. So today, I thought I would share my 3 KITCHEN ESSENTIALS with you guys.

1. CAKE DOMES

I have to admit I always thought cake domes in a kitchen were purely decorative. You know, for special occasions or those seven layer cakes I never bake.

As it turns out, they are one of the most practical and beautiful things I have in my kitchen. There is a reason you see cake domes in restaurants and bakeries, covering the beautiful desserts and pastries.

Cake Domes-White Kitchen-Cabinet Hardware

They keep any breads, muffins or pastries completely fresh for days, and the bonus is they look beautiful too. When I come home from the grocery store, I put muffins, bagels and any other breads under a glass dome, so they will be seen by my family and also so they stay fresh for several days. This is a must have for me in the kitchen!

I also mix and match the domes and plates depending on what I need. A simple dome sitting on a bread board with croissants underneath and butter and jam beside it is a beautiful way to display morning treats and keep them fresh. There is no need for a pedestal cake plate, you can simply place dome on your favorite plate with pastries underneath.

2. WOOD BREAD BOARDS OF ALL SIZES

Bread boards are an absolute must for me for practical as well as entertaining purposes. I have many different size boards all over my kitchen and use them every day, not just for chopping or cutting, but also for serving.

I have very long rectangular boards for serving or display that I use almost daily in the summer. Whether we have a “sandwich bar” set out for lunch or I am serving dinner buffet style and want to protect my marble counters, this board gets A LOT of use. I also love vintage bread boards for their patina and rustic look. I use them often for salads or cheeses.

I also adore my smaller boards and use them regularly for cheese and meat or for baked goods and breads with a glass dome. Rather than store my boards in a cupboard, I keep them on mu counters to not only protect my marble, but for any type of chopping or cutting I am doing. You can read more about HOW I CARE FOR MY MARBLE COUNTERTOPS HERE.

3. LABELED GLASS JARS

I started putting dry goods in labeled glass jars several years ago when I had a horrible moth infestation in my pantry. (YUCK!!!) After throwing away a ton of food, I decided I never wanted to deal with that again, so I bought a variety of glass jars and put all of my baking supplies, cereals crackers and grains in jars with sealed lids. This solved the moth problem forever, but also ended up being a great way to leave often used items on my counter and still have them look great.

I am a huge fan of the chalkboard label, especially those that can be easily changed. These labels are my absolute favorite because the are not only easy to wipe off and re-label, they peel off my jars easily and also stay on when washing! Yay!!

During the summer, when we have lots of house guests, I love having these jars on the counter for easy access to cereal. The cereal stays fresh for much longer than when it is in an often left open box and everybody knows what’s available! Simple plastic scoops inside the jars make it easy to get just the right amount.

So that’s it…3 essentials I have in my kitchen and use daily. Simple right?! Do you have any essentials you use everyday? I would love to hear what they are! Leave a comment below.