PREVIEWS IHA

The Inspired Home Show Exhibitors

BY A J FLICK

It was a cold and rainy Januar y af ternoon in New York City, but we were in a Chicago state of mind Specifically, in the m o o d t o p re p a re f o r t h e I n t e r n a t i on a l H o u s e w a re s A s s o c i a t i on ’ s T h e I n s p i re d H om e S h ow M a rc h 4 - 7 i n

Chicago

One room in the Metropolitan P laza was transformed into a mini McCormick P lace with selected exhibitors ready to show off products they will take to the show I spotted a few products that will appeal to coffee lovers

AeroPress showed how its newest products produce a great cup of coffee in less than a minute (and cleans up in seconds)

The greatest part is that, thanks to the rapid brewing, the AeroPress removes bitterness from the ground coffee and micro filters remove the grit It can brew up to three cups in one press It ’ s good for cold brew and espresso-style coffee f or lattes, c appuccinos and other coff ees I c an’t spel l or pronounce.

Jura, which has amazingly beautiful products, brought its Espresso Machine that now comes in white and the hard- working Jura E4 But for me, the star was the impressive new Jura E6 that creates specialty coffee styles with the touch of a color display panel and buttons Not only that, but it has a mini fridge unit, to keep milk cool MBR Industries, which has been in business for 50 years ser ving Hispanic and Cuban consumers primarily, brought a variety of products that will appeal to ever yone The 6-cup Portable Espresso Coffee Maker lets you see it make three to six cups at the touch of a button It has a 30-minute warming function, plus an automatic shut-off valve so the coffee doesn’t burn

W hat c aught my eye was MBR’s Bene Casa Asadora

O utdoor Roasting Box W ho ordered the roast pig? The professional grade roaster is fueled by charcoal and produces meat that is crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. It ’ s sturdy and cooks up to 70 pounds of meat

The grilling crowd will find many great products at The Inspired Home Show, judging by the array displayed in New York

For those who don’t like mixing grilled meat and side d i s h e s , Pro u d G r i l l C om p a ny h a s t h e s o l u t i on : t h e UltraVersatile Grill Basket. The large, stainless steel basket has two moveable dividers that can create up to five sections

W ho says you need great weather to grill? W hen you want to grill indoors, The Cookware Company has the GreenPan

Pre m i e r X L S m ok e - l e s s G r i l l & G r i d d l e T h e s e t t i n g s automatically adjust the temperature while you ’ re grilling, reducing the smoke but keeping the flavor Bonus: The removable plates are dishwasher friend ly!

Salton took two great products and merged them into the F lip and Cook 2-in-1 Air Fr yer and Indoor Grill The air fr yer has a rotating base that can be flipped 180 degrees to become a grill How convenient and space-saving is that?

Of course, there were lots of gadgets to make meal prep easy. My favor ite has to be NexTrend Products’ f our thgeneration Garlic Twister The easy-to-use (and clean) minces gar lic, ginger, herbs, nuts, shallots with a few twists of the hand without the waste of a traditional gar lic press

“It ’ s the greatest kitchen mincer,” Eric Teng told me as he showed me how to use it

Nearby, there was the Dreamform table, where I was told it had “the world’s best kitchen tools and gadgets ” Dreamform brought its Ograte, a two-sided speed grater that saves space in the tool drawer with safety covers The bottom side is used in circulation motions for speed grating things such as zucchini and carrots. The top side uses an up-and-down motion on a large plane for foods such as cheese and chocolate

F inaMill continues to innovate its spice mills New this year is the sleek, stainless steel that not only complements kitchen decor, but it ’ s rechargeable! The mill’s charge lasts up to two months between charges by USB por t Other rechargeable F inaMills come in three other matte finishes: Cherr y Red, Midnight Black and Sof t Cream

Food prep can lead to food waste, unless you want to turn it into compost I’d read about PelaEarth’s Lomi Smart Waste Appliance, but I’d never seen it in action before The L omi table was convenientl y across from the Foxko Inc table, where a chef was creating delicious samples, providing the would-be waste to L omi.

Not onl y does L omi reduce kitchen garbage up to 80 percent, it ’ s got a sleek design and a small footprint on the countertop L ook for a review soon in Gourmet News

O ver at the Foxko table, there was a remarkable tabletop 12-inch pizza oven that heats up to 750 degrees and cooks a pizza in two minutes! It comes with a pan to cook steak (and get that caramelized crust that only comes with 700 degree heat) or deep dish Chicago pizza

Remember when we were talking about coffee? Portland, Ore , is famous for its coffee habits L eave it to Steelport Knife Co to find a way to incorporate Portland java for its knives Seriously

T h e 8 - i n c h C h e f K n i f e i s f o r ge d i n on e p i e c e, w i t h American 5210 carbon steel heated to 65HRC at the blade with a sof ter 30HRC spine for durability In the ear ly stages of production, you can see where the different steels meet The two tones fade as the knife is polished, but – here’s where the coffee comes in – the blades are soaked in coffee to bring out the patina of the blade The knives are perfectly balanced, thanks to its one piece, and have natural wood hand les

Austin, Texas-based The Custom Chef produces quality knives made with Japanese Steel 420J2, which are impressive when displayed on the company ’ s stylish knife blocks Best of all, the knives can be custom engraved for the perfect foodie gif t

A l l go o d c o ok s a p p re c i a t e a s h a r p k n i f e w h e n m e a l prepping Lifetime Brands brought the Faber ware SmartSharp Knife Sharpener with an LED indicator W hat ’ s so c lever about it? You can tell if a knife needs sharpening (without cutting your fingers) with its optical technolog y You insert the knife into a slot that tells you if it ’ s dull (red) or sharp enough (green) As you sharpen the knife, insert it to see if it needs more sharpening (yellow) or it ’ s good to go

Also worth noting at the Lifetime Brands table was the Kamenstine Ceramic & Cork Storage Collection Not only do the canisters look fabulous – did you know cork repels fruit flies? I didn’t! The white ceramic canisters have vents and are stackable

And af ter all that cooking, someone ’ s got to c lean up, right?

Kenmore F loorcare/Cleva Nor th America Inc has the compact All-Purpose Wet/Dr y Canister Vacuum Don’t let its size fool you; it has maximum suction power to swoop up any mess around the house

Nellie’s Clean has an attractive small canister of Nellie’s Dish Butter, in which you can dip into the sof t dishwashing detergent with a brush, sponge or c loth One Dish Butter c leans as much as two to three plastic bottles of dishwashing detergent Not only does it prevent plastic waste, but the ceramic canister can be reused

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Ice•O log y c lear ice system. It ’ s designed so that all you have to do is put tap water (or your water of choice) in the freezer for 12 hours The slow, directional freezing creates cr ystalc lear ice cubes perfect for craf t cocktails

Buddeez Inc has come out with the three-gallon Tritan Party Top Beverage Dispenser with Drip Tray The lid doubles as a tray for cups, napkins, sweeteners, garnishes, etc

Chris Woottan, c lad in a bright orange astronaut suit, was so enthusiastic about his Roc kIt S leep sy stem that e ven though I haven’t looked af ter a baby in years, I had to listen to him The system products are sold separately, but can be bund led (Get it?) The RockIt Rocker attaches to a stroller to gently rock the baby to sleep I really thought Zed was innovative You can attach it to the crib and it mimics the vibrations of a car ride. The Woosh features eight soothing sounds to lull the little one into slumber

We all need to leave the house some time, right? And when you gotta go you gotta go For hikers, campers or road trippers, TravelJane Products has the unisex Resealable Disposable Urinal The plastic bag contains non-toxic filler that soaks up the urine, making it unspillable (though the bag seals tight) and odor less They ’ re working on a paper bag version

I’m always on the lookout for things that help me get organized and boy, does Wrap-It-Storage have some! I don’t know about you, but when I have to unplug something from the power bar that has my computer, light, charger, etc plugged in, it ’ s anyone ’ s guess which is which. Cable Labels take care of that, with colorful identifiers that you can write on And years ago, I learned a hack for reusing empty toilet paper rolls to tuck electrical cords into to neaten them, or when moving appliances Wrap-It-S torage does it better with Cinch-Straps that bund le cords, rope, hoses, whatever neatly and you can write on them, too OK, now for the really fun part

Some of the funniest memes on social media are the quips from the El Arroyo Mexican restaurant in Austin You know the ones I’m talking about Well, not only can you buy El Arroyo salsa, but you can laugh over the whimsical signs in books – seven so far – and make your friends laugh with a pool float in the shape of the famous sign with different messages on each side

And for colorful holiday decorations, there’s the Holiball, the Inflatable Ornament, the brainchild of three cousins The Holiball comes in 18- and 30-inch diameters in 23 colors The durable orbs are UV-protected and all-weather rated from minus 20 degrees up to 120 degrees There are mini Holiballs, a package of jingle bell Holiballs and 18inch diameter Inflatable Eggs in five spring colors KN