Mother's Day

Becky Hays’ Top Five Mother’s Day Gifts

These tools are great for mom—and for her favorite junior sous chefs.

By America's Test Kitchen | May 09, 2017

In anticipation of Mother’s Day, we decided to celebrate mothers all week at America’s Test Kitchen. Today, deputy editor and America’s Test Kitchen TV cast member Becky Hays lists some of her favorite kitchen gadgets. Becky’s list reflects her taste for different cuisines of the world (Freshly made tortillas, anyone?) and tools she likes to use in the kitchen with her favorite sous chef: her 8-year-old son.

Becky's Top-5 Mother's Day Gifts

1. La Mexicana Tortilladora de Madera Barnizada/Mesquite Tortilla Press: Homemade corn tortillas are life-changingly good, and this press makes it easy—and fun—to flatten balls of masa, or dough, into disks. It's a big, wooden beauty of a tool that looks great sitting on the counter. [Read Our Review | Buy on Amazon]
2. Marcato Atlas 150 Wellness Pasta Machine: Cranking out batches of linguine or ravioli is one of our go-to rainy or snowy day projects. This tool is a dream to use and makes flawless pasta. Make a quick sauce and/or a batch of pesto and you have a party. [Read Our Review | Buy on Amazon]
3. Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker: Ice cream is one of my son's favorite topics, and he is my primary adviser when it's time to dream up new flavors and mix-ins. We have an extra canister that we store in the freezer so that we're always ready to mix up a batch of ice cream, sorbet, or frozen yogurt. [Read Our Review | Buy on Amazon]
4. Cuisinart Double Belgian Waffle Maker: Waffles are on our breakfast table almost every weekend. Aside from turning out waffles with crisp, evenly browned exteriors and custardy interiors, this model quickly and consistently turns out two waffles at a time. It has a six-point dial for customizing waffle doneness. We also like that it makes an audible noise when the waffle is ready, a helpful feature in a loud, busy kitchen. [Read Our Review | Buy on Amazon]
5. Zoku Classic Pop Molds: Making popsicles at home means that mom is in control of the amount of sugar—and additives and food dyes are eliminated. We have fun experimenting with different juices and sometimes add small chunks of frozen fruit. [Buy on Amazon]