Potato Masher

Okay, I have to tell you–I’m sitting in a coffee shop writing this, and I feel sort of silly.  I like to pretend that I’m engaged in important, productive work when I’m out in public with my computer, but right now, I just hope no one at the next table glances over and sees that I’m working on a document titled “Potato Masher.”  With a headline like that, it can’t possibly be crucial to world peace or curing cancer or defeating poverty.

However frivolous it may seem, though, this is indeed my potato masher, and I feel compelled to tell you about it.  Just so you know, I don’t actually use it to mash potatoes.  That would be all too sensible.  But it’s tremendously handy for mashing all sorts of other things.  It’s useful for mashing tomatoes when you’re making sauce, or breaking down vegetables in a stew if you don’t want big chunks.  I’ve even used it for crushing berries, both raw and lightly cooked.

It’s sort of old-fashioned, I think–I vaguely remember my mother having one when I was a kid.  Or maybe that was my grandmother; not sure.  But it’s immensely useful, even if it is a bit strange looking.  Delaney can never remember what it’s called–she asks me sometimes where that “squiggly thing” is, and it always takes me a minute to figure out what she means.

If you don’t have one lying around that you inherited from your grandmother, you ought to be able to get one from any old kitchen supply store, or even someplace like Target.  You’ll be surprised how often you find yourself reaching for it, even if you don’t like mashed potatoes.