It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks in my little “kitchen designer world”. Earlier this month I made a quick trip to the World of Whirlpool in Chicago to learn, in depth, about their premium Jenn-Air line of appliances. Jenn-Air has been around a long time but has recently been reinvented to compete with the luxury brands. Overall the line is very impressive and I could go on and on but today I thought I'd share with you my top 3 favorites. 
Jenn-Air appliances are all made in the USA, other than that I was interested to learn what sets them apart from the competition. What I found out is, for cooking, many of their appliances lead the pack when it comes to power and variety of power. For example, a high BTU like 20,000 will give you hot quick high heat and a low one like 650 gives you excellent simmering capability. The Jenn-Air cooktops whether gas, electric or induction have you covered.
Jenn-Air is also a pioneer in downdraft technology (since the 1960s). It used to be that you couldn't use down draft ventilation unless your house was built with ductwork in the slab under the floor. No more! The JX3 downdraft cooktops can be purchased with a duct-free accessory kit. When you consider that the average family expels 1 gallon of cooking grease into the home every year, ventilation becomes an important consideration.
The buzz around induction and steam cooking continues and these appliances impressed me enough to make the top 3. If you know me you know I predict induction cooking will rule the world (almost) in the next decade or so. Induction means cooking with electro magnetic energy so the pot, not the cooking surface, is your heat source. It is 90% efficient and you won't get burned! Surprisingly electric cooking is only about 65% and gas is last with 45% efficiency. Your pots are probably not going to be a problem. If a magnet sticks to the bottom you're good to go. This cooktop is also modestly priced compared to the competition and retails for $2,199.oo
The Jenn-Air appliance I would want the most for my kitchen would be the steam and convection oven. It's a lot of cooking capability packed into a 24" oven! Steam cooking is not just for veggies but also great for cooking eggs, bread, meat, desserts and heating leftovers. The best thing is that you can combine steam and convection cooking so that things like meat and bread brown on the outside. If you just want to bake you can use convection bake mode without the steam. Convection gives you uniform cooking, a must for baking.
No plumbing hook up is needed. The reservoir on the right holds the tap water you'll need to get steamy. You also won't need a 220 outlet, 120 is all it takes. Another impressive fact is you can cook several different foods together such as salmon, green beans and creme brulee' with no flavor transference! See more photos and commentary from my trip at Kitchens for Living On the Road and thank you Jenn-Air for the royal designer treatment :)
Hot Trends Make a Big Splash at KBIS 2014
As many of you know, the Kitchen and Bath masses gathered in Las Vegas February 4-6 for their annual pilgrimage to KBIS, the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show. This year the event was part of Design & Construction Week, a new concept, merging KBIS with IBS, the International Builder’s Show. As a result, it was bigger and better than ever. Let’s hope that what happened there does NOT stay there !
Maybe I should limit that to kitchen and bath industry products and trends ;) Uber interior design resource Modenus hosted their latest Blogtour group who covered the event in a big way! You can get the entire scoop here.So what is trending, you may ask? Here’s the latest scoop from Kitchen & Bath Design News and KBIS co-sponsors, the National Kitchen & Bath Association:
Let there be light. Yes we’re used to lights in the refrigerator but now we’re adding LED lighting to cabinetry as well.
Make that matte. Last year I noticed a growing interest in matte finishes and it’s even more so this year. One such surface is the new Dekton by Cosentino. It's an ultra compact surface including quartz, porcelain and glass. This makes it perfect for both indoor and outdoor use, even better than quartz as it's UV resistant and can withstand extreme heat.
Keep it simple. NKBA President John Petrie, CMKBDT tells us, "while transitional styles are still number one, we see kitchen design trending more contemporary this year, with clean , simple lines: less clutter and little ornamentation".Quartz rocks, especially if it’s patterned! Homeowners have discovered quartz but they're not willing to give up the pattern and movement found in natural stone products like granite and marble. New finishes by Cambria let you have the best of both worlds.
Cambria's Waterstone Collection captures the depth and beauty of marble and granite while offering the superior strength and performance of quartz. (Here's something for you "traditionalists", they clearly didn't get the message about contemporary in this kitchen!)Gadgets, gadgets, gadgets, We may like our cabinetry look pared down but gimme the gadgets! Technology reigns, ie anything touch operated or digital.
The new Temp20 Technology by Delta Faucets boasts a digital temperature display that saves you the shock or injury from water that's not the temperature you were expecting. When the temperature is less than 80 degrees the LED display will glow blue. It's magenta from 80-110 and red when it's above that. You can get this feature on your Delta faucet this spring.
A bath to come home to, trends in the bathroom focus on customization and spa ambiance. In the high end markets, free standing tubs are all the rage. They are functional and sculptural at the same time. We are also understanding the benefits of hydrotherapy as in soaking tubs and steam baths.Additional features you may want to include in your new kitchens and baths include the following:-Induction cooktops (and now ranges too!)-Steam ovens-French-door refrigerators (duh, I think we all know that already!)-Bottom freezer drawers (ditto of above)-Touch activated faucets-Electronic (no touch) faucets-LED lighting-Charging stations-Pet stationsI believe all of the above are here to stay, at least in the foreseeable future, and the technology will only get better.
BETTER LIVING BY MIELE
This past week I was given the opportunity, by the nice folks at Miele (rhymes with tequila), to mix business with pleasure. I attended a Miele Table Artist Salon for an evening of culinary creativity. I was not disappointed.
Not only were we treated to an exceptional gourmet experience, courtesy of Chef David Whyko, but I also got to learn more about the two most promising and up and coming appliances in the industry. (Trivia: Chef David was chef for Lenny Kravitz for ten years!)
Greeted at the door with a glass of bubbly set the tone. This was followed by a sit down dinner for around 20 people. All food prepared by Chef David was cooked using a combination of induction, steam and speed cooking.
Miele, based in Germany, is a family owned business started over 100 years ago. Their guiding principle is to provide “Better Living” with products designed to make one’s life easier. All appliances are tested to last a minimum of 20 years.
We’ve been hearing the buzz about induction cooking and, as I have written before, it is a safer, faster and more efficient way to cook. You will certainly be seeing the induction cooktop become a major player very soon. The second star of the show was Miele’s steam oven. Steam cooking is gaining in popularity as more people become aware of the capabilities it offers. For example, you can do anything in a steam oven that you can do in a microwave. Not gonna lie, there are two exceptions to that rule which are popcorn and reheating your morning cup of joe. Here’s how it works. Fill the reservoir with water, set your temperature and in about ten minutes average you should be done. Steam cooking retains flavor and nutrients to a greater degree than with other modes.. A big thanks to the Miele Gallery in Boca Raton for an informative and delish event. The Gallery offers prospective customers a hands on experience so you can see how their products add a little "better living" to your life.
DAY 2 BOSCH BLANCO BLOGGER RETREAT
So where were we? Ah yes, day 2 of my latest great adventure. Friday, after an impressive little breakfast spread, we settled in for a guided tour of the new BSH Experience and Design Center and yes it WAS quite an experience. We were outfitted in our very own custom and official looking lab coats (my first). A camera crew toured with our group so someday I expect a film or two to make its appearance.
Our first stop was THE WALLS (excellent use of hallway space, I might add). These walls illustrate through shadow boxes, the details of materials, engineering and quality control that go into a Bosch appliance. Each appliance undergoes not 25, not 250 but 2500 checks before being sent out into the world. Yes, your new dishwasher may have a couple water spots and that's why. The Bosch design philosophy is inspired by German industrial designer Dieter Ram's 10 principles of design . They are in good company. Apple Inc. is also one of the few companies designing products according to his principles.DESIGNED FOR LIFENext on the hit parade was Designed for Life-an Interactive Design Workshop. My group worked with a member of the industrial design team to design a range. We looked at things like how it could work for people that have limited mobility, are visually impaired (just had to remove my spectacles) or victims of advanced pregnancy.
It was a real eye opener and I actually did come up with some ideas. Here are my notes. From sketches and notes the design team takes it to 3D imaging on the computer where they will tweak until its ready for the prototype stage.
LISTEN TO THE SILENCEFrom vision to hearing, the next experience was all about my favorite Bosch product, the quintessential dishwasher. Bosch makes the quietest dishwasher in the industry rated at 39 decibels. I know this to be a fact from personal experience. I've been squirted a time or two from opening the door when I wasn't aware that it was running (probably didn't have my glasses on). They have solved that problem. In new models a red laser dot shines on the floor when the dishwasher is running. You can't miss it, even sans glasses. In addition to the silence these dishwashers are rated the most water and energy efficient. They are quite proud to have placed in Consumer Reports latest top ten in five categories including number one in value. Speaking of value, you will spend anywhere from $549-$1,999 for a Bosch dishwasher. The nice thing is that whether you opt for high end or entry level you don't have to sacrifice efficiency or silence. The differences are in the interior bells and whistles.
FIX AND FEAST!Time for lunch and a great opportunity to test drive all the Bosch appliances and Blanco plumbing fixtures . Under the guidance of company chef, Kyle Jacobi, we collectively prepared a feast including fish tacos, stuffe chili rellenos, bacon wrapped shrimp, Spanish rice and more!
WHAT'S COOKING?After lunch it was time to learn about induction cooking and convection ovens. If you're not cooking on induction now, you will be in about ten years. I'm not kidding. Even the glass top electric range will go the way of those coil burner types we used to use. Remember those? The cool thing is you cannot burn yourself. The heat only happens when the burner comes in contract with the bottom of the pan. It uses a lot less power too!
Convection ovens have been around a long time but I learned a couple of things about them too. True convection, as featured in Bosch ovens, has its own separate heating element. Then there is something called "Speed Convect". What that means is no preheating. Zero to 350 in no time at all! We finished the BSH Experience in some really comfy chairs learning about the Forces that Drive Innovation presented by Tim Maicher, Director of Marketing at Blanco America. I loved that he expressed that there is an emotional as well as technical component to kitchen design. I have always held that belief.THE LAST HURRAH!The final event of this two day adventure was dinner at The Cannery in Newport Beach. Here I got another glimpse of the water but for the first time the sky turned gray. (Guess it was sad we were leaving).
That's it! I have a lot more to share about new products at Blanco along with my random musings on stuff. I hope you enjoyed your personal virtual tour. I'll be loading lots more photos to the On the Road with Kitchens for Living Flickr album. I'll let you know when they're up. Ciao for now!