This post is sponsored by Good Cook but my opinions are 100% my own!

If you cook then you probably have some favorite tools in your kitchen that you use most often. I sure do and so does my husband. It’s funny because our favorite tools aren’t all the same. But then again, we both have things we cook all the time and those aren’t the same either. If one of my favorite tools isn’t available to use, I don’t feel comfortable cooking. Funny how we get into a grove with certain things.

That being said, I’m always open to trying new items, and sometimes find more favorite tools!  This is good because Good Cook sent me 5 items that they feel are essential in every kitchen. They asked me to make a one-pot meal using as many of these as I can.

Here is what I received:

The SMART Ice cream scoop,  the Flip Measuring spoon (which is amazingly cool!), the Safe-cut Can Opener, the Egg Separator and the
Pot Clip Holder.

I’m not a fancy cook, as you probably already know if you read my blog often enough. I’m a simple cook but usually, what I cook, my family loves. Except sometimes when I try something new, it’s not always a favorite, so I tweaked it as much as I can to make it a favorite or just don’t make it anymore. LOL, We’ve all been there!

Being a Non-fancy cook, I also like to make quick meals most night because slaving over the stove is not something I look forward to at the end of the day. We are a family of 4 so I don’t have to make a ton of food and over the last year I’ve tried to incorporate veggies into our meals as often as I can. Sometimes I have to be creative so quick isn’t always easy.

Confession time – I’ve never ever made homemade soup from scratch! Nope, never! My mother does it all the time and it’s really good. But I’ve never done it. Instead, I use a few canned items to make a quick and delicious chicken noodle and veggie soup that my family enjoys. Sometimes I add different things but most of the time it’s the same thing. I use 3 ingredients and it takes minutes to put together.

I like to call it “Mommy’s Italian Chicken Noodle Veggie Soup“. This along with some yummy crusty Italian Bread and a salad makes the perfect meal on a night I don’t have time to cook.

Here is what I use:

Quick Italian Chicken Noodle Veggie Soup

1 Can of Chicken Noodle Soup
1 Can of Mixed Veggies
1/2 Can of Diced Tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasonings
Salt & Pepper

This time when I made it I used 3 of the items that Good Cook sent me and I’m happy to tell you I now have TWO new favorite tools that I’ll be using a lot in my kitchen.

Like I said this is very simple.   First I add the chicken noodle soup, can of mixed veggies, and half a can of tomatoes to my pot.  I used the Safe-cut Can Opener to open all the cans.  I have a can opener that I like but it’s now been replaced by the Good Cook Safe-cut Can Opener because this one is super easy to use and I love how there are no sharp edges – which is why they call it a safe-cut can opener.  Perfect for the kids to use as well.  It’s probably one of the easiest hand-held can openers I’ve used so I’ll be getting rid of the one I have!

I add an additional 8 oz of water along with 1/2 teaspoon of Italian seasonings and a little salt and pepper. I don’t measure that and sometimes when it’s cooked, I add a little more. Each time it’s different depending on what brand of chicken soup I start with.

So let me tell you about the Flip Measuring spoon.  This one tool is a space saver because it replaces 4 other commonly used measure spoons.  It has a measuring spoon at both ends and inverts to measure 1/2 tsp, 1 tsp, 1 tbsp, and 1/2 tbsp.  Those are the sizes I use the most so this is going to come in real handy.  And I love how it’s all in one.  Pretty cool, right?

The Pot Clip Holder was a new item to me.  And to be completely honest with you, at first, I thought it wasn’t really a necessary item.   But then I used it and OMG I totally get the reason why this is a must-have tool!  I have a good amount of counter space, however, the more I can keep off the counters, the better.    So this is pretty handy because you not only keep the spoon your using on the pot for quick grabbing, but you avoid a mess on your counter because the contents that collect on the spoon, won’t spill all over the place.  That helps to also avoid another dish to wash because normally I’d put the spoon to rest in a dish to keep my counter clean.  So now my counter is clean and I don’t have an extra dish to watch.  It’s a double win for me!  I’m going to need to get at least one more of these because I may have two things going at once.   I’ve used this a couple of times since I received it and both times on low heat so the spoon didn’t get very hot being on top of the pan. But I think if I was using a higher heat it may.  So just something I’ll keep in the back of my mind.

Okay, back to the recipe….

After everything was in the pot, I then brought it to a rapid boil for about 10 minutes and then let it simmer for about another 15-20 minutes.  This ensures that the flavors all come together and it softens the tomatoes which then makes the broth even yummier!

The flavor that is added by the tomatoes and Italian seasoning is amazing and I never make this soup without either now that I’ve done it.  So don’t leave them out, trust me.  And if you’d like you can add the entire can.  I just prefer half.  Some other things I like to add to this soup if I have them handy are…

More chicken – either grilled or baked chicken is great in this soup. The more the merrier.
Ground Beef – I’ve had extra ground beef from other recipes that I’ve added to this at times.
Veggies – Green Beans, corn, peas, zucchini – any leftover veggies from the week I’ll add to this as well.

If you have a bigger family then you’ll want to double this recipe. I split this one-pot recipe between the four of us and like I said above we have Italian Bread and salad to make it a meal. But sometimes I double the recipe so we have more.

And that’s it!  Like I said my family loves this and it’s so easy to make.

It’s not brain surgery, just a quick way to spice up what you may have in a can, in your house!

The other two items I received – the SMART Ice cream scoop, and the Egg Separator were not needed for this recipe but I know they’ll be used a lot in my kitchen.  When I bake I occasionally need to separate an egg and I usually do it with the shells, this will make it much easier!  And the Ice cream scoop?  Well, let’s just say my kids have already tried it out a few times.  It’s pretty cool because it makes scooping out hard ice cream a lot easier than with any other scoop I have.

If you like these tools and need some new kitchen tools or if you are just starting out and don’t have any, you’ll want to check out the contest that Good Cook is having on Facebook. When you  Like Good Cook on Facebook you can enter the 5-day Kitchen Gadget Giveaway which runs from June 2 – June 7 where you can win selected products that can be added to your own kitchen drawer.  This is an awesome event that will give you a chance to build and win your very own awesome drawer full of items from Good Cook.  Plus everything will be 25% off on the Good Cook website during this contest time!

What 15 kitchen drawer items would you like to have from the Good Cook site??  Starting June 2, 2014, you can Build your own draw by clicking this icon on the Good Cook Website:

I picked my ideal draw with 15 items and you want to see what I picked, I’ll be sharing that on June 2, so make sure you keep an eye out for that!

Also, make sure you are following Good Cook on Twitter too!

Here are more great recipes using these tools.  Check them all out as you may find a new favorite dish or at least one for next week!

Disclosure: I received a Free product for review. My opinions are 100% mine.