10 Uses for a Crinkle Cutter

I'm a simple girl.

{cough, cough}

I tend to use a few really awesome kitchen tools and often skip fancy, single-use gadgets.

In all honesty, the crinkle cutter is a tool that I rarely use. I know lots of uses for it, and I do use it now and then, especially when I'm preparing something for Grace, but most of the time, I just grab my favorite knife.

Anyway, Tiffany and Amber both asked me to help them out with their crinkle cutters, so here are some suggestions -

10 Uses for a Crinkle Cutter

1. Ice cream. Wouldn't it be pretty to serve slices of ice cream with crinkle cut edges? Make sure the ice cream is well frozen, take the carton off, and slice. It would be helpful if you had a dish of very hot water nearby to warm the crinkle cutter in between slices.
   If you sliced the ice cream and a dense cake (like pound cake) into long, thin layers and stacked them, you could make a napoleon-style dessert. Cut that into thin slices to make ice cream sandwiches.
2. Butter. A crinkle cutter makes perfect pats of butter, and it makes them fancy. If you want to limit yourself (or someone else) to a certain amount of butter, measure the pats carefully. It also prevents everyone from touching the butter, if that bothers you. (It bothers Old Grandma, so I'm cognizant of that problem.)
   If you put your cream cheese in the freezer for a half hour or so, until it is firm, you could slice it the same way. Easy portion control!
3. Party food. Make a beautiful meet and cheese tray using a crinkle cutter. It is easiest to cut foods that come in long, thin shapes - bologna, cheese, etc. That way, you'd only have to make one cut for each slice.
   You could make fancier deviled eggs or cucumber carrot slices (use a corer to remove the seeds from the cucumber, clean the carrot, and slide it into the cucumber) with the crinkle cutter. Radish or carrot coins. Pickle chips. Cut fruit cubes for fruit salad.
   Who says party food is only for parties? Treat your family to a nicely garnished meal.
4. Toddler food. Toddlers are notoriously picky eaters. Making crinkle cut foods might make it novel enough to hold their interest. Also, crinkle cut hot dogs grab ketchup a little better than smooth ones. Same with crinkle cut chicken fingers or crinkle cut veggies.
5. Potatoes. Potatoes are so versatile that they get their own line. Whether you're roasting potatoes or making french fries or potato chips, the method is the same. Slice using the crinkle cutter. For roasted potatoes, leave the pieces large. Potato chips should be very thin, and french fries can be either thick or thin. Bake them on a pizza stone for the best results.
6. Foods that end in "stick."French toast sticks. Carrot sticks. Celery sticks. Anything you'll dip or smother in sauce will hold more condiments if it has a non-smooth surface.
7. Veggies for soup.Wouldn't crinkle cut veggies make a plain old soup look nicer? It's no more work to cut them this way, and it makes a big impact.
8. Greens. Cut a few times to cut spinach or lettuce leaves into large pieces. Continue cutting to shred it for sub sandwiches or tacos. You can do the same with fresh herbs.
9. Pie crusts. If you cut strips to top your cherry or apple pie, cut them with a crinkle cutter for a professional look.
10. Make a banana split. Use the crinkle cutter to cut the banana into fancy slices. Do the same with fresh strawberries and pineapple. You can even use the crinkle cutter to make chocolate shavings and to chop nuts for the sundae.

How to make waffle cuts

It takes some practice to get good-looking waffle fries. You have to make the cuts very, very close together in order to get the waffle look that you're going for. Make one cut, turn the food ¼ turn, and cut again.

What do you use your crinkle cutter for?

Have you seen the rest of the series?