Lisa McManus is senior editor in charge of all equipment testing and ingredient tasting stories at Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country magazines, and writes testing and tasting features for Cook’s Illustrated. She joined America’s Test Kitchen in 2006, after working as a newspaper food editor, and magazine and newspaper journalist for many years in Boston, New York, and California. She is a graduate of Brown University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Her husband, Hugh, is a rocket scientist, and they have two sons.
GADGETS & GEAR
May 20, 2013 We didn’t think anything could improve upon our trusty Weber kettle, but our latest testing proved us wrong.
GADGETS & GEAR
May 13, 2013 Doubling as an excellent panini maker, this pan really flattened the competition—literally.
GADGETS & GEAR
May 6, 2013 Specialized tools are the secret to perfect baked goods.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 26, 2013 Your baked goods will rival any bakery’s.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 22, 2013 You won't forget a thing.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 15, 2013 Avoid sticky situations with this ingenious measuring cup.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 8, 2013 You’ll never suffer from separation anxiety again.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 1, 2013 These scissors make the cut.
GADGETS & GEAR
March 25, 2013 In the words of one tester, “I could perform heart surgery with these.”
GADGETS & GEAR
March 18, 2013 Why settle for one kitchen tool when you can have two in one space-saving design?
GADGETS & GEAR
March 11, 2013 Pop the top off of even the most stubborn specimens.
GADGETS & GEAR
March 4, 2013 This particular scale far outweighed the competition.
GADGETS & GEAR
February 25, 2013 Melt your guests’ hearts (and cheese) with this top-notch tool.
GADGETS & GEAR
February 18, 2013 You deserve to love, not hate, cutting up fresh pineapple.
GADGETS & GEAR
February 15, 2013 These caffeine machines are inexpensive and ingenious—what's not to love?
GADGETS & GEAR
February 11, 2013 We’d be hard-pressed to find a better tool.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 28, 2013 This gadget is the apple of our eye.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 21, 2013 For those times when a knife just won't cut it.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 14, 2013 Crack into a shell like never before.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 7, 2013 If you’re a self-respecting cheese lover—yes, you do.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 31, 2012 Taking the fuss out of a French cooking method, one paper bag at a time.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 24, 2012 Fashion meets efficiency.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 17, 2012 This gadget is worth shelling out for.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 3, 2012 Smooth is its middle name.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 29, 2012 These olive oils are hot off the press.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 26, 2012 It’s convenient—especially with our tried-and-true sequence of zapping time and power.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 19, 2012 This gravy boat left us lukewarm.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 12, 2012 Flipping the bird—yes, the turkey in the oven—can be effortless.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 5, 2012 Having a pig in your kitchen isn’t always a bad thing.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 29, 2012 A cool product for hot food.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 22, 2012 The perfect product for the solo, sophisticated tea drinker.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 15, 2012 Mission: To clean and protect.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 8, 2012 Smoking indoors is encouraged with this useful gadget.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 1, 2012 Clean the pan. Leave the seasoning.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 24, 2012 Two become one, easily and neatly.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 17, 2012 Access to lobster meat without the hard work? Something’s fishy.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 9, 2012 It had us at “guilt-free.”
GADGETS & GEAR
September 3, 2012 Prevent your ice cream from becoming ice cream soup.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 27, 2012 So small, yet so powerful.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 20, 2012 All of the peeling with none of the crushing.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 13, 2012 Does a goofy design make for better performance?
GADGETS & GEAR
August 6, 2012 Perfect vegetable slices in mere seconds? That’s music to our ears.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 30, 2012 Your stain-free kitchen and clothes will thank you.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 23, 2012 Handle your family’s breakfast rush with the ease of an experienced short order cook.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 16, 2012 We’re less than impressed with the Progressive Lettuce Keeper.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 2, 2012 A cool way to keep drinks cold.
GADGETS & GEAR
June 4, 2012 In search of a big chill.
GADGETS & GEAR
May 28, 2012 Not every model makes the cut.
GADGETS & GEAR
April 30, 2012 We wanted crushed ice and smooth puree. Was that too much to ask?
GADGETS & GEAR
April 16, 2012 Save the planet by cooking dinner (that's the theory, anyway).
GADGETS & GEAR
April 9, 2012 We brandished dulled Japanese knives and put these specialized sharpeners to the test.
GADGETS & GEAR
March 26, 2012 East meets west in this test kitchen smackdown.
GADGETS & GEAR
March 19, 2012 We pared it down to the essentials.
SUPER QUICK VIDEO TIPS
March 8, 2012 Be the master of your own (caffeinated) domain.
GADGETS & GEAR
March 5, 2012 Perfect French fries with just a spoonful of oil? We’re hopeful, but skeptical.
GADGETS & GEAR
February 13, 2012 A sleek way to froth just enough milk for two.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 30, 2012 We went through more than 180 pounds of meat to find a blade that made the cut.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 16, 2012 We set a lot things on fire in a “burn building” to see which extinguishers actually worked against a real blaze.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 9, 2012 Hint: It’s not silicone, and you’ll see exactly why.
GADGETS & GEAR
January 2, 2012 Chickens that didn’t fit, cheese that didn’t melt, cookies that randomly browned, and other disasters we encountered in our tests.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 19, 2011 And egg fans will be pleased, too.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 12, 2011 What do you get the cook who has everything? Lisa shares her picks for the season.
GADGETS & GEAR
December 5, 2011 Because you’ve been such a good, good cookie this year.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 21, 2011 This foolproof sharpener (with 3 slots!) beat out more than a dozen in our test.
GADGETS & GEAR
November 14, 2011 Stick it where you need it.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 31, 2011 Your favorite fruit gets its own costume this year.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 24, 2011 So sleek, so cute, so immensely irresistible—but then we made a batch.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 17, 2011 An egg cooker lets you set it and forget it.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 10, 2011 A filtering water bottle sounds like a great idea—in theory, anyway.
GADGETS & GEAR
October 3, 2011 Speedily squeeze the last drop out of your citrus fruits.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 26, 2011 The glorious world in which every brownie is born edgy.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 19, 2011 Boiling water gets downright steamy.
GADGETS & GEAR
September 12, 2011 Would this gadget brush away all of our stubborn, silky corn problems?
GADGETS & GEAR
September 5, 2011 Have a towel always close at hand—in theory, anyway.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 29, 2011 This fat, adorable fruit gadget might be one-note, but it sings nonetheless.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 22, 2011 Perfect little pucks of ice cream—reality or fantasy?
GADGETS & GEAR
August 15, 2011 Whoever designed this thing might be afflicted with shear madness.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 8, 2011 Some people take their tropical fruit seriously enough to make furniture for them.
GADGETS & GEAR
August 1, 2011 Kulfi, yuzu, burrata—oh my.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 25, 2011 How complication can get in the way of a very simple thing.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 18, 2011 A strangely ineffective design, especially with raw meat.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 11, 2011 An indispensable gadget for fresh dollops on the fly.
GADGETS & GEAR
July 4, 2011 Turn off the infomercials; you’re way better off with a knife.
GADGETS & GEAR
June 27, 2011 This British chef’s gadget appears silly, but performs seriously.
GADGETS & GEAR
June 20, 2011 Do you really need a special scrubber for your muffin tins?
GADGETS & GEAR
June 13, 2011 Drink up to a little gadget that improves your wine—instantly.
GADGETS & GEAR
June 6, 2011 Four double-A batteries later, we’re still not impressed.
GADGETS & GEAR
May 16, 2011 Smart and convenient, plus bonus points for looking like a penguin.
How do you get waffles to come out crisp yet fluffy every time? Step one: Stop treating them like bumpy pancakes.
Episode: Lazy Day Breakfast Season 11
This best-selling ringbound cookbook, now revised and updated with an all-new 50-page cookware buying guide, delivers more than 1,200 foolproof recipes for classic American family fare in a clear, accessible style. With the addition of our Guide to Kitchen Equipment and the America's Test Kitchen Buying Guide, this cookbook is even more timely and valuable.
