Garlic Notes: We Don’t Want No Stinking Batches

For the cook who has everything (and doesn’t want any of it smelling like garlic), we suggest an electric garlic peeler and grater from Genin Trudeau. See, what you do is this: First, pop six AA batteries into this little white plastic gadget. (Sure, that’s easier than it sounds, and we know you’ve been through enough Christmas Eve nightmares to know it, but there’s actually a video to show you how.) Then stick a whole garlic clove under the handle. (Or maybe two or three of them! Who knows? The sky’s the limit!) Now press the top button. (Careful! With ours, sometimes it insists on running even when it’s not pressed.) There’s a metal grater that rubs against the garlic, shaving it in a fairly uniform mince. And there’s a hard rubber blade that scrapes the inside of the grater, collecting it all. This thing is really cool. And it comes in a great wooden box. Batteries included! Available at Williams-Sonoma stores and from the Williams-Sonoma catalogue.