Totally Bamboo Oregon State Cutting and Serving Board

When I'm out and about with my co-blogger Warren, we often troll the kitchen section of whatever store we're in looking for must-have gadgets and wares. I usually find it hard to commit to an expensive kitchen item, and I'll often put things back on the shelf that I really love. This week, though, we stopped at the Kitchen Kaboodle store on Hall St., and I was instantly attracted to a beautiful bamboo cutting board in the shape of our lovely state. "It is only $20, and I have two Totally Bamboo cutting boards that I already love, so why not?" I told myself as I clutched the smooth wooden board to my chest. 

So, of course I purchased this cutting board along with a few placemats and napkins to spice up my Blog to Taste photos. I was pleased with my first visit to Kitchen Kaboodle. Isn't that a surprising fact, though? How can someone who loves to cook and eat not have been to the Portland-area mainstay that is the Kitchen Kaboodle? I guess it's because it always seemed like such an adult store to go into, and I wasn't particularly interested in buying kitchen items until the last few years.

Since my visit to Kitchen Kaboodle yesterday, I've learned that it is a locally-owned group of 4 stores in Portland and surrounding areas. I also learned from my visit to the store that they have a combination of gadgets, diningware, furniture, and cooking ware. Honestly, I'm not super impressed with their online shopping, but I would go back to the brick-and-mortar store again if I needed something interesting for my kitchen. You can visit their site here to shop online or find a store near you (if you live in the Portland, OR area).

Now back to the cutting board. I love how it looks, and, as I mentioned before, I have two Totally Bamboo cutting boards that I totally love. I haven't used the new board for cutting or serving yet, though, because I am waiting for some mineral oil to arrive from Amazon first. My old bamboo boards are about 5 years old now, and they don't have the same color and freshness like this new one because I haven't been seasoning them. 

As you can see in the picture above, the new board has a very different color because the older ones have dried out. Despite Totally Bamboo's not-so-subtle recommendation to buy their oil, I decided to buy a less expensive oil made by Howard Products (see it here). Besides the faded and dried-out look, though, my Totally Bamboo boards have held up well to constant use and washing. I love the feel of cutting on wood as opposed to plastic. I tend to avoid using the bamboo boards for cutting meat because I feel like the more porous wood surface will attract more bacteria than plastic, but veggies, fruits, breads, and almost anything else is fair game. Visit Totally Bamboo's site here to see their many state-shaped cutting boards and other items.

Now, if you want an Oregon cutting board of your own, you can go to a Kitchen Kaboodle store, or you can visit their website. You can also buy it from Amazon or from Totally Bamboo's site that I linked above. I will post in the future with the Oregon board as a backdrop, and I will mention my experience with it as I begin to use it.