A simple, well-designed tool can make kitchen prep easier, faster, and better. In addition to a sharp knife, there are probably ten tools that I use every day: Microplane grater, garlic press, lemon press, bench knife, dishers, Swiss vegetable peeler, the amazing ginger grater, the thin-and-flexible “fish” spatula, and, my all-time favorite, “the blue-handled spoons.” These two simple and sharp tools are invaluable for prepping food.

The pitting spoon is like a grapefruit spoon, but with a better and sharper edge and point. I use this spoon to remove the pits from clingstone peaches, plums, and nectarines. Plus, I can remove a peach pit without cutting the fruit! (Then I stuff the inside with honey-sweetened mascarpone cheese and drizzle the peeled peach with raspberry sauce — now, that’s a peach Melba!) The pitting spoon can also remove the choke from artichokes (raw or cooked), the membrane from oranges, grapefruits, and lemons for making candy or shells, and the strings and seeds from hard winter squash. This spoon is edgy!

The loop of the pear corer does double duty: the wide end cuts out the seeds from the bottom of the pear and the narrow end removes the pesky string that no one likes from the neck of the pear. But this corer is not a single-use tool; it also is excellent for removing the ribs and seeds from the small, hot chile peppers (raw or roasted) or use the wide loop to seed cucumbers and zucchini in one swoop.

And why are these tools blue? So that you can always find them in the drawer and they don’t get accidently thrown out with green or brown or red or yellow fruit peelings.