I made my dream kitchen and these are 5 appliances I couldn't live without

I recently moved from a one bed flat into a house. Aside from the obvious improvements like space and having more than two rooms to spend time in, this move has given me a chance to make the house my own. As soon as I moved in, I made it my mission to make my kitchen the most inviting and exciting point of the house… and these five appliances helped me create my dream kitchen.

As someone who loves to bake and cook, my previous kitchen just wasn’t up to par, mainly because of the lack of countertop space and my strangely high cupboards – measuring at just five foot two, you can imagine my frustration when I had to stand on a chair to reach my spices! Now that I have a bigger kitchen, I’ve been able to invest in new appliances, and while I never thought I’d be the person to get excited about dishwashers and ovens, here we are!

After unpacking, decorating and a few impulse purchases, I’ve finally made my dream kitchen and these are the five appliances I couldn’t live without (and you might want to get your hands on too).

1. Sage Barista Touch Impress

My fiancé and I are both coffee addicts and the Sage Barista Touch Impress has become our pride and joy. One of the best bean to cup coffee machines on the market, the Sage Barista Touch Impress makes barista-style coffee that tastes and smells delicious. It freshly grinds coffee beans before extracting their full flavour, and perfectly whipping and frothing different types of milk for the best finish. I honestly don’t think I could live without it, which is why it got 5 stars in my Sage Barista Touch Impress review. If you’re a big coffee lover and have been trying to cut down on your takeaway coffee, the Sage Barista Touch Impress is sure to find a happy place in your kitchen.

2. Induction pots and pans

After moving in and being thoroughly excited to use the new induction hob, I quickly realised that most of our pots, pans and saucepan sets didn’t work on the hob. We realised that a little too late and had to cook a bag of pasta in three goes which was pretty hilarious, although rather stressful! Thankfully, a well timed IKEA trip meant we could buy some new induction pots and pans. Not only do they actually work with my new hob, but the ones we chose come in many different shapes and sizes, and are a mixture of stainless steel and non-stick coating for versatile cooking and baking. I also got an induction pot that has a built-in strainer, so I’ll never have to relieve that pasta mistake again!

3. Magnetic knife rack

After finding out that a knife block is the dirtiest spot in your kitchen, I was very excited to have a magnetic knife rack in the new house. Nailed into the wall, the magnetised knife rack allows me to see all my best chef knives clearly and grab them easily and accessibly. Other than keeping them clean, having my knives displayed like this also prevents them from dulling and its a fun feature to have in your kitchen.

4. Two ovens

One of the main reasons I was excited about the new kitchen was its two ovens. My fiancé loves to cook and I’m an avid baker, and we often find ourselves clashing and having to delay meals or bakes because the other person is still cooking something. Having an extra oven has cancelled out this stress and it’s definitely made the idea of hosting Christmas this year much less stressful. With two ovens, we can cater to multiple people at one time and we won’t have to worry about cramming everything in to one oven. It’s also handy to have one oven to hold on to all our trays and racks if we ever run out of cupboard space. If two ovens sounds like something you need in your kitchen, check out T3’s top picks for the best oven.

5. Le Creuset dishes

Known for its iconic range of stoneware enamel kitchenware, Le Creuset has everything you could possibly need to cook up a storm in the kitchen. I have a few Le Creuset mugs and a pepper mill but my favourite thing I’ve got from Le Creuset (and something I couldn’t live without in my dream kitchen) is its dishes. Designed to go from oven to table, the Classic Rectangular Dishes have made cooking main meals, sides and bakes much easier. Available in multiple colours and sizes, these dishes are meant to be shown off, and they make amazing serving dishes for when people come round.