On blenders, I've never had luck with a < $100 blender and my vitamix would be on my short list of "If you were stuck on an island with 1 kitchen electric ..."

I cook a lot (for a family of 5) and my minimum/essential kitchen items for us are:

- 2 knives (I use Global but I like Victorinox too) + Henckels sharpener

- Cast iron skillet

- Wok

- Small non-stick pan (my wife prefers little/no oils)

- 2 Pots

- 1 steamer basket

- 1 baking sheet

- 1 pizza stone (or some unglazed tiles from Home Depot)

- KitchenAid stand mixer

- Vitamix 5200 blender

- 1 large Rubbermaid tub/lid for rising bread dough

- 1 slow cooker / crock pot (you can get em for as little as $20)

As for books, I've collected a few here and there but the ones I refer to the most are The Professional Chef (referenced in article), The Magnolia Bakery cookbooks, and Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (amazing bread a pizza dough for busy people).

http://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Bread-Five-Minutes-Revolutioni...

http://www.amazon.com/The-Magnolia-Bakery-Cookbook-Old-Fashi...

http://www.amazon.com/Zwilling-J-A-Henckels-Sharp-Sharpener/...

This is a silly weekend project I put out last Wednesday night. I presented it at a lightning talk at Minnebar (Barcamp in Minneapolis) and it got a surprisingly warm reception. So thought I'd share it here.

Platform is: Bootstrap, Django, Pinax. Hosting it on webfaction.

And if there are any bakers out there or you are interested, I highly recommend this book by authors here in Minneapolis:

http://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Bread-Five-Minutes-Revolutioni...

They have a no-knead bread method that is appeals to the hacker mindset; heavily optimized and efficient.

I second your Ratio plug. I'd also recommend adding Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day to the mix, another great (easy!) bread book.

http://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Bread-Five-Minutes-Revolutioni...