Whisks

1) Oxo Good Grips Balloon Whisk
$8, oxo.com
UPSIDE Rubber handle prevents slipping; wide bottom is great for whipping cream and egg whites.
DOWNSIDE Too bulbous for whisking pan sauces and small batches of salad dressing.

2) Art and Cook Cage Whisk
$15, macys.com
UPSIDE Ball-in-cage design is great for whipping cream; squishy handle is comfortable to hold.
DOWNSIDE Chunky batters get stuck in cage.

3) Zyliss Quick Blend Whisk
$8, cutleryandmore.com
UPSIDE Non-touching tines prevent clumping inside whisk; works well on chunky batters.
DOWNSIDE Tines are too rigid for scraping down sides of a pan.

4) Best Standard French Whip
$10, williams-sonoma.com
UPSIDE Performs well on most whisking tasks; flexible tines reach pan edges when making sauce.
DOWNSIDE Metal handle gets slippery when wet and heats up when left in pan.

5) WMF Profi Plus Flat Whisk
$15, amazon.com
UPSIDE Flat shape works well for pan sauces and salad dressing; extra-long tines reach the corners of a large pot.
DOWNSIDE Can't whip cream; handle heats up when left in pan.

USE YOUR WHISK TO MAKE THIS RECIPE

Scotch Pudding

*Prices and other details were accurate when we published this article in September 2007