11 kitchen tools that help me make the most of my small New York City kitchen

Why I love it: Krups' waffle maker is one of the few super niche appliances that I actually use very often. It has a knob that lets me set my waffles' doneness — from pillowy soft to nice and crispy — and a loud bell that alerts me when its grates have come to temperature and when the waffles are fully cooked.

Once I'm done, I can pop the grates off and wash them off in the sink. The grates are dishwasher safe, too. I always felt like waffles were one of the few foods I'd always have to order out, but Krups' waffle maker has turned them into one of my Sunday morning staples.

Why I love it: I don't have a lot of space in my kitchen for bulky appliances, but I've made an exception for Kenmore's Ovation stand mixer. Its five-quart glass mixing bowl is large enough to accommodate big batches of bread dough, cookie batter, or cake mix with ease, but its design is what sold me.

Instead of pouring ingredients into the mixing bowl and hoping nothing flies out, the Ovation has a sealed bowl and a hole on top. When I bake, I put my dry ingredients in the bowl, seal it, and pour wet ingredients through the hole on top. The system works wonderfully and has cut down the amount of time I spend baking because I never have to think about cleaning flour or sugar from my floor.

Why I love it: If I were transported to a desert island and could only take one kitchen tool, it would have to be Milo's cast iron skillet. The direct-to-consumer startup wowed me with its dutch oven, but its skillet takes things to the next level. The cast iron skillet is flat and heats evenly, so I've never noticed any hotspots or scorch marks on my meat or vegetables.

I've used it to sear food on my stove top, bake it in the oven, and transferred it between one to the other without any problems. My favorite thing about this skillet is that its cast iron is enameled, so you can clean it off in a sink or dishwasher without it getting rusted.

Why I love it: I live in a tiny New York City apartment, which means counter space is premium real estate. Linon's kitchen island has allowed me to extend my kitchen without having to do any construction. What I like best about this island is that each of its four layers serves a different purpose.

The bottom layer is flat, so it's perfect for holding bowls, plates, or bakeware. Its produce basket can hold a surprising amount of fruits and vegetables and it's high enough that you can easily grab them. The four-bottle wine rack is a good place to store alcohol or a few extra bottles of sparkling water. Finally, the top layer is made out of granite, which makes it the perfect surface to keep a cutting board.

If you're trying to make a small kitchen feel bigger or less cluttered, I can't think of a better investment for less than $100.

Why I love it: For years, I wondered "does measuring your ingredients really make a difference in the final result?" The answer is yes. It does. Etekcity's digital scale lets you weigh things in ounces, milliliters, pounds, and grams, which are the basic measurements you'll need. This is a kitchen essential most people put off getting, but I can't recommend it highly enough.

Why I love it: My apartment only has a couple of small cabinets, but Seville's expandable shelf has let me double their usable space. The shelves come in two pieces, which you position to fit the exact size of your cabinet. How much you can fit in your cabinet will depend on its height, and the size of what you're trying to store, but I've been able to significantly reduce the clutter in mine with these shelves.

Why I love it: Mason jars are the unsung heroes of my kitchen. I use them to store sauces in my freezer, hold dry ingredients on my shelves, and pickle vegetables to the perfect level of crunch. The reason I rely on these jars so much is their uniform size and shape, which makes them easy to organize and stack. If you're still keeping your ingredients in their original packaging, you'll appreciate this upgrade.

Why I love it: The key to a clean kitchen is using vertical space, and Hanindy's magnetic spice tins are the perfect example of this. Instead of keeping my spices in their original jars, I keep them stuck to the side of my fridge in these tins. Hanindy includes several sheets of labels, so you always know what you're grabbing.

This set of tins even comes with a set of measuring spoons, so you can always add the right amount of spice instead of eyeballing it.

Why I love it: Everyone is guilty of having a kitchen utensil drawer stuffed to the point that it's hard to open or close. I solved this problem with OXO's utensil holder, which fits everything from my citrus press to a potato masher.

The holder has three slots, so you can organize your tools by size and shape, and it sits on a rotating base, so you can turn it around for easy access to the one you're looking for. I'm admittedly a fool for little kitchen tools, but this is a great $20 investment for anyone who loves to cook.

Why I love it: Silpat's French-made baking mats have earned a reputation for being best-in-class, but I'm still floored at how great its non-stick muffin pan is. The pan is made out of a custom-made silicone, which is non-stick, so I don't have to put any fat in to keep the muffins from sticking.

I was skeptical about this pan when I first tried it out, but each muffin popped out perfectly cooked without much mess. To clean the pan, all I do is run some water into each cup to remove its crumbs. I've used this pan for muffins, cupcakes, and cinnamon buns, and the results have been uniform and excellent every time.