Being a food blogger has afforded me some pretty amazing opportunities, like the chance to meet chefs and authors I admire, attend a two-day conference on olive oil and take a cooking class on mangoes with my kids. But for a serious cook, few experiences are as cool as the chance to visit the Corporate Test Kitchen of  Sur La Table and hear about new products for the holiday season from KitchenAid. That is exactly what I got to do last Friday as part of the International Food Bloggers Conference.

Last year when I attended IFBC, I arrived in Seattle too late to attend the pre-conference excursion to the Sur La Table headquarters. To quote Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman: “Big mistake. Huge.” The bloggers who were lucky enough to go raved about the helpful demonstrations, the delicious food and, of course, the amazing products they got. Determined not to make that mistake again, I booked myself on a 8 am flight out of Chicago which, yes, meant waking up at 5 am to be out the door by 6 am. But it was all worth it.

I honestly cannot think of a better job than working at the Sur La Table test kitchen where chefs create recipes for Sur La Table’s terrific cooking classes and play with the latest kitchen appliances, knives, cookware and gadgets all day. (Of course, my job is pretty cool too because I at least get to visit the Sur La Table test kitchen.)

While we were there, Sephi Coyle, the Director of Sur La Table’s culinary program, and Shannon Cook, the manager of content for the culinary program, demonstrated how to use the new spiralizer attachment for the iconic KitchenAid stand mixer. Spiralizing fruits and vegetables is a new, healthy eating trend. I was a little skeptical that I needed this attachment in my life when I thought it could only make zoodles, which are zucchini “noodles,” but when Shannon used it to peel, core and slice an apple — you know, for a pie — I was sold. Also, when I tried the zucchini noodles with an heirloom tomato sauce and crumbled feta, I was pretty much in favor of that too.

So if you know someone with a KitchenAid stand mixer who loves to eat healthy, or, better yet, likes pie, the spiralizer attachment is a great gift idea at $129.

After Shannon and Sephi’s demo, we heard from Jacob Maurer, the General Merchandising Manager for Sur La Table, about some of the new products that he thinks will be big this holiday season. I could tell listening to Jacob that this guy loves him some kitchen products. His enthusiasm for all the new products on display, from blenders to grill pans, was infectious.

Jacob and Daniela Andrei, the consumer marketing manager at KitchenAid, seemed very fired up about the new KitchenAid Precision Press French press, which I gather is the gift for the at-home barista this year. But for my money, I would take Sur La Table’s Automatic Milk Frother and Hot Chocolate Maker.

The minute my eyes fell on this little beauty, a steal at $69, I knew Zuzu would go crazy for it.  And so she did. I believe her quote was “This is amazing.” Of an evening, Zuzu likes to make a hot beverage and Face-time with her best friend Sabrina, who moved to Nashville. So you can see why she needs this gizmo in her life. Hope she gets one for Hanukkah!

So many kitchen appliances, so little counter space! Am I right? But I would definitely make room for the KitchenAid sparkling beverage maker powered by SodaStream pictured at the top. I have a very old, very basic SodaStream and I probably make two liters of sparkling water per day. This version has multiple settings for just the right amount of fizz and looks pretty smart on a kitchen counter.

I was also very impressed by the KitchenAid Magnetic Drive Torrent Blender, which totally reimagines the high-speed blender for maximum safety and durability. At $450, this is a big-ticket item. If you are concerned about spending that much money, know that the Torrent blender comes with a seven-year warranty, so KitchenAid must be pretty confident that it will last through hard use. If you use this blender as much as I use my high-speed blender, you will get your money’s worth.

Sur La Table also offers plenty of budget-friendly holiday gifts and stocking stuffers. If you want to give a cook a gift that you know will get plenty of use, you could not do much better than a Silpat baking mat. Silpats are by far the best nonstick mats on the market and they last forever. I have three myself, which comes in handy when baking multiple trays of cookies. How cute is this holiday-themed Silpat? That would look great sticking out of a stocking on Christmas morning.

Other fun stocking stuffers for home cooks include the Chef’N Looseleaf Kale and Herb Stripper at $8. This little gadget, which lies flat in a drawer, has large holes for removing the woody stems of kale and other leafy greens and small holes for stripping the leaves off of fresh herbs, like thyme. I used mine tonight to strip mint for a cucumber raita and it worked great.

While at Sur La Table, we were treated to a beautiful buffet of pasta, salads, and of course, sweets. I was surprised to learn that this moist and spicy Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Spice Cake came from a box. I usually eschew baking mixes but this cake tasted delicious. I can see using this mix for a quick and easy baking project with my kids. They would like the pumpkin spice brownie mix as well.

In short, Sur La Table has a world of gifts, both large and small, for the cooks, bakers and hot-beverage-drinkers in your life. I hope Zuzu gets to open that Automatic Milk Frother and Hot Chocolate Maker on Hanukkah and that someone, anyone, gets me the fancy KitchenAid SodaStream.

Full disclosure time: I attended a pre-conference excursion to the Sur La Table test kitchen with KitchenAid as part of my attendance at the IFBC conference. I have been asked to write about my experience at IFBC in exchange for a reduced conference ticket price, but I have complete control over what I write about. I and all the other attendees at this event received products from Sur La Table and KitchenAid valued at approximately $335. As always, all opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.