Oven Rack Guards

Regular readers of this blog may have noticed that I'm a little accident-prone in the kitchen. But I know I've got lots of company when it comes to oven rack burns. Jaz Cool Touch Oven Rack Guards are one solution (not rushing is probably the other). Made of heat-resistant fabric first developed for firefighters, these 18-inch-long strips snap easily to the front of any standard oven rack. You can't pull the racks in and out holding these—use pot holders for that task—but if your hand or arm brushes a rack by mistake, the guards will protect your skin from the hot metal. They can be used in ovens with temperatures up to 500°F. The only drawback is that you can't leave them in when you broil, so if you do that often, it might be too much of a hassle to keep removing them. Cooks who have wall ovens and elderly and disabled people may find Cool Touch guards especially useful. You can find this product on chefscatalog.com and amazon.com. It'll run you about $20 for a set of two.