To make dessert for two, you may find you need some special equipment.  Please don’t feel like you have to go out and buy every shape and size pan I use.  Try to use what you have and if an alternate size works for you other than the one I have listed, please let us all know.

(From left to right)

Kitchen scale Because we are scaling down large recipes here, I often enlist the help of a scale.  This is especially great for sticky ingredients that would be hard to measure otherwise.

Kitchen torch I’m a big fan of brûlée-ing and I hope you will be, too.

Measuring spoons I’ve found having two sets in the kitchen is helpful—one for dry measuring and one for wet.

Liquid measuring cup A 1-cup oughta do you just fine.

Small cast iron skillet Mine happens to be 6” in diameter.

Ramekins I’m a bit of a ramekin fanatic.  There’s just somethin’ about little porcelain cups that draw me in.  For my recipes, I will try to stick to two commonly available sizes: 6-ounce and 10-ounce.

Small 6”pie plate I inherited mine from my grandmother and I love it dearly.  It is glass, but I’ve also used a 6-7” metal pie tin successfully.

Small bundt pan My small bundt pan holds 3 cups of batter, and while it’s fun, it’s not essential.

Small 6” cake pan I make many, many things using this small cake pan.  I believe it’s the standard size for the top layer of wedding cakes, so try to locate one at a store that sells cake decorating supplies.

Small loaf pan This one measures 5” x 3” x 2” and disposable ones are usually available in the grocery store, especially around the holidays.

Small 4 ½” spring form pan I’m sorry, but you just can’t make mini cheesecakes without this.

Measuring cups I prefer metal ones with sharp sides for accurate measuring.

Small utensils This is another thing that is nice to have but not essential.  I’ve found that a small whisk and small wooden spoon with a short handle makes stirring small amounts of ingredients easier.  My Mom bought me a small flexible spatula that makes getting tiny slices of pie out of small pie plates much easier than it used to be.  Finally, you will need a microplane zest grater, any size will work.

Small 6” tart pan with removable bottom I’m hesitant to say that you can make tart recipes in a small pie pan instead because I can’t say that I’ve tested every recipe, but I suspect it would work just fine.

Small strainer I use this for washing small amounts of berries, dusting powdered sugar and sifting flour.  For me, sifting a small amount of flour in a regular sized sifter leads to much of the flour landing on the counter instead of in the bowl.

More ramekins Once you become a crème brûlée addict, you will appreciate the ratio of custard to burnt sugar that is produced in a wide, shallow ramekin rather than a deep one.  It’s really up to you, though.