In many places, bamboo is basically a weed. I mean, seriously, the stuff just...grows. And spreads. You don't need a bunch of chemical fertilizers or a heavy watering schedule to grow bamboo, and it grows fast. That's what makes it such a great, renewable resource.

I'm a big fan of bamboo, and I love cooking, so when the folks at Core Bamboo offered me some samples of their bamboo cookware to try out, I jumped! They were super generous and sent a 9 piece utensil set, a pack of silicone spatulas, and a huge over the sink cutting board.

All of the bamboo they use is 100% organically grown. They use food safe water-based adhesives and finish their products with top grade natural oils. Even their lacquer comes from natural cashew trees. Every product adheres to the standards of the FDA and European equivalent. Wherever possible they use recycled and eco friendly packaging

The spatulas have been super handy when I'm making sauces in my tiny food processor. They came in 3 different sizes and are just the right size to scrape out the sauce that wants to cling to the sides of the container. They're easy enough to hand wash. You don't want to put any of your bamboo cookware in the dishwasher, because it could split in there.

The piece I dug the most, though, was the over the sink cutting board. It has a built in silicone colander that collapses flat when you're not using it but pops down when you put the board over the sink. That makes it super simple to chop your veggies, then scrape them into the colander for a good washing. For a kitchen like mine without much counter space, it also adds a few inches of precious surface area.

It also covers up my super ugly counters, so I can pretend that I have a beautiful butchers block instead. Yes! Much easier than ripping out and replacing the the blue and pink counter top that our home's previous owner thought was a good idea.

Core Bamboo has an enormous line of bamboo cookware, from cutting boards and knives to serving dishes and kitchen storage. You can check out their whole line at corebamboo.com.