Not to be confused with a musical lute instrument, or a song by Bruce Hornsby that involves rain, mandolines are a kitchen essential.

I’ve longed for one of these beauts for a while. My mom came home with one one day and I was excited to use it for this scalloped-potato dish, since previous attempts at slicing potatoes evenly had been less than successful.

My bff Pam‘s mom uses her to turn veggies into homemade chips. You can use also them to slice various veggies (carrots, zucchini, onion) and make fun shapes, like crinkle cut! It can julienne veggies into strips, etc. Basically what I’m saying is, they’re amazing. And your kitchen should have one.

Thanks, mandolines for providing us with amusing shapes and slices. Food wouldn’t be as fun without you.

*And because mentioning Bruce Hornsby and his depressing song isn’t enough, here’s a video of him singing Mandolin Rain in the same month and year that I was born.