Shield for cooking utensil

A shield for a utensil that includes a handle comprising:

• a shield body having a first opening formed therein, the first opening being open along a perimeter edge of the shield body;
• a locking mechanism attached to a first face of the body and disposed about the first opening and being configured to grasp and hold the handle, thereby attaching the shield to the utensil, the locking mechanism including a clamp body that has a first section that is attached to the first face of the body and a pair of flexible fingers extending outwardly from the first section, each finger terminating in a coupling member that has first and second protrusions extending radially outward therefrom, the locking mechanism further including a pair of rotatable clamp arms that are rotatably coupled to the coupling members of the flexible fingers such that the clamps arms are in adjacent, parallel planes and are movable between an open position and a closed position, each clamp arm having an opening that receives a portion of the respective coupling member and a V-shaped body section, the clamp arm including a catch member that is configured to fasteningly mate with the first protrusion, thereby locking the clamp arm to the coupling member resulting in the clamp arms being locked in the closed position, the clamp arms being at least partially overlapped and in the open position, the clamp arms define a V-shaped slot for receiving the handle and in response to movement of the handle in a direction toward the first opening, the clamp arms rotate about the coupling members until the clamp arms assume the closed position in which the handle is captured between the V-shaped bodies of the clamp arms and the first protrusion is fasteningly mated with the catch member, thereby securely attaching the shield to the handle.