Today we are talking about “MUST-Have Kitchen Tools” you should have in your house, we will talk about Electric Toaster Oven, Electric Immersion Blender/Chopper, Electric Pasta Maker, Bread Making Machine, Electric Cordless Kettle and many more…

Many think that the 4-slice toaster is the ultimate, but it is so restricting.

Mine is the large Cuisinart and it is more than a toaster.

A toaster oven may only do two slices of bread at a time, but you can get four bagel or English muffin halves in at one time.

But besides making toast, you can broil meat, melt cheese on an omelet, heat a leftover, bake a potato, etc.

It comes with a bake, broil, or toast function.

The large one will do a casserole on the holidays.

Talk about multi uses.

Electric Immersion Blender/Chopper

This is a newer item, but I find it more useful than a regular blender.

It also takes up less room.

I use it to purée cream soups and sauces almost exclusively.

However, it can be used to mix drinks, chop meat and vegetables, and spices.

Electric Pasta Maker

You have never tasted chicken noodle soup like that made with homemade noodles.

This isn’t an essential item, but it sure is nice.

It is quick and easy and you have a choice of many dies for a variety of shapes.

Clean up is fairly easy.

Pasta can be frozen and is still better than the dried purchased stuff.

Make 8 or 9 different types and try making it with semolina flour and regular flour together.

Make it with or without eggs or with only half eggs and half water.

The hand-cranked ones work nicely after making your dough in your mixer.

Bread Making Machine

Again, this is not essential, but oh so nice.

They come with timers so you can go out after setting it up and it will come on at the specified time, mix, knead, rise and bake a loaf of bread.

There are hundreds of varieties and you can also just make just the dough (such as pizza dough) for pizza, bread loaves, rolls, cinnamon swirls, etc., and bake it in your own form.

It would be a good idea to buy a good Electric Bread cookbook rather than spending the big bucks on the boxed mixes since they don’t save that much time and are pretty expensive, based on the simple ingredients they contain.

Electric Cordless Kettle

I didn’t get excited over this item until I spent some time in Singapore in an apartment.

This is an essential item over there and in many countries.

It only takes a couple of minutes to boil a quart or quart and a half of water for tea, instant coffee, starting pasta or rice to hurry it along.

The cordless aspect is great because you can walk across the kitchen with the pot.

I have actually stopped using the Instant Hot Water Faucet on my sink for anything but a quick cup of coffee or cocoa because you only get a small amount.

We brought our kettle home and had our electrician install a couple of 220 outlets to accommodate the appliances we purchased over there.

When he did this he installed red microwave outlets with only one plug-in, but which had a switch like a light switch toggle to actually turn off the power to the outlet.

We also had those installed on our regular 110 outlets for safety purposes because we had one appliance turn itself on one time all by itself.

I feel safer when I leave the house and all the appliances like the coffee pot, toaster, iron, and cordless kettle are all rendered inactive.

Rotisserie and Barbecue

You’ve seen it on infomercials.

Let me tell you it is everything it is touted to be.

Everything is so juice and good.

The times that are suggested are pretty much always right on.

We use it all the time.

Get the large one if you plan to do turkeys or large cuts of meat or if you entertain a lot.

It is a healthy way to prepare food and can be used indoors in cold or rainy weather.

Electric Grill/Sandwich Maker

This is another item that has double uses.

It makes wonderful grilled sandwiches – several at a time or grill meat, bacon, seafood, and poultry.

Again a nice, healthy way to prepare food and can be used indoors.

They come in a size for a single person or all the way too HUGE.

Electric Waffle Maker

Not essential, but again nice.

They come with square, deep-dish Belgian or thinner round classic waffles.

Make hearts and other fancy shapes with some of them.

Electric Ice Cream Maker

Not essential, but again, sure is nice.

The ice cream is soooo good and you can make just about any flavor you want along with low fat.

Electric Rice Cooker

This is nice if you have a large family and/or use a lot of rice.

I find that I can use a regular pan and make just the small amount we need.

Electric Skillet

I still have mine and only use it occasionally, but I guess I refuse to give it up because I really like it for certain things.

Not essential, but nice to have.

Now if you have unlimited space and really get off on having a gadget for every use, listed below are some other small electrical appliances I’ve purchased over the years.

I found that I never used them much and eventually sold them at a garage sale.

· Electric Egg Cooker – I do better in a pan

· Electric Griddle – A griddle on two stove burners is just as easy and much easier to wash.

· Electric Juicer – Unless you are a health nut, lots of waste and no fiber.

· Electric Knife – Nice to have on holidays or when entertaining.

· Snow Cone Maker – Nice if you have kids.

· Fondue Pot – Too much fat and only two at a time can use it or the oil gets cold.

· Deep Fat Fryer – I still have mine and occasionally use it as we are trying to lose weight.

Get the kind that has the heating element right in the oil so the oil stays hotter.

I know they have a lot of other things out there, but look at what you have already, think about how often you would use it.

Think of whether or not you could do the same thing on the stove or in the microwave and consider how much valuable space you might be used to store it.