Singles Serving: Toaster Lovin'
We knew we were onto something with our toaster oven-centric column, Singles Serving. And now TheKitchn has validated our oven lovin' with their roundup of The 10 Best Uses for Your Toaster Oven. From the obvious to the inspired, the list will help you get more bang out of your toaster buck.- Warm plates before serving. Many large ovens only go down to 200°F which can be too high. A counter-top oven goes lower. I like heating plates for 5 minutes at 170°F.
- Toast nuts. Arrange in a single layer on included pan or a sheet of aluminum foil. 350°F for 10-15 minutes, agitating to turn nuts every 5 minutes.
- Make small batches of cookies, muffins, individual cakes
- Cook side dishes (like stuffing) while the main oven is occupied with something bigger (the turkey).
- Roast small batches of meat: a whole roaster chicken, quartered, fits easily, as does a pork tenderloin, a few pounds of ribs, etc.
- Re-heat left-overs.
- Defrost frozen ingredients.
- Bake potatoes.
- Melt cheese on top of French Onion Soup.
- Anything you'd use the broiler for with the added bonus of using less energy and having more control: your broiled food will be at counter-height with a see-through window.
Other ideas mentioned in the comments on the original post include s'mores, toasted sandwiches, small casseroles, and a brilliant suggestion for heating taco shells (which tend to burn when too close to the heating element) - turn the oven all the way up, then turn it OFF. Put shells in the hot - but powerless - oven until warm.
One item obviously missing from the list is the one the appliance is named for: toast. Which, ironically, most toaster ovens don't do very well. But with fresh-baked cookies at your fingertips, who needs toast?!
