Some Things Just Need a Gadget

As much as we would like to think otherwise, not everything in the kitchen is as easy as pie. Some recipes and techniques can be a bit of a nightmare, even if they do end in the most delicious results.

While there are some things we can cheat a bit with, others need very specific utensils or gadgets if you’re going to get the best results. Not having these to hand can mean that you end up skipping over the meal you actually really want to cook in order to find something much simpler.

But you shouldn’t have to give up on your dreams of creating restaurant-quality food at home just because you don’t have what you need to do everything in the recipe book. Having the right gadget can make all the difference and will definitely be worth the cost in the long run.

So what foods are you missing out on if you don’t have the right gadget?

Yes, we know that you can just go to the supermarket and grab a tin of soup off the shelf. However, we also know you know that this doesn’t taste as good as the homemade variety.

No matter the type of soup you like, whether you make it in big batches or by the individual bowlful, soup is awesome and great to make yourself. But if you don’t have a blender to combine all your ingredients, your soup doesn’t quite hit the spot.

You might say you prefer your soup chunky, but we all know you need a little bit of it blended too in order to really give it the best texture, so making sure you’ve got a blender to hand is definitely the best bet.

We’re not all brave enough to try and mix up an entire cake by hand – if you are, then more power to you – which means if you don’t have a food processor or mixer, you’ll probably just live off slightly sad shop-bought cake.

This may not be the worst thing in the world, after all, any cake is still a good idea, but we all know that a cake that is still warm from the oven is a magical thing.

Don’t deny yourself this sweet treat or the ability to whip up a chocolate muffin just because the mood takes you. A mixer doesn’t just mean cake for a day, it means cake for life.

While going to a cafe and grabbing a panini is always an easy option, no one likes paying through the nose for what is basically a hot sandwich. You might think that a microwave will do the same job, but you’ll soon realise this is a big fail.

If you’re a panini, toasty sandwich or grilled wrap fan, you know deep down that a grill is the only way forward. Of course, you can cook almost anything on a health grill – from burgers to steak and fish – but being able to put together your own paninis and enjoy them while watching Netflix really is a magical thing.

Why aren’t waffles as big in the UK as they are in America? That’s right, because none of us have bothered to pick up a waffle iron.

If you’ve ever had waffles, you know that they are an incredible food that deserves so much more credit in this country. Whether you like sweet ones, savoury varieties or literally any waffle you can get your hands on, the ability to make them in your own kitchen is sure to make you happy every single day.

Our new Snack Collection, which is available this month, makes making waffles a super easy task. On top of this, it has other plates available that mean you can whip up other tasty treats like doughnuts.

Be honest, if you didn’t have a toaster, how often would you actually make toast? You may have a grill setting on your oven, but that means you need to let it heat up, toast one side of the bread, turn it over and keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t end up black.

Unless you’re making cheese on toast, we all know that the superior way of getting toast just how you like it is to put it in the toaster. Sliding that lever down and getting on with making your morning cup of tea or heating those beans up is much better than frantically checking your toast’s progress under the grill to make sure it hasn’t burnt.

Of course, you could even make beans on toast even simpler with the ultimate toaster, our Toast n’ Bean.

All coffee lovers know that no cup of Joe is more superior than one made using freshly ground beans. This being said, the chances are you have never ground your own beans, opting for pre-ground coffee or instant varieties. If this is the case, you’re missing out on a little thing called perfection.

Rather than running to the local coffee shop and grabbing a latte on the go, invest in a coffee grinder and enjoy fresh coffee every day in the comfort of your own home. This tiny gadget will mean you never want to buy another jar of instant again!