In many cultures, the kitchen is the heart of the home. Most people will agree that life is not worth living without good company and good food. To that end, welcome to our small kitchen appliances website! We are going to look for all kinds of neat kitchen gadgets, and appliances which will make your time in the kitchen easier and more enjoyable.

What are Small Kitchen Appliances?

Well, there are a lot of devices that fit into the small appliance category. They include blenders, food processors, mixers, both handheld mixers and stand mixers, toaster ovens, microwave ovens, ice cream makers, bread makers, deep fryers, toasters, grills and many others I’ve not listed here. So, to start this discussion, let’s take some of the most popular appliances and get a list going.

Contact Grills

Seems like everyone’s comfort food these days is a toasted sandwich or panini. To this end, there are many available choices of contact grills. Mostly, they are electric powered and have non-stick surfaces. The heating elements are on both the top and bottom so that when you place an item to be grilled, it is cooked both from the top and the bottom. The top part of the grill usually is weighted so as to provide downward pressure to apply the heat to your food. Using a grill like this makes a nice, hot, toasty sandwich treat. There are many contenders out there for the best grill, but here are some choices to get you going:

• Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler
• Black & Decker G48TD Grill and Waffle Baker
• Presto 07046 Tilt ‘n Drain Big Griddle Cool-Touch Electric Griddle
• George Foreman GRP4 Next Grilleration 72 Square Inch White Removable Plate Grill
• George Foreman GRP90WGR Next Grilleration Electric Nonstick Grill with 5 Removable Plates

Food Processors

This handy little kitchen gadget is one of the most useful things you can have. I mean, what recipe doesn’t ask for something diced, chopped, or otherwise mashed? So, what to look for in a food processor? Well, for me, the biggest concern is the available cutting modes and attachments to assist in this task. Given that the unit has enough attachments for all my cutting needs, then I look at the hopper’s capacity. After all, if I’m going to be making food, there better be enough for everyone. Last, but certainly not least, I look for a powerful motor. Sometimes, you will get a recipe that calls for pureeing a sticky or very viscous food. When that happens, you want a powerful food processor that can handle the job with aplomb. OK, I know you are curious about some of the more popular food processors. Here’s a list of some of the current favorites:

• Black & Decker FP1600B 8-Cup Food Processor
• Cuisinart DLC-10S Pro Classic 7-Cup Food Processor
• Cuisinart DLC-4CHB Mini-Prep Plus 4-Cup Food Processor
• Cuisinart DLC-2007N Prep 7 7-Cup Food Processor
• Black & Decker EHC650 2-Speed Food Chopper with 3-Cup Bowl

Coffee Makers and Cappuccino Makers and Espresso Makers

What discussion of small kitchen appliances would be complete without a discussion of the ubiquitous coffee maker? None, of course, so here we go! There are many types of coffee makers out there. The features you should look for are stainless steel heating elements, settings for 1-4 cups of coffee, a built-in timer, and thermal carafe. The reason I don’t recommend a coffee maker with a heating plate is simply that it keeps heating the coffee to a bitter cruddy brew. If you have a unit that dispenses the coffee into a thermal carafe, the coffee will stay hot for hours and taste great for a long time. Anyway, moving on, you should have a unit that is easy to clean, and if you are really into your coffee, a multi-function unit that can also froth milk for that perfect latte. Here are some popular coffee makers (my personal favorite is the Capresso unit):

• De’Longhi EC155 15 BAR Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Maker
• Cuisinart DGB-550BK Grind-and-Brew 12-Cup Automatic Coffeemaker
• Black & Decker DCM18S Brew ‘n Go Personal Coffeemaker with Travel Mug
• DeLonghi EC702 15-Bar-Pump Espresso Maker
• Capresso 303.01 4-Cup Espresso and Cappuccino Machine

Toaster Ovens

This post is getting a bit long in the tooth, so I’ll leave you with a discussion of toaster ovens. For food on the go, you can hardly beat the toaster oven. One of my favorite foods is pizza and a toaster oven is one of the fastest ways of getting that first slice in a hurry. So, when choosing a toaster oven, what should you look for? Well, first off, if you like pizza like me, then make sure that it will fit at least a 12″ pizza. Second, make sure that the unit fits in with your kitchen’s color scheme. These ovens are made in all sorts of colors, stainless steel being the most popular. Anyway, don’t forget the light! Some units don’t have a light. This is very important for people who don’t have a kitchen lined with windows. You’ll find yourself with a flashlight next to the toaster. Definitely not what you want, and I’ve been there. So here’s a look at some popular units (don’t forget to check the criteria I laid out before):

• Cuisinart TOB-40 Custom Classic Toaster Oven Broiler
• Breville BOV800XL The Smart Oven 1800-Watt Convection Toaster Oven with Element IQ
• Oster TSSTTVMNDG Digital Large Capacity Toaster Oven, Stainless Steel
• Black & Decker CTO4500S 6-Slice CounterTop Convection Oven with Pizza Bump, Stainless Steel

Of course, there are so many other things to talk about. I know that we’ve just barely scratched the surface in our discussion of small kitchen appliances. Don’t worry, we’ll be adding lots of content to the site, so pull up a chair and take a look around!