Kitchen Gear: Convection Toaster Oven

If you're considering getting a toaster oven, I say go straight for the upgrade, a convection toaster oven. A bit more expensive but you would get so much more use out of it. You'd be surprised the things you can do in this bad boy. I've had one for so long, its become one of my kitchen staples. My journey started with not having a usable oven (and I say usable because I was living at home at the time and my mom being Asian, frugal, and space saving, decided oven  = extra storage space) so I started baking stuff with a toaster oven. Back then it was one of those tiny counter top toaster ovens. It took a little bit to get use to but once I got there, I was making all sorts of yummy treats (i.e most of the early baking entries of this blog). It did the job but then I laid eyes on the convection toaster oven (one pictured above), on sale for $80 at Costco. It was time for an upgrade. Never looked back and worth every penny.

What makes this piece of equipment so special (arguably on the same level as owning a Kitchen Aid stand mixer)? Let me tell you:

• Compact but efficient: this is obviously larger than the small ($20) toaster ovens in the stores but unlike its mini counterpart, this does everything a standard sized oven can.
• Perfect for small projects: Making a couple of slices of garlic buttered bread,? Heating up leftover pizza? Baking a small cake (up to 12")? Roasting chicken? A fast breakfast quiche? Yup, it can do all that and more!
• Saves time: it heats up loads faster than a regular oven because its so small in comparison, I almost never preheat.
• Better temperature control than your standard small counter top toaster ovens 
• Faster baking time and more energy efficient: due to its smaller cavity, heat gets distributed much faster therefore using less baking time and less energy overall.
• Mobile: Of course being a counter top oven, you can pretty much move this to wherever you like. At one point I had this on a table in an empty laundry closet I wasn't using in one of the apartments I was living in. Of course, there was NOTHING flammable in there so it's not as dangerous as that sounds. 
• Includes a few heating options: quick toast, regular oven, convection, and broil.  

Those are just a few positives but don't just take my word for it, here a few more. 
** this is not an endorsement, opinions and purchase are of my own.