Popular Mechanics: Home Improvement

Counter Intelligence

By Roy Berendsohn

Fountain of Juice

Can fresh juice help you look and feel younger? That’s a bit beyond our ability to answer. But, we can say with some confidence that the Juice Fountain(Fig. 1) seems well equipped to extract juice from fruit and vegetables with no preparation beyond washing them. Hamilton Beach says you just dump in your produce, and the machine’s 600-watt motor goes to work. Its feed chute is nearly 3 in. wide, so you can fit the big stuff in easily. It costs about $200 at department stores and at www.hamiltonbeach.com.

In the same vein, this unique appliance is designed to cook a tortilla in 15 seconds flat, you might say. It is called the Flatbread Meal Maker Express(Fig. 2), and it has a covered griddle for making or heating fillings and a 9-inch diameter bread press with a removable paddle. It costs about $130 (online only) at the Hamilton Beach Web site.

Finally, if you’re looking for a reasonably priced but powerful blender, consider the $80 Power Elite Blender(Fig. 3) with a 450-watt motor, 18 speeds and a 50-ounce glass jar. The appliance is equipped with a locking collar that firmly seats the jar for hands-free blending and secure storage. It’s sold at department stores and appliance retailers.

For more information, contact Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex Inc., 4421 Waterfront Dr., Glen Allen, VA 23060.

Hot or Not

One way to know if your grill has reached its optimum temperature is if it tells you. Built into one of the handles on this combination grill/griddle is an indicator light that says "grill okay" when the grill has reached the best temperature for searing meat. Both the grill and griddle measure 10 1/4 x 14 3/4 inch, and each has a nonstick surface and is dishwasher-safe. One cooking surface stores in a slot in the appliance's base while the other is in use. When using the grill, fats and juices drain into a water-filled drip tray that is designed to prevent flare-ups and smoking. It’s called the Multi-Grill Store Away(Fig. 5), and costs about $90 at appliance stores and department stores. Contact T-Fal, 25 Riverside Dr., Pine Brook, NJ 07058.

Four Slices, No Waiting

The DeLonghi RT400(Fig. 4) reminds us of an earlier time when even a toaster was worthy of careful design and good construction. This four-slice appliance has two dial-operated browning adjustments, and each pair of toasting slots can be independently operated. Two large slots on one side of the appliance are intended for bagels and thick bread, while the other slots are for standard-size bread. All the slots empty into a slide-out crumb tray. The pushbutton controls next to the browning-control dials provide a shortcut to defrosting frozen bread. It’s a powerful appliance, too: 1,600 watts. It costs about $80 at appliance dealers and department stores. Contact DeLonghi America, Park 80 W., Plaza One, Saddle Brook, NJ 07663; 800-322-3848.

Good Coffee

There’s nothing like a good, hot cup of coffee. If you agree, consider KitchenAid's Pro 10 (10-cup) coffeemaker(Fig. 6), a $130 appliance with dual heating elements. One element heats water to just under boiling—the optimum coffeemaking temperature, the company says. The other element maintains the coffee at the ideal temperature for up to 2 hours—then it shuts off automatically. It also has a charcoal water filter and a "pause and pour" feature.

If you’d rather have a cold drink, consider KitchenAid's Professional Blender(Fig. 8) ($150). It has a 40-ounce stainless steel carafe and a motor that is supposed to have enough torque to crush ice at any speed. And it has five to choose from: stir, chop, mix, puree and liquefy.

Speaking of power, no KitchenAid coverage would be complete without mention of recent modifications to the company’s stand mixer(Fig. 7)—an appliance introduced in 1919 and still going strong. It’s the only countertop appliance we know of that can double as a mortar mixer. Seriously, the company beefed up its Professional model by equipping it with a 525-watt motor and a 6-quart bowl. The 10-speed machine comes with a dough hook, a wire whip and a pouring shield (just in case you need to mix some stucco). It costs $430. All three KitchenAid appliances are sold at department stores and specialty appliance retailers. Contact KitchenAid, 750 Monte Rd., Benton Harbor, MI 49022.

Chop Shop

We tried this little chopper(Fig. 9), and we think that for $20 to $25 you can’t buy a more versatile appliance. It chops, minces and blends with two speed buttons at the top of its mouse-shaped motor head. It consists of four easy-to-clean pieces: a nonslip rubber base, a 2-cup plastic bowl, a stainless steel knife and the motor head. It disassembles in seconds.

The Quick ’N Easy Food Processor(Fig. 10) makes short work of fruit, vegetables, cheese and coconut with three speed settings (high, low and pulse) and a continuous-flow chute that sends whatever has been sliced, chopped or shredded into a serving bowl. When you remove the slide-in baffle that sends food to the chute, it operates like a standard food processor. It costs $30 to $40.

Both appliances are sold at department stores and discount retailers. Contact Black & Decker, Applica Consumer Products, 6 Armstrong Rd., Shelton, CT 06484; 800-231-9786.

A Toast: Here’s Two Good Appliances

The Cuisinart CPT-70(Fig. 12) is an old-fashioned chrome-plated, two-slice toaster with modern convenience features, such as controls for reheating and defrosting bread, and an LED display that shows at a glance which function is operating. Both toaster slots are wide enough to handle a bagel, and there’s extra travel built into the bread lift to make it easier to get your toast out. Another feature we like is its cancel control that lets you interrupt the toast cycle. The CPT-70 costs about $70.

We don’t think coffee gets any fresher than this. Place beans in the Cuisinart DGB-300’s bin(Fig. 11), and pour water into its reservoir. Then, grind the beans, and brew anywhere from one to 10 cups of coffee. The manufacturer says the appliance's airtight lid helps to keep the coffee tasting fresh, and the "keep warm" temperature control is adjustable, so you decide how hot to keep the coffee.

Both appliances are sold at department stores, appliance stores and specialty appliance retailers. Contact Conair Corp., 1 Cummings Point Rd., Stamford, CT 06904.

Go for a Spin

If you are among those who feel that making and eating pizza should be considered the new national pastime, then you should take a look at this appliance: a rotating pizza baker called Pizzazz(Fig. 13). It consists of a motorized 13 1/4-inch diameter nonstick pizza pan that rotates between two heating elements: one element is inside the cantilevered head and the other is in the base. Use the switch on top of the appliance to energize either of the two elements, or both, then set the oven’s timer. The timer signals when the pizza is ready, and the whole thing shuts off automatically. It costs about $120 at appliance stores and department stores. Contact National Presto Industries Inc., 3925 N. Hastings Way, Eau Claire, WI 54703.

Two for a Tight Fit

Sharp calls this appliance the Half Pint(Fig. 15) and with good reason. The $100 micro-wave measures roughly 14 inch on each side, and its turntable is 10 3/4 inch in diameter. Like larger competing products, the 600-watt appliance has got the bells and whistles that many people expect from a modern microwave: settings for popcorn, baked potato, reheating pizza and frozen food. Its acrylic interior is lighted.

The Teba Mini Kitchen(Fig. 14) is a 120-volt rotisserie, convection oven and two-burner cooktop in a $250 appliance that weighs only 53 pounds. We’re not kidding. Inside, the top and bottom bake elements are 475 watts each. The low-broil setting is 475 watts and the high-broil setting is 950 watts.

Both appliances are sold at www.compact appliance.com. For information, write to P.O. Box 29240, Austin, TX 78755, or call 800-297-6076.

Photos

1)Hamilton Beach Juice Fountain 2)Hamilton Beach Flatbread Meal Maker Express 3)Hamilton Beach Power Elite Blender 4)Delonghi RT400 5)Multi-Grill Store Away 6)Kitchenaid Pro 10 7)Kitchenaid Professional Stand Mixer 8)Kitchenaid Professional Blender 9)Black & Decker Food Chopper 10)Black & Decker Quick 'N Easy Food Processor 11)Cuisinart DGB-300 12)Cuisinart CPT-70   13)Pizzazz Rotating Pizza Baker 14)Teba Mini Kitchen 15)Sharp Half Pint Microwave Oven

Copyright © Popular Mechanics 2001. Reprinted by permission.

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