THE ELECTRIC KITCHEN
Cut costs, speed cooking by using small appliances
We're always looking for ways to save energy, money or time -- or better yet, all three. When it comes to energy, we recommend using small appliances such as microwave ovens, toaster ovens, slow cookers and crockpots when cooking small quantities.
Cooking a small meal in a typical toaster oven will cost about half the amount of cooking that same meal in a conventional electric oven. And using a toaster oven instead of your full-size oven will keep your kitchen cooler, too.
So we were interested to hear of a toaster oven that can "cook toast and frozen pizza up to 40 percent faster than conventional toaster ovens." We tested Panasonic's Flash Express toaster oven (available at Marukai and Shirokiya), which uses infrared light and is supposed to provide almost instant heating, eliminating the need for preheating.
The cube-shaped gadget, which looks like something you'd find in the Jetsons' kitchen, made beautiful toast, although no faster than our conventional toaster oven. But this little wonder worked miracles when it came to baking frozen pizza -- we never knew frozen pizza could taste so good. A 9-inch thin-crust pizza cooked to perfection in nine minutes. The crust was crisp and light, and the cheese and toppings were cooked just right. The same pizza took 12 minutes in a full-size oven (it couldn't fit in our conventional toaster oven), and we could never get the crust to yield the same crispness and lightness.
This prompted us to test other recipes, and the results were consistent -- on average, the Flash Express oven cooked 25 to 50 percent faster than a full-size oven or conventional toaster oven.
Another energy and time saver is the convection toaster oven, which uses a small fan to circulate hot air in the oven. Foods cook more evenly and quickly -- about 30 percent faster than conventional ovens.
This recipe is perfect for a snack or light meal. If you're having a party, you can lay out a variety of toppings and have each guest build their own pizza.
Tortilla Crust Pizza
2 tablespoons pizza sauce, or spaghetti sauce, or pesto
6 tablespoons shredded mozzarella or Italian-blend cheese
1 soft taco (6-inch size) wheat tortilla
» Optional toppings:
Thinly sliced pepperoni
Thinly sliced salami
Thinly sliced mushrooms
Sliced olives
Julienned bell peppers (red, yellow, orange or green)
Thinly sliced tomatoes or oil-packed sun dried tomatoes
Spread sauce over tortilla, sprinkle with cheese. Add toppings, being careful not to put too many or the tortilla won't support the weight. Bake (see notes) directly on oven rack until cheese is melted and toppings are cooked. Serves 1.
Note: If using the Panasonic Flash Express toaster oven, no preheating is needed. Bake at 355 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes. If using a conventional toaster oven, preheat to 350 degrees and bake pizza 12 minutes.
Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (not including salt to taste or toppings): 200 calories, 8 g total fat, 4.5 g saturated fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 550 mg sodium, 24 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 0 g sugar, 14 g protein
Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (with 2 tablespoon each optional ingredients): 300 calories, 16 g total fat, 8 g saturated fat, 50 mg cholesterol, 950 mg sodium, 26 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 3 g sugar, 18 g protein
Mini Meat Loaves
3 slices soft bread
1 cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1/4 cup minced onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon EACH pepper, dry mustard, garlic salt, ground sage (optional), celery salt (optional)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1-1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound pork sausage
Tear bread into pieces and place in large mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients except meats. Mix well and let sit about 10 minutes, allowing bread to absorb liquid and soften.
Use fork to break bread into finer pieces. Add ground beef and sausage. Mix thoroughly, but do not overmix, as overhandling will toughen the meatloaf. Form 6 loaves, 1-inch thick. Bake (see notes) until done (an instant-read thermometer should read 165 degrees, the meatloaf should not be pink in center and juices should have no pink color). Serves 6.
Notes: If using the Panasonic Flash Express toaster oven, bake at 355 degrees for about 30 minutes. If using a conventional toaster oven, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake about 45 minutes.
Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (not including salt to taste): 420 calories, 26 g total fat, 9 g saturated fat, 145 mg cholesterol, 900 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, no fiber, 6 g sugar, 32 g protein
Hawaiian Electric Co. presents this weekly collection of recipes as a public service. Many are drawn from HECO's database of recipes, accessible online at
www.heco.com.