To say family life is hectic would be an understatement. So when we can get a little help to make our day-to-day lives run just a little more smoothly, it can make all the difference. This is especially true when it comes to cooking. We strive to ensure our family gets healthy and tasty meals but who wants to spend hours in the kitchen to achieve it? That’s why at PLN we love our useful kitchen gadgets that help get the job done efficiently, so we’re sharing our must-have items that make our lives easier in the kitchen.

Breakfast

We all want our family to have a nutritious meal before starting their day, so why not have some handy devices in your kitchen to help you make a wholesome breakfast. Our copywriter Jennifer loves using her Cuisinart 5-in-1 Griddler to make pancakes for her son and daughter (their favourites are apple cinnamon or blueberry). It heats up evenly to make perfect pancakes every time in just minutes. Our copywriter Melissa enjoys using her Keurig to make instant oatmeal for her girls (yes, it can be more than just a coffee maker!) for a quick and easy breakfast before heading to school.

As for us parents who need a caffeine boost to start their day, when it comes to making an amazing cup of coffee the Melitta Pour Over Brewer is where it’s at (just ask our blog coordinator Aneta). And when it comes to having a nice hot cup of tea our PLN director Kim swears by this electric kettle with temperature control and a keep warm feature that maintains the temperature for hours. No more reheating your tea or coffee in the microwave!

Lunch

Soup is a great lunch menu item; it’s easy to make, and if you prepare large batches you can get more than one meal for your family. A good kitchen tool to have for making awesome soups is the KitchenAid immersion blender, which our editor Jes also found useful for preparing homemade baby food. It blends all those healthy ingredients in a pinch and with little effort. Plus it doesn’t take up much space in your cupboard. If a light lunch is on the menu, try making a delicious veggie dip using this mini electric chopper and food processor. Our chief content officer Joanna loves how efficient it is and that it’s so much easier to clean than a blender.

Dinner

When it comes to feeding picky eaters the best, and most effective, way to sneak in those vegetables is with a food processor. Our campaign content coordinator Jessi can attest to that. She’s found using her KitchenAid 7-cup food processor to be a lifesaver for hiding veggies in pasta sauce. Jennifer can also vouch for this as she has done the same for her son, who is oblivious to the fact that his favourite meatballs are packed full of spinach, zucchini, red pepper, and carrots. And the best part? With just the push of a button, all of the ingredients are blended well together. Yep, a food processor is the best friend to every picky eater’s mom!

Want to make a pot roast, stew, chili or chicken and not have to spend hours in the kitchen preparing it? Aneta recommends using the Breville Fast Slow Pro Multi-Cooker. With its various cooking options, you will love the versatility this small appliance has to offer, not to mention the delicious meals that will come from it.

Wouldn’t you love to serve some fresh-from-the-oven bread to accompany those pasta sauces or stews? Well, with the Le Creuset French Oven you can do just that. Our account manager Sakura raved about how good bread turns out from this enameled cast iron round casserole-style dish. It could be just like dining at a restaurant. Don’t you just love when the server brings out warm bread to go with your meal?

So if you think having healthy, tasty, restaurant-quality homemade meals for your family is out of the question, think again. With the right kitchen gadgets, you can have yummy, nourishing food without spending too much time preparing it.

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