My Easy-Bake Oven, the awkward, oval shaped, purple lump, which sat on a small table no higher than my waist as an eight year-old, brings back all the old tastes, smells, and memories of my childhood. The oven undoubtedly made the best tasting brownies in the world. My elementary school self would come home everyday from school, excited to test out the next recipe I had in store. Somehow, only half of whatever I was cooking was left to bake by the time I was done mixing it up: courtesy of my hungry little fingers which, over and over, couldn’t resist just one small taste! Not only did I bake these creations for my own enjoyment, but, of course, they had to be shared with all of my stuffed animals and family. My mom, whether pretending or not, surely made it seem like she enjoyed the Easy-Bake Oven food that had been touched repeatedly by my grimy little fingers! Surprisingly, these ovens, introduced long before my childhood(back in the 1960s) have been a staple in the toy industry for generations. The idea behind the Easy-Bake Oven was to give children a safe heat source with which to to create their own sweet treats without the need for a real oven. For the time that I owned my Easy-Bake, I made some soggy bite sized pizzas, underbaked little muffins, and (somehow) crispy cookies, which could all be easily prepared just by adding water or milk. While I didn’t always produce the highest quality gourmet food, my practice with the Easy-Bake Oven surely helped make me into the amazing baker I am today!
