As Seen On TV

The combination of TV and shopping is a dangerous thing. I always skip past the HSN and QVC channels because I do not trust myself. However, I cannot avoid the infomercials they show on the regular channels, and once I start watching a certain product I get hooked.

The ones that really lure me in are the ones that promise easier methods of cooking since I have very little talent in that area. An added bonus would be if I can just toss this new wonderful item into the dishwasher so I do not have to spend half an hour cleaning up.

I have had a few hits and misses. The first one I ever purchased was the George Foreman Grill. It promised that I would no longer have to cook my meats in a pool of grease. "The patented grooves of the George Foreman Grill carry the run-off grease into a separate tray, leaving you with the best tasting food ever." For a few months there, all we had for dinner was grilled steak, grilled pork chops, grilled fish, carne asada, and pollo asado. My boys begged me to stop.

I recently purchased something which definitely made my life easier when it comes to cooking spaghetti. It is called Pasta n' More. I used to hate cooking the noodles in my huge pot, now I just fill this plastic container with water and throw it in the microwave. Voila, we are now having spaghetti every week! It comes with a little booklet with many other recipes but I am not that adventurous.

My latest purchase was yesterday afternoon as I was killing time before picking up my son. The Perfect Brownie Pan promised to make baking brownies easier!!! NOW I can make 18 perfectly sized, moist and chewy brownies, EACH with PERFECT edges!!! Of course I needed it. I could not wait, I went and bought a box of Betty Crocker brownie mix and proceeded to make them. I probably needed to put them in for a few more minutes since the center pieces were not done and stuck to the dividers. I am not sure though if that was the fault of the product or an indication of my skills. I did not notice that it made my life easier; in fact, I had more to clean up. I could just as easily have taken a knife and sliced them myself. I have not made up my mind about this one.

Then there is the Ultra Smooth Hair Removal & Exfoliator system. It promises to buff away unwanted hair easily. No more waxing, plucking, or messy hair removal products for me, I was finally going to be free! I hated it, it was basically sand paper on a plastic buffing pad with a handle. I could just go to Home Depot and probably get the same results.

I still lust after the Magic Bullet so I can make margaritas easily, the slanket for those cold San Diego winter nights, and the Nu-Wave Oven which combines the power of convection, convention and infrared cooking to allow me to cook everything from frozen dinners, to steak, to a 12-pound turkey in one machine quickly. Of course I would never cook a 12-pound turkey but who really cares?