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My Mum's got a big thing for kitchen appliances. Actually, she's obsessed. When she's not out buying multiple Cuisinart coffee makers at a time to see which model she prefers, she's on the hunt for the next big thing that will make her time in the kitchen — and believe me, she spends a lot of time in the kitchen — more effective and efficient. So really, when she got online researching the greatest toaster in the world, it's no surprise she came across Costco's fantastic assortment of Dualit products and found the Dualit NewGen classic toaster (among other things which I'll get to momentarily).

Certainly more compact than our previous toasters have been (President's Choice Full Choice 2-Slice and Cusiniart's Metal Classic), the Dualit NewGen classic toaster measures in at only 26 cm x 21 cm x 22 cm. It's supposedly the most fabulous toaster around in terms of design and functionality. Always a skeptic first, I was hesitant to believe the little polished toaster with its double dials and little lever would do more than sit on our counter and look good. However, as she quite often does, Mum has proved me wrong. Retailing for more than $300 at Bradshaw's in Stratford, Mum did some digging and found the appliance at Costco for under $250. And can it toast to perfection? You bet! Even from frozen. With its extra-wide 28 mm slots and ProHeat covered elements, Dualit's classic toaster can take even a bagel from frozen and toast it that beautiful brown. There's a mechanical timer that ticks (darling, really) and rings when your toast is finished (very British). It even has a defrost timer for people who keep their breads, bagels, and buns frozen until prep time. The selector control allows you the option of selecting how many toast slots you need at a time, and heats accordingly. The manual lever lets you check your toast as often as you like, and even keeps it warm after toasting until you need it. The Dualit Classic Toaster has won several awards, including the 2008 Good Housekeeping Design Superstar Consumer Award. As if its functionality isn't enough, this baby is available in 13 fashionable colours like chilli pink and utility cream.

In addition to her toaster purchase, Mum took the opportunity to sweep up the Dualit hand blender, hand mixer, and the mini oven. And the great giver that she is, Mummy has decided the Dualit hand blender would be perfect for me in my forthcoming culinary escapades. (Perhaps she thought I needed a little inspiration to get cooking?). From what I can see (I haven't used it just yet, but will certainly post pics when I do), the hand blender looks fantastic. It comes with interchangeable blades, beaters, and a balloon whisk, as well as two containers — a plastic one for puréed ingredients; a stainless steel container for blended items — and is available in four colours (I have it in polished stainless).

For those of you reading who aren't familiar with Dualit, the company was started by Max Gort-Barten in 1946. Still made in the UK, Dualit products are the highest quality and have won several awards.

_{More on the Dualit NewGen Classic Toaster here.}

_{More on the Dualit Hand Blender here.}