Whether you're a frequent cook or a wine aficionado, there's a kitchen countertop appliance to fit your lifestyle and interests. Browse these photos for ideas.
Not just for frozen margaritas, a high-powered blender can reduce whole fruits into delicious smoothies, whole veggies into nutritious soup, and can crush ice into fluffy snow for sweet, syrupy cones. Product shown: Ninja NJ600 Professional Blender
Slow & Easy
Great for stews, one-pot meals, and pot-luck dinners, the trusty crockpot still is as valuable as ever. Look for models with removable stoneware inserts that can go from appliance, to backyard barbecue, to dishwasher. Product shown: 6-Quart Crock-Pot® Cook Carry
Bake Me a Cake
Baking cupcakes for a crowd? Preparing bread dough from scratch? Everything is easier with a stand mixer. And unlike a hand mixer, a sturdy stand mixer gives the home cook the freedom to multitask. Product shown: KitchenAid® 5-Quart Stand Mixer
The 'House' in Coffeehouse
Gone are the days of hissing steam, replaced by fully automatic espresso machines that grind, tamp and brew for you. Plus, unlike some machines that make only one cup at a time, this model brews a continuous stream. Product shown: Breville® Barista Express Automatic Espresso Machine
'Good Morning!'
For quality and ease of use, a programmable coffee maker is tough to beat. Set it at night and wake to freshly ground, brewed and stored drip coffee. The thermal carafe keeps coffee hot for hours without the need for a hotplate, which tends to scorch the brew. Product shown: Cuisinart® Grind & Brew Automatic Coffee Maker
It Slices, It Dices...
For what seems like forever, Cuisinart has owned the food processor category of countertop appliances. And apart from an updated body design, little else has changed. Indispensible for all matter of kitchen tasks, the food processor makes quick work of slicing, chopping, blending, pureeing, and kneading. Product shown: Cuisinart® 11-Cup Food Processor
More Than an Oversize Toaster
If your kitchen has the countertop space to spare, a good convection-powered toaster oven is more than a luxury. Fully preheated in about five minutes, the oven can bake cookies, cakes, pizza and pies without heating up the entire kitchen. Product shown: Breville® The Smart Oven Convection Toaster Oven
This Round's on Me
For true oenophiles, a great wine preservation system is much more than a gadget. This unit not only maintains proper temps for three separate bottles – red or white – it also dispenses and preserves the wine, allowing an open bottle to stay fresh for over a week. We'll drink to that. Product shown: Skybar Wine Preservation System
Fill, Fizz, Flavor
Home soda makers turn out fresh-made flavored sodas with far less additives than mass-marketed products. The non-electric appliance uses refillable carbon dioxide canisters that make 60 liters of fizzy beverage. Product shown: SodaStream Soda Maker
