I don't have any of these in my kitchen, either. However, I do find myself vowing to buy a food processer at least every 3-4 weeks.

Using the oven to make a piece of toast just seems so wasteful

the only thing out of that list i have is a food processor... and that is because i need it to blend my daughters homemade baby food.

I've never owned a food processor, electric can opener or microwave, and only owned a toaster for the last two years. I cook a ton, and don't miss these things at all. They aren't really needed.

While I certainly could get by without a stand mixer (and did for almost 20 years), I must admit to loving my bright yellow KitchenAid as much for its happy presence as a design object as for its ease in making cakes and the like.

When I didn't have a toaster I just made it in a dry frying pan on the stove.

We grew up with a toaster but I hated the way it tasted. My grandma used to butter both sides of the bread then cook it in our cast iron skillet. So much better than gross dry toaster toast!

I've never hand a food processor. My hand blender works awesome.

Same with the stand mixer. I just have a hand one that has been chugging away for 12 years.

Isn't a toaster less wasteful than the oven? We use ours often. We went without a microwave for 6 months after ours broke and eventually caved and bought a new one. It gets a lot of use.

The electric can opener that we received as a wedding present lasted about 7 years before it died. Never replaced it.

Well yes, none of the above are necessities as my mom and generations of cooks ahead of her cooked and baked wonderful meals without those conveniences.

I'd love a toaster only because like an earlier poster, find it wasteful to turn on the oven for a one or two slices of bread. But I don't have enough countertop space so there you have it.

I never felt the need to have an electric can opener either but to each their own.

But, I love my food processor, stand mixer and immersion blender and am very glad I have the room for them in my kitchen. While they aren't a necessity, they certainly make life easier.

I don't own a food processor. I would love one but with my commitment phobia I just can't decide on one. As for other appliances, I have a blender.

As far as efficiency in a small kitchen goes, it comes down to utility. If you use a stand mixer regularly, or a food processor, then more power to you. It's those appliances that take up real estate but only perform a few times a year that ruin a kitchen's functionality.

i'm pretty sure i don't need my toaster, microwave or the electric can opener that already broke.

i can't live without my hand/stand/mixer and the kettle. and the garlic press.

Not really an appliance but I've gotten out of the habit of using our salad spinner. I find it big and unwieldy to store and to wash. It's up in the back of a high shelf and now I hate bringing it down.

I wash my salad greens in a colander, and shake them dry in a dishcloth. If there's time, I stick the bundle, dishcloth and all, into the fridge while I get the rest of the meal together. The greens get really cold and crisp that way.

I don't know anyone with an electric can opener!

I agree with the others--it all comes down to what you use.

I have a tiny kitchen (with only a few feet of counter space), but I have found space for a toaster, a hot water kettle, and a kitchenaid. I don't have a coffee maker, microwave, blender, or food processor (although I am considering getting one of those small ones).

do people really have electric can openers? I've never seen one in my life.

My mini-food processor gets used for at least 1 in 3 meals, so I think it's paying its way. But I don't have a blender.

The purpose of my microwave is to reduce my need for pots and pans. Vegetables go in the microwave with a small amount of water rather than on the stove in a pan. Potatoes ditto.

The microwave also allows me to do some baking in the summer without heating the kitchen, which faces south into the Arizona sun. And I can reheat a meal on a single dish rather than dirtying multiple pans (good for water usage). And it's easier to freeze leftovers or excess ingredients for a lone person if there's a simple and quick way to defrost.

But I don't have a toaster or an electric can opener.

Anyone else feel like this post was a bit more holier-than-thou than we're used to on Apt Therapy?

I have had a series of quite small kitchens, and have made room for 4/5 (well, toaster oven, not a toaster, which gets used more than the regular oven) - and use 3 of those 4 on a daily basis. The KitchenAid is infrequently used, but when it is used, it is worth every inch of counter space it takes up.

What we have long since parted with are the blender and the hand mixer - neither were used much more than once a year, and had functionality duplicated by the workhorses we did keep around.

We live quite happily without a microwave. Once, for a few dismal months, I lived in an apartment with ONLY a microwave. No stove, no oven, no other appliance but a tiny fridge. Cooking was not fun in that kitchen.

We don't have a toaster either. I much prefer toast toasted on only one side under the broiler.

Oh Mason963 -- kitchen appliances can be had for cheap all over the place. So coy of you . . .

Even in a small kitchen, I would not want to live without a food processor. But I do avoid appliances that duplicate processes that can easily happen on the stove, and have returned an electric veggie-steamer, a crock-pot, a rice cooker, electric pop-corn maker, and several others I can't think of right now. But it's all relative -- my friends in Japan couldn't imagine life in their small kitchens without a rice cooker.

@Brixton -- I do feel it is a bit more holier-than-thou, yes.

I think what a cook can and can't live without depends entirely on what they like to prepare and eat. I like my hand mixer, and my mother recently gave me her (very old) food processor. For hummus and pesto, I don't see any other alternative. I don't own an electric can opener (I prefer manual), a microwave (I really don't have counter space for this, nor do I really need it as I have a convection oven) and I don't own a toaster (I'm not much of a toast eater.) It's always good to get back in the kitchen and cook, but if some were denied these modern conveniences, they might cook less. My kitchen is small-ish, but I store all of the items I don't use regularly in a closet.

I use my food processor at least twice a week, so I'm happy with it. I found a miniature but superpowered one on Freecycle.

Also, I make toast on the stove, in a frying pan. It comes out kind of different from using a toaster, but still tasty and fast.

As a vegan who cooks mostly from scratch to keep costs down, I find my food processor and stand mixer so important. How would I make nut butters and cheeses without a processor? And the mixer kneads my bread and seitan for me. Sure, if I bought things like bread and nut butters pre- made I wouldn't need it. But by making the investment in these appliances I save myself money, and also make a more ecologically sound choice.

I have a very small kitchen but I like to bake. I bought the Cuisinart 5.5 qt. stand mixer with the blender & food processor attachments. It's a pretty good compromise and I do use the various attachments pretty frequently. I would rather give up the microwave & toaster.

I have several relatives with arthritic hands who own electric can openers

I'm currently suffering a dearth of kitchen space as well. Although I'd dearly love a stand mixer, my hand-held creamer and my biceps work just as well. I do have a food processor, and it's one of the workhorses of my kitchen; you can have my Cuisinart...when you pry it from my cold dead hands. We had a microwave for a while, but it died back in December, and I've found that I like the extra counter space a whole lot better than the convenience in heating stuff up. I'm considering investing in a toaster oven, though - no central air means that using the oven to heat stuff up is going to get reeeeeally unpleasant as summer moves in.

Also, neither I nor any member of my close family has ever owned an electric can opener. That's just silliness.

Shhh... I really wish you hadn't put it out there that it IS possible to make do without a stand mixer and food processor. :) We're moving soon and have already (I think) overhauled what we keep in the kitchen. But the stand mixer and the food processor stay. We're giving up a microwave AND a dishwasher, so I feel like it's ok to hang on to two of my favorite convenience appliances... We also have a convection toaster oven that makes up for hogging space by the fact that it's so dang efficient.

I've had those teensy kitchens before. I've always chosen to ditch the microwave and toaster, but opted to keep a toaster oven. I like my KitchenAid and use it weekly, but could make do with just a hand held mixer. I wouldn't want to do it by hand, however.

We don't have a microwave, stand mixer or toaster.

But we do have a toaster oven.

Do you know how much energy it takes to turn on the oven and pre-heat it?!?! A toaster or toaster oven is MUCH more efficient.

No electric can opener, either.

"Also, neither I nor any member of my close family has ever owned an electric can opener. That's just silliness."

Well, I used to think the same about jar openers until I met a nice old lady whose hands were crippled with arthritis.

Let us not judge what we don't understand.

We have a food processor and a toaster (boyfriends) and I love them both.

@christinalouise : Not to mention that, at least with my inefficient gas oven, it takes a minimum of 45 minutes to heat up.

I got rid of my microwave last year and don't miss it much. I reheat stuff in the toaster oven or take it to work to use the microwave there. You couldn't pay me enough to get rid of my food processor, though. "We are the only food processor in our home" is such a prissy sentiment. I would love to see the writer laboring for an hour to grind chickpeas for falafel with, like, a Microplane.

I have a stand mixer and a food processor. Both of these I consider indispensable, though I must admit I don't use the stand mixer for baking as much as I used to. I knead all my bread by hand. The mixer is great for complicated cakes and frostings though.

No microwave or toaster. We make toast in a skillet and it's wonderful. We heat up leftovers in various creative ways, including steaming them using one of those double-pot things with a perforated-bottom insert. Works great for things like leftover Chinese or pasta.

I don't think we'll ever buy a microwave or toaster again. We've gone without for five years and we see no reason to go back.

I can't give up my stand mixer! I lusted for one for years and stuggled without it - then again, this is coming from someone that is about to make around a 1000 cookies this weekend for a charity event so I think it is fair to say that it has earned its place in my home! And heaven help me if I have to make royal icing with a stand mixer! Ack!!!!

Looking at the comments its fair to say that everyones 'can/can't do without list' varies depending on dietry habits and space/budget constraints. I didn't have a microwave for most of my life and if someone hadn't given me one I likely still wouldn't. It has its uses but to be honest, I could probably do without it.

Also, as a person who drinks smoothies several times a day my blender is invaluable, then again i have friends who couldn't tell you the last time they touched a blender much less used one.

All in all do we need ANY of the appliances in our kitchen? There is always someone, somewhere doing without and substituting with another, albeit possibly time consuming method. To each his own imo..

saer
http://cravenmaven.wordpress.com

I used to use my oven to toast bread and it was such a pain in the ass, not to mention a huge waste. I generally mix by hand, but if I want to make pesto or meringue... uh...

But I have never owned a microwave and I never feel the need for one.

See the problem with my apartment sans-microwave is that I live in Florida, and turning on the entire oven for two pieces of toast is not only time consuming but will ruin the electric bill when the AC has to kick in to cool the house back down. I have a toaster oven, but its much easier and much faster and much more economical just to put the bread in the damn toaster.

I'm impressed by those who can live without a microwave. I could never. I also couldn't live without my toaster oven and luckily have a little cove on my counter where one fits perfectly and is out of the way.

I lived for years without my food processor and stand mixer and could probably live without them now but they make me happy and certain things are just so much easier with them. I could do without my blender as I rarely use it. My immersion blender does the trick.

I've never had a toaster, but I'm pretty sure that I couldn't live without my toaster oven! When you live in a household of two (like I always have) it's so much more practical than a regular oven for most everything.

If I had to say goodbye to a number of appliances due to space I would be looking to invest in a Thermomix!

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124112844457074685.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/20/magazine/20food_.html

Not that I don't seriously want one anyway but it's hard to justify the crazy steep price when I have space in the basement to stash yogurtmakers and ice cream machines.

I have to disagree with the food processor. I use mine several times a week and there's so much I don't know how I would cook without it -- soups, dips, for example -- and other things that don't REQUIRE a food processor but are made much easier with one -- pastry dough, chopping veggies, shredding cheese. I also have a stand mixer, which is way less of a necessity, but makes it a heck of a lot easier to make pizza dough and anything required stiffly beaten eggs.

We have no toaster or microwave but we got a toaster oven as a wedding gift and now I don't know how I ever lived without it! Living in SoCal with no AC, I use the toaster oven for EVERYTHING during the summer, it keeps the heat in our apartment way down. Fast and easy.

And I do have a hand mixer, but it was a wedding gift to my grandparents over 50 years and I just have to keep using it to see how long it lasts. :)

I really want a food processor, but now that our blender is finally wearing out from daily smoothies I may get one of those combo units.

I have a toaster and a blender - no food processor or mixer. I have to say one of the things I like about cooking is being hands on; stirring, chopping, feeling. My grandmother and uncle were huge influences on me when I was learning to cook and everything was by feel, you know, "about this much" flour, "until it feels like this".

I am sure that I could live without them all except for the hand mixer. I just can't imagine creaming butter and sugar by hand.
My toaster mainly sits in a cabinet but that's because I don't each much toast. The food processor and hand mixer probably come out a couple times a week. I don't see the point of an electric can opener - how hard is it to open a can?? And there are just things that are so much faster to do with the microwave - heat milk and water for drinks, blanch almonds, melt cheese on top of things, melt butter for a recipe, etc. I know I can do all of these things with the oven and stove, but I am not about to give up my microwave.

Regarding the wastefulness of using the oven for toast...

...make toast under the broiler. Takes 2 minutes on each side, the whole shebang is over in five. :-)

I agree with everything but the toaster. Not that I use mine very often, but heating up the whole damn oven just for a piece or two of toast is a huge waste of energy.

Stand mixer I completely agree with, although if you're doing a lot of complicated baking that requires beating tons of egg whites or mixing up lots of frostings, it is indispensable. I get along just fine with a hand mixer, though I haven't always had one. I agree that creaming sugar and butter is a pain in the ass.

I also heat up lots of leftovers in the microwave, since my boyfriend and I both work full time so I cook in bulk and eat leftovers all week. That being said, I could probably use the oven or a small pot on the stove more often. Our microwave DOES take up a ton of space in our teensy kitchen.

My microwave died on me in my previous apartment, never got around to replacing it and have now since moved and never bothered to get another one.

I pretty much agree with everything, including having an immersion blender. I love it!

It's true, I only use the microwave to warm up the odd cookie now and then or a cup of tea. It also works great as a timer.

I lived without a toaster for a while and it sucked.

I would love to have a stand mixer, but I don't have the space nor the money for one. There's a reason why doing it by hand often results in better products; it's because you're not over mixing it or mixing it so fast that the crumb becomes coarse! But still, if you had all day to bake something, working by hand is fine, but if you don't have any days off, you don't exactly have an extra half hour to sit around trying to knead bread dough or whip egg whites with a whisk.

Hand mixers are unpleasant because sometimes their "low" setting is too damn fast!

I don't eat much bread lately but I'm thinking of getting a toaster oven; my oven takes a long time to pre-heat and it seems wasteful for small jobs. A toaster oven would let me do small baking/toasting jobs plus the occasional toast plus warming some foods up more efficiently.

I unplugged the toaster before going on a trip a month ago and it's still not plugged in, so I can definitely live without it! The rice cooker always gets plugged back within a week.

I gave away my food processor recently, though that was made easier by the fact that my immersion blender has a small food processor attachment. It is MUCH easier to clean than the food processor was, so it's perfect. It also has a hand mixer attachment. On the other hand, I made pesto with a knife today, so I use the immersion blender for its primary use a lot more than I use the extra attachments.

If I baked all the time I would consider a stand mixer, but I don't.

I'm working on being more microwave free, but I do still like it for reheating some foods, and it's very good for if I forgot to cook rice or bake tubers for a meal (an all-too-common problem!) the quick fix there is to either use the microwave to reheat some frozen rice, or to pop a sweet potato in for a few minutes. When I'm actually on top of my planning I thaw things slowly in the fridge ahead of time, and re-heat on the stovetop or in a low oven, but rice dries out using those methods unless I use a steamer, which is fussier than just popping it into the microwave.

Personally, I disagree with some of these appliances I can't live without! I don't have a food processor, and I'm ok with that, but I can see where some people would have trouble existing without one. I do have a little food chopper that somebody gave me as a gift, and I have used it to make pesto before. It's really small, though, so it doesn't take up a lot of space. I don't have an electric can opener, but my mom does for some reason. It's really cool, but I am fine with a regular can opener.

I have a microwave, but I can't say I use it very often. It doesn't take up any counter space, though, because it's an over the stove microwave and a convection oven. I use it to melt butter, cheese, etc... a lot and warm up leftovers. I use the one at work daily, though, to warm up leftovers for lunch. I don't have a toaster anymore, but I have a toaster oven and I love it. I use it all the time instead of my oven, especially in the summer when I don't want to heat up the house to warm up pizza or something. I use it to warm up toast or whatever for breakfast a lot too. Seems wasteful to turn on the oven to warm up toast, and it really doesn't take up much space since it sits in the corner.

I have both a hand mixer and a stand mixer. I use the hand mixer fairly often, especially when I'm mixing up something difficult like fruit dip. I just got my stand mixer, though, and it was a really good deal ($25 from a friend) that I couldn't pass up. It doesn't sit on the counter, though, and I'd love to use it more. I need to start doing more baking, which is something I wanted to do anyway.

I saw somebody who said they got rid of their Crock Pot. That is one appliance I could never get rid of! So convenient and uses just a small amount of energy to cook! I love it! Something else I could never get rid of? My iced tea maker. LOL. A girl's gotta have her sweet tea!

Clearly, as many have stated, this is all depends on your specific lifestyle. That said, how does one make fluffy buttercream frostings without either a stand or hand-held mixer? Sure, I could live without such luxuries-- but I'd rather not. I see nothing wrong with embracing modern technology when it makes sense. I CAN and DO do without a dishwasher (but that doesn't mean I wouldn't like one some day).

You can live without pretty much any appliance, but not having a food processor makes certain types of food preparation a real hardship. I make my own unsweetened applesauce (used in baking low-fat recipes, which are necessary for my husband's diet due to health problems). With a microwave to cook it and a food processor to puree it, it's quick and easy. Doing all of this the long way would have me buying some pre-made crap. I'm not even sure one could smoothly crush cooked apple with a fork or masher for sauce, but I have no interest in trying to find out.

I think the thing most people can live without but seem not to believe is a rice cooker. Rice is incredibly simple to make and not much effort at all, but most people never learn the simple steps to perfect rice (rinse, measure, heat, cover, cook, turn off the heat, allow to rest). It's little different from using a cooker in every way except twiddling the knobs on the front of your stove.

I only have a hand mixer. I don't use it often, but am very glad to have it when it comes to whipped cream and egg whites. I make toast under the broiler and in the summer wish I had a toaster, but hate having things sit out on the counter taking up space and hiding dust and crumbs.

Oh yeah! I don't use nor do I want an electric coffee maker. Instead I have a lovely French press that tucks away in the cabinet when not in use.

this discussion has made me so hungry for toast. gonna go toast it up in my toaster right now!

No food processor? No standing mixer? I couldn't do it.

I've never understood the need people seem to have for completely clear counters. Yes it can be irritating to have to move a mixer when it's in your way. but I'd find it a whole lot more irritating to have to beat egg whites for 20 minutes to make meringue. I have a postage stamp sized kitchen with almost no counter space whatsoever. Yet I happily coexist with a microwave, stand mixer, coffee maker, toaster oven, crock pot, blender, collection of cookbooks, & a big bowl of fruit on my counter at all times. If I need more space I move something.

P.S. I could do without the microwave but my cooking phobic roommate might starve.

I thought that I couldn't live without any of these (microwave, stand mixer, toaster, blender, dishwasher, crock pot, rice cooker) until I moved from the U.S. to France and had to give up all of my awesome kitchen electrics. Our new kitchen is tiny and has only a two burner electric stove and a nice convection oven w/ broiler.

I cook and bake daily and have managed to make everything from sponge cake to puréed pumpkin soup to homemade mayonnaise with hand tools and my own steam. Yes, creaming butter & sugar can suck - especially in winter when the butter will just not soften b/c it's too cold inside the apartment!

However, I do think that it's made me a better cook and baker to learn to do things a bit more slowly - I have a much better sense of exactly when egg whites are where I want them to be, for example. I'm also more efficient and plan my projects out more carefully - using less dishes/pots & pans, pre-prepping EVERYTHING, and being very thoughtful about waste. Also, with the cost of electricity here, doing things manually means more € for fun ingredients.

I do think the the immersion blender will be added soon (to supplement the work of the hand cranked passoire) and eventually a very expensive Kitchen Aid stand mixer (b/c we're going to do more dinner parties and I want to get the pasta and meat grinder attachments)

Three years ago, my hand mixer died (dramatically, in smoke and flames) while I was whipping cream. After 20 minutes of trying to whisk it by hand without much noticeable difference in thickness, my boyfriend and I discovered that the mixer's whisk attachment fit his electric drill quite handily...

I don't really see the need for a hand mixer AND a stand mixer, but no one is taking away the stand mixer I got after that incident! (The drill only worked with the whisk. :P) I could get along without my microwave, which lives on top of the fridge so doesn't take up my valuable counter space, but the stand mixer and a mini food processor get far too much use (i.e., one or the other gets used daily) for me to give either up willingly, even though I have to move them back and forth from a storage shelf.

It's definitely very much about what your personal space situation and cooking style is.

Cool. I keep the microwave on top of the fridge, where it is at the perfect height and also covers a cabinet that I can't reach but that I use for deep storage. I've never used or cared for any of the other stuff, EXCEPT my toaster which I absolutely can not live without having exactly where it is -- on the counter next to the stove so that my bread pops right in and out just in time to receive the tastey serving coming off the grill.

@ reclamationdesign:Ditto! (and you just gave me the idea to move my toaster oven, thanks!) I use my toaster oven more than my actual oven. Its easy when you're single : )
I also have a microwave, mostly for reheating leftovers, but have decided not to replace it once it goes ka-put.

I remember having an electric can opener when I was little and I never understood it! timesaver for large family meals?Such a hassle to take it out of the cabinet, plug, unplug, put away just to make a tuna sandwich. I remember thinking we live in CA-earthquake town, and most of the emergency food is in cans. WTH are we gonna do if electricity is out? Moms! get a manual can opener!!

There are some dishes that you can't make, or at least you can't make well without a food processor or a hand mixer.

For example, using pre-ground cumin rather than freshly ground cumin seed will make your curry and similar dishes less fragrant.

A food processor is already replacing a unitasker appliance, a spice grinder.

Three hand surgeries: yes, I use an electric can opener.
Shoulder surgery: yes, I use a hand mixer and an Oster (heavy duty stand mixer and food processor).
Toaster: yes, used every day by husband.
Microwave: yes, used every day. Heats/reheats food; makes popcorn for snacks; cooks my hummingbird food faster than stove top; drys my catnip for my houseful of cats much faster than air drying; melts butter quickly for popcorn or recipes; good place to store bread to keep away from cats; heats water for tea or hot cocoa; heats syrup so pancakes don't get cold. In short, I'd give up television before I gave up my microwave!

1. Even the smallest of kitchens can fit more than you might think.
2. This post is much too holier-than-thou in my opinion, as said above. It's important to know that we can live without our "necessities" but living without them doesn't make anyone better than anyone else. Different people obviously find different things necessary (or just very helpful).
3. As far as usefulness goes, my microwave and electric skillet were invaluable for the 6 weeks when my building had no gas.

My husband and I are serious cooks (he does it for a living), and we have an itty bitty kitchen in a studio apartment.

Instead of a full sized or even half sized oven, we bought a (cheap!) Cuisinart countertop oven. It is only a bit bigger than a toaster, costs less than $200, has convection settings as well as regular bake, toast, and broil, and is lined with brick for excellent pizza, bread, and pie baking. It can hold a pie or a whole chicken, no problem. It's only a bummer when it comes to baking big batches of cookies, but we've managed to throw dinner parties with no problem.

Not using up all that under-counter space with a full sized oven also means we have extra shelving and storage, which is key in this tiny room.

And even though our counter space is limited, I won't part with my stand mixer. It's a big, bright Cobalt blue KitchenAid which ads to--not detracts from--the look of the space. And it makes ice cream. 'Nuff said.

VanBC, as a 25-year-old who's had to start taking pantothenic acid and glucosamine/chondroitin supplements every day, alas, I understand all too well. I just try not to think about it too hard. Maybe if I apply enough force of will, I'll never need to invest in anything more than a non-electric can opener.

I've never had an electric can opener, so I'm with you on that one, but I would miss every single other appliance on this list.

I think a lot of readers of this blog have to balance food and its preparation with LIFE. We all can't afford to beat egg whites into stiff peaks or chop everything by hand.

I completely dissagree about the toaster - I couldn't live w/o one - why use the extra energy and heat up the house in the sumer when you don't have to - I love my Oster convection oven, it cooks better and quicker than my reg oven. This is the one I have and would highly recommend http://bit.ly/aOGO1q

I couldn't live without my toaster oven. I use it every day. I wouldn't use one of those pop up toasters, though. Also there are certain leftovers that are hard to reheat without a microwave, or reheat strange. Plus the oven can take a long time to heat up enough to reheat my taco truck burrito whereas the microwave makes quick work out of it. Plus you use less when you use the microwave. No pots or pans to clean. Which means you can have less of other things if you don't have much room.
I inherited a kitchen aid stand mixer and I love it. If I had to keep it in the bathroom I would. It brings me such joy. Sure, I don't need it. But I don't think that makes it any less worthy.
What I don't use is my regular blender. I do have an immersion blender that has a tiny cup that attaches to it. It's perfect for a single serving of smoothie or milkshake. I use it to make hummus. Anything bigger I can blend in the pot. It fits in a drawer.
I could do without my coffee maker. A french press or small espresso kettle would be fine, as I learned since our coffee pot broke last month. I don't drink much coffee, though.

I lusted for a stand mixer for years, and now that I have one, don't use it nearly as much as I had anticipated. Because of our small kitchen I have to lug it out of the garage each time, which may have something to do with it.

We got a food processor for our wedding, but for the same reason I won't take it out of the box till we move to our new home. I don't think I'd use it all the time, but maybe I avoid recipes involving shredded things (cole slaw, carrot cake). I mostly miss it when I'm making squash muffins and zucchini bread, for which, in the mean time...

I LOVE using my Mini-Prep food processor. If you can tolerate doing a million batches, you can make full-sized recipes, and it's genius for hummus and pesto and Thai curry bases. Mine is still going strong after 20 years - until last week I learned that the container part is not microwaveable. (Fortunately it came with two!)

I also have been using my blender a ton for smoothies and soups, but I go through dust-collecting phases with it, too.

I make toast in the oven by sticking it under the broiler and turning. You're not really heating the oven because you're in and out in a minute or two.

We have just got our food processor out of storage and use it daily for chopping veggies for our raw-food dog (nightmare without this). We have a blender which is viatl for margaritas :-) Toaster because all English people have one, plus who wants to let the grill heat up for ten mins when the toaster takes 2 mins. Microwave mostly for re-heating and thawing stuff but used a lot. Wouldn't cross my mind to have an electric can opener, I thought those died in the power-gadget-crazy 80's? I also have a hand mixer but lust after a stand mixer...maybe one day!

I have a tiny kitchen! I mean my small storage closet is larger than my kitchen, and yet I have a food processor, stand mixer, toaster oven, and a few other small appliances that make my life much easier. I am a pastry chef and I have to say that a stand mixer is much easier and faster than mixing cake batter, cookie dough, bread dough, macaron batter, buttercreams, everything by hand. I can't imagine doing a last-minute cake for a friend and having to take a day to do it. Not worth it to me. Though I use my food processor less, it still saves me time. Instead of cutting butter into dry ingredients by hand, or making pesto by hand, it takes a few seconds. My tiny space gets hot in the summer and a toaster oven makes toast, and warms up leftovers as well as cooks smaller items. I don't have a microwave, I pop popcorn on the stove. Everything else I warm on the stovetop or in the toaster oven.

I'm glad that many people can get by without a lot of appliances. But don't come between me and my KitchenAid. You'll be sorry!

After our toaster broke, I realised 4 things, 1) couldn't find a replacement i liked, 2) the freed up kitchen bench space was wonderful, 3) its nice not to clean up crumbs and see insects attracted to stray crumbs and 4) We can totally live without this appliance. And in the event that I am desperately craving toast, the griller is turned on.