When I was a little girl my favorite toy was a kitchen (hold back the shocked look from your face). It was shaped like different animals (the fridge was in the shape of a penguin and so on). It was outside near my sandbox and I played with it for hours until the sun faded it away to nothing. So it should come as no surprise that my second favorite toy of all time was the Easy-Bake Oven. Oh the fun of mixing up the little packet (that cost an arm and a leg and I would have to beg my mother to get me more). Then putting it in the little pan. Pushing it into the oven with the funny little tool(pan pusher) it came with. And then watching it rise as it baked. I stood so close to that thing, I probably fried a few brain cells (I will go with that, clearly all the beer I drink wasn't the cause...it's that darn Easy-Bake Oven from my childhood). I bring this up because the inventor (Ronald Howes) of the Easy Bake died last week. Given the fact that my love of baking started with his little … [Read more...]