The George Foreman Contact Roaster.

(This is a Daily Bread post. Again.)

My dad and step-mum got me one of these for Christmas. I used it for the first time on Sunday, and I am very pleased to report that it is utter class.

I roast a small boneless joint of pork in it. The device doesn't have a temperature setting, worryingly. You just turn it on, wait a mere five minutes for it to preheat, put a joint of meat in it, set the timer (it seems to take the same roasting times as a normal oven), and leave it. Being me, I poured a bit of liquid over the meat a couple of times, but I can't help but feel that my actions were entirely superfluous. When it had finished, it beeped. I took the pork out, and it was absolutely perfect. Simple and amazing.

The joint I roast was about a kilo, and I reckon George's machine could take about double that. It was a rindless joint, so I have no idea how the thing would perform on crackling. Possibly not that well, since it doesn't have the option of varying the temperature.

Apparently, it can also be used for rice puddings and such things, using a non-stick baking dish which slots into it. The instruction book came with a recipe for baked chocolate custard, which I certainly intend to try.

OK, so I've only used the thing once, but the first impression is that this is one amazing machine. I shall report back on further experiments with it.