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We all know what a toaster is and what it does.
It toasts bread, plain and simple, and does so arguably better than a toaster oven.
If you want to buy a compact toaster that won’t take too much counter space in your small kitchen or office, I am going to help you choose the best small toaster on the market today.
- 👛 The Budget Pick: Oster 2-Slice Compact Toaster
- ⭐ The Performance Pick: Breville Smart Toaster
- The Even Cheaper Pick: Cuisinart CPT-122
- The Stainless Steel Pick: Cuisinart CPT-160P1
- The Digital Pick: Cuisinart CPT-240
Compact Toaster Features
These are the basic features I expect the contender for the best toaster to have.
I only consider models that check the following boxes:
- Footprint that is compact and does not take up limited space
- Toasting that is quick and reliable
- Ability to toast bread, thick bagel halves and pastries like pancakes or English delectable muffins, including special options and slots wide enough
- Defrost and Reheat settings
- Shade settings to make your bread light or dark enough by applying different levels of heat
- Naturally, common features like a high-lift carriage, a slide-out crumb tray and a Cancel button
My Recommendation, Based on Your Budget
Having decided on the features, there are two main choices that people make based on their budget preferences: there is the “lean and mean” crowd and the “buy-it-for-life” crowd.
Based on your preference, I recommend either:
The Budget Pick: Oster 2-Slice Toaster
- ADVANCED TOAST TECHNOLOGY: Designed with Advanced Toast Technology and auto-adjusting bread guides for consistent, even toasting, every time
- EXTRA-WIDE SLOTS: Made with 2 extra-wide slots to easily accommodate a variety of bread types, from bagels to artisanal breads
- 7 SHADE SETTINGS: Features 7 toast shade presets from light to dark, to make it easy to customize your toasted bread just the way you like it
- CUSTOMIZABLE TOASTING TIMES: Bagel, Frozen and Pastry settings automatically adjust toasting times, for perfectly toasted results
- LIFT LEVER: Integrated high-rise lever lifts toast out for easy retrieval
This is the compact toaster if you’re looking for the best combination of price, reliability and consistency.
Your bread will come out quickly, it will be evenly brown, and it looks great on the kitchen counter.
Plus, Oster is a reputable brand and this model has been praised by reviewers.
Pros
- Quick and even toasting
- Handsome exterior
Cons
- Outside may get hot
- When using the Bagel setting, one side of the bagel does not get toasted at all. Use the Toast setting instead
The Performance Pick: Breville BTA820XL Die-Cast 2-Slice Smart Toaster
- The Breville 2-Slice Smart Toaster is a compact toaster that lets you feel in control; One touch automation lets you monitor your toast's progress using "Lift & Look" and add extra time using " A Bit...
- INNOVATIVE FEATURES: 'Lift & Look' and 'A Bit More' allow you to check on your toast or add a little extra time without interrupting the toasting cycle; The bagel function ensures even heat for even...
- 2 SLICE CAPACITY: The toaster features a 2 slice capacity and has wider slots to meet the demands of larger artisanal bread, thick bagels and dense pastries
- VARIABLE BROWNING CONTROL: The Breville Smart Toaster 2-slice lets you toast to your ideal brownness level and monitor your progress with the LED indicator so you know how much longer the toasting...
- AUTOMATIC CONTROL WITH AUTO LIFT & LOOK: At the touch of a button, your bread can be automatically lowered into the toaster, lifted during the toasting cycle to monitor progress and lifted at the end...
This is the Lamborghini of compact toasters.
You will love the advanced features like the ‘lift and look’, the slide bar to set the brown level, the flashing LED bar count down, and the ‘a bit more’ button.
You can adjust the beep volume, brown it a bit more with just one touch — the works.
And it will toast your bread, and it will be even, quick, brown and delicious — the perfect toast.
Pros
- Excellent toasting
- Brilliant smart features
Cons
- Comparatively pricy
Three Extra Choices
Now, having made my main two recommendations, I will include three that are also interesting for those that do not like the first two for some reason.
Main thing that sets apart the next three is their controls and design.
The Even Cheaper Pick: Cuisinart CPT-122 2-Slice Compact Plastic Toaster
- FUNCTIONS: This compact toaster is able to fit comfortably on your countertops while toasting bagels, toast and a preheat, defrost and cancel option
- CAPACITY: Has 2 1.5-inch wide toasting slots for a wide variety of sizes
- MUST-HAVE FEATURES: The 7-setting shade dial gives you control over the toasting shade and the slide-out crumb tray makes clean up easy
- PERFORMANCE: Whether you want a thick toasted bagel to snack on, toaster pastries, or thin sliced bread for a healthy twist on croutons, the wide slots and high-lift carriage make it easy to toast...
- LIMITED 3-YEAR WARRANTY: Refer to user manual for troubleshooting steps and questions surrounding warranty policies – this product is BPA free
This small toaster is pretty good, and has the lowest price among those that I recommend.
I do not recommend going lower – you will regret it.
If you decide on this one, it will be quick and good enough, but be prepared for the brown to be uneven sometimes and the “dark” setting to be too light, perhaps that’s the fault of the heating elements.
But it’s pretty good and easy on the wallet — something that you would buy for the office perhaps.
Pros
- Quick toasting
Cons
- Toasting uneven and too light
- Simple design and plastic exterior
- When using the Bagel setting, one side of the bagel does not get toasted at all. Use the Toast setting instead
The Stainless Steel Pick: Cuisinart CPT-160P1
- FUNCTIONAL: This compact toaster is able to fit comfortably on your countertops while toasting bagels, toast and a preheat, defrost and cancel option
- CAPACITY: Has 2 1.5-inch wide toasting slots for a wide variety of sizes
- CUSTOM CONTROL: The 6-setting shade dials, reheat, defrost and bagel buttons with LED indicators
- MUST-HAVE FEATURES: Has an extra-lift carriage lever with slide-out crumb also comes with convenient cord wrap and instructional booklet
- LIMITED 3-YEAR WARRANTY: Refer to user manual for troubleshooting steps and questions surrounding warranty policies – this product is BPA free
This is the Cuisinart CPT-122’s older brother.
It is more durable-looking than the previous (plastic) one with a great stainless steel design and some retro vibes.
Otherwise, it’s largely the same as CPT-122, except for the body.
Pros
- Quick toasting
- Steel frame with retro vibes
Cons
- Toasting uneven and too light
- When using the Bagel setting, one side of the bagel does not get toasted at all. Use the Toast setting instead
The All-Digital Pick: Cuisinart CPT-420
- Stainless-steel housing with a motorized lift. BPA free
- Lcd countdown feature with a blue backlit led function display, Voltage: 120V
- Enhanced bagel toasting with cancel, defrost and reheat options
- Easy cord wrap for minimal use of your counter space
- Toaster comes with a 3 year limited warranty
This is the last of the Cuisinart trio.
Featuring the same trusty innards (and the same faults) as the previous two, this small toaster looks more modern with an LCD display and all-digital controls.
Pros
- Quick toasting
- Steel frame with a more modern look
Cons
- Toasting uneven and too light
- When using the Bagel setting, one side of the bagel does not get toasted at all. Use the Toast setting instead
This is it!
You won’t need to look for any other compact toasters anymore.
I hope I was able to help.
Cheers,
G.
Recreating the Famous Winco Blueberry Muffin Mix
Equipment
Ingredients
- 150 grams caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 400 g blueberries
- 325 gram flour
- 120 gram whole yogurt
- 120 grams of milk
- 1/2 Vanilla berry
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate
Instructions
- Combine one egg and 150 grams of caster sugar, whisking until they’re light and fluffy.
- Combine all the dry ingredients like flour, vanilla seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. Stir the liquid mixture into these dry ingredients until even, adding enough water to make the right consistency.
- Combine the blueberries with this mixture. You can use frozen blueberries but don’t let them defrost; otherwise, you will have a purple dough.
- Avoid overmixing. The mixture should have some lumps in it.
- Coat the muffin tins with cooking spray. Place a clean paper muffin cup in each muffin pan hole and use a spoon to add batter to each of the cups. Fill each muffin cup ¾ of the way full.
- Now the batter is ready for the oven. Bake in preheated oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (204 degrees Celsius) for 15 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown on top and cooked well all the way through.
- Cool on a wire rack after removing them from the pan and enjoy. This recipe yields about 12 muffins.