Back to Basics Egg & Muffin Toaster really works!

My husband received the Back to Basic Egg & Muffin Toaster from my parents as a gift. Mom and Dad had seen a similar product on an infomercial and thought it was just the thing for Nick, as he is a big breakfast sandwich person. After only using this product for a short time, I am pleased to say it has virtually replaced our regular toaster which was slow and kind of crappy, in addition to performing its various special functions.

Toaster Components
This toaster has an attractive, modern look. It is black with silver accents and looks basically like an extra curvy toaster with small round compartment attached for the non-toasting functions. (See picture above) On the body of the toaster are the usual tools for a toaster including a lever to pop the bread up or down and another to set toasting to either light or dark. There are four other buttons which can be used to set the toaster to prepare toast only, egg only, toast and egg, and cancel.

The round section of the toaster houses a silver heating tray. On top of that can be placed the various tools that come with the toaster, including the warming tray, poaching tray, steamer tray, and lid. A measuring cup is included to help with the egg poaching function.

Toasting Experience
Because I am not a big egg sandwich person, I personally use the toaster mainly for just its regular toasting function. This is accomplished by simply pressing the “toast” button and then using the lever to lower the bread, muffin, etc. I’m pleased to say results are very good. My previous toaster took a looooong time to prepare a darn bagel but this one is much speedier. I have found it works great for bread, English muffins, bagels, poptarts, and toaster strudels. Another positive is that the body of the toaster stays cooler than my old toaster during cooking, which would be great if you have kids.

Egg Experience
The toaster makes poached eggs for use in breakfast sandwiches. It can also be used to for scrambled eggs, which are more to my preference. Steps to use this feature are laid out clearly in the instruction manual. All you have to do is fill the measuring cup with water to either the “soft” or “medium” line, depending how you like your eggs. (Medium seems to help the sandwiches hold together better.) Then you break an egg into the poaching tray and place it on the heat inside the steamer tray. At this point you can scramble the egg if desired.

If you want to add some pre-cooked meat to your sandwich, it can be heated on the Warming tray above where the egg is being poached and the heat will rise up to warm it. This works best with sausage, from our experience. I wish it could actually cook bacon or sausage but I guess that would be a lot to ask.

Does it work together?
YES! By using the Egg/Toast button, the toaster will operate both functions at once. The packaging tells me the product is “ingeniously” designed to time the egg and bread to get done at the same time. This is actually true, which is impressive because there is nothing worse than a warm egg on a cold bagel or muffin. The toaster can make some pretty complicated recipes which are included in the instruction manual including Eggs Benedict, Eggs Florentine, or a Smoked Salmon Bagel.

Cleaning
The toaster and its components clean pretty easy. I was worried the egg would stick to everything but since it comes off in one piece, clean-up is not so bad. It helps that everything come apart. Really only the egg-cooking section of the toaster requires special attention, the toasting part can be cleaned when necessary like any normal toaster.

Overall…
This product is a lot of fun and although it is gimmicky it actually has a lot of uses. The eggs are good, the bread is perfectly toasted, and the whole thing really does work together as promised. Additionally, making your own breakfast sandwiches at home is cheaper and easier than going out to a fast food restaurant. I plan to keep this out on my counter in place of my regular toaster for the indefinite future. This is a great gift for someone who loves breakfast sandwiches.