Expanding Possibilities with Countertop Cooking

Jennifer Ottowitz: Welcome to OIB-TAC’s monthly webinars, where our presenters share valuable information and helpful resources to support professionals working with older adults who are blind or vision impaired. Let's check out this month's webinar.

Susan Dalton: In the past several years I've had the opportunity to observe many VRT interns at various locations, such as the VA blind centers private and state agencies.

And in many instances, we're finding that clients have been exceptionally motivated when learning how to use some of the newer, smaller appliances. As opposed to the sometimes daunting task of using the typical kitchen stovetop and oven. These people have really gotten excited about cooking. So in this presentation, we're going to address some options for using countertop appliances when teaching cooking skills primarily to older adults.

But these could be adapted just as well for young students and people of all abilities. When you think about it, you may not have. Access to a full kitchen, you know, during training. Also your client truly may not need a full size appliances to meet their needs. And then lastly, your learners might have additional physical limitations that make using the stove and oven challenging or nearly impossible.

Why not use your time more effectively by teaching basic skills on some of the current countertop appliances? Then in this webinar we're going to help you get on top of this topic by learning some training considerations by identifying ways to incorporate the use of countertop appliances into the instruction of cooking skills.

Also some options by analyzing appliance options that may be appropriate for teaching novice or experienced cooks, and then planning the teaching experience as well as the lessons. So as we all know, the ability to prepare food, it's an important daily living skill. Food and eating are basic essentials for our lives.

And for the newly visually impaired person, preparing food is a big step towards self-efficacy. And for the experienced cook, sometimes by returning or restoring the skill, it can really help to rebuild their self-image. The food preparation really ranges on a continuum from simple to complex. So, you know, it can be as simple as opening packages and cans and pouring liquids.

Then going on to mixing, then chopping, cutting, and then eventually into using appliances. So let's go into some considerations. When we get to the point of using appliances for food preparation, we really need to ask ourselves this question. Does the individual need to use a full-size oven and stove to meet their needs?

We need to consider their individual preferences, their abilities, and living situation is really going to dictate their need. Their lifestyle. How much cooking do they prefer to do in a week? Also, how many people do they need to cook for? What type of food do they want to cook and are there any other additional disabilities, either physical or sensory or cognitive?

So what do you think, you know, is one of the biggest challenges of cooking with limited vision? This is cooking, meaning using a heat source. And I'm going to just jump on to the next slide, and we'll, I'll give you some of the answers people have given. So some of the challenges might be determining doneness.

Also safety, burns and fires, turning and flipping setting or maintaining temperature, aligning pots and pans on the stove top, and inserting or removing items from the oven. And now I'm going to turn it over to Jennifer to talk about some more challenges.

Jennifer Ottowitz: Hi, everybody. So just some more challenges related to using the stovetop would be physical contact with the heat source.

So if you're using a flat top stovetop or even an electric stovetop with the coil burners, it's not just the actual burner, but the rest of the stovetop too, that can become very heated. And so having a concern or even a fear about contact with those surfaces. Is a challenge dropping food on the heat source.

You know, what happens when the pot boils over or, or food gets flung out as you're stirring. And, you know, so dropping that food is a concern splattering from frying foods. Just the sound alone can be very intimidating and scary, but then you have the issue of actually getting splattered. Bladder with hot grease as it pops, and it comes in contact with your skin.

That's a concern. And then, of course, if you are working with a gas stove top, the open flame is a concern. So, when it comes to the oven, some challenges are contact with air. All the parts of the oven, the hot parts of the oven. So it's not just the racks inside the oven, but the sides and the top and bottom, the door the, you know, sides, top and bottom around the opening of the oven that people may be a little concerned or fearful about coming in contact with.

Bending to insert and remove food from the oven. That can be an issue for some people as can inserting and removing a retrieving bakeware, you know, sometimes those pans, those casserole pans get very heavy and because of the way that is, you know, safest to insert and remove food. It could be a little awkward for some people and balance issues can come into play.

Also related to balance is the issue of falling into the oven space, and this often happens when someone is standing in front of the oven door and leaning in to put food in. And, of course, you know, a lot of these concerns, a lot of these challenges can be overcome by learning adaptive techniques, but a lot of times people may not even just do it.

They may not even want to bother with having to learn those skills if they don't have to, because they really don't want to use the appliances because of those concerns.

So, let's talk a little bit about countertop appliances and the options. One wonderful thing. About countertop appliances is that the workspace is smaller. So instead of you know, being spread out in several different areas around the kitchen, you're really focused in 1 area. Your food prep area is more concentrated.

There's energy conservation because you're not having to walk 3 different locations across the kitchen and it's a lot easier for cleaning to there are, they're usually simpler to. Handle and generally easier to clean.

When it comes to considering small appliances, here are some cautionary questions to ask beforehand. And these are questions that you can have your consumers, your clients ask, but do I need to purchase something new or do I already have something in my kitchen? That'll basically do the same thing. So, is this really a necessity?

That's something to think about and sometimes you may have an item in your kitchen, but for various reasons, it may not be the best option for you to use that item. So, taking into account what they have already in the home can come into play for sure. Is the cost of purchasing this appliance going to be worth it for me personally?

Is it going to save me time? Is it going to be easier for me? And then just a couple of notes about purchasing these appliances. You may encourage your consumers to check out a resale shop and look at purchasing a used model. Especially if this is something new, and they're not sure if they want to invest a lot of money in it at this point.

Now, paying for small appliances is an allowable expense from RSA with OIB funding. Best practices say that, you know, it's best to purchase devices that promote the safety, health, and independence of the individual. But, your agency, local and private state agencies may have other policies in place policies that may specify approved vendors and may make purchasing small appliances something that is not.

Able to do in your particular program, and it also could be a situation where the individual already has a small appliance at home, and they really just want to be able to use it. Now that they have limited vision, or a friend or family member may have an extra. appliance lying around their home that they're willing to give to your consumer or purchase for them.

And then of course the individual could purchase it for themselves as well. Does the appliance have more than one use? That's another cautionary question. A lot of times you may want something that's a multi-tasker and going to be able to give you more bang for your buck with all of the different things that it can do rather than something that's just good for one task.

And am I getting it just because it's the latest sexy thing on the market? So a lot of appliances have come and gone over the years. They, they are very trendy for a while and then kind of go by the wayside. If you may maybe remember the food dehydrator that was going to save all kinds of space in your home by having you dehydrate.

All your food rotisserie cookers, right? Countertop rotisserie cookers, even bread makers used to be really fashionable, right? Really popular. And now not so much. So are you getting these appliances just because you've seen them on TV? Is it really something that can be useful? So, now I'm going to turn it over to Sue, and she's going to present you with 5 small appliances that are most commonly used today.

And she's going to demonstrate them. She's going to also talk about their pros, their cons, features to consider that are important to consider. Easier or less confusing for people who are blind or may have low vision and then also talk about suggestions for how to. Adapt the appliances, so they're easier to use.

So I'm going to turn it over to Sue.

Susan Dalton: Okay, thank you. All right. So just in general, I want to go through two important points. Number one is just safety first. So for all countertop appliances, you don't want to place them in close proximity to any hot gas or electric stove burner or a heated oven. You don't want to use them near water or flame.

And you always want to make sure to have a clear area which to work, keeping the cords as short as possible away from the work area. And then secondly, just some considerations if you're purchasing a new appliance. Number one, if at all possible, get your hands on it before buying. You know, you really want to see the features, check it out, you know, make sure that you can get it to work.

You want to know if the controls or other features are accessible. If not, can they be adapted with tactile markings or enlarged print or using sounds or clicks? And then be sure to just look for any other potential safety issues with the operation of the various models available. Okay, so now what I'm going to do, we're going to turn off the PowerPoint and I'm going to take you through my kitchen.

This is my personal cooking lab, and I'll take you through some appliances that we have here and point out some of the features of them that you might want to pay attention to. So please excuse my motion here while I get things set up.

Okay, the first appliance we're going to talk about is the toaster oven. Given its name It's no surprise that people might put the emphasis on toast when thinking about the toaster oven. But these days is the countertop appliance gets smarter and better, you really should be thinking more about the oven part.

Okay, but even if you have an older model, there's still ways to maximize this versatile appliance. And here are some of the strategies for using it. It can be used for reheating. It can be your go to for heating a variety of leftovers. The big advantage of the toaster oven, it heats quickly, it preheats it quickly.

It usually takes about four minutes to get to 350 degrees, when a regular full-size oven is about 12 minutes. It gives crisp results where the microwave might turn things soggy, such as pizza, fries, or thin breaded chicken. Also for broiling, the short distance the energy has to travel between the element and the food means not much of it will be lost in the air.

Also, it's easier to keep an eye on food before it gets too dark because you're closer to the window. And also you can even do like broiled s'mores and no campfires required. It can be used for baking small casseroles, baked goods, muffins, cookies. You can even stash some cookie dough in the freezer and bake only a few at a time and throw them in the toaster oven.

So the convection feature, too, in a toaster oven helps cookies bake faster and more evenly. Now, for the new cook, or person with limited physical abilities, it's simpler to insert and remove items, easier to clean, and it's faster. The cost for toaster ovens can range from about $35 to $150 for larger, and up to $300 for fancier models.

Some of the adaptations you can do are maybe tactile markings or dots, or using the clicks or dial positions. And that would be one way to access it. Jennifer, did you want to just mention any disadvantages of a toaster oven?

Jennifer Ottowitz: Sure. As great as all these small appliances are, they all have some, some disadvantages too, with the toaster ovens.

They may not cook as evenly at times. So for some items, there may be some uneven cooking and their small size can limit what you can't put into them as well. So, all right. Okay. Tell us tell us some more, Sue.

Susan Dalton: Okay. So with the toaster ovens, I happen to have three different models here in my kitchen to show you.

So, these are here so I can show you some of the features you might be looking for when you're considering one for yourself or for your clients. Okay, so now this first one I have here, this is a, a Black and Decker. It's one of the older models of toaster oven, but it's really a really good appliance. I like it because it's got a nice grip on the handle to open.

When you open the door, it's got a feature. It's got these hooks that actually grab onto the tray. So it pulls the tray out and it locks it in position. So I don't have to worry about reaching my hand inside the oven to get the food because these hooks wring it out. So it's a really nice feature that way.

The controls on this one are pretty good too. The only adaptations I've done to this is put some high marks on some of the dials. Tactile marking, it's, it's in a, you know, like using the clock positions. You can do the temperature. To do the functions, it's got a nice click for each one. There's only four options.

So it's either keep warm, I turn it to bake, broil, or toast. Only four options and it, you know, it's easy to know those positions. And then also it's got a timer that's a dial. I can turn the timer to the various positions on the clock and then use that so it's really easy to use and easy to adapt. Let's move on to the next one.

Okay, our next toaster oven. This is a Cuisinart. It's a very fairly nice oven. It's got a nice handle to open, but watch this. So when I open this particular toaster oven, it's got a tray inside, but I have to actually reach inside. And, and this one, the tray is so close to the bottom of the oven that you really have a good chance of, you know, getting burnt on the bottom.

And then also when you pull it out, it's got no stopper, it could, you know, could easily come out at you. Okay, so that's my criticism of that, of the oven part. The controls on this one, if you could design a control panel that's probably the worst for people with vision issues, this is probably it. It's got a blue screen, an LED screen for the selector.

And to choose whatever mode you want for cooking, you turn the dial. And the dial has very little tactile sensation to it. It kind of jumps from toast to bagel to bake to broil. And you can go up and down the list and it keeps spinning. So it keeps going on and on in a loop and you can have no idea, you know, what selection is on the same with the temperature.

You have to, it, it doesn't have a set you know, I don't know, a set position. It does the one good thing. I think when you get to the temperature, if you eventually get it on bake, it does go to 350 and you can go on that way. So. In general, this one, I, I just don't recommend because of those features that are really, really challenging to adapt in any way.

Okay, now, here's for the big, the Cadillac model, okay? This is a Hamilton Beach talking toaster oven. Now, who wouldn't want to get that? Like a family, like their old grandma would love that talking toaster oven because it talks and she's having trouble seeing. So, I guess it could be okay. This is really nice.

It's kind of large. What's nice about this one. It's got two trays. It's got a decent distance between the trays and the bottom surface. So the chances of burning are a little less than the other oven, but I want you to listen to this. So it's talking and it's got just a few controls. So it's only got 10 choices of buttons.

It's mode, temperature, time, start and stop and then volume. Well, let's start with the volume. I want to hear this oven talk. So here we go. Okay. So it says volume level five, but I want it louder.

Whoops. Okay. So eight is the highest. We're going to leave it on high. Okay. Now if I want to do the mode, I'm going to press the mode button. That's very, it's on the top. Okay. So I can bake. Broil. Timer. Warm. Toast. And Toast. Bake. Okay, so those are fairly simple. Okay, but now I want to set the temperature.

Okay, I want to set my temperature to 350 degrees. Let's get started. Here we go. Temperature. Okay, 200. I want to go.

Oh, it's going slow. Okay, so I can't stand to wait. I'm going to just keep pressing the button really fast. Okay, it doesn't move. It will not move up or down until it finishes the statement. So it could take you a minute and a half to get to your desired temperature. Same with the timer, at least it doesn't, it doesn't seem to take as long as the temperature, but the speech on it for me, it's just way too slow and you know, I'm, I'm not happy about that.

So if you tend to be more patient, maybe this is a good oven for you, but this is $499. You could buy five of the Black Decker ovens for the price of this one. So the person really just needs to decide what works for them. Okay, so next, we're traveling through my kitchen. We're going to move on to another appliance. Let me get it lined up.

Okay, our next appliance is a countertop grill. These are great because they can be used to grill meats, make sandwiches, paninis, quesadillas, french fries. It heats up quickly by using electricity and it has a more even heat surface. It's easy to clean. You open it up, and the trays come out. They're easily removable. You can wash them.

And then also it fits into a small space. And it's healthier cooking by allowing the fats to drip into the tray. For a new or compromised cook, it's really good because it has no turning or flipping. And this particular model even has an automatic sensor for doneness. So that's another thing they don't have to worry about.

As I mentioned, it's fast and easy to clean and maintain. An inexpensive one, George Foreman Grill might be about $39, Cuisinart about $100 plus. This one is a T Fall Opti Grill XL and it ranges from about $179. But I was able to get this at a retailer at the Goodwill store, so I got it for only $20. So anyhow to some of the features to look for for visually impaired, you want to look for tactile or contrasting selector buttons and let me demonstrate this one.

It's this one's really nice for particularly for low vision people. All of the selections. They are raised buttons so you can feel them, but I'm turning it on. It's got lights that go along and it kind of walks you through the process. So I have on and it's telling me now I need to select what kind of grilling mode I want.

So I'm going to say chicken. Okay, so I want chicken. Then it's walking me through the okay lights flashing so I can press okay and then Also, as it warms up and it proceeds through the cooking process, there's a light that changes colors as it moves along. So it starts out with one color. As the item gets cooked further on, it changes to the color you wish and lets you know when it's ready.

When it's finished, I'm going to turn it off. Some adaptations you can do for this. What I did is I made a template. So I have a picture of the grill with the control panel, and I made raised markings on each of the controls and then wrote a template. Indicating what each of the controls means, you know, like burger, sandwich, chicken, things like that.

And then I also made indicator of the colors of the heat dial to tell you what the the colors mean. So this was a way to adapt the countertop grill. Jennifer, what are some other things you want to say about the countertop grill? Sure. Well, that

Jennifer Ottowitz: that lovely drip tray can be a little bit messy to deal with sometimes.

And also, I have a really old model. I got as a wedding present, and it does not have the removable cooking grates. So if you are working with a model that the grates are not removable, it is a little more challenging to clean than if the grates were removable. Also, depending on the size of the grill, sometimes you may have to cook multiple items, one at a time, because the cooking surface is only so big.

And then there is still a danger of hot surfaces. So even though it's wonderful, because as the food is cooking, it's all enclosed that the outer part of the grill. Of the, you know, it still gets a little bit hot. You want, definitely want to be cautious whenever you're working around it and definitely use oven mitts when you're opening it closing it again, things like that.

So, all right. What’s next, Sue?

Susan Dalton: Hey, on to my Instant Pot. Now, instant pots are multitasking devices designed to make one's life a whole lot easier. The Instant Pot, and this is the particular brand, it's the most popular. It's an electric pressure cooker, steamer, rice cooker, yogurt maker, sauté pan, and has a whole bunch of pre-programmed settings meant for the cooks who want to set it and forget it.

Some of the advantages. Quick cook times are thanks to its pressure-cooking function, which locks steam created by liquid and building pressure and pushing steam back into the food. The Instant Pot eliminates safety concerns due to pressure with the lid that locks, for example, and it stays locked until the pressure is released.

So what can you cook in here? A hearty meal for a whole family in less than 30 minutes. Rice and chicken, beef stew, chili, whole roasted chicken, all these can cook between 30 and 60 minutes from start to finish. And you can even bake bread in the Instant Pot. Some of the cautions. You always need to add at least a half cup of liquid.

Pressure cooking requires liquid to build pressure in the pot. You can also safely cook food from a frozen state where sometimes traditional cooking methods take too long to heat the protein and too much time in a dangerous temperature zone. You can convert slow cooker recipes. Suddenly an eight-hour recipe can be made in about an hour.

But you do need to get to know the real cooking times. This was something I had to really learn. Let's say you set the Instant Pot to pressure mode for 30 minutes. That time doesn't actually start until the pressure builds, which often takes about 10 minutes. And then you also want to add about 10 to 15 minutes for the pressure to release.

So in the end, a 30 minute recipe can take about 50 to 60 minutes. Now what's good about this for new or compromised cooks is everything goes in one place. There's no need to time or to check for doneness. The cost, a small Instant Pot, you know, maybe a three quarter is about $70. The larger then tends to be more expensive.

But there are even some cheaper models, like a Magic Chef is about $59. Visually impaired features to look for. If at all possible, find tactile sensor keys. This one has kind of raised bumps for all of the buttons. But you notice there are several buttons to choose from. So my suggestion is to find the ones that the person uses most cancel on off or slow cook, maybe mark those with some type of tactile marking.

But also what I did for the Instant Pot, I made a template again. So I have a picture of the control panel. I put raised dots on each indicator button and put a larger print and then also did braille markings on the template.

Okay, Jennifer, What do you think?

Jennifer Ottowitz: All right. Well, just another note about the control panels is that sometimes, you know, buttons on the control panel can have multiple functions, right? So you press it once, it means one thing, and then you're in a different mode or different area, and you press it again, it means something different.

So whenever you're looking for options you want to look for buttons or control panels where each button has one function, if at all possible. With the Insta Pots they can be very heavy. And so, depending on if you're going to have them on your countertop all the time, you know, if you are, that's great.

If you're not, it may be a little cumbersome to move them on and off and they can be bulky to store, as well. It can be used with a smartphone. There are different models that can be used with a smartphone. So you just want to make sure also that the individual that you're working with is has the skills to be able to use that app to control the functions using their phone, as well.

And as Sue mentioned, I mean, with the large amounts of food that can be prepared, it's really great if you're cooking for multiple people. If it's just you by yourself, just know that you'll probably end up with a lot of leftovers. So, all right, Sue, you have something else for us to check out.

Susan Dalton: This is my new favorite thing in the whole world, the air fryer. So the function of the air fryer, it's similar to a convection oven, but the air fryer can bake and roast dishes. But its design facilitates faster and more even cooking for extra crisp results. It's made with a heat mechanism and a fan built on the top.

The air fryer appliance heats up quickly and has rapid circulation of hot air that cooks food in the metal frying basket, which is below. Okay, almost any solid food that would normally be deep fried or baked can be cooked up in the air fryer. Frozen products like chicken nuggets, mozzarella sticks, and french fries perform perfectly or you can even toss in whole steaks or chicken wings. But as long as the air fryer isn't overcrowded, the dish will result in a crunchy, almost deep fried texture due to the concentrated heat source.

Some of the advantages of the air fryer. It's big appeal is that it creates a very crisp texture with minimal oil. making it a healthy alternative to traditional deep frying. With an air fryer, simply tossing ingredients in a few teaspoons of oil or even skipping the oil all together with some recipes it sorry my phone was ringing.

Okay, it results in a delectably crunchy dish but with significantly less fat and calories. Now for the new cook, it's really good. It's an enclosed unit. It stays essentially cool on the outside. It avoids you working over a flame and also, you know, like a burner in the oven. And it's really easy to clean.

In a slight way, you can pick out the tray. This can all be washed and then just insert it back in again. The cost. Now if you're deciding to buy consider, first of all, how many people you usually cook for. How much counter space you're willing to give up and your budget. So the ones I found were between $64 to $299.

Some of the things to look for. Knob controls tend to be the best. Or digital controls where each button has a specific purpose, rather than toggling between several options. And if you look at this one, this is a Bella Air Fryer. It's only got two controls. It's got the temperature on the top, which is a dial and I took some high marks or tactile marking and marked various temperatures on there and I put a bump dot on the dial.

And then the bottom, the bottom control is the timer. Once again, I just put a bump dot on the indicator and then it's you know, you can set the time according to the position of the timer. So it's really simple to operate. Jennifer, any additions?

Jennifer Ottowitz: Yeah. So as Sue mentioned they can be really great, but you do have to watch the amount of food that you do put into them.

If you do overcrowd them, sometimes you do not get the texture of food that you want. I happened to me, I got really rubbery chicken wings because definitely overcrowded the basket. And if you are going to be cooking larger amounts of food, you may need to get a larger. basket, one that has a larger basket or a larger model because the smaller ones do only cook a specific amount at once.

But this option could be good if you're the only person that you're cooking for, but again, you've also got options if you are cooking for others as well. So becoming really, really popular even there are things like parchment paper that is specifically designed to put in the air fryer. So becoming again, a really popular option out there, but it has a lot of benefits for the cook who is visually impaired. All right. So I think you've got one more for us.

Susan Dalton: Okay, we're spinning around to another section here. Let's see. Okay this is a super blender. You know, nothing, nothing too advanced here, but the particular one I have is a Nutribullet. And what's good about it, it can blend smoothies, shakes, sauces, even soups and grains. The advantages, it's really a good way to incorporate fresh vegetables and fruit into the diet.

I often like to use it to put in some vegetables that I don't particularly love, but I know they're good for me so I can mix them up into a smoothie and I'll never taste it. Anyhow, it's really fast and easy food preparation and simple to operate. For the new cook, it's really a way to encourage healthy eating.

You get instant results, and it's easy to use and a quick cleanup. The costs of these types of blenders, they can range from about $39 to $250 and up, depending on the power and features. VI, if features are visually impaired, you may want to look for tactile push button controls, or the less complicated, and simpler the better. And to adapt it, maybe you could use tactical markings if needed.

What's so cool about my Nutribullet is it doesn't have any buttons. All I do is put the ingredients in the cup, screw on the blade section, and I put it into the blender. I push down and turn it. And it instantly starts up and blends my, whatever I'm going to put together in, you know, in about 30 seconds at a time.

So it's just really handy that way. Jennifer, what about your thoughts?

Jennifer Ottowitz: Sure. Well, as handy as it is, it really is, it does have some more limited uses than some of the other appliances. It also can be a little loud to use whenever you are blending. And it can be difficult for people with, some of the models can be difficult for people with arthritis or who have limited grasping ability. So, all right, I think you have some more to share.

Susan Dalton: Okay, so the last one I wanted to show you is a combination cooker. Now several manufacturers now have combination cookers that bring together the toaster oven, steam cooking and air fryer all in one. And this could really be a possible option for someone who has limited space in their kitchen.

And it also might work well for someone who has the potential to put together entire meals in one device and has a desire for all of these appliances in their kitchen. The one I have here to show you is a Ninja combi all in one multi cooker oven and air fryer. What's nice about it is a simple switch flips the unit from a combination cooker, the oven and steam, to the air fryer and stove pot's top mode.

This also, the combi cooker function helps cook faster than an oven. And it's good for three-part meals, whole roast, fresh and frozen proteins, root vegetables. and no drain pasta and rice and even bread making. And I'll open this up to show you some of the features. So if I use the top tray, this is the part for the air fryer.

So if I was doing any kind of meat or things like that or protein I'd put on the top and then at the same time you can cook on the bottom dish and that would cook like your pasta or rice and you can put them in at the same time. Let's see. So the air fryer and stovetop mode is used for the traditional baking like cookies and brownies or used like a stove for sautéing veggies or slow cooking chilies and stews.

This is also great for frozen snacks again like chicken nuggets, mozzarella sticks. Now the cost for this combo unit, it ranges from about $179 to $299. So it could be for some person, it might be a better buy economically than purchasing a toaster oven, a multi cooker and an air fryer. But Jennifer, what's your take?

Jennifer Ottowitz: Sure. So on the other hand, you know, if this appliance fails, or if it's ever in need of some kind of repair, you're going to be out your kitchen is going to be absent from having those appliances, or perhaps your ability to use those appliances if they actually do exist in your kitchen. So it is kind of that. Yeah, if it's out, then you're without all of those cooking options.

So, all right. Well, thank you, Sue. Okay, but we're going to talk about planning instruction. So, whenever you are teaching someone how to use these small appliances, you want to proceed from simple to complex. So, you may start with something like, just, you cooking something frozen that doesn't require any other preparation, but to put it into the appliance and cook it and then move to something more complex where you're having to prepare the ingredients that go in to the unit.

You want to break up more complex tasks into smaller units of instruction. And this might be where you're making a vegetable soup in the Instant Pot, and you're chopping up all the vegetables first. That could be the first part of the lesson. Then taking a break, teaching about the appliance kind of showing the characteristics all the features where the handles and the buttons and everything are.

And then, as the final step in the lesson work on actually putting everything together to use the device to prepare the food. And this kind of, you know, process will create a simpler, more effective and successful learning and instructional experience for both you and the person that you're, you're working with.

And it can also lead to more rewarding and successful outcomes too. You want to design lessons to meet the client's goals. And their goals should be relevant to their to their needs, to their abilities, and to their preferences. Now, I will say that sometimes some agencies will get that, you know, they get so excited about these appliances that everybody's going to get a grill.

Everybody's going to get an Insta Pot, but you really want to make sure that the appliance is meeting the needs of the individual person. And we'll talk more about that. In a minute. So when it comes to preparing lessons, you want your lessons to be sequenced and designed to incorporate learning new skills.

So you want to, you know, of course, start with the skills they already have and incorporating them. Make sure to incorporate previously learned skills, things that you've worked on with them as a way to reinforce those skills and then incorporate new skills. You also want to promote the transfer of previously learned skills in other areas of activities of daily living.

So, for example, you know, cleaning up is always an important part of any cooking lesson, whether it's cleaning the appliance or cleaning the work area. And so, you know, working on and promoting those skills of using overlapping strokes when you're cleaning using a systematic pattern. Those are the same skills that someone would use if they're cleaning, like, you know, their tabletop, cleaning a mirror, mopping the floor, and so just helping to make that association and help with the transfer of those skills.

Some things to consider. You're going to consider their previous knowledge and experience in food prep. Is this person, pardon the pun, a seasoned cook? Have they been cooking for many, many years? Maybe longer than you as the instructor have been alive? Or is this something very new to them? I think about my father when he became a widower and how he had very limited cooking experience.

The types of appliances that are available to the individual. So again, what types of appliances have they used in the past? And what are they using now? So you also want to think about the complexity of the food tasks that the person wants to prepare. So they may just want something very simple.

Again, very little. I'm going to take it from the freezer, put it in the appliance, and I'm good to go. Or is it something that they want to have multiple steps in the recipe different steps to prepare ingredients that are going to be used in the recipe? So think about what they're interested in doing.

You want to be aware of their dietary needs and preferences. As much as I love cilantro, not everyone does. And so you want to make sure that the food you're preparing is something that is going to be something that they enjoy. So it can be a rewarding success and successful experience. And don't forget to consider the person's age, culture, and lifestyle.

As well, you want the activities to be appropriate and manageable. So you want to think about the amount of time you have for your lessons and you want to keep the client motivated to learn and to participate and by. Making sure that you're picking recipes with them, not for them, and you're not just picking the recipes that you tried last night in your Insta Pot and you love it.

So you're going to share it with your clients. That's great. But if you want to make sure it's relevant and meaningful to them as well. And then I do want to share that Sue, and I have provided lesson plans on all of the five appliances that Sue demonstrated. So, that would be the air fryer, the Instant Pot, the countertop grill, the NutriBlender, and I know I'm forgetting one, Instant Pot, the air fryer, the NutriBlender.

Thank you. That's the one. So, and these are available on our OIB-TAC website. If Karie can put that link to the web page in the chat, that would be wonderful. But it is OIB-TAC.org. Click on Continuing Education, then click on Webinars. And if you click on this webinar, you will find links to All of those wonderful lesson plans, and also another handout that Sue's going to talk about an appliance chart.

Susan Dalton: Okay, so yeah, we're giving you lots of things to  take home with you. We've also provided you with a countertop appliance chart, and it basically summarizes what I went through with each of the appliances here today. List the appliance, their functions, the advantages for a new cook, cost, features for visually impaired, adaptations, And disadvantages.

So this is for you. We have it in a chart form, in a table format, and also in a plain text format as well. So wrapping things up. So in summary, when considering teaching cooking skills, think about the possibility of doing this with small appliances. The advantages, maybe a smaller space is needed, and the food prep area is more concentrated.

Also some have an all in one operation, multiple tasks in one appliance. They can be easier to clean than full size ovens and stovetops. And then also think of climate issues. The small appliances aren't going to heat up the whole house. And lastly, we just encourage you to really try to keep on top of these new appliances and find ways to take advantage of these devices to help motivate your clients. Get them excited about cooking.

Jennifer Ottowitz: Thank you. This has been OIB-TAC’s monthly webinar. Thanks for tuning in. Find recordings of our past webinars on our YouTube channel and discover all of our many resources at OIB-TAC.org. That's OIB-TAC.org, like us on social media and share our resources with your colleagues and friends. Until next time.