To the gang at Ten Speed Press, the most author-friendly publishing house I know. Thanks to Phil Wood and Lorena Jones for once again believing in me and one of my projects. Thanks to Carrie Rodrigues for a great and patient editing job. Thanks to Mark Anderson and Dennis Hayes for selling it, to Kristin Bryan Casemore for publicizing it, and never let me forget Kristine Standley for paying me!
To my mom, Margaret Zink, who fortuitously “fried” my conventional oven, leaving me with no means of baking potatoes or bread and thus initiated the hunt for the perfect toaster oven.
And once again, to my eager neighbors, who are always willing to stop by for something new: Helen Mildner, Marie Pike, Rosella Heffner, and Bob, Ernest, and Paul Tassoni.
To Lad and Crystal, my best buds, ever present in my home and always loving me unconditionally, whether in the loping, slobbering way of dogs or the elegant, arrogant, detached way of cats.
To those purveyors who generously supplied equipment and technical information and backup: Catherine Bourdais from Staub USA, Karen Kazam and Judy Mora at DeLonghi, Le Creuset, Tufty Ceramics, Krups, Black and Decker, and Cuisinart.