Great and Useful Christmas Gift under $30

Shops want you to spend – yet gifts needn't be pricey to mean something.There is even an article on pre-No Unnecessary Present Pact(NUPP) which is a campaign to raise awareness on ever receiving a gift you never used for Christmas.

The NUPP campaign aims to take the stigma out of NOT giving unnecessary gifts just for the sake of it, fighting the over-commercialisation of Christmas.

• It isn't anti-presents. Family Christmas gift-giving's a lovely tradition. Yet a tick-list of presents for friends, which will only languish unused in cupboards, isn't. 
• Not giving can be a bigger gift. Buying presents can oblige friends to do the same, even if they can't afford it.
• What about small gifts? Maybe you can agree to a limit gift cost to $30 and some thoughts.

Crock-Pot SCV401TR 4-Quart Oval Manual Slow Cooker, Red

• Serves 4+ people
• 4-quart capacity
• HIGH/LOW cook settings
• Convenient WARM setting
• Removable oval stoneware
• Dishwasher-safe stoneware and glass lid
• Stylish, red exterior with white border, red accents and plastic handles
• Recipes included

Hamilton Beach 58148A Power Elite Multi-Function Blender


 

• Powerful ice crushing with patented Ice Sabre® blades
• Durable 700 Watt peak power motor - life-tested to blend 8,000 frozen drinks
• All the power you need to mix, puree, dice, crush ice, and more - with only 4 simple buttons
• 12 blending functions
• Unique, patented no-mess pouring spout
• Wave~Action® system continuously pulls mixture down into the blades for smooth results every time - no more ice chunks
• Dishwasher safe 40 oz. glass jar is thermal-shock tested to withstand extreme temperature changes
• Cord storage
• Backed by 3 year warranty

Oster FPSTMC1250 Top Chop 4-Cup Chopper

•          Large 4-cup capacity chopping bowl with built-in measuring scale
•          Easy press 'n pulse button for better; more precise results
•          Razor sharp stainless-steel chopping blade
•          Powerful 250-watt motor for exceptional performance

Mr. Coffee CG13 12-Cup Switch Coffeemaker, Black
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• Brewing Pause 'N Serve
• Removable filter basket for easy cleaning
• Dual water window to monitor filling capacity
• On/Off indicator
• Water filtration adaptable for better-tasting coffee

Another inexpensive way to simmer a nice stew!

I remember during my mom time which is like 50 years ago, she would spend almost 8 hours just to simmer some stew in a clay pot over the charcoal fire, looking over the fire constantly so that the stew does not end up burnt. This was way back before the time when slow cooker made it ways to many kitchen in this part of world.

A slow cooker is basically used for cooking of food by simmering them at low temperature over many hours without any constant monitoring. The chinese use the slow cooker to make soups and simmering of chinese herbal concoction as it takes hour for the herbs to release their elements.

The inside of the slow cooker is basically made of ceramic pot to retain the heat over a long period of time and the heat in a slow cooker can be set to low, medium and high.Although many people thought the slow cooker simmering food for such long hour must have consumed a lot of electricity, the truth is using a slow cooker only consume 250 watts of power compared to simmering food in the oven which consume 4000 watts of power.

Ceramics pot inside of Slow Cooker

Other advantages of slow cooker is the cooking does not need constant monitoring which mean it can be left unattended for a long period of time and it saves time and effort. The meals is tasty because the long simmering caused the food to release their intense flavor. After each cooking using slow cooker, only the ceramics pot inside the slow cooker needed to be cleaned.

However there is one drawback of slow cooker, according to Wikipedia some vitamins and other trace nutrient particularly from vegetable is lost during cooking in slow cooker.This is due to enzyme action and heat degradation.

Slow cooker are also an inexpensive gadget which can be bought at below $100 and can last many years if well taken care off. My first slow cooker was bought 30 years ago and is still working like new.