It is amazing how technology evolves to introduce to households electronic and mechanical assists that really do have the impact of improving on the manner in which we traditionally prepare foods. Yesterday morning, something went surprisingly awry in my kitchen. It is a kitchen designed for the average height of the average housewife, without doubt. I stand 5' fall, and the microwave oven shelf that was installed when the kitchen was completed as the interior of the house was outfitted before our purchase two decades earlier obviously had a taller person in mind.

It has always been a stretch for me to insert anything into the microwave oven, and to extract it when cooking was complete. To view whatever was in the interior was likewise a stretch, but it never occurred to us to discard the shelf-use for the microwave. Yesterday morning, heaven knows how, but the revolving heavy glass insert of the oven slipped as I was extracting a pie dish. As anyone faced with such an unanticipated dilemma can testify, attempts to rescue the large, heavy disk before it met up with our ceramic floor were futile. It shattered immediately upon contact, the impact sending a spray of small glass pieces halfway across the kitchen, while larger pieces rested in implacably morose blame closer to the scene of the crime.

I thought I'd use the microwave regardless, perhaps try to acquire a replacement glass. My husband thought otherwise and hied himself off a few hours later, and when he returned had a quite large microwave with him with something I'd never before seen; a pizza drawer-oven. Moreover, the revolving glass insert was not placed on the surface of the bottom, but was fitted neatly into a hollow formed to hold it securely in place.

Although I had my doubts, my husband was eager to try out the pizza oven, and that evening's pizza came out, incredibly, tasting even better than usual; all the competing flavours of the two cheeses, the red, green, orange and yellow bell peppers, the tomato and the herbs were integrated and flavourful beyond anything we'd achieved before in our conventional oven. And the crust was perfect; firm on the bottom and softly chewy on the interior.

I'm sold.