WHAT'S COOKING

By Maryanne Murray Buechner

For years Americans have enjoyed the privilege of waking up to a fresh-brewed caffeine fix or of heating up last night's lasagna in 90 seconds. Once worshiped, the automatic drip coffeemaker and the microwave oven have become generic symbols of modern domestic life. The toaster, the blender, the food processor--they're all taken for granted. Things have been simple for a while.

But simple doesn't do it anymore. Consumers still want convenience, but they want more control too. They want fresher eats and drinks; they want flexibility. They're spending more time in the kitchen and want a little style sitting on their counters. They want their appliances to do it all, and they want them to do it all well.

The technology found in today's top-performing kitchen gadgets isn't new so much as it is newly attainable. The latest automatic breadmakers, for example, are much cheaper than earlier models: prices have fallen from $300 to the more moderate $70-to-$150 range, and sales have soared. Still, you might ask, why would someone want to spend even that much for a machine that makes one of the cheapest and most accessible items on your grocery list?

It all goes back to the desire to nest, to revel in the comforts of home--priorities that have come to define the 1990s. And it's why coffeemakers that automatically grind the beans before brewing will get more attention this year than they have in the past. Our standards are higher, and we're ready to upgrade. The result is a kitchen that's more Jetsons than Julia Child.

The digital components of most appliances these days store more information and process a wider range of commands; in some cases, they are even making their own decisions. Sunbeam's most advanced toaster, for instance, can sense voltage fluctuations and adjust its toasting time accordingly. Panasonic's electronic rice cooker uses a fuzzy-logic chip to choose a suitable cooking temperature. The latest microwave from Sharp decides how long to nuke leftovers. (It also displays recipes and cooking instructions on its digital face.)

We also found a couple of items for the aspiring gourmet: the Kitchen Coach, a television that plays cooking-demonstration CDs, and the Kitchen Assistant, an electronic recipe book. Of course, you could always consult your microwave.

--By Maryanne Murray Buechner