I don’t like to cook, and when I do I’m pretty average, but I get by. My preference, when my wife, who is an outstanding cook, is not around is cereal and/or canned soup.
But this past week a miracle happened, I made French fries, which were outstanding if I do say so. And the best part is that they were made with only a half tablespoon of olive oil.
The secret to my crunchy and tasty fries was the Gourmia GAF520 air fryer ($139.99). As mentioned, I’m far from a chef, but after seeing the air fryer at last month’s consumer electronics show and air fryers constantly being used on the morning news shows, they intrigued me.
So frying I did and figured French fries were simple enough, even for me.
Working the 1400W 4.5-quart fryer is simple with a front LED display to control temperature and timing. There are four preset functions loaded into the countertop appliance (13-by-11-by-12.5-inches, 11 pounds), which can bake, fry, grill or roast chicken, fish and meat.
A front-loading detachable basket is used to get your food in and out of the fryer. Depending on what you cook determines the spicing, food preparation time and the amount of oil, if any, to brush on your food.
Back to my fries. Using the Gourmia GAF520 was simple and clean. First and foremost I used a minimum amount of oil, which is healthier and made cleaning a breeze. The basket must be wiped down after cooling off, and you’re done. No splattering oil all over the stove and nothing to wash in the sink. Just a really cool appliance, which circulates hot air to cook your meal.
I followed the included recipe and combined the fries with the one and only Heinz 57 ketchup and a grilled hamburger for my perfect dinner.
Gourmia also has the GTA2800 air fryer ($279.99), which can be controlled via WiFi (iOS and Android) for cooking manually or with 20 cooking presets.
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Cutting the cable has been a hot topic for many years. I did it myself recently after my frustration with DirecTV’s monthly costs. Where you go from there depends what you want to watch. In my case, I only wanted local channels on one of my TV’s.
Winegard Company’s Elite 7550 is a new antenna that allows cable cutters to receive local channels. The antenna is simple to connect for receiving channels from more than 70 miles away and comes with everything you need, including a mount, except for funny enough, the cable to connect the antenna.
Before running the cable to my attic, I did a simple install, which was suggested to me by my neighbor, which had me watching local stations in minutes.
I connected the antenna to the back of my TV with my own 12-foot coaxial cable. This allowed me to test it while having the antenna sitting right outside my window.
After it was in place, I had my TV scan (almost every current TV has a scan mode) for the local channels, and after just a few minutes it was like magic with my locals appearing.
Since that was successful, the next step is to find a permanent location, which includes running a cable through my wall into my attic to get the antenna mounted on the side of my house for the best reception.
How you do that should be done with a plan, knowing you’ll have to get that cable outside of your house somewhere.
The Elite 7550 has a flex mounting system, which provides angling options for optimal positioning.
According to Winegard, the Elite 7550 has an integrated LTE filter and embedded ultra-low noise amplifier with Winegard’s unique Clear Circuit Technology, which allows for the best reception. The antenna provides an ultra-low noise figure of 1 dB for fewer dropouts and pixelation. Additionally, the Elite 7550 is optimized for dual-band VHF/UHF reception designed for maximum signal capture.
After you put it together, the 1 pound antenna measures 30-by-17.5-by-5-inches and is powered with the included 110V USB wall adapt and cable.
www.winegard.com $149.99
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Contact Gregg Ellman at greggellman@mac.com. Follow him on Twitter: @greggellman
