Bake your potato in the microwave. Wrap it in a towel to absorb the moisture and make the skin not so soft and zap it for about 2 minutes.
Very low energy use and you have your baked potato. In fact in your situation you can cook lots of stuff in a microwave...veggies of course, a fish filet and even things like muffins although they won't brown.
Linda c

I don't even have a toaster oven so can't verify that for you. But like Linda C, I cook the potato in the microwave then bake the cooked potato in the oven to crisp the skin. Since the potato is already cooked time baking in the oven will be much shorter compared to baking it from raw. I hope someone with experience baking potato in a toaster oven can give you some positive feedback. Al

I have a wonderful Cuisinart toaster oven that I use for much of my baking, especially when I'm preparing food for myself or the grandchildren or baking small desserts, etc. It is very versatile, and it toasts good too! My son bakes a loaf of bread in his, so it works for just about anything.

It preheats in a few minutes, and it has convection, so it bakes pretty fast. I use mine every day.

Love, love, love my TO. As I've mentioned before, I did a test run to see if I liked it and could tolerate one on the counter i.e. I bought one for $10 at Goodwill and lived with it for a month. For two of us I find it is perfect and it has become my "go to" appliance. Baked potatoes are easy, microwave until heated through, then oil and salt, put in TO set on convection at 450 until crispy (about 30 minutes).

Another one who loves her Cusinart toaster oven! I bake bread in it, bake pizza on clay tiles, finish off steaks, ribs, etc. after searing them in a cast iron skillet, bake a casserole for one or two, make toasted sandwiches, cheese toast, warm rolls/buns, bake cornbread (also in a cast iron skillet), bake biscuits, and of course, make toast for breakfast.

In the warm months I only turn on the big oven to bake several loaves of bread at once or fix dinner for guests.

Teresa

I have an Oster toaster/convection oven and I LOVE it! I use the convection setting often. I prefer my potatoes cooked in an oven or on the grill rather than microwaved. My TO oven shuts itself off after 30 minutes for safety reasons, so I restart it for another 30 minutes and then I have tasty potatoes! I'll microwave them if I don't have time to cook them in the TO though. Besides the convection setting, another feature I like on this TO is the light so I can keep an eye on the food as it's cooking.

Just a few thoughts:

A microwave uses about 900 watts, a toaster oven uses over 1,500 watts.

Two minutes in the microwave obviously is better then 30 minutes in a toaster oven.

Convection oven will cook much faster.

However, no matter how inefficient your electric cooking appliances are, it makes no difference in saving money in the winter time because any wasted electric heat in cooking will cut down your need in heating your house.

If you have hard water in your area, you may need to replace your electric hot water heater element frequently, unless you have a water treatment filter system.

dcarch

I love my toaster over for everything except making toast. We have two ovens and an OTR micro/convection oven, and the toaster oven is our go-to appliance. There's only two of us, so maybe that's why, but it's a great gadget. We do the baked potatoes, reheat/warm stuff, and bake small things, like crab cakes, a few refrigerator cookies, etc. Occasionally, I'll broil in there, too.

Unlike Dcarch, In my response above I couldn't address the differences in power consumption and that is really what you wanted to know. With that said, I don't use either of my full-size ovens nearly as much so that should account for something.

Good luck with your research.

I too live alone and am a toaster oven devotee. I wish I could tell you that it saves on electric but I just don't know about that.
I do think it saves on time because you don't have to wait for the whole regular oven to preheat and because things are closer to an element you can get things nice and crispy easier.
That said I never understood people here who didn't like toaster ovens for toast. UNTIL 2 weeks ago when cleaning I dropped my ancient (10? year old? more?) little black and decker TO. Shopping for a new one was traumatic. So many have gotten way bigger than they used to be (I mean at some point why have one at all when they are almost as big as your range oven?). I don't have much counterspace so I bought one of the few smaller ones out there - JCPenny Cooks brand - now I understand why some people don't like T0s, doesn't cook as fast or as good as my old one, toast takes forever and I hate the the way the timer thing works. I wish they'd quit ruining products!
Still, even if I don't like my new one as much, they are much faster for a smaller serving of roasted vegetables, heating frozen appetizer things, and yes baked potato's.
I microwave mine, then stick it in the toaster oven for awhile to "finish" and get that baked effect. If you don't have a microwave, then sure, just bake it in the toaster oven like you would a regular oven.
I wish I liked my new one better but I still wouldn't be without one.

Love my toaster oven! I've had one for years but prefer my toaster for toast. I'm guessing they save some on energy if that is your main concern. Single here and cooking for one too. My current model in use is a Calphalon. It came with a 9 x 13 pan, baking sheet, broiler pan, and has the option for convection cooking. I've used it for pies, brownies, cookies(six at a time), and various other things. Bakes a potatoe perfectly but I do cheat on work nights and nuke it first and finish in the oven for that crispy skin that I love.

I have a couple of back ups out in the garage for the holidays and or big gatherings. Perfect for helping with oven space while cooking for a large family or group dinner. Not to forget they don't heat the kitchen/house up as much as the big oven does in the summer. I do have a full size range in my garage too...love that for canning season and a second big oven or cooktop space for entertaining.

David

Toaster oven cooks by infrared. If you really want to save money, make sure that the inside surfaces are clean and shinny. this way it will reflect infrared rays better internally and toasts more evenly.

dcarch

I feel your pain about the skyrocketing price of gas. I'm living in the first home I've ever owned that heated with gas and I was stunned when I received my first utility bill.

Even though my electric oven is only about three or four years old it took it what seemed like an eternity to heat up so I recently bought a Cuisinart TO and I really like it. I had learned the hard way a few years back not the buy a cheapie TO. They usually don't last.

I can't speak to exactly how much it saves not to heat up the large oven, but it has to be quiet a bit.

Mine gets used all the time because the main oven is broken, but like everyone else, I'm not sure about the difference in savings.

Most everything cooks well except breads and cake-like mixes that start wet and end dry. They have to be left in a little longer for the centers to get done.

I have a Cuisinart toaster oven (not the convection one, but otherwise the same as Momj's) and love it. So glad that the folks here talked me into getting a better one than I originally intended. I usually cook for one, and use if for just about everything. The only time I turn on the main oven now is when DH is home or I want to make a pizza.

Does it save money? I have no idea. I imagine it probably does simply because it takes forever for my regular oven to get to temp and the toaster oven hits 450 (for potatoes) in maybe three minutes. I only know I probably eat better because I am willing to cook a small quantity in a small over. And I do not like the texture of microwaved potatoes, so If i didn't have this puppy, I would probably never bake a potatoe just for myself.

Not sure what the toast deal is. Mine toasts just fine, and I get the added bonus of buttering the bread before toasting or adding cinnamon sugar before toasting.

Hi Mudlady,

Here's a snapshot that I found for energy consumption taken from http://www.siliconvalleypower.com/res/?sub=apchart:

Range, electric
Oven 2.3 kWh/hr $0.22/hr
Oven: Surface 1-1.5 kWh/hr $0.10 - $0.14/hr
Oven: Self-cleaning feature 6 kWh/hr cleaning $0.57/hr
Microwave oven 0.12 kWh/5 min $0.01/5 min
Broiler, portable electric 1.5 kWh/hr $0.14/hr
Coffee maker 0.12 kWh/brew $0.01/brew
Coffee maker/brew, warmer on 0.4 kWh/hr $0.04/hr
Dishwasher: normal cycle (not including hot water) 1 - 2.17 kWh/load $0.10 - $0.21/load
Dishwasher: Energy saver cycle 0.5 kWh/load $0.05/load
Toaster (2 slices) 0.04 kWh/use $0.01/hr
Toaster oven 0.75 kWh/hr $0.07/hr
Waffle iron, 4 servings 0.33 kWh/use $0.03/use

Because our electric is high, I make decisions about how to cook things too, depending on the occasion and who it's for. If I use my oven, I'll double up on things that need baked.

That said, I microwave a potato every morning, rice it, whip in milk, butter, and sprinkle with cheese for DS pretty much every morning. Not that he doesn't rate, but beggars can't be choosers:)

Good luck -- Cathy in SWPA

I was once tempted to get myself a toaster oven, but was quickly turned off the idea by the size! I mean, take a look at how little space there actually is inside the thing, compared with how much space it takes up on your bench-top!

No, for me the answer to the problem lay with a convection/microwave. With this, you have the speed and economy and convenience of a microwave oven; the relatively cheaper cost of heating a convection oven which is much smaller in size than your regular oven (though it will still accommodate a decent-sized roast!); and you have the option of using a combination of convection and microwave together for a whole range of dishes.

Take my word for it. Roast potatoes done with the combination are excellent! I'll go so far as to say 'unsurpassed'. Crisp on the outside, fluffy in the middle, and all done with a very minimum of fat (just a quick brush-over with a little oil is enough to brown them).

As another option besides a toaster oven... I have a Sharp Convection/Microwave (with ventilation fan), that is placed over the range, and I use it more than my range oven. Yes, it's more expensive than a toaster oven or a counter top microwave/convection (which I have also owned and loved), but it's much more versatile and doesn't take up any counter space.

I can bake a loaf of bread in it in 20-minutes, 2 loaves in 25-minutes, and NO preheating, so there is a considerable amount of energy savings there if all you consider is the time used. Since it's a much smaller appliance, you are heating less air space, so there is a considerable savings there.

As a test, I recently baked a loaf of bread in my Zojirushi Bread Machine to see how much it cost to use this small appliance, and it cost .02-cents using .35 KWH. Since the baking cycle is so long on the Zo (62-67 minutes - and that's where the primary amount of energy is consumed), the next time I bake a loaf of bread in the Sharp Convection/Microwave, I'll put the Kill-A-Watt Meter on my Sharp and see how much it costs to bake a loaf of bread in it.

To find out exactly how much an appliance costs to run, a Kill-A-Watt Meter will give you the exact cost. You set it with what YOUR electricity cost is and it calculates the time, amount used, and the total cost for that time. I've used the Kill-A-Watt Meter to check all our major appliances to see if they were energy hogs. We heat our home with a Sun Cloud Infrared Heater for .02-cents an hour (tested it for 543-hours). Our refrigerator costs .07-cents a day to run (a 507-hour test).

In the Sharp, most baked goods will bake in at least 25% less time, and some even less time than that, so another savings. I start checking for doneness when half the traditional baking time has passed.

It's a major improvement over a toaster oven OR a microwave because you can microwave, bake, and broil in it in a much larger scale. It will hold a 12-cup muffin pan, 13x9 cake pan, or a tube pan.

On Low Mix Bake, it combines convection heat with microwave power, so the baking quality is much better than when we baked in microwaves. This setting is used for baked goods that require more than 20-minutes baking time. Angel food and bundt cakes, quick breads and yeast breads. This selection will bake in 25-50% less time than a traditional oven.

High Mix Bake, also combines convection heat with microwave power and provides crisp brown exteriors and juiciness for meats. Use this selection for roasts, whole turkey and chicken. They cook in about half the time.

Convection ONLY cooking includes the convection benefit of a high-speed fan which circulates past the heat source and around the food. The super-heated air browns and crisps the food. This feature is used for foods that bake in 20-minutes or less. I can bake 2 12-inch sheets of cookies at a time (I use two Air-bake pizza pans lined with parchment paper) and cookies generally bake in 1/2 the time as in the oven. This setting is used for cookies, biscuits, cupcakes and small muffins.

I loved my Black & Decker Toaster Oven and used it all the time for small baking - UNTIL - I got my Sharp Convection/Microwave. The toaster oven doesn't see the light of day now.

-Grainlady

I just wanted to add that I have a convection oven which I no longer use unless I need more than one oven at a time. I can't speak for all convection ovens of course, only mine. It cooks no faster than my regular oven, takes even longer to come to temperature and doesn't cook anything well at all if it is placed in any dish or pan with sides on it. It has to be cooked on something like a pizza pan. And this was not an inexpensive oven. It is a GE Profile. I have found this oven to be almost useless. Gawd, how I hate GE products, but that's another thread.

Beverly

I love my toaster oven. I made sure to get one big enough that it is useful, and I was surprised by how much really does fit in there. It takes hardly any time to preheat, too. Mine has convection and broil features. I like to save energy by using it.

I'm just chiming in because I want to remind everyone to UNPLUG the toaster oven and any other small appliances, chargers, and computers when you aren't using them. I was astounded by how much of a "vampire" effect there is in wasted energy. It takes, like, a day to get used to it. I only leave the coffee maker (because of the auto-brew clock) and the microwave (because it's too hard to reach the plug) plugged in. At least I was able to turn off the clock feature on the microwave, which helps a little.

There are "smart strips" that are supposed to avoid that problem. Does anyone have any experience with them?

I have a Black & Decker toaster oven I bought at Sears about two years ago for $50. It's one of the larger ovens nor is it a convection oven. Before it, I had a DeLonghi toaster oven for about 10 years. The B&D is easy to clean.

I really like having a toaster oven so I don't have to heat up the large oven. Besides toast, I bake potatoes, biscuits, & corn bread, & heat rolls, coffee cake, etc. We don't care for potatoes done in the micrwave - they seem soggy to us.

Here is a link that might be useful: Black & Decker toaster oven

I have an older Toastmaster convection electric oven and I love it.
It will cook a 12 inch pizza, rotisserie a roast or chicken, and bake a loaf of bread (one on the counter now).
Do not buy a cheap toaster oven as the oven controls are worthless (as far as temp. goes). Buy yourself an independent oven thermometer. Oh, and it will hold an 11 by 13 pan.
Most importantly, DO NOT buy into that safety timer mentioned in the above thread that only runs 20 minutes or one hour. If cooking anything slow, it will drive you NUTS. I got rid of one because of the timer always shutting the oven off. The toastmaster has a timer up to 60 minutes or just a point on the dial that says "ON".
If I am cooking ribs or tough meat, they should be cooked slowly if you want them tender (it even has a "slow cook" setting on the heat dial). I can turn it on to 225 or 250, cover and set a separate timer for how ever many hours I want and the oven will NOT shut itself off. That single feature makes it a charm and not a pain in the butt like my two other ones.
And since I have a toaster, I use my toaster for toast. And yes, in the winter it helps heat the house.
Jim in So. Calif