Microwave Meals for a Day + Panasonic Microwave Giveaway!

Before we had children we didn’t have a microwave. We didn’t really have a need for one since it was just as easy for me to reheat food in the oven and make popcorn on the stovetop. But then we had kids. And we got a microwave right away! All that milk and food warming…all that late night reheating tea and coffee…there was no end to how much we needed it. I’ll say though, I never really cooked our food in it full-stop. I usually only used it for warming/reheating in a pinch. This all changed a couple of weeks ago when Panasonic reached out and invited me to try their new microwave and use it to cook all of our meals for an entire day. I was unsure at first, but am always up for trying new things, so I gave it a go.

Unlike the original microwave we used to have this new microwave has special inverter technology to ensure food is cooked evenly. That means no more hot and cold spots in the soup! I used the very helpful recipes on the Panasonic website and here is what I made for the #MicrowaveOnly challenge:

1) Basic Omelet: I added cheese and a little salsa to my omelet and it came out great. The eggs were cooked, but not rubbery, and it was super easy to make while I was organizing the kids in the morning. I wrapped up the omelet in a tortilla and took it to-go.

2) Macaroni & Cheese: I didn’t have a lot of time to make an involved lunch so this was perfect. A few times in and out of the microwave and this hot casserole was ready. I really appreciated that the pasta was chewy and the sauce was nice and hot, just as if it had been baked.

3) Salmon with Lemon: I’d heard of people making salmon in the microwave before but I’d never tried it myself. This easy fish dish was a snap to make and tasted amazing! I also rubbed it with some spices for extra flavor. We served it with greens beans and a rice for a nice healthy meal.

In addition to these dishes I should mention I reheated several cups of tea, food for my children, and a made a quesadilla during the challenge day. Everything was evenly warmed through and tasted just the same as if it had come out of the oven.

To help you hold your very only #MicrowaveOnly challenge Panasonic is generously giving away one microwave and a set of beautiful bowls and measuring spoons. Their special inverter technology does such a great job cooking evenly I swear you’ll begin using it to cook things as much as I am!

To enter to win a Panasonic Microwave Oven (NN-SE782S), a set of bowls, and a set of measuring spoons:

1) Follow @HomePanasonic on Twitter. Tweet a picture of your microwaved meal with a quick description to @HomePanasonic and @thenaptimechef with the hashtag #MicrowaveOnly

2) Subscribe to Kelsey Banfield on Facebook.

3) Contest runs from April 14th through April 21st at 7:00am ET. Will will be announced in the April 25th newsletter. If winner doesn’t claim prize within 48 hours it will be awarded to another person.

(Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Panasonic and I received the same prize pack to posting this article. The opinions and photographs are wholly my own. The you for supporting the sponsors that make The Naptime Chef possible.)