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'Better than the oven': Betty Crocker's compact pizza maker is down to $43

Fans also love this fast, easy-to-clean nonstick gadget for quesadillas, cinnamon rolls and other treats.

Homemade pizza is a delight, but getting it to cook perfectly in the oven? Not so delightful. It can be tough to get your pie to brown evenly with a toasty crust and scrumptious bubbles of melted cheese if all you're using is your stove. No wonder so many home pizza ovens have entered the market — but few are as affordable as the Betty Crocker Countertop Pizza Maker. Right now, you can score this clever gadget for just $43 (down from $54).

This gadget works kind of like a waffle iron, only the nonstick surface is flat. It can accommodate a 12-inch pizza — frozen or fresh.

$43 at Amazon

Why is it a good deal? 💰

This little appliance can save you dough in more ways than one: It means less delivery and takeout, and it's also on sale! Other pizza makers like this can cost well over $100. Not only that, but this gadget doesn't go on sale very often, making it the ideal time to pick one up as a holiday gift.

Why do I need this? 🤔

If you don't like having to wait for your oven to preheat to get your pizza cooking, this little guy can help you get dinner on the table pretty darn quickly. Not only is the preheating time short, but the pizza maker can cook your pizza (frozen or fresh!) faster than a conventional oven. And it's not limited to cooking pizza. You can make cookies, frozen french fries, onion rings, cinnamon rolls, biscuits — the list goes on. It's also slim and compact, so when you're done with dinner, you just tuck it away. If you have a small kitchen, its size makes it more convenient than a toaster oven.

If pizza is your love language, this little gadget will make you swoon. (Getty)
If pizza is your love language, this little gadget will make you swoon. (Getty)

What reviewers say 💬

Nearly 6,000 enthusiastic pizza lovers give this device a five-star rating, and many say they use it daily.

Pros 👍

"Better than putting a pizza in the oven," shared a rave reviewer. "Because your pizza is in direct contact with a heated surface, and because you add a little oil to the surface before you bake the pizza in this cooker, your pizza comes out with a browned crust every time. Make a whole 12-inch pizza, or cut a larger pizza and bake what you need. Either way, it's perfect. And we've used it to create cinnamon rolls and other baked delights. It's a whiz to clean, and you don't heat up your kitchen and waste a bunch of electricity every time you make a pizza. My favorite small appliance (other than the toaster oven/air fryer) for sure."

"Love this machine!" gushed a happy shopper. "It is not just another kitchen gadget to take residency on the kitchen countertop. It has earned its place. It is used at least 3-4 times a week or more. Cooks our pizzas quickly and evenly. We also use it for omelettes, pancakes and quesadillas. It is easy to use and keep clean. So, we bought one for our 34-year-old autistic nephew, who uses it daily."

"I read a million reviews before I bought this thing and I’m so glad I finally just ordered it because it's great," a five-star fan wrote. "This pizza maker is so awesome, I highly recommend it. We’re also truck drivers and have limited space so the fact that it’s not very big makes it easy to store away when it's not in use."

👎 Cons

Some shoppers say the design could be improved to make cleaning easier.

"It's fairly easy to clean, although I wish it would be disassembled to throw the large metal pieces in the dishwasher sometimes," wrote one shopper.

A second shopper said: "Wish the plates came off for cleaning, but you find a way to get it clean."

Hold your horses, everyone: This gadget also comes in a mini version (not currently on sale) for making 8-inch personal pies. It comes with a padded, insulated carrier so you can bring it to a friend's house, tailgate or anywhere else you may want pizza ... so, pretty much everywhere!

$37 at Amazon

Want to round out your pizza-making kit? More than 36,000 Amazon shoppers rave about the Kitchy Pizza Cutter.

This ergonomically designed pizza cutter will cut through even the crispiest pizzas quickly.  

"My new favorite kitchen utensil," gushed a rave reviewer. "Cuts like butter, easy to use and take apart for cleaning. Didn't get all gunky like my other pizza cutters have in the past. Pizza, quesadillas, grilled cheese ... It cuts it all so easily!"

$13 at Amazon

And if you want to make clean-up a snap, these top-selling parchment paper circles fit just right in the pizza maker.

Cut to fit 12-inch cake pans or pizza pans, these sheets of round parchment take the headache out of doing dishes. 

"These 12-inch round parchment sheets are tremendously useful for lining the pizza pan," shared one of over 6,600 five-star fans. "It makes cleanup a cinch! I primarily use them when reheating pizza, so it's perfect for catching any cheese that melts over the crust. They also absorb much of the oil/grease. If you like easy, these precut sheets are great."

$9 at Amazon

If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $35 or more.)

The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.

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