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The Easy-Bake Oven, currently a product of Hasbro, is a working toy oven that uses an ordinary light bulb as a heat source. The oven comes with packets of cake mix, and small round pans. The mix is prepared in a pan, which is then pushed into the oven through a slot. After cooking, the cake is pushed out through a slot in the other end. This iconic toy was introduced by Kenner Products, a Cincinnati, Ohio, based toy company in 1963. Often cited as a favorite childhood toy by women and men alike, Easy-Bake has even served as the inspiration for the careers of celebrity chefs such as Bobby Flay. The early models were designed to look like miniature ovens. Later models were designed to look like microwave ovens. Although the toy's creation has been falsely claimed by many who wish to have their names go down as part of toy history (and incorrectly attributed in an episode of FoodTV's "Unwrapped" to a deceased Kenner salesman whose sole contribution to the project was the suggestion that Kenner should make a pretzel oven), the Easy-Bake Oven was the invention of Ronald Howes. He was the man who actually conceived of the design, built the first model, and sold the rights to the company. Mr. Howes also had a hand in many other classic Kenner toys such as Play-Doh, Spirograph, Give-a-Show Projector and Close-and-Play Record Player. There are three models of the Easy-Bake Oven currently available from Hasbro. The Easy-Bake Oven and Snack Center was introduced in 1993. It was powered by a 100 Watt Light Bulb, that was sold separately from the oven. Another sleek design was made later. Both Easy-Bake Ovens could make cakes, cookies, and various desserts in minutes. A decade later, the Real Meal Oven was released. It won the 2003 Best Toy-Parenting Magazine Toy of the Year Award. Unlike previous versions, this oven could bake two pans at once. The neutral colors were appropriate for both genders. The pans were bigger, and it could bake both desserts and meals. In 2006, A different version of the Easy-Bake was released. It featured a stove-top warmer, and like the first version by Hasbro, it had smaller pans and only could bake one pan at a time.
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