Most people will have at least seen Toastabags in some of the larger homeware shops or even the supermarkets. THere are several different varieties of these bags available, however I have only ever had these original kind, that are usually priced around the £5 mark for a pack of 2.

These toastabags are meant to be used as a quicker substitute to using a sandwich toaster and avoid the cleaning and hassle that comes with using bigger equipment.

We were first given these toastabags when we got engaged about five years ago, and we have been using them ever since. I now own three of these bags, since one of the original pair split at the bottom, after being used many many times.

The great thing about these toasta bags is that they are resusable. In fact the promoters beind the bags claim they are reusuable up to 300 times, although I cannot say I keep count, but you could definitely say they offer great value for money. Furthermore, not only can they be used to make toasted sandwiches, by simply sliding your sandwich, with whatever contents you like into the bag and placing in the toaster until they pop up, the company also claim that they can be used to heat up chicken nuggets, pizza slices, pastries and other things. I have to admit that I have never used them for anything other than toasted sandwiches, but you are used to cooking the other, it may be worth a try with these bags. THe newer packaging of these bags comes with its own recipe book, however I have never received one in my packet toastabags, so I cannot comment on the usefulness of this. Another plus point of these bags is that they are very easy to clean, I simply give them a wipe with a damp cloth and leave them to dry.

There are some negative things about this bag that should be considered. THe toasted sandwiches that they produce are nowhere near as good as those you would get from using a proper sandwich toaster. They toast the outside of the bread well, although you really need to give them the full time in the toaster if you are to fully melt the contents of the sandwich. I also find that the sandwiches aren't sealed very well with the machine, and sometimes when I take the sandwich out of the bag, the bread and contents can come apart easily - although this is not a major issue to be honest. The other major downside of these bags is that they don't fit all toasters. YOu need to have a toaster with wide slots to insert the bags, otherwise you will either not be able to fit the entire bag in and thus the contents will not be heated through, or you will not be able to get them into the slot at all.

All in all, for the convenience element of these toastabags, you couldn't ask for a better invention for a quick snack or lunch idea, without the hassle of a proper sandwich toaster. IF you are looking to get the same quality toasted sandwich as you would get from the machine you will be disappointed. As long as you are aware of this slight downside, these bags are definitely worth their money, and you will get good use out of them. A great time saving invention.