Microwaves may be relegated to reheating leftovers or making a hot drink, but chef Ina Garten puts her microwave to good use when making oatmeal and melting ingredients.

On her website Barefoot Contessa, Garten said, "I make my oatmeal in my microwave — it's so easy!" She adds 1/3 cup of oats with 1 cup of water and microwaves it for four minutes.

She finishes it with a pinch of salt, a splash of milk, a touch of butter, and a drizzle of maple syrup before stirring it all together.

In addition to making her breakfast every morning, Garten uses the appliance to prepare ingredients for other recipes, such as melting butter and tempering chocolate.

To temper chocolate, Garten shaves her chocolate bar, microwaves it for 30 seconds until it’s evenly melted, and then adds more chocolate shavings to keep it from getting too hot.

Garten has even made clarified butter in the microwave by heating it for 30 seconds until the milk solids separate from the liquid fat and can be strained out.