My father’s fascination with as-seen-on-TV products started eight or nine years ago during a bad bout of insomnia. He seems to have gotten rid of the insomnia, for the most part, but the infomercial love has stuck with him. This means that if there’s a gift-giving occasion, there’s a roughly 60 percent chance you’ll be receiving something like the Ove’ Glove or the Flowbee.

(He really did give us an Ove’ Glove, and it’s been an awesome addition to our kitchen. He has not given us a Flowbee. Yet.)

The informercial that caught Dad’s eye this holiday season was for the NuWave Infrared Oven. My brother and I each received one. Dad said he would’ve bought one for himself, but he figured he’d just buy two and take his back from whomever didn’t like it. So far I’ve used it once, to try to roast a chicken. It was not a roaring success, probably because I failed to turn the chicken over halfway through the cooking time. To the best of my knowledge Perry Mason has only used his once, too. He said the salmon he made was wonderful.

I’ve decided that I need to give the little oven another chance before Dad moves to reclaim it, which is why I’ve declared this NuWave week. We’ll be listening primarily to the Talking Heads, Spandau Ballet and Joy Division, and we’ll be eating this for dinner:

Monday: NuWave chicken Dijonnaise

It’s a mustard-glazed baked chicken. I’ll probably make rice with it.

Tuesday: NuWave ginger-roasted salmon

I don’t often make fish, because I don’t like the way it makes the house smell. Maybe the NuWave will solve that problem!

Wednesday: NuWave “grilled” chicken

I’m going to do some kind of rub on standard-issue chicken breasts.

Thursday: NuWave meatloaf

This will be my usual meatloaf recipe, but I’m going to make it in the NuWave.

Friday: Pizza

This won’t be in the NuWave, unless I drive the oven down to the pizza place and ask them to bake my pizza in it. Which, rest assured, I will not do.