By the Cottage Coach
Here’s something I figured out a long time ago: the best cottage weekends are the ones where nobody goes inside. Not for lunch, not for dinner, and definitely not for breakfast. That’s the standard I hold my gear to. If a piece of equipment can’t keep the whole operation outdoors, it doesn’t earn a permanent spot in my setup.
So when I created the Outdoor Cooking Challenge by attempting to cook every meal outside for an entire weekend, breakfast was the meal I was most confident about. I already knew what the Ninja FlexFlame™ Outdoor Cooking System could handle with its versatile griddle cooking surfaces.
Better than your favourite diner
I’m obsessed with organization, so with the FlexFlame, I put bacon on one side, eggs lined up across the middle, pancakes or French toast on the other end, and hash browns crisping up wherever there’s room. I could cook everything at once on one big, flat surface with edge-to-edge heat. That meant no rotating pans on a tiny stovetop in a cramped kitchen, and definitely no cold plates.
The FlexFlame griddle changed the whole dynamic of cooking a big cottage breakfast for my friends and family. People hovered, asking for “test pieces” of sausage. The kids wandered over to see what smelled so good. Everyone was together, enjoying the morning outdoors, even before breakfast was served.
One thing I’ve learned after years of cooking for a crowd: my kids hate onions. So I kept a small cast-iron skillet on the top rack to handle those separately. With the FlexFlame, there’s no shortage of space.
The other thing I love about the griddle is the flexibility. You can use the full surface for a big crew, or just run half of it if you’re having a quieter morning. The CyclonicHeat-IQ™ technology keeps the heat even across the whole surface, which means no hot spots, no babysitting, and food that comes out the way you expect it to. For a diner-style breakfast with multiple things cooking at once, that consistency makes all the difference.
Wood-fired flavour at the click of a button
This is the part that still surprises me every time. The FlexFlame’s Woodfire Technology means you can add genuine smoked flavour to whatever you’re cooking. You don’t need a separate smoker or a complicated setup, and there’s no guessing. Just a real wood-fired result without the production.
Morning drinks for everyone
I’m usually up and working on something before anyone else stirs, so my morning starts with the Ninja Thirsti™, which I use for sparkling water with whatever flavour I’m feeling that day. Once the crew is up and breakfast is moving, the Thirsti handles drinks for everyone while the griddle runs.
And on a long weekend, when the morning has a slightly celebratory feel? The Ninja Slushi™ comes out earlier than you might expect. A frozen mimosa at breakfast isn’t out of the question, and nobody complains when they hear that word before noon.
The Cottage Coach’s take
Here’s what I always come back to: gear earns its place at the cottage by making weekends easier, not more complicated. The FlexFlame griddle does exactly that at breakfast. It moves the whole operation outside, and it keeps everyone together right from the start of the day.
That’s the standard for the Cottage Coach Seal of Approval. Does it keep people outside longer and actually improve the experience? For breakfast, the FlexFlame clears that bar without question.
Shop the Ninja FlexFlame™ and the full Ninja outdoor lineup exclusively at canadiantire.ca.