Wouldn’t we all LOVE to save a little time in the kitchen? Okay…a lot of time! Here are some tried and true tips to help you along….
1. Meringue will always stand up and be perfect if a generous pinch of baking soda is added to the beaten egg whites.
2. Add one Tablespoon Cornstarch to fudge to prevent it from going sugary.
3. To soften brown sugar that has hardened, place it in the oven at a low temperature. To keep it soft, place it in the refrigerator in a plastic bag. A piece of apple, lemon or stale bread can be placed in with the sugar to restore the moisture and soften it.
4. To prevent hard edges around brownies when baking, put a small container of water into the oven too, or try covering the pan with tin foil.
5. A little hot milk added to butter and sugar will aid in the creaming process.
6. Freeze nuts before cracking them and the nut meat will come out of the shell easily and in large pieces.
7. To keep grease from splattering so much while frying steak or other meats, put salt in the bottom of the fry pan before adding meat.
Wooden spoons, Indispensable kitchen tools.
8. If keeping all the food hot until the guests are ready is an issue, use an open waffle iron as a hot plate. Temper the heat with a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil.
9. Give the melon ball cutter extra kitchen duties — use it to extract olives and maraschino cherries from tall, narrow bottles; use it too for shaping party butter balls.
10. To soften butter quickly and easily and without melting a drop, cover the butter for a minute or two with a heated bowl. Heat the bowl by filling it briefly with boiling water.
11. Before scalding milk, rinse the saucepan with cold water. The pan won’t get coated with the milk and will be easier to wash.
12. Use a muffin pan for baking potatoes. They can be removed all at once. The muffin pan is also handy for baking apples and stuffed peppers.
13. Make meat more tender by adding 1 tsp. vinegar to water while boiling.
14. Oranges should not be sliced until ready to use as they become bitter if allowed to stand.
15. Slice and peel pounds of onions without a tear. Slice them first with the heavy blade of a chef’s knife then just slip off the skin.
Do you know what this tool is??
16. To freshen marshmallows, place in covered container with slice of fresh apple.
17. When whipping cream tear off square of wax paper, place small part of beaters through the paper to form a tent over the bowl. Results: NO splattering on cabinets, clothes or yourself!
18. For juicier lemons, limes, oranges: heat in water until boiling, simmer 30 seconds only. Drain, then squeeze.
19. When cooking peas add a pinch of sugar to the water and they will taste fresh from the garden.
20. To shave chocolate: use a potato peeler. Make soft curls by softening chocolate slightly first.
About Simply Living Simply
I have the tool in the photo and use it often.