Savvy Secrets for the Kitchen

No matter how experienced (or inexperienced) you are in the kitchen, everyone can use a good tip now and again….10 good tips, or as we like to call them, Savvy Secrets, are just ten times better!  

1.  Book Page Placeholders

To make one, cut a bottom corner from an ungusseted paper bag (the kind card shops use) or a colorful envelope. Ours is about 2 inches long from corner to cut. Create several to track your best-loved recipes or when planning the menu for a special dinner.

2.  Softening Secret
When you’re ready to bake, waiting for cold butter to soften can seem to take forever. Here’s how to hurry the process along: Over a mixing bowl, shred the amount of butter you need on a grater. The little pieces will soften faster than a solid stick. In no time, the butter will be bake-worthy.

3.  Cutting Tears
Don’t weep over chopped onions. If you cut them near an open flame, the gaseous sulfur compounds they release into the air will burn off before they can irritate your eyes. A gas burner works best, but if your stove is electric, try lighting a votive candle near your chopping board instead.

4. Peeling Ginger
The next time you have a recipe that calls for fresh ginger, reach for a spoon. It removes the thin skin easily, even from the knotty areas. Hold the spoon, concave side facing you, and draw it toward you. Maneuver the spoon and ginger as necessary to get into all the crevices.

5. Opening Stubborn Jars

Try this trick for opening stubborn jar lids: Place one rubber band around the lid, and another around the jar. With one hand, grip the jar where the rubber band encircles it; use the other hand to twist off the lid. The rubber bands provide friction, so your hands won’t slip off the jar or lid.

6. Grinder Care

Freshly ground seeds of cumin, coriander, and fennel don’t just spice up your cooking, they also cling to the grinder. For a quick cleaning, run soft, fresh white bread through the grinder to pick up lingering spices and absorb the oil they leave behind.

7. Bowl Holder

Whipping up vinaigrette can make you wish you had three hands — one to whisk, one to pour the oil, and one to hold the bowl steady. A damp kitchen towel can do the trick. Just twist the towel securely around the base of the bowl to keep it in place.

8. Quick Peel Kiwi

Here’s the easiest way to skin a kiwi: Trim both ends of the fruit; ease a tablespoon between the flesh and the peel. Turn the kiwi, pressing the back of the spoon against the peel as you go. The whole fruit should slide right out — ready for slicing.

9. Easy Grating

Fresh mozzarella is delicious on pasta, gratins, and pizza. But it’s difficult to grate — unless you freeze it first. Wrap a block of mozzarella in plastic wrap, and freeze for at least 20 minutes; then grate. Store the grated cheese in a resealable plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to five days.

10. No-Stick Trick

For brownies and bar cookies that don’t crumble or stick when you remove them from the pan, try this: Butter the baking dish, then place a sheet of parchment, also buttered, inside, allowing about 2 inches to extend beyond two opposite sides. Bake according to the recipe’s instructions, and let cool. Pull up on the parchment to lift the dessert from the pan before cutting.

Many of these great ideas came, over the years, from that icon of homemaking, Martha Stewart. We always want to give credit where credit is due.  We would love to hear from you to know which of these Savvy Secrets is most helpful to you, or of any others you can share with all of us. As we tell you often, we are here to help bring you more love, joy and certainly ways to experience more abundant living:)