2. Use a meat baster to “squeeze” your pancake batter onto the hot griddle – perfect shaped pancakes every time.

3. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

4. To prevent egg shells from cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.

5. To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature & roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.

6. To easily remove burnt-on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stovetop-skillet will be much easier to clean.

7. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead-no white mess on the outside of the cake.

8. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it’s still cooking, drop in a peeled potato-it absorbs the excess salt for an instant “fix me up.”

9. Brush beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.

10. Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it back up.

11. When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn’s natural sweetness.  (ah, an old 1940’s Fannie Farmer trick!)

12. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh-if it rises to the surface, throw it away.

13. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

14. Don’t throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

15. If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.

16. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.

17. To get rid of itch from mosquito bite: try applying soap on the area, instant relief.

18. Ants, ants, ants everywhere … Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march-see for yourself.

19. When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

20. NOW Look what you can do with Alka-Seltzer:

• Clean a toilet-drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes, brush, and flush. The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous china.
• Clean a vase-to remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka-Seltzer tablets.
• Polish jewelry-drop two Alka-Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the jewelry for two minutes.
• Clean a thermos bottle-fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka-Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).
• Unclog a drain-clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka-Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, then run the hot water.

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Fat is a source of energy that is stored in muscle tissue. When fat is heated, it melts and lubricates the muscle fibers in the meat, helping to keep it moist.

The cuts of meat from cows and pigs that contain the most fat are those that come from areas where the muscles aren’t used as extensively, such as the ribs and loins. The fat in fish is contained in the oil that is present throughout the body, so most of the fish has an inherent “lubrication” source.

The white stuff we know as sugar is sucrose, a molecule composed of 12 atoms of carbon, 22 atoms of hydrogen, and 11 atoms of oxygen (C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁). Like all compounds made from these three elements, sugar is a carbohydrate. It’s found naturally in most plants, but especially in sugarcane and sugar beets—hence their names.

Sucrose is actually two simpler sugars stuck together: fructose and glucose. In recipes, a little bit of acid (for example, some lemon juice or cream of tartar) will cause sucrose to break down into these two components.

If you look closely at dry sugar, you’ll notice it comes in little cubelike shapes. These are sugar crystals, orderly arrangements of sucrose molecules.

Under a microscope, you can see that sugar crystals aren’t cubes, exactly, but oblong and slanted at both ends. (Image courtesy of Nutrition and Food Management Dept., Oregon State University)

What happens when you heat a sugar solution?

When you add sugar to water, the sugar crystals dissolve and the sugar goes into solution. But you can’t dissolve an infinite amount of sugar into a fixed volume of water. When as much sugar has been dissolved into a solution as possible, the solution is said to be saturated.

The saturation point is different at different temperatures. The higher the temperature, the more sugar that can be held in solution.

When you cook up a batch of candy, you cook sugar, water, and various other ingredients to extremely high temperatures. At these high temperatures, the sugar remains in solution, even though much of the water has boiled away. But when the candy is through cooking and begins to cool, there is more sugar in solution than is normally possible. The solution is said to be supersaturated with sugar.

Supersaturation is an unstable state. The sugar molecules will begin to crystallize back into a solid at the least provocation. Stirring or jostling of any kind can cause the sugar to begin crystallizing.

Why are crystals undesirable in some candy recipes—and how do you stop them from forming?

Interfering agents (Image courtesy of Nutrition and Food Management Dept., Oregon State University)

The fact that sugar solidifies into crystals is extremely important in candy making. There are basically two categories of candies – crystalline (candies which contain crystals in their finished form, such as fudge and fondant), and noncrystalline, or amorphous (candies which do not contain crystals, such as lollipops, taffy, and caramels). Recipe ingredients and procedures for noncrystalline candies are specifically designed to prevent the formation of sugar crystals, because they give the resulting candy a grainy texture.

One way to prevent the crystallization of sucrose in candy is to make sure that there are other types of sugar—usually, fructose and glucose—to get in the way. Large crystals of sucrose have a harder time forming when molecules of fructose and glucose are around. Crystals form something like Legos locking together, except that instead of Lego pieces, there are molecules. If some of the molecules are a different size and shape, they won’t fit together, and a crystal doesn’t form.

A simple way to get other types of sugar into the mix is to “invert” the sucrose (the basic white sugar you know well) by adding an acid to the recipe. Acids such as lemon juice or cream of tartar cause sucrose to break up (or invert) into its two simpler components, fructose and glucose. Another way is to add a nonsucrose sugar, such as corn syrup, which is mainly glucose. Some lollipop recipes use as much as 50% corn syrup; this is to prevent sugar crystals from ruining the texture.

Fats in candy serve a similar purpose. Fatty ingredients such as butter help interfere with crystallization—again, by getting in the way of the sucrose molecules that are trying to lock togeter into crystals. Toffee owes its smooth texture and easy breakability to an absence of sugar crystals, thanks to a large amount of butter in the mix.

I cannot begin to fathom the deep emotions that are running.

Please spare a moment when you sit down to a hot meal, a beer or wine and when you take a hot shower, play with your kids, turn on the tv and then crawl into a comfy bed. There are hundreds of thousands tonight that dont get to do that, some wont ever get to play with thier kids ever again, I know I will be forever changed by this tragedy. Keep praying please.

Step 1: Get the Proper Machine

You don’t have to go out and spend big bucks to purchase a top machine in order to engage in the craft of latte art, though a machine such as the Bialetti stovetop will not work because it does offer the possibility to steam milk. Almost any espresso machine will work if it has milk steaming capabilities. Still, having a top end machine or using a product such as theBreville Café Roma certainly can help make it easier to learn the secrets of latte art. Regardless of the machine you use, however, you will need to remove your turbo nozzles before getting started.

Step 2: Preparing the Milk

Next, you need to pour enough milk to make one cup of latte into the steam pitcher. Then, place the steam wand at the bottom of the pitcher and turn on the steam. Raise the steam wand until it is almost to the top of the milk while lowering the pitcher at the same time. The trick here is to avoid stretching the milk too much or making bubbles appear, as you want your milk to be smooth and velvety. In order to avoid overstretching, it is important to only use cold milk to start the process.

Step 3: Achieve the Right Temperature

Once the milk hits 80 degrees, tuck in steam wand while spinning the pitcher in a counterclockwise direction so you can create a whirlpool. Continuing moving the pitcher until the milk reaches 150 to 160 degrees. Once it reaches this temperature, you can shut it off.

Step 4: Start Swirling

You are now ready to start swirling the milk. Continue swirling for about 20 to 30 seconds as the espresso is pouring. You are now ready to start pouring in the milk.

Step 5: Make a Pattern

The most common pattern is the flower design, which you can create by pouring the milk in at the bottom of the cup. When the cup is half full, begin shaking the pitcher in a back and forth motion as you slowly move it backward. You will notice the flower design forming in a forward direction. After it reaches the top, pour additional milk through the middle.

With a little practice, you will eventually be able to create a great flower pattern. Once you have this basic design down, let your creativity go wild and see what else you can design!

Ginger is used in a variety of different cuisine, but is especially common in Asian and Indian cooking. It can be eaten fresh, pickled (sushi ginger), candied or ground up. It is essential to oriental and indian cooking and is used to make stir fries, sushi, chutneys, satays and pastes. In Western cooking, it is used for making all kinds of cakes, breads and desserts such as gingerbread and ginger cookies. Ground up and powdered, it is used to flavor any number of dishes. Ginger is also used in puddings, jams and preserves and in beverages to make ginger tea, ginger ale and even ginger beer. Pickled ginger is pickled with vinegar and in Japan is known as ‘gari’ and served with sushi. Candied or crystallized ginger is ginger cooked in sryup and then rolled in sugar to be used as a candy or sweet treat.

Ginger does not have a lot of nutrients partially because it is used in such small amounts, but it does have potassium which is good for your muscles and heart. It is known to help ease a stomach ache and to help with stomach related problems such as nausea and irritable bowels. It is also used as an anti-inflammatory for use with arthritis, muscle spasms and joint pain.

Fresh ginger should be knobby and have a shiny skin. If it is wrinkled or cracked, it is generally older and not as favorable. Fresh ginger has a light green color, while dried ginger can be nearly black, with the skin left on, or white, with the skin peeled off. Fresh ginger can be kept for several weeks in the salad drawer of the refrigerator and you should store dried and powdered ginger in airtight containers.

Making the Perfect French Fry:

1. Use Russet potatoes as these make the best fries in my opinion. Russet Nugget potatoes also make excellent fries. The Russet variety has less moisture and will crisp faster.
2. The first step is to thoroughly scrub the potatoes to remove any dirt and deposits. This should be common knowledge for any dish when using potatoes.
3. Peel the potatoes. Some people like to leave a little skin on, but I recommend taking off the skin as the oil does not penetrate well. This is more of a personal preference though.
4. Soak the potatoes overnight in water. This will remove the the starch from the potatoes, allowing them to cook faster and makes them crispier.
5. Cut the potatoes lengthwise about a half an inch in thickness to make a steak fry cut. Cut thinner if you want the typical Shoe String french fry, but be careful how long you cook them. Most importantly, make sure to keep your cuts even so that all of your french fries cook evenly.
6. Pre-heat the oil in a deep pan or a deep fryer (if you have one) to 190c and use a thermometer to make sure the temperature reaches this point. This is the most important step – if the oil is not hot enough, the water cannot escape from the potatoes and will not crisp up, leaving them soggy.
7. Some time before serving, blanch in oil at 190c until slightly firm. Allow the potatoes to drain and dry and keep them in the fridge.
8. When ready to cook, drop in oil at 190c until golden brown. Do not overload the pan or fry basket!

You might be wondering what the best kind of oil to use for deep frying and this can be more of a personal choice due to taste but here are my suggestions:

• For the highest heat and best flavor, use Peanut Oil or Grapeseed Oil (expensive).
• Soybean Oil also will provide a lot of heat, but can add a different flavor.
• Canola Oil will fry well, but it leaves a distinctive taste that some do not like. It is the healthiest type of oil to use however, so if you are going for healthier french fries, use Canola, but try it with a small batch first to make sure you like the taste.

• An oldie, but a goodie – use cooking spray on plastic containers to prevent stains from tomato sauce, marinara, chili, or any sauce that might stain your tupperware.
• Measuring honey with a spoon is pretty easy but getting it off the spoon is another matter. Rub the spoon in margarine and the honey will come off.
• To keep milk past it’s expiration date add salt. A pinch of salt in a gallon will do it. The salt slows the rate of bacteria growth.
• Brown sugar will not harden if stored in the freezer.
• If you freeze wild rice it will last 3-4 months compared to a week in the refrigerator.
• Regarding tomato paste, it seems a whole can of tomato paste is many times too much for some recipes. Suggestion: take a piece of waxed paper, putting it on a cookie sheet and putting teaspoonfuls of the leftover paste on the paper – another sheet on top and freeze this. When frozen just peel them off and put them in a baggie and when you need a tsp. or tbs. of paste you have it without opening a whole can and there is no waste –OR– put small amounts in an ice tray and then just pop them out when you need them.
• Always use tongs to turn meat on the grill to avoid piercing the meat. This keeps most of the wonderful juices inside the meat.
• To easily remove burnt food off of a skillet, add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Then set it on the stove and bring to a boil to remove the offending foods.
• Prevent heavy cleaning when using a BBQ grill, spray the grill with non-stick cooking spray before putting it over the hot coals and the food won’t stick nearly as much.