Kitchen Tips

Which onion to use?

10/26/2020

Yellow Onions
Great all-purpose use for:

soups and stews
casseroles
sauces
roasting with meat and chicken

White Onions
Sharp and crunchy to use for:

salsa
sauté with other vegetables

Purple or Red Onions
Peppery and delicious to use for:

sandwiches and burgers
guacamole
pickling
salads

Sweet Onions (Vidalia / Texas 1015)
Sweet as sugar and great for:

onion rings
frying
baking
roasting

Shallots
Lovely and mild; perfect for:

salad dressings
garnishes

Perfect Meringue

10/16/2020

4 egg whites (room temperature)
1/2 cup sifted sugar
dash salt
2 teaspoons lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put egg whites in a ceramic mixing bowl. Do NOT use metal or plastic. Beat with a whisk or mixer until soft peaks form when you lift the beater up (turn the mixer off first, of course).
Gradually beat in sugar, salt and flavoring.
Spoon meringue evenly over pie, but not too smooth. Spread well to edge, so it won't shrink.
Bake in preheated 425 degree oven until delicately brown - about 5 minutes.
To cut easily, dip knife in hot water.
If meringue "weeps," too much sugar was used or sugar was too coarse. If meringue shrinks or is tough, the oven was too slow.

Never let things boil over again!!
The solution: a wooden spoon!
Place the wooden spoon over the top of an open (not lidded) pot of boiling soup, pasta, rice, etc. and it won't boil over. I have no idea how this works - it's just magic.

Soup Too Salty? Too spicy?

10/9/2020

Added too much salt to your soup?
Too much spice?
Here's the cure: a big slice of potato or apple. Just throw it in and leave for awhile, but not long enough to cook. If it starts to get soft, the salt or spice will go right back into the soup. Try it!

Seafood Marinade

10/9/2020

Beer poured over seafood is a good marinade.
It makes for a flaky texture!
Marinade at leas an hour in the refrigerator.

Is it done Yet?

10/4/2020

Yeast Breads:

Make sure your pan is in the middle of the oven and leave some space around pans, if baking more than one.
Tap the crust lightly with your knuckles - listen for a hollow sound. It's done!

Quick Breads and Cakes:

When a wooden pick or a cake tester inserted in the thickest part comes out clean, with no crumbs, it's done!
If your quick bread - like banana bread, etc. has a crack down the middle, don't check for doneness in this crack. Try right next to it.
Most will pull away from the sides of the pan a bit when done.

Measuring

10/4/2020

Liquid Ingredients:

To correctly measure, put the cup on a sturdy, level surface. Don't hold it up in the air!
If the recipe calls for 1/8 cup, you can just use 2 tablespoons instead.
For honey or syrup, lightly grease the measuring cup, making it easy to remove the ingredient and get a more accurate measurement. (Works for jelly or jam too!)

Solid Ingredients:

1 stick of butter = 1/2 cup = 1/4 pound (1 stick - 8 tablespoons)
Whipped butter or margarine or is not an equal substitute.

Dry Ingredients:

Powdered (confectioner's) sugar and cake flour are light and pack down easily, making for difficulty measuring. Sift them first into a bowl, then measure.
Same as liquids: 1/8 cup = 2 tablespoons.
Liquid measuring cups don't work so well with dry ingredients.
Pack down brown sugar into your measuring cup or spoon.
For breadcrumbs, oats, cornmeal - pour into the measuring cup, then tap lightly and level off with a knife or spoon.

Random Tips...

10/1/2020

Corn:

Use a CLEAN shoe horn to remove corn kernels from the cob!
A dampened paper towel will help remove the silks from an ear of corn.

Cupcakes:

Frost cupcakes in half the time by dipping the top of the cupcake into soft frosting, twirling slightly, and then quickly turning right-side up.

Eggs:

A tablespoon of vinegar added to the water when poaching eggs will help set the whites so they won’t spread.
When boiling eggs, you can prevent cracking by wetting the shells before you put the eggs in the water.
Test for hard boiled eggs: if it spins on the counter – it’s done; if it falls over – it’s still a bit raw.

Frying Bacon and Other Meat:

To prevent fat splashing when frying meat, sprinkle a little salt into the pan before putting the meat in.
Soak bacon a few minutes in cold water before placing in skillet. This will lessen the tendency to shrink and curl.

Marshmallows:

When you cut marshmallows, dip your scissors in a glass of confectioner’s sugar or hot water to keep them from sticking.
Use a fork for stirring small amounts of dry ingredients and a spoon for stirring liquid ingredients.

Milk:

Before heating milk, rinse the pan with cold water to prevent scorching and sticking.

Muffins:

Muffins come out of the tins easily if the hot pan is put straight from the oven onto a wet dish towel.

Onions:

Not as many tears when cutting onions if you put the onions in the freezer for 4 to 5 minutes before slicing.

Potatoes:

Potatoes soaked in salt water for 20 minutes before baking will bake more rapidly.
Sweet potatoes won’t turn dark if put in salted water (5 teaspoons to a quart of water) immediately after peeling.
A thin slice cut from each end of a potato will speed up baking time.

Rice:

A few drops of lemon juice added to a pot of simmering rice keeps the grains from sticking together.

Shrimp:

To make a small amount of shrimp go further in a casserole or other dish, split large, fat shrimp horizontally. The shrimp flavor permeates the mixture more thoroughly when you slice them this way.

Don't have it? Substitute!

9/27/2020

Don't have that ingredient? Just substitute!
Here are some common ones:

1 cup buttermilk = 2 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar + 1 cup milk
1 cup honey = 1/3 cup water + 1 cup sugar
1 cup corn syrup = 1 cup sugar + 3/4 cup water
1 cup sour cream = 1 cup plain Green yogurt
1 cup heavy cream = 1/3 cup melted butter + 3/4 cup milk (Don't try to whip this!)
1 cup butter = 1 cup applesauce (I learned this trick from a dietician! It works in baked goods.)
1 teaspoon vanilla = 1 teaspoon maple syrup
1 egg = 1/2 banana or 1/4 cup apple sauce
1 cup cake flour = 1 cup regular flour minus 2 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons cornstarch (whisk)
1 cup self-rising flour = 2 cups all-purpose flour + 2 teaspoons baking powder & 1/2 teaspoon salt (whisk)

How's your cake?

9/27/2020

Here are some problem-solving tips to keep in mind when baking cakes:
Keep your cake smooth, not cracked on top. Put your cake on a middle rack in the oven. That keeps it from forming a "crusty top" too quickly.
Make sure it's done! For most cakes, insert a cake tester or a wooden skewer and see if it comes out clean. If it does, it's done. For sponge cakes, gently touch them. They should be sort of "springy."
Don't be tempted to open that oven door and check on your cake too soon. Do that and your cake will sink like the Titanic.
Keep it moist - use the correct amount of baking powder. Too much and your dessert will be a desert.

Don't Pour Out the Pasta Water!

6/3/2019

You know that starchy, cloudy water you pour from the cooked pasta? Don't pour it out - it is SO useful. Drain some of your pasta water into a saucepan. Reserve and add a little at a time to your sauce to make it smoother!

Mashed, Not Mushy Potatoes!

6/1/2019

First , start with cold water and add salt. If you add your potatoes to hot water, they will not cook evenly. Drain them VERY well - water will make them mushy! Dump them back into the cooking pot to mash them - it keeps them warm!
Do you like to add cream, milk, or butter? Warm the additions BEFORE adding so the potatoes absorb the flavorings and don't cool off too soon.

For goodness sakes, don't mash them with a blender, food processor, or mixer. Just use a plain ole' potato masher by hand. The more you work with the potatoes, the more mushy and starchy they become.
Make mashed potatoes at the last minute. Potatoes don't like to wait for anyone - they give up their tastiness! If you must make them ahead of time, stick them in a crock pot on warm and fluff them before serving.

Lemons - The Secret Spice!

5/30/2019

Lemons are my secret weapon in cooking. A bit of lemon zest or juice will perk up anything from a cold pasta salad to a glass of sparkling water and all things in between. I add lemon zest and juice to chicken soup, mashed potatoes, baked chicken, sauces, etc. Just try it in your favorite recipes to give them some "sass!"
And here's another tip: A few drops of lemon juice added to a pot of simmering rice keeps the grains from sticking together.

Never Burn Butter Again!

5/26/2019

Have you ever placed that butter in the pan, turned away for just a few seconds? Wham! It's burned, tastes nasty, and smells worse. I love cooking with butter, but avoided it for years because I always seemed to burn it. Here's the trick: just replace about 1/3 of your required butter with olive oil. The mixture of the oil with the butter keeps it from burning so quickly. Hooray!

The Best Iced Tea or "Ice Tea"

5/12/2019

You say "iced tea" - I say "ice tea"... I'm from the deep South and we say ice tea!
Here's the best way to make said tea:
Put 4 or 5 tea bags or tablespoons of loose tea in a quart jar (I prefer glass.) of room temperature water. Place in the refrigerator overnight. Remove tea bags or leaves and it's ready!

Substitute Regular Flour for Cake Flour

4/14/2019

Take 1 cups of regular or all purpose flour.
Remove 2 tablespoons of the flour and replace with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.
Sift 2 or 3 times and use in place of cake flour.

Perfect Boiled Eggs

4/1/2019

Put eggs in a single layer in a pot of cold water, just covering the eggs.
Turn burner to high and bring water to a rapid boil.
Boil for 1 minute, then immediately turn off burner and remove pot from heat.
Leave eggs in hot water for about 12 to 14 minutes. No more!
Drain hot water from eggs and replace with cold water.
Let sit for about 10 minutes, then peel.

Additional tips:

If you're one of those cooks who puts the eggs straight into the boiling water, you can prevent cracking by wetting the shells before you put the eggs in the water.
Test for hard boiled eggs: if it spins on the counter – it’s done; if it falls over – it’s still a bit raw.
Psst...I really don't like boiled eggs, unless they are in potato salad!