[Kitchen Witch]

* For the perfect boiled egg, cover eggs with cold water and
a pinch of salt. Bring the water to a full boil. Remove the
pan from the heat and cover. Let the eggs sit for 8-9 minutes.
Drain the water and place the eggs in ice water to cool to
stop the cooking process.
* When braising meat, cook it at a low temperature for a long
time to keep the meat tender and have it retain all the juices.
* When cooking any kind of strawberry dessert, add a splash of
aged Balsamic vinegar to the recipe to enhance the flavor
of the strawberries.
* For fresh flavor in orange juice add the juice of one lemon.
* Tenderize pot roast or stewing meat by using two cups of
hot tea as a cooking liquid.
* When making roux for a recipe, make extra and keep in
the refrigerator for future use.
* Chefs pound meat not to tenderize the meat, but to help
even the meat so it cooks evenly.
* To remove egg shells from a batter, use the remaining shell
to attract the piece.
* If a recipe calls for 1 cup sour cream, you may substitute
1 cup cottage cheese blended until smooth with 1 tablespoon
lemon juice and 1/3 cup buttermilk.
* When using fresh herbs such as dill, chives, parsley, etc.,
hold them together in small bunches and snip with kitchen
scissors. It is a lot faster this way, and you'll find the
herbs will be light and fluffy, not bruised and wet as they
often get when chopped.
* When going on a picnic, keep sandwiches from becoming soggy
by packing lettuce and condiments in separate containers.
Add them to sandwiches just before serving.
* Maple-flavored syrup, commonly found on the shelves in the
store and in restaurants, is actually corn syrup flavored
with a bit of pure maple syrup to keep the cost down.
* Thaw fish in milk for fresher flavor
* Put meat used for stir frying in freezer for 45 min. to 1 hr. to make
slicing easier.
* You can correct greasy gravy by adding a little baking soda to it.
* If you need only 1/2 an onion, save the root half. It will last longer.
* Keep popcorn fresh and encourage more kernels to pop by storing in
the freezer.
* Lemons stored in a sealed jar of water will produce twice the juice.
* Use paper bags rather than plastic to store lettuce and celery in the
crisper. They will stay fresh longer.
* Bread will stay fresh longer if a celery rib is stored with it in the
package.
* Save butter wrappers in the freezer to use for greasing pans when baking.
* To keep salt from clogging in the shaker, add 1/2 teaspoon of uncooked rice.
* If guests are coming and you're behind making dinner, throw some onions on
to saute and your kitchen will smell wonderful and homey.
* Egg whites should always be at room temperature before whipping.
Be certain there is no yolk in the whites and that the bowl and
beaters are perfectly clean. Cream, on the other hand, should be
well-chilled. For the largest volume, chill the bowl and beaters
before whipping.
* When using spaghetti, keep in mind that 8 ounces of uncooked
pasta makes 4 cups cooked.
* When using all-purpose flour, keep in mind that one pound flour
is the equivalent to 4 cups.
* When using dried beans and peas, keep in mind that 1 cup dry beans
or peas makes 2 1/2 cups cooked.
* When using rice, keep in mind that 1 cup of uncooked long-grain
white rice makes 3 cups cooked.
* When using granulated sugar, keep in mind that one pound sugar
is the equivalent to 2 cups.
* Ultimate Disposable Pastry Bag:
Take a heavy-duty zipper-seal plastic bag and snip off
one corner, making a slightly curved cut. Using a standard
two-piece plastic coupler (available wherever cake decorating
supplies are sold), insert the larger piece into the hole.
Choose a tip and secure it with the coupler's ring. Fill the
bag and zip the top closed. Decorate away, then remove the
coupler/tip assembly and toss the bag. No messy cleanup!
* One way to preserve the flavor of fresh herbs is to make herb butter.
Let the butter soften, then add finely chopped herbs in any
combination, abbout 2 to 4 tablespoons per stick of butter. The
butter freezes well, and you can serve it spread on French bread
or with seafood or chicken.
* Pancakes are lighter and fluffier when you substitute club soda
for milk in the batter.
* Before opening a package of bacon, roll it. This helps separate
the slices for easy removal of individual slices.
* Drain deep fried foods on brown paper grocery bags as opposed to
paper towels to retain crispness.
* Whenever possible, warm your dinner plates slightly in the oven
before serving so the meal stays a little bit hotter.
* To make lighter and fluffier mashed potatoes, add a pinch or two
of baking powder to the potatoes before whipping.
* Cookies will spread if your dough is too pliable by allowing butter
to get too soft. If your cookies are spreading too much, try
refrigerating the dough for a couple of hours before baking.
* Cookie dough can be frozen up to three months in an airtight
container or refrigerated three to four days.
* Check cookies at minimum baking time.
* Let cookies cool completely before storing. Store different types
of cookies in separate containers so they'll keep their original
flavor and texture.
* Marinate red meats in wine to tenderize.
* Marinate chicken in buttermilk to tenderize.
* Use margarine instead of butter to panfry or saute.
Butter burns quickly.
* Instead of adding raw garlic to sauces, saute the garlic
first for a milder flavor.
* Thaw frozen meat and poultry in the refrigerator and not on
the kitchen counter where bacteria can grow.
* Add a small amount of lemon juice to the artichoke cooking
water to retain the color of the artichoke.
* A low-calorie solution for high-fat frying of corn tortillas is
to place them in the oven, directly on the rack. Bake at 350 F,
to desired crispness. The tortillas will automatically fold over
into taco shell form with just a little postioning help.
* A simple way to sharpen kitchen shears: cut a piece of steel wool.
* Don't just keep dental floss in your medicine cabinet. Keep some
in the kitchen. It's a great tool. Unflavored dental floss is
often better than a& knife to cleanly cut all kinds of soft foods,
soft cheese, rolled dough, layered cake and cheesecake.
* If lettuce starts turning a little brown (but not slimy) it may
not be suitable for salads, but it is for sauteing. Sauteed
salad greens like lettuce, radicchio, and endive make an unusual
but tasty side dish. Saute lettuces just as you would spinach.
Cook them quickly in a little olive oil, minced garlic, and salt.
They taste great, and you cant tell that the greens were once
a little brown.