wilkes

Ty!

One of my favorite websites is Hillybilly Housewife. There are lots of tips, money saving ideas, etc. Maybe you could add some of those or include the information about the site. It's a great idea and I wish you and your daughter best of luck with all the information you're giving her.

Humans are primates too :D

It still works LOL

LOL Bushman.You said in your lower section of tips:Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the little'stringy things' off of it. That's how the primates do it.Primates don't peel their bananas! - Have you ever been to the zoo and watched them? There's no *peeling* going on!

I don't have a long list like bushman but I just thought of a few things that I like knowing about cooking :D

when baking and out of toothpicks, an uncooked spaghetti noodle does the trick when you are checking that cake or those brownies!

you can make fried chicken extra crunchy by coating the chicken in eggs then dipping in crushed saltine crackers instead of flour! (I add in season-all, pepper, salt, garlic and bread crumbs with the cracker mix)

that's all I can think of for right now... :D

LOL Bushman.
You said in your lower section of tips:
Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the little'stringy things' off of it. That's how the primates do it.Primates don't peel their bananas! - Have you ever been to the zoo and watched them? There's no *peeling* going on!

4. Some of my friends and family cannot eat nuts.When making a big pan of brownies or a cake to share,I top it with English toffee bits instead.They have a nice crunch and are a tasty addition.



I have checked and English Toffee is made with Almonds.If you are allergic
DO NOT EAT IT.

Make meals a little less salty
For Vegetables try this.These seasonings accent veggies.
Carrots ....Cinnamon, cloves, marjoram, nutmeg, rosemary,
sage
Corn....Cumin, curry powder, onion, paprika, parsley
Green beans ....Dill, curry powder, lemon juice, marjoram,
oregano, tarragon, thyme
Greens....Onion, pepper
Peas ....Ginger, marjoram, onion, parsley, sage
Potatoes ....Dill, garlic, onion, paprika, parsley, sage
Cooking & Baking Tips
On this page I have listed some of the tips and tricks I have learned
to make cooking easier and your food taste better.
Tip 1: Baking with Eggs
When baking, always bring eggs to room temperature first.
Cold eggs may cause the batter to curdle, which could affect the cake's texture.
To quickly bring eggs to room temperature, let them soak in a bowl of warm
water for about a half hour.
Tip 2: Skimming Fat
Cool soup or stew to lukewarm and add ice cubes.
The fat will solidify around the ice cubes.
Remove ice cubes and fat with slotted spoon and discard.
Tip 3: Thawing Frozen Poultry
The safest way to thaw poultry is in the regrigerator.
Poultry can also be thawed in cold water.
In a large bowl cover poultry with cold water.
Water should be changed frequently to keep cold.
Tip 4: Stuffing Chicken or Turkey
When stuffing chicken or turkey be sure stuffing mixture is cool.
The bird should be stuffed just before baking.
Stuffing the bird the night before should not be done to reduce the risk
of bacterial growth.
Tip 5: Making The Perfect Cake
When frosting a cake anchor the bottom cake layer to the serving plate with a dab of frosting.
That way, the cake won't slide about as you frost.
This also helps keep the cake from sliding on the plate during transit.
For best results in cake baking, let eggs, butter and milk reach room temperature before mixing.
Tip 6: Baking With Fruit or Nuts
When baking with fruit or nuts you should warm them in the oven and toss with flour.
Shake off excess flour before mixing into batter.
This will prevent them from sinking to the bottom of a cake during baking.
Tip 7: Frosting Cut-out Cookies
Take an empty squeeze bottle, like the ones used for ketchup or mustard,
and fill with frosting. Then squeeze the frosting onto the cookies
Make sure your bottles are clear so you can see what color the frosting is.
Tip 8: Keeping Brown Sugar Fresh
Once you open Brown Sugar it should be kept in an air tight container.
Sometimes Brown Sugar will get hard and clump up.
An easy way to keep it from hardening is to add a piece of bread or an
apple slice and let it sit overnight.
Tip 9: Keep Your Plastic Containers From Staining:
Before putting tomato based products into plastic containers,
spray container and lid with cooking spray.
This will not affect the taste of the food.
Tip 10: Keep Food From Sticking to your Grill:
Spray grill rack with cooking spray to keep food from sticking to grill.
Also makes for easy clean up.
Tip 11: The secret to making good, light, fluffy biscuits is to not
handle the dough too much and to make the dough more on the
moist side than the dry side. The more moist the dough, the
lighter the biscuits.
Tip 12: The secret to making good dumplings is to roll out the
dumplings and cut them and then let them sit for a few minutes
before dropping them in the cooking pot. This allows the air
to slightly dry the outer surface of the dumplings and then
they won't fall apart when they hit the hot liquid.
Tip 13: Anytime you can use buttermilk instead of sweet milk in bread,
the bread will rise lighter and fluffier.
Never use liquid oil when making bread. You'll end up with
hard, flat dough.
Tip 14: Making Cake Flour
The formula: add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch for every 3/4 cup of sifted, bleached,
all-purpose flour.
This will give you the equivalent of 1 cup sifted cake flour.
Potluck Tips
1. Ever wrestle with ice cream that's hard as a rock when you're
trying to scoop it up for a crowd? I buy ice cream in cardboard cartons,
then microwave them on high for 25 to 30 seconds.
The ice cream is perfect for scooping.
2. During the hot humid days of summer, I love to serve cool gelatin salads,
but they seem to sag and wilt in the heat. I discovered if
I add one envelope of unflavored gelatin (but no extra liquid),
along with the flavored gelatin called for in the recipe,
my salad "stands" until the very last spoonful!
3. We frequently host picnics and outdoor parties at our house in the summer,
and I've found it's difficult to keep the salads cold.
Then I came upon the idea of filling a child's plastic swimming pool with ice.
I set it on a sturdy table and nestle my cold dishes in it. It works great.
4. Some of my friends and family cannot eat nuts.
When making a big pan of brownies or a cake to share,
I top it with English toffee bits instead.
They have a nice crunch and are a tasty addition.

So true,you take for granted when you give a recipe that everyone using it knows the little things.

when you condense all the helpful hints outside of recipe's for cooking...it's interesting to really see how much we do when we do cook!!! I concentrate so much on the recipe and methods of cooking, I forgot about all the extra's involved.

Goddess ,,,,Why?

WOW! I didn't know most of that. I am impressed! Thank you!

well dang Bushbaby...I'm screwed!!!!!!!!

Tips that can help you
Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the little
'stringy things' off of it. That's how the primates do it.
Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave
them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.
Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh
much longer and not mold!
Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.
Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.
Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the
grease away from the meat while cooking.
To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich, add a couple of spoonfuls
of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.
For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints
in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful
minty frosting.
Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic
and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.
Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simple
chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples.
Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over
the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes!!! Serve alone or with vanilla
ice cream.
Reheat Pizza: Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of
the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust
crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on the cooking channel and it
really works.
Easy Deviled Eggs: Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash
till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal,
keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly y, cut the tip of the baggy,
squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
Expanding Frosting: When you buy a container of cake frosting from the
store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in
size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You
also eat less sugar and calories per serving.
Reheating refrigerated bread: To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins
that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water.
The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat
faster.
Newspaper weeds away- Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients
in your soil. Wet newspapers put layers around the plants
overlapping as you go cover with mulch and forget about weeds. Weeds
will get through some gardening plastic they will not get through wet
newspapers.
Broken Glass: Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small
shards of glass you can't see easily.
No More Mosquitoes: Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep
the mosquitoes away.
Squirrel Away! To keep squirrels from eating your plants sprinkle
your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the
plant and the squirrels won't come near it.
Flexible vacuum: To get something out of a heat register or under the
fridge, add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your
vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.
Reducing Static Cling: Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip
and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works
with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of
slacks and -- ta da! -- static is gone.
Measuring Cups: Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring
cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup.
Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily
it comes right out.
Foggy Windshield? Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and
keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with
the eraser! Works better than a cloth!
Reopening envelope: If you seal an envelope and then realize you
forgot to include something inside , just place your sealed envelope
in the freezer for an hour or two. Viola! It unseals easily.
Conditioner: Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's a lot
cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great
way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in
your hair...
Goodbye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass
fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid, mix
well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!
Get Rid of Ants: Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat
it, take it 'home,' can't digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so,
especially if it rains, but it works & you don't have the worry about pets
or small children being harmed.

No kitchen is complete without a good collandar.

Never wash kitchen cutlery (knives) or can openers in the dishwasher.

when you blanche food...you bring your water to a rolling boil...then you drop your veggies in...boil for 3 minutes...this is usually done before freezing your veggies.

I dont have any tips to offer, but just wanted to say what I neat idea! Im sure your daughter will love it!

Okay, I am about to start a family cookbook for my oldest child. What helpful tips, methods or food substitutions would you include? She already knows the basics, but you never know, I want something that can be added to and passed along to her children, kind of a family cookbook scrapbook.
Anyways, there are things that I have never had to do, but have heard mentioned on several threads, like blanching. Have no clue what that is.
Any advice from more experienced culinary people would be helpful! Thanks!