7 Kitchen Tips & Tricks
It's time to get creative in the kitchen with these kitchen hacks and solutions to everyday problems.
When it comes to cooking and preparing meals in your kitchen, the more help the better! Make it a little easier on yourself by trying these 7 handy kitchen tips that really work.
1. Pasta casserole with cream?!
The last ingredient you'd expect to go with a nice cream pie is pasta, but listen to us. Instead of risking the topping getting messed up in transit due to a tight fitting lid, you can put some uncooked spaghetti in the cake and hang a sheet of plastic wrap over the noodles. Don't try this with toothpicks, which would likely sink into the cake.
2. Whipped cream to go.
If you're bringing a cake for dessert, you should serve it with fresh whipped cream. Since this garnish doesn't transport well, this is an efficient way to transport the cream and "whip" it in a container.
1. For about 1 cup of whipped cream, place ½ cup heavy cream and 1½ teaspoons sugar in a canning jar and seal. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
2 To prepare whipped cream, shake the jar until doubled in volume, about 4 minutes. Serve immediately. (Volume is slightly less than cream whipped in a stand mixer, but still thick).
3. Transporting ice cream
A clever way to transport homemade ice cream without turning it into soup is to use the chilled freezer bowl of your ice cream maker as a mini-refrigerator. It holds up to a quart of ice cream, sorbet or sherbet, and when flexible ice packs are placed on the sides and top of the container, the frozen treat stays solid for hours.
4. Storage key
It's always frustrating to go through the trouble of making a packed lunch for work or school, only to forget it in the fridge at home. A simple solution is to keep the key in the fridge next to your lunch: That way, you can't leave the house without it.
5. Salad on the go
At lunch time, many think of salad, even those who take their own lunch to work. But salads are problematic if prepared early and eaten later in the day. Many cut pieces dry out, and the dressing leaves the greens limp. Here are some easy ways to solve these problems.
A. To carry a small amount of dressing, use one of the jars that dry condiments are packed in. The small size and tight seal are ideal for this purpose.
B. If you don't want to carry a separate container for the dressing, try to fit everything in one container: Put the dressing in the bottom of the container, cover it with chopped veggies, fruit, beans, and cheese, and put the greens on top. To dress the salad, just shake the container.
C. If the salad contains juicy parts, such as tomatoes, or parts that might dry out if pre-cut, such as cheese, bring them intact and pack a paring knife safely stowed in a plastic travel toothbrush holder.
6. Perfect PB&J
Anyone who's ever packed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich knows the disappointment of finding that the bread that comes in contact with the jelly is soggy. To avoid this unpleasant texture, spread peanut butter on both slices of bread, then top with jelly on each side.
7. Stabilize sandwiches
Grinders, hoagies, subs or po' boys - overstuffed sandwiches in thick buns are an American favorite. But they can be pretty sloppy to wrap and eat, with filling oozing out everywhere. Bring order to these sandwiches by pulling out some of the inner crumb in the top and bottom halves of the bread. This will create a trough in the bottom half for the filling and a cap on top for the topping, so you can eat them without a problem.