Handy Tip

You're ladling soup or other liquid from a pot to a bowl. You swipe the bottom of the ladle on the rim of the pot to remove that pesky drop of liquid--which may or may not work.

Here's a simple, but magic method:

Scoop up a ladle of the liquid, then touch the bottom of the ladle to the liquid in the pot before ladling the liquid to the bowl. Surface tension will instantly remove that pesky drop. Voila! No drippies.

Any other tips from the peanut gallery?

To keep your pasta from boiling over, lay a long-handled wooden spoon across the top of the pot.

To keep your pasta from boiling over, lay a long-handled wooden spoon across the top of the pot.

May I ask the science behind this tip?

Don't know. I got it from some Food Network show. It does work, though.

Karen and Linda,

It probably has to do with breaking the surface tension of the bubbles that otherwise would form the boil-over.

-Paul W.

That would be my guess, too.

This is not really a tip, but rather a plea to Robin and/or Jenise, to make this a permanent available file should we get sufficient tips to make it worthwhile. Some mighty good ones at that already.

Karen and Linda,

It probably has to do with breaking the surface tension of the bubbles that otherwise would form the boil-over.

-Paul W.

I wonder if it would also work when heating milk. It seems to me that milk reaches it's boiling point so suddenly that it is almost impossible to NOT have it boil over.

Here's another I learned recently: use an empty six-pack carton to store containers of wax paper, aluminum foil, clear wrap, sandwich bags, etc. It works great.

Coffee filters (basket) are perfect for disposable mis en place containers. Saves a lot of washing of little bowls.

[Jenise]

Coffee filters (basket) are perfect for disposable mis en place containers. Saves a lot of washing of little bowls.

Something I learned a long time ago from you! Works great.

And something I learned from Robin: where I used to freeze little 1 tblsp blobs of tomato paste for the occasional use, I now put the whole can in a little baggie and press it flat to about 1/2". That's what goes in the freezer, and when I need some I just break off a bit.

I freeze any sort of vegetable matter that would make a decent contribution to stock of some sort. I save the bottoms of asparagus, onion skins, carrot tips, any kind of veggies that are done living in the fridge and are *just* about ready to be tossed. Fresh herbs as well.

I also have a bag of chicken bones and wings and such in the freezer. I also save the shells from shrimp in a bag in the freezer, and the rinds from used up parmesan reggiano.

When I have a few hours and enough stuff, I make stock and freeze it in pint jars and the little Glad containers.

A lot of you probably already do this, but it is a fairly new practice for me. You would probably cry if you knew what I used to throw out.

Test for Baking Powder and Baking Soda

If your baking powder is more than 6 months old, it may have lost its ability to raise baked goods the way it was intended. Here is a simple test to find out if it’s still good.

Add one teaspoon baking powder to ½ cup hot water and look for mixture to bubble like alka seltzer. If it doesn’t, put your baking powder out to pasture.

There is a test for baking soda as well. In a small cup stir one teaspoon into two tablespoons of white vinegar. It should fizz and froth. Discard if you don’t see a vigorous chemical reaction.

Humidity is the greatest enemy of chemical leavens. Always store in an airtight container in a dry part of your cabinet, and date the bottom of the box after purchase.

You're ladling soup or other liquid from a pot to a bowl. You swipe the bottom of the ladle on the rim of the pot to remove that pesky drop of liquid--which may or may not work.

Here's a simple, but magic method:

Scoop up a ladle of the liquid, then touch the bottom of the ladle to the liquid in the pot before ladling the liquid to the bowl. Surface tension will instantly remove that pesky drop. Voila! No drippies.

Any other tips from the peanut gallery?

Hold both the bowl and the ladle over the pot/tureen from which you are ladling. Tip both. No problem.

Yeah, that works but I wasn't strong enough and didn't want to get scalded. I had made a stockpot full of turkey broth, which I ladled into a strainer lined with a paper towel on top of another similarly sized pot.

My handy tip contribution:

If you dip peeled and sliced apples into a little water with a couple of crushed Vitamin C tablets dissolved in it, they won't go brown in the freezer. Yesterday I pulled out a box to use for apple and cherry crumble, and they were lily white. This works much, much better than dipping them in lemon juice. A friend of mine maintains that it works for eggplant as well, and that the ascorbic acid (Vit C) keeps it from going brown in the fridge.

And something I learned from Robin: where I used to freeze little 1 tblsp blobs of tomato paste for the occasional use, I now put the whole can in a little baggie and press it flat to about 1/2". That's what goes in the freezer, and when I need some I just break off a bit.

I do the same thing with canned chipotles in adobo sauce, but I actually freeze little tablespoon sized balls.

I thought everyone knew this one, but have never seen anyone on Food Network do it. To separate an egg (with clean hands) break it and drop it into your other hand. Let the white run through your fingers into a bowl, and plop the yolk into another dish. Only been doing this for thirty years or so.

Spin an egg to see if it's hard boiled or not. Hard boiled spins; raw doesn't. I once watched someone crack open a "hard-boiled" egg for his lunch. I imagine his wife heard about it later.

To keep your pasta from boiling over, lay a long-handled wooden spoon across the top of the pot.

I gotta try this one, especially since I just put in one of those new smooth glass cooktops.

To keep your pasta from boiling over, lay a long-handled wooden spoon across the top of the pot.

I gotta try this one, especially since I just put in one of those new smooth glass cooktops.

Jon, I just took one out, and put in a 5 burner Bosch gas cooktop. 57,500 BTU of cooking power! We had thehe electric glass top for about 20 years and I have been wanting gas for a long long time. The wife is not a happy camper though.

Just two food related tips from recent experience:

If the foil or plastic wrap keeps popping out of the box as you try to unroll it, look at the side of the box. Most brands have a perforated area that you can punch your thumb through to anchor the roll.

Never spend 4 1/2 hours in a car going to a hunting/fishing cabin with guys from work that have had big Taco Bell meals prior to departure.

To keep your pasta from boiling over, lay a long-handled wooden spoon across the top of the pot.

I gotta try this one, especially since I just put in one of those new smooth glass cooktops.

Jon, I just took one out, and put in a 5 burner Bosch gas cooktop. 57,500 BTU of cooking power! We had thehe electric glass top for about 20 years and I have been wanting gas for a long long time. The wife is not a happy camper though.

We've had a glass cooktop for 7 years now. Our next house will have gas burners. The reason? Can't use a wok on glass, nor can you use cast iron on glass. Major bummers here.

We've had a glass cooktop for 7 years now. Our next house will have gas burners. The reason? Can't use a wok on glass, nor can you use cast iron on glass. Major bummers here.

Robert, I used my cast iron on my glass, but no wok. I suppose one could get a wok ring and still use the glass electric cooktop. I just enjoy the gas, and the wife will come around when she gets used to it. I did find that using the cast iron I had to pick the skillet etc up to move them. Sliding them off the burner is a really bad idea.