tips for the day

Replace part (up to 1/2) of the sugar in your cookie recipe with honey. Honey is liquid at room temperature and never hardens. Experiment with the replacement portions, and once you’ve found the "sweet spot" so to speak, you’ll have the soft cookies you’ve always dreamed of for your favorite cookie recipes!

Check to see if your dried herbs are still fresh by crushing a few and smelling them to see if they still have a good aroma. Also check to see if they still look green or if they have faded. Fresh herbs should always be green and have a strong aroma when opened.

Put a pinch of salt in a pan and then throw the pork chops in. Cut a lemon in half and rub 1 half all over the pork chops. Now put some beer in the pan and place the lid on to steam cook it. Core an apple and cut into rings. The pork chops should cook for 10 minuets. Flip them and rub with lemon again. Place the apple rings on top. Add more beer and replace the lid. After another 10 minutes they are done. You now have pork chops and steamed apples as a side dish in 20 minutes.

After you bake your pie, freeze it. You can then cut the perfect pieces and then thaw them out. Your guests will be impressed.

Use a cast iron pan to make the perfect omelet. Instead of flipping it, when ready, just transfer the pan to the broiler for two minutes. That way you will achieve the perfect color and you wont risk breaking your beautiful and delicious omelet.

To save on time serving ice cream at parties, pre-scoop the servings and put into cups or cupcake liners and put in the freezer.

When you’re mixing a large quantity of food for a party - like potato or macaroni salad or cookie batter - and don’t have a bowl that’s big enough, here’s a solution you may have forgotten. See if you have a seldom-used punch bowl set in storage. A punch bowl is often bigger and deeper than most large mixing or serving bowls.

To make your chocolate chip cookies (or any other cookies) really soft and chewy, freeze the batter and cookie sheet for 3-5 minutes beforehand. You can do this while the oven is preheating. This way, the cookie bakes evenly and there are no burnt outside edges while the middle is nice and soft.

Flip a muffin tin upside down to hold your tacos. The mini or regular size both work great and will each hold 3 tacos.