Tips
- If you want to make pasta ahead of time, toss the noodles with a drizzle of olive oil after cooking and draining. This will prevent them from sticking together.
- Avocados:
- How to shop for it: avoid avocados with blemishes or mushy spots. The darker the skin, the riper it is getting. You can also tell if an avocado is ripe if it gently yields to the touch. If you don't want to eat the avocados for a few days you can get ones that are rock hard and they will ripen on the countertop at room temperature. Keeping avocados in the fridge will help to slow the ripening process.
- How to prepare it: take a knife and slice around the avocado top to bottom, all the way through to the pit. Pull apart the 2 halves - the seed will remain in one. Using the heel of a chef knife, knock the middle of the seed and twist - it should then pop out easily. Discard the seed. Using your knife cut down through the inside to the inside of the skin (not all the way through) and repeat horizontally. This will make little square pieces of the avocado. Then use a spoon to scrape it away from the skin into a bowl.
- To determine whether or not eggs are fresh, place them in a pan of cold water. If an egg sinks in the water it is fresh. If it floats to the surface it's time for the compost.
- To dry fresh herbs keep the leaves on the stems and lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until completely dry. Rub the dried herbs between your fingers to release the leaves. Store in an airtight container. 1 tsp of dried herbs can be substituted for 1 tbsp of fresh herbs.
- To remove burnt-on food from pans or casserole dishes, fill them with water and let them soak for at least 15 minutes; srape off what you can and repeat as necessary. For food that still won't come off, add warm soapy water and cook it on the stove for about 10 minutes. Let it cool done enough for you to handle. You can also generously coat the surface with baking soda then add 3/4 cup hot water.
