Cherchies Blog

cooking tips

Cooking Tip: How to Soften Brown Sugar

cooking tipsSheri SpalloneComment
Cooking Tip: How to Soften Brown Sugar

Cooking Tip: How to Soften Brown Sugar

Don't you hate it when you go to reach for the brown sugar and it's a hard lumpy blob?  Perhaps you have teen "angels" (eh hum) who like to leave the brown sugar open after using it?  

Have no fear, that glorious brown sugar can be restored to its former beauty, by this simple trick, bread! That's right, add a slice of bread to your bag or container of brown sugar, and within a day or so, your brown sugar is once again new.  Take that "teenangels".

If you need your brown sugar sooner, put the brown sugar in a bowl and place the bowl in the microwave with a damp paper towel over top.  Microwave for 25 seconds. 

 

Yum

Cooking Tip: Cleaning with Lemons

cooking tipsSheri SpalloneComment

I LOVE lemons!!!  I love cooking with them, I love the smell of lemons, and I love how lemons impart that freshness factor to any dish.

But did you know? Lemons are not only used for cooking, lemons are natural disinfectants, due to their high acidity contents.  Here are a few lemony cleaning tips that may be helpful.

  • Sanitize a cutting board- Rub a clean cutting board with half a lemon, and let it sit for a couple of minutes before rinsing with water.
  • Clean the garbage disposal- Pour hot water, mixed with a half of a cup of lemon juice down a garbage disposal to sanitize and freshen.
  • Shiny Fixtures- Rub half a lemon on chrome fixtures and knobs.  Your bathroom will smell lemony fresh too!
  • Clean the microwave- Fill a small bowl with vinegar, add a couple of drops of lemon juice and place in the microwave. Run the microwave for a few minutes and then remove the bowl.  Cleanup should now be a breeze.
  •  Add a couple of drops of lemon juice to a sponge and use the sponge to clean a shower door.  Soap scum comes right off.

Cooking Tip: How to Clean with Lemons!

Yum

Cooking Tip: When Life Hands you Lemons...Make Lemon Zest!

cooking tipsSheri SpalloneComment

To zest or not to zest, that is the question.  I love my zester!  Don't have a zester or microplane?  Don't fret!

Use a vegetable peeler and a knife to get the same effect.  Using a vegetable peeler, gently peel off only the colored part of your desired citrus into strips.

Next, use a knife to dice the citrus strips, finely.  They won't last long in the refrigerator, but will keep in the freezer in a plastic bag with a pinch of salt or sugar, depending on your type of recipe.

Yum