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Quick Healthy Snacks
Setting/Cleaning Up Your Kitchen
Having your kitchen organized can save you time and money when shopping, and at every meal as you prepare them for your family. Here are a few tips from the professionals to help you accomplish this task:
*Items should be stored near the place they will be used, for instance pots and pans should be stored near the stove.
*When storing foods in your cupboard, put like items next to each other.
*Spices are easier to find when you alphabetize them in your spice rack.
*The front and door of your refrigerator should be used for the items you use the most.
*Having several sets of measuring cups and spoons eliminates the need to stop and wash them while cooking.
*Organize your shopping list the same way the isles in the market are set up.
*Keep a list of shopping needs, as you use something up, put it on the list.
*Only shop once a week, rather than making several trips to the store throughout the week, it is actually less expensive, and a real time saver.
Re-organizing and cleaning up your kitchen after each meal is just as important as the initial set up was, a well organized, clean kitchen is one that is a pleasure to cook in.
For clean up after each meal her are a few tips to follow:
*Keep a sink of hot soapy water for soaking dishes as you use them, if you have a few minutes while cooking you can even wash a few items.
*Casseroles and roasts, that dont contain tomato products, can be baked in a disposable, foil pan.
*Line your broiler pan with foil to take away the need to wash it later.
*Cleaning a grater can be a real mess, coating it with non-stick cooking spray can make the chore a lot easier.
*Marinating foods in reseal able plastic bags creates less dirty dishes for you to do later. They also work great for coating foods in flour, not as much mess on the counter.
These are all simple tips that make your cooking time more enjoyable and gives you more time to spend with your family.
See Also:
Stocking Your Pantry
Microwave Cooking
The History of the Fry Pan
The ancient Mesopotamians used copper frying pans; they were also available in Greek and Roman kitchens.
To the Greeks they were know as Teganon and the Romans called them patella, patella is used in its modern form in Spanish and is translated as paella and in Italian as padella.
Regardless of the name, they are all frying pans! Frying pans were originally deep like modern sauce pans, in North America they are also referred to as skillets.
In England and America fry pans with legs were commonly called spiders, and were used for open hearth cooking.
Little change was made in the fry pan for many years, they had broad shallow bodies and long handles to keep the cooks hand from being burned by the fire.
The first use of the word fry pan was in 1382 when it was used in the translation of the Vulgate Bible by John Wycliffe, other than that, the term fry pan is infrequently used prior to the 1950s.
Frying pans were typically made of cast iron, and even though cast iron is still in use, mostly for outdoor cooking, most pans today are made of aluminum or stainless steel.
Often frying pans are coated with Teflon for a non-stick surface; this does not apply to cast iron, which develops a non stick surface when it is seasoned.
The largest fry pan in the world was created by Mumford Sheet Metal Works in 1950 for the Delmarva Chicken Festival; they fried over one hundred tons of chicken in it before it was retired in 1998.
It measures 10 feet in diameter, which is 4 inches bigger than the previous 9.6 ft Washington fry pan built in 1941 for the Washington Clam Festival.
Considered a luxury because of the high cost of electricity at the time, frying pans were one of the first items to be electrified.
In 1898 Britain an element fitted below the pan, with the socket at the end of a wooden handle. They never gained popularity even when electricity became a normal part of everyday life. |
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Outdoor Grills
Barbecues have thrilled the American public for years, who doesnt love to taste of food cooked over an open grill?
Choosing a grill is an important part of this process, and there are as many types of grills as there are people cooking out of doors. There are small ones that fold up and can sit anywhere, costing only a few dollars.
There are the old standbys that were round with legs, and eventually they got used so much that the bottom burned out! Then there are the big fancy ones, costing hundreds of dollars, with propane, or charcoal.
Then there are the back yard barbecue enthusiasts who have one built of brick, block or fieldstone the choice is yours. There are grills with hoods, windshields, warming ovens and rotisseries.
These items bring all the advantages of cooking in your kitchen into your backyard. It is important that the grill you purchase meet all of your needs, choose it in the same way you would choose a stove for the kitchen!
Do you want a grill that you can take with you to a friends house; or just one to leave at home? If you are newlyweds just getting started, you may want a small grill just for two, possibly a hibachi, unless you have lots of barbecues or plan to start your family early.
In which case you may choose one of the larger models, for cooking a large amount of food at one time. Another consideration is propane or charcoal briquettes, some people dont like the taste of foods barbecued over propane (it looses that smoked taste).
However, you can buy chips to bring that taste out in your foods. Charcoal briquettes have a definite advantage when it comes to taste, and like I said earlier, who doesnt love the taste of food cooked over an open grill?
I once cooked on a grill so old the bottom was covered with a piece of metal and tin foil, dont try to convince the owner of that grill to buy a new one, his is “just getting broke in good”!
Choose wisely and enjoy your outdoor grill for many years to come!
Related Topics: Breads For Every Taste,
Tender Ribs, Homemade Baby Foods
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