Cookie Tips. When baking fresh cookies, try to use the upper third of the oven where the temperature is less extreme. If you must use the lower third, stack two pans or cookie sheets together to act as a buffer against the high bottom heat.

Cute Croutons. For pretty salad croutons, cut soft bread with a small disc cutter. Brush with butter, arrange on cookie sheet, and bake in 350° F. oven for 20 minutes or until brown.

Cedar Smoked Salmon. Try barbequed salmon fillets on homemade cedar planks. Just pick-up untreated cedar shingles at your local lumber store. Soak the shingles overnight, then warm briefly in the broiler to bring up the cedar flavor. Brush salmon fillets with a mixture of salt, black pepper, dry mustard, and butter. Place on the cedar shingles and broil 5 to 6 inches from the heat until the shingles scorch and the fish almost flakes about 8 to 10 minutes.

Cook Over Coals, Not Flames. Never place meat directly over an open flame as it will discolor the meat and leave a black carbon residue. An open flame actually has a lower temperature than coals that are glowing red.

Coolers Work to Keep Hot Things Hot Too. A cooler chest can also be used to keep hot food hot. Line the cooler with a heavy kitchen towel for extra insulation and place well-wrapped hot foods inside. Try to use a cooler that is just the right size to pack fairly tightly with hot food so less heat escapes.

Don't Puncture Your Meat While It's Cooking. Whenever barbecuing, use tongs to turn the meat. A fork can punch holes in the meat and allow the natural juices to escape.

Faster Cooking Burgers. Barbecuing hamburgers tonight? To cook burger faster, poke a small hole in the center of each patty after you¹ve shaped them. The burgers will cook more-quickly and more-evenly, and the holes will disappear as the meat cooks on the grill.

For Juicier Hamburgers.... For a juicer hamburger add cold water to the beef before grilling (1/2 cup to 1 pound of meat).

Grilled Asparagus. Fire up the barbecue tonight and try some asparagus on the side. Just place fresh asparagus on skewers so they're easy to handle on the grill. Drizzle with olive oil, rub and add a touch of salt. You'll get a sweet, caramelized flavor that's a nice aside to your favorite main course.

Keep the Correct Distance From the Heat Source. Grill meat and veggies about 4 inches from heat source and chicken about 6-8 inches away.

Prevent Cross-Contamination. When taking food off the grill, put it on a clean plate, not the same platter that held raw meat.

Smoke Your Own Meats. To add more flavor, try adding pre soaked chunks of natural hardwoods like Hickory.

No Boiling Over. Noodles, spaghetti and other starches won't boil over if you rub the inside of the pot with vegetable oil before boiling.

Salt the Double Boiler. To hasten the cooking of foods in a double boiler, add salt to the water in the outer boiler.

Lock in Your Juices. When using a broiler to cook steaks, pre-heat the oven until it's really hot. This will sear the outside of the meat and lock in the juices.

Freeze Leftover Wine to Cook With Later. Using leftover wine is a snap if you freeze it into ice cubes and use them as part of the liquid for casseroles and sauces.

Keep Marshmallows Moist. To prevent marshmallows from drying out, simply store them in the freezer.

Leftover Mashed Potatoes. When you have leftover mashed potatoes, use them as a piecrust for a meat casserole. Grease the pie plate first, then add your casserole and cover with the potatoes before you bake.

Make Use of Your Basics. If you have leftover noodles, rice, or potatoes, just add them to soup for a hearty meal.

Meatloaf Breadcrumb Alternative. Try adding leftover cooked oatmeal to your meatloaf recipe instead of breadcrumbs.

Recover That Hardened Brown Sugar. Don't throw away brown sugar that's hardened. Instead, put a slice of bread in the container. It will be soft again in a few hours.

Veggie Scraps Make for Great Homemade Stock. Store vegetable scraps and cuttings (even peels work) in the freezer until you have enough to make a pot of vegetable stock.

Apple Peels and Aluminum Pans. To restore color and shine to an aluminum pan, boil some apple peels in it for a few minutes, then rinse and dry.

Clean that Dirty Can Opener. To clean your can opener, just grip it on a folded paper towel and turn the handle. The towel will clean both the blade and the gear.

Clean up a Dropped Egg. If you drop an egg on the floor, cover it with salt and leave it alone for a couple of minutes. When you come back, you'll be able to easily clean the mess with a paper towel.

Cleaning Cast Iron Cookware. Cleaning a cast iron cookware skillet after use is simplified by adding a couple drops of liquid dish soap and a little water to cover the bottom of the pan. Bring the liquid to a boil on the top of the stove and wash after the water has cooled.

Dill Pickles Can Clean Your Copper Pots. Whenever you empty a jar of dill pickles, use the leftover juice to clean the copper bottoms of your pans. Just pour the juice in a large bowl, set the pan in the juice for about 15 minutes. It should come out looking like new.

Getting Rid of Burned Popcorn Odor. Placing a few ounces of lemon juice and water in a cup and heating in the microwave will remove the smell of burned popcorn.

Remove Odors from Plastic Storage Containers. A solution of 1 tablespoon baking soda to 1 quart warm water will remove most off odors from plastic storage containers. Simply give them a thorough dip in the soda solution, rinse with fresh water, and dry.

Stubborn Stains on Cookware. Stubborn stains can be removed from non-stick cookware by boiling 2 tablespoons of baking soda, 1/2 cup of vinegar, and 1 cup of water for ten minutes. Before using the pan again, season it with salad oil.

Unclog Your Drain. To unclog a drain when doing kitchen cleaning, mix a cup of salt with a cup of baking soda. Pour the dry solution into the drain, and then add a pot of boiling water.

Use Vinegar to Cut Grease and Odor. To cut grease and odor on dishes when doing kitchen cleaning, add a tablespoon of vinegar to your hot soapy water.

Don't Overfill the Fryer. Don't crowd the food you’re frying, as it must be completely surrounded by oil. Never fill the pot or deep fryer more than halfway with oil to prevent the oil from bubbling over when the food is added. It’s important to use good cookware for this task!

Getting the Right Temperature. Most foods should be fried at a temperature between 350-375 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don’t have a thermometer, drop a bread cube into the hot oil. If the fat bubbles around the crumb, the temperature is too low. If it browns, the temperature is just right. If the bread cube burns, your oil is too hot.

The Best Oil for the Job. It is best to use canola oil for frying. Canola oil has a high burning point, and does not have a strong flavor to detract from the flavor of the food you are frying.

An Instant Read. An instant-read thermometer is your most important tool when cooking a turkey. With this, you don't need a roasting chart or a clock. Read the facts on the dial. There will be no question about the internal temperature of your meat. If you don't have one, get one!

Defrosting the Bird. If you can't defrost your turkey in the refrigerator for a few days, keep the turkey in its original packaging and place in cold water. Change the water as often as needed to keep it cold. Allow 30 minutes defrosting time per pound.

For the Juiciest Turkey.... If you want to avoid the taste of dry turkey, buy a never frozen turkey, buy fresh. They truly are juicier, more tender, and tastier than frozen birds.

Get Ahold of Your Bird. Turkey lifter: This major helper comes in two styles. One resembles an L-shaped metal prong. The prong goes right up the turkey's cavity while a handle remains in your hand. All you do it lift. If you've stuffed the turkey, get the type that looks like snow chains, lays under the bird, and acts like a sling. Either device ends burned hands, greasy potholders and lost drumsticks.

The Perfect-Sized Turkey. When buying a turkey, purchase one pound of turkey per person to be served. This formula allows for the holiday meal plus a little left over for turkey sandwiches.

Tying the Turkey. Trussing: The point of tying string around a turkey is to make the bird into a round with no protrusions or wings sticking out. This prevents burning of exposed areas. Twist the wing tips, which will burn first, underneath themselves, using some force. Now run a strand of string under the turkey's girth and up each side, catching the wing tips under the string. Continue the string over to the drumsticks, catching them and the fatty tail flap, and tie tightly.

Fat-Free Broth. To make fat-free meat or chicken broth, chill it. The fat will rise to the top, and you can remove it before using the broth.

Fixin' Your Meat and Veggie Mixin'. When cooking a dish with both vegetables and meat (i.e. in stir-fries and stews), reduce the amount of meat by 1/3 and increase the amount of vegetables by 1/3. You'll get the same great flavor, with less fat.

Healthier Gravy?. Thicken your gravies with milk or broth mixed blended with flour. Be sure to cook long enough to remove the raw flour taste. You'll never notice the lack of fat.

Lettuce Have Better Salads. Green up your salads. Romaine lettuce is loaded with vitamins compared to iceberg. It has three times as much Vitamin C and six times as much Vitamin A.

Measuring. Start a habit of measuring the oil you use while you cook, rather than just pouring it out of the bottle. It will be much easier to moderate the amount you use.

Spices of Life. Stock up on spices. One of the keys to cooking low fat and not getting bored is to spice up your food. Once you have finished your recipe, taste it so you can adjust the spices to please your palate.

Use Olive Oil. Use olive oil for cooking when appropriate. It adds to the taste of the dish, and it's better for you.

Bone or No Bone...The Roast Will Cook Differently. A roast with the bone in will cook faster than a boneless roast as the bone carries the heat to the inside of the roast quicker.

Let Meat Sit Before Carving It. It's important to let a roast—beef, pork, lamb or poultry—sit a little while before carving. This allows the juices to retreat back into the meat. If you carve a roast too soon, much of its goodness will spill out onto the carving board.

Partially Frozen Meat Slices Easier. To slice meat into thin strips, as for Chinese dishes, partially freeze the meat and it will slice more easily.

Separate Bacon Slices Easily. Before opening a package of bacon, roll it. This helps separate the slices for easy removal of individual slices.

Tips of Tender Meat. Marinate red meats in wine and chicken in buttermilk to tenderize.

Constant Shopping List. Make your own permanent shopping list of all the groceries you buy regularly, leaving space for write-ins. Run off lots of copies and post one, with pencil attached, on the refrigerator or cupboard door so you and other family members can check needed items as they run low. When you head for the store with one completed list, tape up a new one.

Dental Floss in the Kitchen?. Don't just keep dental floss in your medicine cabinet keep some in the kitchen as well. Unflavored dental floss is often better than a knife to cleanly cut all kinds of soft foods such as soft cheese, rolled dough, layered cake and cheesecake.

Fluffy, White Rice. For fluffier, whiter rice, add one teaspoon of lemon juice per quart of water.

Get Rid of Garlic Breath. Three remedies for garlic breath: Eat fresh parsley, chew on a coffee bean, eat a bowl of lime sherbet.

No More Soggy Ice Cream Cones. To prevent ice cream from dripping through the bottom of sugar cones, stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom before you add the ice cream.

Stew Too Salty?. If a soup or stew is too salty, add raw cut potatoes. Discard them after they have cooked - they will have absorbed the salt.

Too Sweet?. If a soup or stew is too sweet, add salt. If a main dish or vegetable is too sweet, add a teaspoon of cider vinegar.

Keeping Cauliflower White. Want to keep cauliflower white while cooking? Add a little milk to the water.

Keeping Celery Crisp. The best way to store fresh celery is to wrap it in aluminum foil and put it in the refrigerator—it will keep for weeks.

Keeping the Flavor in Vegetables. When cooking carrots, peas, beets or corn, add a small amount of sugar to the water to keep the flavor.

Keeping Your Sweet Corn Yellow. To keep sweet corn yellow, add one teaspoon of lemon juice to the cooking water just about a minute before taking off the stove. Never salt the water you cook corn in. It will only toughen the corn.

Liven Up With Some Lime. A fresh lime is the perfect way to add a little zing to your Cinco de Mayo. To help get the juice of a lime to flow, just pop it in the microwave for a few seconds or press and roll it firmly on a countertop.

Magnificent Melons. When choosing a melon, smell it for freshness and ripeness. Check to see that the fruit is heavy in weight and that the spot on the end where it has been plucked from the vine is soft.

Making the Most of Lettuce. To get the most out of a head of lettuce, tear the leaves by hand instead of cutting with a knife. Cutting lettuce is more likely to turn the edges brown faster, but if you have to use a knife, be sure it's stainless steel.

No More Brown Avocados. To avoid the browning of avocado flesh when exposed to air, try adding a little lime juice—and the seed itself—in with the peeled fruit.

No More Budding Potatoes. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

No More Mushy Mushrooms. Mushrooms should be wiped off with a damp cloth and not washed under the faucet since they are like sponges and will absorb the water.

Nurturing Your Nectarines. Nectarines are a refreshing snack. It's best to store nectarines at room temperature until they're fully ripe. Then, keep them in the refrigerator for no more than a couple of days. Nectarines stored longer in the refrigerator may lose their juicy flavor.

Perfect Peppers to Roast. When buying fresh peppers to roast, choose those that are a little wrinkled but still unblemished. Wrinkling indicates maturity (mellowness).

Roasting Garlic. Try this for roasting garlic: sprinkle the bulb with a little olive oil and white wine, salt and pepper, then wrap it in tin foil and roast in a 350-degree oven for approximately one hour.

Saving Soggy Lettuce. Perk up soggy lettuce! Add lemon juice to a bowl of cold water and soak lettuce for an hour in the refrigerator.

Spice up Your Strawberries. When cooking any kind of strawberry dessert, add a splash of aged balsamic vinegar to the recipe to enhance the flavor of the strawberries.

Storing Celery and Lettuce. Store celery and lettuce in paper bags, not plastic. And leave the outside leaves and stalks alone until ready to use.

When You Only Need Half an Onion.... If you need only half of an onion, save the root half. It will last longer.

Don't Be Afraid of Some Heat. Turn up the heat—you need high heat when sautéing to cook ingredients quickly; otherwise the internal moisture tends to push to the surface and your ingredients won’t brown.

Let the Butter Brown. You will know your pan is hot enough and it is time to start cooking when the butter stops foaming and begins to turn a pale brown. Add your ingredients and be careful not to let it start smoking.

Size Does Matter. Slice or dice your vegetables smaller or thinner so they will cook more evenly.

Snails Pace Wins the Race. The first rule of sautéing is to go slow. Make sure your butter is melted or your oil is relatively hot before you add your vegetables. Gauging the temperature of the oil can be accomplished by holding your hand about three or four inches over the bottom of the pan—if you can feel the heat, it's probably hot enough.

Buying Enough Crab Meat. If you are feeding a small group of people, a pound and a half of crabmeat is equivalent to 10-15 hard-shelled crabs. Therefore, a good rule of thumb is six hard-shelled crabs or two soft-shelled crabs per person.

Cedar Plank Salmon. Try barbequed salmon fillets on homemade cedar planks. Soak the planks overnight, then warm briefly in the broiler to bring up the cedar flavor. Brush salmon fillets with a mixture of salt, black pepper, dry mustard, and butter. Place on the cedar shingles and broil 5 to 6 inches from the heat until the shingles scorch and the fish almost flakes about 8 to 10 minutes.

Crabs by Gender. Many crab recipes specify the crab gender—in most cases, calling for females. Look at the underside of the crab to determine its gender. Females have a triangle-shaped marking in the center of the shell; a long spire marks males.

Thoroughly Cooked Fish, Flakes. The easiest method for telling when fish is thoroughly cooked is using measurements. Allow roughly ten minutes per inch for the thickest part of the fish and make sure it flakes before removing it from heat. This can apply to all methods of cooking fish, including frying, grilling, steaming, broiling and more.

Three Simple Numbers for Cooking Fish. Cooking fish? All you need to remember are three numbers: 6s..10s..400. That's six ounces, ten minutes, 400 degree oven. It works for almost any kind of fish on the market.

Crisp Up Your Stale Chips and Crackers. Rescue stale or soggy chips and crackers: Preheat the oven to 300F. Spread the chips or crackers in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes. Allow them to cool, then seal in a plastic bag or container.

Bread Basics. Bread will keep up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator if you wrap it in foil and store it on a low shelf.

Conserving Cucumber. To extend the life of a cucumber once it has been cut open, wrap it in a paper towel and keep it in the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator.

Don't Chill Your Spices...Freeze Them. Because the refrigerator is a rather humid environment, storing herbs and spices there is not recommended. To keep larger quantities of spices fresh, store them in the freezer in tightly sealed containers.

Saving Bananas For Recipes. You can save ripe bananas for baking at a later date by mashing them and freezing in the amounts needed for your recipes. If you are short on time just put them in the freezer, unpeeled, and when ready to use let them defrost and peel.

Saving Spices. Store spices in a cool, dark place. Humidity, light and heat will cause herbs and spices to lose their flavor more quickly. Although the most convenient place for your spice rack may be above your stove, moving your spices to a different location may keep them fresh longer.

Storing Easy-to-Measure Berries. Freezing berries individually means you can remove the amount you want without having them stick together. Spread berries out on jelly roll pans in a single layer, making sure the berries are not touching. Freeze until firm. When berries are completely frozen, remove from the pan and place in freezer containers of your choice.

Temperamental Tomatoes. The most effective food storage for tomatoes is in a brown paper bag or closed container. Adding an apple or pear to the container can also hasten ripening. Store the tomatoes in a single layer and with the stem ends up to avoid bruising.

Be Picky With Your Cooking Wines Too!. Always buy the wines you cook with as carefully as you buy the wines you drink.

How Long Open Bottles Last.... By the time the (open) bottle of wine gets dusty, the wine's no good anymore.

The Wine for Every Occasion. If you're still unsure what wine works with your meal, choose a Chianti. It's a wine that goes with just about everything.

Wine for the Warm Months. Pinot Grigio works best during the hot months because it's a really refreshing wine. It's really light and crisp and goes with almost anything. It's terrific with seafood.