Kitchen Tips

You ever watch someone rinse raw ground beef in a colander and just feel your whole soul whisper “Nooo…”? That happened to me once at a church potluck. Sweet girl from the youth group, probably 22, was helping prep the sloppy joes and just went to town—turned on the faucet, poured the raw meat right in the strainer, and gave it a shower like it had been rolling in the mud. I didn’t want to embarrass her, so I just smiled and said, “You know, we might not wanna baptize the beef.”She giggled. But inside? My brain was throwing red …

I’ll never forget the first time I realized vanilla could do more than make sugar cookies taste like heaven. I was elbow-deep in batter (like usual), and I must’ve spilled a little vanilla on my sleeve. Later that day at the post office, the woman behind me leaned in and said, “Mmm, you smell like Christmas.” That’s stuck with me. Not because I smelled like a holiday (though, bless her), but because it hit me: vanilla’s magic isn’t just in what it flavors — it’s in how it feels. Warm, familiar, a little nostalgic. Like your favorite blanket, but bottled. …

Alright, confession time: for years, I thought I was doing something dangerous by putting warm leftovers in the fridge. My mom used to holler, “Let that cool off first! You’ll break the fridge!”—and I believed her. I mean, who wants to ruin a whole fridge over a lasagna, right? But after cooking for a crowd more times than I can count, and doing a little digging into actual food safety science (because I’m that kind of person), I figured it out—and honestly, it’s not as scary or complicated as it sounds. Let’s walk through it together—just two folks in the …

You ever open your freezer and think, “Well, that probably shouldn’t be in there…” Yeah, me too. A few years back, I found a sad little bag of lettuce shoved behind the frozen blueberries. I must’ve tossed it in during one of those clean-out-the-fridge-before-vacation scrambles. When I thawed it? Let’s just say it looked more like seaweed than salad. Freezing food is usually a lifesaver—I do it all the time with soups, cooked grains, even cheese rinds for stock. But here’s the thing: not everything takes kindly to the deep freeze. Some foods just fall apart (literally), and others come …

You know, it took me years — years! — to realize my fridge wasn’t the magical fruit preserver I thought it was. Back in the day, I’d unpack groceries and just toss every fruit straight into the fridge. It was just what we all did, wasn’t it? Well, fast forward to one too many mealy tomatoes and flavorless peaches, and I started wondering… am I actually ruining my fruit? Turns out, I was. And if you’re doing the same thing, no judgment — but let’s fix it. Because some fruits just aren’t meant for the cold. They need warmth, airflow, …

Okay, let’s be honest for a second. How many times have you lovingly brought home a bundle of fresh herbs — bright, fragrant, full of possibility — only to find them a few days later looking like they went 10 rounds with a heatwave? Yeah. Me too. I can’t tell you how many sad little bunches of cilantro I’ve mourned over the years. And don’t even get me started on basil. One day it’s thriving, the next it’s a damp mess of regret in the back of the fridge. But here’s the thing no one really tells you when you …

Let me tell you a little story. A few summers ago, I came home from the farmers market with a big paper bag full of heirloom tomatoes — all colors, all shapes, practically glowing with that sun-ripened magic. I was so proud. And then? I popped them in the fridge because that’s just what I thought you were supposed to do. The next day, they were… sad. Flavorless. The texture? Mealy and weird. It was a tragedy in tomato form. That’s when I realized I’d been storing tomatoes wrong for years. If you’ve ever done the same — no judgment …

Okay, I’ll admit it: for years I had no clue what I was doing with avocados. I’d buy a few (they’re always on sale when they’re rock hard, right?), leave them out too long, or worse—toss one in the fridge way too soon—and boom, brown mushy mess. Every. Single. Time. And don’t even get me started on cutting into one before it’s ripe. That rubbery, bland disappointment? It’s enough to make you swear off guac forever. But after lots of trial and error, a few phone calls to my sister-in-law in California (she grows the darn things), and way too …

Let me tell you, the first time I saw my grandkids pass around a jar of pickle juice like it was some kind of magic potion, I thought, “What in the world is going on here?” I mean, growing up in the Midwest, pickle juice was something you poured down the sink after the pickles were gone — or maybe, just maybe, used in a potato salad dressing if you were feeling fancy. But oh, how times have changed. Turns out, that briny, puckery liquid is more than just a leftover. It’s become the go-to drink for athletes, health nuts, …

Okay, confession time. For years, I kept my potatoes in a bowl on the kitchen counter, right next to the onions, under the window. It was pretty — rustic, even. But you know what? Those potatoes were always sprouting or going soft before I could get through the bag. I’d pick one up, and it’d feel like a stress ball with eyes. Not great. Turns out, I was doing literally everything wrong — and I’m guessing, if you’re here, maybe you are too (no judgment, promise). But the good news? It’s super easy to fix. And once you get the …