Quick Tip: Herb / Spice Mixes

Do you have a favorite recipe that you just love to serve, but are looking to save some time on food prep? I've got just the tip for you.

My husband absolutely LOVES his mom's Italian Beef. Thankfully, she shared the recipe with me since we now live over 2,000 miles away!

This beloved family recipe has a secret blend of herbs :-) and though I like to cook, I am not a huge fan of opening a million separate spice jars and measuring out all those ingredients every time I make this dish.

Here's what you do: The next time you finish off one of those glass herb or spice jars, don't send it to the recycler. Instead, wash and dry thoroughly, making sure to remove the label in the process.

Next. let's say your recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of five different herbs. Measure out 4 teaspoons of each herb in a bowl. Mix, then using a funnel, add the mix to the jar and cap tightly.

You can add your own creative label using your computer and printer, or slap a piece of masking tape on the jar and use a permanent marker to name the mix. Mine just says "Italian Beef". In the event you are concerned with knowing what ingredient is, then add another label that lists the ingredients, and the amount you'll need. For our imaginary dish that uses 2 teaspoons of 5 different herbs, you'll need 10 teaspoons of your mix. Or, the equivalent number of tablespoons and remaining teaspoons, etc.

There, a great time saving tip from my kitchen, to yours. Enjoy!

Kitchen Clean up Taking Forever? Practice Clean-as-You-Go Cooking!

I think most of us know that, after eating, the bulk of our energy goes toward digestion, thus making us feel a little sleepy. After dinner in my house is a time for finishing homework and spending time with my husband, so the last thing I need to be doing is spending an hour in the kitchen recovering from dinner. Therefore, I practice "Clean as You Go".  (Starting with a clean kitchen is a big help!)

First, if I create any sort of trash or recycling while cooking, I take care of it right away. For example, I rinse cans, remove labels, and get those cans to the recycler container in my pantry.  If I'm done with an ingredient, I put it right away. If I'm using a leftover from the fridge and I've emptied the container, I rinse all food residue away or allow it to soak while I continue meal prep. Cutting carrots? I have a white plastic cutting board, so for any food that stains, I make sure to scrub it a bit with dish soap and set to the side until I load the dishwasher. And, of course, wipe up spills immediately so they do not become hardened.

Remember, life doesn't always go as you plan, and there are times when the kitchen will just have to wait. In those instances, at a minimum, make sure all leftovers are put away and that plates and utensils get a quick rinse so they won't have to be soaked later. Enjoy dinner and enjoy life!

Pump it Up

Gentle Foaming Hand Soap, you know what I'm talking about - the ones in the endless variety of scents from Bath & Body Works? My family goes through those vanilla scented cleansers like I go through a bag of chips! I have scored some pretty nice savings on foaming soap at B&BW, but what to do when there's no sale in sight? I improvised at the kitchen sink. I've been able to find Dawn liquid dish detergent 10.3 fl oz for as low as 75 cents, when combining a sale and a coupon, at Walgreens. Now, for pros like Ronda and Stephanie, they've probably gotten dish detergent for free or even made money on it. I've had my share of freebies, but I need to watch those sales cycles better! But I digress (that will happen a lot...). I squirted some of the Dawn into the empty B&BW's foaming soap container, added some water, and WHAM! Foaming Soap! I like this because, at the sink we'd been using the Dawn to wash our hands. We were using way more Dawn than was needed for hands. Also, the B&BW Foaming Soap wasn't cutting through the grease like Dawn would. So, now we are using less Dawn and B&BW Foaming Soap, but still getting our hands squeaky clean at the kitchen sink.