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When the weather’s just right, my husband and I take the kids out to the apple orchard. Apple picking is the perfect outdoor family activity in September and October.

The Sprechers are an apple-picking family, and for that matter, we love picking any fruit or vegetable that’s in season. When we come home with  bushels of apples, what do we do with them? Well, first we eat some of them raw – delicious!

Then we get creative and make lots of tasty creations with our apple picks. And of course, we use the best tools! My favorite apple corer is the Cuisipro Red and Stainless Apple Corer. This distinctive tool easily removes the core and makes disposal quick and effortless. The unique leveler splits in half for easy release after you twist or push this corer through the apple. And it’s top-rack dishwasher safe. (See it featured in the Joy of Kosher Magazine and win it here)

If I need a corer that will wedge as well, I have been using the basic OXO Good Grips apple divider for years. If you want thinner slices the Amco Dial-A-Slice is perfect! You adjust the thickness, and voila – either 8 or 16 wedges with one swift motion.

Before you slice your apple of choice, you might need to peel them. Who needs handles on peelers anymore? The hottest peeler on the market is the Palm Peeler from Chef’n! Wear it on your finger like a ring, and peel your apples right in the palm of your hand.

And now that my apples are ready to bake – I am ready to use my charming Chantal pie dish that resembles a real crust!   Or, I can’t wait to try the silicone petite tart molds by  Tovolo – there is an apple and a pear motif.  Over the years, I have collected plenty of pie dishes and tart molds – and the tart mold does not need to be non-stick.

And, when I am ready to serve my freshly sliced apples on Rosh Hashanah, I look forward to adorning my Yom Tov table with the beautiful Apple Plate from world-renowned designer Michael Aram…  I can’t decide on the Michael Aram Apple Honey Pot (Do I want a nickel or gold tone finish?) or the Mary Jurek Honey Pot with a bee accent and a honey dipper.

You think there’s only one kind of honey? Well, you’re sorely mistaken! Believe it or not, there’s Raspberry Honey, Blueberry Honey, and many other varieties to choose from!   And, honey is available in sticks and small pourable bags to avoid a sticky mess.  If you prefer to use honey from a dish, a silicone honey dipper is available from Le Creuset in a variety of colors.

Wishing that we are all blessed with a sweet, healthy, and prosperous new year,

Ok, the name is funny, but this is serious cooking. Spatchcocking poultry is the process of removing the backbone and sternum of a bird. The bird is then flattened out by pressing on it. (more…)

The Cheese Guy has been in the gourmet food business for close to 20 years, and has always had a passion for fine cheeses. Having grown up in the Midwest, he also has an appreciation for the small family-owned dairy farms. Fortunately he has been able to combine the two passions.

His company “The Cheese Guy” is dedicated to the production and distribution of high end, artisanal, kosher, and natural cheeses, primarily from small U.S. creameries.

He is always looking for cheeses that are not readily available in the kosher marketplace. One of those cheeses is blue cheese – widely used as a topping on salads and on gourmet cheese platters. He worked on the blue cheese project for almost two years. Teaming up with 3rd generation Wisconsin Cheese makers, they came up with the taste profile they were looking for, and produced a handcrafted “60 Days Aged” kosher blue. It is sold in a chunk form, as well as a crumbled, under “The Cheese Guy.com” brand.

“Mainstreaming” Kosher: Taking Ethnic/ Specialty Foods to the Masses and Growing Beyond your Specialty Niche

Join us for this first installment in a series of webinars designed to help position your product for growth in the kosher market.

Kosher has gone far beyond its traditional base in that many of its products are rife for a much broader market. From the bagel to hummus, many original kosher products are moving into mainstream aisles with a far greater potential than ever imagined.

Join kosher industry authorities Milt Weinstock and Menachem Lubinsky in this exclusive webinar, as they help you lay the groundwork to take your kosher product mainstream. They’ll discuss the appeal of mainstreaming kosher products, highlight principals for success and review some successful case histories while answering these key questions:

• How can an “ethnic” product have “mass” appeal?
• Why should the mainstream market take notice of my product?
• Will I need to tweak the product, its packaging, and marketing to expand to a broader market?

Grow beyond your niche. Think mainstream. Register today to attend this free webinar.

Date: Thursday, 9/15/11
Time: 2:00pm EST
Cost: Free

Speakers:
Milt Weinstock,
President, Kosher Media

Menachem Lubinsky, President & CEO,
LUBICOM Marketing & Consulting

When your grill outside is fired up and you’re trying to keep your indoor kitchen heat down, who wants to turn on the oven to make dessert? Many folks opt to grill their dessert too, throwing pineapple, bananas and even watermelon on the fire to create a sweet ending to a summer meal.

Another option in the same no-bake spirit is to create refreshing frozen desserts, a great way to cool down after a hot meal on a hot day. While the frozen aisle at the supermarket offers an array of ready-made frozen treats and popsicles, here are a couple of easy ways for you to create luscious and innovative summer sweets using no more than your stove, food processor and freezer while incorporating the season’s crop of fresh, succulent peaches. These desserts are worth the extra effort, especially when they can be made in advance and can serve a crowd.

Frozen Peach and Toasted Almond Torte

Fresh summer peaches are fragrant, juicy and delicious, and healthy too: they are low in calories, a good source of vitamins C and A and beta carotene, and are rich in potassium, fluoride and iron.

When choosing fresh peaches, look for ones featuring deep color and sweet aroma that are firm with a slight give when lightly pressed. Avoid those that are excessively soft or with cuts and bruises. You can keep slightly hard peaches at room temperature until they ripen, or to accelerate ripening, place them in a paper bag along with a banana. Ripe peaches may be stored in the refrigerator, and wash them in cold water just before using.

Enjoy my recipes for:
Frozen Peach and Toasted Almond Torte
Sauteed Peach Ice Cream Torte

Although it is true that the best way to make smooth creamy ice cream is with an ice cream maker it is possible to get very good results without one as well. The key to creamy ice cream is to freeze the mixture quickly. In order to get the best results it is essential that the ice cream is well chilled before freezing. While this method may seem a bit strange it produces a creamy ice cream that is almost as smooth as one made with an ice cream maker.

Make ice cream according to the directions in the recipe, making sure to chill the mixture at least several hours but preferably overnight. Line two rimmed cookie sheets with plastic wrap. Pour half of the mixture onto each pan and freeze until completely firm. Remove one pan from the freezer. Working quickly, peel the ice cream off the plastic and break into medium-large pieces. Place them in the bowl of a food processor fit with a metal blade. Process until the ice cream is the texture of soft serve. Place in a container and freeze until firm. Repeat with the remaining ice cream. If making a recipe with a mix-in, such as cookie dough, fold the mix-in into the ice cream after removing it from the food processor.

This method can be used to make any Homemade Ice Cream recipe, a selection of some can be found here, Homemade Ice Cream Recipes.

I had the merit to be in Israel in July of this year, and after discussions with David Shire, part owner of the Lone Tree Brewery we arranged for me to make the trek out to his brewery, located in the heart of Gush Etzion.

It’s a small operation – a microbrewery – but it’s a brewery with gumption. Its logo is bright and vivid and promises a kaleidoscope of taste. The hand-crafted beer delivers on this promise, and how!

David sat me down and proceeded to roll out three beers for me to taste. It’s a hard job but someone has to do it. Out of the eight beers that they produce, I tasted the Extra Oatmeal Stout, the English Northern Ale and the Pale Ale.

Each have distinctive flavours that rival any of the mainstream beers that I drink over here in the USA. The Extra Oatmeal Stout is comparable to Guinness – personally, too heavy for me to drink regularly, but I would totally marinate my brisket in it, or use it to beer-roast a chicken. The other two beers that I tried would definitely be a constant presence in my fridge – they are so good that I would even replace my regular American beer with them.

David Shire of Lone Tree Beer

David (originally from Scotland), and his business partner Susan Levin (originally from Maryland), gave me a tour of their operation. These are people who, before they opened the brewery, perfected the art of the home brew. Home brewing of beer is not for the faint of heart – and David and Susan obviously know their craft. Now they have a proper operation, they have kosher certification (Rabbanut of Gush Etzion), and are gaining a reputation for great beer. Extra Bonus – they only use natural ingredients.

Before The Lone Tree Brewery came along the beer in Israel was nothing to write home about. Not anymore. Lone Tree Brewery can hold its head up high and know that it is brewing a superior product. As of right now their beer is only available in Israel (Machane Yehuda, Beit Shemesh, Modi’in & Gush Etzion. Home deliveries throughout Jerusalem) – but my hope is that more stores will stock their product, and eventually, that we will be able to import it into the US.

You can find Lone Tree Beer online and on Facebook and Twitter.

Is there anything better than a frozen drink on a hot sunny day while lounging at the pool?  It just screams: SUMMER!  But did you ever read the label on some of those drink mixes (high fructose corn syrup, yellow 5, blue 1, etc.)  Yuck!  I think I found my dietitian mission: to create a healthy, great tasting frozen cocktail without all the unnecessary artificial colors, flavors and sugar.  It’s a tough job but someone has to do it…

Summertime is the perfect time to enjoy blueberries, strawberries, peaches and mangos, but sometimes you just can’t finish what you bought at the store or farmer’s market.  For years, I’ve been freezing my leftover fresh fruit to use in yogurt smoothies, but until recently, I never tried using frozen fruit in my cocktails.

Strawberry Peach Daiquiri

To freeze your own fruit, make sure to wash thoroughly and then pat dry the excess water with a paper towel.  If it has a peel like peaches, remove the skin and slice into wedges.  Lay on a flat surface for about an hour then put into a tightly sealed Ziploc bag and save in your freezer until you are ready to use.

Frozen Mojito

When my favorite fresh fruit is out of stock or out of season, I run over to the frozen food aisle.  Frozen fruit is packed at the peak of freshness and retains more nutrients than many of those fruits sitting around the fresh fruit aisle.

Who knew a Strawberry Daiquiri can be (a little) good for you?

Whether you start fresh or frozen, your favorite drink is never more than a blender away.  In moderation, alcohol can lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes and many of your favorite fruits like kiwi, blueberry, raspberry and strawberry are rich in antioxidants and other important nutrients.

The best part of a frozen cocktail is they take longer to drink and provide natural fiber from the fruit that will fill you up and keep you from overeating and over drinking your calories.  So reach out and grab that bottle of rum gathering dust in your liquor cabinet and start trying some of these delicious fresh fruit cocktail recipes.

Frozen Margarita (Mango)

***GIVEAWAY***: You could win a free Back to the Roots Mushroom Growing Kit and grow your own mushrooms at home. This unique kit grows mushrooms in recycled coffee grounds. To qualify for a chance to win, leave us a comment below telling us your favorite frozen cocktail . One winner will be chosen by an online randomizer from qualified entries only. Must be US resident of at least 18 years of age. Contest ends Wednesday August 17th 2011 at 9 am EST.

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED – WINNER TO BE ANNOUNCED SHORTLY!

For those of you who are not the lucky winner we have a coupon code for you that gets you 10% off – Mushrooms4me10. If you order two or more kits you will get free shipping too. For more info on this contest click here.

The end of a fast can lead you into an eating binge which will only make you sick. The best thing to do after a fast, is to eat light. If you don’t plan ahead, you will be tempted to just stuff your face with everything in sight.

Start with a drink you like that has a little bit of natural sugar — orange or apple juice are perfect.  Most people take their inspiration from breakfast foods, since we really are breaking a fast every morning. Whole grains, eggs, yogurt, fruit are filling and won’t upset your stomach. The key is to keep it light, avoid spicy or saucy foods and don’t over do it.
Here is a menu to help you to plan your break the fast in style. You can make both of these dishes if you are entertaining, but either one of these delicious dishes will do the trick.

Ratatouille Lentil Soup

Broccoli Swiss Quiche

I do always like a little sweet treat after a day of fasting, if you have the time to make these refreshing marshmallows, I highly recommend.

Raspberry Lemonade Marshmallows

Otherwise, try this Espresso Chocolate Turtle Cake, just keep your portion small and save some for tomorrow.

Espresso Chocolate Turtle Cake

Everyone has their tips and tricks on how best to prepare for a fast. My brother likes to drink a bottle of Powerade to build up his electrolytes.  My father slowly weans off his coffee starting a week before to help avoid the caffeine withdrawal headache.  My mother always made us bland food so we wouldn’t be thirsty from too much salt.  Some people feel you have to just eat like crazy the day before so you are so full you won’t feel hungry the next day. Others gradually eat less and less beginning a few days before the fast.  Whatever your personal eating strategy, the most important advice I can give is to drink plenty of water the day before.  The hardest part of fasting and the side-effects are caused by dehydration.  So drink up the whole day before and then enjoy a well-balanced meal before your fast begins.

Here is a menu to help you have an easy fast:

Light Pasta Alfredo

Pan Seared Tilapia

Garlicky Green Beans

Mango Coconut Crisp

Some mitzvot are directed primarily towards women. Separating challah from dough is a beautiful example of such a mitzvah. The Torah tells us(Bamidbar 15:20) “From the first of your dough you shall set apart challah.” Originally this portion of the dough went to the cohen. A possible reason this mitzvah is directed towards the woman is because the talmud calls Adam the “Challah of the world” (the portion of the world separated for serving Hashem.) Just as Hashem formed man from the dust of the earth, we separate challah from dough. Since Eve caused Adam to sin by giving him fruit from the tree of knowledge, this mitzvah may be coming to rectify that original sin.

If a woman makes dough from one of the five grains, (wheat, barley, spelt, oats or rye) and she uses more than 2.64 pounds, she must separate a small piece. The bracha however can only be said if she separates more than 4.95 pounds of flour, according to the Chazon Ish. Some opinions are more lenient as converting talmudic measures to modern day measurements, are not an exact science. Rabbi Chaim Naeh permits the blessing said over 3.66 pounds. Some sephardim who follow the Ben Ish Chai will only make a blessing when using 5.47 pounds! As always check with your LOR (local orthodox rabbi) to find your own custom.

This mitzvah brings great merit to the people who perform it. It is not uncommon for women to make separting challah “bracha parties” where they come together and separate the challah in unison and recite the blessing so all can respond. On a recent trip to Israel I was at the kever of the Rambam, my wife told me that about twenty women arrived early friday morning with their own dough, and each one separated the dough to the chorus of a loud ‘amen’ from all those in attendence! The talmud says “the one who answers amen to a bracha, receives more merit than the one who makes the bracha”, this may be how this custom began.

You first make the blessing “Baruch Ata Adonoi Eloheinu Melech Haolam Asher K’dishanu B’mitzvotav V’tzivanu L’hafrish Challah. Then seprate a portion of about a k’zayit (a shot glass amount). You then burn the piece in the oven with aluminum foil, so the oven does not absorb the flavor of the challah.

Who says nothing can get done in Washington?  I recently came back from a food-filled day trip to Washington, D.C. where I attended the 57th Summer Fancy Food Show.  It is the largest marketplace for specialty foods and beverages in North America. The exhibit halls were filled to capacity with as many as 180,000 products including the latest in single-origin chocolate, artisanal cheese, olive oil, salsas, snacks, teas and spice blends, many of them with kosher certification.

I want to share with you a few of my favorite discoveries.

One of the popular food trends at this year’s show was Booze-Infused Foods.  Companies are experimenting with flavors from popular alcoholic beverages to infuse sweet and savory foods. You can try this at home, for example, with this Bourbon Sage London Broil.   One of my favorite new product discoveries was cocktail chocolates by Seattle Chocolates boasting fabulous flavors such as: lemon drop, margarita, appletini and mimosa.   The margarita explodes in your mouth for a full flavor explosion, like Cinco de Mayo in July.

Another chocolate company I couldn’t get enough of was Lake Champlain.  These all-natural gourmet treats from Vermont include hot chocolates, truffles, a chocolate menorah and nicely packaged chocolate gelt.  I loved their gelt for grown-ups – delicious chocolate coins, a mix of  Dark & Dark Mint Crunch.  I know what I will be playing dreidel with this year!

Another trend I noticed this year were these Give It A Try Kits, especially A Grow Your Own Mushroom Garden from Back to the Roots.  Using all recyclable materials, everyone can experience the fun of growing your own.  Just cut open one side of a box, water it and in a week you will have a batch of oyster mushrooms to make this spectacular Oyster Mushroom Ceviche or any other favorite funghi dish.

I really enjoyed the Sweet Potato Crackers from Polka Dot Bakeshop.  They are light and crispy and come in five amazing flavors: Original Sweet Potato, Rosemary & Olive Oil, Chipotle with Smoked Paprika, Cracked Black Pepper, and Gluten-Free Cracked Black Pepper.  You can top them with cheese or honey or just eat them out of the bag.  Since they are made from sweet potato they pack a nice nutritional punch.

This year’s show featured a ton of loose leaf tea.  I love the taste and aroma of loose leaf tea, I have to admit it took some time to get over my laziness.  It always seemed easier to just throw a tea bag into a cup of hot water.  Well, t-sac is here to help.  These disposable tea filters can be filled with any amount of loose leaf tea (up to for 4 cups), then you just use it as a tea bag.Tea-time anyone?

If you are a bottled ice tea drinker, I hope you’ve heard of Honest Tea.  Their line of teas were one of the first bottled iced tea beverages I really enjoyed.  Most bottled and canned teas have too much sugar and an overpowering lemon flavor.  Honest Tea pioneereda natural iced tea with exotic flavors and little or no added sugar.  Now they’ve done it again.  They recently launched a line of Cocoa Nova Drinks with mint, cherry and mocha flavors.  They take the cacao beans (the main ingredient in chocolate) and brew a light, refreshing drink with only 50 calories per bottle and a boatload of antioxidants.

If there was one spice you would not expect to find in the pantry of a Jewish home, it would have to be  J&D’s Bacon Salt… Until I saw the hechsher!  The founders are on a self-proclaimed mission to make everything taste like bacon and they do it without the pig (or any other meat).  They have bacon flavored mayo, bacon flavored popcorn, bacon gravy and even bacon lip balm (I’m not kidding!).  Their newest product, Bacon Croutons, are loaded with flavor and perfectly crispy.  I can’t imagine a more perfect topping for a salad or soup.

Another company doing just about everything right, is MimiCreme.  MimiCreme is a non-dairy, non-soy, gluten-free substitute for cream.  It is available sweetened or unsweetened, as well as a Healthy Top variety made from a blend of Organic Coconut Oil, Almonds, Cashews, Sweet Almond Oil and natural cane sugar.  I can’t wait to try a delicious pareve chocolate mousse with this clever product.

My kids come home with green, red and blue tongues from those sugar-filled, artificially flavored ice popsicles that are apparently a summer camp requirement.  If only the camp discovered the Power of Fruit which packages what I try at home, an all-natural, pure fruit frozen bar.  Power of Fruit comes in a tube that is less messy and perfect for kids of all ages.

I hope you enjoyed this virtual tour of the 57th Summer Fancy Food Show.  Check out our contests page regularly for product giveaways from some of these and many other great companies.

If you have any favorite new products that you love, please tell us about them in the comments below.

Idaho about you, but my kids love potatoes.  Baked, fried (especially fried), mashed they are easy to please.  But for spring time picnics and summer time barbecues there is nothing like a perfect potato salad. Here are a few different recipes for you to try.

Almond Caper Potato Salad

Potato Salad with Arugula and Tomato

Tricolor Potato Salad

Grilled Potato and Spanish Sweet Onion Salad with Smoked Salmon and Roasted Bell Pepper

South Western Potato Salad

Super Sweet Potato Salad

At most of my appearances, I talk about my life. Talk about my food.  Talk about my friends.  So if you’ve seen any of my presentations, you’ve heard me rave about Rabbi Lawrence.  As I morphed from non-religious TV producer to sheitel-wearing kosher cookbook author, Rabbi L. and his fab wife Anita were right there for me.

C’mon. You’ve heard of Anita — my terrific friend, neighbor, and inspiration for girls who grill. I talk about her all the time.  Anyway, after I became engaged, I dragged Hubby-to-be to Monsey to meet them. Been like one big happy family ever since.

Now that I’m doing the kosher food scene full time — questions about kosher food and holiday customs always come up. Hey, I got religious, but I’m no rabbi! I have no problem admitting that I don’t always have all the answers. (According to Hubby this is such a rare confession that he wants to frame it.)  I thought about it – who do I know who is qualified, accessible (and fun)? I was stumped for a while.  So I closed my eyes and clicked my heels together. Before I could say, “There’s no place like home,” it hit me!  He’s been there all the time. Why not go for the best of the best?

Ladies and gents, allow me to introduce the Official Rabbi of Joy of Kosher: Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff.

Funniest rabbi on the planet. And his humor gets the perfect umph from his British accent, which you won’t be able to hear when you read his answers, but which you will be able to hear when you see him on my cooking videos.  I guess it’s a British thing, but he often says “darling” – and you’ve got to love a rabbi who can say darling to everybody and get away with it. He calls his wife Princess, and while I’m spilling stuff, I’ll mention that he is Sephardic and took a lot of ribbing from neighbors when he and Anita had four girls one after the other. Finally had their boy, and not a minute too soon. (It’s a Sephardi thing.)

Not to mention that he has a wicked laugh, can impersonate Austin Powers pretty well, dressed up as Ali G a few purims ago, interned at MTV and wears a Hermes with a big H that he insists stands for Hashem (or Hajioff).

Now for his official stats… Rabbi Lawrence has smicha from Ohr Someyach in Monsey NY, is the Educational Director aka Chief Spiritual Officer at the Jewish Enrichment Center in NYC and is the Rabbi for Birthright Israel in NY (and now here with us at Jok.com!).

Originally from London, England, Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff graduated with honors in political science from Manchester University. After working for two years for MTV in news production, and winning the national competition ‘Jewish Stand-Up Comedian of the Year’, Rabbi Hajioff traveled to study in Israel and then Monsey to receive his rabbinical smicha ordination from Yeshiva Ohr Somayach.

He’s already warned me that he loathes to lift a finger in the kitchen (“Princess” does it all), but he does love great food. Good enough for me. I’ll be shooting a few videos with him soon so you can get to know him.  He will be writing for us regularly about all things kosher and is here to answer all your Qs, day and night.

Well, rather you can submit them day and night by emailing info@joyofkosher.com with the subject: Ask the Rabbi and he will answer them as soon as he can, ok?

So excited – can’t wait to watch our resident rabbi in action!  Now there’s nothing that JoK can’t handle. Bring it on, people…

Here are some links to help you get to know Rabbi Lawrence a little better including some fantastic classes.

http://jeconline.com/

“The Jewish Home: Where Kindness Begins” http://jeconline.com/media/video/jewishhomekindnessflv-0

“Health and Healing in Judaism” on eating right http://jeconline.com/media/video/health-and-healingflv

A video on Tisha be’av…really on Shalom Bayit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8ZOjb0FKfQ

Summer fun is here and so are these fantastic tips to keep you out of the kitchen.

Here is a list of “Quick Hints” that I share at my Tupperware demonstrations with my customers.  I am sure you will find them very interesting and useful, so bookmark this page and save them for future reference.

Reheating Pizza : Heat up leftover pizza in a non-stick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on the cooking channel and it really works.

Easy Devilled Eggs: Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg.  Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.

Expanding Frosting: When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar/calories per serving.

Reheating Refrigerated Bread: To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

Newspaper Weeds Away: When putting in your plants, work the nutrients into your soil. Wet newspapers and put layers around the plants, overlapping as you go. Cover with mulch and forget about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic but they will not get through wet newspapers.

Broken Glass: Use a dry cotton ball to pick up little broken pieces of glass- the fibers catch ones you can’t see!

No More Mosquitoes: Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

Squirrel Away!: To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn’t hurt the plant and the squirrels won’t come near it.

MINE!!!!! : If you purchase a new bike for your child, place their picture inside the handle bar before placing the grips on. If the bike is stolen and later recovered, remove the grip and there is your proof of ownership.

Flexible Vacuum Extension: To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge, add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

Reducing Static Cling: Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and – voila – static is gone.

Measuring Cups: Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill it with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don’t dry the cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.

Foggy Windshield: Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!

Reopening Envelope : If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Voila! It unseals easily.

Conditioner: Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It’s a lot cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It’s also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn’t like when you tried it in your hair.

Goodbye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass and add 1/2″ Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dishwashing liquid, mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

Get Rid of Ants: Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it “home,” & can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works & you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

Baby Powder at the Beach: Keep a small bottle of baby powder in your beach bag. When you’re ready to leave the beach, sprinkle yourself and kids with the powder and the sand will slide right off your skin.

Potatoes soaked in salt water for 20 min. before baking, will bake more rapidly.  Add a little milk to the water in which you cook cauliflower, it will remain attractively white.

Toothpicks are sometimes too short to test a loaf cake for doneness.  A piece of uncooked spaghetti will work just fine.

Store all luncheon ingredients in Cold Cut keeper ( toppings, mustard, mayo in snack set) so you only have to open refrigerator once.

When camping, make turnovers…butter all sides of muffin.  Fill 1 or 2 TBS, of favorite jam.  Wrap in foil.  Put in coals 2 or 3 minutes each side.