Keeping Buttermilk & Heavy Cream On-Hand

I have quite a few recipes that call for buttermilk, but who uses it often enough to always have it on-hand in the fridge?  Also, what about half & half, heavy cream or whipping cream?  These are always things I need, but I usually have to run out and buy them if a recipe calls for them.  After I started making my Oatmeal Buttermilk Pancakes regularly, I wanted to find a way to keep these items on hand, so I tried freezing them.  It worked beautifully.  I now purchase those little pint cartons of all these things and keep about 3-5 of each in my freezer.  I just defrost them in the microwave and add them to whatever I'm making.  It works great!  I'm sure they'd last in there a couple of month just fine, but I use mine up before then anyway!

5-a-Day...Easy!

I know, I know....everyone's already heard of Bountiful Baskets, but if you are still unsure of it's awesomeness, please read further.
You cannot believe the amount of produce you get for such a small amount of money! One of the things I love about it is that you don't know what you're getting. It's just a surprise when you go to pick it up. I realize that may not be a selling point to everyone, but it is one of the features I appreciate. I like trying something I wouldn't have normally thought about. For anyone that is concerned about that, I've gotten about 5 baskets so far and out of all the "normal" items you get, there's maybe one unusual thing.

It's also easy. You order it online on Monday or Tuesday and go pick it up on Saturday (with a laundry basket). There are various local locations (in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and I think more), so you just select the one that's closest to you. Then you have this abundance of produce in your house, so you have to eat it because it's always there. You get 1/2 vegetables and 1/2 fruits. Throw something in with your dinners every night or grab a quick healthy snack, you'll never run out. No, I'm not getting paid for advertising, I just think it's awesome and everyone should know about it. So, for $15, here's one of the baskets I got.
If you can't tell, that included strawberries, grapes, cantelope, bananas, pears, peaches, tomatoes, red peppers, carrots, celery, broccoli and romaine lettuce. What more could you need?! And all for $15!

Here's the link: http://www.bountifulbaskets.org/ Thank you. I'm done.

Cake Decorating Tips

Do many of you have the same problems with frosting cake as I do? I always try to frost it and end up churning the cake up right into my frosting. It's so frustrating. My sister-in-law, Kaleena, is an awesome cake decorator and shared these tips with me.

1. Be sure you have good cake pans. It's worth the extra money for the non-stick cake pans to make sure your cake doesn't stick. It's much easier to frost when it's smooth.
2. Freeze cake for an hour or two before frosting.
3. Use a cake decorating spatula. It just makes the job easier.
4. Use plenty of frosting, usually about two pillsbury containers per one box of cake mix. Just gob it on there and then you're essentially just pushing the frosting around to cover the cake.
5. After spreading frosting around, dip knife into cold water to smooth out frosting all over cake.

These tips helped me, so I thought they might help you too. Good Luck!

Tomato Tip

Don't you love fresh tomatoes during summertime? Especially right out of the garden. Yum! Well, I learned something a few years ago that I really never knew before and I need to make sure everyone else out there knows it too! Never, ever store tomatoes in the fridge. It completely changes their flavor and texture. I thought I didn't like tomatoes until I learned this. When you bring them home, just keep them out in room temperature. They will taste so much better! If you don't believe what a difference it makes, do a test. Put one in the fridge and keep one out and you'll see what I mean. You'll never store tomatoes in the fridge again. One rule of thumb I use is I pay attention to how it's stored at the grocery store. If it's in the refrigerated section, it should obviously go in the fridge and vice versa.

Brownie Cutting Tip

Ok, so this is the most helpful hint I've learned in the kitchen for awhile! Our friend Kirk taught us this trick and everyone needs to know it. You know when you cut brownies and the brownies churn up and all the insides come out and it turns into a big, huge mess? This is especially true when you can't wait for them to completely cool, which is certainly a problem of mine. Well, all you need to do is use a plastic, disposable knife to cut them and it cuts them perfectly smooth every time. Try it, it is amazing!