Ripening TomatoesRipen homegrown tomatoes on a rubber shelf liner. We bought our house 2 years ago and the woman that lived here before me left her rubber shelf liners. I hated the stuff, but also hated to throw it away. I came up with this idea.
Preserve Vegetable Nutrients by BakingIf you boil vegetables in water, and you drain it all the nutrients comes out in the water. So your solution is to bake them without water.
Yukon Vs. White Potatoes?Is there a difference between Yukon and regular white potatoes? I baked a whole white potato and it seemed like it took forever to cook. I wasn't sure if I bought the wrong kind. Please advise.
Which Artichokes Taste the Best?What kind of artichokes do they sell in grocery stores? Globe, Jerusalem, other? I would like to try to grow some, but don't know the best kind for eating. Thank you.
Cook Acorn Squash WholeMy family loves acorn squash, but I found it so difficult to cut it to scoop the seeds that one day I decided to cook it WHOLE and then cut and scoop later. It is wonderful. Cuts easily, doesn't blow up, and now we enjoy it so often. Also, I found an incredible taste difference between regular vs organic.
Cut and Place Wilted Celery in Cold WaterIf your celery is wilting, cut a thin slice off the bottom stalk and place in cold water, like you do for flowers. The next day, your celery will stand tall again.
Eating The Greens On Broccoli?Can you eat broccoli greens, cauliflower greens, and the outer large leaves of cabbage? Has anyone done this and lived to tell?
Freezer Cucumber Recipe?I am looking for a recipe for cucumbers, onions in a small amount of dice bell peppers with vinegar in sugar water. This recipe is one you can freeze and eat all year.
Harvesting Cattail As FoodCattail is wonderful as a fresh vegetable! To harvest, pull straight up and out of its sheath as you would a blade of grass to chew - only with more muscle! The white bit at the bottom is your prize. It tastes like a cross of cucumber/asparagus. Cut or snap it off where it starts getting woody.
Make Fresh Vegetables Last By FreezingI buy fresh onions, celery, garlic, green pepper, ginger, once bi-monthly. My secret is that the moment I return from the market with them, I peel them clean them, chop them coarsely in my chopper, place them in freezer bags and freeze them for whenever I need to use them.
Fried Eggplant Was Too Oily?I just fried-up some eggplants for the 1st time. They soaked-up the oil like sponges. I put down some newspaper, on top of that a whole bunch of Scott towels, then the eggplants. They drenched everything with oil, and were still so greasy, they were not edible. I also made sure to drain the water out of my eggplants overnight.
Seasoning Veggies and Beans?Trying to change my eating habits. Would like to know what you season veggies and beans (collard greens, turnips, cabbage, black-eyed peas) with. I would normally use ham but I am trying to eat healthier this year. Any suggestions?
Broccoli and Brussel Sprout Leaves?Are the leaves of the brussel sprout plant and the broccoli plant edible?
Can You Tell How Hot a Jalapeño Is?Can you figure out how hot a jalapeno is just by its appearance?
Tips For An Abundance Of Squash?What can I do with an abundance of squash that has gotten big (maybe too ripe)?
Preparing LettuceInstead of cutting lettuce with a knife, tear it with your fingers. It will help prevent the edges from browning.
Choosing Good Potatoes?Is there a way to tell if the potato I purchase at a grocery store is good to eat? I ask because I recently purchased a red skinned potato that was green just underneath the skin and it wasn't that good.
Using All Parts of VeggiesUsing All Parts of Veggies. Broccoli stems can be sliced and used in coleslaw, a stir fry, or even in a salad. . .
Green Salad PreparationI like to serve a salad every night with dinner but hated the preparation time. Now I make a large salad once a week. Put in a large tupperware bowl with cover. Cover the salad with ice cold water, put lid on and keep in fridge. You can use anything except tomatoes. When we are ready to serve...
Opening Canned AsparagusIf you want your asparagus to come out of the can in one piece and looking nice, open the can at the bottom end instead of the top and the tender tips will stay in place and not break!
The Different Types of Onions?Can anyone explain the difference between white, yellow, purple, and any other colors of onions? I'm especially interested in how strong they taste, what recipes the different varieties would be appropriate for, and so forth.
Preparing Veggies for SaladsPrep veggies for salads when you come home from the store. Tuck a dry paper towel into the baggie to absorb extra moisture. Green onions, lettuces, mushrooms, and shredded carrots are easy to add to salads this way.
Cabbage Cooking Tips?Tips for cooking cabbage. Post your ideas.
Corn Boiling TipWhen boiling corn, add sugar to the water instead of salt. Salt will toughen the corn.
By Peggy
Choose Red over Green Cabbage For Vitamin CWhen trying to add more nutrients in your diet food-wise, choose red cabbage over green cabbage. Red cabbage has more Vitamin C.
Cleaning Celery (Destringing)?I have a question. I am wondering how to remove the rind from celery. The part of the celery that is hard to bite or chew because of the stands of rind (what I call the string part of celery). There is a way to remove this part of the celery but I am not sure how to do it. Can anyone tell me how or what they might think.
Thank you,
Deltadawn from Canada
Keeping Cauliflower from Getting Brown Spots?Can anyone tell m how to keep brown spots from cauliflower so soon after buying? Love to all. Loretta
Perk Up GreensA few raw potatoes added to water containing wilted greens will quickly perk them up.
By Robin
Cutting Celery TipSince the ends closest to the leaves of celery aren't dirty, when needing chopped celery, just slice through the whole bunch, instead of pulling off one stalk at a time. You will be well aware when you need to start pulling the stalks off and washing them. A real Time Saver.
By MCB
Make-Shift Vegetable SteamersFor a make-do steamer, use an electric frying pan with an inch of water in it. Place the food on a heatproof plate & balance it on some kind of platform - a canning jar ring, perhaps, or a empty tuna can with both ends removed.. Then cover, leaving a small air vent so that condensed steam doesn't drip onto the food.
Buy Vegetables Individually For Best QualityTry to buy your vegetables from a market where you can pick them individually. If you buy vegetables like potatoes, onions or tomatoes ready-packed bags you run a good risk of finding some of them partially spoiled, of a size you don't want or not ripe enough.
Cooking CabbageWhen cooking cabbage, place a small tin cup or can half full of vinegar on the stove near the cabbage. It will absorb the order.
By Peggy
Stuffed Green Pepper TipUse greased muffin tins as molds when baking stuffed green peppers.
By Peggy
Lettuce HintsMost lettuces make excellent hot greens, cook as you would spinach. You have to flavor them a bit with celery salt, nutmeg, pepper & perhaps some garlic, but it can be a fine dish. Also try creamed lettuce, or stuffing lettuce leaves as you would cabbage.
Use a Thinly Sliced Cooking Onion in SaladsInstead of buying expensive salad onions, use very thin slivers from a normal cooking onion and mix in with the other salad ingredients. This gives a mild hint of flavour.
Make Your Own Cut VeggiesWith four kids, I am always trying to find ways to save on my food bill.
My kids love the pre-cut veggies from the store, so I buy bags of veggies and cut them up while the kids are in school.
Blanching Peppers?I would like to know if you can blanch peppers (all kinds). And if you can, how you do it? How many minutes? And how long do they last?
Slicing MushroomsUse an egg slicer to slice fresh mushrooms. It's quick and makes nice, even slices that are the perfect thickness for most recipes. Mushroom slices that have a uniform thickness will cook evenly.
Prevent Soggy SaladsTo prevent soggy salads, take a small saucer or dish and put it upside down in the salad bowl. That will allow the salad to stay elevated while the moisture collects at the bottom.
