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How to Save Time and Money in the Kitchen

August 21, 2014 by

Between family, friends, work, and errands, there's typically little time left in the day for cooking a wholesome, healthy meal. Whether you're cooking for one or preparing a feast for your entire extended family, these time-saving cooking tips can help you stretch those seconds in the kitchen.

1) Keep your cabinets well-stocked.
Before you make a trip to the grocery store, do a quick assessment of your cabinets. Are you low on essentials such as rice, flour, cooking stock, basic seasonings, and pasta? Keeping these kitchen staples on hand will prevent hiccups in your meal planning process down the line. Consider printing this handy grocery checklist from Martha Stewart.

2) Plan ahead.
Establishing a meal menu for the week will not only make dinner prep easier, it'll also help you save money. Scan the newspaper for coupons, then flip through your grocer's circular for any notable bargains. Afterwards, plan a menu based around the food that's on sale. For instance, if chicken is being offered at a discount, capitalize from the deal by creating a chicken-centric menu for the week. Assemble oven-ready dishes, such as casseroles and soup stock, that you can freeze and eat at a later date.

Menu Planning: Save Time In The Kitchen [Organized Home]
Save Time in the Kitchen [Martha Stewart]
5 best time-saving cooking tips [EatingWell]

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Are You Making These 3 Face Washing Mistakes?

July 24, 2014 by

Lather. Rinse. Dry. It seems so simple, right? But did you know there's actually a wrong and right way to wash your face? The key to getting the most from your skincare routine is to adopt a regimen that's custom tailored to your personal skin type and issues. You can start by avoiding these common face washing mistakes:

1) Washing with dirty hands.
Your hands contain dirt, dead skin cells, germs, and oil that can end up on your face if you don't wash them first. Avoid transferring any gross stuff to your face by first giving your hands a good lathering.

2) Ignoring your skin type.
Your skin type should dictate how you care for your face. There's no "one size fits all" solution to skincare, so don't use products that aren't working for you. For example, if you have sensitive skin, steer clear of perfumed cleansers or lotions. If you're prone to acne, listen to your skin and ditch any products that cause breakouts. Have oily skin? You might need to wash more frequently. Trust your instincts.

3) Washing with water that's too hot.
Because hot water can sap skin of moisture, only tepid water should be used to wash your face. After massaging a coin-sized amount of cleanser into your skin using gentle circular motions, rinse thoroughly with cooler water, which will help close pores. Pat your skin dry using a clean towel, and remember to always be extra gentle around the delicate eye areas.

How To Wash Your Face: 7 Ways To Keep Your Skin Healthy [Huffpost]
How to Wash Your Face Properly [Popsugar]
How to Wash Your Face [Howstuffworks]

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Delightful Recipes for Rich Chocolate Pudding

June 19, 2014 by

Just about everyone loves chocolate, and pudding is a simple dish that can be prepared a number of different ways. Combine the two tastes to create decadent chocolate pudding with these easy recipes.

Hasty Chocolate Pudding [AllRecipes]
When your guests are arriving in just a few minutes, this recipe tastes great but takes only a little while to prepare.

How to Make Perfect Chocolate Pudding from Scratch [The Kitchn]
Forego the boxed, prepackaged mixes and learn to make a real chocolate pudding with this recipe.

Best Chocolate Pudding [Smitten Kitchen]
Dark, rich, and just a pinch salty, this recipe makes a truly elegant chocolate pudding dish.

Chocolate Pudding [Food Network]
Learn to make Tyler Florence’s chocolate pudding from this gourmet recipe.

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4 of the Web’s Best Recipes for Banana Pudding

May 14, 2014 by

Banana pudding is sweet and rich, with a creamy taste that people of all ages simply adore. It’s also a very simple dish to make at home, and it serves a large number of guests at one time. Here are a few of the best banana pudding recipes from around the web.

Banana Pudding IV [All Recipes]
When you’ve only got a few minutes to spare, this banana pudding recipe comes together quickly and easily.

Easy Southern Banana Pudding [Kraft]
Use simple vanilla wafers to create this banana pudding in just 20 minutes or less.

Not Yo’ Mama’s Banana Pudding [Paula Deen]
True to Paula’s signature style, this recipe is rich, creamy, and truly decadent.

Banana Pudding Recipe & Video [Joy of Baking]
Visual learners will love this tasty recipe because it includes a simple video to help you along.

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Nutrition Tips for Vegetarians

April 17, 2014 by

Whether you want to show support for animals or simply choose to avoid meat products, becoming a vegetarian can be a very healthy lifestyle choice. Though it decreases your risk for many long-term diseases, a vegetarian diet can make it difficult to get the protein and other nutrients a person needs to stay healthy and energized.

These vegetarian eating tips can help you create a balanced, meat-free diet:

  • Make sure that you get enough protein by incorporating nuts, beans, peas and soy products into meals and snacks.
  • Keep up with your necessary iron intake to create healthy oxygen absorption in the blood by eating a lot of spinach, kidney beans, lentils, black-eyed peas and iron-fortified cereals.
  • Choose calcium-fortified soy milk to replace the calcium normally found in regular cow’s milk.
  • Consider vegetarian alternatives to traditionally meat-based foods to keep your diet exciting (for example, bean burritos, veggie lo mein, or vegetarian lasagna).

Tips for Vegetarians [USDA]

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Basic Cooking Terms for Healthy Home Chefs

March 20, 2014 by

Are you the type of at-home cook who uses the same technique for “grilling” as you do for “sautéing”? Using the proper cooking techniques can make or break a nutritious dish, but many people don’t know the true meaning of most of these terms. This helpful list will ensure that you use the most effective cooking techniques for every healthy meal. Here are some of the highlights:

1. Grill. Ideal for chicken, firmer seafood and hearty vegetables, grilling is a common cooking method that can be done on a stovetop or an outdoor grill.

2. Broil. Broiling is a great technique for dishes that require a crispy surface. It can be used for chicken, salmon, tuna or other lean meats.

3. Sauté. This light stir-frying method is effective on thin cuts of chicken or most vegetables, from mushrooms to kale to zucchini. By using olive oil or another healthy oil, you can add robust flavor without adding fat to your dish.

4. Poach. Ideal for salmon, flounder, trout and other white fishes, poaching uses boiling water to gently cook and add moisture to fish.

5. Steam. Steaming vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, green beans or carrots is one of the healthiest ways to prepare them. By using boiling water in the bottom of a sauce pan, you’ll have tender vegetables in a matter of minutes.

Basic Cooking Instructions [NIH]

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Choose Fresh Fruits and Vegetables With a Few Simple Tips

March 6, 2014 by

Don’t you hate it when you buy produce at the grocery store, only to come home and realize that it’s tough and flavorless? Or when you bring home fruits and they become mushy and overripe before you can eat them? If you want to learn how to choose fruits and vegetables right at their peak of ripeness, these simple tips can help.

Check the color.
It’s important to know what color each fruit or vegetable should be before you purchase it. Most fruits should be the most vibrant shade of their expected color, such as bright red apples or sunny yellow bananas. Green vegetables should be a deep, dark green, and other vegetables, like carrots, should not have white aging signs on them.

Feel the texture.
Bruising is one of the main issues when buying fruits and vegetables, so gently hold your produce to feel if it’s bruised or soft. Citrus fruits should feel particularly heavy for their size, as that means they’re full of juice. Vegetables like cucumbers and peppers should feel firm to the touch, while lettuce or spinach should be leafy and full.

Store them properly.
Once you get your produce home, storing it properly helps to conserve its freshness. Most perishable fruits and veggies should be stored in a clean refrigerator at a temperature of 40 degrees or lower. 

Choosing Fresh Fruits and Vegetables [Family Circle]
Raw Produce [FDA]

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Improve Your Math Skills With These Online Puzzles

February 20, 2014 by

If you want to improve your math skills without reviewing flash cards or writing out long division problems, you might enjoy completing online math puzzles. These free websites provide stimulating math puzzles for people of all ages, and they’re so much fun you’ll almost forget that they’re educational.

Ken Ken
Ken Ken is a grid-based math puzzle that is similar to Sudoku. In Ken Ken, players choose a grid size and fill in the numbers from 1 to the size of the grid without repeating a number in any row or column. Some squares are more heavily outlined, and the numbers in these squares must combine to equal the target number in the top corner using a mathematical operation indicated. Ken Ken allows users to use logic and to practice a variety of different math operations.

Mathdoku
The Mathdoku website combines the rules of Sudoku and Ken Ken to create a variety of challenging, entertaining math games. The games come in your choice of 4×4, 6×6, or 8×8 sizes, as well as easy, medium, hard, and no-op skill levels. If you’ve already exhausted most of the Sudoku websites, Mathdoku is an equally fun alternative.

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4 Interesting Facts About Green Eyes

January 22, 2014 by

If you have green eyes, consider yourself lucky! Green is the rarest eye color; only 2% of people on the planet have green eyes, and most green eyes belong to females. Here are four more facts about green eyes that you might not already know.

1. If you have roots in Northern Europe and Nordic countries, like Finland, Norway, or Iceland, you're more likely to have green peepers.

2. Shakespeare coined the phrase "green-eyed monster" to personify envy. However, nowadays green eyes are considered a sign of exotic beauty.

3. Recessive traits for green eyes can be passed within a family for generations before they make themselves known.

4. Celebrities with green eyes include Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Connelly, Lindsay Lohan, Charlize Theron, Kate Hudson, Tyra Banks, Scarlett Johansson, and Rihanna.

Blue-Eyed Humans Have A Single, Common Ancestor [Human N Health]
Human Eye Color Charts [All About Vision]
Learn About The Origins of People With Green Eyes [HubPages]
Rarest Eye Colors [Science 360]

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Top Tablet Computers

January 8, 2014 by

With the large number of tablets on the market today, it can be difficult to choose the right one for your specific needs. These high-quality options are each equipped with various features that make checking email, watching movies, and browsing the web easier and more portable:

iPad Mini
The iPad Mini is an all-around great choice for anyone looking for a more portable computing experience. This 7" tablet features 3.1 million pixels, advanced wireless technologies, 10 hours of battery life, and the ability to use Apple apps like GarageBand, iMovie, and Pages completely for free.

iPad Air
The iPad Air is the perfect tablet for users looking for the most portable, lightweight design for frequent travelling or commuting. It weighs only one pound and is 20% thinner than even the iPad Mini, but the iPad Air still features powerful apps, ultrafast wireless, and 3.1 million pixels for the best user experience. A 10" screen makes the iPad Air appealing for watching Netflix.

Nexus 7
Google's Android-powered Nexus 7 tablet is an efficient, capable choice that's also quite affordable. With a 7" display screen, 2.3 million pixels, 2GB of RAM, and hundreds of apps, the Nexus 7 is a deal at just $229.

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