DIY Life

Sure, a vegetable-inspired cupcake sounds like heresy in the minds of dessert lovers everywhere, but with one bite of this corn-on-the-cob, you'll quickly change your tune. Go on; I dare you. The Martha Stewart video gives you step-by-step coverage, including a written tutorial, so the process couldn't be easier. And the ingredients, unlike many Martha Stewart creations, are far from gourmet. Here's the list:

* Vanilla Frosting
* Yellow liquid food coloring
* 24 Vanilla Cupcakes, baked in white paper liners
* 3 1/2 cups small yellow, cream, or white jelly beans, such as Jelly Belly
* 4 pieces yellow fruit chews, such as Laffy Taffys or Starbursts
* 1 tablespoon black decorating sugar
* 1 tablespoon white decorating sugar
* 8 sets of corn holders (optional)

Go ahead; call your family and tell them you'll be bringing corn-on-the-cob for Thanksgiving dinner year. One less vegetable to make Fido scarf down underneath the table, and one more dessert to enjoy later! It's a win-win!

I love DIY hacks in the kitchen. One of my favorites is this easy secret about cutting onions. To prevent the waterworks show when slicing this potent vegetable, simply hold your tongue on the roof of your mouth (but don't breathe through your nose!). You'll still be able to breathe, don't worry, but you won't have to explain to your guests that really, nothing's wrong -- it's the onions.

Of course, there are a ton of other onion hacks for the kitchen, and most can be found right here at DIY Life. Let's take a look, shall we?:
-For an instructional video including 5 tips for slicing onions without crying like a baby, visit How to Dice an Onion.
-Sure, onions are full of flavor, but did you know they could juice up your iPod (literally?). Find out more at Charge Your iPod With an Onion.

Clearly, onions just got a whole lot sweeter.

I looove salt, but my husband likes to keep it at a minimum. Of course, any time I do the cooking (which I'll admit is totally rare), there's always too much salt added for the husband. Instead of adding a little bit of everything to even things out, I learned a bit of a trick to tame the salt: toss in a peeled potato while the dish is still cooking.

Surprisingly, it works like a charm. Want to know a few more additional tips and tricks you can use the trusty potato for? Some of these fun kitchen hacks will surprise you!:
-Change a Broken Light Bulb with a Potato
-Use a Potato Chip to Light a Fire While Camping

And, of course, just for fun --- you can make lasagna in your dishwasher. How's that for a kitchen hack? Now if only my oven could do the dishes for me...

I am in desperate need of a kitchen apron. I have been cooking since I was 8 years old, and I have always absentmindedly wiped my hands on my clothing, even though there is always a dish towel nearby. Yup, I need an apron.

DIY Maven on Curbly has written a fabulous tutorial, complete with awesome pictures, teaching us how to turn large cloth napkins into a kitchen apron using a sewing machine. You'll need several yards of ribbon for tie strings and for the apron collar, and of course, some basic sewing skills.

This apron is perfect, not just for the kitchen, but also for gardening. The pockets in the apron could hold your kitchen gadgets, or your gardening tools. Of course, I always absentmindedly wipe my dirty hands on my clothes when I am gardening too.

Check your local thrift stores for some awesome napkins. Mine always seem to have the prettiest sets of fabric napkins on hand, and for the price they sell at (6 for $1.00), there are plenty available to make as gifts for my gardening and cooking friends.

What a concept! It's summertime and we've already got the sun's heat beating down outside, while the air conditioner struggles to keep up inside. Why make it worse by using the stove and oven? Kill two birds with one stone, by using the sun's heat to do the cooking outside!

This tip for a solar stove comes to us just in time from Craftster's "ladybuggins" -- it'll be almost 100 degrees here, and I'm hankerin' for some chili! Here's what you'll need:

• A cooking pot with a lid
• An auto windshield sun reflector
• A few clothes pins and...
• Plenty of sunshine!
  

First, curl the reflector around into a funnel shape and secure it with the clothes pins. Set it on the ground with the open funnel pointing upwards. Place the pot with the food in it down in the center, and the radiant energy will focus into the center of the parabola to cook the contents. Bon appetit!

I dare you to find an American household without any carrots in the fridge. Granted, most will probably be the scrubbed-clean, prepackaged, more expensive baby carrots. If you'd like to save money (and waste less food!), read on.

First of all, buying whole carrots -- or, better yet, growing them -- is cheaper than buying baby carrots. A good thing, right? Well, if you learn how to peel them just so, you'll be able to save more of the carrot... and more money.

According to eHow, if you peel away from you with a sharp-bladed peeler, you'll peel off less carrot. Additionally, if you peel the top until no green is showing, then peel the tip as well -- no chopping -- you'll end up with more of the carrot.

It seems like a simple way to be frugal while respecting the Earth's resources.

Mmm-mmm. Fresh basil. It's so very fragrant -- the indispensable ingredient in a host of mid-summer recipes.

My basil is lush, green and ready for picking. Okay, I don't have a whole lot of it out in my garden; however, I'm planning on growing a lot more next summer. In preparation for that lofty enterprise, I thought it'd be cool to find out how the expert basil-growers harvest their beloved herb. Here are some tips I picked up:

1. Know your basil. There are lots of varieties out there, and it's always good to know which one you have, as the flavors vary quite a bit between them. Chances are good that, like me, you've got the most common variety: Genovese sweet basil.

Mmmm.... pizza. Not only does it make a tasty meal, it's the perfect dish for the end of the week when your fridge is full of odds and ends and not much else.

Pizza is also a no-stress meal for families who love to be together, but who like different things. You can either make personal pans or let everyone top their own corner of a pizza with their favorite items.

Either way, pizza-making is a lot more fun when the dough gets thrown around. Throwing a pizza dough is no small feat (heck, I have trouble just getting it to stretch out to meet the corners of my pizza pan), but it's not impossible.

If you're cooking for a pizza-loving household, check out WonderHowTo, where Chef Michael Kalanty from the California Culinary Academy will show you some surefire tricks for throwing your own pizza dough.

The secret appears to be in pinching the edge, presumably so it doesn't fall on the floor. That's where my first attempt will likely end up... better make a little extra!

There was a time when I used the microwave for everything. Now I use it as little as possible, but I could never give up microwave popcorn, or my nightly heating pad, so our microwave remains a household staple.

Of all the things you can do in microwaves, I never would have guessed that you could sun-dry tomatoes (ok, not really "sun," but definitely "dry"). It will allow you to use your garden tomatoes in recipes all year round.

Drying them in your microwave is the fastest and easiest method. All you need is the tomatoes, salt, and if you choose, seasoning salt and garlic. Prepare, microwave, let them sit according to the instructions, seal them in a baggie, toss them in the fridge, and keep them as long as you'd like.

Stoves ranges, both gas and electric, are reliable appliances generally. But like everything else, every now and then something goes amiss. If yours suddenly won't fire up, here's a few DIY things to try before calling the expensive service guy.

Gas burner DIY
If your gas range won't "flame on," (sorry, Fantastic Four, I couldn't resist), the first obvious step is to make sure it's getting gas. Turn it up and you should hear it hissing. If there's no gas, make sure it's getting electricity. Yes, gas stoves do have power.

Still no go? Use a small brush to clean the igniter and the pilot light hole.

Electric stove DIY

Make sure the electric stove is getting power. Next ask yourself, "Did I recently clean it?" If you reply in the affirmative, you might not have seated the element terminals properly when you reinstalled it. Check it out by lifting the stove top. Also, ensure that you didn't knock the terminal block out of the holder.

If you have an "aha" moment, set everything in order and you're good to go. Bon appetit!

Join me each week as I explore the naturally aromatic side of DIY. Helpful recipes for your "scentual" pleasure: from essential oils, herbs, and other botanicals, to soap-making, body care products, and other useful blends.

When I first became interested in essential oils and hydrosols, I have to admit I thought of rose as an "old lady" scent. Sure, I suppose it was beautiful, but to me, nothing dramatic or daring enough for the younger sect.

Then I smelled a true rosa damascena; first, a rose otto, then a hydrosol. I realized that my negative association with rose had nothing to do with what actual distilled rose products smelled like, and that fake rose scent and rosewater is not, not, not the same beast.

You need to own something rose; it is that simple. The balancing effect on your mood alone is reason enough. Unfortunately, the price of a rose otto or even a good rose absolute can be prohibitive for many. A rose hydrosol, however, is affordable, versatile, has a long shelf life, and is resplendent with the heady rose scent.

One of the worst parts of dicing an onion, of course, is the tearing. (At 16, the worst part of my fast food job was not the humiliating brown, polyester uniform, but being put on onion dicing duty.) I use the old standby method of rinsing my onions underwater, but this can get a little sloppy. The Kitchn also has five tips to for cutting onions without tears, for those of you who want a happier onion-dicing experience.

Dandelions can be eaten in many ways, from leafy greens to fried flowers to drinking wine; I almost imagine them as lettuce gone wild. Making coffee from dandelions isn't new, but trying this unusual drink is an interesting way to spend a few hours -- and, if you haven't sprayed them with herbicide in the past, an organic way to get rid of those dandelions in the yard.

Tools and supplies include: a weed popper, knife, cookie sheet, oven, coffee grinder, and of course a coffee machine. Follow along in the gallery to get a better idea. Instructions are after the break!

If your pans and other cast iron cookware are well cared for, they will last a lifetime. Curing or seasoning is the process by which you fill the pores of the pan creating a smooth, non-stick surface. this should be done to the entire pan, even the lids.

Basically, you clean the pan thoroughly and cover it in shortening. Place it on a cooking sheet and put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 min. Take the pan out and drain the excess oil, then put it back in upside down, this time for a couple of hours. Make sure you read these full instructions and important tips for curing cast iron.

Even if your pans come "pre-seasoned" make sure you read the instructions for any specific cleaning details, and keep in mind that they will need to be re-seasoned regularly to keep them from sticking. Repeat seasons won't take as long, but it is one of the many important things to do when caring for cast iron cookware. Here are a few other useful tips:

• Don't wash cast iron in the dishwasher
• Scrub any rust spots with steel wool and mild soap
  
• Boiling water in your pan will wash away the seasoning

If you've invested in quality cookware, it will only work for you as well as you care for it. Take the time to season or cure it, then maintain it well.

I am so excited that spring finally came yesterday. I spent most of the day outside picking up aluminum cans that were blown all over the yard, and my daughter, husband and I played in the dirt, soaking up the sun of a glorious 70 degree Sunday. I should have cleaned the grill, and cooked outside.

Now is the time to save money on the electric bill and start cooking outdoors. Even cooking with a grill can cost a ton of money, especially if you do it on a weekly basis. Ecobites has a wonderful alternative for us, featuring an article with instructions showing us how to make a solar cooker.

The solar cooker was made out of recycled plywood and recycled aluminum; items that were readily accessible, could soak up solar rays, and give a high enough temperature to safely cook food. Almost anything would work though, like the cardboard oven shown in the picture. Happy cooking!

I would not recommend gluing aluminum foil to a cooking surface. The chances of the glue leaking through to the food and contaminating it are too great. Try to find some other shiny reflective surface to cook with, or just don't glue the aluminum foil to the surface. To avoid injury to your eyes, wear sunglasses, and do not look right at the cooking surface. As always, safety is the number one priority for a DIY project.