DIY Life

So -- you're craving a ham sandwich but notice your bread is going a bit stale. Don't worry --- it's not bird food quite yet; you still have time to save it! Place a stick of fresh celery in the bag and store the bread for a few hours. Next time you pull it out, you'll notice the bread is fresher than before, and your celery hasn't changed a bit! Add some peanut butter and you've got yourself a fresh, non-stale meal (but don't tell the birds we told you!).

And since we're talking bread, did you see Monday's video tutorial on How to Make a French Baguette? So easy, yet so scrumptious. Luckily, our stale bread hack works equally well for any sort of bread, so if you happen to make a fresh baguette and haven't had time to devour it, you know what to do!

Proof that celery can work wonders both for your diet and your starch!

Who, me? Yes. I'll admit it -- I'm a cookie monster and am seeking help. I like to keep our cookie jar stocked and fresh, and although there usually isn't much of a chance for stale cookies in our home, it does happen time and again. Turns out my grandma has a secret trick for keeping cookies fresh longer --- a wad of tissue paper!

Simply wad up the tissue paper and place it at the bottom of the cookie jar, then pile the cookie goodness on top! We both have no idea why it works, but can vouch for the fact that it does!

And of course, you'll need a yummy recipe to try out our tip, won't you? Try these peanut butter butterscotch cookies from Cooks.com; they are simply delicious!:

1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup Nestles Butterscotch morsels
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Enjoy!

I've heard a variety of different methods for keeping your brown sugar de-clumped, and to be honest, I'm a bit wary of each one. Here's a breakdown of what the grapevine says about keeping your brown sugar fresh --- why not give it a shot and report back with your findings?:

According to ThriftyFun:
Store brown sugar you plan to save for later baking in an airtight container with a fresh slice of bread. The moisture in the bread will keep your sugar soft, moist, and ready-to-use. When the bread dries and hardens, simply replace it with a fresh slice. You can feed the old, dry one to the birds and squirrels.

From WiseGeek:
If your brown sugar is hard as a brick, you can restore it to a usable consistency by placing it in a tightly sealed container with an apple wedge for one to three days.

From WiseGeek:
You can purchase a terracotta disk at many kitchen supply stores that will keep your brown sugar free flowing.

Which sounds like the real deal to you? Any brown sugar tips you swear by?

I'm on bread duty this Thanksgiving and would love to bake a few homemade creations. Looks like I'll be tuning in to this great video -- and stat!:



Here are your step-by-step instructions!:

Step 1: Mix the flour and salt
Mix the flour and salt in a medium-size bowl.

Step 2: Combine yeast and water
Put the yeast, water, and half the flour mixture in a large bowl and mix it together with your hands until it's doughy. Cover with a clean dishcloth and let it sit at room temperature for three hours, until it more than doubles in size.

Step 3: Add remaining flour
Using your hands, mix the remaining flour mixture into the dough.

Step 4: Knead it
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead it for about 10 minutes.

Step 5: Oil a bowl
Place the dough in a large, lightly-oiled bowl, turning the dough around in the bowl so it gets covered with oil. Cover with a dishcloth and let it sit for another hour. It should nearly double in size.

Step 6: Preheat oven
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and knead the dough one more time for about five minutes before dividing it into three parts. Roll each part into a long baguette with your hands, and let them rise in a warm, draft-free spot, for another half hour.

Step 7: Slash and moisten
Make four lengthwise slashes on top of the loaf with a sharp knife, going no deeper than ¼ inch. Lightly spritz or brush the top with cool water. If you're not using the baking stone, cover an upside-down baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle it with cornmeal.

Step 8: Bake
Place a medium-size bowl filled halfway with water on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake the baguettes in the middle of the oven on the baking stone or sheet. Remove the bowl after 15 minutes. Continue baking the bread until golden, 20 to 30 minutes total.

Good luck!

It's time to break out the silver and buff out those tarnished serving pieces, but first --- your DIY guide to cleaning silver, using mostly items you already own around the house!

For small items, slightly tarnished:
Use white toothpaste. Dab a bit on your index finger and rub the toothpaste directly onto the tarnish. Wipe clean and presto -- new silver!

For medium-sized, more tarnished items:
Use baking soda and a damp sponge. Mix equal parts baking soda and water, then rub the mixture onto the silver with a clean sponge. Rinse with hot water and polish dry with a soft cloth.

For large or badly tarnished items:
Using the same mixture as above, coat the silver with the baking soda paste and let sit for a few hours. Then, run the silver under hot water and rub with a clean, damp sponge. Repeat if necessary.

You'll silver will look shiny and new -- just like your holiday baubles!

That's right -- another day, another vinegar hack. Oh, you act as if you're surprised! This one's a goodie; I promise. And in the kitchen, no less! Perfect for your upcoming holiday dinner party or fancy, festive feast.

Here's the deal: Next time you thaw out that frozen chuck roast, pour some vinegar over it. Not only does it tenderize the meat, but it will also bring down the freezing temperature of the meat and cause it to defrost quicker. And no, your meat will not taste like vinegar; don't worry. Cool, right?

Now you have no excuse for a still-frozen turkey on Thanksgiving Day!

For additional kitchen hacks with one of my favorite ingredients (vinegar!), check out a few other helpful DIY Life articles:
-Daily DIY: Vinegar Fix
-Vinegar: Laundry's Best Friend
-Vinegar: Not Just for Salad's Anymore!
-Vinegar's Slew of Wonderful Uses
-Remove Mold With Vinegar

Vinegar is one of those all-time best-in-show sort of kitchen items to have around, because it can perform so many different life-saving duties. In fact, here's one that I recently learned -- perfect to add to my ongoing list of Why Vinegar is Awesome:

If you have an electric tea kettle with a bit of calcium build-up on the heating element, don't fret. Simply boil a mixture of equal parts vinegar and water, then empty. The calcium will flush out along with the vinegar mix, leaving your tea kettle fresh, new and smelling cleaner than ever.

For more incredible vinegar uses, check out these DIY Life articles:
-Place white vinegar in your washer at the beginning of a laundry load; it will both freshen and soften the clothes being washed.
-Half-fill an open travel mug with vinegar and leave it in your car's cup holder for a day to eliminate any vehicle odors.

... instead, follow these simple steps to take out the bitterness in a pinch!:

1. If rice is fully cooked turn it off. If not let it on a low setting.
2. Uncover the pot of rice and place three slices of white bread over.
3. Cover it and let stand for about 20 minutes. Uncover take slices of bread out and discard.
4. Taste the rice, if it still has some bitterness place two more slices of white bread over it for about 10 minutes.
5. Uncover by this time your rice is ready to eat and no one will notice that it burn.
6. To get rid of the burned odor of rice, cut a big onion in half and place it next to the stove.

Easy peasy! Now I wonder how you take the bitterness out of burnt bread? Perhaps a bed of rice? ;)

Sure, herbs smell great and taste even better --- but have you ever considered decorating with them? Kelly Edwards has the scoop:



Why should you decorate with herbs? It's easy --- not only are they super functional when cooking, but they happen to be gorgeous and smell fantastic. Plus, they last longer than flowers, which is great for someone who always forgets to throw away their dead plants (hanging my head in shame over here...).

Want some fresh (pun intended!) ideas on storing and displaying your own little interior herb garden? Try placing a few small herbs in a teacup or mug for an unexpected look. Or, double up on functional storage by placing a potted herb in an ice bucket when not in use. Even better? A cake stand doubles as a decorative element to create a circled montage of your favorite herbs. The possibilities are endless!

Thanks, Kelly!

My Rubbermaid containers have lived through one too many pasta casseroles and are starting to smell like it, too. Naturally, I researched a few options on how to take the scent out of plastic and stumbled upon a great solution that I can't wait to try on my next set of Rubbermaids.

Turns out that if you sprinkle a bit of salt in an empty airtight Rubbermaid container before you store it, you'll keep the smell at bay. Go on --- give it a shot and report back. ;)

And yes, I realize we're talking salt yet again here at DIY Life, but honestly --- can you ever get enough of the kitchen hacks? I certainly cannot, and just to show you how necessary a bit of sodium really is, here's another handy (and salty!) post to whet your whistle:
-Make Your Own Toothpaste (YES! With salt!)

Convinced?

By now you should realize how much I love a good kitchen hack, especially when it includes items and ingredients I already have around the house. One of my favorites? Forget harsh detergents and solutions when scrubbing grease spots off your cast-iron cookware. Instead, grab a pinch of salt and a paper towel to create a salty solution that works wonders!

Proof that sometimes the most natural ingredients are the best DIY lifesavers.

Want to know some other ways a pinch of salt can make your life easier? Read on, right here at DIY Life:
Find out the various uses of your average table salt: The Many Uses of Table Salt
Spice up your beauty routine with salt: Make Your Own Salt Scrub
Salt for your green thumb: Epsom Salt in Your Garden
And, lastly, salt in the kitchen (of course!): Make Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Your Microwave

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.

Keeping tomatoes and citrus fruits in the fridge is a big no-no. Besides the fact that I hate cold tomatoes, their shelf life will be so much longer if it's not refrigerated. But did you realize that you should be storing them as far away from the refrigerator as possible? It's true --- keep tomatoes and citrus fruits away from the fridge (preferably on a sunny window's shelf) for the longest shelf life possible.

I don't know why it works, but it does. You should see your fruit's shelf life almost double if you test the theory. Plus, your fruit will be juicier, which means it will taste yummier. Bonus!

Want more kitchen hacks for smart food storage? Read on, friends:
-Like to buy in bulk? You need a vacuum in the kitchen! Make an 'Alvin' Vacuum Sealer.
-Want to know how to store cheese (and yes, there's a special way!). Cheese: There's More to it Than You Think.

Wow, that sounds a lot more harsh than necessary. Did you realize that you can remove the scent of onions and garlic from your fingers by gently sliding the face of a stainless knife across them? Sounds like a joke, but it's true! Gently is the operative word, guys -- unless you'd like to get a bit bloody for Halloween this year.

And yes, it's kitchen hack week here at DIY Life. For more fun and inventive ways to make things easier for you in the kitchen, check out a few of my favorite DIY Life articles below!:

1. Out of cleaning supplies and no time to re-stock? Clean your entire kitchen with one lemon.
2. Have an extra towel rack laying around and collecting dust? Turn your IKEA towel rack into a condiment spice shelf.
3. Learn your freezer know-how: 20 Foods That Freeze Surpisingly Well... and 20 That Don't.

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...