Puzzling Sandwiches

The next time that you are making a lunch for your kids, make it a little special. Make up your sandwich as you normally would, now grab a cookie cutter and cut a decorative shape out of the center.

Set the center piece aside and using a knife make a couple of extra cuts on the remaining crust creating a puzzle like effect.

Finally, carefully place all of the pieces onto a plate or in a tightly sealed bag. Your kids will love eating all the little pieces!

Kitchen Help from Kids II

Kids love to help in the kitchen, encourage it every time you get a chance. There are lots of ways that you can get them to help, and also help them to learn to work in the kitchen at any age.

I got a little plastic step stool for my daughter so that she can have better access to the counters.

Also get an extra pack of sponges and cut them in half so that they will fit easier into little hands. Now they will enjoy cleaning the kitchen with you!

Easy Lid Removal

You are battling trying to get a lid off. Your hands keep sliding and you cannot get a good grip. There are actually a couple of easy solutions that you can try.

You can gently tap the lid on the counter. This sometimes will break the seal making the lid easier to remove.

If you still have a hard time getting a grip, grab a rubber glove from under the sink. Put on the glove and that should give you the grip that you need.

Don't have a rubber glove? Find a large rubber band and put around the lid. This should give you the friction that you need to remove the lid.

Packing Dishes

You are having to pack up the house to get ready to move. You have all the big stuff taken care of, but now you are down to the dishes.

The easiest way to pack your plates is to pick up a package of paper plates.

When you are ready, pack a regular plate, then a paper plate. Alternate between each one until all your dishes are packed. This will help to keep the dishes from rubbing together.

Make sure that the box is clearly marked as dishes and pack the top and the bottom very well with newspaper.

Now when you get to the new house you can unpack your dishes and still have some paper plates to use for the first few nights with out worrying about washing dishes.

Brownie Bonkers

Your kids are bored and you are trying to find something for them to do.

Grab a brownie mix and have a bit of fun.

Make up the mix according to the directions, but just before baking, mix in a cup of flavored chips (butterscotch, peanut butter, chocolate, white chocolate)

Once the brownies are done baking, grab a container of like flavored frosting or mix and match for fun.

Damaged Dishes?

You are putting away your good china and you notice that there are a few rub marks from where the plates sit on top of each other.

You can help to prevent this wearing by placing a regular coffee filter between each piece.

The coffee filter will act as a buffer protecting your dishes from damage.

Tea Party Fun

The kids are bored and bugging you for something to do.

Send them all to put on dress up clothes and have them grab a stuffed animal or doll to invite to a tea party.

While they are all changing put some water on to boil to make up the tea.

Pull out some cookies or crackers and set up the table.

Make the tea and place it on the table with some sugar and cookies.

Now sit everyone down and enjoy a cup of tea and some snacks.

This is also a good time to work on some etiquette.

Kitchen Help from Kids I

Always having a hard time telling if the dishes in the dishwasher are clean or ditry? Let your kids help you with the solution.

Find a plastic hook that can attach to the door of the dishwasher.

Now get some craft foam and colorful markers and glitter.

Let your kids decorate a sign that says clean on one side and dirty on the other.

Now when they are done emptying the dishwasher all they have to do is flip the sign from clean to dirty.

They will enjoy seeing their creativity each day.

Cookie Fun

The next time that you have a rainy day, or just a day where the kids are banging off the walls, try this for an easy project to keep them busy for a while.

Make up a batch of sugar cookies according to the directions.

Once the cookies are cooled grab some frosting and a few popsicle or new craft sticks.

Take two uniformly sized and shaped cookies, place about a tablespoon of frosting on one cookie.

Place the stick on the cookie like a lollypop stick, now place the second cookie on top of the stick and frosting creating a sandwich style cookie popsicle.

Better Basting Brush

I recently found one of the greatest kitchen gadgets that I didn’t think that I needed. I was shopping in a specialty store and I found a Silicone Basting Brush.

First I thought to my self, I am going to spend $8 on this why? Curiosity won out and I made my purchase and got it home.

It touts that it will not melt, even in temperatures of up to 450º. I made up some bread, melted some butter and grabbed my new basting brush.

I am in love! This was the best purchase I have ever made.

The brush provided excellent heavy coverage of butter with out very much dripping.

Clean up? Tossed it in the dishwasher and it is just like new.

I am now using it for basting everything, including barbecue sauce over meats in the oven and on the grill, as well as putting butter on pancakes.

Warmer Rolls

When you are making hot bread or rolls, by the time that dinner is half way over the rolls are cold.

There is a quick and easy way to help keep them warmer. While your rolls are in the oven, grab some aluminum foil and line your bowl that the rolls will go in.

Now just place a cloth napkin over it and no one will notice, but they will notice warmer rolls.

Old Kitchen Towels

Everyone has them in their kitchen. The towels that are the faithful standby, but you don't want to be seen by anyone.

I have a few of those myself, and it is good! These are the towels that I use when thing are going to get really messy!

I don't feel bad if they get ruined or stained. I use these as my "counter top" towels, and the nicer decor towels are on the handle of the range for drying hands.

If your standby towels become too worn I retire them to the garage when they can still last several more years. They are great for wiping up messy spills from vehicles and the garage, as well as washing cars.

If you need a smaller cloth, no big deal, cut cut it down in size.

If one becomes too stained, you do not need to worry about tossing it, by this time it has usually led a very full life!

I keep a separate laundry basket in the garage just for these "shop" towels. About once a month I will wash the entire load together so I don't ruin any regular clothes.