Experts usefull tips:cooking tips and baking advoice

Cooking 101

Whether you’re a novice or an advanced chef, our culinary experts give you all the tips and tricks you need to know in the kitchen to whip up mouth-watering meals for any occasion.

• Freeze leftover wine and make into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.
• Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it back up.
• Stir chopped fresh mint into vanilla or chocolate ice cream or blend into fruit smoothies for a fresh minty taste. Or, enhance the flavor of beverages with mint ice cubes. Just place mint sprigs into ice cube trays, fill with purified water and freeze.
• To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature & roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing, or microwave for a few seconds before squeezing.
• To slice meat into thin strips, partially freeze and it will slice easily.
• A dampened paper towel or terry cloth brushed downward on a cob of corn will remove corn silk.
• Pasta won't boil over if you rub the inside of the pot with vegetable oil.
• Sunlight doesn't ripen tomatoes, warmth does. Store tomatoes with stems pointed down and they will stay fresher, longer.
• When picking a melon, smell it for freshness and ripeness. Check to see that the fruit is heavy in weight and that the spot on the end where it has been plucked from the vine is soft.
• Egg whites should always be at room temperature before whipping. Make sure there is no yolk in the whites and that the bowl and beaters are clean. Cream, on the other hand, should be well-chilled. For the largest volume, chill the bowl and beaters before whipping.
• Keep some dental floss in the kitchen. Unflavored dental floss is often better than a knife to cut through soft cheese, rolled dough and cheesecake.
• There's no need to fry in a lot of oil to get a crispy breadcrumb crust. Before baking, moisten the crumbs with a little oil; coat pork, chicken or fish. Bake until golden, and the crust will be just as crispy.
• Marinate meat and poultry for at least 30 minutes at room temperature; if marinating longer, refrigerate, turning meat occasionally. Let the meat come to room temperature before grilling. Seafood should be marinated for only 15 to 30 minutes; any longer, and the acid in the marinade will begin to "cook" the fish.
• Encourage kids to eat vegetables by mixing them in with favorite foods. For example, try adding broccoli or a few spoonfuls of Libby’s Pure Pumpkin to macaroni and cheese, or mixing zucchini into pizza dough.
• Quinoa (pronounced: Keen-wah), is a complete protein, containing all nine essential amino acids. A nutritious alternative to white rice, Quinoa cooks up light and fluffy with an appealing nutty flavor. The cooking method is similar to rice. For salads; cook it by replacing half the water with NESTLÉ® JUICY JUICE® or for a savory side dish; add a little Maggi instant chicken bouillon to the water along with pureed garlic.
• Enjoy your ice cream—and your healthy lifestyle, too! Use Dreyer’s/Edy’s Slow Churned Light Ice Cream in place of full fat ice cream to cut calories and fat.
• If you are short on drippings for gravy, try this recipe: Stir 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour into 3 tablespoons pan drippings; cook and stir over low heat until lightly browned. Stir in 1 cup milk and 1 cup broth made with Maggi Chicken or Beef bouillon. Cook until thickened.
• Want to add more flavor to your gravy? One Maggi Beef or Chicken Bouillon Cube or 1 teaspoon Maggi Instant Beef or Chicken Bouillon will do the trick.
• When sautéing vegetables like onions and bell peppers, skip the butter and oil. Instead, cook them in a small amount of broth made with Maggi Bouillon. Choose from Chicken, Beef or Vegetarian Vegetable to compliment the other flavors in your recipe.
• Sprinkle lemon juice and Maggi Instant Chicken Bouillon on chicken just before baking or broiling.
• No need for butter. Mix Maggi Instant Chicken Bouillon with your favorite dried herbs and spices to create your own seasoning blend for chicken, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
• Try adding Maggi Bouillon to the water your recipe calls for. It can add a whole new flavor. Just add 1 cube or 1 teaspoon bouillon to every 1 cup of water.
• For soups and stews, add 1 Maggi Bouillon Cube or 1 teaspoon Maggi Instant Bouillon to every 1 cup of water your recipe calls for.
• Steam vegetables in a small amount of water with Maggi Bouillon added. The seasonings help satisfy your craving for taste without adding butter.
• When making cream sauces, substitute CARNATION® Fat Free Evaporated Milk for the whole milk or cream. Increase the flour slightly to add body and add Maggi Bouillon to boost flavor.
• To flavor lower-fat sauces, experiment with adding a Maggi Bouillon Cube and some fresh herbs and spices.
• Trim fat by poaching fish in Maggi Bouillon and fresh herbs.
• When making instant rice or potatoes, add a little Maggi Bouillon along with some liquid to boost flavor.

Baking Advice

Grab your spatula and get ready to create! Learn tips and tricks from our baking experts on everything you need to know on how to create the perfect cookie and baking treats for your special ones!

Learn all the baking tips and tricks to be a star baker...

• Overly soft butter will cause your dough to become pliable and your cookies will spread. If your cookies are spreading too much, try refrigerating the dough for a couple of hours before baking.
• Toast nuts (like walnuts or pecans) prior to adding to cookie dough, but make sure they are completely cool before adding to the dough. This really brings out the flavor of both the cookie and nuts.
• If you prefer cookies that are puffy, add an extra tablespoon or two of flour with the other dry ingredients.
• Bake cookies on shiny, heavy aluminum baking sheets. These sheets with no sides are designed for easily sliding cookies onto a cooling rack. Dark sheets may absorb heat, causing cookies to brown too much on the bottom; nonstick baking sheets work well if not too dark. Insulated baking sheets require a slightly longer baking time.
• Bake one sheet of cookies at a time on the middle oven rack; if you need to bake more than one at a time, rotate the sheets from the top rack to the bottom rack halfway through baking to encourage even browning.
• Let cookies cool completely before storing. Store different types of cookies in separate containers so they'll keep their original flavor and texture
• LIBBY’s® 100% Pure Pumpkin can be used in place of oil in most recipes that call for a cake mix.