on a quick tip...

Did you know you can make up some buttermilk right in your kitchen? Yup! You bet! No more having to run out to the store just because you have no buttermilk. Tonight I came home from work and saw the pack of pork chops I took out earlier in the day knowing that I was going to make some kind of dinner out of them and realize that I hadn't thought of a single thing to make. It's funny because I knew I wanted to make it a quick meal because well, because really all day I've been daydreaming about the minute I get to plant my butt on the couch. So there I was standing dumbfounded in my own kitchen with these really great thawed pork chops and wondering what in the hell I was going to make. Here's a little secret for you guys, sometimes I go on this very blog, my own blog, and get dinner inspiration. I know right, you just can't believe it. I came across my Home-Style Pork Chops and it sounded perfect for tonight! Except one problem. No. Buttermilk. So I just made some!

All you need:
1 tablespoon lemon juice (or vinegar)
1 cup milk 

Mix both together and let it sit. The milk will curdle which is fine. It's suppose to do that. After about 5-10 minutes go ahead and whisk it all together. Done! It will make 1 cup of buttermilk. Keep it in a mason jar or air tight container. Easy right?

xoxo.

on a quick tip...

Have you ever cooked ground meat and stood there working it with a wooden spoon to separate the meat into little pieces? Oh.My.God. By the time I'm done my wrist is always screaming why? For the love of god, all this pain for ground meat!? Honestly, it's such a minor thing to be complaining about but alas I am and so I thought I'd share this nifty (I think clever) trick to use when you're dealing with ground meat. Doesn't matter what it is, whether it's beef, turkey or chicken go ahead and try using one of those old fashioned potato masher!! I swear by this folks. I love me some sensible short cuts and quick tips when cooking or baking. When there's something that will save me time in the kitchen so that I can finally sit my butt on the couch, well, it's gold in my mind. All you have to do is take the potato masher and go to town on the meat. Take all your frustrations out on it and viola, you have nice bits of meat ready to load in a taco or whatever the dish it may be!

xoxo.

on a quick tip...

I was at the grocery store the other day and walked by a huge barrel of lovely pomegranates and since I've never actually bought one before, I thought that it was the day to do it! There was a neat little tutorial right at the store that showed you how to actually cut a pomegranate so today I wanted to share how I went about it. It ended up being easier than I thought! I encourage you to go buy one and try it out. 

I just love the color of them! First cut off the ends of the fruit on both sides and discard. I did four incisions into the skin. You can faintly see them in the photo above (labeled with numbers). Once you do that, grab a big bowl and fill it with cold water. 

Split the pomegranate open right where you cut the skin. It actually comes apart nicely!

You want to separate the red seeds from the white pulp membrane, which is what is floating on the top of the above picture. I've had someone tell me that they use a spoon to smack the outer skin with makes the seeds pop out but I found it pretty easy just using my fingers to gently extract them.

Pick out all the big membrane chucks and then use a strainer. And viola! You have a whole bowl of sweet & sour little pomegranate seeds. Yummy!

If you've never cut a pomegranate I hope this helps. I always feel awkward buying some of these fruits and vegetables when you don't know how to cut or cook them so I hope this inspires you to buy a pomegranate. I've been just eating them as a snack!

xoxo.