The Post-Vacation Refrigerator Blues

Coming home from vacation is usually disappointing in and of itself, what with all the mail to read, newspapers to deal with, email to catch up with and, worst of all, the frig to re-stock. While there’s no avoiding the inevitable, learn the KitchenSmart trick that can at least delay a trip to the grocery store for a few days, until you’re a little more caught up.

Holiday Stress-Reducing Secret No. 2: Steer Clear of Holiday Shoppers

Fighting crowds of frenetic shoppers can zap the magic right out of your holiday buying. So avoid last-minute shopping–which is easy enough if you took the first Stress-Reducing Secret to heart and planned out your holiday meals in advance.

Putting the Comfort and Joy Back Into Holiday Meals

Isn’t it amazing how the holidays bring out the worst in us—especially family gatherings? No wonder they make such perfect fodder for movies! In the spirit of happier and saner holiday gatherings, here are some secrets (seven, to be exact) for toning down the stress around one of the biggest stressors of all: holiday meal making.

Doubling Your Vegetable Dollars

There are a lot of stems, stalks and tops going down the garbage grinder that could actually be put to use. It’s called “doubling your vegetable dollars,” and it just takes looking at vegetables in new and creative ways. Remember the article on Radishal Solutions?  It talked about a new way to use those radishes … Read more

Convenience Foods Are Costly, But Can You Make Dinner without Them?

With grocery prices rising dramatically, convenience foods are an obvious cost-cutting target. But how can we make everyday meals without the convenience of ready-made and packaged foods? Three tricks of the trade: Strategic Substitution, Stretching and Simplifying.