1. Toast bread (as dark or light as you like) and put in a food processor or blender.
2. Crush some crackers in a plastic bag or in a food processor/blender.
3. Put some corn flakes in a plastic bag or food processor or blender and smash!
If you want them Italian style or spicy, experiment! Add herbs, spices, or even shredded cheeses to your bread crumbs for some great flavor!
Here's some pics of some leftover toast made into bread crumbs using a blender:
Random Tips/Tricks:
1. Don't ever ever ever rush protein! Unless you're making a burger or steak Pittsburgh rare, or if a recipe calls for it, don't cook your protein on high. It will be overcooked and completely tough and gross.
2. Invest in a little brulee torch. Not only is it super fun to play with to make smores, but you can also melt cheese for things like nachos much quicker- and tastier- than in the microwave. (Just don't bring the torch too close to the food, otherwise it will taste a bit like gasoline.)
3. Afraid of cooking bacon? Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with foil and place the bacon about a half inch from each slice. Don't overlap the bacon slices, otherwise they'll stick. Cook to your level of doneness.
4. Water is your friend. Out of oil and hungry for some chicken? Fill a pan halfway with water. Add a boullion cube, spices, or both! Bring it to a boil, put the chicken in the pan and pop on a lid. Lower the heat to medium low and let that chicken steam! It's dummy proof. You'll have a delicious, fully seasoned piece of chicken that's moist and yummy in no more than ten minutes (unless your chicken is frozen, then you'll have to do the slicing test).
5. Trust your sense of smell. If it smells good or done, it probably is. My grandmother told me that if you can smell the cake or food you're cooking, it's either done or very close to it.
6. Remember that food is still cooking when you take it off the stove or out of the oven. That steak that you want medium rare will not be medium rare in five minutes if it's medium rare on the pan.
7. Wondering what to do with that leftover chicken carcass or chicken parts? Why don't you make some stock? Put the chicken in a large pot and fill it with water until it is just covering the chicken. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Many people will tell you to add seasoning while you make the stock, and while that's fine, then you're a bit limited in what you can use the stock for. Once the 20 minutes are up, allow the stock to cool to room temperature and put in containers to freeze (3 months) or refrigerate (1 week).
8. Want to make fresh pasta? When you're embarking upon this, do yourself a favor and don't overknead or over food process, otherwise your pasta won't be as light as you want it to be, and you'll be very disappointed. Pasta is a lot like pie dough. The less kneading or beating in the food processor, the better.
9. Love fresh pasta sauce? Live by yourself or have a small family, and hate making big batches? Well, how much time do you have to make pasta sauce all the time? I make it once a month in a big batch, get small freezer containers or even plastic bags (let the sauce cool before you pour it in or you can strip chemicals from the bag), fill them a little over halfway, and you have sauce in the freezer for 3 months whenever you need it! Also, if you have any leftover baby food containers, and aren't a heavy sauce person, a baby food container is about a serving of sauce, so you could fill that halfway and they defrost super fast!
10. Don't discount your butcher as too expensive. Butchers often have amazing freezer deals, and the meat is a much better quality than the food store. We get a freezer deal for $50 a month and we usually have meat leftover! Ours even packs it in individual steaks, chicken breasts, etc. so that we don't have to deal with separating everything into freezer bags.
11. If you don't have a butcher as an option, and you buy your chicken or beef in bulk, split it into portions, and freeze it in foil, wax paper, partchment or freezer bags. That way you always have the amount you need, rather than having to defrost everything all at once.
12. Invest in a mini whisk. It's perfect for making scrambled eggs or beating eggs for French Toast, or beating anything that's for one person to an average sized family. I feel like when I use my big whisk, I make a big mess, because I am so rarely cooking for more than six people.
13. You know those portion control containers? Every tupperware company on the planet seems to be making them now, and they really are perfect for packing lunch for your family (and yourself!). I always forget to eat, and I rarely have time to make myself something when I'm chasing after Laela, so these are a great option for making extra portions for dinner, and then portioning out some lunch into them. It also keeps you aware of what your portions are, and what they are of (because let's be honest, you really have no idea what you're eating when you're ravenous and running to Wawa or some fast food place). Invest in yourself and pick a few of these up. Your stomach (and your hips) will thank you later.
14. Want to melt cheese, but the food you've cooked is done and you don't want to burn it or dry it out? Take it off heat, put the slices or shreds of cheese on your meal, cover it with a lid for two minutes and bam! Melted cheese!
I'll be updating this section regularly, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask!
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