How many times have you wanted to make a salad or just had a craving for a hard boiled egg? I personally love eggs and could eat egg salad everyday if my body permitted it. The problem I have always had is getting that pesky shell off. More times than not, I take half of the egg with it. On a rare occasion I will get one peeled perfect, I am all excited like a high school girl getting asked to the prom.

From MotherFitness.com

It couldn’t be just me right? So I hopped around the web looking for other people who had had the horrible “egg peeling luck” as well. Guess what? We are among friends! Well, other bad egg people at least. This picture from Mother Fitness made me feel absolutely wonderful. Mine have come out something like that in the past!

While on the hunt for how to find a way to waste less egg, I found so many ideas.  I was going nuts trying to find one and I was certainly not going to kill dozens of eggs to see if they actually worked or not. I went for the simplest one and the one that popped up most.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the water. Why? To raise its pH level. Also cook your eggs a little bit longer to allow the whites to set firmly. Some people have reported that doing this can make the eggs taste more sulfuric. I for one didn’t notice it at all. I made a half dozen eggs.

Have you ever tried this method? Did it work for you?

If you don’t wish to use Baking Soda, here are a few other tips I found on how to make better hard boiled eggs.

• Let your eggs sit to room temperature before cooking them
• Always start cooking your eggs in cold water
• Immediately after your eggs are done, put them in ice water. If you don’t have ice available, use the coldest water you have. The ice water forces the membrane surrounding the white and the egg itself to shrink instantly and detach from the shell making it slide right off.
• I always peel my eggs under cold water before I even read the last one. It helps

If all else fails and you can’t get any of these to work for you…. Invite me over for egg salad sandwiches!

Disclosure: This is a personal post because I just felt like doing one. Not because I was asked to, paid to or given anything. That is still allowed right?

For all the time that we spend in the kitchen cooking, we spend an equal amount washing dishes. Who likes to wash dishes? NOT ME! I rarely rave about a product I have tried but in this case, Dawn Power Clean deserves it!


I often look at products and think that it’s not likely to perform as well as they claim.  Let’s get real, sadly a lot of products these days just don’t. Here is Dawn’s claim. “With Dawn’s line of power products, you can get the amazing power of an overnight soak in just five minutes. These products cut grease and dissolve tough foods on your everyday dishes (even the ones you bake in) without the effort of elbow grease!” Are you thinking what I was thinking? YEA RIGHT! So, I put it to the test on two of my pans. I made lasagna and let the pan sit on the stove so it was nice and stuck on when I tried the challenge. The other had homemade Chicken Fingers on it.

Click any image to see a larger version

Here are some time saving kitchen tips:

1. Clean as you cook! Don’t go sit on the couch, don’t stand there and watch the water boil. This makes clean up after dinner much faster. For me, it’s knowing that after dinner I am not going to look at the kitchen and think, “URGH! Now I have to do all that.” More time to spend with the boys before bed

2. Pre-prep meals… Usually on Sunday when I go grocery shopping for the week, I get things ready for the week. It only takes me about an hour but saves me a TON of time during the week. Big meals are always prepared at the beginning of the week because I prep. I don’t want anything going bad of course! If I am making Chicken Alfredo, I cube up the chicken and put it in a zip lock bag. If I am making Lasagna, I get the ricotta cheese mixed up with my herbs and cheese and put it in an air tight container. Doing these little things makes dinner go a lot faster. Late week dinners usually consist of fast easy things. Grilling up hot dogs and hamburgers, grilled cheese etc.

3. This one goes with #2. I make a lot of slow cooker meals during the summer simply because it keeps me out of the kitchen out out of the house! You would be amazed what ou can make in a slow cooker while you are sitting at the pool.

John and I were amazed at how well this stuff really works. As I stated earlier, I didn’t put much faith in it working like it claimed but I am now a loyal user of Dawn Power Clean! I think so highly of this product, i am personally giving it 5 STARS!!

Disclosure: MAK Media, LLC was compensated in some form (product, monetarily etc) for this post. I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Dawn blogging program.The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own. This post is not endorsed, sponsored or has any connection to Twitter, Facebook or any other Social Media network that may be mentioned. This post is the sole property of MAK Media, LLC. All opinions are mine whether positive or negative. You can read more about our Policy Disclosure here.

One of the things that take up most of my cabinet space is my cookware. I am a huge Pyrex fan! It wouldn’t be at all exaggerated for me to say I have over 50 pieces.  Crazy, I know, but, I became so tired of plastic staining and getting mucked up in the microwave. My then mother- in- law, would buy it for Christmas every year and I always looked forward to it! When I think I already have too much, (as if) I see more awesome Pyrex pieces from them! I would love to be a Pyrex Mom or something like that lol Pyrex Ambassador? Hey, I am open to a name alteration! I came across these 4 very important tips for cooking with glass that I wanted to pass along.  Hope they help you in your cooking ventures!

Do you love Pyrex as much as I do? Valpak is currently running a giveaway on their Facebook page. You can win 1 or 5 Pyrex Prize packs or 1 or 4 $100 Gift Cards!

Pyrex prize pack that consists of: one (1) 3qt oblong, (1) 2qt casserole, (1) 1.3qt oval, (1) 9.5″ pie plate, (1) 8 inch square, (1) 2qt oblong,  (1) 2 cup measuring cup, (1) 4 cup measuring cup, (1) 8 cup measuring cup, (1) 2.5qt mixing bowl, (1) 4qt mixing bowl, (1) 7-cup round No-Leak Lids, (1) 3-cup rectangle No-Leak Lids, (1) 4-cup round No-Leak Lids, (1) 6-cup rectangle No-Leak Lids,  (1) 2-cup round No-Leak Lids, (1) leave in thermometer, (1) colander, one (1) can opener, (1) basting spoon, (1) turner, (1) digital timer, one (1) set measuring cups, (1) salad spinner, (1) set measuring spoons, (1) balloon whisk