I got these hints in an E mail from a friend. I have edited for clarity and have removed the cute remarks. I really dislike exclamation points and "ta das". Very kindergarten.

Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store.
If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.

Store cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not mold.

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.
It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up. (Teal won’t be doing this one.)

For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty frosting. (Teal never heard of Andes mints, but will look for them in the market.)

Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.

Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Chop them in the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place apples in a baking dish, sprinkle with the chopped candy bars, and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. (Teal is thinking maybe a sprinkle of chopped walnuts would also enhance.) Serve alone or with ice cream.

Reheat leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy.

Easy deviled eggs. Put cooked yolks in a zip-lock bag. Seal bag and mash by hand. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing till blended. Cut tip of the baggy and squeeze mixture into the halved egg whites. (Yes, throw the baggie away.)

Expanding Frosting. Whip store-bought cake frosting in your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount and there will be fewer calories per serving. (Or, Teal says, if you don’t bake a cake, you won’t eat it.)

Reheating refrigerated bread. To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in the microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and reheat it faster. (Teal says: I sometimes put a frozen bagel in a sandwich baggy with a few drops of water – also works.)

Newspapers are a great weed barrier. After putting in your plants, and working in the nutrients, wet some newspapers and layer around the plants, overlapping as you go. Cover with mulch. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic. They will not get through wet newspapers. (I love this one. T.)

Broken glass. Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily. (I’d think a wet paper towel would work as well, or a Swiffer mop. Using a Q tip sounds like a forever chore to me. T.)

No More Mosquitoes. Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away. (I’ve heard this one before but have been afraid to rely on it. Will mosquitoes not bite my ankle because I have a dryer sheet in my pocket? My ear? A bite plagues for days. I’m not buying this one.)

Squirrels. To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle them with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.

Flexible Vacuuming. To get under a heat register or the fridge, screw an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll into the vacuum wand extension. You can flatten the tubes without interfering with the suction and can slip it under narrow spaces. (I’m thinking of slipping it behind unmovable dresser cabinets where cat hair collects. Maybe I can even tape two rolls together to get into longer spaces.)

Reducing Static Cling. Attach a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and static is gone. (I haven’t had static cling since I was 17. What is a slip? T.)

Measuring Cups. Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add the ingredient, such
as peanut butter, and it will come out easily.

For foggy windshields. Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser. Works better than a cloth.

Re-opening envelopes. If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place it in the freezer for an hour or two and it will unseal easily. (Impatient Teal says, good grief, who can wait that long. I would rather use the end of a narrow ballpoint pen. Insert the non-ink end into the outer edge of the seal, gently roll it to the opposite edge -- I said gently -- when re-sealed, it looks like it has never been tampered with. Never mind how I know this. T.)

Conditioner. Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.

Fruit flies. To get rid of fruit flies, pour apple cider vinegar to the half way mark in a small glass, add 2 drops of dish washing liquid and mix. The flies will be drawn to the cup and suicide. (You can stick around and watch this one. It’s a cheap thrill.)

Get Rid of Ants. Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it 'home,' can't digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed. (Teal deroached a friend’s apartment by doing this with Boric acid powder, also nontoxic. It was a major success but I had to use a lot and, of course, had to vacuum everyone up after.)

Clothes dryers. Dryer sheets can deposit an invisible film on the mesh filter trap and it will not work and you won’t know this. Remove trap, run water through it. If it has a build up, water will sit on top and not drain through. Wash it with soap and warm water till it is really clean. If the film is allowed to build up, it can burn out the heating unit and may cause a fire. Cleaning the filter will extend the life of the dryer and also lower your electric bill.

xx, Teal