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food without overcooking it. You will often

see me use the word “sauté,” but note I rarely

request high heat. My high heat is really

medium or medium high, and this is because

I like to prevent the fats from smoking, which

makes them rancid. So I will ask you to start

with a sauté for color and flavor, then I’ll

often ask you to continue cooking a little

longer at a lower temperature.

• Deglaze. When you sear meat or vegetables,

it often leaves behind brown bits. These are

gold. “Deglazing” refers to adding water or

stock to a pan, then scraping with a spatula

to loosen the brown bits. Unless they are

actually burnt, keep this deglazed juice in

the dish to add richness and flavor.

• Getting the most out of your citrus. To

maximize the amount of juice you get

out of your lemons and limes, roll them

under the palm of your hand on the

countertop, applying pressure. Do this for

10 to 15 seconds; the heat and pressure

from your hand help loosen the insides,

releasing more juice.

• Properly pitting an avocado. Carefully poke

the avocado where it is widest with a sharp

knife, until it hits the seed. Drag the tip of

the knife down and turn the avocado with

your hand, so that you are creating one long

vertical cut all the way around. Release the

knife and twist the two sides in opposite

directions. You should have one side left with

the pit. Hold that avocado half face-up in the

palm of your non-dominant hand. With your

dominant hand, hit the pit with the knife

edge, just hard enough to stick. Twist the

avocado and the knife in opposite directions.

The pit should pop out. Hit the knife gently

against a cutting board to get the pit off.

• Keeping a clean kitchen. A trick my mama

taught me, which her mama taught her, is to

keep a mixing bowl or two for trash and/or

compost on the counter with you while you

work. Having the bowls by your side makes

it much easier and faster to clean up. At the

end of the cooking session, you can dump

them in the trash and/or compost.

• Consolidating spices. When cooking a recipe

with more than one or two spices, I suggest

mixing them together in a small bowl before

beginning the recipe. That way, when it’s

time to add the spices, all you have to do is

dump in your pre-mixed spices.

• Substituting eggs. Don’t eat eggs, or want to

veganize a baked goods recipe? Substitute

a chia “egg.” To make a chia “egg,” which is

equivalent to one large egg, whisk together

1 tablespoon chia seeds and 3 tablespoons

water. Allow mixture to sit for 10 to 15

minutes, whisking every 2 to 3 minutes, until

it has thickened to a gel-like consistency. At

this point, you can add it to the recipe. Note:

I have not tested all my baked goods recipes

with chia “eggs” instead of regular eggs.

Historically, I have had great success with

this substitution, but please know that your

outcome might be different than mine.

• Shortcut for room temperature eggs.

When baking, it is important to use room

temperature eggs instead of cold eggs.

Cold eggs can affect the baking time, and

they also can result in a denser product—

something that is a hazard with grain-free

baking anyway. I always forget to take my

eggs out an hour before I’m going to bake,

so I simply place them in slightly lukewarm

(NOT warm) water for 5 minutes, and voila!

They’re perfect and ready for cracking.

• Other uses for lemon rinds. When you’ve

squeezed the juice out of a lemon, you can

rub the cut side over a wooden cutting board

to help remove any garlic or other strong

Remove

avocado flesh

by slicing it

into slabs in

the shell, and

then removing

with a spoon.