Wake the Lakes “Life Hacks for the Week” 6-19-23

–Pineapple Hack: After removing the rind but before you core and chop it, rub kosher salt all over a pineapple for 30 seconds or so, then rinse it all off and slice up as usual. The chemical reaction of salt and pineapple makes it extra sweet (and not salty at all).
–Taco Bell has beat us to the punch with this one: Add tortilla chips or even better yet, Fritos, in your burritos. It adds that extra crunch.
–Try “Funyuns” onion-flavored rings on a hamburger or crush them up in a garden salad as a crouton replacement.
–Top a bowl of white sticky rice with an over-easy fried egg with crispy edges (the runny yolk is very important here), add a bit of soy sauce, and sesame oil and check out the flavor.
– Add a teeny bit of lemon juice to your mashed potatoes. The subtle zing makes the buttery, savoriness of the potatoes even better.
–In just about anything that needs to be cooked with water (rice, pasta, ramen, etc.), swap in chicken broth. It makes everything more delicious this way.
–The next time you make frozen pizza, try cracking an egg on top of it during the last six or so minutes of baking. It turns it into a sort of breakfast pizza.
–Use chicken- or beef-flavored ramen seasoning packets to make your gravy.
–Try homemade mac and cheese, but instead of bread crumbs baked on top, use crushed Cheez-Its.
–Add a splash of balsamic vinegar to your chili just before serving. It really perks up the whole meal.
–Hack your brownie mix by using butter in place of oil and coffee creamer in place of water. It gives it more texture and just a hint of flavor from the creamer.