In a soup pot, combine the chicken broth, soy sauce, mushrooms and water chestnuts, carrots and chicken over a medium high heat and bring to a boil.

Add the spaghetti and peas, and continue boiling for 10 minutes or until the pasta is cooked. Stir occasionally. Top each serving with the green onions as you serve the soup. Serves 10

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When purchasing a whole chicken look for skin that is cream-to-yellow in colour never gray or wan. Store it in its original wrap no more than two days in the coolest part of your refrigerator.

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To test freshness of baking powder, mix 1 teaspoon of baking powder with 1/3 cup of hot water. If the mixture does not foam, the powder is stale and should not be used.

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For moist, chewy brownies, add 2 tablespoons of corn syrup to your batter before baking

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Here is a serving idea for the holidays. Bake your stuffing in a covered greased fluted tube pan. Let stand for 5 minutes, then invert onto a plate or flat serving dish. Slice wedges to serve.

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If you are baking more than one sheet of cookies at a time, ensure even browning by switching the sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking time.

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For a simple salad dressing mix tarragon vinegar with oil or mayonnaise. To make your own tarragon vinegar add a quart of warm vinegar to a glass bottle filled with tarragon leaves. Store it in a cool, dry place for a 2-4 weeks. Before you use it strain out the leaves.

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Muffins should be mixed quickly and lightly stirred to moisten only. The batter should be blended by hand and it should look lumpy.

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Don't rush the melting process by turning up the heat under a double boiler while melting chocolate. The higher heat will cause the water in the bottom pan to boil and cause condensation to form in the upper pan. This in turn will create too much heat and the chocolate will burn.

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Have you ever run out of squares of chocolate when you need them to bake something? Well you can substitute 3 tablespoons of cocoa plus 1 tablespoon of butter or shortening for 1 square of unsweetened chocolate.

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Measuring ingredients accurately is one of the essential elements for successful baking. When measuring brown sugar, spoon the sugar into a measuring cup, then press down firmly with the back of the spoon to expel all air pockets. Level off the top with the flat edge of a spatula or knife.

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Soon it will be time to be baking our Christmas turkey with all the trimmings. I read this quick tip on how to use up the leftovers in a magazine and tried it last year. I worked out great. I spread the stuffing and mashed potatoes, turkey and vegetables in a greased pie plate. I topped it with gravy and dotted it with butter. I baked it in a 350-degree oven until it was bubbly. It made a great meal using the leftovers. I imagine this particular method could be used for a lot of different leftovers such as a roast beef dinner as well.

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One way to determine if the meatloaf is fully cooked, insert an instant read thermometer in its center. If it reads 160 degrees the loaf should be done.

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Apples are a common ingredient in dishes ranging from desserts to fruit salads. Apples are wholesome and nutritious. They are a great addition to meaty dishes such as sausage and pork chops. They are also a great addition to your homemade turkey dressing as well. Ever wondered how to tell if an egg is fresh or not? Well there is a method that will tell you this. Place the egg in a bowl filled with water. If the egg sinks and lies on it's side then you have a fresh one. However, if the egg stands upright or partially upright it is less than fresh but still usable. If the egg floats, better toss it. Remember that eggs should be used within 4 to 6 weeks of its sale date.

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Add a delicious flavour to barbecued foods by sprinkling the coals with fresh herbs that have been soaked in water. Long straight rosemary branches make great grilling skewers. Strip needles and cut a point on one end.

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Instead of a pastry brush, use a new 11/2-inch wide paintbrush to brush on barbecue sauce and melted butter.
Warm the basting sauces you use on meat because a cold sauce will slow the cooking.

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You can never substitute regular flour for self- rising flour in a recipe. Self-rising flour has baking powder added to it. The good news is you can make your own self-rising flour. For each cup of self-rising flour that you want to make add 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in the measuring cup and then you add all-purpose flour to the one-cup mark.

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Have you ever had your cookie dough spread over the baking sheet? This is probably because the sheet is still too warm from the prior batch. Run cold water over the bottom of the sheet to cool it down. Or you may have overgreased the baking sheet to begin with.

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Ever wondered how to get your homemade meatballs all the same size? Try this. Make your meat mixture then lightly pat it into the shape of a 1-inch thick rectangle. Cut the rectangle into the same number of squares as meatballs in the recipe. Gently roll each square into a ball.

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This weeks hint will be for our young bakers as well. To make a quick Toy Oven cake, use 2 tablespoons of a commercial cake mix and 1 tablespoon of water or milk. (Use only enough to make a cake batter consistency). Place in greased toy cake pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Makes 1 serving.

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To remove catsup from the bottle especially a new bottle, insert a drinking straw, push it to the bottom of the bottle, and them remove. Enough air will be admitted to start an even flow.

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How about those petty annoyances that we all experience with plastic wrap. There are ways to avoid them. Keep it in the refrigerator to prevent it from ever sticking together. If plastic gets stuck to your toaster or other metal surfaces, rub petroleum jelly on the spot, then rub clean with a soft cloth.

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If you have an upcoming birthday and will be celebrating with a cake how about using rolls of candy with holes in the middle for birthday candle holders on the cake. Lifesavers are excellent. They catch all the drops of wax and look pretty too.Enjoy

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Homemade Croutons - Since I have learned that most store brought croutons are deep fried and therefore adding unnecessary calories to my plate I have been on the prowl for a good version of the homemade kind. Well I think I have found it in this simple but yummy version. Splattering If you don't have an expiry date on your baking powder and you are wondering if it is still good there is a simple way to test it. Place a 1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder in a 1/4 cup of hot tap water and stir. If it bubbles it is still good. However, the next time you purchase baking powder it might prove helpful to write the date on it.

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Chocolate melts more easily if it is grated or chopped before melting. High temperatures will cause chocolate to be dry and grainy. Have you ever wondered if you should add oil to cooking water to prevent pasta from sticking? Oil is for salads. Use plenty of boiling water and stir occasionally; nothing will stick. Oil in the water may coat pasta, causing sauce to slide right off. It is also a good idea not to rinse pasta because the starches on the pasta helps sauce adhere. There is an exception to this rule. Do rinse if you are making a cold pasta salad, so pieces stay separate.

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Holiday Diet Hints.
1. If no one sees you eat it, it has no calories.
2. If you drink a diet soda with a candy bar, they cancel each other out.
3. When eating with someone else, calories don't count if you both eat the same amount.
4. Foods used for medical purposes have no calories. This includes any chocolate used for energy, brandy, Sarah Lee cheesecake (eaten whole) and Haagen-Daz icecream.
5. Movie related foods are much lower in calories because they are part of the entertainment experience and not part of one's fuel. This includes Milk Duds, popcorn with butter, Junior Mints, Snickers and Gummy Bears.
6. Cookie pieces contain no calories because the process breakage causes calorie leakage.
7. If you eat the food off someone else's plate it doesn't count.
8. If you eat standing up the calories go to your feet and get walked off.
9. Food eaten at Christmas parties has no calories courtesy of Santa.
10. Stressed is just desserts spelled backward.

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For a pretty flower design on sugar cookies press the bottom of an empty plastic thread spool (label removed) into the rounds of the dough.

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To soften butter quickly, cut it into pieces, put it on a plate and cover with a metal bowl that has been rinsed with hot water.

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Have you ever had the problem cutting baked items like sheet cakes or brownies, because too much of the bakery would stick to the knife. Try a pizza cutter instead, it rolls along smoothly and it cuts nice clean squares.

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If you are living alone or are an empty nester and you are looking for ways to downsize your meals here is a good idea for that pound of bacon. This will allow you to use the exact amount you want without defrosting the entire package. Take individual slices from your pound of bacon and roll them up and secure them with a toothpick. Place all the rolled up slices in a freezer bag, remove the air and then seal the bag. When you want bacon it is so much easier to just take out only the amount needed.

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Before covering a frosted cake or cup cakes with plastic wrap try coating the plastic wrap with a light layer of vegetable oil or cooking spray. This way your frosting will stay intact.

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If while you are baking you suddenly discover that you don't have enough Baking Powder there is a solution. You can successfully substitute 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar + 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda to overcome this crisis.

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Muffins, like tea biscuits, should be mixed as quickly and lightly as possible, only stirring to moisten. Batter should look lumpy. Never bake muffins in an oven that is too hot. A 375-degree oven is usually good. If the oven is too hot it can result in the muffins turning out to be too tough and leathery. To avoid any difficulty unmolding fruit filled muffins let them cool completely first.

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Have you ever wondered if it is really necessary to keep butter refrigerated? Well experts tell us that butter can safely be left out of the fridge for no more than 2 hours. Butter can be stored wrapped in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. You can store it up to 6 months if you freeze it in a freezer bag.

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1 pound of chocolate is equivalent to 16 squares.
1 pound of cocoa is equivalent to 5 cups of cocoa.

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A substitute for 1 square of chocolate in most recipes is 3 tablespoons of cocoa plus 1 tablespoon of shortening or butter.

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Are you wondering how to freeze fish so that you can prevent freezer burn? Put the fish into a resealable plastic bag, fill the bag with water, press out the air and seal. This just might come in handy for some of you ice fishermen.

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Since it is the season to make cookies for Christmas I thought perhaps this information would be useful. Before slicing icebox cookie dough, make sure it's very cold. Keep any extra dough in the refrigerator until you need it. You can help maintain the round shape of the dough "log" by making a quarter turn every four to six slices. This will help to maintain its round shape.

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When using rosemary in any recipe it is recommended that you either chop or crush it for maximum flavor. If you have fresh rosemary, use a pair of kitchen shears to snip each needle like leaf into smaller pieces. Dried rosemary can be crushed with a mortar and pestle, chopped with a knife on a cutting board or coarsely crushed in the palm of your hand.

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Have you ever wondered how they freeze fresh potatoes for hash browns or French fries so they won't darken? It can be done in your kitchen. To make frozen hash browns, shred potatoes into a bowl of cold water. After you have shredded the amount you want drain and blanch in boiling water about 3 minutes. After you have completed this process drain and rinse in cold water once again then pat dry. Pack into freezer containers or resealable bags. You can store these in your freezer for up to a year and have them handy for any of your recipes.

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For French fries, cut potatoes and hold in cold water until all potatoes are cut. You then blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes. Next you plunge them back into cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Fry in hot oil at 375 degrees until they are very light brown. Drain on paper towels until cool then pack them into freezer containers or bags. Later as you require, fry frozen potatoes in deep fat preheated to 375 degrees until crisp and golden brown.