1 keep cheese longer
When you’re salivating for a tasty slice of cheese, it’s disappointing to discover the Brie in your fridge is funky and green. To keep your cheese from turning on you, wrap and store it in tin foil rather than plastic wrap once you’ve opened its original package. The key to keeping cheese fresh is protecting it from air, which causes mold to grow faster. You can create more of an air-locked package with foil than you can with plastic wrap.
Source: Ramona Josephson, dietitian, Vancouver

2 ripen bananas
In a hurry to enjoy that bunch of green bananas? You don’t have to wait to take a sweet bite. To quickly ripen bananas, punch a few holes in a brown paper bag, place the fruit inside and leave it in a cool place in the kitchen. Adding an apple or tomato to the bag also speeds up the ripening process – they emit a natural gas that causes other fruit around them to ripen quickly.
Source: Ramona Josephson

3 unbloat beans
Even though they’re flavourful and nutritious, beans don’t rank high on many people’s lists of favourites because they’re notorious for causing flatulence. But it is possible to enjoy beans without uncomfortable side effects. Go with canned varieties – they’re stripped of the sugars that cause bloating and gas. If you prefer dry beans, you can easily remove the troublesome sugars yourself: Soak them in water overnight, then rinse and cook in fresh water.
Source: Ramona Josephson

4 get rid of grit
Preparing spinach can be a hassle, especially when you’re trying to get the sand off. Traditionally, the getrid-of-grit solution was to soak and rinse five times. Here’s a better way to clean sandy, leafy veggies: Trim leaves, immerse in a bowl of lukewarm water with a tablespoon of salt and soak for 20 minutes. Gently lift the veggies out of the water and place in a colander – the sand stays in the bowl, not on the leaves.
Source: Epicurious.com, saltinstitute.org

5 slim down sweets
You can satisfy your sweet tooth without doing damage to your diet. The secret is to make your treats (such as brownies, cakes and cookies) at home using healthier substitutes for calorie-laden fats and sugar. To reduce fat content, swap fullfat dairy ingredients for non-fat options – use applesauce for up to 3/4 of the called-for oil or butter. It provides moisture and sweetness without adding fat. Or use one egg and two egg whites instead of two eggs. To cut down Dave on your sugar intake, swap it with Splenda (a low-calorie, low–carb substitute that’s made from sugar). No calculations required – one cup of Splenda is equal to one cup of sugar.
Source: Ramona Josephson

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