Get Ready for Fall with Your 5 Senses

There are signs that Autumn is just about here. The kids are back in school, the days are shorter, and you can feel a little breeze in the air. It's a great time to start noticing the natural transformation and embracing your five senses to make your fall oasis. Here are five things that you can do to get all of your senses ready for fall.

1. Vision: Add the Fall Decor

Let the decorating begin with visuals around your kitchen and home! Start by changing your kitchen decor with Autumn colored napkins, leaf shaped napkin rings, earthy center piece, fall themed table runner, fall colored flowers with a neutral vase, a fun fall picture or a decorative calligraphy sign, and more. Decorating the room with warm colors will definitely get you into the season.

2. Taste: Baskets of Fruits and Veggies

Make sure to load up on the fall fruits and veggie favorites and have them out in either a basket or a bowl. You can get things like  apples, pears, mini pumpkins, berries and cherries,  corn, squash, eggplants, and more. These will provide natural colors into your kitchen, but make you want to have healthy snacks which will make your taste buds get into the season. I also challenge you to try new recipes for dinner with some of these fruits and vegetables.

3. Smell: Burn those Candles and Bake On

The temperature is about to get a little more chill at night. Get a little warmer by bringing out fun candles. Gravitate towards candles with warm colors like brown, gold, red, yellow, orange, and white which will fill the room with fall. Look for fragrances like pumpkin Chai,  cinnamon apple, frosted cranberry,  vanilla birch, and autumn leaves. Baking more will also bring yummy smells into your home. Try baking a pies, bread, corn bread, cinnamon rolls, and more.

4. Touch: Settle Ways to Feel Fall

This sense is one that we least think about and is more settle. Think about opening your window to feel the colder breeze go through your hair. You can place fall themed rugs on the floor to keep your toes warmer. This will keep the floors free from the crunchy leaves and dirt that comes from outside.  Bring out your favorite house slippers or fuzzy fall socks as another layer of warmth in your home. Or turn on the fireplace to feel the warmth of the log burning.

5. Hearing: Get the Family Together

Again, opening the window will provide you also with the touch of the wind, but also the sounds of fall. You will hear animals making noises and trees moving in the wind and is a natural way of bringing Autumn in from outside. But the big way to hear fall is to have dinner together at the table. Fall is all about bringing family and friends together; what better way to do that by having dinner together. The sound of the kids playing right before you sit down, the laughter of a joke, and the storytelling  throughout your meal.  Togetherness is the real spirit of Autumn!

When you do all of these things, you will definitely get into the spirit of the season. Take a few moments tonight and throughout fall to gather the family together and enjoy every aspect of fall.

Cooking with Chef Mark - How to Properly Hold Knife

Chef Mark is here to show you how to properly hold your knifes while preparing food in your kitchen. Watch the video to learn how to hold your Chef Knife with a pinch grip. Use a forward rocking motion to get the most our of your cutting.



Stay tuned to see more great cooking skills and in particular, knife skills. Care about your food and have great knife skills to impress your guests at the kitchen table.

Gardening 101: Start a Garden this Spring

Spring is a time of growth and renewal: following a long, harsh winter, blades of grass are beginning to shoot up from the ground, buds are bursting out on tree branches, and birds are busily constructing nests for their soon-to-be-laid eggs. Everywhere you look, life is starting fresh. Why not be part of it this spring with your very own vegetable garden? Even if you’ve never planted a seed in your life, this how-to can help you plan and grow your very first vegetable garden.

Start Small

It can be tempting to want a vegetable garden that takes up your entire backyard, but if you’re just beginning to garden, it’s best to keep your garden small until you know how to control it. Planting too much too soon is a common mistake made by new gardeners, and can become problematic when harvest time comes and you have way more veggies than you’ll ever be able to use!

Sunny Side Up

Plan your garden in a sunny location, so that your vegetables can get the 6 hours minimum direct sunlight per day that they need. More sun equals a more bountiful harvest and better-tasting vegetables!

Mind the Soil

Good, loamy soil is ideal for planting your vegetable garden. Making sure the soil is properly drained and enriching it with compost will help provide exactly the right amount of water and nutrients to your plants.

Space Out

Pay attention to the directions on your seed packets for spacing requirements. If you plant your vegetables too close together, they won’t get enough sunlight, water or soil nutrients to properly thrive.

Packet Up

Make sure to purchase high-quality seed packets from reputable companies. Also, pay attention to the expiration date on the packets and make sure the seeds are from this year. Seeds that are past their prime are unlikely to germinate, wasting your time and money.

Any gardening tips for newbies? Please share in our comments section.

Keep Fruits and Veggies Fresh Longer With These Handy Tips

Keeping fresh produce in the house for meals and snacking is a great way to stay healthy, but it can be hard to use them before they lose their freshness. Storing your fruits and vegetables properly can help to increase their freshness and taste, not to mention help you save money. Here are a few helpful hints for properly storing your fruits and veggies to get the most life out of them!

Bananas- Nothing like a delicious, potassium-rich banana for a healthy, easy snack! Keep your bananas fresh longer by wrapping the stems in plastic wrap. This prevents the ethylene gas that is naturally produced from the banana stems in the ripening process from reaching the fruits and making them prematurely ripe.

Lettuce- Rather than keeping your lettuce head intact, remove the leaves from the core when you purchase it, wrap them in paper towels, and store in a plastic container in your crisper drawer.

Apples- Unlike some fruits and veggies on this list, apples are one of the fruits that keep best under refrigeration, yet most people do not store their apples in the fridge. To keep your apples at the optimal temperature of 30-35 degrees Fahrenheit, place them under a damp paper towel in the crisper drawer. This will keep them nice and crunchy for weeks!

Carrots- Keeping your carrots in a large glass or plastic container full of water in the fridge will secure their freshness, keeping them deliciously crunchy for much longer. Be sure to cover the top of the container with plastic wrap or a lid, and change the water once per day.

Strawberries- The first step to preserving your strawberries is to throw away any moldy ones you find in the container right away. Then, store the berries in the fridge in an airtight container (not the one that they came in at the store) and take care not to wash them until just before you intend to eat them.

Understanding each fruit and vegetable and knowing how to best preserve them for maximum freshness will save you a lot of money and time while keeping your kitchen stocked with healthy, delicious foods. Enjoy!

Do you have a food preservation tip for your produce items? Let us know in the comments section.

4 New Year's Resolutions You Can Keep!

2016 is drawing to a close, and it’s time to focus on how to make 2017 your best year ever! Skip the daunting, time-consuming resolutions this year and pick a few you can actually keep. Here are a few ideas for things you can do to enhance your life, increase your productivity, and boost your health, all without having to meet wildly unrealistic expectations.

You Do You- It’s easy to compare yourself to that acquaintance, family member, or friend who seems to have it all together. You know the one- everything seems to come easily to this individual, from the clean house to the well-dressed kids to the perfectly groomed hair and spectacular outfit. Do yourself a favor and make a list of things you like about YOU, not things you wish to change to be more like someone else. After all, who knows? The person you long to be more like may secretly wish he or she had YOUR life instead!

Just Say Yes- Instead of a knee-jerk “no” reaction to an invitation or opportunity you don’t think is for you, try to sprinkle a little “yes”into your life. A live jazz concert on a Wednesday night? A camping trip in a national park? Skydiving? Whatever life throws at you, try to answer with a “yes” more often than you normally would (as long as it’s legal) and you’ll be amazed where your adventure may take you!

Breathe- As anyone balancing work, kids, hobbies and everyday chores can tell you, life can get pretty hectic from time to time. And while it’s all well and good to talk about being mindful and appreciating the little things, you need to practice what you preach in order to reap the benefits of a calm, happy life. Start by just breathing- a few deep breaths in times of stress or anger can help trigger the much-needed, little-used “Pause” button on your life and help you assess what’s really important before you react.

Drink Your Veggies- Do you hate vegetables? It’s OK, lots of people do. Can’t find time to cook healthy, well-balanced meals? That’s still no excuse to eat unhealthy, fattening foods- all you need is some produce and a standard blender to make yourself a healthy, filling fruit and veggie smoothie that you can enjoy on your way to work. Not only can the delicious medley of fruits and vegetables give you a non-caffeinated morning boost of energy, but these low-cal smoothies eat like a meal and are perfect for on the go! You’ll be amazed at how tasty they can be (pro tip: add more bananas to mask that “green” flavor), and your body will love you for it!

What are your resolutions for 2017? Tell us in the Comments section.