I guess these are what the kids these days call “food hacks.” I call them – shit that makes my life slightly easier.

Natural almond and peanut butter

The first time I open a jar of natural almond or peanut butter, I take to the task of trying to reincorporate all the oil at the top into the rest of the jar. This generally involves me groaning a little and sloshing around a bunch of oil onto my countertop. But – there is a better way!

When you unpack your groceries, store the jar upside down. The oil will slowly work its way back through to the “top” and be easier to mix when you open it.

Green onions

I used to hate when a recipe called for green onions because inevitably I would buy them, not make the recipe right away, and then come back to find my green onions a sad wilted limp pile.

Instead, stick them in a glass of water on a windowsill and those suckers will not only stay perky they will keep growing for ages. No need for wilted green onions within two days!

Opening a jar

As mentioned in the post Things I learned – designed for the default male, I’d guess most jars weren’t made with women’s hand size or grip strength in mind. So here are some tips on how to get a jar open:

1. Run any jar with a metal lid under hot water. This makes the metal expand and can make the jar easier to open.
2. Break the seal. Get yourself an old-fashioned can punch bottle opener and use it to lift the jar lid open just enough to break the air-tight seal. You can usually see and hear the pop when this happens. Once you’ve done that, it’ll be much easier to open.

Pit an avocado without a knife

I’ve never come close to cutting my hand while using a knife to remove the pit from an avocado, but I have chopped away at the pit making it harder and harder to remove, so I’m looking forward to trying this one.

If you haven’t seen the recent food hack coming out of TikTok, check it out here.

After you’ve cut the avocado in half, put two fingers on either side of the pit and use your thumb to push the pit out from behind. I haven’t tried this one yet, but it seems to work.