Toss Your Overpriced Pantry Items for a New Year of Cooking [Kitchen]
Lifehacker’s go-to food writer Mark Bittman offers a list of stale, uninspired (and expensive) pantry items you might think about tossing for fresher cooking this year, and what to replace them with. For example:
OUT Bottled lemon juice.
IN Lemons. Try buying six at a time, then experiment; I never put lemon on something and regret it. (Scramble a couple of eggs in chicken stock, then finish with a lot of lemon, black pepper and dill; call this egg-lemon soup, or avgolemono.) Don’t forget the zest: you can grate it and add it to many pan sauces, or hummus and other purées. And don’t worry about reamers, squeezers or any of that junk; squeeze from one hand into the other and let your fingers filter out the pips.
All of Bittman’s suggestions revolve around the idea of keeping only the true pantry essentials hanging around, and using the inexpensive tools of a home cook (oil, vinegar, onions, garlic, and, most often, your hands) to fill their place. Those in colder climates, of course, can’t always depend on a wealth of fresh stuff all year round, but most of the fresher replacements for overpriced kitchen stockers are available to anyone.
In general, though, it’s a good time to run through and toss the spices and boxes that you can’t remember buying; if you re-stock all at once, it’s easier to remember when you next need to freshen up. Photo by box of lettuce. Fresh Start for a New Year? Let’s Begin in the Kitchen [The Minimalist | New York Times]
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Loading ...A DIY iTunes Blocker? [Call For Help]
Introduced yesterday at Macworld: the Tune Blocker, a USB cable that switches between regular USB connection and a power-only, non-iTunes-launching mode. We’re wondering if there’s a DIY solution for similar results.
Not because we begrudge Tune Blocker’s maker, Matias, any cash or credit—it’s certainly a long-overdue niche to get filled—but, at $24.95 for a 3-foot cable, it’s just not a feasible purchase for everyone, especially anyone with multiple iTunes transfer cords hanging around.
So! Let’s hear your own solution for powering an iPod by USB without having to tell iTunes to go away, stop bothering you, and please don’t sync to a different library. There are, of course, options to manually stop iTunes from launching or auto-syncing when your iPod is connected to your computer (pictured at right, from the iPod’s “home page” in iTunes), but what about a solution that doesn’t require any options-setting, and works on any computer?
Whether it’s a hardware hack, another USB cable that does the job cheaper, or some kind of shadowy ninja app to be placed on the iPod itself, let’s hear how you can or would get around iTunes’ pushiness in the comments. Tune Blocker [via PC World]
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Borange.com - Turning Your iPhone Into A Social Planner
In their own words“Borange lets you group your existing address book contacts, send them quick invitations to call or meet you, and see a timeline of who is available to you now and in the near future.â€Why it might be a killerSolutions such as this one can bring some much needed order into hectic schedules.Some questionsHow configurable is the filtering process?What it doesA new iPhone app that has just been released to the public, Borange can be best-described as a tool for sharing social availability, and turning your mobile device into a fully-realized social planner.
That is, Borange will enable you to manage your address book contacts and create groups, send them quick invitations, and see a timeline showcasing availability and future appointments.
For its part, your availability can be shared with whomever you want, and you can keep it as private as you wish. An availability filter is likewise included, and you can forward alerts and replies as you see fit.
Moreover, you can share your current location both via e-mail and mobile text messaging. The latter is available for free, and all major US carriers are duly supported.
This solution is quite easy and intuitive to get to grips with, and in any case the provided screenshots paint a good picture. You will have no trouble at all adjusting to it should you decide to purchase it at the price which is detailed online.Link: http://www.borange.comOur Review: http://www.killerstartups.com/Mobile/borange-com-turning-your-iphone-into-a-social-planner
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