Pastry  perfection

Pastry is hard enough to get right at the best of times. It takes plenty of practice to get the consistency correct and even then you can face the problem of it falling apart before it gets into the dish. And there's always the finishing touches.

When whisking an egg to glaze your pastry, try adding a pinch of salt to the mixture. This should produce a more golden and less yellow colour when your pie or quiche comes out of the oven - a look your family will find hard to resist.

Bread  to  the  rescue

Sugar can easily turn into a solid mass if left in the larder for a little too long. Instead of throwing it away, try this.

Tip
Soften brown sugar by placing a slice of fresh bread into the packet or jar and close tightly. It may sound a little strange, but you should notice a difference after a few hours.

A  simple  alternative  to  soured  cream

You select your dish, dig out all the ingredients and start chopping.

But it's just your luck that the contents of the pot of soured cream won't even stretch to a mere single serving, never mind enough for an entire family or group of friends. However, follow our simple tip and put an end to the panic.

Next time you run out of soured cream, don't jump in the car and drive around desperately searching for the nearest open shop.

You may not have endless supplies of soured cream in the fridge, but it's likely you can lay your hands on a lemon and a carton of double cream. 

All you need to do is squeeze some lemon juice into the quantity of double cream equivalent to the amount of soured cream required and you have an effective alternative to the real thing.

Water  working  wonders  with  your  baking

We add a dash of water here and there to plenty of recipes on a regular basis. But perhaps there are one or two tips you haven't come across. Here, we offer you a couple of the less obvious ones.

1. Next time you bake a sponge cake, place a heatproof bowl in the base of the oven with a little water in. Cook the cake in the usual way and, with the help of the water, you'll end up with a delicious moist sponge.

2. If you love grilling food but hate the smell it can give off, try putting a little water at the bottom of the grill pan. The fat that drips down will mix with the water and reduce the greasy odour. 

Five - minute  Hollandaise  Sauce

Sauces are often a sticking point in a cook's repertoire. Try out this simple version which takes just minutes to make.

How long will it take?
Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking: 5 minutes
Serves 4

What do I need?
100g/4oz butter 
2 egg yolks 
2 tsp lemon juice or white wine vinegar

What do I do?
In a pan, heat the butter until almost boiling

Meanwhile, blend the egg yolks in a blender with a tablespoon of water and the lemon juice or white wine vinegar

With the machine still running, add the melted butter in a thin steady stream - the sauce will thicken quickly

Season with salt and pepper and serve with the roast asparagus

Per serving
215 kcalories, protein 2g, carbohydrate none, fat 23g saturated fat 14g, fibre none, added sugar none, salt 0.49g

Prepare ahead
Cover closely with plastic film after cooking and keep at room temperature. Reheat in the microwave on "high" for 15 seconds, then whisk. Heat for 15 seconds more and whisk before serving.

Stop  cheese  sweating

Open a packet of cheese and you'll need to wrap it up once you've used some to keep the remainder fresh. However, some storage options are better than others.

Top tip
Stop cheese from sweating by removing all the packaging and wrapping it in tin foil.

Conjuring  up  a  tasty  salad  dressing

With the summer season approaching we tend to eat lighter dishes.

A salad makes a perfect starter or accompaniment to a main dish and French dressing drizzled over adds an extra zing to what can be a rather bland taste. Here are our guidelines on getting it just right.

French dressing is made using three parts oil to one part vinegar, but tastes differ and you'll need to experiment to find the balance you prefer.

All you need to do is pour the oil - preferably good quality olive oil - and white or red wine vinegar into a bowl and season well. Pour over your prepared salad, fold in well and serve immediately.

This will make a basic dressing, which can be made in larger quantities than needed and then stored in a corked bottle or jar with a lid.

You'll need to shake it well before you use it though, as the oil and vinegar will separate.

For variations on the standard dressing, crushed garlic can be added.

A spot of mustard will give the dressing a bit of bite. 

A pinch of sugar can be used for those who prefer a sweeter taste.

You can also experiment with different kinds of oil and vinegar for some distinctive flavours.

Separating  eggs

A perfect meringue or egg white omelette depends on the ability to carry out the seemingly simple task of separating eggs.

However, getting it just right isn't always that straightforward and even the smallest amount of escaped egg yolk could ruin your dish.

Gadgets are available to help you carry out the task, but here we explain the traditional method using eggshell and two bowls.

Step 1
Crack open the first egg on the side of one of the bowls, aiming for a clean break to separate the shell in two equally-sized halves.

Step 2
In the same bowl allow the egg white to collect by moving the egg yolk between the two shells and letting the white fall between them into the bowl.

Step 3
Repeat a few times until there is no white left to remove. Place the egg yolk into the other bowl, move onto the next egg and repeat the process.

In a lot of recipes you'll need the yolks for another task so they won't go to waste.

For example, with a lemon meringue pie the whites form the light meringue topping, while the yolks help form the lemony filling.

If you unfortunately do get a small amount of broken yolk in the egg white bowl you can try to rescue it by using a piece of eggshell to fish it out. If you leave any yolk in the whites it will prevent them from being beaten until stiff. 

A  good  egg?

Crack open a raw egg and you can tell instantly whether or not it's fit to eat. But with boiled eggs or those cracked over a frying pan you can't usually check until it's too late. We show you a simple trick to solve the problem.

Tip
To know whether an egg is bad or not, hold a candle beneath it. If black spots are visible, don't use it.

Compromise  by  combining  flour

Going wholly wholemeal in our diet isn't always something we're willing to stick at. But there is a way of having the best of both worlds and pleasing all of the family at mealtimes - whatever their culinary preference.

In many a family you'll find one or two who always opt for the wholemeal choice when it comes to baking, while others will stick to the white alternative.

However, when it comes to making bread, a quiche, or even a crumble, there is a way of coming to a compromise.

Try using half white flour and half wholemeal in the recipe and you'll end up with a lighter taste than using all wholemeal, with a bit more of a bite than simply sticking to the white stuff.

Hopefully, in the process, you'll manage to please all members of the family and save time and effort!

Recycling  leftovers

How many times have you opened a bottle of wine, reserved a little in the bottom for cooking, then let it go to waste? We help you avoid throwing any away.

Tip
If you have a little wine left in a bottle pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze it. When you need to enrich a dish just throw a couple of cubes into your saucepan.

Help  with  Honey

Measuring honey from a jar to make your favourite cake isn't as simple as it sounds. This tip should leave you with more honey in the mixing bowl than is stuck to your spoon.

Tip
When measuring honey from a jar run your spoon under hot water or dip it into oil first. It should run off the spoon and into your mixing bowl without the need for a helping hand!

Ice  impressions

There's nothing worse when friends come round than serving cloudy ice cubes with drinks. We show you how to make a good impression from the outset.

Tip
To make crystal-clear ice cubes, always freeze bottled or filtered water.

Nutty  know - how

If you need chopped almonds for a recipe and only have whole ones left in the larder, getting the desired effect usually involves zapping them with a blender. We show you a washing-up free way of achieving the same result.

Tip
Crush nuts between sheets of waxed paper with a rolling pin - it's quicker than using a blender, and there's no washing up! 

Perfecting  pastry

Pastry takes some skill to perfect, but once the technique's mastered it's a very versatile product. If cold pastry is the desired result, milk is better than water.

Tip
Pastry to be served cold will be crisper if you make it with milk, rather than water.

Perfect  pesto

A jar of pesto is a must in the kitchen and can lift many a pasta dish. But if you don't use it all at once, it can soon dry out. A drop of olive oil is the answer.

Tip
Add a teaspoon of olive oil to a jar of pesto sauce to stop it drying out.

A  feast  of  picnic  ideas

The warmer weather can see the picnic hamper wake from its hibernation for another summer of al fresco eating. These quick and easy picnic tips will always go down well.

Quick and easy chicken
Desperate for a versatile dish that takes no time at all? Use this Agalinks tip to make life easier.

Chicken cooked this way is ideal for picnics, but can also be used for kitchen suppers, buffets and sandwiches.

Simply take fresh, skinless chicken breasts, brush them with a thin layer of egg yolk and roll in a mixture of breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and cayenne pepper.

Put the chicken under the grill, or at the top of the Aga roasting oven, turning occasionally until done.

You can serve the chicken with potato salad, or in a bun with lettuce and mayonnaise.

For buffets, simply cut into slices and serve on a bed of lamb's lettuce.

The big freeze
One really useful tip for keeping cartons of soft drinks cool is to freeze them the night before. They will slowly defrost through the morning and you'll be left with an ice-cold, refreshing lunchtime drink.

Space savers
Try to put everything into stackable, sealable plastic boxes as this makes tidying up so much easier.

One clever idea is to make individual mousses in old yoghurt pots so that when you're ready to go you can just stack them all together, thus using very little space.

Baby wipes
As anyone who has ever travelled with children knows, baby wipes are wonderful. Really useful for everything from mopping up spills, to cleaning sticky fingers. Don't leave home without them.

Ground control
It's always sensible to take a groundsheet to put under your picnic blanket, but one ingenious suggestion is to put some Velcro on each corner of the groundsheet and picnic blanket to stop them slipping.

Save  your  soup

There's nothing worse than overdoing it with the salt and discovering your soup or casserole is inedible. But if this does befall you, all is not lost.

Tip
If your salt pot pours out more of its contents than your palate can stand, don't throw away your meal. If you're cooking soup or casserole all you need do is add chopped raw potato.

The pieces will absorb the salt and you can remove them before serving.

Keep  it  crunchy  and  say  goodbye  to  soggy  cereal

There are few things worse of a grey morning than digging into your favourite breakfast cereal and finding it has softened in its packet! Take on board the following tip and leave the milk to do the softening.

Tip
If you like your cereal crisp and crunchy, as soon as you open a new box transfer the contents into an airtight container.

By choosing an attractive design, containers can then be brought out of the kitchen cupboard and put on the breakfast table to serve.

Saved  by  the  simple  spud

A stew tinged with a burnt taste is hardly appetising, but there's a simple way to save such a kitchen disaster. Here's how the humble potato can solve the problem.

Tip
It only takes a moment's distraction to burn a prized stew that had previously been simmering away quite happily.

While it's a natural reaction to dislodge the mixture stuck to the bottom of the pan, this isn't the best option.

Instead, pour the unburnt part of the stew into a new pot and add a raw potato to the mixture for 10 minutes to absorb the burnt taste.

For all your essential cookware visit Aga Cookshop online.