Life

(Image credit: Faith Durand) From The Kitchn → 10 Muffin Recipes for a Perfect Portable Breakfast

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From The Kitchn → The 15 Essential Soups for Fall

(Image credit: Christine Gallary) From The Kitchn → We Tried 7 Brands of Vegetable Broth, and Here Is the Winner

Home is supposed to be a calming place. But with the movement towards open floor plans, things are only getting more complicated. Same goes for anyone living in a studio apartment: When most of your life takes place in the same sweeping room, where do you go for a moment of serenity? Answer: Anywhere you want. Start with a corner, or a bedroom, or the bathroom, or even your closet.

(Image credit: sarsmis) shutterstock From The Kitchn → 6 Ways to Tone Down a Dish That’s Too Spicy

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From The Kitchn → The Instant Oatmeal Taste Test: We Tried 6 Brands and Here’s Our Favorite

(Image credit: Emily Han) From The Kitchn → 12 Non-Alcoholic Drinks to Sip All Fall

I swear I’m not obsessed with bathrooms, but this discussion came up during one of our editorial meetings the other day. We obviously take our jobs VERY seriously and no topic is too detailed, or too inappropriate for us to write about. “Crumplers” (as demonstrated in the lead photo above) are devil-may-care types who want to get in and out of the bathroom fast, with the least amount of fuss.

(Image credit: Linh Nguyen) cc by-nd 2.0 From The Kitchn → 9 Ways to Practice Good Manners at the Coffee Shop

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) From The Kitchn → 20 Important Recipes Starring Bacon

(Image credit: Megan Gordon) From The Kitchn → The 5 Most Satisfying Snacks That Fuel My Workouts

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From The Kitchn → How To Make Chewy Brownies

(Image credit: Zoeytoja) shutterstock From The Kitchn → The Best Way to Keep Takeout Food Warm Until You’re Ready to Eat

(Image credit: Gabriela Herman) From The Kitchn → 4 Things to Say When You Don’t Know What to Say About Someone’s Cooking

(Image credit: Maureen Petrosky) From The Kitchn → Pitcher Cocktail for Your Labor Day Party: Sparkling Cojit

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From The Kitchn → Can You Really Revive an Overripe Banana with a Hair Dryer?

(Image credit: Faith Durand) From The Kitchn → Go Beyond Taco Tuesday with 20 More Meal Templates

We tell you all the time about the importance of making your bed — the one task that will make you happier, healthier, permanently stress-free and rich beyond your wildest dreams (or something along those lines). But against my own advice — I know, I’m a hypocrite — I rarely make my bed. Mornings are always such a scramble that it never seemed like much of a priority.

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From The Kitchn → Can You Really Ripen an Avocado in Just 10 Minutes?

(Image credit: Christine Gallary) From The Kitchn → 10 of the Best Uses for Canning Jars

(Image credit: Veronika Mannova/Shutterstock) I recently spoke with Jackson Galaxy about a topic that has plagued me for quite some time (and if you’re a fellow cat owner, it’s no doubt plagued you, too): how to keep curious cats off our kitchen counters. From The Kitchn → Cat Whisperer Jackson Galaxy’s Advice for Keeping Your

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) From The Kitchn → How To Make Basic Tomato Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes

(Image credit: Anthony Berenyi) shutterstock So you’ve made the choice to ditch your meal plan this year, or you’re a couple days into the new semester and already sick of dining hall food. Don’t worry — there are better meals ahead. Armed with your dorm room microwave, the options are almost endless. Even if it

(Image credit: Torok-Bognar Renata) shutterstock From The Kitchn → 10 Little Upgrades for Your Whipped Cream

(Image credit: Hrecheniuk Oleksii) shutterstock Want to involve your kids in cooking? We’ve put together a list of all the ways young kids can help out in the kitchen, with activities tailored to their age and ability. So whether they’re two or 10, you can train up a little sous chef! From The Kitchn →

(Image credit: Kimberley Hasselbrink) From The Kitchn → Recipe: Spicy Panzanella Salad

(Image credit: Kristin Teig) From The Kitchn → The Kitchn’s Ultimate Guide to Grilling Like a Pro

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) From The Kitchn → How To Freeze Zucchini

(Image credit: Christine Gallary) These recipes are found in the most convenient of places: right on the back of the box or package! No need to copy the recipe down or try to remember where you saw it — just pick up the package and start cooking. Here are some of our favorite back-of-the-box recipes

How many people can you host at once? Two? 10? You’re probably counting sofa cushions right now in your head. The reality is, the “right” number of living room seats is different for everyone, and largely dependent on the amount of space you have available.

(Image credit: Jayme Henderson) From The Kitchn → Why Freezing Is the Best Way to Preserve Cilantro

Ah, the ’90s. If you find yourself longing for inflatable furniture, Jnco jeans and the Delia*s catalog (which is back!), might we suggest a little journey down memory lane with these 10 music videos from the 1990’s–one for every year. From grunge to hip-hop to boy band pop hit machines, here are the music videos that totally capture the style of the ’90s. We can shut the list down right now.

(Image credit: Adrienne Breaux) From The Kitchn → Why You Don’t Feel Like Cooking Tonight, and How to Fix It

(Image credit: Michaela Cisney) From The Kitchn → You Should Buy the Cheap Generic Versions of These 25 Foods

Though it’s universally considered a bad idea from many who have tried it before, moving in with a best friend can sometimes seem like just the thing you need in your life. All the fun you have with your best friend could be 24/7, you think! You’ll be different, you tell yourself. If you’re bound and determined to dive into a living situation with a best friend, consider these tips before you sign the lease. Of course, living with a best friend CAN be a ton of fun.

(Image credit: Africa Studio) shutterstock When we had field trips, bringing your own lunch was required. My mom had to figure out what to pack for me, thus resulting in one of my earliest memories: finding the absolute worst thing ever in my lunch bag. From The Kitchn → The Most Embarrassing Thing I Ever

(Image credit: keren-seg) shutterstock From The Kitchn → What Does Heirloom Actually Mean?

(Image credit: Dana Velden) From The Kitchn → How To Make Lemonade from Scratch

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From The Kitchn → 15 Questions to Ask Your Wedding Caterer

(Image credit: Kimberley Hasselbrink) From The Kitchn → Cocktail Recipe: Peach Plum Sangria

(Image credit: Tessa Huff) From The Kitchn → Recipe: Homemade Marshmallow Fluff

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) From The Kitchn → This Is What Your Favorite Ice Cream Flavor Says About You

Many of the terms you use around the house are actually trademarked. (“Grab me a kleenex, will you?”) Or at least they were at one point, before we all started using them as if they were just a regular part of the English language. And actually, a few of the brands on this list have lost the right to enforce their trademark because the term became so commonplace. So here they are in one tidy list (a little ammunition for your next trivia night).

(Image credit: Nealey Dozier) From The Kitchn → Dress Up Your Ice Cream! 30 Sundae Toppings That Go Way Beyond Sprinkles

(Image credit: Noam Armonn) shutterstock From The Kitchn → The Best Foods to Pack for the Beach

(Image credit: Kimberley Hasselbrink) From The Kitchn → Cocktail Recipe: Cucumber, Ginger & Prosecco Sangria

(Image credit: Gina Eykemans) From The Kitchn → A Visual Guide to Juicing Vegetables: How Many Veggies Go in a Cup?

(Image credit: Bridget Pizzo) From The Kitchn → 5 Questions Everyone Still Has About Party Etiquette, and the New Answers

(Image credit: Nealey Dozier) From The Kitchn → 20 No-Heat Summer Potluck Dishes for Everyone

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From The Kitchn → Outdoor DIY Wine Cooler Idea: A Picnic Table with a Gutter!

(Image credit: Christine Gallary) From The Kitchn → 3 Ways to Pit Cherries Without a Cherry Pitter

(Image credit: Maureen Petrosky) From The Kitchn → 15 Make-Ahead Pitcher Cocktails to Sip All Summer

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From The Kitchn → Treat Yourself to One of These 12 S’mores Recipes

It remains to be seen whether downsizing and minimalism are going to be a cultural shift or just a cultural fad, but these ideas are certainly in the air and on a lot of minds. If you’re feeling a tug toward simplicity and paring down, here are some excellent TED Talks to watch on these topics from people who are already “walking the walk.” With one exception, these TED Talks come from Tedx events – TED-sanctioned but independently run events.

(Image credit: Kimberley Hasselbrink) From The Kitchn → Recipe: Summer Berry Sangria

(Image credit: Faith Durand) From The Kitchn → How To Make Layered Jello Shots

Ahhh… Mondays. For most of us, they’re the start of the work week, bringing with them a bleak realization that the weekend is definitely over. But if you want to live a happy life, you’ve got to start looking on the bright side of things! Monday is just another day, with tons of opportunity to live, laugh, and explore. Changing your outlook on Mondays isn’t hard, it just requires a few small tweaks to your routine.

(Image credit: Jessica Goldman Foung) From The Kitchn → Summer Squash: The New Hot Dog

(Image credit: Sarah Rae Smith) Now is the Time of the Zucchini. We have sautéed it and stuffed it and sliced it into ribbons. We have had ample slices of zucchini bread and there are enough muffins stashed in the freezer for a month of brunches. And yet, still there is zucchini. When you’ve done

(Image credit: Claire Bock) From The Kitchn → 7 Things You Should Have in the Kitchen by Age 30

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) There’s just something about travel that brings on the munchies, no matter how long the journey. When planning your next trip this summer, don’t forget the travel snacks. Here are 15 simple sweet and savory recipes that can really go the distance. From The Kitchn → 15 Sweet and Savory Recipes

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) From The Kitchn → 10 Popsicle Recipes to Cool off with This Summer

(Image credit: Emma Christensen) One of the simplest ways to prepare fresh or even frozen vegetables is to steam them over simmering water. If you find steamed vegetables too plain, don’t want to smother them in butter, or would just like to infuse them with extra zing, here are eight things you can add to

1930’s London wasn’t known for its plentiful fresh air or sunshine but for a quick minute, these babies got to soak up as much as they could of both…while dangling high above the city streets in a wire cage. Guess that’s one way to get your kid to play outside. This incredible invention was brought to our attention courtesy of an hilariously tongue-in-cheek recent Gothamist article.

(Image credit: Jayme Henderson) From The Kitchn → 4 Ways to Preserve Fresh Mint for Later

Bracing yourself against the waves of envious, exotic trips that will be flooding your Instagram feed now that summer’s almost here? Whether you’ve got your own exciting vacation coming up or you have to stay closer to home this summer, you don’t have to take off time from work to unwind. Use these quick tips to make any weekend feel like a mini vacation.

(Image credit: Melissa Ryan) Good beer deserves its own glass. Left in the bottle, your beer experience is limited to one thing: how the beer tastes. That’s of crucial importance, to be sure, but to really appreciate your finely crafted brew in all its glory, that beer must be liberated. Pour your beer into a

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) From The Kitchn → 7 Clever Root Vegetable Drawers and Bins for the Kitchen

(Image credit: Kelli Foster) There’s no other tool that dries freshly washed greens and other produce quite as quickly and efficiently as a salad spinner. Not to mention the other tasks it can tackle. But does that really make it a kitchen necessity? From The Kitchn → Are Salad Spinners Essential — or Not?

(Image credit: Anjali Prasertong) Like many things cute and useful, emoji originated in Japan, which means many of the icons are specific to Japanese culture. With food being a vital part of the culture, it’s no surprise that there are quite a few food and drink emoji that may leave you scratching your head. From

(Image credit: Chris Perez) From The Kitchn → How To Make the Best Iced Coffee

(Image credit: Nealey Dozier) From The Kitchn → Recipe: Chocolate-Glazed Baked Doughnuts with Sprinkles