Little Ways to Make Life More Beautiful from the Kitchen

As the final post in our “Making Life More Beautiful” series, we decided to end in one of our favorite places: the kitchen! These are all simple ideas, but, if nothing else, perhaps they will give you food for thought.

• Take time for small touches. For example, when you take bread out of the oven spread/rub a little butter over the tops of the loaves. Besides giving an appealing shine, the butter also adds an extra bit of flavor for even those situations when you’re not actually going to butter your bread.
• Dress it up. A grilled-cheese sandwich can at least border on gourmet when made with Tomato Basil Bread, a yummy cheese or two, a pair of tomato slices, and Penzeys Sandwich Sprinkle - all toasted until warm, gooey and crunchy! “Sunny-side-up” eggs get even sunnier when fried within a slice of sweet pepper. And don’t forget the cherry (or whatever you like) on top of the sundae!
• Go with variety. Color and texture work the same on a plate as they do on a canvas, so, at least for those special occasions, see what eye-appealing combinations you can create. (We ourselves really do eat plain ol’ peanut butter and jelly at times; don’t get any ideas of all of our meals being from a French cooking magazine!)
• Spice it up. This idea is very similar to the above thought but still deserves to have it’s own bullet point. Spices add flavor, depth, color and sometimes even health benefits to food. Beyond that, they also tend to make food more satisfying and filling. Enjoy and make the most of them by experimenting. We’ve found that most American recipes (especially those in the bakery section) can handle more spices than called for, so we usually add extra. especially when it comes to our Jolly Green Ginger Cookies...

•  Set it well. “A dish well-presented is half eaten,” as the saying goes. This reminds us of one Easter when we were having our extended family for dinner. One of our cousins who had worked in food service remarked that we even had the handles of the teacups pointing in the right direction - that is, five o’clock. Susan’s response was, “Oh, I only did that because it makes sense and looks better!” A funny example, perhaps, but the point is that details can matter and sometimes surprising people notice.  
• Tag it. Using your computer or drawing supplies and card stock, create your own bakery labels for goodies you are giving away. Hole-punch the labels and use a bit of string or ribbon to attach one to your gift. The very best recipes are made with thoughtful consideration and love. 

Photos from apronstringsblog.com, houseoffiftyblog.blogspot.com