A resent University of Georgia study found that you should be extra diligent when cleaning kitchen utensils. Bacteria like E. coli and salmonella can latch on to knives or graters and spread to other foods, potentially making you ill. Always wash knives between tasks, even when switching from one vegetable to another. For best results, scrub using soap and hot water (friction dislodges bacteria).

-Susan Rehm, MD. Dept. of Infectious disease, Cleveland Clinic

If there is left over wine and you plan to use it for a recipe, add 1 tsp. of vegetable oil to the bottle before storing it. The oil sits on top of the wine creating an airtight seal that slows down flavor-sapping oxidation.

Follow this for the perfect egg: Lower the eggs into gently simmering water. Then start the timer right away this is important because it takes only a minute to miss the mark.

3 minutes - is the perfect soft-boil egg, a warm, runny yolk with a just-set white and eat right out of the shell.

6 minutes – the yolk is just starting to set at the edges, and the white is firm. The shell can be peeled, but the yolk still oozes when sliced.

9 minutes – the yolk is set but still creamy and slightly runny in the center. Good for salads or scooping to make deviled eggs.

11 minutes – The yolk is uniformly set and light yellow. This is the hard boiled egg needed for chopping into a potato or egg salad and as on-the-go snack

Researchers reporting in the journal Food Protection Trends instructed 123 adults to prepare a fruit salad and a meat dish, then tested for cross-contamination. The finding showed 90% of the fruit salads tested positive for bacteria from the meat. The biggest source of contamination was wiping hands with kitchen towels during food preparation. Study author Jeannie Sneed, PhD., suggests washing your hands often and drying off with paper towels instead. She adds that many people touched their phones while cooking, so it’s smart to clean those as well.