Quick Tip: Pain Free Whisking

Phew... it's been a busy week. What with Sesame Street, the rainforest jumperoo and mommy and me yoga, we've hardly had time to take a breath (except for the ones we took IN yoga). I do, however, have six new and incredible recipes to share including: Thai Beef Salad, Whitney Minestrone, AsianAhi Poke and more. BUT, I am too busy to compile them now. However, I am adding a new weekly feature: The Quick Tip. Pain-Free Whisking is the first of many to come.

When I was a child, everyone in my family had a hand-held electric mixer. You know the kind with multiple inserts that you pop into the bowl of cream and sugar and within seconds, you've got a lovely whipped cream? I have, however, noticed that many of my contemporaries DO NOT have one of these, myself included. I think we're all waiting for the day that our shiny, new Kitchen Aid arrives. But until then, there's the manual whisk, that with few notable exceptions can do any job the electric can. BUT, if you've ever hand-whipped cream or hand-whisked a vinaigrette, you know there can indeed be some cramping involved.

The solution is so simple, yet known to so few. First, make sure your ingredients and your tools are very, very cold. This is especially true in the case of cream. By putting your metal mixing bowl into the freezer a few moments before whipping, you'll cut out at least two to three minutes of whisking time. Secondly, DON'T USE YOUR ARM. This was something I learned from the greatJacques Pepin (he was on TV; I am not pretending to have had one-on-one time with the man) and something I chant to myself each time I pick up the whisk. Use your wrist. There are a multitude of ways to use your wrist; I like to repeatedly push away from my body where others prefer to whisk towards themselves. Whatever it is, just don't use your arm. You'll thank me the next time you're in the midst of whipped cream or salad dressing crisis. And I promise, your friends and family will be SO impressed when you turn a liquid into a solid in minutes flat.