Blog Posts by Real Simple Magazine

These store-bought morsels go from package to plate in mere minutes.







Sopressata with grainy mustard
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Pâté with cornichons and sliced baguette
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Cheese-stuffed pickled peppers




















Grissini (thin bread sticks)

Parmigiano-Reggiano
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Asian snack mix (rice crackers, wasabi peas, and sesame sticks)
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Images By Con Poulos

You never outgrow some childhood favorites. These six delicious and nutritious winners will have you scraping the jar for the last sticky spoonful.






Creamy Winner
Santa Cruz Organic Dark Roasted Creamy
"Nice and rich, without being too dense," declared a taster. "Delicious!" said another, who suggested pairing it with apple slices. "It definitely sticks to the roof of your mouth, but I love it."
To buy: $5.50 for 16 ounces.
Related: The Best Chocolate Chips










Creamy Runner-Up
Smucker's Natural Creamy
Not too salty, this peanut butter's pure flavor and effortless spreadability had wide appeal. "There's none of the bitter aftertaste you find with some natural brands," said a fan.
To buy: $3 for 16 ounces.
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Chunky Winner
Smucker's Natural Chunky
"This has an addictive toasty and roasty flavor," raved a natural-peanut-butter convert. A second noted the plentiful peanut bits. "It would be great on a banana," she said.
To buy: $3 for 16 ounces.
Related:

Your rice cooker has hidden talents―it can make breakfast, poach fruit, even turn out risotto.by Melissa Clark

1. Make a hot breakfast.
To make oatmeal or other hot cereals, add a little less milk or water than you would for stovetop cooking (and some chopped nuts and dried fruit if you want). The "keep warm" function will keep food from getting cold and gooey―perfect for days when everyone gets up at a different time.
Related: 10 Years of New Uses for Old Things

2. Steam vegetables.
If your machine comes with a steamer rack, use it to cook cut vegetables, tofu, potatoes, or even shrimp, fish fillets, or chicken breasts. Take out and serve as an easy, one-pot meal.
Related: 50 All-Time Favorite New Uses for Old Things

3. Make risotto without stirring. Saute onions in butter in an open rice cooker, then add 1 part Arborio rice and 4 parts liquid (such as broth and wine). Cook for about 25 minutes in an on/off cooker or use the "slow" or "porridge" cycle if your machine has one. Mix

Yogurt or applesauce? Burger or hot dog? Find out in this nutritional smack down.


Peanut Butter and Jelly or a Ham-and-Swiss Sandwich?


The better choice: PB & J.
Two tablespoons of any kind of peanut butter provides about eight grams of protein. And peanut butter is a great source of monounsaturated fats, which help increase good-cholesterol levels and protect against heart disease. (Ham is much higher in sodium, and cheese adds saturated fat.) You can also use low-sugar jelly to reduce calories, says Amy Jamieson-Petonic, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association (ADA).
Related: The Best Natural Peanut Butter

Keep in mind: Even though peanut butter is a healthy choice, it still has 16 grams of fat a serving. Spread it sparingly and, ideally, on whole-wheat bread.


Puffed Rice Cereal or Raisin Bran?

The better choice: Raisin bran.
"Iron-rich raisins pack a nutritional punch, and one cup of raisin bran has around seven grams of fiber, which kids don't get enough of,"

Almost every region boasts its own way to top this quintessential summer nosh.

New York

Nothing fancy here. A hot dog sold from the typical sidewalk cart is adorned with little more than brown mustard and onions stewed in tomato paste.

Related: Cooking Myths Debunked

Kansas City

At Kauffman Stadium (home of the Kansas City Royals), this hot dog, an ode to the Reuben sandwich, comes topped with melted Swiss cheese and sauerkraut and is tucked into a sesame-seed bun.

Related: 6 Family-Friendly Recipes

Atlanta

At the Varsity's famous drive-through, Atlantans order their hot dogs "dragged through the garden"―in other words, slipped into a top-sliced bun and blanketed with coleslaw.

Related: The Best Instant Foods

Chicago

Residents of the Windy City like their hot dogs dressed to thrill: Yellow mustard, relish, chopped onion, tomato slices, sport peppers (spicy pickled green peppers), a pickle spear, and a dash of celery salt sit atop a frank nestled in a poppy-seed bun.

Anna Williams
Real Simple picked 37 of the best-tasting grocery store items that can be prepared in a flash. by Jane Kirby

For the Refrigerator or Freezer

• Pillsbury refrigerated prepared piecrusts: You'll find them packaged two to a box in your supermarket's dairy case, not pressed into an aluminum-foil pie plate. Each piecrust is perfectly rolled and folded so you can shape it or drape it into your favorite dish.
• Related: Should Your Family Eat This or That?
• Cooked chicken wings: Here's the single-serving equivalent of a whole roast chicken. Great in recipes or for teenage parties and little-kid lunches.
• Shady Brook Farms Turkey Meatballs: Beefless, with a fresh (not powdered) garlic flavor.
• Shredded Jack cheese: The convenience of grated hard cheeses (like Parmesan) isn't worth the compromise in flavor, but buying preshredded semi-soft cheeses makes sense.
• Related: Cheese to Please Every Palate
• Packaged washed baby spinach: So

John LawtonClever ways to repurpose an everyday item.

1. Cake Decorator

Immediately after applying frosting, lightly run the teeth over it. (In this case, be sure the comb is new and sanitized.)
Related: 5 New Uses for New(ish) Things

2. Carpet Fluffer

Use a comb to brush up stubborn furniture indentations on a rug.

3. Wine Strainer

If cork pieces fall into your bottle of vino, place a fine-toothed comb over the bottle's mouth to strain out the bits as you pour. (Again, use a new, sanitized comb.)
Related: Time-Saving New Uses for Old Things

4. Vacuum Cleaner

Scrape away lint that's stuck on the vacuum's roller for more suction.
Related: 50 All-Time Favorite New Uses for Old Things

5. Magic Trick

Turn on the tap to get a smooth stream. Run a comb through clean hair to build static electricity. Bring the comb close to the water without touching it. The stream will curve to the side due to the electrical charge.

6. Sweater Depiller

Nancy Newberry

Real Simple's Modern Manners columnist answers a reader question. by Julie Rottenberg

Q. My in-laws visit frequently, and while we enjoy their company and the great relationship they have with our two children, they insist on bringing their cat each time they visit (we have one small dog). The cat creates quite a mess in our guest room, including several urine stains that my husband and I have failed to resolve without a professional cleaning service. What is the best way to tell them that their cat is no longer welcome without putting a strain on the relationship?
Name withheld by request
Related: What to Say in Awkward Social Situations

A. Anytime something has become a habit, it's harder to speak up about making a change. So I can understand your dreading asking your in-laws to please leave Miss Pees-A-Lot at home. Assuming your husband shares your desire to be cat-free (and if he doesn't, that's a whole other problem), the first thing I would recommend is that he make