LORA BRODY'S RULES OF THE KITCHEN

1. Everything has its place. This means the egg beater always resides in the second drawer from the left of the sink, and the three metal bowls are together inside the cabinet next to the refrigerator.... This rule will expedite cleanup after you cook.

2. Put stuff away....

3. Keep it clean. It's infinitely more pleasant to work in a clean space. Aside from the aesthetics, there is the health concern....

4. One job at a time. Until you are a really experienced cook, stick to one task at a time. Don't be yakking on the phone or running on the treadmill between quick peeks in the pot.

5. Read the entire recipe before you start. Assemble all the ingredients called for. This way you won't be halfway through a recipe before realizing that you don't have chocolate chips to put in the batter for chocolate-chip cookies. And if you don't understand a cooking term, you'll know enough to look it up before you have to execute it....

6. Have a healthy respect for heat and other things that can hurt you.... Make it a habit to turn all pot and pan handles away from the front of the stove.... Keep the stove and oven area free of flammables....

7. Clean up as you go along.... There is nothing as depressing as facing a sink full of dirty pots and pans along with the dishes at the end of a delicious meal....

8. Keep a shopping list. As you run out of things, jot the items down on a shopping list. When you start to plan a meal, look up the recipe, ... then add the items you need to buy to the list....

9. Try to have fun....