If you haven't yet baked your cake, this trick will make removing the pan much easier. Cut out a circle of parchment paper slightly larger than the base of the springform pan you're using. Press it into the bottom of the assembled springform pan. You'll bake the cake on top of the parchment, rather than directly on the pan. This way you can just slide the bottom of the cake off the pan with the parchment, which looks a lot less noticeable than a metal base.  Some chefs also like to use a cardboard cutout to lend the cake a little more support. Cut out a piece of cardboard the same size as the base of the springform pan. Press a piece of parchment paper over the cardboard. If you want to line the sides of the pan with parchment as well, cut  a strip long enough to wrap around the inside of the pan and slightly thicker than the depth of the pan. Now you can make your cheesecake as normal, and when it is completely chilled the cake can be removed with ease from the pan. The presence of parchment won't change anything about the baking process. Go ahead and bake the cheesecake as usual. Even parchment won't save a cheesecake that's still warm when you try to remove it from the pan. Be sure it's thoroughly chilled before you try to lift away the sides or bottom. If you didn't line the sides with parchment, run a knife dipped in hot water around the edges of the cake to loosen it, then unclick the pan's sides and lift them away. If you did line the sides with parchment, you can skip the knife trick and simply take off the sides of the pan. Then very gently pull away the strip of parchment to reveal the cake underneath. Grasp the edge of the parchment paper and gently slide the cake onto a serving plate. The parchment will lift easily from the bottom of the springform pan.

Summary: Line the pan with a circle of parchment paper. Bake the cheesecake according to instructions. Chill the cheesecake overnight. Remove the sides of the pan. Slide the cake off the base of the pan.


The salt helps the vegetables to release their water.

Summary: Add two bay leaves to the boiling water and continue to simmer the beans. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a nonstick skillet. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic, along with a large pinch of salt, and cook the vegetables for 5 minutes or until they begin to brown, stirring them occasionally with a spatula or spoon. Add the oregano, cumin and paprika and cook for 1 additional minute. Remove the skillet from the heat, take out the bay leaves from the beans and discard them. Add the onion mixture to the beans and stir it together with the spatula or spoon until everything is well combined.


Apologize early and often; admit that you were wrong (if you were) and take responsibility.  Tell him that you were wrong and that you won’t do it (whatever it was) again. And then don’t do that thing again. Don’t use the sorry-not-really-sorry line of “I’m sorry you got so upset.” It shifts the responsibility onto him and makes it sound as if you’re not sorry for your actions, you just wish he wouldn’t get mad about it. If he responds with a--potentially justified--angry text, apologize again. Continue apologizing if he comes at you with more angry responses. Simply say something like, “I’m sorry--I was wrong.” Just apologizing or trying to explain that your intentions were good won’t work.  Saying you’re sorry isn’t enough--you need to show you recognize the negative consequences your actions had on him and that you sincerely regret it.  If he feels like you genuinely understand why your actions made him mad, he’s more likely to feel validated and begin forgiving you. Even if you don’t necessarily think his feelings or reaction is justified, apologize anyway. If you want him to like you again, you want him to see you understand how he’s feeling. Even if you say you’re sorry, it won’t be enough to make him like you again if you then start saying things that will escalate the situation.  Don’t, for example, say anything about thinking his reactions were irrational or unjustified. It will make him feel like you aren’t really sorry and don’t really understand the situation--and he’ll go back to being mad.  Don’t bring up things he’s done to upset you in the past. Turning the conversation into a tit-for-tat about who did what to who isn’t going to diffuse the situation. It will only make it drag on longer and make him less likely to forgive you. Asking for his input on what you can do shows that you’re listening to him and genuinely want to know what would make things better from his perspective. For example, you might say something like, “I know you had to wait 45 minutes for me and that it probably felt like I wasn’t making you a priority. How can I make it up to you in the future?” Humor is disarming. If you can make him laugh, or even smile a bit, you can get your foot in the metaphorical door.  Try being humorously self-deprecating. If humor is disarming, affable self-deprecation is doubly so. So try poking a little fun at yourself or acknowledging one of your endearing flaws. You might text him something purposefully ridiculous, like, “I’m really sorry I was late picking you up--we both know I’m a klutz, and I must have walked into at least five walls trying to get here.” Or you could text something more honest but still gently self-deprecating, like, “You know how I look at the time on the clock as a challenge instead of a warning? Well...the clock won.” Particularly if the guy’s mad because he feels like you ignored him or his needs in some way, remind him that you do think about him--often. For example, you might text him with an affectionate reference to something you saw that reminded you of him (bonus if it relates to a private joke between you), like, “I just saw a car with a Florida license plate and it reminded me of all the stories you tell about growing up there. It made me smile.”
Summary: Apologize. Show that you understand the impact your actions had on him. Avoid escalating the situation. Ask what you can do to make it up to him. Make him smile. Let him know you’re thinking about him.