We all have our reasons for separating the yolks from the whites: dietary restrictions, taste preferences, and a sloppy crack-and-dump usually does the trick. A little broken yolk isn’t that big of a deal. But there’s one scenario where a little yolk can really ruin everything: meringue. A little broken yolk can prevent a meringue from reaching its maximum fluffiness potential.

A well-whipped batch of egg whites can be the key ingredient in a fluffy omelette, fluffy pancakes, light Japanese cheesecakes, a crispy pavlova, or this lemon pudding cake. Unfortunately, the fatty egg yolk (or any fat) can interfere with the formation of the egg whites’ foam, making them take longer to whip up and less firm. If enough fat is added, they’ll never get past the loose foam stage. The worst-case scenario for large batch recipes is when you drop a lump of egg yolk into a bowl of six or seven successfully separated egg whites. Somehow, it’s always the last egg, so you feel like you’ve lost the entire bowl. Luckily, one of these two tricks can change that.

Use a Leftover Eggshell Half: When it comes to fishing out egg parts in a bowl of eggs, nothing works better. I tried this trick on a whim when the cotton swab method (below) left behind some mini clumps of yolk. The best way to fish out an elusive piece of eggshell from your morning scramble prep is to use a large piece of shell, so why wouldn't the same method work for a discarded yolk?

I dipped a discarded half shell into the egg whites at the yolk streaks and they flew right in. Yes, I lost a little white in the process, but it was really minimal and a worthwhile sacrifice for well-whipped egg whites. This works even for large lumps of yolk.