Cleaning Up Tips and Tricks

♥Fill blender part way with hot water; add a drop of detergent; cover and turn it on for a few seconds. Rinse and drain dry.

♥Loosen grime from can openers by bushing with and old toothbrush. To clean blades, run a paper towel through the cutting process.

♥Don't panic if you accidentally scorch the inside of your favorite saucepan. Just fill the pan halfway with water and add 1/4 cup baking soda. Boil awhile until the burned portions loosen and float to the top.

♥A jar lid of a couple of marbles in the bottom half of a double-boiler will rattle when the water gets low and warn you to add more before the pan scorches or burns.

♥To remove lime deposits from teakettles, fill with equal parts vinegar and water. Bring to a boil and allow to stand overnight.

♥Before washing fine china and crystal, place a towel in the bottom of the sink to act as a cushion.

♥To remove coffee or tea stains and cigarette burns from china rub with a damp cloth dipped in baking soda.

♥To quickly remove food that is stuck to a casserole dish, fill with boiling water and 2 tablespoons baking soda or salt.

♥When a drain is clogged with grease, pour a cup of baking soda and a cup of salt followed by a kettle of boiling water.

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Kitchen Hints

• A damped paper towel or terry cloth bruched downward on a cob of corn will remove every stand of corn silk.

• An easy way to remove the kernels of sweet corn from the cob is to use a shoe horn. It's built just right for shearing off those kernels in a snap!

• To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh, if it rises to the surface, throw the nasty thing away!

• Fresh eggs' shells are rough and chalky; old eggs are smooth and shiny.

• To determine whether an egg is hard-boiled, spin it. If it spins, it is hard-boiled; it the egg wobbles and will not spin it's still raw.

• Egg whites won't run while boiling or poaching if you'll add a little vinegar to the water.

• Eggs will beat up fluffier if they are allowed to come to cool room temperature before beating.

• For baking, it's best to use medium to larg eggs; extra large eggs may cause cakes to fall when cooled.

• For fluffier omelets, add a pinch of cornstarch before beating.

• For a never fail, never weep meringue, add a teaspoon of cornstarch to the sugar before beating it into the egg whites.

• No "curly" bacon for breakfast when you dip it into cold water before frying.

• Keep bacon slices from sticking together; roll the package into a tube shape and secure with rubber bands.

• A quick way to separate frozen bacon: heat a spatula over a burner, slide itunder slice to separate it from the others.

• Cheese won't harden if you will butter the exposed edges before storing.

• A cloth dampened with vinegar and wrapped around cheese will also prvent drying out.

• Thaw fish in Milk. The milk draws out the frozen taste and provides a fresh-caught flavor.

• Popcorn will stay fresh longer and eliminate "Old Maids" by storing it in the freezer.

• After flouring chicken, chill for one hour. The coating sticks better during frying.

• A sack of hard lumpy sugar won't be if you place it in the refrigerator for 24 hours

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