The biggest waste of money is when people throw food away because of freezer burn. Did you know that freezer burn is actually nothing but ice crystals forming on foods? You can still use them. All you need to do is rinse off the ice crystals, and add seasonings or spices to perk up the flavors again when you cook them. This tip alone can save you a lot of money.
When you use your coffee grinder to grind up spices, you need to take a few pieces of a slice of loaf bread afterwards and run them through the grinder to get rid of the oils in the spices, so that the next time you grind coffee beans they won't have a spicy taste to them. You can buy a nice long bristle brush to clean the spice or coffee grinder at www.kitchencollection.com priced very reasonably.
If you use a lot of paper towels in your kitchen, switch to white Viva paper towels for draining foods upon, and purchase some white hand towels from your local dollar store or Walmart to use to dry your hands on when you wash them at your kitchen sink. You can cut your paper towels cost drastically just by using hand towels, especially if you wash your hands a lot. You should ALWAYS wash your hands before preparing any foods, and again after touching any kind of raw meats, poultry, or seafood. It is also wise to wash all foods before eating them, and to make sure all foods are cooked properly.
Did you know that by using cloth or linen napkins, you can save a lot of money over using paper napkins long term?
One ounce equals two tablespoons or six teaspoons, so one cup which is eight ounces would equal sixteen tablespoons. Two cups equals one pint. Two pints equals one quart. Four quarts equals one gallon. One pinch equals 1/8 teaspoon or the normal amount a person can hold between your thumb and index finger.
For any recipe that calls for greens or cream in it, try grating a little bit of whole nutmeg into it as well. Use a whole nutmeg scraped over a very fine grater such as a microplane or the finest section of a box grater about five or six times. Replace the leftover nutmeg into its capped jar for using again later in more recipes. A jar of Whole nutmegs last a very long time since you should always use nutmeg sparingly. Grating a small amount of a whole nutmeg tastes much better than using the pre-ground nutmeg you can buy in jars.
Try adding hot sauce to cooked greens of any type for added flavor. Hot sauce is just a mixture of vinegar and cayenne pepper. How much cayenne pepper you use is dependant upon how much heat you want in yours. Adding hot sauce to recipes will always kick them up a notch or more in heat value.
Try adding a teaspoon of citrus zest to your recipes for baked goods to add additional flavor. Just be sure when you zest lemons, limes, oranges, or grapefruits to only use the colored part of the outside peel of a whole fruit without zesting into the white pithy part because it will taste very bitter.
Are you out of milk and eggs but need them for a recipe? You can substitute either plain yogurt for both of them or agar just for eggs.
To replace one egg in a recipe, use 1/4 cup whipped tofu or 1 Tablespoon milled flaxseed mixed with 3 Tablespoons water.
Don't like dairy milk? Make your own delicious nut milk with 1/2 cup any pulverized, skinless nuts, and 2 cups water placed into a blender on high for one minute. Add 1 tsp. sweetener or flavoring, if desired. Filter the mixture through a fine sieve or strainer into a pitcher, mashing it with the back of a large spoon to get all the liquid out, and keep it chilled in the refrigerator to use to drink, or in recipes. The pulverized dry nut residue can be used in baking homemade breads or muffins, for making homemade nut butters, put into smoothies, making sauces, or nut burgers. Nuts make an excellent substitute for meats. Nuts Online.com sells whole blanched almonds that work great for making homemade almond milk, then use the leftover pulverized almonds for making almond butter by just adding 1 tsp. vegetable oil and salt to suit your own taste preferences.
Nut burgers always need something like an egg and some flour or meal added to the pulverized nuts to bind them together to form patties so they can be grilled, fried, or baked. They fry up just like a hamburger would, and you can put them on buns with condiments, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, and onions in the same way.
Want to cook fish but don't like the stinky smell in your home afterwards? All you need do is add a couple tablespoons lemon juice to your oil before heating it, and the odor goes away after cooking fish. It also helps to take out any fishy smelling garbage immediately.
When you are making tuna croquettes, tuna salad, any seafood salad, salmon patties, or crabcakes, add 1 tablespoon lemon juice to your recipe so the fish won't smell so much. Add diced fresh apples as well to make your recipe taste completely different. Even people who don't like seafood recipes will usually eat it when diced apples are added.
Diced apples can be added to baked beans recipes to give it a new flavor. If you don't want to buy fresh apples and dice them, use the individual containers of diced apples you can now purchase. You can find them in the canned fruit section of your supermarket.
No oil? Use applesauce in your recipe as an oil substitute.
Need to color rice yellow? Add 1/2 tsp. turmeric to your water and mix before adding your rice. Result will be a beautiful yellow rice.
Leftover cooked rice? Add some frozen English peas, sliced mushrooms, and diced purple onions for a rice pilaf. Or add some scrambled eggs and diced green onions for fried rice.
You can make cooked scrambled eggs go much further when you need to feed a lot of people by making them into a fried rice recipe using 1 tsp. sesame oil, 1 Tbsp. soy sauce, 2 cups or more of cooked rice, English peas, diced purple onions, sliced mushrooms, and salt and pepper to suit tastes. Serve with toast and sliced fresh fruit, coffee, tea, or orange juice, and you have a lovely brunch.
Try purchasing dried fruits and vegetables to keep on hand for recipes. They are shelf stable and will last a very long time. You are not paying for any water added to your fruits and vegetables when you buy dried ones. Honeyville Grains sells a large variety of them online with prices that can't be beat anywhere else for such high quality products as they sell. 1/2 cup dried fruits or vegetables are equal to 1 cup once they are hydrated again. They hydrate in just a few minutes.
Recipe too sweet? Add a little vinegar, lemon, or lime juice and mix well.
Recipe too salty? Add a little sugar or light agave nectar and vinegar and mix well.
Soup too salty? Add a raw potato and let it cook to absorb saltiness. Or add some shredded cabbage like in a bag of coleslaw mix to the pot and cook for a few more minutes.
Too much grease in a recipe? Add a lettuce leaf to absorb the grease or add a slice of bread, then remove either before serving.
Fried foods should always be drained on white paper towels to absorb grease before serving. Replate the foods just before serving them to your guests.
Some frugal people use their brown paper grocery bags to drain greasy foods on, then replate them to serve them.
Remember people always eat with their eyes first. Actually they smell the fragrance of the food first of all. Make your meals smell as delicious as they look when you plate them. Burned foods are a real turn-off. Try using vivid colors of fruits and vegetables to make your recipes more eye appealing. Matchstick cuts of carrots or red, orange, and yellow bell peppers can work wonders.
Want a frozen tv dinner that looks as good on the inside as it does on the exterior box? Try Lean Cuisine's Butternut Squash Ravioli dinner. It cooks in the microwave in a few minutes, is delicious, and calorie conscious. They use those vivid colors mentioned above.
Sticky rice? Rinse with warm water and add some lemon juice to it, mixing well. Then fluff the cooked rice with a fork.
Eggs curdling in your recipe? Temper them before adding them to a recipe by adding a small amount of the hot liquid to the eggs and whisking them until blended.
Want a shiny finish for your pies, biscuits, or pastry? Beat an egg with 1 Tbsp. water, then brush over the top before baking. Sprinkle with some sugar if desired.
Drink a large glassful of ice water with your meals and stir in 1 or 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar to help you lose weight. If you can't stand vinegar, try using the same amount of either lemon or lime juice in your glass of water.
Need some caramel quick? To an empty skillet, add 1 or 2 cups white sugar. Cook over medium heat until sugar melts and turns amber while stirring well. Do not let it burn! Add 1 Tbsp. milk and butter per cup sugar used and whisk.
You can also make a quick caramel sauce by simply adding light brown sugar to a Teflon coated skillet and stirring it until melted over low heat.
Keep a couple bags of Caramel Bits in your food pantry. You can buy them online at www.nutsonline.com.
Lumpy gravy or sauce? Use an immersion blender, regular blender on high speed, food processor, or simply strain through a sieve or colander to get rid of any lumps.
Soup, sauce, gravy too thin? Dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 1/4 cup cold water. Add while boiling and stirring. Repeat if necessary until you get the desired thickness you want.
Cornstarch cannot be added directly to anything hot or it will just make a globbed mess. Always dissolve cornstarch completely in cold water before adding to anything. It makes a wonderful thickener when added to any boiling liquids. Arrowroot Powder, an herb, and Agar, a sea vegetable can also be used as thickeners in recipes by dissolving them first in cold water then mixing them into your boiling liquid.
Never boil milk or cream. Just heat it until the edges begin to form bubbles.
Sprinkle in some instant potatoes to a sauce that is too thin to thicken it to the right consistency.
Are your mashed potatoes lumpy? Never use cold milk or butter. Heat both before adding to your potatoes and mashing them.
Need a tea bag for all that loose tea you bought? Make your own using a coffee filter, fold down, then staple it closed. www.adagio.com sells empty teabag filters in packs of 100.
Breath smells like garlic or onion? Chew on a coffee bean or sprig of parsley. Take some chlorophyll or activated charcoal tablets after eating. Use a mouthwash called Smart Mouthwash.
Hands smell like fish, garlic, or onions? Rinse hands under cold tapwater while rubbing them with a large stainless steel spoon. You can also purchase a peanut shaped, soap-sized piece of stainless steel that was created just for this purpose at www.kitchencollection.com for $4.
Make a roux by combining 2 Tbsp. butter, 2 Tbsp. flour, and cooking it for a minute. Add 1 cup water or broth, and whisk well until your recipe is thickened.
Making a gravy is easy. Add equal parts of butter and flour to form a roux in a skillet over medium heat. Then add one liquid of your choice, usually cream, milk, broth, water, or wine. Keep stirring constantly until the gravy is as thick as you want.
Hard brown sugar? Place in paper bag and microwave for a few seconds. To keep brown sugar from getting hard, add a piece of white bread or a slice of apple to the box after opening.
Extremely hard brown sugar? Place chunks in food processor and process on high.
Need to reduce calories in a recipe? Save by using cooking oil sprays. One second of spray equals seven calories.
Want flavored coffees or teas? Use extracts in your regular coffee or teas. One capful per cup is usually plenty. Adjust according to your taste preferences or the strength of the extracts, i.e. peppermint or cinnamon being very powerful so that only a drop might be needed.
Enjoy flavored dairy products but find them too expensive? Make your own by adding extracts to milk. Just remember lemon juice or any citrus juice will curdle milk.
Want to make cappucino or lattes? Froth the heated milk with an immersion blender.
Need buttermilk? Add 1 Tbsp. lemon juice to 1 cup milk. Stir. Within minutes you will have buttermilk.
Need a lighter flour or cornmeal? Add 1 tsp. baking powder for each cup flour or cornmeal in your recipe. Mix this together before adding to your recipe.
Batter your fish filets in self-rising cornmeal before frying them for a real taste treat. Dip them first in either buttermilk or a beaten egg, then in the cornmeal, and fry in hot oil until done on both sides. Serve with lemon wedges.
Has your flour or cornmeal passed its expiration date? Just add more baking powder and baking soda when you use it. Add 1 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. baking soda per cup flour or cornmeal used in your recipe.
No baking powder? Make your own by combining equal parts of baking soda, cream of tartar, and cornstarch.
Is your juice too sour? Add a bit of salt to make it taste sweeter.
To bring out the sweetness of watermelon or cantalope, sprinkle on some salt.
Salt enhances the flavors of foods, but use Celtic Sea Salt for its nutritional values. Fleur de Sel Sea Salt is the finest gourmet salt you can buy.
Freshly cracked black peppercorns from a peppermill will not make a person sneeze like the pre-packaged powdered black pepper will.
Need to make your milk stay fresh longer? Add a pinch of salt or baking soda to make it last longer.
No milk? Mix same amount nonfat dry milk powder or canned evaporated milk into your recipe. Honeyville Grains sells nonfat dry milk and buttermilk powders that have high reviews.
Cheese turns moldy? You can make cheese last a lot longer by rubbing it with butter and placing it in a zippered plastic bag squeezing out all the air.
Have to use tougher, cheaper cuts of meats because you cannot afford better cuts? It's ok, just add a couple tablespoons of vinegar to the water you boil the meat in to make them fork tender. Or you can boil the meat in black tea which will also make your meat fork tender.
Crockpots are an excellent way to cook cheaper cuts of meat to make them tender.
Tired of onions making you cry when you chop them? Put them in the freezer 30 minutes before you chop them, and no more tears. It also works by storing onions in the refrigerator in plastic bags.
Limp lettuce or vegetables? Soak them in ice water for about 15 minutes and they should be crisp again.
No honey? Substitute 1-1/4 cups sugar dissolved in 1 cup water.
Need to stop eating sugar? Use Splenda.
Recipe calls for alcohol, and you don't drink? Just add an appropriate color grape juice instead, i.e., red grape juice for red wine, or white grape juice for white wine. Or you can use an extract such as brandy or rum, or vanilla.
Need chicken stock? Use 1 or 2 chicken bouillion cubes dissolved in one cup hot water.
Need beef stock? Use 1 or 2 beef bouillion cubes dissolved in one cup hot water.
Anytime you use a broth, stock, or bouillion cube or powder, be careful of adding any salt because they are usually very salty. This can even apply to low sodium labels. Taste your recipe to determine if any salt is needed.
Search the ethnic aisles in your supermarket to find lots of spices to try. Look for Knorr Seasoning Cubes in the flavors of Garlic, Onion, Cilantro, or Chipotle. Or try Tajin Seasoning for fruits.
No tomato juice or tomato sauce? Combine 1/2 cup ketchup in 1/2 cup water and mix well for a substitute. You can make tomato soup easily this way.
Need a darker gravy? Add 1 Tbsp. dark soy sauce. Use a product called Gravy Master. Or simply add some brown food coloring.
No chocolate? Use cocoa powder or carob powder.
Want chocolate to taste much richer? Add 1 tsp. instant coffee to your recipe.
Add a teaspoon each of chocolate and instant coffee granules to your next batch of homemade chili, and taste the richness in flavor difference.
Add some lemon, lime, or orange zest to your pudding recipes to get more flavor.
Did your melted chocolate seize up? Add 1 or 2 Tbsp. oil, stirring well. Never put any water into melting chocolate.
Burned a recipe? Scoop out the top part into another dish, without getting any of the burned part, and it should be okay to eat.
You can disguise a burned flavor in foods with peanut butter. Just mix a couple tablespoons peanut butter into the dish, and see if it helps.
Cooked beets, red onions, red cabbage or any purple colored vegetables seem to be fading in color when you cook them? Just add 1 Tbsp. lemon juice or white vinegar to the cooking pan and watch them come back to life again.
To perk up canned vegetables flavor, just add 1 Tbsp. lemon juice to them while heating them. The lemon juice makes them taste fresher.
Does your brocolli taste too bland? Add 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds to the cooking water.
Do your cooked greens taste too bland? Add 1 tsp. minced garlic to the cooking water to perk them up. Just before eating, add some hot sauce to them, and they will taste better than you have ever eaten them.
Try adding some culinary lavender sprinkled into your foods for added flavor. Especially good in cooked spinach, or mixed into applesauce.
Do your artichokes taste too bland? Add 1/3 tsp. fennel seeds to your cooking water before you cook the artichokes, and the taste should be much better. Fennel seeds have a licorice taste.
Always add some lemon juice to your water before cooking the artichokes, even if you don't like fennel seeds.
Buy an air popper for organic popcorn kernels to reduce calories consumed for snacks. You can buy one for ten dollars at www.kitchencollection.com.
Are your cauliflower florets or potatoes turning dark? Add 1 tsp. white vinegar or lemon juice to the cooking water to turn them white again.
Asparagus spears tends to lose their sweetness the older they get. Add 1 Tbsp. sugar to the water with 1/4 tsp. salt to retain their color while cooking. Asparagus has very few calories. It is also a diuretic food.
Try cooking beets in pomegranate juice or grenadine syrup for a wonderful flavor.
Try adding cooked bacon to your halved Brussel Sprouts and sauteing them together in some butter for added flavor.
Try drinking more water each day, and see if you do not feel better. Divide your weight by two and that is the number ounces water your body needs daily as a minimum. For every 8 oz. caffeine drink you consume you should add another 12 oz. of water to offset the harm the caffeine is doing to your body.
Use pure cold-pressed sesame oil internally and externally to keep healthy.
Use extra virgin coconut oil in your cooking and baking. Use it on your bread instead of butter. Tastes great and will help you lose weight and aches and pains go away. Take just 4 Tbsp. per day and see and feel the difference in your body fast. Try frying your eggs in coconut oil for a taste treat.
Instead of using butter to pop your popcorn, try using extra virgin coconut oil. It makes popcorn taste amazing.
If your eggplant begins to discolor while it is cooking, just add a small amount of salt to the water.
Popcorn kernels won't pop? Soak them in warm water for 3 or 4 minutes before trying to pop them again. Store your popcorn in the freezer and every kernel should pop.
PopWeaver brand microwavable popcorn is the same as gourmet popcorn, just a lot less expensive. You can buy it at Walmart 24 bags for $5.
Too salty soup? You can either add a potato, some tomatoes, or some brown sugar to soak up the excess salt.
Burned the stew? Remove the unburned part to another pot with a wooden spoon. Add some onions or peanut butter to remove any burned flavor that remains.
Tired of serving plain mashed potatoes or rice? Try mashing cooked carrots, rutabagas, or sweet potatoes instead. You can add ginger to carrots and cinnamon to sweet potatoes to create additional flavors. Try mixing your regular mashed potatoes with cooked mashed celery root, or make them Faux Peruvian Blue Mashed Potatoes by adding some red and blue food coloring gel to get a purple color, or mash cooked cauliflower for other recipe varieties.
Uncle Ben's Ready Rice is microwavable in its pouch and comes in a variety of flavors you can have ready for the table in just 90 seconds. My favorite is the Brown and Wild Ready Rice.
If your children won't eat broccoli florets, call them little green trees, and they will love them. Call cauliflower florets little albino trees. Just using a different name that appeals to kids can make a big difference in what they will eat.
Burned your rice? Carefully remove the unburned rice from the pot to another pot. Add more water and lay on top of the rice a piece of white loaf bread. Continue cooking on low heat for another 15 minutes, then discard the bread. The rice should be okay now.
Want your cooked veal to be nice and white? Soak it in whole milk in the refrigerator overnight before cooking it.
Want easy-to-peel tomatoes? Soak them in boiling water for 5 minutes and the skins will just peel right off.
If your cakes have all the ingredients sunk to the bottom of the pan, all you need to do, is coat all the ingredients with flour before adding them to the cake mix ingredients.
If your breading does not want to stick to fried foods, try dredging them with dry flour first, then dipping them into your wet mixture, then into either flour, cornmeal, or panko breadcrumbs. Your breading should adhere well for fried or baked foods.
Did you know you can substitute nectar or fruit juices for the water in cake mixes to make them taste much richer?
Soggy crackers or chips? Reheat them for 3 minutes at 350 degrees on a shiny piece of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet to crisp them again.
Need some crackers and don't have any? Use those extra large multi-grain Rice Krispies. Each one is about the size of a woman's pinky fingernail, so they make excellent bite-sized crackers for soups, stews, or salads.
Are your nuts turning rancid? Toast them in a skillet for a few minutes, and they should taste okay again. You need to store nuts in a plastic freezer bag in the freezer, and use as needed, to keep the oils in them from turning rancid.
Milk or cream getting sour? Add a pinch of baking soda to it and it should last another couple days.
Need some Marshmallow Fluff for a recipe, but don't have any? Two cups of miniature marshmallows equals one 7 oz. jar of Marshmallow Fluff. Don't have any mini marshmallows? use the regular sized marshmallows, filling two cups.
Bananas ripening too fast? Make sure you don't keep them near apples or tomatoes because they give off ethylene gas which makes the bananas ripen much faster. Regardless how well you wrap bananas, if you place them in the refrigerator, they will turn black. Some say they are good for a month this way, but the taste is definitely not as good.
To ripen a green banana fast, place it in a brown paper bag with an apple or tomato and close the bag.
You can substitute a cup of plain yogurt for eggs and milk in any recipe.
Extra virgin coconut oil can be substituted for butter on toast or in baking or cooking.
For one onion in a recipe, you can substitute 1-1/2 Tbsp. onion powder or 1/4 cup dehydrated minced onions.
Sometimes onion powder and garlic powder works better in recipes where the mixture needs to be blended very smooth.
For one clove garlic in a recipe, you can substitute 1 tsp. minced garlic or 1 tsp. garlic powder.
For one bell pepper in a recipe, you can substitute 1/4 cup diced dehydrated bell peppers.
For one cup carrots in a recipe, you can substitute 1/2 cup dehydrated diced carrots.
For one cup spinach in a recipe, you can substitute 3 Tbsp. spinach powder.
For one tomato in a recipe, you can substitute 1 Tbsp. tomato powder.
If you don't have any celery stalks, you can substitute 1 tsp. celery seeds for 2 or 3 stalks in a recipe.
If you don't have any peanut butter, make your own with 1 cup raw or roasted peanuts, and 1 Tbsp. oil and a dash of sea salt in a blender on high for a minute. Any nut butter can be made this way.
Make your own nut milk by using 1 cup any white blanched nuts (skins removed) placed in a blender on high with 3 cups water. Then strain out the sediments through a fine meshed sieve and push with a spoon to make sure all the liquid is removed. These pulverized nuts can be used to make a nut butter, nutloaf, or nut burgers, and the milk can be drank chilled. Very delicious!
You can make a delicious pudding by using those leftover pulverized nuts, a large brick of Neuchatel cream cheese, and a bottle of thoroughly drained cherries placed in a food processor on high. Chill in dessert dishes, then serve.
Try using light agave nectar as a sugar substitute and as a syrup for pancakes or waffles. The glycemic index is much lower. VitaCost.com sells it online. It tastes wonderful in hot teas!
Did you know that pure honey contains natural hydrogen peroxide which keeps our cells healthy?
With all the MRSAs that poultry processors have nowadays, it is wise to spray all poultry, meats, or seafood with 3% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide to clean them, then rinse with pure water, and cook them thoroughly. This also helps tenderize them.
Fresh fruits and vegetables can also be cleaned with a 3% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide mixture to remove pathogens, parasites, viruses, and germs. Rinse well after soaking them in a mixture of 2 Tbsp. 3% Hydrogen Peroxide to 1 Gallon pure water, and swishing them around in it for 15 minutes. Do not use chlorinated tap water. It messes up the hydrogen peroxide's effectiveness.
Does your gallon of milk spoil before you can drink all of it? Just add 1 teaspoon of 3% Food Grade Hydrogen Peroxide to the gallon, and it will last at least a month.
Adding 1 Tbsp. white vinegar to the boiling water will keep eggs from cracking when you boil them, or it stabilizes the water if you want to poach them. Poaching an egg requires about five to seven minutes of cooking time in boiling water.
To boil eggs perfectly, without that green ring around the yolks, bring them to a full boil, then turn off the heat. Cover the pot, and let them sit for twenty minutes. Rinse them in cold water, and drain on paper towels. They will be perfectly cooked. To peel them, begin by cracking the shells on the fat end of each egg where there is an air pocket on eggs, and they will peel easier.
To stew meat, add 1 Tbsp. vinegar to the liquid to tenderize cheaper cuts of meat.
Try to eat as many raw, fresh, organic fruits and vegetables each day as you can to enjoy more nutrients in them and maintain better health. Cooking destroys nutrients.
Got some overripe bananas? Don't throw them away. Mash them, and add a teaspoon lemon or lime juice to keep them from turning brown, then store in plastic zippered bags in the freezer in one cup portions. When you want to bake muffins or banana nut bread you will always have ripe mashed bananas on hand. However, frozen bananas are not as tasty as fresh ones are.
Add 1 tsp. lemon or lime juice to canned vegetables to make them taste fresher.
Peel a banana and wrap it in plastic wrap and keep in the freezer to make a smoothie. Just pop a whole frozen banana in the blender with some milk, yogurt, and honey, and liquify ingredients. Extra fruit can be added for various flavors. Fruits that are frozen can be substituted for ice cubes in smoothies or quick ice cream recipes.
Make your own pure vanilla extract by soaking several split vanilla pods in a pint of vodka for about six weeks. The more vanilla pods you use the stronger the extract will be, as will the longer you soak them. This can be done with any sized bottle of vodka because the ratio of vanilla pods is up to you and your taste preferences.
Any extract can be made in that same manner by just changing whatever flavor you want to that particular fruit. You should shake it daily, then at the end of the six weeks period, strain out any of the fruit and discard it. Again, the strength depends on how much you use and how long it soaks.
Soaking a box of golden raisins in a pint of gin until all the gin is soaked up, and then eating nine of the raisins each day is said to be a cure for arthritis.
Eating 20 dried cherries every day is said to cure gout, or any problems with the big toe, when nothing else seems to work.
If your celery stalks are starting to look stale, cut off the root ends (the white base sections,) then stand all the stalks in a container of water, and store in the refrigerator for a few hours to make them crunchy again.
Wrap stalks of celery in aluminum foil and store them in the refrigerator, and they will keep for weeks.
When making boiled eggs, to prevent the eggshells from cracking, add a splash of white vinegar to the water before boiling them, or just add a pinch of salt to the water. Bring the water to a full boil with the eggs in it, then turn off the heat. Cover the pot. Let it sit for 20 minutes. Then remove eggs and peel them under cold water for perfectly boiled eggs without a green ring.
If you need to measure syrup, honey, molasses, tomato sauce, or anything that is sticky or clingy, spray the measuring cup or spoon with a neutral cooking spray first so the sticky ingredients will release easily.
Beware of using too much nutmeg in a recipe, as it could do harm to someone. Nutmeg is very powerful. Only 1 teaspoon of the oil can be lethal.
By spraying any plastic container with cooking spray before you add tomato products or spaghetti sauce, it will not stain your plastic ware.
Place an apple in your bag of potatoes to keep the eyes from sprouting.
Make your potatoes and onions or any root-type vegetables last longer and keep them from sprouting by hanging them in a dark place using an old pair of clean pantyhose. Fill the leg parts with the vegetables, then tie a knot in between each. Hang them from a nail or hook at the waist part. When you need to use one, simply use your scissors and cut it off the stocking.
Butter spray your measuring spoons or cups before adding honey, oil, tomato sauce, tomato paste, or anything heavy so it will release quickly.
ADDITIONAL HELPFUL TIPS:
Stinky odors? Dip a hand towel into vinegar and wring it out. Twirl it around over your head to remove stinky odors in your home.
Burn candles to remove stinky tobacco smoke odors.
Freeze candles to make them dripless when used.
Need sharper kitchen scissors? Fold several layers of aluminum foil and cut through them with your dull scissors. It should sharpen them. You can do the same thing using Brillo or SOS soap pads.
Got spiders? Put 2 Tbsp. coconut oil into one cup warm water in a spray bottle, and spray all corners or where they would be to get rid of them.
Got ants? Ants will not cross a white chalk line. They also hate dried cucumber peelings.
Got mice? Plug up any holes in and around kitchen and bathroom pipes and electrical connections with SOS or Brillo Soap Pads. Mice hate steel wool and won't go near it.
Keep sticks of peppermint gum on your cabinet shelves as mice hate the smell of peppermint and won't go near it. You can hang knee high stockings full of mothballs up underneath your house and mice won't come near your home. Or just toss some cottonballs saturated with peppermint oil up under the house and that will do the same thing but smell much nicer, because the smell of mothballs will come up into your house.
Lizards can be repelled with mothballs placed outside your doors. They don't like the smell of ammonia.
Got roaches? Just put 2 Tbsp. hot sauce in one cup water in a spray bottle and spray wherever they crawl to get rid of them for good.
A pesticide called Ortho Home Defense Max spray can be used inside and outside your home to get rid of any type pests. It is supposed to be safe to use around humans or pets. You can buy it at Home Depot.
Clean with citrus ammonia spray cleaner from the dollar store, and you won't have to worry about mice, bugs, or spiders since they cannot stand the smell. Do NOT ever mix ammonia and bleach as the fumes can kill you or anyone else who breathes them. Be very careful of mixing any cleaning products nowadays as they can become deadly in the fumes they give off.
Bleach is good to kill mold, mildew, germs, and bacteria around the house. Just never mix it with ammonia or the vapors can be lethal.
3% Hydrogen Peroxide will also kill parasites and pathogens as well as bleach does, but it leaves no harmful fumes. You can use it as a bleach substitute even in your laundry or dishwasher to kill germs. It also kills germs on your countertops and floors, so it would be considered a green cleaner safe for the environment when mixed with water or used straight. I wouldn't recommend using a stronger version, as it could become unstable or corrosive.
Using microfiber cleaning cloths requires nothing but water used with them. One side cleans, the other side polishes. Just remember when laundering them to not use bleach or fabric softener in them in the washer or the dryer, or it will make them much less effective. 3% Hydrogen Peroxide can be used with them for killing pathogens.
If you think bugs are coming from a neighbor's house, just buy several bottles of cayenne pepper from your local dollar store, and sprinkle it between your house and the neighbors on all sides for no more traveling bugs. You can also sprinkle cayenne pepper around your doors to keep bugs, lizards, and other pests away.
You can use Essential Oils to fragrance your home by keeping them sprinkled in various places in your home. Not only will they make your home smell fantastic, but they will lift your spirit as well.
All flying insects and crawling, creeping things do not like the odors of pure peppermint or lavender oils. You can buy both pure essential oils at VitaCost.com and sprinkle some in your cabinets, drawers, countertops, and corners of all your rooms to repel them. Don't forget your doorways and window sills either.
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