Being a housewife isn’t an easy job (if you read my blog regularly, you’re probably thinking “yeah, right”). Moi does actually do some work you know … sometimes. Here are some little tips I learned along the way.
1- Got excess bread that you know is going to go bad if you keep it much longer? Whizz it up in the food processor with some basil, parsley, salt and pepper and… voila, you got Italian bread crumbs. For some other variations, you can try lemon zest and freshly cracked pepper, or chilli and garlic, or for something a bit decadent, try some brioche breadcrumbs. The possibility of gourmet customised breadcrumbs are cheap and unlimited. Or, just whizz up the bread with no added ingredients for a very simple but versatile ingredient. You either mixture as a binder element when you are making meatballs or a meatloaf. Keep it in a ziplock bag in the freezer and take them out whenever you need them. When you think about it, its silly to buy breadcrumbs. Most of us tend to overbuy bread, so there’s no reason not to have fresh breadcrumbs aplenty!
2- If you have wood floors and get a little scratch, rub some oil into the scratch. Any kind will do, corn oil, olive oil… this will help “heal” the scratch and protect the area.
3. Toothpaste cleans tarnished silver! Who would’a guessed???
4. If you are using fresh vanilla beans in a recipe, don’t throw out the empty vanilla pod. Slice the empty pods into small pieces. Using an airtight jar, fill it up with sugar and stir the vanilla pieces. Store in a cool place for about a month and you will have vanilla sugar, a fabulous gourmet ingredient with minimum effort. As you use up the sugar, just put some more in. Vanilla beans can give off their scent for up to two years! Lavender scented sugar can be made in a similar way using culinary dried lavender.
5. Here’s a tip I learned from my grandmother. Sometimes the insides of cups become tea stained, and it seems impossible to remove them. Not so my dears. Simply pour some bleach into the cup/mug and let it sit in there for a few hours. It may seem a big harsh, but this works! Rinse and wash very thoroughly, and it should be as good as new.
What’s your favorite household tip?
