Kay’s Cooking Corner
January 9-15, 2017
A new year and new ways of cooking and cleaning!
By Kay Bona
Well, Thanksgiving is over, Christmas is over, and celebrating the arrival of January 1, 2017 has come and gone. For the time being, everything is quiet. Except for the stores. The exchanges and gift card redemptions are in full swing. And in some stores, the Valentines Day merchandise is being put out. At least Valentines Day doesn’t affect my house as much as the other celebratory days do.
Before Thanksgiving I do a deep cleaning, and then the decorations come out of the attic. After New Years Day, the decorations are tucked back into their little boxes, stored back in the attic, and another good cleaning ensues. This time to clean up all the glitter, find and pick-up little balls and Lego parts (compliments of my grandson), game pieces and stray ribbon from gifts, and to get the furniture and regular décor item back into place.
Also, floors, bathrooms and kitchens need another good cleaning. This cleaning should last until time for the spring-cleaning, but that is not the usual. It feels like I spring-clean all the time!
One of my Christmas gifts from Don’s sister, Judy, was a book of ideas for cleaning with baking soda by Vicki Lansky, which I love, because I like to use natural ways of cleaning anywhere I can. Judy also tucked in a booklet of "Heloise’s Best Baking Soda" hints. I love reading her articles in the paper everyday.
Most everyone has heard of Heloise, but unless you read Family Circle Magazine, you probably are not familiar with Vicki Lansky. She is a contributing editor for Family Circle and has written several books on household cleaning. Today I thought I would share a few of what I think are the best ones from Vicki’s book.
In Vicki’s book the first chapter is about where baking soda comes from and how it is produced. Baking soda, or bicarbonate of soda, is found naturally in mineral deposits, lake sediments, groundwater, and in the ocean. Almost all baking soda in North America today comes from the mined mineral, truna, which is found in Green River, Wyoming. She also writes that baking soda is manufactured in our bodies, where it maintains the acidic level in different parts of our body, such as the blood, saliva, and stomach, where it reduces acids. (If that was ever taught to me in nursing school, I must have been asleep.)
I really learned a lot about baking soda in Vicki’s book that I never knew, so on to her hints, and most of them will be about cooking.
– Give chocolate cake a darker texture by mixing 1 teaspoon of baking soda with other dry ingredients.
– Keep icing moist and prevent cracking by adding a pinch of baking soda before spreading it on the cake.
– Sweeten tart blackberries for pies and cobblers by adding 1/2 teaspoon baking soda before adding sugar.
– Substitute honey for sugar in a recipe by using 2/3 cuphoney for each cup of sugar, then add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda for every cup of honey. Also reduce the liquid in the recipe by 1/4 cup and bake 25˚F lower than recipe states.
– Add a pinch of baking soda to buttermilk to make waffles light and soft.
– Add fluff to mashed potatoes by adding a pinch of baking soda while mashing.
– Tenderize tough meat by rubbing with baking soda. Allow it to stand a few hours then rinse before using.
– Use in water to clean poultry. Rinse with clean water. There is no residue to worry about.
– Soak raw fish for at least half hour in 2-tablespoons of baking soda per quart of water. Rinse and pat dry; it removes the fishy taste.
– This one is for the hunters: After field-dressing a deer, sprinkle baking soda in the cavities to control odors until it can be processed.
– Clean dirt and residue off vegetables by sprinkling baking soda on a wet sponge and scrubbing away. Rinse with clean water.
– Add 1-teaspoon baking soda to the water when cooking cauliflower to keep it snowy white and reduce odors.
– Use to deep-clean cutting boards. Spread baking soda over the surface, sprinkle with vinegar. After it bubbles up a bit, rinse with hot water.
– Use baking soda as a nonabrasive cleanser for sinks. It won’t scratch the stainless steel.
– Open a clogged drain by pouring 1 cup of baking soda down the drain then adding 1 cup of hot vinegar. Wait a few minutes then flush with hot water.
– Make your own dishwasher detergent by mixing 2 tablespoons baking soda with 2 tablespoons borax.
Vicki’s ways of using baking soda go on and on. I can see that I am going to enjoy this book!
As for Heloise, I guess I will have to follow-up the next column with her ideas; I am running out of room and have not yet done a recipe. How about one from Vicki’s book? She has included one of my favorite desserts – Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Best Chocolate Chip Cookie
2-1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup shortening, margarine or butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
2 eggs
2 cups (12 ounce) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
Mix flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. In large bowl with electric mixer, combine shortening, sugars, and vanilla until creamy. Gradually add dry ingredients, mixing well after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.
Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees about 8 minutes. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.
Kay Bona is a staff writer for the Daily Record and an award-winning columnist and photographer. Contact her at kay@dailydata.com.
