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Saving Cooking Disasters

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Saving Cooking Disasters

I happened to think of a couple of things today that might help you for Thanksgiving and for any of the other holidays, too.

First, if you haven’t already done it, clean out your refrigerator today. You really should clean your refrigerator before you go buy everything for your dinner but if you haven’t done it yet, do it now. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to stuff leftovers into an already full fridge when you have a house full of company over, so clean it now. If you can, leave a certain shelf for the things you are going to store before and after Thanksgiving dinner.

Fixing Cooking Boo Boos:

  • If you didn’t cook your turkey with our recipe, it may come out too dry. Don’t panic. Just slice it, lay it on a platter and pour gravy over it. Then serve.
  • If your stuffing is too dry, once again, add some turkey brot or gravy to it.
  • If a side dish burns and sticks to the bottom of the pot, carefully pour it out of the pot, being sure not to scrape the bottom of the pan or any of the food stuck to it. You can save quite a bit this way.
  • If your dinner rolls burn, carefully slice off the bottoms. If all of the bottoms are gone, people will think that is just the way they are supposed to be.
  • If the crust on your pumpkin pie doesn’t turn out, scrape out the filling and place it in a nice serving dish. Cover it with lots of whipped topping sprinkled with a little cinnamon and call it Pumpkin custard.

Let’s Talk Turkey

I don’t think there is anything more dismal looking then a picked over turkey carcass. Usually, I am so tired from making the meal, being hostess and cleaning up that having to face the turkey carcass can almost put me over the edge. What I finally learned is not to do anything with it on Thanksgiving day. Then, the day after Thanksgiving, we pick at it all day long, making sandwiches and other things. Later I pick off the last of the big chunks.

I usually cook my turkey wrapped in foil or in a disposable pan so, when I’m done, I just wrap the foil around the turkey or gently shape the disposable pan around it. Then I stick it all in a couple of plastic bags, pop it in the freezer and forget it for a couple of weeks. Often I wait until January when I bring out the turkey remains and toss the carcass into a large pot for soup. That’s when it gets it’s final picking over.

If any of you have tips about how to fix Thanksgiving cooking boo boos for our beginning cooks and even some of us old timers, feel free to post. You may be the one to save someone’s Thanksgiving. : )

       -Jill

We just received this today from a reader and thought it was perfect to add here.

From Cindy:

I had just made your pecan pie muffin recipe and popped it into the oven. I checked another recipe site (not as good as yours!) and many commenters said their muffins stuck to the pans and that they had to make it over again with flour, oil, Baker’s Joy or whatever.

I thought “Great! I need these for a bake sale tomorrow. Just my luck– They’ll be stuck in the pan and unusable.” So when I took the pan out of the oven I immediately ran a sharp knife around the sides and popped the muffins out. It worked just fine. I can see, though, that if you left them in the pan to cool they probably would stick. They’re very good. Thanks for the recipe and Happy Thanksgiving!

 

This is a good place to give everyone a heads up that if you bake anything  sticky, sugary or syrupy, you’ll want to get it out of the pan immediately before it cools. I put a sticky topping on my cinnamon rolls so I have another pan ready to “dump” them on to the minute they come out of the oven.

Be careful with things like pecan pies and don’t fill them so full that they spill over the top and onto the edge because you will spend most of the day chiseling and trying to get a piece of pie out of the pan.

Of course, when it comes to pecan pie, I would find a way to get it out of the pan and into my mouth, even going as far as sucking on the pan if I have to. Yum! : ) : )

No matter what you make, a good rule of thumb is that if it is sticky and touches the pan it is like brushing on glue so either grease it very well or get it out of the pan quickly.

      -Jill

 

photos by: toomanythoughts and technodad

How Do I Winterize An Outside Faucet?

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Winterizing Outside Faucet

How Do I Winterize An Outside Faucet

From: Janice J.

How do you use styrofoam to protect an outside faucet? It is getting colder and I am worried. Thanks!

I would duct tape a big chunk around the faucet. Maybe break it apart so it fits snugly around the faucet and then just duct tape away until it’s on there tightly.

      -Tawra

Depending on your faucet, I have taken 2 large styrofoam cups and put one inside of the other then taped. Be sure to get it as close to the house as you can.

This really works. I had my outside faucet freeze one year and what a mess so I don’t chance it any more especially since it is so easy to do.

      -Jill

Mike: It might also be good to stuff some rags into any places where air might get in, wrap the outside with a plastic trash bag and tape it with heavy duct tape to prevent moisture from getting in. (If it’s in a sunny area, a black plastic bag will keep it warmer in the daytime, too be cause the black absorbs sunlight.) If you manage to keep cold air and moisture out and provide some insulation with the foam, rags and/or some other insulating material, it should not freeze.

Of course, if it’s possible to turn off the water to that faucet from inside the house and then open the faucet to let any water drain out before you wrap it, that would be even better.

Photo By: rwkvisual

Great Things To Do With Baby Food Jars

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With a baby and two preschoolers, I don’t have the time or inclination to make homemade baby food. My Meijer grocery store puts Gerber baby food on sale frequently, and with coupons it’s the same price as generic.

One way to reuse those Gerber plastic fruit/veggie tubs is to rinse them out and put cheerios, goldfish, pretzels, and/or raisins in them for trips to the park, zoo, or car trips in the van. They contain just the right amount of snack for a preschooler, the child can get the lid on and off, and I don’t care if they get lost or are used as a sand toy!

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Menu – Yankee Noodles, Bottled (Canned) Fruit Cake

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Tips:

Sometimes we tend to make our meals so much more complicated than they need to be. I was blessed to be able to watch many women prepare their meals who learned to cook during the 30’s and 40’s. Some were busy stay at home moms. Others were moms who worked away from home and some were moms who helped their husbands on the farm.

These women used some tricks to prepare their meals that made meal preparation easier and faster. Here are a few of them:

    • They didn’t worry if they had homemade biscuits or muffins for every meal. Often for a daily meal they would just place a plate of bread (not always homemade bread, either) on the table to eat with butter and jam or honey. In some homes, this was a staple at every meal.

 

    • They would keep things cleaned and ready to use for a relish dish like carrot sticks, celery sticks, olives, pickles, sliced cucumbers, tomatoes or fresh cauliflower.

 

    • Hard boiled eggs or pickled beets were kept on hand to place in a bowl at the last minute.

 

    • They didn’t hesitate to open some canned fruit to pour into a bowl and set on the table to eat by itself without whipped cream or any added extras.

 

  • Canned vegetables were a life saver for many of them. Then they could just warm some canned peas to set on the table.

 

They served some combination of all of these at most meals. Then they would add a potato dish, rice or noodles and a meat and they would have dinner.

Sometimes we read cooking magazines and see very elaborate meals on TV and think if this isn’t the kind of food we make we must have failed as good cooks. Each dish doesn’t need five or more ingredients in it to make it good. That is probably one of the places where our diets started going down the tubes. We forgot to keep things simple.

You also save money when you keep it simple because you’re not using as many ingredients or extras like whipped cream or special spices.

Just like in the old days, your family will probably enjoy an icy cold canned peach just as much as a fresh organically grown peach you had to study to determine how ripe it was before you took it home to try to peel and slice it. It’s you, mom and dad, who make the meal special just by being together with the family, not the pedigree of your fruits and vegetables.

 

Menu:

Yankee Noodles*
Relish Dish
Bread and Jam
Bottled (canned) Fruit Cake*

Yankee Noodles

From: Alice B. (I learned this recipe in junior high. It’s tasty, quick to cook, inexpensive, and dirties only one pan!)

1 lb. lean ground beef
8 oz. uncooked noodles
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 large can tomatoes
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Brown meat and onion. Drain off excess grease. Add noodles and canned tomatoes. Chop tomatoes a little bit while in the pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and simmer covered for 7 minutes. Stir. Cover and simmer 8 more minutes. That’s it!

You can add other ingredients you may have on hand like chopped green peppers, black olives, mushrooms, fresh herbs, etc. You may want to top with grated cheese. (Never cook the noodles first. They must cook with the rest of ingredients to absorb their flavors.)

I love, love, love recipes that take only one pan and this one really does! Often, people will call something a one dish meal but they end up using 3 pans, 2 mixing bowls and 1 casserole dish. (That’s the one dish, I guess.) Now you can see why I really appreciated your recipe. : )

      -Jill

 

Bottled Fruit Cake

From: Ruth P.

CAKE USING BOTTLED FRUIT – (Sometimes we have an excess of home bottled fruit and need to use it up before it gets old. This is a great way to use it!)

1 quart of fruit with liquid
4 cups flour
4 tsp. soda
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 cup oil
4 eggs
Raisins and nuts if desired

Blend all of the above ingredients at the same time. Bake at 350° for 35 to 45 minutes. This makes one sheet cake or two cakes in 9×13 inch pans. This is a nice change from just using the fruit for a crisp, cobbler. or pie. You don’t need to put frosting on this, which can save time, too.

 

Photo by: Yoames

Medical Savings

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Medical Savings

We had to take my son to the emergency room again the other night. We aren’t the type to go for every little thing and usually go only for big, gaping, bleeding things but it does seem like we have to go there pretty frequently– so much so that I keep an "emergency room" bag packed and hanging by my purse. It includes snacks, sewing supplies, books to read and so on because going to the emergency room can and usually does mean a many hour wait. When the kids were little, I would sometimes have to take the child that wasn’t hurt with me, too. They would get hungry or restless and the things in my bag would help.

Recently, my son dropped a large log on his toe, cutting it and smashing it severely. (This is a hazard you don’t always hear people talk about with regard to heating your home with wood)  He is fine and needs just to be on crutches for a few days but he had a good tip for me to give to our readers.

When the doctors were fixing his toe, the nurse took out a large tube of antibacterial ointment to apply to it. He asked her "Are you throwing that tube away?" She said "Yes," and asked if he wanted it, since he had paid for it. He told me that it is a large enough tube that it contains enough ointment to last his family 3-4 years. Then she took a huge piece of gauze and cut a small piece from it. Again he asked to keep the remains.

You can ask for these things. My mom has gotten scissors that they used when putting in stitches or tweezers when they took out stitches. Also, be careful if you are admitted to the hospital to take your regular medications with you or have a family member bring them to you. These are called self administered drugs (medications which you take on a daily basis). Be sure to tell the doctor you are taking them and have them with you. Not all hospitals will allow you to do this but some will, so you might as well take them and ask if you can use your own medicines. It will be much less expensive than if the hospital provides them.

My mom had to go the the hospital and stayed there one night. They asked what regular (self administered) medications she took and she told them. The hospital staff gave the medications to her while she was there. Later, she received a bill for $529 just for 3 pills and 1 aspirin. She called the pharmacy and found out that a 3 month supply of all of the same pills together would only cost $125. If she had brought her own medications with her it would have cost nothing.

This is a perfect example of how many leaders (people in charge of hospitals, schools, government and business) are so messed up in their thinking and can’t use common sense regarding how to save money on medical costs, school costs, business costs, etc.

It isn’t that we need more money but we need to use what we have more wisely.

      -Jill

P.S. I didn’t write this to open up a can of worms about the medical issues happening in our country right now. I’m not burying my head in the sand, I just don’t want arguing on the blog. Please keep this in mind when you comment because if there is negative stuff I won’t post it. I just wanted you to be aware of some things you can do to save yourself money and to let you know not to be afraid to ask to take these things home with you.

P.P.S. I do appreciate all of the great nurses and sometimes doctors who ask if I would like to take things home because I have paid for them and they are about to be discarded. These people are a super help and kind in so many ways. Thank you nurses.

 

photo by: agacombahia

Save Money Using Gift Cards Specials

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Save Money Using Gift Cards Specials

If you like to eat out, check and see if your favorite restaurant is offering gift card specials right now.

I just drove by Applebee’s and if you buy a $50 Gift Card, you get a $10 gift card also.

At Spangles (a local hamburger joint), if you buy a $10 gift card you get a free Christmas CD. My brother and his family were going there to eat. They saw the deal, so they bought the gift cards first, then ordered dinner and paid for it with the gift card. They got a free Christmas CD to take home just for eating out that night which they were going to do anyway.

So if you’re eating out, see if the restaurant is offering any gift card specials before you order. If so, get a gift card first, then order, then pay for your meal with the gift card!

       -Tawra

photo by:  bfishadow

Fixing A Broken Hairdryer

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Ground Fault GFCI Outlet

Hi Tawra and Jill,

Just wanted to share something I learned the other day. My husband was taking a power nap on Saturday morning, and I went to the bathroom to dry my hair. My hair dryer would not turn on. I thought the breaker was thrown, so I went to the garage, but all appeared normal. I then took the hair dryer to our hall bathroom, and it wouldn’t turn on there either. I figured it broke, and tossed in the trash.

When my husband got up I told him I needed to get a new hair dryer. He said that he might be able to fix it, so I dug it out of the trash and wiped off that mornings grits.

Next I saw him going back and forth to the garage and bathrooms. Then he told me something I never knew. Our two bathrooms are GFI grounded, whatever that means. All I had to do was push the red re-set button in the hall bathroom and power was then restored to both bathrooms. There was not a thing wrong with the hair dryer.

If he had not been there to find this out, I would have probably headed to Wal-mart for a new one, spending $10-$15. So his few minutes of looking around saved us quite a bit of money. BTW, the hair dryer and curling iron were Christmas gifts from my mom. She always calls to see what I want and I like practical gifts, not things that just accumulate but things I can actually use. One year my dad got me new baking pans. Why do I need bottles of perfume, expensive jackets or purses?

Rachel

 

Photo By: Brent Kern1

School Fees

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From: Rachel

Tawra, I was  reading some of your older blogs, and you mentioned paying textbook rental fees for your kids. Do you still have to do this?

Yep! This year it will be almost $400 for our 3 kids to attend "free" public school, on top of what we pay for taxes, which for us is the highest in the state.

It’s $75 for textbook fees for each, $25 technology fee (for computers) and we then we have to pay for field trips, shirts for the class and other extras. I have to say I wouldn’t mind except that I see so much waste. In these supposed hard times why does each kid in the class need a matching T-shirt to wear each Friday?  We also have to pay for some class parties like Christmas and Valentine’s Day.

It is also very irritating that the list will call for things that the kids don’t even use. Notebooks come home with 3 or 4 pages used. Camera film is asked for but not used. Then kids are taught not to be wasteful. I know mom who had to buy 30 glue sticks for her son.  Just crazy!!! 

I am waiting until the very last second to enroll them since we are trying to sell our house.  That last second is 4:00 next Tuesday!  I am still holding out hope that we can get it sold this week! 🙂 Thankfully I don’t have to pay the fees until the day school starts.

We did go shopping today for school supplies and it cost us about $25 for each kid including backpacks (thrift store finds).

So I’m curious, how much do you have to pay for the your kids "free" education?

Tawra

 

photo by: seeveeaar

Saving On Presents

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How Can I Spend Less on Presents Without Looking Cheap?

Katie from Rolla, Missouri writes:

Everyone else in our family makes a lot of money and buys expensive Christmas gifts for us. I’m getting ready to become a stay at home mom, which will stretch us even more. I’m wondering how to buy presents for the rest of the family without looking ridiculous and being embarrassed. My husband and I can have Christmas without lots of presents, but the extended family gatherings are stressing me out financially. How can we get around this and still seem generous?

 

Tawra: You can save money on gifts by shopping wisely and presenting them nicely. Here’s a perfect example: One time I found my mother in law’s favorite bath gel on clearance for $1.00 instead of the $8.00 it normally costs. I bought all they had left and then, for several holidays, I made nice gift baskets with new items from the dollar store, yard sales and the thrift store. She would never have known that the $30 value only cost me $5-$7 for each one! Of course, we put the money we would have spent toward paying off our credit cards instead of just spending it.

Listen to what they like, then keep your eye out for good deals at clearance aisles, thrift stores and yard sales. If someone collects something small, make up a nice little gift with several of those small things. Here’s a good example: My daughter collected penguins last year. We collected several over a few months and then made a nice box filled with penguins for her. She never knew and wouldn’t have cared that the cost was only a couple of dollars. It made a huge impression because it was something she liked.

Remember when shopping for gifts, it’s not so much how much you spend but how you present it. If you think about it, when you pay more for something at the store, what you’re often paying for is just the presentation.

From: Dig Out Of Debt

 

photo by: laurenmanning