Clever Clarissa’s Household Tips & Advice

Three ways to get more juice out of a lemon (almost twice the amount!)
1) Store it in the refrigerator in a tightly-sealed jar of water
2) Submerge it in hot water for 15 minutes before squeezing it
3) Warm it in the oven for a few minutes before squeezing.

Two foolproof remedies for ‘old maids’
Storing your popcorn in the freezer will keep it fresh while ensuring a maximum number of kernels pop. Running ice-cold water over the kernels before throwing them into the popper can also eliminate ‘old maids’.

Maximizing use
Lemons – After squeezing the juice out of a lemon, wrap and freeze the rind for another use: martinis, osso bucco, chutney, marmalade, candy, etc.
Eggs – If the recipe calls for egg yolks, keep the whites in the freezer to make meringue.
If the recipe calls for egg whites, keep the yolks in the freezer to thicken a sauce. Freeze the shells and use them to clarify stock.
French bread – Thinly slice the remainder of a baguette and toast in the oven, on both sides. Use later with appetizers such as guacamole, antipasto, salsa, hummus.
Bananas – Freeze overripe bananas (the browner the better) and use them to make banana bread or muffins.

Restoring a shrunken wool or cashmere sweater to its original size
Dissolve ¼ cup of hair conditioner in 1 gallon of cool water. Immerse your sweater and carefully work the mixture through, without stretching. Roll the sweater in a thick towel, without twisting or wringing, to absorb most the liquid. Lay the sweater flat on a fresh towel and gently pull it back to its original size.

Getting rid of ‘ring-around-the-collar’
Apply shampoo on the inside of the collar and cuffs and gently rub it in (the shampoo will dissolve the grease); wash as normal. Fresh stains will disappear the first time; if not, repeated applications may be necessary.

Saving on household products
Do you know that a variety of products found in your kitchen and bathroom can replace commercial household at a fraction of the cost? They include: vinegar, lemon, salt, baking soda, cornstarch, cream of tartar, hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol, nail-polish remover, white toothpaste and denture cleaning tablets.

Making laundry soap at home is easier than you think, and it could end up costing you less than 5 cents – yes 5 pennies – a load!

Here are two recipes, courtesy of my mother-in-law.

First Recipe to Make Laundry Soap at Home

Ingredients:

• 1/3 Bar Fels Naphta Soap
• 1/2 Cup Washing Soda
• 1/2 Cup Borax Powder
• 2 Gallons Water

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups of water and heat it until the soap melts.

Add the washing soda (NOT baking soda) and the Borax. Stir until it is dissolved.

Remove from heat, pour 4 cups hot water into a 2-gallon bucket. Add soap mixture and stir.

Add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours until it gels.

Use about 1/2 cup of detergent per load of laundry.

Second Recipe to Make Laundry Soap at Home

This recipe is for you if you enjoy powdered Laundry Soap.

Ingredients:

• 1 Bar Ivory Soap
• 1/2 Cup Borax
• 1/2 cup Washing Soda

Grate 1 bar of Ivory Soap (or other not strongly scented bar soap).

Add 1 cup of Borax. Add 1 cup of washing soda (NOT baking soda!). Mix together and store in an airtight container. Use 1-2 tablespoons per load.

Cleaning a microwave oven is very easy, IF you know the right technique, and IF you do it relatively regularly.

If you’ve never, ever cleaned it, (you know who you are!) then you may have to put a little bit more elbow grease in it, just like anything!

Try to clean up spills as they occur, especially if they make it to the door. Put a microwave-safe dish half-filled with water in the microwave, and set it for 3-4 minutes at maximum power.

The steam will loosen up any bits and traces of food that have stuck to the inside of the microwave; they can be safely scooped up with nothing more than a damp paper towel!

To get rid of the sometimes nasty odor that can exist in your microwave, wash the insides with a solution of warm water and baking soda. Never use any abrasive soap – such as anything containing ammonia – or abrasive cleaning pads.

The scales must be shiny, the gills bright red and the eyes vibrant. It must NOT smell like fish, and the abdomen should not be distended.

If you feel that you shrimps taste too much like they’ve been canned, or taste ‘like the freezer’, once they are thawed, marinate them in port wine for 15-20 minutes.