Teachable Moment: Copyright

January 16, 2012

*UPDATE* 1:08PM Eastern 1/16/2012 The offending site is being altered. This is all I wanted. If you are dealing with content issues please read the site I reference below for how to handle what you’re specifically dealing with. Heather says: Over the weekend I received quite a nasty surprise. There is a woman in Ocala, [...]

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How to Use Acetone to Remove Grease Stains

January 13, 2012

Dear Home-Ec 101, I read in your book about using acetone to remove grease or oil stains from clothes, but it just mentions it in a list of items one might use. Can you please elaborate on this? I am forever ruining knit shirts with food stains, as is my son (although, in his case [...]

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The misunderstood herb: How to use Bay Leaves

January 12, 2012

Dear Home Ec 101: A friend told me that bay leaves are poisonous, and that’s why you remove them before serving. Isn’t it kind of…insane to cook with a poison plant? Signed, Is it safe? Bobbie says: You know, that never made sense to me, either. My reasoning was “If it’s true, the poison gets [...]

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Honing v. Sharpening

January 11, 2012

Bran says: Honing your blade is one of the main aspects of good knife care. But it often gets confused with sharpening, even though they’re not the same thing. To break it down to first principles, sharpening is taking away material, and honing isn’t. Instead, honing is straightening out the edge of an already-sharp blade. [...]

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OTC Medicine Recall Alert 1/10/12

January 10, 2012

Heather says: Check your medicine cabinets for the following over the counter medications from Norvatis (full details and lot numbers behind that link): Excedrin® Bufferin® Gas-X® NoDoz ® The expiration dates of the NoDoz® and Excedrin® will be December 14, 2014 or prior and the expiration date of recalled lots of Gas-X® and Bufferin® will be [...]

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I’m Considering a Roomba

January 10, 2012

Dear Home-Ec 101, I can get a new Roomba 530 for a great post-Christmas price. In my rental place, we have vertical blinds. I was worried how the machine would cope with those. I have tiles all through except the bedrooms that have thick, soft carpet. Your advice is appreciated. Signed, I want a robot minion [...]

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Beef Stroganoff, Gluten Free and for the Slow Cooker

January 7, 2012

Heather says: Beef stroganoff is not an attractive comfort food, which is why it has taken me nearly five years to get around to posting this slow cooker recipe. It’s not the beef stroganoff’s fault it’s unattractive and the recipe itself is quite simple; it’s just a homely dish. People on the interwebz can be [...]

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What Is the Difference Between Cube Steak and Round Steak?

January 6, 2012

Dear Home-Ec 101, I’m really trying to cook more at home, but sometimes I’d like to make substitutions but I’m just not sure when it’s ok to substitute round steak for cube steak or vice versa. I’m just not comfortable talking to the butcher, I just want to grab whatever happens to be in the [...]

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Winner of the Sierra Mist Giveaway

January 4, 2012

Heather says: I’m embarrassed to admit I messed up. I forgot to write up the post notifying commenter “ deneicer1″ won the Sierra Mist giveaway. Amy and I agreed the Holiday Appletinis were right up our alley. If you could email me your mailing address / contact info I’ll get it into the proper hands. Congrats!

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Cleaning Up With Preschoolers

January 4, 2012

Today’s post is from a recent comment: I have a 3 year old girl who refuses to clean up her messes and because I don’t like to punish her too hard, I do it for her, but lately my house is so cluttered with dirty laundry, her toys, and most of my husbands clean jeans, [...]

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Why Are There Bleach Stains on my Towels?

January 3, 2012

Dear Home-Ec 101, I have been using my new front load washer for over a year now and now all of my towels are ruined. It doesn’t matter what color they are or were, they now all have large spots that look like I used chlorine bleach on them. Can you help? I have not [...]

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How to be a Fabulous Knitter / Crocheter: Guidelines for 2012

January 2, 2012

Vera says: Some years ago, I made a resolution not to make any resolutions, and it has been the easiest one to keep, but the freshness of the new year combined with the temptation to list has finally gotten to me, and I’m ready to make a break with tradition.  This time around, though, I [...]

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