The sunshine and fresh air in spring renew my energy. The computer room, tucked in under our stairs with a screened door to the deck, is a great place to write the column because the windows let in much light.
But I couldn’t enjoy the sunshine until I cleaned the window.
The whole house needs scrubbing, purging and reorganizing. It’s an overwhelming and discouraging task but I have discovered that focusing on one small task, tackling it and finishing it, can give a great sense of accomplishment and motivation to do more.
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Easy window cleaning
A cleaning job goes faster if you have all the tools and cleaners gathered before you start. I use a spray bottle of vinegar, old newspapers, a vacuum cleaner and attachments, rags, a bucket of warm water and vinegar, a glass cleaner cloth, step stool and window scraper.
I vacuumed the window tracks around the windows to remove dust, cobwebs and dead flies. Vacuuming the screens with a soft vacuum brush removed the dust. Removing the windows makes cleaning easier.
Using a damp cloth, I washed the woodwork and window frame. The windows were sprayed with vinegar and then wiped and polished with crumpled newspapers.
Because the window frames were white vinyl, a soft window cleaning cloth was used to clean and polish along the edges and into the corners of the window, because the newspaper left black ink marks.
A razor blade window scraper removes paint speckles, fly specks and sticky labels from the glass.
Removing oil from a cement driveway
Dear TEAM: We had oil leak on our cement driveway. Do you have any suggestions on how to remove it? G.H. & R.P.
Dear G.H. & R.P.: To absorb fresh oil, sprinkle the stained area with wood shavings, sand or kitty litter. If using kitty litter, crush and grind it into the oil stain with your shoe.
Leave for 24 hours to absorb the oil, then sweep and dispose of at an oil recycling site or in a sealed garbage bag. Do not allow any of these materials to go into the sewer system.
To remove the remaining oil stain, wet the area with water and then sprinkle with trisodium phosphate (TSP) crystals.
TSP can be purchased from most hardware or lumber yards. Use a stiff bristle push broom to scrub the TSP paste into the stain, working at it for 15 to 20 minutes. Add more TSP and water as needed and brush vigorously. Soak up the moisture with old newspapers and then rinse the area with clean water.
For an old or stubborn stain, repeat the TSP treatment or scrub the area with a mixture of dish detergent, bleach and cold water. Use a solution of TSP and water and the broom to scrub the rest of the driveway to make it as clean as the former stained area.
For best results, clean up oil spills when they happen. If you have a vehicle that is leaking oil, put cardboard down to absorb the oil before it gets to the cement.
Sources: Money and time-saving household hints from the readers of the Regina Leader-Post newspaper, Haley’s Hints and www.ehow.com/how.
Make ahead meals
This is a casserole that can be made ahead of time and popped into the oven for half an hour to heat. Chop the salad greens and add the dressing just before serving.
Curried crab tetrazzine
2 – 6 1/2 oz. cans crabmeat 184 g
or 1 – 227g fully cooked crab flavoured seafood
1 tbsp. lemon juice 15 mL
1/4 c. butter 60 mL
1/4 c. flour 60 mL
2 c. milk 500 mL
3/4 c. grated cheddar cheese 175 mL
1 tsp. salt 5 mL
1/2 tsp. pepper 2 mL
1 tsp. curry powder 5 mL
1 c. small broccoli flowers 250 mL
2 c. cooked flat or 500 mL spiral noodles, drained
1/2 c. crushed soda crackers 125 mL
salt and pepper to taste
Flake crab, sprinkle with lemon juice. Melt butter over low heat, add and blend in flour. Stir in milk slowly until sauce is smooth and thickened.
Add 1/2 cup (125 mL) cheese to sauce, stir to melt, add seasonings and mix, then add crab, broccoli and noodles and spoon into buttered eight cup (2 L) casserole dish.
Top with crushed crackers and the remaining cheese, salt and pepper. It can be refrigerated for 24 hours before cooking. Bake at 350 F (180 C) for 30 minutes. Serves six.
Adapted from The Complete Best of Bridge Cookbooks, Vol. 1.
Peking slaw
This salad uses Napa cabbage, also known as Peking cabbage or Chinese cabbage. You can also use Savoy cabbage, a curly leaf, loose head cabbage.
1/2 c. mayonnaise 125 mL
2 tbsp. sugar 30 mL
2 tbsp. rice vinegar 30 mL
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice 30 mL
2 tbsp. soy sauce 30 mL
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger 10 mL
1 tsp. hot pepper sauce 5 mL
1/2 tsp. salt 2 mL
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper 1 mL
8 c. thinly sliced Napa or Savoy cabbage 2 L
4 c. thinly sliced red cabbage 1 L
2 c. julienned carrots 500 mL
1 c. julienned broccoli stems 250 mL
1/2 c. diagonally sliced green onions 125 mL
To prepare dressing, whisk together first nine ingredients until blended. Combine vegetables in a bowl, add the dressing and toss to combine. Serve immediately. Rice vinegar should not be substituted for other vinegars when canning or preserving vegetables or fruits. Serves eight to 10.
Adapted from A Holiday Collection, 2006 by Atco Blue Flame Kitchen.
Betty Ann Deobald is a home economist from Rosetown, Sask., and a member of Team Resources. Contact: team@producer.com.
