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Old Kitchen tips!

I love to read old cook books, it never fails to amaze me the many different tips that are given to daily cooks! Many of the tips are from a 1950's cook book. Many of the tips many be a bit out dated but some ring true today! I hope you enjoy reading daily vintage tips I found in a very old cook book I found while browsing at at thrift store!
 A corner cut from an envelope and pierced at the point makes a 
good funnel for filling salt and pepper shakers.
Sprinkle pantry shelves, window sills, and door sills with a mixture
 of red pepper and sage to rid them of ants.
For a novel sandwich spread, try mixing caraway seed or celery seed
 in cottage cheese. Add salt and enough cream to make the
 mixture spread easily.
To clean and freshen wooden chopping blocks, counter or rolling pins,
 sprinkle table salt on these surfaces when they are wet and scrub dry.
Bread crusts are ideal for cleaning the meat grinder; then add to the
 meat dish for flavor and food.
Give your children a surprise in their popcorn balls the next time
 you make them. Take a lollipop and shape the popcorn around the top. 
Helps keep children from having those sticky hands which give Mother
 those wash day blues.
As you use from a breakfast food box, cut the sides down and fold over
 to fit the contents, putting a rubber band around the top. This will keep 
remaining breakfast food fresher and conserve cupboard space.
A smooth shiny egg shell is a sign of old age. Fresh eggs have a chalky 
rough shell.
When in doubt about an egg, make this test: add 2 tsps. salt to a cup of 
water and put the egg in it. A fresh egg will sink, a doubtful egg will float.
Lemons will stay fresh longer if you store them in a bowl of cold water in
 the fridge. They’ll keep up to 3 months this way.
To keep a recipe book or card clean while you’re cooking, place it under
 an upside-down pie plate. The curved bottom also magnifies the print.
Leftover beef stew can be blenderized to a puree and used as a base
 for Scotch broth and other soups.
A little salt sprinkled in the frying pan will keep fat or lard from splattering.
Getting the catsup out of the bottle: insert a drinking straw, push it to
 the bottom of the bottle, and then remove. Enough air will be admitted 
to start an even flow.
Separate hamburger patties bound for the freezer with the wax paper
 liners from old cereal boxes, cut to size. Nice and thick, they peel off 
the frozen patties without ripping.
Warm Brazil nuts in the oven before cracking them.
Make an economical gelatin dessert at a fraction the cost by combining
 canned fruit syrup, unflavored gelatin powder and a little coloring.
For a quick, refreshing dessert: stir 1 cup dairy sour cream into a
 pound of seedless green grapes. Sprinkle with brown sugar.
Stuffing poultry is a snap if you put the dressing into a well-greased 
cheesecloth bag before packing it into the cavity. You’ll get every
 smidge out.
To prevent your cream pitcher from dripping on the clean tablecloth,
 put a bit of butter, margarine or an unflavored fat on the
 tip of the spout.
To prevent you from losing your place in the cookbook, place a trouser 
hanger that has been painted to match your kitchen in the place you are
 using. Then hang the book from the hanger, and the directions 
won’t get lost nor will the cookbook get soiled.
If there is too much canning juice to serve with the food, pour it into a 
separate pan and cook it down. Then heat the canned food briefly in
 this liquid and season to taste. Boiling the juice down enriches the 
flavor and preserves nutrient qualities that would otherwise be wasted.
To make peeling hard-cooked eggs easier, butter your thumbs.

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