7 Food that can be used as Cleaners

Most of us know about the cleaning wonders of vinegar, baking soda and lemon, but there are other food staples that actually work and can help your home clean.

White Bread
Use it to: Dust an oil painting. Gently dab a slice of white bread over the surface to pick up dirt and grime.

Ketchup
Use it to: Remove tarnish from copper and brass cookware. Squeeze ketchup onto a cloth and rub it on pots and pans. They should go back to their coppery color in minutes. Rinse with warm water and dry with a towel.

Oatmeal
Use it to: Scrub very dirty hands. Make a thick paste of oatmeal and water; rinse well.

Rice
Use it to: Clean the inside of a vase or a thin-necked bottle. Fill three quarters of the vessel with warm water and add a tablespoon of uncooked rice. Cup your hand over the opening, shake vigorously, and rinse.

Tea
Use it to: Scour rusty garden tools. Brew a few pots of strong black tea. When cool, pour into a bucket. Soak the tools for a few hours. Wipe each one with a cloth.

Club Soda

Use it to: Shine up a scuffed stainless-steel sink. Buff with a cloth dampened with club soda, then wipe dry with another clean cloth.

Cornstarch
Use it to: Clean grease spills on carpets. Pour cornstarch onto spots and let sit for 15 to 30 minutes before vacuuming.

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Food News
What do you get when you cross a chicken and a butterfly?
Butterflying a chicken before roasting decreases cooking time and yields an evenly browned bird. The technique, also known as spatchcocking, is shown in detail on the video here, and also improves birds that are roasted or pan-fried under a brick. 

Bologna index points higher
Bologna sales, which increased by about 125% at the 2009 start of the economic downturn, remain strong as "really basic, almost heirloom kinds of foods continue to get a lot of play," said Nancy Kruse, an analyst of menu trends. Bologna is an Americanized version of mortadella, an Italian sausage with a fine texture, with roots in the city of Bologna. The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)

Don't squash a craving for squash     
Winter squashes including butternut squash, acorn squash and pumpkins are abundant now, and delicious in soups and stews, including ratatouille. Though squash is technically a fruit, it is best treated as a vegetable. The Blade (Toledo, Ohio)

When’s the last time you cleaned your salt and pepper shakers?

Exactly! These unassuming little items get touched in all parts of the meal-prep process. Example: You give your sauce a dash of salt after touching raw chicken (oops) and then later set the shaker on the table.

What to do
Nobody thinks of cleaning their salt and pepper shakers, says Elizabeth Scott, Ph.D., assistant professor and co-director Simmons Center for Hygiene and Health in Home and Community at Simmons College, but to avoid cross-contamination and food poisoning, you should. “Best to wipe them with an EPA-registered disinfectant,” she says. “But better still, always wash your hands after handling raw foods and before touching anything else.”