Detailed Instructions and Tips & Tricks

Below are detailed instructions for making cake flour and making beans in the slow cooker (from previous posts). I have also listed some links for substitutions, tips & tricks, and some frugal cleaning agents.

Cake Flour
From Joy the Baker
Click here to visit her blog.

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Dried Beans

Beans in the Slow Cooker
from Stephanie at A year of Slow Cooking
Click here to get the directions.

Additional Tip for Dried Beans
Being Frugal is Fabulous has a good write up about using beans in place of meat as a source of protein in order to save money. Click here to go read more and to see how to make your own refried beans.

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Tips & Tricks
Tanya, from Sunday Baker, along with her readers has compiled a great list of tips & tricks. Click here to see all the great tips.

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Substitutions
Barry Farm Foods has a great list of substitutions. Click here to go to their website.

Kate from Our Best Bites has also provided a list of substitutions. Click here to go see her list.

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Using Vinegar as a Cleaner
I keep a spray bottle of vinegar water in my kitchen at all times. I use a 8:1 (water:vinegar) ratio. This works great for cleaning windows. Used with a microfiber cloth, you can't go wrong. Additionally, if you use the tip of wiping one side of the window horizontally and the other side vertically, you can more easily tell which side has the streaks, if any. We also use it on the wood floor, we sweep, use a microfiber mop to wipe the floor with water, then spray the floor with the vinegar water and dry with a microfiber cloth--it has a nice shine after we do this. I use it for many other things. Below are several sites you can visit to get ideas.

I have a post of
Vinegar . . . Quick Tips.

The New Homemaker has an extensive list of cleaning uses for vinegar. I have used many of them and plan on using more. Click here to go read the tips.

Another site, Vinegar Tips (go figure) has 1001 Tips for Using Distilled White Vinegar. Click here to go peruse the site and read all the many uses for vinegar.

Yet another site, The Vinegar Institute, has tips all. Click here to go see what they have to offer.

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Using Baking Soda in Cleaning
I use baking soda for many things. I use it to clean my glass top stove by sprinkling some on the cooked on stain then rubbing with with a a cloth. I use it to scrub the marks out of the porcelain sink. I used it to scrub the build up off of Moo's flat iron. I clean my diamond jewelry with baking soda, water, and a soft toothbrush. I use it in more ways as well.

Baking Soda Book provides many more ideas. Click here to view the book.

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Have a fabulous Sunday!