HELPFUL HINTS
DEAR READERS: If you add too much salt to a soup, put a piece of sliced, peeled apple or potato in the pot. It will absorb the salt. Take it out before serving. A small bit of brown sugar also can help correct too much salt.
Put too much garlic in your soup? Put a few parsley flakes into a tea ball and drop into the soup to soak up the excess.
DEAR HELOISE: I just read the hint about putting bananas in the refrigerator. I have another tip: I put my bananas in my food processor and puree them. I freeze them in freezer bags in 1-cup increments. When I’m ready to make banana bread, I remove what I need from the freezer, thaw and use in my recipe.
— Karen V., Boynton Beach, Fla.
DEAR HELOISE: You had a generic cream soup recipe that my mother always made. Would you reprint that for me? — Bonnie K., Providence, R.I. DEAR READER: Here it is:
Generic Cream Soup
1 cup nonfat dried milk powder 1 tablespoon dried onion
flakes
2 tablespoons cornstarch 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon
powder
½ teaspoon dried basil ½ teaspoon dried thyme ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Mix all ingredients and store in an airtight container. To make the soup base, add 2 cups cold water to the mixture in a large saucepan and Stir constantly over medium heat until thick. You can use this base to make any flavor cream soup — just add your main ingredients to the mix. This makes about 4 to 6 cups.
DEAR HELOISE: Very often, I won’t finish all the coffee in the morning pot, so I pour the rest into my cup, add sweetener and milk, and refrigerate it for later. It’s a pick-me-up in the afternoon.
— Jeri Y., Washington, D.C.
DEAR HELOISE: I just moved in, and the ice bin smells stale. How do I get the smell out?
— Dava, via iPhone DEAR READER: First pour some vinegar on a sponge and try cleaning the interior. You also might want to sprinkle some baking soda inside and scrub with the vinegar-soaked sponge to kill the odors.