^HINTS FROM HELOISE]
Doggie goulash
Dear Heloise: When, upon cleaning my freezer, I find some forgotten meats and vegetables that need to be used soon, I make a pot of what I call “Doggie Goulash” for my fur kids.
While the frozen goods are thawing safely in the fridge, I visit the grocery store to pick up some fresh organ meats -- chicken livers, beef liver, kidneys, whatever I happen to find. I also pick up a bag of shredded carrots, some blueberries (if they’re available) and some brown rice or barley.
I cut up all the meat into bite-size pieces and put it in a large pot, add enough water to cover, and simmer, adding the vegetables when the meat is almost done. Meanwhile, I cook a small amount of brown rice or barley in a separate pot. When the meat and veggies are cooked, I add the cooked grains, and finally stir in the blueberries. I serve the mixture lukewarm to my very happy dogs. My three pit bulls love it!
Green and orange veggies are the healthiest choices: green beans, broccoli, lima beans, diced butternut squash, peas and even spinach! Corn, while not really harmful, isn’t that digestible or nutritious for dogs. Here are a few safety hints, too.
1. Freezer burned items are OK to use, but don’t use anything that has been thawed and re-frozen. Use only unprepared foods, nothing with seasonings, sauces or preservatives that might make your dog sick.
2. Never use onions, avocados, grapes, raisins or macadamia nuts in anything you feed your dog. If you reheat this stew in the microwave, stir thoroughly and check for any hot spots before feeding to your dog. Happy dogs and a clean freezer -- a win-win situation! -- Lori Zimmer, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania
CARPET INDENTATIONS
Dear Readers: Your furniture will make indentations in your carpet if it’s on the carpet for a long time. Then, when you move the furniture around, you will notice these indentations. Here are two ways you can get rid of them:
1. Use a steam iron and hold it above the dented area, but do not allow it to touch the carpet. Let the steam penetrate the area. The fibers should spring up back to normal. You also can use a brush to fluff up the pile after steaming.
2. A quick way to deal with this is to put a single ice cube in the indentation. As it melts, the moisture goes into the fibers and plumps them up. The carpet will look good again. -- Heloise
SAVING TOMATO PASTE
Dear Heloise: I have a solution to your reader’s problem with exploding tomato paste. Freeze the leftover paste. Spoon the paste into ice-cube trays and freeze. Put the frozen cubes in a plastic bag and keep frozen. -- Margaret, Glendale, California
REUSING DOG-FOOD BAGS
Dear Heloise: I repurpose large dog food bags. They make great heavy-duty trash bags. They’re great for disposing items that would poke holes in regular trash bags (such as broken glass). -Kevin Pinson, Zanesville, Ohio EASY CLEANING
Dear Heloise: To clean the garbage disposal, I scrub the sink with dish soap, don’t rinse, and fill the sink with hot water. Then I run the disposal. The sink and disposal are cleaned in one step. -J.H. Gutierrez, via email
PET PAL
Dear Heloise: This is Patches, a Jack Russell mix, taking a nap after playing with his toys. He is 11 years young and was named Patches because his fur looks like patches all over his body. He is the center of our family, and we are so glad we rescued him as a puppy. Enjoy. -- Patty and Danny Flores, via email Readers, if you’d like to see Patches and our other Pet Pals, go to www.heloise. com and click on “Pet of the Week.” - Heloise
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