Dear Home Ec 101, Why is it that sometimes when I heat foods in the microwave, the bowl is screaming hot, and the food is still a block of ice? Signed, Scalded in Scranton* Dear Scalded in Scranton, Here on Home Ec 101, we’ve written previously about how microwaves work. So if you missed it …
Heather says: Four years ago I was scared. Was this a project people would be interested in? Would people care at all about what we had to say? Well, I’m still here plugging away four years later. Today I’m launching the Home Ec 101 Forums. Some of you have been asking for forums for a long …
Heather says: We’re still sticking to the winter vegetables, even though Spring weather has arrived locally. I know it’s not fair to brag about sunshine and 80 degree temps while our Northern friends are dealing with snow, rain, and ice. Here is another menu and shopping list for Home Ec 101 readers. This menu is …
Heather says: I hope all of you are having a wonderful weekend. It may not have been obvious from the outside, but there are some neat things brewing under the hood here at Home-Ec101.com. First of all, March 1 marks the start of my fifth year here on Home-Ec 101. What? Really? Can it be? …
Dear Home-Ec 101: A few months ago Heather wrote a post on the voluntary phosphorus ban in dishwashing detergent. I don’t recall offhand if Texas is under that ban, but regardless I can’t buy phosphorus detergent anymore. My cousin found a website that offers Cascade with phosphorus but hasn’t tried it out yet. My only concern …
Heather says: What are your quick meals? The meals you make when the meal plan has been thrown out the window and yet people must be fed? These nights seem to happen to us when I don’t plan well, when errands take three times as long as I hoped and everyone is cranky. Here are …
Bran says: No, I’m not talking about some pour-your-heart-out, acoustics-only special on MTV. I’m talking about that tipping point in a person’s life where they’re so jacked into the Matrix, it becomes difficult to tell fantasy from the real thing. In a world filled with iPhone this and Android that, there comes a time in …
Dear Home-Ec 101, I have an All-Clad stainless steel skillet, and I can’t seem to cook anything in it without burning the food. Last night, I cooked pork chops in it. I heated the pan on high, put a little olive oil, and put the pork chops in. The areas between the chops turned black quickly, and started …
The day starts out great. You got a good nights sleep, the birds are chirping, and there was bacon for breakfast! Then the mail comes and you notice an ominous little dark cloud start to form. The electrical bill has arrived, and when you open it you can distinctly hear Beethoven’s Fifth playing somewhere, and …
Dear Home Ec 101, I have been told to boil ribs before grilling them. Is this a good way to cook ribs? Signed, Grilling in Greenville Lots of cookbooks recommend parboiling pork ribs before grilling, which speeds up the process. However, there is a cost, and that’s flavor. Additionally, the advice is sort of misleading. …