Other Things To Do With Food Besides Eat It

A Blog A Day For A Month: Day 15. Only 16 more days to go.

I've gotten several e~mails in the last few weeks with tips and tricks of things you can do with food other than eat it. Some of these I've tried, some I haven't and some sound so weird I wonder who in the world came up with them!

Tips I've tried and they've worked:

Peel a banana from the bottom and you won't have to pick the hair off of it.

Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store and they won't ripen as fast as if they stay in a bunch.

To keep squirrels and rabbits from eating your plants, sprinkle the plants and the ground around them with cayenne pepper. It won't hurt the plant or the animal.

Before you pour a sticky substance in a measuring cup, fill the measuring cup with hot water. Dump out the water but don't dry the measuring cup. The sticky ingredient comes right out.

Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it but can't digest it so it kills them. Repeat if it rains before all of the ants are gone.

And my favorite tip: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass and fill it with 1/2c apple cider vinegar and 2 drops of dishwashing liquid. Mix well. The fruit flies will be drawn to the cup and not your fruit.

Tips I haven't tried but sound like they'll work well:

Swish a shot of vodka over an aching tooth. Allow your gums to absorb some of the alcohol to numb the pain. (Swallow vodka. Depending upon your pain, repeat as necessary.)

Heat leftover pizza in a non~stick skillet on top of the stove and heat on medium~low until warmed through. This keeps the crust crispy.

To make mess~free deviled eggs, place egg yolks in zip~lock bag, seal and mash well. Add remaining ingredients, reseal and keep mashing until thoroughly mixed. Cut the bottom corner off the bag and squeeze into egg whites.

And, how do they come up with this stuff?

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking. Huh?

Leftover Snickers bars... OK stop right here. Who has leftover Snickers bars?

To make scrambled eggs or omelets really rich, add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream and heavy cream before beating. Then call 911 for the heart attack that's sure to happen.

And my favorite "Are You Freaking Nuts" Tip: To cure foot odor, wash your feet with vodka.