Cooking Smart

Electricity is not cheap, neither is gas. So, whichever you use to cook with, use your head. Be smart and efficient.

My Mom, was not the finest cook, but she was smart about it. She never turned on the oven for just one item. Once a week, she would cook a roast, come chicken, maybe a meatloaf, and baked beans, macaroni and cheese and a bake a pie or a cake. At the same time, on the stove top, she would cook a pot of greens, some chili or spaghetti sauce and maybe a beef stew.

Then, during the week, we just warmed up what we wanted. Now, you may ask, why was that smart and efficient? Simple. It takes time and power to heat an oven, Once its hot, it doesn't take that much to keep it hot. In fact, if you heat an oven to 350, you can turn it off for the last fifteen minutes or so that you have food in it and it will keep cooking just fine.

In addition, using an oven, really heats the kitchen a lot and that, in turn, spreads heat to the whole house. In the winter, that's a good thing. In the summer, it is not. The more you heat the kitchen, the more your air conditioning will run and the electric bill goes up. By cooking so much at once, you are only heating things up a lot, that one time. Warming food doesn't take that much energy and you don't have to turn the oven, or burners up a lot, so less heat is created. In fact, heat things in a microwave and you create no heat and use little power.

We all need to save money and, more and more it is a good idea to not use so much electricity (every year, power companies, in the summer, threaten and sometimes implement, rolling brownouts). Gas, is not cheap either, especially if you are heating your home with it, so why use more than you must. Cook smart and be efficient.

Dealing With Heat

Summer is here. I am sure this comes as no news to anyone and, mostly, we love the summer. Cold beer, iced tea, watermelon and ice cream. Ball games and long hours of golf. But, for those who have to work in it, summer is not fun and can be deadly.

If you must work around your house, do so early in the morning or right before dark. There is no point in making yourself sick, and, be assured, you can make yourself very sick in the heat.

If you have a job that requires you to work in the hot part of the day, use some sense. Drink a lot of water. Not tea, not soda, certainly not beer. If possible, drink it cool, not icy cold (you will get stomach cramps). As far as stuff like Gatorade, be careful. The electrolytes are great, but there is a lot of sugar. They make me hypoglycemic, but, if you can tolerate them, fine. One thing for sure; if you become dehydrated, you need those electrolytes. Older folks I know were brought up using salt tablets in the heat; they work, but be careful taking in all that salt, especially if you tend to high blood pressure.

Wear a hat, preferably one that does not fit tight to your head. The air gap is insulating. I have seen folks put wet newspaper in between their hat and head and that is actually a good idea, but I know a better trick. A guy I worked with used to keep cabbage leaves, the big outer ones, in a cooler and put one in his hat, It works great.

I recommend wearing long sleeve shirts and long pants, loose fitting. You do not need sun burns. Have you ever noticed that in the Mid East, where it certainly gets hot, they wear loose, long robes. There is a reason. The loose fit traps air and that air acts as an insulation, keeping the body cooler.

Whenever possible, get out of the sun for a minute or two. This gives the body a chance to recover from heat stress.

In extreme heat, if at any point you start feeling headachy or dizzy, stop and cool off. It will not pass on its own and you are getting near heatstroke. If you find that you have stop sweating, get to a hospital. Over exposure to heat is not to be trifled with.