A reader wrote in today, needing help with her Corian counters … I will let her explain:

How about a tip for my corian countertop?  It has gotten really gross near the fixtures (tap, vegie sprayer, etc.) and I’m not sure how to clean that up.  Regular cleanings haven’t made a difference. 
HELP!!

I feel like a doctor doing a diagnosis.

Without a lot of details, it seems the problem around your faucet, may be due to the area not being dried thoroughly after use (a manufacturer recommendation). But we cannot turn back time, unless we are Cher. (Honestly, how much work has she had done!?!)

But I digress.

So you now know what to do in the future, but how can we cure the existing situation? Answer: A little of this, and a little of that (just like Cher at the plastic surgeon!) Rimshot, please!

Here is what I recommend to get that Corian looking great again:

If this doesn’t remove the blotchy appearance, you need to go to the heaviest gun — Soft Scrub (cue the dramatic music)

Hopefully that will improve or rectify the situation. The lesson learned is to ensure the area is dried after each use. Please let me know how it works for you!

Stainless steel kitchen sinks look so pretty in the photos, but they do require a little work to keep that sparkle.

The first line of defense is to dry the sink after each use (or at the end of each day). But so few people do that.

If yours has fallen far behind in maintenance, the first step is to remove the lime deposits (just like in the shower). Use a bathroom cleaner, such as Lime Away or CLR, and rinse very thoroughly.

But if yours is just not sparkling as it once did, use this tip I called on when I cleaned houses for a living:

Then you just wipe the oil over the sink with a paper towel, and buff. The paper towel will surely be black — that means you are removing the buildup that caused the sink to lose its sparkle in the first place.

Honestly, it works — and the sink will sparkle like it hasn’t in years.

It’s a kid favorite that adults also love — Sloppy Joes. (And it’s great for busy people because you can cook it ahead of time and reheat in the microwave.) But why do people buy Manwich or seasoning packets? It’s so simple to make — and with items I am sure you have in your pantry!

I tweaked this recipe I found on one of my favorite sites after reading the reviews. I hope you enjoy it, too!

Sloppy Joes

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
1/3 cup diced onion
1/4 diced green bell pepper
1 cup ketchup
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
3 tsps. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 pack of Hamburger Buns

Directions

In a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef or turkey, onion and bell pepper (and drain).
Sprinkle mixture with garlic powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, brown sugar and mix in pan.
Add ketchup, worcestershire sauce, and mustard. Mix and simmer over very low heat for 30 minutes.
Serve on buns, or save and microwave later.

I admit: I love the dishwasher. And it’s been shown that it leaves your dishes more sanitized and uses less water.

But the dishwasher soap people (I think) have conspired to make us use more of their products with the pre-soak container, where we are encouraged to also fill up with soap. I priced Cascade, etc., at the store, and we are talking at least $3 for a bottle, so anything to save money here, I feel is welcome. (Of course, I got Finish/Electrasol two weeks ago for less than 50 cents with coupons using the tips found here, but economy makes sense in this bad economy.)

At any rate, rather than fill up the pre-soak container with detergent (or leave it empty), I add 3 small drops of Dawn dish soap. The dishes came out clean as a whistle.

Now, you know, to be very careful how much dish soap you add. But I can tell you this works. I think using a more concentrated dish soap is the secret.

Just try it, and let me know how it works for you.

(And thank you to dwell.com for the great graphic!)

I just finished watching “The Wizard of Oz” (geez, I hate those flying monkees) and it reminded me of a great tip.

You can pick up so many of your favorite DVDs of movies, TV shows, children’s programs, and travelogues at one place for the reasonable price of free at one place — the library! All it will cost is your library card, and you have 7 days to enjoy your entertainment of choice. The worst I have ever seen is they will charge you 50 cents. Not a bad price to pay even at that!

When I say TV shows, keep in mind that is usually one season’s worth! The documentaries are great. And, here’s a tip: Rather than buy kid videos, rent them instead at the library — so much more cost-effective!

I’m positive you will find so much you wish to enjoy — and you can’t beat the price.

Finally, if you wish to help, donate your old or no-longer watched videos and DVDs to the library. A great way to cut down on clutter and do good at the same time!

Finally, I love trivia, and you can find so much on “The Wizard of Oz” here.

And, keeping with our blog theme: “There’s no place like home.”

I was looking for a video on the coupon system I follow and saw that it was just featured on CBS News!

So, take 3.5 minutes and see how well it works — and get some good tips. My first video in my blog!

“Couponmom featured on CBS morning show”

And, if you liked that one, this one contains some good hints and do’s and don’ts on using the Coupon Mom system:

“Tips and extra hints on using coupons at the grocery store”

Enjoy!

I love Caribbean jerk chicken at Miami Grill! It’s so spicy and yummy. I love the marinated, spicy bite-size chicken chunks. They are incredibly delicious. But I also have found it’s easy to re-create this dish.

At the restaurant, they serve it over rice and with a side of pinto beans, so now I get my spicy fix at home at a fraction of the cost. This is a mega-fast recipe for 2– just a little foresight makes it come together.

Carribean Jerk Chicken

Ingredients:

1 skinless, boneless chicken breast, chopped in bite size pieces
1/2 bottle of Lawry’s Caribbean jerk marinade
2 cups cooked rice

Directions:

1. Cut chicken into bite-size chunks and place in zipper bag.
2. Pour marinade over chicken.
3. Marinade for at least 30 minutes (or more for stronger flavor)
4. Cook rice according to your favorite (I love Minute Rice!)
5. Empty chicken and marinade into 10-inch fry pan. Stir fry over high heat for about 5 minutes until cooked (chicken is white)
6. Serve over rice, with garnish of chopped green onions. Add pinto beans on the side, if desired.

To make this faster, I use this tip on how to cut a boneless chicken breast (makes it easy-peasy). I have tried to make my own marinade, but the Lawry’s is delicious (and makes this meal so fast) — plus, I got it for a buck using the coupon system!

Any way, this is one of may faves.

Tooting my own blog today, but I used so many past tips this evening when I was preparing dinner — a spinach and bacon quiche (which was ready to go in the oven in 30 minutes) that I just had to point out how they work.

First, I already had the bacon prepared and in a zipper bag in the fridge, as noted how to do in this post. This saved at least 20 minutes.

Second, to add some flavor to the quiche, I sprinkled on some diced onions, which were already in the fridge, as noted in this post. That saved at least 5-10 minutes.

I mixed the custard in the blender, which I could have cleaned using the hints found in this post, but I put in the dishwasher instead, ’cause I had room. However, I knew what to do if it hadn’t fit.

But before I started dinner, I did a quick clean in the powder room, using the hints found in this post.

Dinner is almost done, and I just had to brag how the tips work. Hope you are enjoying them, too!

I was just making my Tuna Noodle Casserole for dinner and realized I did not have the red bell pepper I like to dice and add.

Then, it hit me, I had roasted red bell peppers in a jar in the fridge. Took ‘em out, diced ‘em up, and added those instead. It worked perfectly.

Do know there is a difference in peppers? Green bell peppers have a much stronger taste (and some have trouble digesting them), while red and yellow have a more mellow taste. I find the yellow are usually even more expensive, so I always lean toward red. And they add a pleasant dash of color to most any dish.

One more tip that I should have followed: If you see any bell peppers on sale, slice them up in 1/4-inch slices and freeze. Then, like today, you could just pull ‘em out and dice what you need. This comes in handy when they are no longer in season. I just store mine in a small zipper bag.

I have been loving all the posts I’ve received and just wanted to follow up on some questions and make some comments:

Finally, a tip from me — there are 70 posts here so far, so look back on previous pages, or check the categories at right to scan all that has been offered so far. Oh, and just want to say, I love reading your comments! I read each of them every day — it’s just difficult sometimes to respond to all so I can give you a fresh post every day. But I truly love ‘em all — and read ‘em all.