How to Sew a Button: And Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew Read Online Free PDF

your stash, and use it instead of butter or shortening, to add flavor to savory dishes, like scrambled eggs or fried potatoes, beans or biscuits.

More Nifty Tips
No strainer? Lay a paper towel over your container, and pour the grease through that.
Use bacon grease only in moderation to keep your ticker healthy.
Don’t pour hot grease into a cold glass jar, or it could shatter. Wait for the grease to cool a bit before transferring it. (If you’re pouring it into metal, do it at any time.)

Stay Sharp

    “The knife sharpener came around with a horse and a wagon. We’d hear him, and you’d go out with whichever knives needed sharpening. It cost next to nothing.”
    —G RACE F ORTUNATO
H OW TO H ONE A K NIFE
    Step 1:
With a dry towel, wipe the steel. That’s the long, rough rod that came with your knife set. You’ve been wondering what it was for, right? Well, today is your lucky day. You’re about to find out.
    Step 2:
Gripping its handle with your weaker hand, place the steel, point-down, on your countertop or other flat surface. Hold it still.
    Step 3:
Grip the knife in your dominant hand, holding it the same way you would if you were about to cut a tomato (that is, parallel to your work surface, sharp side down, point away from you). Keeping the knife in that same position, place the sharp edge of the blade (nearest to the knife’s handle) flat against the top of the steel (just below its handle). Now, rotate your knife-holding hand by one-eighth of a turn (clockwise, if you’re right-handed; counterclockwise if you’re left-handed), so the sharp side of your knife meets the steel at an approximately 20-degree angle. (The sharp edge of your knife should still be facing downward.) Hopefully,you’ve heard this before, but it’s worth saying again: Never, ever point a sharp knife toward yourself.
    Step 4:
While pulling your knife toward you and maintaining your 20-degree angle, slide the sharp side of your blade from the top of the steel toward the bottom. You’ll know you’ve done the motion correctly if it ends with the tip of your knife coming off the bottom of the steel.

    Step 5:
Switch sides, and repeat. Just place your knife on the opposite side of the steel, again just below the handle. Find that same 20-degree angle by rotating your knife-holding hand by an eighth of a turn (counterclockwise, if you’re right-handed; clockwise if you’re left-handed) and swipe.
    Step 6:
Repeat steps 4 and 5 four more times.
    Step 7:
Wipe your blade with a towel to remove shavings and test its sharpness by slicing into the edge of a piece of paper. If it cuts it easily, then it’s ready to use. If not, repeat step 6 and test again.
    Step 8:
Count your fingers. All there? Then it was a success!

More Nifty Tips
Another way to find an angle close to 20 degrees: Hold your blade perpendicular to your steel. That’s 90 degrees. Tilt your blade (sharp side facing down more) to cut that angle in half (45 degrees). Repeat once more to find 22.5 degrees.
Don’t sweat the angle too much. Anything less than 45 degrees will do, so long as you stay consistent.
Sharpen your knife before every use to make slicing and dicing easier (and safer).
If your knife is huge, congrats! Slide your grip up from the handle a bit until only the fleshy part of your thumb rests on the handle and your fingers are gripping the dull sides of the blade. That’ll give you a little more control.
Take it slow! The speed at which you hone has no bearing on the results.

Fill Your Plate

    “You knew what you were going to eat, depending on what was on sale.”
    —R UTH R OWEN
H OW TO P LAN A W EEK’S M ENU
    Step 1:
Don’t stress. Breakfast is easy to plot. Lunch is no big whup. And planning your dinners in advance will save you from running to the store after a long day at work and shopping when you’re so hungry you can’t think straight. Take a piece of paper (don’t eat it!) and write down each day of the week across the top.
    Step 2:
Check your