Muffins So Great They’re Insane!

I love to bake, however baking has not always liked me. We’ve had our moments. It wasn’t until I surrendered to following recipes exactly that our relationship made the turn. I had to come to the point that I was willing to measure the ingredients, follow directions and believe that little things like “folding in” does not mean “beating it to death,” “one-cup of flour” doesn’t mean, “that looks about right,” and “butter softened,” does not mean “boiling like a witch’s cauldron.”

Ordinary blueberry muffins

Just last week I was reminded about how far I’ve come as a home baker when DPL staffer, Max, could be heard throughout the office, “These blueberry muffins are insane!” Sure, he called them blueberry muffins, but I call them Einstein Muffins. That’s because every time I make them, I feel like a genius. And you can feel like a genius, too—provided you follow these recipes exactly. Continue reading

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Mary Hunt in Food & Recipes Leave a comment

Social Lending Benefits Borrowers and Investors

Dear Mary: My wife and I inherited a small printing business 40 years ago and have run it successfully ever since. We’ve had our ups and downs over the years, but we continue to survive. Now we need to upgrade our equipment to remain competitive. We need to purchase a digital production press. With supplies, training and shipping the cost will be about $20,000.

The problem is that we do not have that amount of money to buy the press and our credit seems to be holding us back from getting a loan. We are confident that with the increased business the press will generate, we can pay it back, in the same way we have paid for all of our other machines and equipment.

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Is there any lender you know of who will consider our 40 years of success and the potential we have for increasing our business?

Thank you and God bless all that you do to help others. –Jack P., Pennsylvania Continue reading

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Mary Hunt in Dear Mary 5 Comments

A Shred of Purpose for Phone Books

Yesterday I found a surprise on the front porch—a dutifully-delivered telephone book, complete with Yellow Pages and the old familiar “white” ones, too, a term I used advisedly as that color is anything but white.

Am I the only one who thought telephone books went out with VCRs? Apparently they have not because someone out there is spending a ton of money to produce and deliver them. Which begs the question, “What to do with a perfectly good telephone book?” Today’s first tipster begs to answer.

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SHRED BED. Whether for cushioning a package or lining an animal’s bed, shredded phone book paper produces a nice soft shred. A great new use for clean but outdated or unused phone books. — Linda Continue reading

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Mary Hunt in Tips 28 Comments

How to Beat the High Cost of Beef

Just as summer-grilling season approaches, here comes news that the cost of supermarket beef has hit an all-time high, up at least 5 percent so far this year, and still rising.

Recently, I caught up with Teri Gault, founder of the TheGroceryGame.com, to find out what’s going on. Teri and her TGG crew closely monitor national food prices on a daily basis, so they’re my go-to source for all things related to the cost of food. But more than that, Teri has great ideas for how to overcome this kind of unhappy news so we can afford to keep our grills fired up this summer.

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It’s a problem of supply and the environment, reports Teri. The U.S. cattle herd is at its lowest level since 1952. Cattle producers have been hard hit by drought, late freezing weather, doubling of feed costs and poor pasture conditions. Supplies are down, which drives prices up both at the grocery store and restaurants, too. But not to worry. Teri says that overcoming the high cost of beef is a matter of changing our thinking, habits and behaviors. Continue reading

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Mary Hunt in Home & Family 9 Comments

$25,000-Per-Person Dinner is Hard to Swallow

I don’t consider myself a complete stranger to high-priced gourmet fare. After all, I did enjoy a lovely $100-per-person meal once. But even that experience in my semi-impressive culinary repertoire did not prepare me to handle gracefully the idea of a 10-course dinner with a price tag of $25,000 per person. And it wasn’t a political fundraiser. Just a fancy meal in an exotic location—Bangkok, Thailand.

Sure, this gastronomic extravaganza included the very best in Cristal champagne, foie gras, truffles, Kobe beef, Beluga caviar, Belon oysters and mousseline of pattes rouges’ crayfish with morel mushroom infusion, but come on! Twenty-five grand per person—a price that does not include tax or gratuity or airfare?

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I don’t think I could do that even if I were so rich $25,000 would be mere pennies as compared to my vast net worth. There are some things I simply would not be able to get out of my mind like: Continue reading