Thinking Outside the Box:

The other day my husband began to grumble about a squeaky hinge on our bedroom door. After muttering about not having any of the expensive products he'd normally use on hand to lubricate the hinge, I wandered into the kitchen and came back out with the can of cooking spray. While he watched, I quickly sprayed the hinge, opened the door a few times and walked off to put it away. My husband kept testing the door and muttering something about "smart aleck-know-it-alls".




This got me thinking that there are a lot of things I do with cooking spray besides it's culinary applications.

-Stubborn Keys: The next time your keys get a little stubborn in releasing the lock, spray them down with a bit of cooking spray. After wiping off the excess, they should move freely in their intended lock.
-Wax Free Build-Up: I always spray my candle holders and votives before I replace the candles in them. Then, once they get the melted wax on them, I can simply pluck it off without having to break out a hair dryer to melt the wax.
-Sticky situation: I love cooking spray's effect on the stickier effects of adhesive and chewing gum. My children are forever getting tiny bits of stickers stuck on their skin or chewing gum in their hair. A quick spray of cooing spray, a wipe down with a washcloth, and the offending items come right off. I can then wash their skin or hair in some warm soapy water to remove the oil residue. (Hint: This also works well for paints and glues you might get on your hands!)
-Tough Love for Soap Scum: In cases of really thick soap scum, a quick spray of cooking oil followed with a rub of a coarse sponge or washcloth will clear your walls right off.
-Chain Gang: Those rusty bike chains will stick no more with a quick spray of cooking oil.
-Scooper Duper: Spraying the scoop before you begin scooping kitty litter from the dirty box will help prevent build-up. This even works with the automatic scooping boxes. Alternatively, you can also spray your snow shovel to prevent a ton of icy build up.
-Grating Good: Spraying the blades of a grater can keep cheeses from sticking and making a huge mess.
-Banish the Blahs: Tired of your spaghetti leftovers making you see red in your microwave dishes? Before packing your tomato based foods, spray the inside of the dish with a little cooking spray and future stains will be gone.
-Bug Beater: If you live in the country, bugs smashing into the grille of your car is a common thing. Beat the bugs by spraying the grille of the car with a little cooking spray, then you can rinse them off easily with your garden hose.
-Cut Down on Drying Time: I don't know about you, but I need every spare second I can get. I spray my fresh painted nails to cut drying time in half. (A plus: the oils in the cooking sprays can moisturize your cuticles.)


Now, I'll leave you with a bit of a warning (and an amusing real-life story) about how too much of a good thing can turn into a bad thing.

A few years ago, I was sent a can of professional strength cooking spray to test. I went to bed and left it on a low shelf in my pantry. Upon waking the next morning and walking into the kitchen I found myself skidding across the floor. Landing on my back with my feet in the air against the cabinets on the far side of the room my shrieks turned to laughter as I spotted the obviously empty can of cooking spray on it's side next to me. My then three year old son was famous for little "experiments". His current experiment had been how long it takes to empty the can of spray... on the floor. I spent weeks trying to clean up the cooking spray using everything from very hot water with degreasers added in to finally breaking down and covering the floor with newspapers to absorb the grease. I even wrote the manufacturers of both the spray and the flooring to try to find a method that would remove that much of the spray from the floor. A month later and I could finally walk in there without falling. Two months, and I could remove the newspapers completely. On the up side, mopping and stain fighting on the floor became a snap from that point on. My husband and I still get a giggle to this day any time we see a cooking spray commercial showing small kids in it. And yes, we NEVER leave it on low shelves anymore.

Do you have any other ideas or uses for cooking spray? I'd love to hear about them!

With Love,
Meg