photo by seanmcgrath

DEAR SARA: How do you clean a flat-screen monitor? I could use glass cleaner on my old glass screen, but what do I use on this one? — Dee, New York

DEAR DEE: I use a microfiber cloth. Flannel works well, too. Dampen the cloth with either water or water diluted with vinegar or isopropyl alcohol. To prevent damage, don’t press hard or spray product directly on the screen.

DEAR SARA: I’ve always felt a bit weirded out by chub packs of meat. They aren’t very common where I live. Many stores don’t carry them at all, so they aren’t the average way of buying ground beef here. I’ve changed a lot of my shopping practices to improve my grocery bill, but I noticed the other day that I still chose not to buy the chub pack. Can you let me know if you’ve ever noticed a quality difference between the prepackaged chubs of ground beef and the ground beef that is packaged at the store on foam trays? When they do go on sale, the price difference is pretty big. But I don’t know anyone who buys chubs, so I don’t know if the meat quality is different. Are there any other concerns with chub packs? Can I just freeze them in the chub, or will it burst in the freezer? — Liz, Canada

DEAR LIZ: I can’t speak from experience on Canadian chub packs, but they’re fine in the United States. Some people tend not to buy the chub packs if they can’t see through the packaging. Fortunately, some have a clear film wrap. But you can consider that many people buy sausage and turkey in printed packaging without hesitation. I’m sure quality varies store to store, but these aren’t your mother’s chub packs. They’ve improved in quality. I haven’t had a bad experience.

They’re labeled like other packaged ground beef, so you can see the fat content. Some are seasoned, too. Other benefits are that the weight is consistent, they don’t leak as easily when partially frozen, you can slice them into patties, and they’re handled less because your store isn’t processing them. You can pop chubs into the freezer without repackaging, and they won’t burst. Since you’re trying to cut back on your food bill, if you see the chub packs on sale but the fat content is higher than you typically buy, you do have a healthier option. You can boil your ground beef into crumbles. Add enough water to cover your ground beef, and boil until the meat is no longer pink. Drain, and use as usual. Or you can fry your ground beef in a skillet, drain the grease, and rinse the crumbles in a strainer under hot water to help remove the higher fat content.

DEAR SARA: What can I do with stale coffee? I cleaned out my mom’s cupboards and found coffee from 1997, and, needless to say, it doesn’t taste very good! Do you know of any tips for using stale coffee? I hate to throw it out. — Pat, Nebraska

DEAR PAT: You can toss it into the garden. Or make a coffee body scrub.

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup coffee grounds
1/2 cup almond, olive or baby oil
several drops of essential oil for scent

Mix ingredients together, and adjust to the texture you prefer. Apply with your hands. Scrub gently, and rinse. In a previous column, I mentioned uses for spent coffee grounds. You can view it here: www.frugalvillage.com/2008/05/09/somethings-brewing-with-old-coffee-grounds.

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