Cheaper Electricity Bills
Seven people took the opportunity to meet Kerrie Thompson from the Home Energy Saver Scheme. Kerrie visited the Hay Hub in June to assist interested energy users with tips to reduce their electricity bills. Understanding your electricity bill, ways to use less electricity and how much energy appliances use were topics of discussion.
According to Kerrie:
* Stand by power on appliances could be costing as much as $ 150 per year * Your old beer fridge could be costing another $ 100 per year
* Clothes dryers cost between. 46c and $ 1.55 per hour to run ∗Electric oven-. 77c- $ 1.24 per hour ∗Small electric hot plate-. 37c Large. 55c per hour ∗Slow cooker-. 04c per hour ∗Easy formula to work out how much your appliances cost to run: ∗Kw( kilowatts) x. 32c( tariff per hour) x amount of time used ∗Eg: 2400 watt microwave Vs 2400 watt electric oven roast chicken ∗2.4 KW x. 32c x 36 mins = approx. 46c ∗2.4 KW x. 32c x approx 90 mins = $ 1.15 Energy saving tips in next months issue.
Microwave Tips
Place food on an upturned plate to allow better circulation.
Microwaves are attracted to moisture- do not dry shoes in the device as fire is a likely result.
Rice cooking- 1 cup of rice to 2 cups water.
Salt can toughen food as it cooks, so salt food after cooking.
Poaching eggs- prick the white and the yolk several times to stop eggs exploding. DO NOT cook eggs in their shell.
Anything you can cook in a gas / electric / wood oven can be modified to cook in a microwave.
Quick cleaning- Jug of water, dash of dishwashing liquid and couple drop lemon juice. Heat in microwave for 10 minutes then wipe over with a clean cloth.
Check that your cling wrap is microwave safe.
Sour Cream Baked Custard with Tinned Fruit
Ingredients:
400grams Peaches( any tinned fruit) 2 Eggs 300 mls Sour Cream 2tblsp Plain Flour 1 / 2 cup sugar
Method:
Drain the syrup from the fruit. Whisk the eggs with a fork Add the sour cream, flour and
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sugar and whisk( with the fork) until combined. Place the fruit in the bottom of a microwave safe dish. Pour the custard mix over the fruit and smooth over to cover the fruit. Place on an upturned saucer( or similar) in the microwave and cook on medium heat for 12- 14 minutes. If the centre is not completely set, let stand for a couple of minutes. The heat within the dish will finish it off.