The Square Deal - A Blog from Builders Square

Grill Cleaning and Safety

A clean grill is a safer grill. Your grill might need a thorough cleaning before you fire it up this season. Conscientious grill owners clean the grill before packing it up for the fall/winter. Others may put off the task until they're ready to use it again.

Some experts recommend allowing the grill to reach a high temperature for a few minutes to burn off food after use. After the grate cools, manually clean it with a wire brush, soap, and water. Applying cooking oil or spray to the grate will help keep food from sticking (which makes the next cleaning task much easier) and grates from rusting

When working on a hot grill, use heat-resistant mitts and long-handled tongs and forks to prevent burns. Play it safe and keep the grill away from seating areas and structures like awning. It's dangerous and also unnecessary to add lighter fluid to hot coals. Never use gasoline or kerosene to light a charcoal grill. Always have a fire extinguisher on hand in case of flare-ups.

The 'Excellent' LG Steam Clean Dishwasher

Consumer Reports (CR) has good things to say about the LG Kitchen Series Steam Clean Fully Integrated Tall Tub Dishwasher. In fact, CR rated the appliance "excellent."

Appliances with steam generators, like dishwashers, washers, and dryers, save money by washing and drying more efficiently than those without it. LG's steam dishwasher holds up to four place settings, with a third rack for utensils and for storing hard-to-clean and hard-to-place items. The dishwasher also has a feature that senses the amount of dirt on dishes, pots, and pans, and adjusts the wash cycles (six) accordingly. Cycles include SteamDelicate and Power Scrub.

The unit, equipped with a child safety lock, is loaded with other features. If CR considers this appliance one of the best steam dishwashers on the market, perhaps you should, too. The LG Kitchen Series Steam Clean Fully Integrated Tall Tub Dishwasher, which retails for $1,329, would be a wonderful Mother's Day gift.

Tea for Mother's Day

Tea can be good for you.

Drinking tea can help reduce the risk of heart disease, and it can lower cholesterol. It's low in calories and improves dental hygiene. It contains fluoride, which helps teeth stay strong. According to research, drinking tea can reduce the risk of certain cancers, thanks to its natural antioxidants.

Give the mothers in your life the gift of better health with tea. Builders Square is your portal to gifts like the Tea Garden Gift Basket, which contains goodies like Ahmad Assorted Fruit Teas, English Tea Cookies, and Almond Roca Butterscotch Toffee. The Tazo Tea Sampler Gift Basket features Tazo brand tea, Gourmet Chocolate Chip Cookies, and four honey sticks.

Nothing beats igourmet's Basket of Tea and Honey. Treat Mom to sunflower honey all the way from Italy, and German clover honey. Tea flavors include Organic Selimbong, Rooibos, and East India Cinnamon Spiced tea.

Keep the tea theme going with tea pots and tea-makers. Surprise Mom with an elegant Eva Solo Tea Brewer Gift Set. Brew tea with leaves right in the pot, or brew tea through the filter.

Mother's Honor

Every year, we set aside a day to honor the mothers in our lives. In the United States, we observe the day on the second Sunday in May. Families take mothers out to dinner, buy them fabulous gifts, and generally show them how much they're appreciated. If you're doing last-minute shopping online, here's another Mother's Day gift idea for the road:

The Large Chinese Shou Symbol Jewelry Box is a stunning container designed to hold her delicate jewelry and sentimental objects. Handcrafted in an Oriental style, the jewelry box has felt-lined drawers, lacquered brass hasp and handles, and a rosewood stain finish. For $169.33 plus shipping, you can have this box gift wrapped and on your mother's door step in 48 hours. Don't delay!

Shop for more jewelry boxes, unique gift ideas for Mother's Day.

Mother's Day Enchanted Garden

Did you know Mother's Day was coming up? This year, the special day falls on Sunday, May 11. It's not too late to shop for the perfect gift.

The Mother's Day Enchanted Garden is an elegant bouquet of pink and white roses surrounded by mums and tiny blossoms. The pastel-colored fragrant flowers are ready for delivery. Retailing for $89.95, the Enchanted Garden definitely will brighten up your Mom's Sunday morning.

The Purple Dendrobium Bombay Orchids would also make a wonderful Mother's Day gift. This 20-stem pack of fresh-cut orchids, available in pink, purple, green, lavender, blush, and white, retails for $39.95.

State of the Barbecue Industry

According to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, about 17.4 million grills were shipped in 2007. Americans love grilling outdoors for many reasons, including the sheer joy of gathering with friends, enjoying a bright summer day or balmy summer night, and saving energy by using the oven less often.

Are you in the market for a new grill? Consider the follow factors before investing in a grill:

Gas, electric, or charcoal? Gas and electric grills are cleaner, environmentally speaking, than charcoal grills. With gas grills, grillers have more control over the heat. But charcoal grilling adds flavor to food.

Large, medium, or small? Do you entertain large groups or prepare dinner just for the immediate family?

Feature-packed? If you like rotisserie-cooked food, smoke-cooked food, and other specialties, invest in a grill with lots of features or add-ons.

Big or small budget? How much are you prepared to spend on a grill? Your basic charcoal grill will run you fewer than $100, while a high-end, feature-packed gas grill can cost $5,000.

Hot Product: Ronco 5 Tray Food Dehydrator

Almost everyone I know is looking for ways to eat healthier. There are diets to reduce food intake and workouts to increase energy and burn fat. Eating less and exercising more are important for staying healthy, but that doesn't mean you have to deprive yourself.

Dried fruits and vegetables make for tasty and healthy treats. With the Ronco 5 Tray Food Dehydrator, you can make these treats in your own home.

A hot product in the As Seen On TV category at Builders Square, the dehydrator makes jerky, fruit rolls, and a number of other snacks. Retailing for $39.99, the dehydrator has five interchangeable trays. The unit works not with a fan or motor but a silent convection air flow. A recipe booklet is included.

Blender Buying

Blenders are a convenient appliance to have on hand, as they save you time in the kitchen and give you different options for food preparation. With a blender, you can mix, grind, puree, and combine foods and mixes to create the perfect smoothie, alcoholic drink, gravy, sauce, and more.

Available in a variety of styles and prices, well-made blenders are almost always worth the investment. The Proctor Silex Blender, which retails for $31.49, is a powerful, seven-speed unit. The blender jar holds up to 48 ounces and comes with a two-ounce measuring filler-cap. The KitchenAid 3 Speed Blender ($53.95) operates on fewer speeds (three), but crushes ice, chops vegetables, and grinds coffee beans.

The Krups 60oz Blender has an ultra quiet motor and five-speed control. It crushes ice and features an automatic pulsing function for precise mixing and a slower speed function for gentler blending. The dishwasher-safe blender is equipped with an oversized collar for safe and stable handling.

Browse Builder Square's selection of blenders, which includes some of the top brands on the market.

Featured Product: Cuisinart Custom Food Processor

Food processors can save you a lot of time in the kitchen. Who couldn't use extra help chopping, slicing, dicing, and shredding? A featured product at Builders Square, the Cuisinart Custom Food Processor does this and more.

The dishwasher-safe food processor has wide-mouth and small feeding tubes to accommodate a variety of foods. The quiet-running stainless steel mixing blade is user-friendly. You can even knead dough with the two-speed Cuisinart Custom Food Processor in less than two minutes. The 14 cup-capacity unit, which retails for $179.99, comes with a spatula, chopping blade, dough blade, shredding disc, slicing disc, and mixing blade.

Which Digital Frame?

Since the whole world is going digital, it makes sense that picture frames have gone digital, too.

To use a digital picture frame, just insert a digital camera memory card, and photos will display according to the frame's settings. Run photos as a slideshow or display one photo at a time for a certain period of time.

Digital picture frames come in different styles, sizes, colors, and prices. How do you choose? According to Consumer Reports (CR), picture frame shoppers should focus on a frame's resolution and image quality. A small display area may affect a photo's quality. CR reports that the best digital frames it tested had 800x600 resolution.

What's the camera's aspect ratio? As long as it's 4:3, you're probably selecting the right frame. Ratios vary, so check before buying. How you transfer images counts. For instance, cameras like the Tao digital frame require the user to insert the storage card into the frame. If you prefer to transfer images directly from the computer, you'll need a digital frame with a USB port. The ZOpid digital picture frame is equipped with a USB port.

Is the digital picture frame easy to use and versatile? Consider these factors before buying digital picture frames.

Source: Consumer Reports