Flour - Other Uses

• make salty clay dough
  1 cup (300g) salt
  1 1/4 (300ml) warm water
  1 tablespoon (15ml) vegetable oil
  3 cups (375g) flour
  
  Looking for a way to make a rainy day seem brighter for the little ones? Whip up a batch of this salty craft dough and they can spend an entire afternoon rolling, cutting, and shaping it into all kinds of memorable keepsakes. To begin, mix the salt with the warm water and stir to dissolve. Add the vegetable oil and flour and stir slowly to combine. Knead until the dough is elastic and pliable (add a little more flour, if necessary). Add a few drops of food coloring, if desired, to lend some color to the dough. If you like, let the kids' finished shapes air-dry for a couple of days and then have fun all over again painting them with watercolor or acrylic paints. A thin coating of clear nail nail polish or shellac will help preserve the finished masterpieces.  

• All-purpose metal cookware scrub
  1 tablespoon (8g) flour
  1 tablespoon (18g) salt
  1 tablespoon (15ml) vinegar
  
  Here's a simple-to-remember formula for an amazingly effective scouring scrub: Measure equal amounts of flour, salt, and vinegar and mix into a paste. You'll have an all-purpose cleaner that's safe for cleaning all of your metal cookware. Rinse off with warm water and dry thoroughly with a soft kitchen towel.    

• Brass cleaner
  2 tablespoons (36g) salt
  2 tablespoons (16g) flour
  1 to 2 teaspoons (5 to 10ml) vinegar
  
  In lieu of a toxic brass polisher, combine equal parts of flour and salt in a small bowl and ass just enough vinegar to make a paste. Use a soft cloth to apply the mixture to the brass item (wear rubber gloves, as this can be a dirty process if the item is heavily tarnished). Rinse thoroughly with water and dry with a clean, soft cloth. This formula can be easily doubled for larger items. TIP: Before attempting to clean a tarnished nrass item, hold a magnet up to see if it really is brass. If the magnet sticks, the object is likely brass-plated and could be easily damaged by the abrasivness of salt. 

• garden pest fighter
  1 cup (125g) flour
  1/2 cup (150g) salt
  
  Cruciferous vegetables, like cabbage, brocolli, and cauliflower, are particularly vulnerable to a type of garden pest known as the cabbage worm. If you happen to see these insects munching away, stir together the flour and salt and out it in a shaker. Every morning or evening, when the plants are damp with dew, dust the leaves to keep pests at bay.