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Dear Heloise: For over seven years, I worked as a cook for a small hotel in Miami, and I've been cooking for my family of six for many years as well. I have a few hints of my own that I can share with a younger generation:

First, always read the instructions or recipe twice. Then, get out all the ingredients you'll need and check to make sure you have enough of each ingredient.

Use a nonstick spray for cooking and place the pan or casserole dish in the sink when spraying, or on the dishwasher door. This way, you can contain the spray and don't overdo it when spraying.

Cook a little more than you'll need. You never know if someone is going to be really hungry, and if you have leftovers, you can reheat them for lunch or dinner the next day.

Place all items such as flour, cornstarch, oatmeal, sugar, open boxes of cereal, etc., in either glass or plastic containers with tight-fitting lids. This will cut down on weevils or ants getting into your pantry.

Finally, you don't need a hundred new kitchen gadgets or expensive pots and pans to cook a good meal. All you actually need is a little imagination and practice. -- Magdalena G., Ogden, Utah

Dear Heloise: I like to pick wild mushrooms for dinner, and my friends love it when I bring some fresh mushrooms to them. However, I find a lot of people store and clean them incorrectly. You should never store fresh mushrooms in plastic. They'll get mushy very quickly. Instead, store them in a paper bag. Don't clean them until you're ready to use them, and never soak them in water. Mushrooms are very porous and will absorb the water, which will affect how they taste. -- Henry A., Hamden, Connecticut

Dear Heloise: My boyfriend comes from a South-American country where coffee is naturally grown, and his family is also in that type of business. Sadly, I'm baffled by the terminology and know nothing about coffee. What are the differences between types of coffee? -- Carolyn T., Yorktown, New York

Carolyn, here are some terms you might like to know:

-- Espresso: Water is forced through a machine, then through a tightly packed bed of coffee grounds and into a small cup (about 1 1/2 ounces).

-- Basic espresso: A single shot of espresso.

-- Doppio espresso: A double shot of espresso.

-- American espresso: To one shot of espresso, add enough hot water to make a 6-ounce cup. This beverage is usually consumed with milk and/or sugar.

-- Basic cappuccino: A recipe for a 6-ounce cappuccino is 1/3 cup espresso, 1/3 cup steamed milk and 1/3 cup frothed milk. -- Heloise

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The nation’s hospitals are facing unprecedented financial losses as labor shortages, wage pressures and inflation follow a global pandemic – and the same is true in Montana.

An apparent shooting late Monday night at MetraPark’s MontanaFair resulted in one man injured and county deputies ending up in the fairground pond in pursuit of a possible suspect.

A Billings police officer shot an armed man on the 1800 block of 6th Street West at 11 p.m. Friday according to a police department social med…

A Billings police officer shot a man late Friday night, and an investigation into the shooting is underway.

A single police officer shot a man one time Friday night after he ignored 73 commands from police and grabbed a gun in his waistband, Billings…

A young man from Billings pleaded not guilty last week to accusations of robbing the Gold Dust Casino on August 8 while armed with a handgun.

A 14-year-old boy from Laurel was pronounced dead Tuesday after drowning Monday in Canyon Ferry Reservoir about 20 miles east of Helena, officials said.

Rates would increase $273.12 a year for electricity sold to residential customers consuming 750 kilowatt hours per month and $90.84 for natural gas sold the residential customers consuming 65 therms per month.

A park worker discovered the partial foot on Tuesday at Abyss Pool, one of the deepest hot springs at Yellowstone.

Three men buried the children, ages 5 to 14, along with their bus driver in an old moving van. The victims were able to dig their way out more than a day later.

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