Thanks petra, jessy, & Lars for your suggestions. I love coconut (too much) so I have to be careful when cooking with it. I played it safe today... made two dozens of coconut-apple muffins for little man's school. Got rid of most of them only saved three for the two boys for tonight's dessert. Then I added some into my sourdough sandwich breads. They turned out very nice. The rest of the meat I dumped into the crock pot of chicken curry. Jessy and Petra, I will save the recipes suggested. When I crack another coconut they will become handy. Lars, I know what you mean. Coconut macaroon is another thing that I cannot resist :-) I just have to wait for some special occasions to make them. Will give most of them away and save just enough for the boys. If I kept them at home I would end up eating most of them! :-O Al

A combination of things has put an end to my bechamel days. First, the attempt to eat lower fat and calories, but also I have become increasingly sensitive to lactose, or something or other in what passes for milk these days. I was never a milk drinker and just don't use it enough to warrant getting raw milk, which I'm sure would help with the flavor and lactose issues. The last couple of times I have tried to make it I just wasn't satisfied and I think it has to do with the shelf stable milk I used, which is what I have on hand nowdays. I read the alternative recipes posted here with great interest. I find that mostly these days I just use a reduced liquid for my sauces, even pasta. Or just top with evoo and parm. or feta cheese.

You should toss it. However, strange observation. I'm incredibly sensitive the the flavor of peroxides. I've had bag of planters peanuts that were too rancid for me to eat, even though the expiration date was well in the future. (Btw one of the reasons Hubs are so tasty is they fry them in a mix including coconut oil, which is very oxidation resistant almost to the point of acting as an "antioxidant", and it helps to preserve the natural flavor of the peanuts) However I was making a lot of pizzas back around 2010/2011 and bought too much whole wheat flour, especially the KA white whole wheat. Some of it I froze, but I still have some that's now almost 3 years old. I do keep it in a snap-closed plastic container. That probably helps. But I still make pancakes using that, and I swear, there's not a bit of rancid taste at all. I've even smelled and tasted the raw flour to be sure. Nothing, zilch, nada. I think maybe the fact it's enclosed as well as the density of the flour limits the degree to which oxygen can get in there: oxidation require an oxygen molecule be around, after all. (Unless I were subjecting it to pure chlorine gas...but that's pretty uncommon in kitchens LOL)

I like the OXO containers. They are spendy, but I've picked up the ones I need a little at a time, on sale. Here is why I like them: I can open and close them with one hand, thanks to the push top. This is handy when I need one hand to stir, or have one hand in the meatloaf mix :) All the square lids fit the square containers, and all the rectangle lids fit the rectangle containers, no matter the volume of the respective shapes. This may seem trivial, but I have come to appreciate it when I'm downsizing the last of the Splenda into a smaller container. I can use the same (labeled) lid on the smaller container, provided I'm using the same shape. (I don't know if I'm explaining this clearly.) Speaking of labeling, I only have to label things that would get easily confused (sugar, Splenda, kosher salt) because the containers are as clear as glass. Some plastic containers are cloudy or semi-opaque, disgusing the contents somewhat. Their shape makes pouring from them very tidy. There are no ridges or bends in the design for the contents to get hung up on. The square/rectangle shapes line up nicely on my pantry shelves and stack nicely too. They are sturdy plastic. Lightweight, but durable. Drawbacks include the fact that they are not dishwasher safe, and their internally complicated lids take a long time to air dry. And they are pricey, as previously mentioned. I have no connection to the OXO company, but I'm a fan. And if OXO wants to send me a container for the endorsement, I wouldn't say no! :)