Tuesday's tip: Use the blender to clean itself

I'm not sure whose blog I gleaned this helpful tip from, but it's made smoothie clean up a whole lot easier for me as it gets out all the bits that get stuck under the blade of the blender.

Steps

1. Rinse blender and scrub any caked on bits.
2. Fill blender half to two thirds full with hot water and a tiny bit of dishwashing liquid.
3. Put the lid on and turn the blender on. (You want to have filled it enough that the lid gets clean too, when the blender is running.)
4. Leave blender to run for 10-20 seconds, until it's looking clean.
5. You'll end up with reasonably clean, hot soapy water in your blender; I use it to scrub down chopping boards and the kitchen sink.
6. Give the blender a final rinse in hot water and leave it upside down in a dish drainer to air dry.