The easiest thing to do is to remove the central plug in your blender top and cover the hole with a towel This will allow expanding gases to escape but prevent liquids from flying out The second, and easier, way to prevent blow-out is to start blending very gently Start your blender at the lowest speed and slowly work your way up to the highest Expansion will take place more slowly, allowing the gases plenty of time to escape, and enabling your kitchen and your dog to get away unharmed STRAINING I f “velvety-smooth” and “lump-free” are terms that you’d like to be able to use to describe your soups and sauces, a fine-mesh strainer is your tool of choice But have you ever poured a batch of soup into a strainer set over a pot or bowl and waited for it to all pass through? Chances are, you ended up waiting a long, long time As the soup passes through, the holes in the strainer get clogged There are two solutions to this The first is The Rap: Holding the soup-filled strainer above your container with one hand, rap a long heavy tool repeatedly against the edge of the strainer with your other hand (I use a heavy spatula or a honing steel) Soup should flow out of the bottom with each rap For extra-thick or chunky soups, I use a second method, The Spoon Press: Holding the soup-filled strainer above your container with one hand, stir the contents using a large metal serving spoon, a ladle, or a rubber spatula, scraping the edge of the utensil against the mesh This should force seeds, lumps, and other clog-inducing material out of the way so your soup can flow freely ...strainer above your container with one hand, stir the contents using a large metal serving spoon, a ladle, or a rubber spatula, scraping the edge of the utensil against the mesh This should force seeds, lumps, and other clog-inducing... or a rubber spatula, scraping the edge of the utensil against the mesh This should force seeds, lumps, and other clog-inducing material out of the way so your soup can flow freely