Thanksgiving Fright Leads to Roach Remedy

Q. What is the recipe to get rid of cockroaches? I saw a huge roach running across my cutting board while preparing Thanksgiving dinner. I was totally grossed out, but couldn’t say a word because I didn’t want to alarm my company. I remember reading something about boric acid and would like to know the exact details.
A. Hint expert, Heloise, has often offered a recipe for combating cockroaches, to be used in conjunction with thorough cleaning:
Mix ¼ cup shortening with 1/8 cup sugar until creamy. Mix 8 ounces powdered boric acid with ½ cup flour and ½ small onion, chopped fine. Combine these two mixtures, then add enough water to make a soft dough. Put blobs into open plastic sandwich bags and place them under the sink, behind the stove and refrigerator and other places roaches might run. Be sure to keep them out of reach of pets and children.