Ya gotta wash your hands.

One of the first lessons that Food $ense teaches is about Food Safety. If you haven't been able to take a class locally, (by contacting a local agent), you can take the class online. I have a few random thoughts about Food Safety, well not the entire realm of Food Safety, but Hand Washing in particular.

This last week we had people on both sides of our extended family come down with the stomach flu. With all the business of the summer, I was desperate that none of our immediate family come down with the dreaded sickness. So I started preaching and became really vigilant about hand washing. I was shocked at how little of it went on in our home. I even noticed that I wasn't washing my hands as much as I should have been. Thankfully, I think we escaped the dreaded germs.

Here is some Great information on Food Safety basic practices. If you follow these all the time, you will be in the clear when it comes to food borne illness, but I bet as you read through them, there are some that you aren't doing. I was breaking quite a few of the rules.

CBS News ran a report a little while ago and they reported that 95% of people are washing their hands wrong. Say WHAT?!?! Am I living around all these people? Is everyone using those cleaning wipes at the grocery store to clean their carts and forgetting how to use soap and water to wash their hands? The CDC says Handwashing Saves Lives, I am sure that it does, but it can save you a lot of other things too, like discomfort, sick kids and dirty laundry. A healthy family is a happier family. I know we are going to be much better about keeping our hands clean.

Some Leftover Tips about Leftovers

I have had a couple of experiences happen to me in the last few days that have me thinking about leftovers and summer food safety.

The first is that my brother got married. And just like at most weddings, we had a celebration for them. It was a summer BBQ that totally fit their style and it was fantastically fun - and filled with food. But what got me thinking about leftovers is that we had a lot of some foods leftover from the party. What do we do with them? Are they still safe to eat? What is the best way to handle big summer food festivals like this to make sure everyone is eating food that has been properly prepared and stored prior to serving.

The second thing that has me thinking about leftovers is that my freezer got left open for an extended period of time. Like... CRAP! The freezer has been left open and stuff has melted all over the floor - Open. Not such a good thing. How do you decide what is still safe to eat and what (if anything) is going to have to be thrown out? How long can you freeze foods (is there a time limit?) and What to do if something like this happens to you.



I think the basic thing you need to know about leftovers is basic food safety. You want your food and everything you prepare to be safe and healthy in the first place. That means getting it home, handling and preparing it and storing it with the safest practices possible. I recommend that you start HERE. This is the place for you to start expanding your knowledge and to be sure you know the basics. Sometimes it feels like the world of germs (and stuff on your food) can seem very big (for something so small) and very very scary. But I feel much better knowing that I have control over foods that I bring into my home, prepare, and feed my family. I am a very scary force to be reckoned with when it comes to bacteria.

So once you are sure you have prepared your food safely, How do you keep it safe?  A good simple rule to follow is the 2:4 rule.

Never left your food stay "out" for longer than two hours.  and
Never keep leftovers for longer than 4 days.

That is a good simple way to be sure you are being safe.  If you want some more details on just how long you can keep specific items there are some excellent articles Here and Here.

As always, there is a lot of information out there. A lot to be learned and it seems like even more to be mastered. But don't be overwhelmed and discouraged. This is just like everything that Food $ense teaches, start doing what you can now and add to it. Every little change for the better can make a difference. Here are the Food $ense lessons specifically related to Food Safety. They are easy to understand and even easier to start doing in your life.

Chili Lime Cantaloupe

One of the things that I just love about food is finding simple flavor combinations that compliment each other. Taking something simple and adding one or two flavors to compliment it and you having something just incredible. 

This cantaloupe recipe is just that type of experience. My family loves cantaloupe and we eat a lot of it. It was on sale at my local store and so we bought a few of them. Two of them were perfectly ripe and so delicious and got eaten as fast as I could cut them. The third was still a bit on the "green" side, but I had cut it anyway and didn't want it to not get eaten. 

I have had lime and chili with Jicama before and really liked it, although I felt like the Jicama wasn't adding much to the equation, I really love the combo of lime and chili. 

 Ingredients:
1 medium cantaloupe, cut into cubes
fresh lime juice - start with 1/2 and then add to taste
1 Tbsp honey
⅛ tsp salt
⅛ tsp crushed red pepper (add slowly, you can easily get too hot)

Instructions:

Wash your cantaloupe before you cut into it - Trust me! this is an important step.

Cut the cantaloupe in half and scrape out the seeds with a spoon. Use your preferred method to cut the melon into cubes.

In a small bowl, combine the juice of half a lime (about 1.5-2 Tbsp), honey, salt, and crushed red pepper. Stir until the honey is dissolved.

Pour the dressing over the sliced cantaloupe and toss to coat the melon in the dressing.

Serve immediately, or chill until ready to eat.

The 5 Second Grocery Money Saving Tip

I don't know too many people who can afford to not watch their grocery budget. Every little bit helps, and if money isn't tight at your house - I am sure you can find lots of things you would rather spend your money on than groceries. 

The average American family ends up throwing away 25% of the foods and drinks they buy. That is 1/4 of your whole grocery budget.  For the a typical family of four, they might as well fling $150 straight in the garbage every month!

If they could reduce their grocery waste by just half, that same family of four could chop around $75 a month off their grocery bill. (No coupons required!) That isn't even suggesting that you have no grocery waste, but that you just cut the things that we are wasting in half.  That is a really huge amount, Isn't it!?

Here’s an easy way to do exactly that.

When you put your leftovers away after dinner, do your best to store them in a clear container, so it’s easy to see what’s in there and to avoid discovering some putrid mystery food shoved to the back of the fridge weeks later.

Perhaps make a shelf, just for "ready to eat" leftovers. So when you open the fridge to find something to eat, that can be the first place that you look. You can help your family to look on that shelf or in those specific containers when they are finding something to eat. 

(If you have them available to you - Mason jars are a great way to do this on a budget.)

Then, before you put the container away, take 5 seconds to grab a sticky note and write today’s date on the top. If you don't have sticky notes, use a washable marker and write on the container. 

It helps cut down on those fun conversations that go something like, “Honey, do you remember when we had this spaghetti?”

“Um I don’t know, does it stink?”

“Hmm...I can’t tell, you smell it.” (You, smell it .... No! You smell it...... ) 

“Um...better toss it,” as you see visions of all the members of your family doubled over with food poisoning fluttering through your brain.

So instead of THAT, try this trick to start saving immediately. 

You’ll be much more likely to use up leftovers in time, without the guessing game, or the waste.

Doing those simple little things to save your grocery budget doesn’t have to be complicated or cause you to spend tons of extra time shopping around or standing in the kitchen.

I am learning the greatest results can come from the smallest of shifts in habits. It’s these small changes that help you save money on groceries consistently, month after month, even when you’re super busy.

How I Handle Leftovers

Whether you are in love with leftovers because you are a busy mom, or because you are environmentally conscious - if you are a penny saver or an earth saver - leftovers are the best!

What is nicer than a home-cooked meal that you didn't have to cook?

I didn't used to like leftovers at all, this has been a huge change in my thinking since starting Food $ense and begging to change my ideas and habits. 

We are starting a new little system that Joseph thought up one day when he was watching child after child open and close and open the fridge and then complain that there was nothing to eat. 

We have lots of notepads on the fridge that we keep track of things on - Menu Planning, Grocery Lists, assigned chores - all sorts of things. 

We are now trying to keep a list of the things that are in the fridge that are just waiting to be eaten!

Despite feeling crunched for time, Please Please take care to treat your food in a way that protects you family from foodborne illness.

There’s much more to the safe handling of leftovers than most people realize, and following a few simple tips can save you—and your loved ones—from illness.

Put leftovers in shallow containers to cool quickly
The center of that big pot of chili you stick in the fridge isn’t going to cool down within 2 hours, and that warm spot in the middle can allow bacteria to grow. The smaller the portion size, the faster it will cool in the refrigerator. And when you go to heat it up in the microwave, it will heat much more quickly and evenly too. [USDA recommends packing leftovers so that they are less than 2 inches deep.]

Putting leftovers into smaller containers or into individual serving containers means that there is less heating / cooling / reheating cycles and therefore less danger.

Refrigerate within 2 hours
Bacteria grow rapidly at warm temperatures, and after just a few hours can reach levels that can cause illness. Refrigeration slows the growth of bacteria.  The recommended temperature for your fridge is 40 °F or below (use an appliance thermometer to see how cold it is).

Foods should be refrigerated within 2 hours of preparation. Even though it may seem energy efficient to let foods cool down on the counter before sticking them in the fridge, there can be a risk if they are left out too long.

Reheat thoroughly
The microwave is just another way to heat food. The microwaves bounce around and literally “excite” the food. However, the microwaves may not hit every part of the food evenly. In foods with multiple ingredients (like a casserole) some ingredients may get more “heated” than others.

It’s really important that all parts of reheated food reach 165 °F before they are eaten. There are a few ways to ensure this happens:

• Stir the food in the middle of heating;
• Let the food sit for a few minutes after it finishes in the microwave to ensure the food cooks evenly. During this “standing time,” the cold parts of the food will absorb some heat from the hotter portions. Many microwave meals recommend this, so pay attention to microwave instructions.
• After the “standing time,” check the food with a food thermometer.

Information from Handle Leftovers with Care at Food Safety.gov

Starting a Plan for Change

If you have decided to start a healthy eating plan, congratulations! Making that decision is an important step in becoming a healthier person.


You will never regret beginning this road. It will change your life and the lives of everyone around you for the better.

If you want support, information, motivation and a place to begin your success - Food $ense is that place.

Keep these key points in mind:

When you're trying to develop new habits-whether it's healthy eating, getting more exercise, or quitting smoking-you have a better chance of success if you make a plan ahead of time.

Knowing why you want to eat healthier can help you make changes in your eating habits. And writing down your reasons will be a good reminder later on if you get discouraged.

A plan for forming new habits includes long-term and short-term goals as well as ideas for getting past barriers-things that might get in the way of your success.

Start with small, short-term goals that you can reach pretty easily. It's easier to stay with something new when you have early, frequent successes.

Support from family and friends can go a long way toward helping you find success in eating healthier. Don't be afraid to let them know what you're trying to do-and ask for their help.

How do you start a healthy eating plan?

It's important not to jump in too far too fast. Slow, steady steps will set you up for success.

• Set your goals.
• Track your progress.
• Think about your barriers.
• Get support-from others and from yourself.

Set your goals

When you are clear about your reasons for starting a healthy eating plan, it's time to set your goals.
What is your long-term goal? A long-term goal is something you want to reach in 6 to 12 months. For example, your long-term goal may be to:
Lower your blood pressure and/or cholesterol.
Reach a healthy weight for your body type.

What are the short-term goals that will help you get there? Short-term goals are things that you want to do tomorrow and the day after. For example, you might decide to:
Switch to low-fat or fat-free milk or soy milk instead of whole milk on your cereal to reduce the amount of fat you take in.
Cut back on eating fast food to once a week, or eat red meat only 3 times a week.

Change a Habit by Setting Goals
Here are some quick tips about healthy eating goals:

• Instead of changing your diet overnight, make your changes one at a time.
• Try adding something to your diet instead of taking something away. Add foods that you think you need more of, like fruits and vegetables. If you start off by taking things out of your diet-like foods that are high in fat or sugar-you might feel deprived. And that will make it harder for you to change.
• Choose more of the healthy foods that you enjoy. Make a list of the foods you like, and see how you can change them to make them healthier. For example, make pizza at home using low-fat mozzarella cheese and lots of fresh vegetables. Is there a special raw vegetable that you like? Stock up on it-and reach for it whenever you want a snack.

Write down your goals, and hang them up where you can see them. Reading your goals can be a helpful reminder.
Don't set goals that involve losing weight fast. Rapid weight loss is not healthy and is hard to keep doing.


Track your progress
Keeping track of your progress helps you see how far you've come. It also helps you stay with your plan.
Use a notebook, journal, or food record form to keep track of the healthy things you do. Look this over when you begin to doubt yourself or feel discouraged.

Pay attention to how you feel. Can you notice any difference when you are eating better? Or do you notice any difference when you sometimes eat poorly?

Notice whether your food preferences change. As we change what we eat, we learn to like new foods. You may find that you don't like some of the foods you used to eat before you started making changes in your diet. And you may have learned to like new foods that you thought you didn't like.

Every time you meet a goal, reward yourself.


Think about your barriers
Take the time to think about what things could get in the way of your success. We call these things barriers. And by thinking about them now, you can plan ahead for how to deal with them if they happen.

Here are some tips for dealing with barriers:

• It's perfectly normal to try something, stop it, and then get mad at yourself. Lots of people have to try and try again before they reach their goals.
• If you feel like giving up, don't waste energy feeling bad about yourself. Remember your reason for wanting to change, think about the progress you've made, and give yourself a pep talk and a pat on the back. Then you may feel like eating healthy again.
• When you hit a barrier-and most people do-get support. Talk to your family members and friends to see if someone wants to eat healthy with you or cheer you on.
• Don't forget little rewards. Something to look forward to can keep you moving right along.
• Expect to encounter some barriers. And remember: The idea is not to get rid of barriers but to identify them ahead of time and plan what you will do to deal with them.

It might help you to have a written personal action plan where you list your goals, your barriers, and your plans to get past those barriers.


Get support-from others and from yourself

The more support you have, the easier it will be to change your eating habits.

If your family members tell you that they love how you're getting healthier, you'll probably be motivated to keep up the good work.

And there's more support out there. You can even ask for encouragement. Here are a few things to look for:

• Change your eating habits with a partner. It's motivating to know that someone is sharing the same goals. That person can remind you how far you've come. And that person can even motivate you with what he or she has accomplished.
• Friends and family may be a great resource. Family members can eat healthy meals with you. They can encourage you by saying how they admire you for making hard changes. Friends may tell you how good you look because your eating habits have changed. Don't be afraid to tell family and friends that their encouragement makes a big difference to you.
• You might join a class or support group. People in these groups often have some of the same barriers you have. They can give you support when you don't feel like staying with your eating plan. They can boost your morale when you need a lift.
• Don't forget to reward yourself. When you reach one of your goals-for example, eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day for 1 week-give yourself a present. Buy a new healthy cookbook. Take a cooking class. Or just take some time for yourself. Do whatever it takes to remind yourself that you've been meeting your goals. You're successful!

Support is everywhere. You just have to look for it.

Kitchen Time Savers that Really Work

I follow a few food blogs and lots of Instagram accounts of chefs and food bloggers - and at times I feel like, I am the only one cooking in a tiny, dark, badly designed kitchen, with cheap counter tops and broken cabinet doors. (Seriously! I have a broken cabinet door)

I think, I would like to cook much more if I was in a beautiful spacious kitchen. I would make better meals if I had expensive pots and pans in designer colors and really cool modern stools around a huge granite island in the middle of a kitchen that is the size of my current backyard! - All those things lead to making cheaper, healthier, better meals..... right?  Right?!?

Actually they don't. - And even if I had the opportunity to give myself a "dream kitchen", I'd no doubt rather have a "dream family room" or gasp!!! a Craft Room! But I can do lots of things that make working in my kitchen more pleasant. Being organized, and having a positive work space doesn't actually have much to do with sinks so big you could bath a tween in them or stoves with 8 gas burners.

I am not actually going to count this as a tip, but I am going to say it because, Seriously! it makes the biggest difference in the whole wide world... Meal Plan!  I don't want to sound like a broken record, but it makes all the difference in the world - on your stress level, your budget and your health.

Organize Your Space -  Keep frequently used items such as cooking oils/sprays, spatulas, cutting boards, and spices within easy reach. This will save you from having to search for them later. I used to have a wild drawer full of kitchen tools - I could never find anything in there and it became a dumping ground for any dish that my kids had no idea where it went. Have your spices where you can see them, Have your like items grouped together in your pantry,

Prepare Your Space Before You Cook - Take a few minutes before you actually start cooking to pull your kitchen together. Make sure you clean the clutter off your counters, have someone empty the dishwasher, get ALL your ingredients out of the fridge and pantry. If you are going to need special tools like whisks or a specific pan - make sure those are clean and ready to use. Read through your recipe and do one last check of all the steps so you aren't caught by surprise when step 4 says, "let it rest for 3 hours".

Prep, Prep, Prep & Chop, Chop, Chop - Take some time and prep as much as you can before you need to cook. Chop vegetables when you buy them. Take large packages of meat and separate them into servings or make patties. Wash lettuce and store it ready-to-use. Make snack bags of veggies that are ready to grab and go, Or put them all together for each meal you will be using them in.

I will tell your the parable of the cantaloupe.  Everyone of my children LOVES cantaloupe. And so I buy cantaloupe, I especially buy a lot when it is on sale - but you cannot leave it laying around - smells, the fruit flies are horrible, and it takes up space.....  But unless I cut up those cantaloupe they will not get eaten. They will sit on my counter until they go mushy, and soft and moldy, because no one will cut them up to eat them. Don't let lack of preparation be your downfall. (This means I don't grocery shop unless I factor in time for Prep - I don't put things "away" until I have completed this step) If I put a bag of carrots - unwashed, unpeeled,& unchopped in my fridge it will go Un-Eaten.

Double the Recipe - If you can afford to, and have the fridge / freezer space, cook a second one of what you are making.  If you are cooking a casserole they make fantastic freezer meals, if you are cooking something that you feel wouldn't freeze well, pack up individual lunches for the next day or coming week. Opening the fridge and realizing that you have left over Lo Mien from last night that you can eat for lunch instead of packing a sandwich is a fantastic surprise. If you have a few people in your household that pack lunches this can be a great way to not only save money. Or just double the sauce - if you are making a red sauce, use it tonight for spaghetti and later in the week of lasagna or chicken parmesan.

Clean As You Go - Fill up your sink with soapy water and wash dishes as you go, or if you already emptied your dishwasher, rinse your dishes and load it as you are cooking - this will keep your work space from getting over crowded by messy dishes (keep cross-contamination down) and save you from that feeling of dread when you finish cooking and then realize you have 45 minutes of clean-up ahead of you.

Someday perhaps we will all have magazine style kitchens and food will magically appear in our ovens like in the old cooking shows - but until then, It doesn't have to be the worst time of the day. It can actually with a little planning be one of the best times of the day for you And your family !

How to Clean Your Kale - Ahh Bugs!!

This is purple kale, I was so excited to pick it up in my CSA box this week.  I pick up on Tuesdays and then I set aside part of the afternoon (right after I pick up my box) to clean and prep all the produce that I picked up. That is one of the best ways to be sure you will use it all and to help you begin to menu plan for the upcoming week. 

So there I was, innocently in my kitchen prepping veggies, I got some absolutely adorable little baby carrots fresh from the ground with dirt all over them, and I was totally having a mother earth moment and thinking to myself - how fabulous am I that I am getting these vegetable with the dirt still on them, and they are so precious and beautiful. I even took some photos of the carrots with the dirt on them, and onions with the dirt on them.... blah blah... you see where I am going.. 

Then I get to this lovely bunch of kale and start to trim the stems and sort through the leaves... and there were a couple of powdery looking spots. - I honestly didn't think anything of it because it reminded me of the "dust" that comes on plums. - Anyway, I took my thumb and rubbed at it... and IT WAS BUGS!!!!!

Now, I don't want to under-impress upon you how totally freaked out and over-the-top crazy I went.

There may have actually been enough shrieking that people came into the kitchen to investigate.

In hindsight, I may not have freaked out if I was expecting to see the bugs, but they totally ruined my moment of veggie-zen and bugged themselves all over my moment!  It was gross.

Now keep in mind, up until a little bit ago, I was all about processing the crud out of my food. So this is kinda a hard step for me. 

I tossed the whole bunch into the sink and filled it up with water -  to neutralize the bugs and to think about what I was going to do about this kale.  ( I tossed the lettuce in too, just in case - but I shouldn't have it was fine and I just made it dirty) 

I discovered that aphids (the bugs) are really common on kale.  I have had them a ton on my roses and they don't bother me there at all. Roses are pretty prone to aphids, but you just spray them off really good for a few days and they don't come back. That means that step 1 of aphid remove is - 

1. Spray them with your faucet really good - did it get rid of them... no? Continue to Step 2. 

Fill up your sink with water, some people use a large bowl, but I use my sink (why dirty a dish?) Put your kale (or any leafy green) into it to soak and eventually be washed. 

2. Soak them in your sink with your choice of - Salt, Vinegar, or a drop or two of dish soap. 

With roses when you are fighting a really bad aphid infestation, you make a mixture of dish soap and spray your roses with it, I know it sounds like it might be too "mild" but it really works. 

Also, on just a side note.....  You put salt in your food, you eat vinegar all the time, and you wash your dishes that you eat off of with dish soap - although it sounds really strange at first to be washing your food like this, it starts to make A LOT of sense when you think about it. 

This is totally a graphic image of the aphids meeting their death in my sink. I was too flipped out to take any "before" pictures, so you'll just have to use your imagination on those.

After letting your greens soak, drain the water from your sink and rinse them really well. Picking through each leaf and if you are eating ones that are curly, unfold the edges of the leaves, be sure you check along the spines where the dirt (and critters) like to hide. There is no way to quickly get through this step - if it bothers you to eat the extra protein, then you are going to have to get rid of it.

Be sure to drain the leaves on a towel and pat dry or spin them in a salad spinner until all the water is off the leaves. Then toss them into a plastic bag to store and into your fridge. Kale can keep a really long time in your fridge, but you worked so hard for it - you should enjoy it soon.

It turns out that I am actually much more calm about this now than I was that night. I think I would rather wash off some friendly little buggies that decided my dinner was good enough for them too. I am definitely not in that same type of mood when it comes to earwigs and caterpillars in corn though!

Leftover Safety - How not be killed by your own food.

 While you are stressing about all the little things that need to be taken care of for the big Thanksgiving holiday, I thought it best to pass on some reminders about food safety. Because as important as it is that your potatoes are creamy, your kids have nice manners, and somebody remembers to take some pictures of everyone around the table.... it is also important that you don't send everyone home with sick stomachs and cursing you through the night and the next day. Enough graphic imagery for you? Let's get to the information -

Safe Thawing - Thawing turkeys must be kept at a safe temperature. The "danger zone" is between 40 and 140°F — the temperature range where food borne bacteria multiply rapidly. While frozen, a turkey is safe indefinitely, but as soon as it begins to thaw, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to grow again, if it is in the "danger zone."

Live Well Utah has a fantastic step-by-step guide that will take you from thawing your bird, cooking it, serving it and getting it put away. 

To Stuff - or Not to Stuff ? - I don't want to get all political during the holidays and cause hurt feelings, but honestly people, Stop!! putting that "stuffing" into your turkeys - It is Gross!  If you aren't going to listen to sanity - or reason, HERE is the information that you absolutely must have. But really, make some gorgeous dressing, put it in a casserole dish (or better yet, a crock pot) and don't risk the lives of your guests for something that does nothing to improve the flavor of the dish. (I feel a little bit strongly about this) 

Cook It - Set the oven temperature no lower than 325°F and be sure the turkey is completely thawed. Place turkey breast-side up on a flat wire rack in a shallow roasting pan 2 to 2-1/2 inches deep. Check the internal temperature at the center of the stuffing and meaty portion of the breast, thigh, and wing joint using a food thermometer. Cooking times will vary. The food thermometer must reach a safe minimum internal temperature of 165°F. Let the turkey stand 20 minutes before removing all stuffing from the cavity and carving the meat. For more information on safe internal temperatures, visit FoodSafety.gov's Safe Minimum Cooking Temperatures

More Information

Poultry Preparation, 
Turkey Basics: Handling Cooked Dinners & Leftovers, 
Turkey Basics: Safe Cooking, 
Thanksgiving Holiday Resources

Let There Be Leftovers! - I really don't get all gaga for the actual Thanksgiving dinner. I could take it or leave it, but don't mess with me and my LOVE for leftovers. I even cook way more that I know we are going to need because I want to be sure that I have a sufficient supply of turkey for sandwiches, sweet potatoes for midnight snacks, and rolls to snack on while I am waiting for my plate of leftovers to heat in the microwave.

But You can make just as many food safety mistakes putting the food away (or NOT putting the food away) as you can while you are preparing the meal.

Follow the Two-Hour Rule
Hot, perishable food that sits out for longer than two hours is considered unsafe to eat and needs to be thrown away. This is because the temperature of the food has most likely been in the food danger zone for too long. This period of time allows for bacteria to rapidly reproduce and contaminate the food. So, if it's been two hours since the Thanksgiving table was set and there's still food on it, do not bother bagging it up and putting it in the fridge. Just throw it away.

Take Care when Sending Leftovers Home with Guests
Sending leftovers home with guests is a great way to minimize the amount of refrigerator or freezer space needed by the host. However, the two-hour rule still applies. Consider the amount of travel time your guest has from house to house. If it's longer than two hours, give them a cooler and some ice to get the food home safely. Better yet, ask them beforehand to come prepared with their own cooler.

Use the Refrigerator or Freezer, or Both
Heaps of turkey and stuffing leftovers call for a dual storage strategy. Here's how to decide what goes where:

Storing Turkey in the Fridge
Leftover turkey can keep for 3-4 days in the refrigerator and still be safe to eat.

Storing Turkey in the Freezer
In the freezer, leftovers should be eaten within 6 months. After this period, it is not safety that suffers, only quality as the food will become more susceptible to freezer burn.


Store Leftovers in Shallow Containers
The faster leftovers can cool, the better, because they spend less time in the Food Danger Zone (40 °F to 140 °F). The best way to decrease the cooling time for leftovers is to store them in shallow pans or containers, which decreases the surface area of the food that needs to cool. Also, leftover turkey should be cut into smaller pieces, to decrease its surface area, too.

Store Stuffing Apart from the Turkey
Sure, stuffing can be cooked inside the turkey, but once cooking is done, that union needs to be broken. If turkey and stuffing are stored together, there is a risk of salmonella bacteria contaminating the stuffing. Storing the items separately in shallow containers is the only way to assure proper food safety.

Way to Go! You stayed for the whole thing... as your reward here are the top 5 Turkey Fails from the USDA Meat and Poultry hotline. 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) www.fsis.usda.gov

Here are their Panic Button Questions.  - Now Relax .

Teaching Kids to Cook Safely

Teaching Kids to Cook

Cooking Guide by the Ages 

The best way to teach kids about eating right is to actually get them into the kitchen to prepare healthy meals together. Cooking is a valuable life skill that teaches children about nutrition and food safety, as well as building math, science, literacy and fine motor skills.
 
Encourage your child’s interest and even excitement in healthy foods by teaching your kids how to cook safely with this guide of age-appropriate kitchen activities.
 
Food Safety Basics
Before you enter the kitchen, cover the ground rules with children first:

• Wash hands in warm, soapy water before and after handling food.
• Pull long hair back.
• Keep counter tops and working surfaces clean.
• Teach children to wait until the food is cooked before tasting. Don’t let them lick their fingers or put their hands in their mouths, especially when working with raw foods such as cookie dough and raw meat or poultry.
• Avoid double dipping or putting spoons back into food after using them for tasting.
• Remember, young cooks need supervision.
• Teach the four simple steps:
  • Wash hands, surfaces and kitchen utensils.
  • Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood separate from ready-to-eat foods
  • Cook to proper temperatures
  • Refrigerate promptly to 40 degrees F or below.

3-5 year olds

Young children love helping out, but need very close adult supervision since their motor skills are still developing. Teach these youngsters the importance of washing produce and using clean appliances and utensils.

Appropriate Tasks:

• Wash hands with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds. Make it a game by singing the “Happy Birthday” song together twice as you wash your hands.
• Wash fruits and vegetables in the sink with cool tap water.
• Wipe up tabletops.
• Mix ingredients like easy-to-mix batters.
• Brush (or “paint”) oil with a clean pastry brush on bread, asparagus or other foods.
• Cut cookies with fun shaped cookie cutters (but don’t eat the raw dough!).

6-7 year olds
Most 6-7 year olds have developed fine motor skills, so they can handle more detailed work, but they will still need food safety reminders.

Appropriate Tasks:

• Use a peeler to peel raw potatoes, ginger, mangoes and other fruits and vegetables.
• Break eggs into a bowl.
• Scoop out avocados.
• Deseed tomatoes and roasted peppers with a spoon.
• Snap green beans.
• Load the dishwasher.
• Shuck corn and rinse before cooking.
• Rinse and cut parsley or green onions with blunt scissors.

8-9 year olds
There is a wide range of skills in this age group, so tailor your tasks to each individual’s maturity level. Teach the importance of wiping down all surfaces and refrigerating perishables, such as eggs and milk, within two hours.

Appropriate Tasks:

• Open cans with a can opener.
• Put leftovers in shallow containers and refrigerate within two hours.
• Pound chicken on a cutting board. Note: Always use a separate cutting board for ready-to-eat foods, and be sure to wash hands with warm, soapy water after handling raw chicken.
• Beat eggs.
• Check the temperature of meat with a food thermometer – it’s like a science experiment! (Learn about food thermometers and safe cooking temperatures with the Food Thermometer Worksheet.)
• Juice a lemon or orange.

10-12 year olds
For the most part, kids ages 10 -12 can work independently in the kitchen, but should still have adult supervision. Before letting these kids do grown-up tasks on their own, assess whether they can follow basic kitchen rules such as tucking pan handles, unplugging electrical appliances, using knives and safely using the oven or microwave.

Appropriate Tasks (with adult supervision):

• Boil pasta. 
• Microwave foods. (Read our Microwave Cooking with Kids guide, first.)
• Follow a recipe, including reading each step in order and measuring ingredients accurately.
• Bake foods in the oven.
• Simmer ingredients on the stove.
• Slice or chop vegetables.

Thanks for this amazing information to : Home Food Safety.org

The worst dinner night of the week

The worst dinner of the week, is it Wednesday? No, it is leftover night! 

I have a love / hate relationship with leftover night. I think most people do. It is nice to have dinner already made, it is most probably something you like since you already ate it once, but that is the kicker right there, you already ate it once.  

Something mystical happens once the food enters the fridge and then spends the night, It turns into something that I would just rather not have again. I have started being really mindful of how much food I prepare. I try and make perhaps a little less, instead of erring on the side of more. And filling bellies that are still not full or wanting "seconds" with a salad - which usually ends up being better for them anyway. 

So after we had leftovers for dinner tonight, then it was the worst part of leftover night..... clean out the fridge time. Yuck! I had sloppy joe meat in there that could have walked itself to the kitchen sink!

So I got to thinking about food safety (and how extremely unsafe that was). The Food $ense website has some excellent information on food safety. The facts about how many people get sick each year and how many die can be really scary, but the great news is, food safety is something that we have complete control over. 

There are three main ways that food becomes contaminated - 

• Time / Temperature Abuse - Food can already be contaminated when you buy it from the store. If it hasn't be store properly bacteria may have already started to grow. Also leaving food out once you get home from the store is another example of Time / Temperature abuse.  You can't do much about how the store takes care of your food, but you have complete control over how quickly you get it put away once you get home. 
• Cross - Contamination - Cross contamination is when you use a knife or cutting board ( or any kitchen utensil) to prepare raw meat and then use it again to prepare something that will be ready to eat, like a salad. This is where great clean kitchen habits can save you almost wholly from this problem. Use separate cutting surfaces for raw meats and items that will be directly consumed without cooking. Be sure you sterilize your knives with hot soapy water or you can use a mixture of one capful of bleach to one gallon water. 
• Poor Hygiene Habits - This means you and me; are we clean and tidy and following good habits?Are we washing our hands correctly (even our nails)? Do we have our hair pulled back? And once we start touching food have we stopped touching our face and other non-foody things? 

How long does food last once it is in the fridge? A good rule of thumb is 3-4 days. It might seem like a short amount of time, but it is safe. Are you a little bit more picky, or perhaps detail-oriented? Here is a much longer more detailed list of how long things are good in the fridge. 

We are quickly coming up on leftover season with all the holiday meals and get-togethers. Here is an excellent website that has holiday leftover rules.  Nothing could be worse than food borne illness during the holidays. You certainly don't want your party to be memorable for that reason. 

Remember, you are the master of your own food safety fate. Following 4 simple food safety principles is an easy way to control bacteria in our food and prevent foodborne illness.

The 4 food safety principles, known as Fight BAC! are:  Clean, Cook, Separate and Chill

The one kitchen chore I know you don't do

Do you know the basic rules of kitchen safety? Clean, Cook, Separate, Chill! Have you taken the Food $ense lesson on Food Safety, or visited the new website area for Cooking Safely.





Here are a few kitchen quick tips for cleaning and staying safe.

• Turn pot handles away from the front of the stove. Children can’t grab them, and adults can’t bump into them if they’re out of the way.
• Don’t let temperature-sensitive foods sit out in the kitchen. Raw meat, fish, and certain dairy products can spoil quickly, so refrigerate or freeze them right away.
• Wipe up spills immediately. Keep the floor dry so that no one slips and falls.
• Separate raw meat and poultry from other items whenever you use or store them. This precaution avoids cross-contamination of harmful bacteria from one food to another.
• Wash your hands before handling food and after handling meat or poultry. Hands can be a virtual freight train of bacteria.
• Get a fire extinguisher for your kitchen. This device may not do much else in your kitchen, but it can avert a disaster. Make sure you know how to use it before a fire breaks out. You can’t waste any time reading the directions amidst the flames.
  
  
  As for that one kitchen chore I know you don't do, When was the last time you washed that can opener? I know it is a kitchen tool in my house that gets used and put away and not washed as often or as thoroughly as it needs to be.
  So review the rules -  Clean, Cook, Separate, Chill! I am sure there is something we can all do a little bit better. 
  
  
  
  

Fight BAC for Summer and Kids

FightBAC.org has put out some really fun games and information for kids this summer in both English and Spanish.   They even have a fun iphone game that is available in the app store.

Leftovers Yeah! or Yuck?

So here we all sit after a long holiday weekend, probably with fridges bursting full of leftovers and food from the parties that we attended. I have such a complicated relationship with leftovers, I don't love then, I feel like I shouldn't hate them, I don't want to transfer my issues with them to my children and my husband loves them. Who would have thought that food sitting already cooked and ready to eat in containers in my fridge could cause such an emotional reaction.

I don't know why I have such an issue with them, you would think that someone that dislikes cooking as much as I do that I would adore having something already made in the fridge.

I want my kids to like them because it means so much less waste and easier quick dinners if I can just say, "hey! grab that leftover taco meat and make yourself a burrito".

My husband is all about not ever throwing away food. He paid good money for it, and it needs to be eaten. I agree, but it is much harder for me when I have to be the one doing the eating.

So for those of you who love leftovers and those of you who are a little reluctant today Food $ense and I have some leftover hints and tips for you to make it a much better experience (for all of us).

Tip #1 - Label your leftovers - Say what they are and when they were made.

  This may seem a little simple, I bet almost none of us do it, and then we end up in the most dreaded of all leftover situations, "what is THIS and when did it take up residence in this fridge?"  Use a strip of masking tape, or do what I do and use a Post-it.

Tip # 2 - Know how long they can stay. Here is a quick bit of information on how long to keep things. And this is a good basic rule to follow - Four days is a good number, if you don't think you will be able to eat it in that time then put it in the freezer instead of the fridge.  If you are going to freeze it, be sure you follow tip #1 and label it, or you may never remember what it is.

Tip #3 - Know how to handle them correctly.  Here is some information on that:

Handling leftovers

• Before and after handling leftovers, wash your hands as well as all utensils, dishes and work surfaces with hot soapy water.
• Keep foods out of the danger zone, between 4°C (40°F) and 60°C (140°F) to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria.
• Throw away any cooked food left in the danger zone for more than two hours.
• Never rely on your nose, eyes or taste buds to judge the safety of food. You cannot tell if food is contaminated by its look, smell or taste. When in doubt, throw it out!

Cooling leftovers

• Refrigerate all hot leftovers promptly in uncovered, shallow containers so they cool quickly.
• Very hot items can first be cooled at room temperature. Refrigerate once steaming stops.
• Leave the lid off or wrap loosely until the food is cooled to refrigeration temperature.
• Avoid overstocking the refrigerator to allow cool air to circulate freely.

Storing leftovers

• Always use a clean container to hold leftovers, or wrap leftovers in leak-proof plastic bags to prevent cross-contamination. Keep different types of leftovers separate.
• Eat refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days, or freeze them for later use.
• Date leftovers to help identify the contents and to ensure they are not stored too long.

Defrosting leftovers

• Thaw frozen leftovers in the refrigerator or in the microwave. Ensure food is properly sealed.
• Use the defrost setting of your microwave and make sure leftovers are completely defrosted before reheating.
• Consume or cook the leftovers immediately after they have thawed.

Reheating leftovers

• Reheat leftovers to a safe internal temperature of 74ºC (165ºF).
• Use a digital food thermometer to check the temperature.
• Bring gravies, soups and sauces to a full, rolling boil and stir during the process.
• Discard uneaten leftovers after they have been reheated.

Reheating in a microwave

• Use only containers and plastic wrap designed for use in the microwave.
• Loosen the lid or wrap to allow steam to escape.
• Stop the microwave midway through reheating and stir the food so that the heat is evenly distributed.
• Rotate the plate several times during cooking if your microwave does not have a rotating tray.

It’s estimated that there are approximately 48 million cases of food-related illnesses in the United States every year 3000 of whom will die.  Many of these illnesses could be prevented by following proper food handling and preparation techniques.