Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research report marvelous news on the cancer prevention compounds found in cruciferous vegetables. The key vegetables in this category are broccoli sprouts and raw cabbage. In has been known for quite some time that these vegetables contain sulforaphane, a powerful compound long touted for its ability to fight off free radicals. However, today’s news has even more good news.

Today’s reports specifically mention other benefits of consuming cruciferous vegetables. A bacterium, called H. pylori (discovered in 1982 by a Nobel Prize scientist) allegedly causes most stomach ulcers and also can cause gastritis, in which stomach walls become inflamed (thus increasing the probability of stomach cancer). H. pylori can be decreased by consuming something as natural as broccoli sprouts. With the increase of irritated esophagi and stomach acid problems, it is quite obvious that our acid intake far exceeds our fresh vegetable intake.

But the most interesting part of this report was the findings on consumption of cabbage by Polish women. After they migrated to America and reduced their cabbage consumption, their rate of breast cancer increased. Cabbage is another member of the cruciferous vegetable family just as broccoli and cauliflower. It too ranks high for cancer prevention. It is recommended to eat cabbage raw. Perhaps it is time to seek out a good coleslaw recipe!

I have long been an advocate of a diet heavy in fresh fruits and vegetables. Though people do wish to have a longer and healthy life, it seems like TV programs health are quickly cast aside for a news flash on Brittany Spears.

I highly recommend the updates you will find on CBS Web Doctor. In my vegetable pizza book I suggest finding information at www.ohio.osu.edu or searching for “photochemical” on a search engine. In the meantime I am leaving you this reference list. I seriously ask you to consider all natural medicinal gifts from nature before assuming that cancer is simply our way of life in America.

FOOD WHICH MAY HELP PREVENT CANCER:
Garlic and onions: allicin
Carrot, yams and apricots: beta-carotene
Broccoli and Cabbage: sulforaphane
Beans, Soy and legumes: isoflavones
Chili peppers: capsaicin
Red wine: reveratrol
Blue foods: anthocyanidins
Flaxseed and grains: ligans
Grapefruit: limonoids
Not a complete list but enough to warrant further research into your life-saving choices.

FOODS WHICH MAY ACCLERATE CANCER GROWTH
Rancid oil or butter: (oils left opened for long time)
Burnt fat from a barbecue
Fat in ground meat
Grease from restaurant fryers
Old nuts easily become rancid
Processed meats (from nitrates)

Be on the lookout! This web site will soon be taking new directions, however, all my culinary advice will still be available through the Savvy Kitchen Solutions archives. All articles from this weblog: Savvy Kitchen Solutions will be published in my full length book next spring under the title of “KITCHEN CLIPPINGS” with photos and drawings not available on the website. Example: a photo of a freezer organized for efficiency and ease to search. It will be a unique “how to” book on basic and sensible ideas for your life in the kitchen. A good gift for Mother’s Day 2006.

How often have you found yourself eating something that has little resemblance to the photographic claim on the outside of the box or to the image accompanying the recipe? You can’t even imagine what expense marketers go to and how much these images are manipulated to convince people to buy things.

I hereby classify this as “eating outside the box", named so because the contents are only a remote likeness to the packaging photographs. For example, in the store, those images of huge chunks of meat and chicken catch your eye, but upon weighing several samples I found the meat volume quite a bit less than the box indicated. Then, there are those bright colored vegetables that look like they just came from the Farmer’s Market but in truth are rather anemic pebbles or chunks of produce. Often, the vegetables are either not cooked to edible tenderness or are overcooked. When buying pre-cooked stir-fry dinners, you will see prime-looking vegetables on the box. If you’re lucky enough to prepare it so that all the vegetables are consistent in texture and size you may be able to “eat inside the bag". More often then not, however, what you see in the picture and what you get is often like an unreliable weather report: overcast with intermittent sunshine.

I have always been amused by the product at supermarkets which promises you a miracle in a box by only adding a pound of hamburger. It is known as HAMBURGER HELPER. A more honest marketer would create a box showing a hamburger patty with crutches walking alongside a rice nurse or pasta doctor. However, the box misrepresents its content by showing a complete dinner: what you are eating is “outside the box". Other products from the same brand are TUNA HELPER & PORK HELPER. And just down the aisles from those popular products is none other but an INDIGESTION HELPER. What would we do without our handy antacid? Not to worry, for every eating mistake some pharmaceutical company is waiting to solve your problem with the promise of relief right on the box.

Apparently a perfect picture is worth a million dollars. If you think Hollywood has to do movie takes over and over, imagine the salary paid to the photographers whose task is to glorify and enhance food. The bright colors and box designs lead you to believe that a culinary Emeril or Martha creation is inside to please your taste buds. But in reality, it’s the trust towards authoritative figures that exceeds good common sense in our current non-cooking society! Whenever we see a bright box, we shall assume that a great dinner awaits us without the need to collect recipe ingredients, cook or wash pots and pans. While we may be savoring a fabulous dinner made without effort, the truth of the matter will be that what we eat will taste little better than consuming the box.

I can’t possibly write about all this foolishness without mentioning LUNCH IN A PLASTIC CUP. The commercials for this product, most appropriately named “Soup in Hand", show a deliriously happy consumer walking down the street carrying his plastic cup of soup clutched in his hand. While it may be convenient, the safety of heating a plastic container in the microwave has not yet been established. Most people prefer having homemade soup within minutes than considering the risks this chemical cup of petrified veggies and sodium may pose. What you expect and what get once you open the cup is parallel to what a youngster really wanted from his Grandma for his birthday and what was really in the box. Oh well, life is just full of reality checks! Is it not?

Last but not least, my latest discovery in deception was hardly what we would expect from the world number 1 authority in food expertise and perfectionist of the culinary world. On the October 2005 cover of the MARTHA STEWART LIVING magazine, there is a photograph of two traditional pies: pumpkin pie and apple pie. While this is certainly the right time of season for these images, there is something uniquely different about the pumpkin pie in this photo. I noticed that the outer edges of the pie are carefully shaped and baked. However, the center of the pumpkin pie never saw the center of any oven. It is obviously completely uncooked. While it is a great photo, it is a fraudulent pie. This is yet another great example of eating outside of the box, however in this case it’s eating outside of the magazine. A mere publishing faux pas I am sure that will be overlooked by many and excused by a public that does not have the ability to detect the real from the close imitation.

Pomegranates are native to the Himalayas and India. Since Biblical times, they have been cultivated and naturalized over the entire Mediterranean region. Pomegranates flourish in the drier parts of Southeast Asia, Malaya, East Indies and Africa. The fruit was first introduced to California by Spanish settlers in 1769. Since the pomegranate prefers a semi-arid and mild temperature to a subtropical climate, they are grown primarily in California and Arizona. Some are even grown in greenhouses.

The character of the fruit is quite different from most common cultivated fruits. Pomegranates grow on small trees or shrubs, which typically reach a height of about 12 to 16 feet. The tree has bright scarlet flowers with 5 to 8 petals. They self-pollinate, and are additionally cross-pollinated by insects. Some species of pomegranate have survived up to 200 years, however, fruit production usually declines after 15 years.

This funny fruit will probably outlast most common edible fruits of today, even the genetically altered ones. Most pomegranates are 2 1/2 to 5 inches across in size, and have a leathery skin or rind with a yellow to maroon color. Within the fruit’s jacket are a multitude of juice-filled sacs surrounding seeds. Before the appearance of modern manufactured beverages, the juice was considered to be a desirable refreshment by those who lived in arid regions along the Mediterranean. Its essence is used to make grenadine, a popular component of many modern cocktails. It has also been used in various medicinal forms throughout time.

There are other interesting facts about this ancient fruit. In Thailand, a branch from the pomegranate tree dipped in water is used to spray attendees returing from a funeral, a ritual which was though to free one of any evil spirits that may otherwise follow you. From 14bc to 135bc, the image of three pomegranates appeared on a silver coin used in Jerusalem. The image of the pomegranate was also used in the building of Solomon’s temple as noted in I Kings 7:18

Today, the pomegranate is gaining new acceptance not for its impressive historical virtues but its amazing anti-oxidant value. Besides being placed into many vitamin supplements, its juice is growing in popularity. For good reason! Compared to an orange, the pomegranate possesses nutritional superiority. Trader Joe’s or local health food stores have many versions of its tangy juice. If you thought that the cranberry has a pucker, your lips are in for a new surprise at your first sip of this Biblical berry.

For those who own a tree:
Your fruit will be ripe when the fruit develops a distinctive color and makes a metallic sound. If picked too late the fruit will crack. The apple and the pomegranate have a similar shelf life and can last up to 7 months in cool temperatures. While the sacs can be twisted out and eaten as is, there are several ways in which the juice can be extracted: by a wire press or warming the fruit and rolling it in between your hands to soften. Besides drinking the juice, it can be used for jelly, sorbets and hot or cold sauces. Oddly enough, as the fruit ages, it becomes juicier and stronger in flavor.

Unfortunately, living in an age when consumers expect everything instantly and properly spiked with ample sugar, this amazing fruit most often ends up in a Martha Stewart fruit bowl with a gourds and dried twigs design painted with paints from Ms Stewart’s latest craft corner at the big K. Of course, a few truly adventurous souls will realize that this funny ancient fruit has some amazing value and they will take the time to test its pleasing pucker power!

BAG YOUR DINNER: In the time it takes to drive to your local fast food outlet, dinner could well be on its way to the supper table. Roasting your own meats is so simple and easy that it should be emphasized in every high school economics class. A simple cooking bag made from a few food wrap companies eliminates the mess caused by ordinary roasting. It’s also a great idea for those who dine alone. Choose any meat or poultry and place seasoning on top of meat. Add some carrots, potatoes and any other veggies. Adding a small amount of water will help create some great broth. It is wise to make a few puncture holes to prevent the bag from ballooning. Check the cooking time of your choice of meat as roasting times vary. Besides retention of vitamins, the dinner will moist and be teeming with natural flavors. So remember it is definitely a “Dinner for Dummies” and you didn’t even have to buy a book!

HOME MADE PENICILLIN: Well it does not come out of a test tube or even from your local health food store, but it could serve a similar purpose. It is time for you to load up your freezer with home-made broth. Turkey wings are probably the cheapest way to make a soup starter. Chicken wings are also good but a little more expensive. Use beef neck bones for a brown broth. Add any orphan veggies that are still firm but that have lost their youthful looks or appeal; they are perfect for the soup pot. Simmer until cooked. Once you have made your broth, place in plastic pint containers (remember to leave ample space for liquid expansion), label clearly and date. Its best to write with marker pens as paper labels sometimes fall off or deteriorate. A word of caution when removing from the freezer: DO NOT THAW in plastic containers. I recommend placing the frozen carton in hot water for a few minutes; it will quickly separate from the sides of the container. Then, place frozen liquid in a microwavable bowl or container. You will have penicillin power on hand that is easier to get than running to the store for a box of flu medicine. Broth is also a great winter warm-up beverage for any time of day! If you make your own broth, the cost is usually less than 35cts a carton.

HALLOWEEN TREATS: Giving away candy on Halloween is like handing guaranteed future patients to your local dentist. Besides, now there is also the added fear that too much sugar, and therefore also candy, is contributing to type 2 diabetes. I am the first to be guilty of having allowed my children to scour the neighborhood resulting in them to come home with enough sweets to open a candy store. Now, some 30 years later, I realize how I was taken in by the candy and movie moguls who use their icons on every candy products imaginable. So, instead of perpetuating this dreadful tradition, break free and give out healthy snacks. Buy some big bags of apples or buy several types of nuts. I have found that every kid in the world loves pistachios. So please just go nuts with some real natural treats! A lot of moms will have that much less candy to discard!

I just read that after eight years and millions of dollars scientists have managed to created the food technology of the century. Yes, all you finicky eaters who must have your white mushy bread (God forbid you try the goodness of real whole grains) will now be able to have your white bread with a few whole grain specks tossed in.

This amazing new method of adding inconspicuous ingredients was developed by ConAgra Foods Inc. The process will be used to give the illusion of nutrition to junk food. I wouldn’t be surprised if its presence will even be touted in donuts. They created an entire new food group called Ultra White Whole Wheat. It has been designed to meet the requirements of the USDA’s new food pyramid. You can get half of your daily supply of whole wheat with this new bogus bread product. It might just take the place of low-carb products as the year unfolds.

With the exodus of the low-carb diet foods, companies now need to replace those vacant shelves with new products. Atkins is gone and his company is now bankrupt. Americans are ready for the next big food item. Will hi-fiber become the new messiah for the food industry?

They are introducing products with Ultra White Whole Wheat in TV commercials using encouraging words like “It’s so good. It’s so soft. But it is actually whole wheat bread. Imagine wheat bread made for white bread fans.” Well, actually, it’s only 30% whole grain. The bread is fundamentally the same but now carries the blessings of the USDA! If there is a nutrition problem in our country, leave it to our government to solve the problem by keeping the American public in the dark about what the real truth is behind the advertising.

Tammy Yamon, the Director of Nutritional Services for Omaha Public Schools has stated that children have an aversion to eating anything brown or with seeds. She thinks adding extra fiber into food products will make it easier for youths to follow the guideline of consuming 3 daily whole grain foods. Of course, schools in America have students who are served real grains from a very early age before their finicky behavior sets in. However, you can be sure that Tammy Yamon has signed up to purchase ConAgra’s Ultra grains for some 2,600 school districts.

Many whole wheat consumers are not so pleased with this innovation. They believe that eating the real thing is actually more satisfying to the stomach. When you eat a sandwich with a two solid slices of 100 % whole wheat you feel more satiated, whereas eating a slice of white bread with Ultra White Whole Wheat is more like eating Styrofoam with sprinkles of wheat dust intermingled. Besides you mustn’t forget that they add just enough high-fructose corn syrup to camouflage the wheat dust.
Others are equally unhappy with this innovation because obesity in adults and children is still currently a major concern. Classifying these products as whole grain is a marketing tool that will send mixed messages to responsible parents. Many nutritionists and doctors share this same outlook regrading fiber-fortified foods, as they further complicate meeting the food pyramid guidelines. I say we should just skip bogus wheat bread and learn to enjoy the real thing. Your colon and the wheat growers of America will both be grateful for your choice!

General Foods who offers whole grains in their products is petitioning the government to define whole grains according to Kim Rawlings a spokesman for the FDA. According to the FDA guidelines such products must not be made with whole wheat flour in order to be labeled as “whole wheat.’ Whether any new rulings will hurt the new bogus white wheat flour bakery campaign is yet to be seen. Where I come from, we like to a call a spade a spade and notably we like to think of whole wheat bread is made from real grains. If you looking to our government to define the discrepancy between fool’s gold and the real nuggets you may be in for a long wait.

In June 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a consultation on the health implications of acrylamide presence in food. The subject has been mentioned before in journals and warnings have previously been issued, but the fast food industry has shown little signs of changing their position until their lack of response began to affect the bottom line.

It took many caring scientists several years to get the pesticide DDT banned, even after the book “Silent Spring” ominously forecast the death of all birds from DDT. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the most damning evidence that cigarettes caused cancer was suppressed for years, and, thus, many died without ever knowing the cause of their demise. Giant conglomerates care little that their products might bring harm to others, and when they can no longer ignore it, they down-play any ill-effects that may occur.

The WHO has always been concerned about acrylamide and they established an international network to publicize the presence of acrylamide in food. While small amounts of acrylamide appear to be safe, one food that is of great concern is french fries. Carcinogens are created by the potato being fried at excessive heat; one can think of French fries as an edible cigarette! Acrylamide can be found in foods other than French Fries; even potato chips have acrylamide, although it is present at a much lower percentage. A taco shell can have 1 or 2 micrograms. Many institutions and businesses are being poor role models by encouraging us to consume of such unhealthy and dangerous products. For instance, the state fair promotes deep-fried Twinkies and corn dogs washed down with what is essentially sugar water. Local TV stations and even radio stations joke about eating junk food. Once children know that wholesome foods are not promoted on TV, in movies, or by their role models, they have difficulty eating them.

California Senator Bill Lockyer has filed a lawsuit against nine manufacturers of potato chips and French fries. He is seeking a court order that will require them to warn consumers of the carcinogenic substance acrylamide that can be found in these products. There is currently a law called Proposition 65 which requires companies to notify consumers of any potentially dangerous toxin in their foods. The WHO and other scientific affiliates have confirmed the danger associated with acrylamide.
One of their many findings is that women who consumed large amounts of French fries as teens have a higher risk of getting breast cancer in their later years. The World Health Organization also claimed that barbecued meat often showed presence of carcinogens in the portions that had direct contact with the grill. These carcinogens are created when melted fat reaches hot coals and its smoke is then absorbed by the meat. Your home cooked French fries will likewise be coated with the same chemical, acrylamide. I therefore recommend that rather than French fries, you prepare your potatoes in the following manner: Cut each potato into strips or wedges. Cover them with oil & seasonings and bake them at 375 degrees in the oven. Bon Appétit.

If you are interested in learning more about acrylamides, I have aggregated many sources on this subject.

Firstly, Senator Lockyer has his own website with numerous resources. Secondly, the FDA should have information on the subject. And lastly, the Center of Science in the Public has been on top of this matter for the past 3 years. Here are their recommended websites:

http://www.cspinet.org/new/200206271.html
http:/www.cspinet.org/new/200206251.html : Charts on acrylamide
http://www.slv.se/engdefault.asp : Report from Sweden with recommendations
http://www.who.int/inf/en/pr-2002-51.html : News release from World Health Organization

You can be sure whenever an industry’s cash flow is threatened, the PR propagandists are going to working overtime, spinning faux concern to the public. This is most obvious in a recent press release riddled with confusing euphemisms entitled “School Partnerships”; a document regarding school district beverage vending policy. It’s wise to remember, however, that when the fox is watching the henhouse it is only a ruse. This great declaration of corporation concern was declared on August 17, 2005 has more holes than a collander.

This document paints childhood obesity as a big problem that should be addressed by promoting healthy lifestyles, a balanced diet and regular physical exercise. Who would disagree with such a self-evident statement?

Next is a list of associations exhorting the importance of a parental role in the execution of the above mentioned virtues. This responsibility, however, is everyone’s job. Alas their industry (which has long provided “refreshing and tasty soda") believes their products have a place in this healthy lifestyle as long as young soda drinkers are following a balanced diet and exercising frequently. It’s difficult to believe that the educated and smart youngster who maintains a balanced diet and works out regularly is really interested in wolfing down 24 ounces of colored sugar water. Their exact words were: “We believe our products have a place in a healthy lifestyle and these products are appropriate for young people who follow balanced diets and are physically active.” This statement appears ludicrous, when one considers that truly healthy lifestyles have no need or desire for drinks full of empty calories.

The document then addresses the importance of variety. They offer in this order ( which is not the order in which they are currently consumed) bottled water, 100% fruit juices, juice drinks, dairy based milk drink, sports drinks, teas and sodas. Notice sodas were mentioned last. I observed that reduced sugar juice drinks are not mentioned. Dole has made a light 50% less sugar berry blend with only 13 grams of sugar per 8 oz. serving size; Tropicana’s light offering has 30 grams. These prove that there are reasonable choices for flavored beverages. Unfortunately, the profit margin is higher on the sugary choices.

The beverage industry realizes that there is considerable discussion of sales of soft drinks in schools. They claim to recognize that at school children are not under direct supervision of a parent thus raising unique issues! This is an excuse, as there is nothing unique or new about not wanting our kids strung out on sugary sodas. They propose to solve this problem for us by adopting “responsible school vending policies” and working with school districts to provide a mix of products meeting needs of school administrators and parents. The beverage manufacturers concluded that a new-industry wide school beverage policy would enable them to better partner with parent and schools enhancing the role of community decision making over the sale of beverages in school. This seems to state that school administrators can’t possibly create a reasonable nutritional policy without help from the industry.

The industry-recommended policy goes on to make the following statements which strike me as a case of “too little, too late"! The beverage industry states that after having worked with parent and community leaders and school officials, they want to do more to help children make good lifestyle choices. Why would a soda pop tycoon be suddenly interested in improving their product choices to suit a healthier lifestyle? If you examine the document closely, it appears that they want greater control over available choices for younger children in the school environment and suggest that older children should have more beverage choices, in this case, more cola and soft drinks – which is quite contrary to what local school officials and community leaders want for their children. This represents the bulk of the ABA’s (American Beverage Association) response to groups adopting new policies regarding the availability of vending machine beverages. With the watered down version of soda control the industry presents perhaps their soda profits will be maintained. Effectively, the ABA is trying to “head them off at the pass", like in an old western. You can find this document at: http://www.ameribev.org/schools/vending_policy.asp

In the meantime, the industry is working to develop new types of beverages which will mollify their critics. As they continue to develop innovative beverages choices they will remain vigilant in forcing their policies upon local schools. Allow me to list their goals.

1. Provide only bottled water and 100% fruit juice to elementary schools
2. Provide nutritious and/or lower calorie beverages to middle school students, such as bottled water, 100% juice, sports drinks, no calorie soft drinks and low-cal juice drinks. No full- calorie soft drinks or full calorie juice drinks containing 5% or less of real juice will be provided until after school hours.
3. Provide a variety of beverage choices to high school students such as bottled 100% juice, sports drinks, juice drinks. No more than 50% of vending machines will be soft drinks.

This is The Strategic Alliance of Oakland consumer group [website, email] has to say about this PR fairy tale spun by the ABA:

“These guidelines are all about PR, not students health. The industry announced its new guidelines as political cover from much deserved criticism for their role in promoting unhealthy products . A growing movement of parents, school administrators and teacher demanding only healthy drinks to be sold in schools. This is a threat to the soda industry.”

“These guide lines are a distraction. Schools are supposed to teach children life skills. If children are being taught about health in school, and then being sold things that aren’t healthy there, it is not only a mixed message but also not in line with the mission of schools.”

What do you think about beverage policy in our schools? Leave comments here and get involved with your local consumer group or PTA.

BRUSH INSTEAD OF SPONGE: The cleaning industry seems determined to overflow us with convenient (throw-away) products. They are wasteful and an environmental nuisance. Among those undesirable cleaning accessories is the common sponge; it’s made out of cellulose and it is great housing for all kind of germs. Thus, I recommend using a brush or a washcloth — easily cleaned in a little hot water and bleach — for dish and pot washing instead of a sponge. Both do a better job than the sponge and will last much longer. For wiping down your counters, I suggest a 100% cotton waffle-weave washcloth which can be tossed in your regular wash. Here’s another cleaning tip: for loosening food dried onto counters or pots, simply cover the spots with a cloth soaked in really hot water and let sit for awhile.

ONION WISDOM: While onions may be odorous and unappealing to some, they contain anti-oxidants which fight cancer. One cup of chopped onions contains only 65 calories. Onions can liven up most cooked entrees and green onions are favored in salads. I discourage the use of onions in soup mixes or other dried food because these are high in sodium. To reduce the intensity of the onion, place it in your freezer for a half an hour before cutting it. Choose a smaller onion; larger onions need to have 2 outer layers removed and thrown away. To remove the smell of onions from your hands, rub your hands with lemon juice. You can buy a gadget at a hardware shop which resembles a comb with sharp steel prongs that will hold your onion in place while you slice it. Food processors will chop onions but not in uniform pieces; a Chinese cleaver will bring more satisfying results. Onions are very cheap and flavorful, making them a great bargain!

CARROTS: The food industry uses corn syrup to curb tartness in prepared foods. Home-cooked foods recipes, especially spaghetti, are notorious for having sugar as an ingredient. However, the nutritious carrot is also a sweetener. I grate carrots into homemade spaghetti sauce, chili and even minestrone soup. Cooked carrots expel large amounts of beta-carotene providing the body with vitamin A. If you wish to make an easy soup, try chicken broth with a few thin noodles and long thin shreds of carrot and chives. Carrots can also be easily camouflaged in meat loaf and muffins. Carrots are oft overlooked in recipes, but they truly deserve your attention.

Sometimes the good ol’ summertime is loaded with new hazards that you are exempt from during the other months of the year. In the summer, all food seems to spoil faster and bugs are more ravenous for your dry goods. I just disposed of a plastic tub containing oatmeal that I had left in a cupboard, forgotten. When I finally opened it, the tub was filled with insects. Attentive readers will note that I’ve already covered this subject in “Predators in the Pantry.” While insects in the kitchen are aggravating, they are a minor problem compared with current food borne illnesses.

Most people hears about food borne bacteria on major news but few ever expect to be the victim of improperly stored or contaminated foods. We rely on our foods being wholesome and edible and assume our government is going to protect us from getting sick. It’s a myth; few even know where e-coli comes from. E-coli can come from the intestine of cows, chickens, pigs or any animal we eat. It is also frequently found in ground-meat or animal feces that can be found on the skin of cantaloupe. Some 2,100 persons were hospitalized for illnesses caused by e-coli last year. There are steps you can take to protect yourself.Thoroughly cook produce before eating. Just before washing fresh salad, remove the outer leaves as a precaution. Once you get home after going grocery shopping, quickly put the food away and make certain your refrigerator is around 40 degrees (be careful not to set it too cold, as that will freeze your veggies). Remove the produce from plastic bags. If you must use them, then buy the ones with tiny holes. They are available in the food wrap section of your supermarket. Keep your deli meats and cheeses in their own compartment. Once opened, rewrap tightly as exposure to oxygen will bring faster deterioration to the product. Any stickiness or discoloration indicates spoilage and food should be immediately disposed of. Food is expensive and carelessness is just wasted dollars.

Your freezer can be your greatest ally in the fight against food spoilage if used properly. The two key secrets to freezing are proper wrapping and dating everything. Here’s a tip on freezing chicken: bags of boneless chicken are subject to freezer burn once the package is opened; you can prevent this by transfering the remaining chicken to smaller zip bags.

Be careful when having picnics! All the salads made with mayo like potato salad, deviled eggs and custard pie are potential food poisoning pals. We see the potato salad sitting on the picnic table for hours without refrigeration and it often will contain its share of uncooked ingredients. Substitute your potato salad with coleslaw (no egg dressing) or a pasta salad with balsamic vinegar dressing with sun-dry tomatos and olives. Because milk can sour quite rapidly, few picnickers bring it along. Instead of bringing soda, bring a gallon of ice tea chilled with a good supply of fruit flavored ice cubes. For extra big cubes make them in cupcake tins. For desert, bring fruit. Watermelon is an excellent choice but should be thoroughly scrubbed as soon as you bring it home. I may be asking you to break BBQ tradition but only because I am concerned about your health and safety.

A home a few extra precautions will keep your grocery bill lower and your food safer to eat. Return food back to the refrigerator after using, especially milk. Train family members to use clean utensils when removing mayo, mustard and pickles from the jar. When you bring home a quart of fresh mayo, divide it into two jars. Pint jars are easily acquired. Once you fill them, seal and label the container. It will stay fresher than leaving it in one jar. Never keep gourmet herb infused oil in the cupboard.

Everyday foods that Americans usually think of as benign can be pulled by the FDA, so it is up to the consumer to be smart with new products before assuming that they are safe. A current example is the recent recall of a Stone Cold Creamery’s “Cake Batter” flavor, a product that had dry cake mix added to pasteurized sweet cream. Dry cake mix is not considered a ready to eat product. Whatever happened to just strawberries or chocolate? Let’s not even think about the ingredients of other products served in commercial eateries.

According to statistics, 1 out of every 4 Americans comes in contact with food borne diseases each year. You should take precautions to exclude yourself from this statistic. One can find several excellent websites on the subject by simply typing “FOOD BORNE DISEASES” in a search engine. You will find current statistics on each food borne disease. They are quite educational, unlike your evening news.

You can easily extend your family food budget while shrinking that ever-protruding waistline. You will kick yourself for paying $4.00 for a carton of soup at your local deli take-out when you realize that it is possible to make a gallon of the best soup for much less. Ah, but you are too busy to make soup. You might be surprised to find that the actual prep time for making a soup from scratch can be under 10 minutes, and after that the low setting of your stove burner can take over. It’s the long slow simmer that creates the broth that’s to die for. Salt should be used with absolute stinginess.

What? You just discovered a whole aisle of soup mixes? Then frankly you don’t need my advice. But hey, wait a minute! Maybe you do because each and every one of those soups still requires a cooking pot, some water and 3x your daily needed salt quota. I understand that Lipton’s chicken soup was around in the 40’s but during that time handy chicken bones were hard to find. Many who lived in that decade didn’t even have refrigerators, since food was chilled in iceboxes. Keeping raw chicken was difficult. However, today, chicken bones like wings and thighs are cheap and easy to freeze. Refrigeration is an accepted joy for cooking.

So are you going to free yourself from the soup Nazis of the local delis or will you simply remain a hostage of their intimidation? I am not asking you to go home and cook Chicken Divan or Beef Wellington. It’s just soup, not some elaborate dish. Make it and for the next month you’ll have the elixir of divine providence; an absolute liquid gold that no one has access to but you. You will be amazed, even husbands and children will be willing to share your treasure. Compliments will fall like a pleasant snow.

You may not know this but today’s statistics on salt use are alarming. Salt seems to be everywhere. Some 30% of American adults have hypertension and another 30% of them have pre-hypertension (meaning they have all usual symptoms of hypertension but don’t have it yet) to come. 90 % of the general public will eventually get hypertension if they manage to live up to 75 years. Why? Because our commercially prepared foods are so dangerous to those with high blood pressure but few are aware of the existing danger.

To start your new soup religion, buy proper bones: beef, ham, turkey, or chicken bones. Should chicken bones be unavailable, turkey wings make incredible broth. Start with an 8 quart pot. Place washed bones in pot. Cover the bones with water. Some bones like ham and beef may require 2-3 hours of gentle cooking. Add a little salt and assorted vegetables such as carrots, celery, onions. Any firm vegetables will do since after cooking they are discarded. Herbs such as marjoram, oregano and parsley are excellent flavor boosters. Growing herbs is easy and once herbs are grown their plants can last for life. If you add parsley, add it later in the process. I also add a small amount of soy sauce instead of salt, as it is much easier to control. Cutting the salt is a key benefit of making your own soup. Do not under any circumstance add fresh water after it has cooked because you will lose that elixir you have been waiting to achieve. Once you have finished the cooking and corrected the seasoning, you should have a good dozen cartons of soup starters from which you can go to cream soups, all vegetable or just a pick-me-up cup of broth from your microwave. Sometimes this is all the tummy needs on a stressful day. Soup is a good appetite slower or something to start out with before the big meals arrive.

Foods like chili and minestrone are small adventures in cooking. While Pillsbury advertises that nothing says “Lovin’” like something from the oven, I beg to differ with that argument. Something you cared for enough to make with fresh basic ingredients and few selected seasonings can be that one great comfort food. Making soup isn’t hard – it requires only your desire and application to make such a something that will be the envy of those still dining out of microwaved Styrofoam cups. So are you ready to displace the soup Nazi in your neighborhood? There’s a big soup kettle (with your name on it) waiting for you at Macy’s.

Most recently, I watched a commercial during a TV show in which the mother was carrying the new white bread that now contains whole grain. Not to worry, bring on the white bread and all those products which contain a single grain of nutrition. The cereal department is notorious for pawning off sugared cereal as a saint at the breakfast table. On the other hand wihout cereal commericals who would pay for TV programs.

However, they are no more than highly processed grains whose primary nutritional value lies somewhere in factory disposal and to a few pathetic vitamins are added for pure propaganda purpose. Little wonder that these children are hungry before the morning is over and mom’s wallet is likewise empty. Will their lunch make up the loss caused by a empty calorie breakfast. Apparently, our fast food indsutry has invaded the school cafeteria and those lunches had been blessed by the Food Pope and the local school board.

Note: the state of Connecticut passed a bill prohibiting sale of junk foods but was then vetoed by the governor of that state who just wasn’t ready for her state to take this revoluntionary step towards healthier eating.

Beverage sales depend highly on blessing of the FOOD POPE. Popular ads for Sunny Delight tout its vitamin C content forget to mention the sugar content or the artificial coloring. Many common juice drink labels lead you to believe they are the healthier choice. They lead you to believe they contain lots of real juice while they may actually contain only 15% real juice. Therefore, reading their labels is the only realistic way to know what you are buying. Buying frozen juices also require careful reading; most are simply sweetened by corn syrup. Other labels will say: “Contains no added sugars”. However, this product content will include sugars from fruits like apples, pears and white grapes. While fruitose may slightly easier to absorb by the body. its still sugar and needs to be dispensed with some caution.

There is a virtual warehouse full of instant ready-to-eat food. While not all come with the blessing of Food Pope, it certainly is anointed with the goddess of convenience. The most common item that comes to mind are those plastic cups filled with petrified peas and a day’s supply salt (including mono-sodium glutamate) calling themselves instant-soup. Our food choices seem to be those products that we see highly advertised by famous actors or some cartoon characters . All soup products are excessively high salt, yet we will never see a warning that this product could in all probablity cause one to have a stroke.

Deception is the key player in this grocery-buying head game and sadly enough we are the poorest players in this food for life buying responsibility. I challenge you, for just one week, to make a list of what you ate and the reason you purchased it, and whether you read the label that came with the item. It’s an eaters challenge.

Just remember, food is sold not to win nutritional awards but for profit at no matter what cost. A few lies and few deceptions are on what the food industry is built. Never expect what is shown on the cover to be inside the box. As you pass by the dinners-in-a-box just remember you still need to buy the hamburger meat, go home and cook. Or how about a box that promises the entire dinner in convenient boxes. But what you see is not always what you get. Technology and your busy schedule go hand and hand. If the picture on the box looks good they are hardly concerned whether you came back for second box of a dinner from despartion.

Up until the late 1950’s, the helpless housewife syndrome had never even existed. We ate balanced meals at same dinner table. These new boxes and packages are no more than clever cardboard replicas of real food we once cooked at home because our family’s health had greater value. While I am advocating that we go back to the 50’s I think we would have a longer and better life if we simply spent a little time thinking about food instead of buying it. We hardly need a blessing from the Food Pope beucase our groceries come directly from the earth and farm. Our productive and happier lifestyles will speak for themselves.

We who are lucky enough to live in the Sacramento Valley have access to an exciting adventurous place; it’s the local Farmer’s Market. Each Saturday, in designated areas, we can feast our eyes on the freshest local grown produce at a reasonable price. It’s truly a Disneyland for local chefs, this ride is free! And each week there are new additions for you to experience.

In June, you can acquaint yourself with a dozen varieties of peppers, the bells: Mexicans such as Jalapeno, Pasilla, Anaheim, and many others of whom I am still learning their names. Peppers can add new life to any dull skillet dish. You might say it’s our Mrs. Dash before they petrified and packaged her.

The Oriental varieties are abundant and beautifully displayed without the plastic casing found in supermarkets. One thing that is sheer joy is those baby bok choy usually bundled in packets of four. There are many varieties of eggplants but my favorite is the basic eggplant in miniature. This type is highly preferred to regular eggplants which have far more seeds and the flavor is mild. Veggies are fun to experiment with because you may develop a new taste sensation such as mixing sliced green tomatoes with completely ripe tomatoes along with onions and sliced eggplant, sauté, season and new taste is born.

Then we come to July and August, the fruit selection if incredible. There are a dozen of choices in the peach family. The nectarine is the top choice for most buyers because it is high juice, sugar content and smooth edible skin. It keeps well and also freezes well for future enjoyment. However, we have an interesting newcomer to the field. This new fruit hybrid is half plum and half apricot and has distinct freckles on its smooth skin. They are larger than the average plum. It is extremely juicy and quite sweet if consumed when fully ripened but has a highly unique flavor of its own and unlike the nectarine or peach, plucot has a very small pit.

With so many choices, you can easily bring home a bounty. Place them in Zip-Lock bags (without sugar), just cut them to the desired size. Saving couldn’t be simpler. When fruit is $3.00 a pound next winter, you can be enjoying cobblers, low-sugar jams and fruit topped waffles.

Final note: Bring canvas bags or even old pillows cases to avoid the plastic bag trap. Use small bills, wear waist cash holder and invest in a fold-up cart. This theme park reminds of us of those colorful outdoor markets of Paris and Italy. Why not be European for a day? This means bring a net bag or large basket for all glorious garden bouquets! Bon Appetit!

PERFECT SUMMERTIME BEVERAGE: Not only do sodas contain a lot of sugar, they do little to actually quench your thirst. Sports drink may offer a few electrolytes but they are very expensive. Pure fruit juices likewise have too much sugar for genuine quenching on a truly hot summer day, I am here with the perfect beverage! We start with basic black or decaffeinated tea such Earl Gray . Brew it. The fastest way to brew tea by placing about 2 - 3 cups cold cups of water into a thick mason jar. Heat in microwave 2-3 minutes.

Drop tea bag in the jar. Steep about 3 minutes. Next add 1/3 cup your favorite fruit juice this will gently sweeten the tea. Serve in a glass with a few ice cubes The juice will both flavor and sweeten your tea. A way to make a refreshing summertime for mere pennies. Sort of a low-sugar homemade Snapple.

FRUIT CUPS: It summer and fruit is cheap available and at its peak of perfection. However with a family on the run they may grab with cereal bar or a banana. Often they over look the items like melon, cantaloupe and those luscious nectarines. So when the fruit is totally ripe, cut it up and make fruit cup( in paper cups) and point to them when family is looking for snacks. The ones sold at big markets in produce section just aren’t that appetizing with large chunks and often they are still green.

FRUIT POPSICLES: Unfortunately most fruit juice ( like sodas) are too sweet however you add a little lemon juice and water. Pour into a popsicle molds. If molds are unavailable plastic glasses may be substituted. Place a sheet of wax paper through the center. Fruit blends placed into blender make ideal slushes. They can placed in paper cups along with a plastic spoons. A great cool treat on those hot day when anything cold on the tongue feels good. So why not make lots of fruit slushes on hand instead of handing out a chemical version of popsicle? Orange and bananas make a great combo. Fresh peaches with raspberry juice and a scoop of vanilla make an incredible frozen treat. So delicious even the Good Humor man will be jealous.

There are predators in our kitchen and they’re not leaving. The insects have just declared your kitchen as their personal Motel 6 for the next four months. Insects are everywhere, and the best way to guard against them is with a persistent pantry patrol.

First, we notice the fly, that black loathsome creature; he loves the window and loves to aviate around it, asserting his presence. When he is through bobbing back and forth on your window, he’s going to stop on that nice sandwich you just made for yourself. He’s landing on the mayo knife and trying out your dill pickle as you wonder how many germs he’s leaving behind. Flies buzz around your kitchen counter like guys checking out the automotive accessories on a new car. It is going to be a long summer and they want to investigate their options. With careless humans and sticky sweet drinks it looks like their fast food choices will be abundant and easy to find.

Keeping all doors closed is a good start, keeping a room cool is also helpful, as a cool room is not as inviting. Insect populations explode when the weather gets hot. Flies seem to come out of nowhere, but actually have just been in hibernation, waiting for a warm day.

As long we have had flies, man is forever reinventing his version of a fly swatter. I prefer a folded newspaper or non-slick, soft magazine. On the counter combat can be achieved by simply dropping a damp cloth on the fly distracted by his afternoon snack. One should only strike when they are out in the open.

Then there are cupboard pilots (moths or millers) who seem to think the inside of your cupboard is their local Raley’s. I recommend placing cream of wheat, ready-to-use biscuit mix, and other grain goods into tall glass jars or inexpensive plastic cereal dispensers and refrigerating them. Curly white worms can come to life even inside sealed containers within weeks of really hot weather. I’ve tossed more jars of rice and cereal than I care to recall.

This may sound a bit insane, but get yourself an old fridge at a thrift store and put it inside your garage. Set the fridge at the lowest setting and use just for dry goods (and some produce, if you care to). You can maintain a super low energy usage by placing gallon blocks of ice made in the freezer using used plastic milk cartons. I am a household of one but I have 2 refrigerators. Unprotected, I can assure you, insects will feast upon your grain train.

The inside of cupboards can be filled with herbs which will curtail our moths and millers from their flying field. Out in the garden, most herbs – after they recover from the shock of transplant – grow faster than crabgrass and are just as indestructible. Besides the obvious benefits fresh herbs provide for cooking, they are a marvelous insect repellent.

Lastly, it’s worthwhile to remember that ants favorite foods seem to be sugar and animal grease. That BLT you had last evening may have left just a few savory drippings on your kitchen counter or near your microwave; well, good morning ant city! You won’t believe this many ants can come out of nowhere when the night before there were none.

I thought I had successfully rid myself of ants after wiping down every inch of kitchen, putting the sugar in the refrigerator and removing any fresh fruit, but I was still losing the war. The only item left unmolested was Splenda that they simply snubbed.

My ant problem was most persistent in winter and early spring. Even my garbage can had ants marching in like Napoleon’s Army. Despite my misgivings about chemicals, I chose to trust modern ant warfare and placed four “Grant’s Sealed Ant Baits” in strategic positions. WOW! They left, and haven’t returned! Now it’s just me and the flyswatter. My kitchen is at the moment quite insect–free.

There are still lots things bugging me, yet unfortunately there is no way to eradicate those troublesome elements. My means of fighting back is with words and humor. I would love to hear about your method of de-bugging! After all, we managed for many
centuries before the Ace Hardware or the Clark man showed up.

I first heard about the dangers of Teflon in 2003 when Elizabeth Weise of USA Today brought it to my attention with an article entitled “Out of the frying pan and into the fire.” Now again in 2005, another major media outlet, NBC Evening News, makes a very brief mention suggesting there is a serious danger. I checked the EPA website which didn’t explain it to my satisfaction so I went to other websites whose language was quite clear and well defined.

When Teflon is heated to 446 degrees Farenheit, toxic particles are released. When it reaches 680 degrees toxic gases are released. Among the six toxins released, two are carcinogenic, one of which is MFA (lethal to all humans even in low doses). Meanwhile, Dupont has said that in ordinary use Teflon is safe.

When Dupont failed to report the dangers of Teflon to the EPA it was fined $300 million. Next month, Dupont will finalize a settlement upwards of $300 million for a class action lawsuit accusing the company of allowing PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid, used in the manufacture of some Teflon products) to contaminate the drinking water of Ohio and West Virgina. Tests have been conducted and a large number of the population have PFOA in their blood stream. For some it may raise their level of cholesterol and triglycerides leading to a greater possibility of heart attack or stroke.

The EPA has declared that Teflon is a potential health risk especially when used at high temperatures. Once the EPA has informed the public of the risk, it is the discretion of the public to weigh the facts and decide for themselves.

Please visit the following websites for more valid information about the EPA information:

www.ecomall.com/greenshopping/teflon4.htm
http://www.mercola.com/2005/jun/7/teflon_toxicity.htm

Or you can E mail…Dr Arnold of Danville,Ca who provided me the above sites at chirodocpsualm@msn.com

There are practical alternatives to Teflon. I switched back to old Revere copper-bottomed fry pans and I just love them. As far as saucepots go, I can’t possibly have enough praise for the Corning Ware glass cookware called Visions. Most of mine were found in thrift stores.

Aluminum is a good conductor but its surface has many drawbacks and is often why cookware makers put the aluminum in the center of the pot and stainless steel on the outside. Most people find a seasoned iron skillet is pretty close to the perfect way to fry. Certainly you can sear meat with no fear of strange particles adhering to it. All Asian chefs use carbonated steel woks which, of course, are heated to super-high temperatures. A wok coated with Teflon would be potentially dangerous.

Besides the health risks imposed by Teflon coatings, there is another factor that should be considered… short life!! Needing to replace pans every time a few scratches appear can be downright wasteful of your money. As a recent commercial once said, “It’s not how much money you have but how well you know how to stretch it.” So cook cleanly and safely on good steel, copper, or iron pans which won’t need replacing for a few decades. Otherwise, your money may be going up in a PFOA of smoke.

From pie eating to the ingestion of selected bugs, we seem to glorify the most ridiculous practice of gorging competitions. These asinine displays of human facial vulgarity will always find their way to the moronic media machine. I have yet to understand why a civilization with all the means of good food at our disposal we choose to chow with same zeal as hogs slopping down their evening meal . For fame and cash, they would go gastronomic suicide and the Romans we cheer for their misery! Gluttony, burping, passing gas. and food dribbling down the front of shirts are great American sports for those who have no talent for anything else!

A 429 lb man traveled across the country setting world records such as consuming over a gallon of ice cream in 12 minutes, 4 lb and 5 ounces of French Fries in 6 minutes. He is seeking fame, product endorsements and, of course, money. Apparently movies and reality TV have defined a need for this new gastronomical insanity.

I can’t imagine looking for fame in the garbage can of world-wide sports and winning a lifetime supply of Alka-Seltzer, 1000 hot dogs and free visits to gastritis specialist. However, I was informed, the fat man didn’t stand a prayer because the slender Japanese man, though small, was able to stretch his stomach for the event while the man with huge stomach could not stretch, he only added more permanent weight while dreaming of winning his trophy of gluttony glory!

What kind of insanity would lead a any human being to train himself for a hot dog eating competition. He would need 8 weeks stomach stretching, he would have to drink a gallon on water in less than one minute. His prize if he wins, possible endorsements, appearances on Leno and a lifetime of medical consequences. To be the freak of the week seems to be this man’s goal. I have no ideas where such inspirations come from perhaps from the movies heroes such as DUMB AND DUMBER is a contestant to be out done.

This has moved from merely silly contest to SPORT. Did you know, there is an actual International Federation of Competitive Eating? Their top contestants are called super gurgitations for their sheer ability to ingest such inhuman amounts of food. Winnings could be in the form of endorsements or even a year’s supply of the featured food. With only reality shows and reruns on hand, the sports choose to entertain with belly busters.

In the meantime, pie eating contests go on at all the county fairs. People are challenged on a daily basis to stuff themselves at their local restaurants with all-you-can-eat meal options. There’s always a bigger burger with more meat, more cheese and more fries on the horizon. Not to be undone, one fast food king gives us his no-mercy breakfast bomb containing more fat, sodium and cholesterol than any sandwich previously had before.

In the early 20th Century, eating was a gracious thing, there were many fine restaurants even eating at home had a certain urbane graciousness. Most family members enjoyed a meal together every evening. Many moms were home churning butter and many had gardens. But as the 1960’s began, the disappearance of family dining and meal making evolved into what it is today. And 40 years later, gluttony mocks our civilization like a man-made Frankenstein holding us hostage.

He jumps at us on TV. He pops up in our mailbox and beckons to us from billboards. He is harder to avoid than your relatives. He is hunger. He knows you’ll get hungry and everything comes in a bigger size than yesterday. As the American stomach grows larger, the portions and the choices of unhealthy foods are growing longer each day. Little wonder that gluttony is becoming a sporting event, the only thing missing that seems to be missing is the Roman Coliseum!

In this age of Twinkies, Crispy Kremes and other over-hydrogenated and sugary snacks, the tasty square called gingerbread is a delightful slice of baking history. Gingerbread is a comfort food steeped in tradition and enchantment.

In medieval times, gingerroot was discovered to have a preservative effect and was thus added to a number of baked goods. Not surprisingly, this practice developed into the baking of many types of breads, cakes and cookies. The manufacture of gingerbread began appearing around the end of the eleventh century. How rich and wonderful for an edible to remain popular for ten centuries!

In 1571, French bakers belonging to an elite guild were permitted to bake these noble cakes. The most noteworthy recipes came from Dijon, Reims and Paris. Their wares were prized and separated from ordinary bakers of the day. For 8 centuries, a gingerbread fair was held at an abbey on the site of the present day St. Antoine Hospital where monks sold animal shaped gingerbread. The power of ginger has been a remarkable cohesive element in the community!

In 1614, in the town of Nuremberg, Germany, ginger was not used in the home but rather as a preservative whose use was restricted to an exclusive guild of master bakers. The town became known as “The Gingerbread Capital of the World” and became a major trade center. The finest craftsman were attracted to the town and created the most beautiful gingerbread cakes in Europe. They turned such cakes into works of art and sold them at fairs and carnivals.

In England in 1614, a typical family may have visited “The Bartholomew Fair” held every August. Many special cakes were made which honored the town’s patron saint (whose image is reputedly was stamped upon the gingerbread). On special days, the cakes would be decorated with icing that looked like men, animals or hearts, attracting hordes of buyers from near and far.

While Germany remains the strongest influence on the origin of gingerbread, the making of gingerbread would spread to the rest of Europe and England soon enough. In the nineteenth century, it was immortalized by Brothers Grimm in one of their most famous fairy tales, Hansel and Gretel. Abandoned by their parents, Hansel and Gretel found a house made entirely of gingerbread. It is believed that from this enchanting story came the tradition of creating edible ginger houses which has spawned many a worldwide competition.

In North America, early pioneers created recipes of gingerbread made with new and intriguing ingredients such as sorghum molasses. It is this addition of molasses which accounts for the dark, rich color of gingerbread that we recognize today.

Rumor has it that General Lafayette visited the home of George Washington in 1884 where his mother served fresh baked gingerbread. The fine cake was served with a generous mint julep. Apparently, gingerbread was made in the most dignified American homes and remains one of the enduring traditions we enjoy today.

If you’d care to taste a sweet bit of the 15th Century yourself, email me for your FREE copy of Traditional Gingerbread Recipes: mailbag@savvykitchensolutions

SPECIAL PLASTIC BOARD: Raw chicken is one of our worst offenders and needs handling with utmost care. You should purchase a large cutting board exclusively for cutting chicken and raw meats. It’s a good idea to buy one that can fit in your dishwasher. A few minutes under the hot water tap is good to kill bacteria. After hand rinsing, a run through the dishwasher will sterilize and kill any serious germs left behind.

FRUIT JAMS: With no-sugar and low-sugar pectin now available, you can forget about the sweet jars of jelly with wax covering. You have been jam-liberated. Firstly, make only small portions: place about 2 cups of chilled, mashed fruit into a double boiler (using a double-boiler will prevent scorching). Add pectin to cold fruit. Stir until dissolved. Heat until jam begins slow boil, and add a small portion of sugar (about 1/3 cup). Bring the jam back to boil and the process should be complete. Ladle the results into small plastic tubs. Keep a few in the refrigerator and the rest in your freezer. Your own home-made jams will be far superior to commercial all-fruit jam.

CHICKEN BROTH ON HAND: For pennies, you can always have a good supply of homemade chicken or even turkey stock. Both turkey wings and chicken make excellent stock. Chicken wings cost twice the price of turkey wing. My suggestion: any bony parts from either is OK! Place in a pot with water, carrot, onion, parsley, salt, pepper and a few fresh herbs, and simmer for 45 minutes (depending on the quantity of water). Try to resist adding more water half-way through. When it reaches your desired strength, remove from heat and strain out any bones or debris. Ladle into pint containers and freeze. You just made about $10 worth of quality broth ready to use when you need it. To thaw, do not place the tub in microwave. Instead set in a pot of hot water (not on stove). It will loosen, at which point you can move it to a glass dish and microwave.

As mentioned before, apricots, nectarines, cherries and peaches have all been growing abundantly this year. I have seen more fresh fruit in the last couple months than I have seen all last year. A couple of things to remember when buying fruit: fruits like watermelon and cantaloupe are best eaten fresh, whereas plums, apricots and other similar fruits can have a much longer life span if frozen or cooked.

The easiest and fastest method of preserving fruit is to wash them when fresh. Once washed, place them in plastic cartons (available at any Smart & Final or restaurant supply store) then put them in freezer. I prefer to leave out the sugar. Freezing fruit preserves their quality and taste. You generally can keep frozen fruit for a year. Once thawed you can make the fruit into jam, cobbler, pie or fruit topped cake Also, red plums can be pureed and be used as a natural gelatin mold.

If you have a very small freezer and don’t mind a little extra work, canning is certainly a viable option. Canning is like riding a bicycle; once you get the hang of it, you have it for life. I was once asked by a household in Santa Rosa to can 48 lbs of apricots. It took us three days to complete the task. We only processed the fruit that was ripe. Our yield was 96 pints and about 4 pies.

Over the years, I have done a lot of research on canning. I have read many resources on the subject, and can recommend the entries covering canning in The Joy of Cooking. The University Home Economics website and the USDA also have helpful information on the subject. However, none of the books I read mentioned sterilizing the jars in the microwave. Most canning instructions (for those who use the open kettle method) recommend boiling the jars for 20 minutes in a pan on the stove. Recently, however, I found out that placing about ½ cup of water into my pint jar for 90 seconds in the microwave also gave me a sterile jar.

An advantage to home canning is being able to control the amount of sugar used. Usually, recipes suggest using ½ cup of sugar to every three cups water. But you can also decide how sweet or wet you want your fruit to be. I prefer my fruit as dry as possible. To can fruit: place the washed fruit into a wide kettle. Add the sugar and water. Each fruit has its own time-frame for cooking. Time-frames vary from 3- 5 minutes. When pouring the fruit into jars, remember to wipe the outsides of the jars with a damp cloth to remove any sugar which might be on the surface. The stickiness might attract ants.

I would love your comments and suggestions. While canning may seem like a dead art, it can save you oodles of money and provide you with quality foods. Whether you preserve food or not, don’t miss out on the fabulous fruits and vegetables at your local farmer’s market. My prize for the week: juicy beefsteak tomatoes full of flavor. Bon Appétit!

KEEPING THE REFRIGERATOR FRESH:
For decades, a box of baking soda was always recommended to keeping odors out of the refrigerator. However, I have found a new way to keep my fridge smelling fresh: mint! My garden is running over with mint because it is so easy to grow. I keep a couple of bouquets of mint in the fridge. The mint leaves will last for several days, keeping the fridge fresh-smelling.

DRIED FOOD STAINS:
Even in the perfect household, there are occasions when your stove or counter will get dried food stains. Rather than reaching for liquid or powder cleansers, grab a cloth (preferably terry). Dip the cloth in hot water. Wring the cloth out a little and cover the stain with the cloth. Within 20 minutes or less, the stain should wipe away with ease. If you have food stains like berry stains, liquid or powdered bleach may be needed.

BROWN RICE FOR BREAKFAST:
Cook some brown rice (not steamed but cooked, like as for a casserole). Add custard ingredients like milk, eggs, sugar or maple syrup and dried or fresh bits of fruit. You can keep your calories down by using 1% or 2% milk because once baked you will not be able to tell the difference between reduced-fat and whole milk. Pour into a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Chill. Can be reheated with a small covering of milk in the microwave but is equally good cold. You now have a breakfast that will give you enough energy to last until lunchtime.

About two years ago, I gave up those big, sugary fried-apple bear claws when I realized I was gaining a few extra pounds every week. Like many American culinary icons, donuts, along with Girl Scout cookies, are basically nutritional disasters because they hardly have any nutritional value. However, our society will not declare these treats as a contributing factor to our country’s current obesity anytime soon. This type of junk food is on sacred ground and they have existed much longer than the Golden Arches.

Now we have a new doughnut connoisseur in our midst and he has no fears of showing his love for this deep-fried pastry. It seems that a 200 pound black bear in Sammamish, Washington was lured away from the forest by a hefty batch of freshly-made sugar-coated doughnuts near a nearby elementary school.

Lately the headlines have been flooded with stories of bears attracted by human food. These stories reveal our carelessness in the way we take care of our garbage. Cheese and fat-drippings left on fast food wrappers make strong bear magnets. I can just see the following headline story on MSNBC: “Local Black Bears invade one of the town’s Golden Arches because of a strong smell of fries. However, once inside, it was the sugary and crusted apple pies that they seemed to prefer over the burgers and fries. They finished their invasion with a 32 ounce glass of Pepsi!”

Oh God! Does the great discovery made in Sammamish, Washington, mean that our Krispy Kreme outlets are in jeopardy?! Let’s certainly hope so! Such a potential doughnut calamity might be an “unbearable” situation for some, but would surely be a good thing for their body. Deep-fried bear claws have not been put to rest yet, but I am sure the day will come.

I have in front of me a web update on Connecticut’s ban on soda and junk food. The memo, dated May 24th, states that Connecticut will likely adopt the most far-reaching ban in the U.S on soda and junk food in our public schools.

A study released by the American Psychiatric Meeting has brought to their attention the dangers of soda to children. In addition to current obesity, dental cavities and diabetes risks, sodas also have the problem of being high in caffeine.

The APA reported that behavioral problems were rated 432 % worse on days that first graders drank sodas with caffeine than on days when they consumed caffeine-free sodas. For a closer review, you can read more at Public Health and Law, a weblog of the Public Health Advocacy Institute.

After an eight hour debate, lawmakers in Connecticut’s House voted 88-55 to pass a law banning sodas and junk food in cafeterias, vending machines and school stores. In addition, twenty minutes of outside activity or gym time would be required for children from kindergarten to fifth grade. The bill now heads for Connecticut’s Senate where it is expected to pass.

Since legislative support is needed for an effective junk food ban in schools, many other states’ individual school districts who proposed similar bans have, unlike Connecticut, lacked initiative. Everywhere else, cafeterias still look like a mall food court. Removing junk food and soda out of California would be similar to removing quills on porcupine.

Unfortunately, it is difficult to try and introduce wholesome foods into the school system when bad diets have dominated most of the children’s lives. Often educators themselves rely on high-fat diets just to have more energy in their day. If you have been raised on sugar-frosted flakes, the thought of 5 minute cooked oatmeal just doesn’t have much appeal. Having 1% milk instead of soda would have a similar outcome.

We need more responsible grown-ups to set good examples and who are willing to give up their junk diets. They need to stress that a good life does not come from expensive cell phones or a $100 pair of shoes. A good life comes from waking up exhilarated, having a waistline that is flat and having a true commitment to a healthier life. Our rewards in life are most often acquired by self-discipline and motivation of the human spirit.

I am waiting for the education community’s reaction to Connecticut’s bold action. Will it become a joke for popular personalities to make? Will someone in schools in other states realize the danger zone these children face as they eat junk food that merely add pounds and deduct years from their future. Obesity and diabetes are both problems that are growing bigger everyday. Everyone could take some action, even in a small way, towards a healthier school for the future!

CAMPING WITH A COW: Summer is right around the corner this means it’s time for picnics and camping. Often difficult to find a grocery store when you need milk so bring your own cow from home. Freeze your own milk in plastic jugs (remove 8 oz) before placing it in the freezer. If your picnic is closer to home you can use smaller containers if the distance is further use a bigger jug. It will remain cold for a few days.

RETAINING ICE CREAM QUALITY: Have you ever opened your ice cream carton to find that the inside looks like a roto-rooter has gone through it and much of the ice cream had oxidized and got dried on the edges? You wouldn’t leave a car without protection so trash your ice cream contents. Thist works best with square containers. First, find 3 square plastic containers 6” x 6′’. Open the sides of the carton. With a sharp knife, cut your solid ice cream into 3 parts and place it into each container. Then cover it with a plastic wrap to further prevent freezer burn. This method retains quality of product and it makes it easier to regulate portions.

FLAX EQUALS LAX: You don’t need harsh laxatives or jellied fiber cocktails to maintain good colon health. Bran muffins are only good if you make them yourself because store-bought muffins are very high in calories. If you add about 3 tablespoons of ground flax meal to your pancakes, waffles or any type of muffins, meatloaf and bread you will have just added nature’s laxative. I recommend buying seeds and grind them just before you need them. Not recommnded is flaxseed oil because it quickly becomes rancid even if refrigerated. Bulk flax seeds are quite cheap compared to flax meal which is expensive. They both do the same job. If you add flaxmeal to oatmeal and cream of wheat before cooking. You will also enjoy the the same benefits.

BRAWNY AND BACON: these two were meant for each. As you know bacon comes with a vein of pork fat along with that sweet smoked taste. Not to worry just sandwich those raw slices between double paper towels and microwave The cooking time will vary as to the thickness of the bacon and speed of your micro-wave. Package directions can be misleading. You should start low and add seconds as they are needed since too many seconds will simply yield burnt bacon. Turkey bacon requires far less time then standard bacon. Properly nuked it removes 70% of the fat but not the flavor.

TO HASTEN RIPENING: undoubtedly most of your fruit will be green when you buy it. Some will never ripe stage but hopefully most of it will. One method of speeding the process is placing the green fruit in a paper bag with apples. Since apples contain natural ethylene they will hasten the ripening of other fruits that are next to them. Also works with a tomato. Besides a soft touch, a ripened fruit will yield an aroma.

INSTANT MASHED: those white flakes in a box ( must be unflavored ) are good for things besides mashed potatoes. They are excellent for thickening soups. I use them sprinkled among my raw sliced ( soon to be scalloped) potatoes as they work better than white flour which can come out as lumps. Also can be added to raw veggies pancakes in addition to the pancake flour. Also can be added to gravy or real mashed potatoes that you overmilked or have to much liquids. Buying flavored dry potatoes merely adds to the basic price
which you can easily flavor yourself with fresh additions.

Metabolic Syndrome is a largely unknown disease – any information about it is usually located on those obscure pages of the newspaper few readers go far enough to find. However, this particular affliction seemed interesting enough to me to inspire further research.

Metabolism is the process by which the body chemically absorbs our food. When the body receivs more food calories than it needs it simply goes to storage. Eventually the body’s ability to put this surplus to proper use becomes a huge metabolic problem. Science describes Metabolic Sydrome as the body’s inability to use insulin properly and eating more than the body requires.

The US estimates that 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 8 children have metabolic syndrome primarily from overeating and a lack of exercise. This is a big jump from the previous decade. The condition is usually marked by a visibly large waistline accompanied by diabetes, high blood pressure, and most likely high cholesterol. Persons with this condition are twice as likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke. Currently Americans are spending about $4,116 on prescription drugs that treat Metabolic Syndrome, making up $4 out of the $10 that a recent study showed Americans spend on prescriptions. And the number of afflicted seems to rising as ready to eat meals have not tailored menus for more sensible calorie reduction so overweight people simply add more weight. No one seems to be offering many alternatives. Add those all-you-can-eat restaurants and 700 calorie burgers I don’t think we’ll see a reduction of bulging bellies in this decade.

This condition 40 years ago was first referred to as Syndrome X but in recent years it has become known as “metabolic syndrome”. Three weeks ago the first international symposium on Metabolic Syndrome was held in Berlin. Dr. Staurt Weiss, director of the Diabetes Education Center, hopes that naming this condition will bring about new awareness. Early aggressive treatment could prevent possible diabetes and heart disease if action is taken in early stages. Metabolic Syndrome could easily override the medical capacity that is needed to care for them if the current rate of the problem continues. It is a scary thought but it’s the way of today’s world and lingering undisciplined consumption of edibles.

Update!:

CDC SPOKESMAN RETRACTS EARLIER STUDY

It is quite easy for the general public to be confused – Americans are often cloaked in a maze of confusing health information. In a June 2nd 2005 press relase the Center of Disease Control (CDC) said that their earlier study had been flawed and it is not OK to be overweight.
One report published in April said obesity accounts for a mere 25,814 deaths a year – vastly lower than the 365,000 deaths a year estimated just months earlier. The Harvard School of Public Health, The Cancer Society, and the American Hearth Association all agreed that obesity is a factor which greatly aggravates many other health issues.

The CDC, in their earlier study, concluded that obesity is not dangerous and that being a little plump might actually lower your risk of death. At a recent news conference, CDC chief Gerberding acknowledged flaws in their study and said CDC would try to get back on track.

Now, where would this nation be without the watch dogs examining these reports and trying to find the truth? Particularly when the Center of Disease control gives us all the OK to be a little bit overweight! It doesn’t take a 6th grader to figure out that a 200 pound person is already in trouble.

We should take this as a reminder to caution ourselves against the claims on made by “diet” food and pills – there is no magic bullet, only a lot of snake oil salesmen and bogus nutritional studies. One should always be on the lookout for truthful knowledge, which isn’t often advertised on the evening news or in the newspapers.

Of course if you can handle Fear Factor bug eating scenes and fingers falling in the nations food supply, how the industry removes flesh from animals shouldn’t shock or nauseate you at all. It seems to be the direction of world wide news these days, murder, mayhem and maggots!

Lately, I began to real labels and question everything that written on them.For instance, this very cheap package of hot dogs I bought at a local Graveyard Grocery (my pet name for stores that sell surplus and old grocery items). Eight hot dogs for a dollar – how can they make them look so good for so little?

These are the ingredients : MECHANICALLY SEPARATED chicken and turkey,pork, water , corn syrup, salt, potato starch. contains 2% or less of beef, dextroseflavorings, oleoresin of paprika, sodium potassium lactate, sodium diacetate sodium nitrate, sodium phosphate and Vitamin C. Now the real mystery of this packet is what do all the strange ingredients really mean? I can assure the average shopper has no idea why nor will they take the time to investigate. So I have done it for you.

Firstly, why do some cured meat products say mechanically separated as the first ingredient but others which are more expensive do not carry these words? Simple explanation: economy – you’re getting animal paste versus hand-sorted cuts of meat. To produce mechanically separated meat products, the carcass (after removal of the spinal cord and bone) of the animal is then compressed by intense pressure into a meat paste. This paste is now turned into low cost hot dogs, bologna, et cetera.

There are no current statistics as to how many plants use MSM in America but the abundance of cheap hot dogs indicates the number is pretty high. Well, this way we utilize our meat supply there is always a chance that a fraction of spinal and brain tissue is not removed, and that possibly infected prions (found only in spine and brain tissues) could find their way into the food supply. Therefore it cruical that they be completely removed before processing.

In Europe, 101 people were infected with vCJD (human similarity of mad cow) after consumption of MSM products. This happened in 1996 when 10 persons were afflicted with a neurological disease after eating meat with diseased proions that came from brain or spinal tissue of animal meat processed into various cured meats products. Since then apparently, new laws and precautions have been put into place but perhaps they are not enough. For complete assurance of safety, the entire spinal cord must be removed preventing any diseased prions entering the cured meat supply.

The Center of Science in the Public Interest who has thoroughly investigated this subject feels that we need to urge the USDA to require meat companies to remove neck bones and spinal columns (including spinal cord) from carcasses before processing them by MSM and AMR systems. Find complete details in a review of today’s subject on their website, http://www.cspinet.org.

In the meantime, it appears your hot dogs are perfectly safe to eat, but just keep in mind after bone is gone there is still a lot of chicken and cow parts that are ground into gruesome gruel and highly seasoned with mountains of salt and paprika and other life sustaining chemicals. BON APPETTIT !

MY FAVORITE KITCHEN TOOLS: While these are exactly thought of as basic
major appliances they are down right great helpers in anybody’s kitchen today.
Perhaps,you may have them in your stored along with the potato peelers and
the measuring spoons. I chose three of my favorite useful items to share with you.

My most recent addition is a manual OIL MISTER which is not anything new ( sort of homemade version of
Pam) do it yourself self spray. It’s been around for quite some time. However in the meantime some one has truly perfected it. This new style sprays in a fine mist form whereas the old version was more like a squirt. My new mister allows me to fill with my own oil. It is recommended that you use smaller quantities of oil and that you should clean it periodically with hot water and light soap. You also have knowledge of exactly what kind of ingredients it is that you are spraying on surfaces.

This particular model is called Cuisipro and was advertised quite heavily on line however it always seemed
to be (out of stock). I found mine in a Roseville, Ca nieghborhood house wares store called “Harper’s Ferry” Sometime you get that urge to go in to real store and just browse among the myriad of new kitchen gadgets that you might miss just looking on line. I am sure this new mister will be around as long the public has this
obbession to spay everything and likes a more environmentally friendly way to do it!

KITCHEN SHEARS are probabl y the most misundertand tool in the kitchen and should never be confused
with regular scissors . I am ashamed to admit I didn’t learn their full potential until I became a private chef. Once I was out cooking meals in quantity and time was of the essence, it was there I learned of their time cutting value. For instance, to deliver fat-free and gristle-free chicken for my clients meals, kitchen shears cut through the parts of a chicken faster than any knife. If I needed parley or fresh herbs, the shears were the way to go. Food processor chop beauifully but they not mince well. Food trimming is best performed
with quality kitchen shears. Need to sterilized after fresh poultry and meat trimming. Have sharpened from
time to time. They are great kitchen helpers.

MANDOLINE is highly advertised on the net and you will see prices starting at $20 and can go up to $200.
I have a modest $30 model which was a handy tray underneath tocatch the finished product. My common usage is for sliced potatoes as I am great fan of scalloped potatoes. Also when I make ratatouille, I like super thin slices of eggplant and onion , my mandoline allows me to do this. If you are looking for fine shreds of veggies to put into soups, this tool will help. A great way to impress those normally finicky anti-veggie eaters to come around, place across top of salads. Grated veggies are ideal for placing into gelatin molds. And many other countless usages…it doesn’t music but your meals will sing its praises.

COMIING…….YOUR CHOICES OF OUR MOST WORTHLESSS TOOLS & APPLIANCES, this is your call, tell me about your favorite white elephants…… and worthless kitchen tools. Maybe you got a George Forman grill
or bread maker you might be able to sell on E-bay. Maybe an electric knife still sitting in the box you got
for Christmas maybe 10 years ago. Perhaps a couple of crockpots ! Please write and tell us about them OK …sks/white elephants@minnick.com

If a leopard can change spots, then Cookie Monster must have the ability to cut down on eating cookies. However, eating fewer cookies and eating more vegetables simply isn’t going to work. No matter how many famous people appear on Sesame Street, cookies, like words in the dictionary, will forever be on children’s minds. Once the die has been cast, nutrtional habits are hard to establish.

After all, you don’t see the Girl Scout administrators bowing down to a better alternative and selling fruit-filled cookies or bags of roasted nuts. No such change is going to happen soon. Fundraisers in school are notorious for consisting of cakes, candy and cookies. When schools had their soda vending machines taken away, there was a large outcry from the parents. For schools to depend on junk foods to pay for athletics is like having a fast-food place right across the street from school.

The wholesome eating concept can only be achieved by introducing entirely new characters on Sesame Street . While teaching was the original intent of Sesame Street, it has now evolved into a business empire with the fuzzy characters earning more dollars than the average commodity on Wall Street. Big Bird and all of his friends are the core of most childrens’ imaginary world. With a lot of motivation and careful imaginative writing, perhaps some true lessons upon the necessity of good nutrition might surface. It is nutrition that provides us with a balance, and without balance we are just like wobbly, confused wind-up toys who cannot evaluate their own choices. Perhaps a new medium will come along to help point the way to eating less cookies and more vegetables.

Lord knows, we grown-ups likewise have our own “Cookie Monster” appearing in TV commercials a dozen times a night. They pay for programs and keep the local HMOs busy with a fresh supply of patients. The few mentions of obesity and cancer that appear in media reports are a mere whisper among the roar and repetition of junk food hawkers. Faithful fans of Cookie Monster can easily snack on an entire bag of Keeblers in a single night of watching television. Apparently, “SS Cookie” made his impact on these consumers some 20 years ago and they are merely imitating the monster consumption quota of their beloved childhood character. What do you suppose is our major reason for stuffing ourselves?

The danger of rancid fats has been greatly overlooked in media health warnings, yet they are this country’s major cancer producers. Perhaps just a few precautions could help you avoid the claws of menacing peroxidized(rancid) fats.

We have 4 basic groups of fat which are in our foods. While some are desirable and recommended, others are man-made convenience fats. Yet, no matter how virtuous they are, all fats are subject to rancidity and need to be protected. (OR… and we need to be protected from them.)??

A. Saturated Fats: are natural in foods such as butter, beef, bacon, eggs, sausages and lard. They are more stable than the oils but will spoil in due time. Unlike processed fats, they are broken down by the body.
B. Polyunsaturated Oils: are chemically unstable. They contain a number of loose carbon bonds in the atomic structure. When exposed to heat and light, they will quickly create harmful free radicals. The higher the unsaturated level, the more potent the danger. Your oil label will tell you precisely the type of oil and the percentage.
C. Monounsaturated: seems to be the healthy choice of the day. Most common are olive, avocado and nut oils. They are more stable than polyunsaturated oils and provide needed essential fatty acids. This is probably why the Mediterranean diet has fewer incidents of heart disease.
D. Hydrogenated Processed Fats: such as margarine and most of the fats which are used in deep-frying in restaurants. Of late, the name trans fats was added to this group. Recent studies have shown these are not healthy and may contribute to heart problems.
E. Omega Oils: from fish have been shown to be the most beneficial of all oils. Such oils improve blood flow and prevent blood cells from sticking together and preventing premature clots.

Understanding our choices of oils and fats will help us create a healthier lifestyle. However, how we manage these fats is crucially important. Avoiding rancid fat is the key preventive measure for keeping your body’s free radicals at bay. Free radicals are merely carcinogenic substances which appear in excess in highly unhealthy foods (from fats). If they are not removed, they will cause permanent damage. This is why fresh fruits and vegetables are crucial in cancer prevention.

What are the common causes of rancidity:

l. BOTTLED OIL: you opened and placed in the cupboards. As soon as you open the top, it begins to oxidize. It will not be noticeable by smell. This will go bad much faster than fat from meat. Your choices are store it in the refrigerator or add your own BHT.
2. OPENED DRESSINGS: mayonnaise, salad dressings, tarter sauce and peanut butter. To begin with, don’t buy big sizes and write the date on lid on when you opened it.
With mayonnaise, always buy smaller. (If you can’t find a pint size, buy the quart size and split it into two pint-size jars). Seal tightly and mark last used date on the label. Secondly do not remove mayo with used tool. If mayo spread to side of the jar, REMOVE this with rubber spatula; this is potentially very carcinogenic.
Peanut butter will also go bad after some time. Same rule–don’t remove with a dirty spoon or knife.
3. MEATS: can become carcinogenic. Ground beef is the worst offender. The process of grinding mixes blood with fat, and the broken red blood cells release iron and copper, speeding up this oxidation process. Keep bacon and other cured meats well wrapped, noting when they were opened. Any cured meats with discoloration or a sticky-like appearance should be dumped. Nitrates in them are carcinogenic, so limit your usage.
4. NUTS, CRACKERS and COOKIES: While nuts are very good, rancid nuts are deadly. Buy nuts only where you can trust their freshness if consumed within a week. However, most nuts maintain quality if chilled. Crackers and cookies should never be purchased in factory outlet stores; your chances of rancid fats are high. The same goes for some bake mixes; although the date is safe, they may have been stored in a hot warehouse.
5. BARBECUE SMOKE: the final and worst offender. It seems that when meat fats melt over charcoals then return to the meat, a highly dangerous chemical called ”Hetercocyclicamines” is created. Breathing the smoke is equally dangerous. Trimming fats from the meat before barbecuing is helpful.

It will, of course, be impossible to mention every possible means of ingesting rancid fats, but we do have a trump card in this game to stay cancer free. Our ace is, and has been, nature’s own weapon against mass destruction of our cells—anti-oxidants. They are readily available in pill form but better yet in leafy green vegetables and those red fruits.

You have a clear choice in staying healthy: avoid rancid fats, limit sodium nitrate products, and eat foods that are high in anti-oxidants. Both CSPI and USDA can offer many great anti-oxidant food choices. I would appreciate any question or new information on the subject. Rancid fats have been ignored and need to be properly publicized. Any notes will be posted. Information resources are available upon request.

Your homemade preparations are only as good as your ingredients and nothing surpasses fresh herbs. For a fraction of cost of a commercially bottled 1 ½ oz cylinder, you can an equivalent amount of fresh herbs in bulk. Either buy bouquets at your local Farmer Market or try going to a store which sells bulk herbs and spices. Replacing them frequently insures you that your spice has its full flavor potential.

In 2003, turkey fryers hit the market. In the same year, there were numerous fires and some pretty serious injuries caused by these boiling pots of oil. But never mind a few minor setbacks: turkey fryers were coming back to haunt every frozen turkey in America. So now comes the new improved turkey fryer at Home Depot, local hardware store, Wal-Mart and Raley’s supermarket just to mention a few. Mind you, this new improved model is electric; it comes with 4 sturdy legs, long tongs and asbestos gloves.

The ad I saw read “The new electric Turk’N'Surf makes frying fun. And, to tempt you further, we are offering a USDA grade A turkey for 25 cents a pound and 4 and half gallons of peanut oil for a only $29.97″.

Less than a week after Thanksgiving, they were mysteriously absent. Will these caldrons of catastrophe be reappearing at your local thrift store or perhaps at BIG LOTS with Jerry himself selling its praises? I’d love to hear your thoughts on turkey fryers.

Have you misplaced your morning coffee lately? Did you leave it by the phone or on the bathroom sink, or did the phone ring and you’re looking for car keys? It is fact that 90% of all lost cups of coffee are found in the microwave sometime later that day or the next morning.

The food processors versus the mandolin.

Getting acqainted with interior of your refrigerator.

The DOs and DON’Ts of microwave usage.

Amazing things you can do with fresh and frozen veggies.

Dear reader,

This site is place for you to express whatever is bugging you if it relates to subjects mentioned on this site.

When we write to major sites, our letters are seldom acknowledged and never answered. I assure you that your opinion is very important to me. I want you to be part of this new kind of web-writing. I have no loyalties to sponsors or restrictions. Anything within reason and correct language will be published in this space.

I want to hear your ideas about other websites, health news, and kitchen gadgets I may have missed. So e-mail with anything you feel I should know.

mailbag@savvykitchensolutions.com

Sincerely,
Helen Sue Dell
your culinary and kitchen advisor