News from Seward County
November 25, 2009

Small Snacks Can Pack Powerful Calorie Punch

The holidays are more of everything. More expensive, more stressful and, yes, even more calories.

An easy way to cut back on excess calories is to limit all the extra eating and snacking during the holiday season. Even though it's not a meal, it doesn't mean there aren't a lot of calories in holiday snacks. These snack attacks can hit at the work place, at the grocery store or even a dinner party.

Eating some things like a broken cookie and Christmas candy adds up quickly. There are 30 calories in half a cookie and another 80 calories in just a piece of peanut brittle. Even fruit, especially when dipped in chocolate, will contain a high calorie amount; a single chocolate-covered cherry contains 60 calories.

At the grocery store, even the simplest little samples can increase a calorie intake. Hungry while browsing, eating a couple crackers with a little spread amounts to 40 calories. Thirsty? Even a fourth of a cup of holiday coffee contains 20 calories. But a real boost to the calories comes from egg nog, a classic holiday drink. A half-glass of egg nog amounts to 200 calories.
Holiday dinner parties are another excellent opportunity to add calories. A few chips with some dip is 75 calories. The last few spoonfuls of candied sweet potatoes are an additional 60 calories. Even just a preview taste of dessert would amount to 70 calories.

If all of these snacks took place on the one day the total additional calorie intake to a regular three meals a day would be 635 calories. Eating those additional calories on a consistent basis would make it possible to gain a pound a week. On average, it takes 3,500 additional calories to gain a pound. 

SOURCE: Alice Henneman, UNL Extension Educator.

News from Seward County
November 18, 2009

Turkey Basics: Safe Thawing

"The Big Thaw"
Turkeys must be kept at a safe temperature during "the big thaw." While frozen, a turkey is safe indefinitely. However, as soon as it begins to thaw, any bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to grow again.

A package of frozen meat or poultry left thawing on the counter more than 2 hours is not at a safe temperature. Even though the center of the package may still be frozen, the outer layer of the food is in the "Danger Zone" between 40 and 140 °F — at a temperature where foodborne bacteria multiply rapidly.

There are three safe ways to thaw food: in the refrigerator, in cold water, and in the microwave oven.

Safe Methods for Thawing
Immediately after grocery store checkout, take the frozen turkey home and store it in the freezer.

Frozen turkeys should not be left on the back porch, in the car trunk, in the basement, or any place else where temperatures cannot be constantly monitored.

Refrigerator Thawing
When thawing a turkey in the refrigerator:
Plan ahead: allow approximately 24 hours for each 4 to 5 pounds in a refrigerator set at 40 °F or below.
Place the turkey in a container to prevent the juices from dripping on other foods.

Refrigerator Thawing Times
Whole turkey:
4 to 12 pounds …… 1 to 3 days
12 to 16 pounds …… 3 to 4 days
16 to 20 pounds …… 4 to 5 days
20 to 24 pounds …… 5 to 6 days

A thawed turkey can remain in the refrigerator for 1 or 2 days before cooking. Foods thawed in the refrigerator can be refrozen without cooking but there may be some loss of quality.

Cold Water Thawing
Allow about 30 minutes per pound.

First be sure the turkey is in a leak-proof plastic bag to prevent cross-contamination and to prevent the turkey from absorbing water, resulting in a watery product.

Submerge the wrapped turkey in cold tap water. Change the water every 30 minutes until the turkey is thawed. Cook the turkey immediately after it is thawed.

Cold Water Thawing Times
4 to 12 pounds …… 2 to 6 hours
12 to 16 pounds …… 6 to 8 hours
16 to 20 pounds …… 8 to 10 hours
20 to 24 pounds …… 10 to 12 hours

A turkey thawed by the cold water method should be cooked immediately. After cooking, meat from the turkey can be refrozen.

Microwave Thawing
Follow the microwave oven manufacturer's instruction when defrosting a turkey. Plan to cook it immediately after thawing because some areas of the food may become warm and begin to cook during microwaving. Holding partially cooked food is not recommended because any bacteria present wouldn't have been destroyed.

A turkey thawed in the microwave must be cooked immediately.

News from Seward County
November 11, 2009

Proper Handling of Game Meat will Lower Risk of Foodborne Illness

Hunters should follow safety precautions to lower their risk of foodborne illness.
Proper handling of game meat helps stop bacterial growth on raw meat.

Temperature plays an important role in keeping game meat safe and preventing foodborne illness. Bacteria grow most rapidly between 40 degrees and 140 degrees.
If the temperature is over 40 degrees, it is strongly recommended to take the carcass to a cooler the day of the kill.

Special care should be taken to keep the carcass cool during transport. Keep the meat out of direct sunlight and allow as much air circulation as possible. Do not use airtight gamebags or tarps that hold in heat and cause meat to spoil rapidly.

Make sure game meat is processed safely in sanitary conditions. If the raw meat is mishandled, bacteria may grow and produce toxins that can cause foodborne illness.

Freeze fresh meat at zero degrees to stop bacterial growth. Temperatures below 40 degrees will slow growth of bacteria but will not kill bacteria. Divide meat into meal-size quantities and wrap in moisture and vapor-proof wrap. Label packages with contents and date. Freeze only the amount of meat that will be solidly frozen within 24 hours.

Limit game meat to eight months of storage time. Safely thaw frozen meat in the refrigerator or microwave. Game meat often is high in bacterial content and thawing at room temperature will enhance bacterial growth. Meat thawed in the microwave should be cooked immediately. Use meat thawed in the refrigerator within one to two days.

Keep raw meat and cooked meat separate to avoid cross-contamination. Wash knife, cutting board and hands often with warm, soapy water. To destroy bacteria, cook game meat until it reaches safe internal temperatures of 160 to 212 degrees. Set the oven no lower than 325 degrees. Cook all ground meats to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Steaks and roasts cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees are medium rare, 160 degrees are medium and 170 degrees are well done. A whole game bird should reach 180 degrees.

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SOURCE: Julie Albrecht, UNL food specialist  

News from Seward County
November 4, 2009

Early Communication Key For Child's Socialization

Early communication skills are important as infants grow up and seek to gain parents’ and other caregivers’ trust. This involves self-awareness and the ability to interact with others. Birth to 18 months is the prime time for emotional attachment, which helps the child to have self-awareness and security to feel free to keep learning new things.

When creating a social world for a child to grow up in, it is important to establish a nurturing and bonding with responsive primary caregivers which includes parent and childcare provider. Grandparents also can play a role in nurturing and bonding to help build the trust foundation toward developing a child’s social world.

Overstimulation with too many new experiences and too much stimulation may stress and hinder development. This is really present when there is not consistency in scheduling with different caregivers.

At any early age – 1 or 2 years old – parents and caregivers need to be consistently involved in an infant’s live. This will help the child recognize a face and feel emotional bond. Also at the infant stage, parents should talk, make sounds, sing, play activities involving bright colors, different sounds, or mirrors, like peek-a-boo, for example. This helps the child learn to play and gives him or her an opportunity to develop knowing the difference between self and others.
When a parent first begins to talk with a child, it is important to use varied forms of communication. Singing a song, humming, laughing or using a different pitch level will all help build a child's understanding of all the different forms of communication.

As a child gets older, it is necessary for parents or older siblings to give them room to communicate. When asking a child a question, allow him or her five seconds or so to answer. That gives the child time to think about what he or she is going to say. Children generally will answer in that time frame. Parents and siblings usually answer the question for the child and don’t allow the child to learn to communicate. This is very good way to develop communication so children will be able to communicate better in society and at a early stage in life.

As children get older, parents should help set up play-dates with other children of the same age. This will help them learn social skills with other children they do not know. Remember at 1 to 2 years of age they may still be doing parallel play (playing next to another child, not with them). They need practice in taking turns, sharing, and cooperation, so don’t forget to be patient as you teach them these skills.

As children enter elementary school, parents should continue to keep helping their children with communication so they are able to socialize and communicate with other people. If necessary, arrange play activities for children so that they can continue to be watched. Guide them in communication with others. Remember children learn to socialize by watching their parents and how they communicate.

Sometimes a distance will grow in the communication between a child and a parent. To help with this, set aside a "talking time" with the child everyday.

Each individual child might have a different "talking time." For instance, some children will want to talk about their day right when they get home from school and others will talk during the car ride home from school or at a babysitters.

One of the best times is right before bed. Parents can create this by setting aside time early in a child's development.

News from Seward County
October 14, 2009

How Television Impacts Children

Many parents are concerned about their children’s television habits. Are they watching too much? What are they watching? How is TV affecting them? These are the kinds of questions parents should ask when making decisions about their children’s TV viewing.

Here are some facts about TV that can give parents more information:

• American children watch an average of three to five hours of television every day.
• The average child witnesses 45 acts of violence on TV every day.
• Children watching TV may see 50,000 TV commercials every year.
• Most 2- to 5-year-old children watch TV an average of 31 hours each week or more than four hours each day.
• Children’s programming has an average of 26 violent acts every hour.
• Ten percent of children’s TV time is spent watching children’s programs and 90 percent of their time is spent watching programs intended for adults.
• The average American family has the TV on for 6.2 hours every day.

Children are more likely to be obese when they watch TV four or more hours per day.

Many studies found that TV violence impacts children and teens negatively. For example, children learn that violence is an acceptable way to solve problems. Children may develop strong emotional fears, imitate the violence they see on TV, become less sensitive to the pain and suffering of others, and identify with certain characters, both good and bad. Studies also show that children who watch too much television may be more aggressive and violent, perform poorly in school, use drugs or alcohol, and become sexually active at an early age.

Children’s development and learning may also suffer from too much TV. Children watching too much TV don’t get as much physical activity and aren’t exposed to new experiences. One study showed that 4-year-olds who watched a lot of TV scored lower on measures of applied problem solving, language comprehension and expressive vocabulary.

Although there are negative effects of watching too much television, some studies indicate that moderate TV viewing can stimulate a child’s education and creativity. Children who watched a moderate amount of TV performed better academically than children who watched TV excessively or not at all.

Television can have both negative and positive effects on children. Like anything else, moderation is best. Parents should limit the amount of time their children spend in front of the TV and pay close attention to the content of the programs they are watching.

Here are more suggestions for parents to help guide children’s television viewing:
 

• Put TV sets in family areas instead of in children’s rooms.
• Monitor what your children are viewing and avoid violent or sexual content.
• Watch TV with your children and discuss the program or commercials. Ask them questions, and express your thoughts and feelings. This discussion process will help children critically evaluate programs and advertisements.
• Set limits on TV viewing. For example, restrict TV during meals and before children have finished homework or chores.
• Be a good role model for your children with your own TV viewing habits. They model what you do more than what you say.

Nina Chen, specialist, University of Missouri Extension

News from Seward County
September 23, 2009

Get Rid of Pantry Pests

No one is immune to having an infestation of those pesky little bugs that get into the food in your pantry. When you do spot one on the shelf or in your food, it’s important to know how to get rid of them and what you can do to decrease the chance that it will happen again.

The first sign that you have pantry pests is the presence of small brown beetles, moths or worms in your cupboards or even on the kitchen counter. They can come from a lot of places. You can bring them home in a package you buy at the grocery store. They can even fly in the house through an open door or window or crawl through the tiniest crack.

Two of the most common types are grain and flour beetles and Indian meal moths. The grain and flour beetles are small flat brown bugs. They like to eat flour, cornmeal and cereal. You can also find these pests in your dry dog and cat food and even nuts, candies and dried fruit. These bugs do not like light and will move away when a container is opened. They multiply rapidly so you may see a large number of them.

Indian meal moths are one of the most common pantry pests in Nebraska. They are collectively called meal, pantry, kitchen, flour or grain moths. The damage of the food is actually done by the caterpillars and not the mature moth. The caterpillar is only about one-half inch long and can be off-white and the moths are drab grey in color while some are a bit more coloful (Indian meal moth). They leave a “thread” trail along anything they move over which forms webs across the infested food. The first sign of an infestation is often small moths fluttering around the kitchen or a room near the kitchen.

To get rid of these unwanted bugs. Remove all food from your shelves sealing any infested food in an airtight bag before discarding. Use a vacuum cleaner to thoroughly clean shelves. It is especially important to use the vacuum cleaner because these bugs like to get in tiny cracks and crevices in your pantry. Make sure to dispose of the vacuum bag in another airtight container so the bugs don’t come back.

Some tips to protect your kitchen from pantry pests includes buying only small portions of grain foods if you don’t use them that often, store susceptible foods in airtight containers, don’t buy opened or crushed packages as they are more likely to be contaminated and remove all food from your food storage area once per year for a thorough cleaning.

Source: UNL Extension 

News from Seward County
September 16, 2009

Preserving Fruit Salsas
 
Tomato-based salsas have been popular for several years for food preservers, but there is a new twist on this favorite — fruit salsas. “Most fruit salsas are preserved to be used with meats, poultry and fish. The fruit, herbs and heat of onion or pepper, as well as the vibrant colors adds zest to meals.

 Most salsa recipes are a mixture of low-acid foods (like onions and peppers) with more acid foods (like tomatoes or fruit). The types and amounts of ingredients used in salsa, as well as the preparation method, are important considerations in how a salsa is canned. Improperly canned salsas have been implicated in several outbreaks of botulism poisoning.

So how do you can a safe, great tasting fruit salsa at home? First, choose high-quality fruit that is firm and free of blemishes. Also, make sure to follow the recipe and avoid making substitutions. If a recipe calls for green or unripe mango, do not use ripe mango, as this results in acidity changes of the recipe and creates a potentially unsafe canned salsa.

Peppers range from mild to scorching in taste. Mild pepper varieties include Anaheim, Ancho, College, Colorado and Hungarian Yellow Wax. Hot varieties include jalapeño, cayenne, habanero, serrano and tabasco. It’s fine to substitute one type of pepper for another or mild peppers for chilies. Do not increase the total amount (pounds or cups) of peppers in any recipe. This results in a change of final acidity of the mixture and potentially unsafe canned salsa. Be sure to wear plastic or rubber gloves when handling hot peppers and do not touch your face, particularly the area around the eyes! If you do not wear gloves, wash hands thoroughly with soap and water before touching your face or eyes.

Red and yellow onions may be substituted for each other, but do not increase the total amount of onions called for in the recipe — again, this changes the final acidity level of the salsa and can create an unsafe canned product.

Acidic ingredients, like vinegar, lemon juice or lime juice help preserve canned salsa. Unfortunately, USDA research has not been able to calculate a safe canned salsa that tastes similar to the fresh salsas we are accustomed to. Salsa recipes for home canning have larger amounts of vinegar or lemon juice, which create a more acidic flavor. It’s important that the amount of acid in the recipe is never reduced. While an equal amount of bottled lemon juice may be substituted for vinegar in recipes, do not substitute vinegar for lemon juice — this could result in less acidity and potentially unsafe canned salsa.

Spices and herbs add unique flavors to fruit salsas. Amounts of spices and herbs in recipes can be altered, with no risk of creating a potentially unsafe canned salsa. For a stronger cilantro flavor in recipes with cilantro, it is suggested to add fresh cilantro just before serving instead of adding more before canning.

Also, do not thicken salsas with flour, cornstarch or other starches before canning. If a thicker salsa is desired, add these ingredients after opening the canned salsa. Store salsas in the refrigerator once opened. If your personal favorite salsa doesn’t have a tested recipe for home canning, it’s best to eat your creation fresh, storing it up to one week in the refrigerator.

Source: Susan Mills-Gray, University of Missouri Extension