Enjoy potatoes during Potato Month EBENSBURG This is the time of year when menus are planned around good, inexpensive stick-to the-ribs food. And one of the basic ingredients of such menus is the potato. February just happens to be Potato Lovers Month, sponsored for the past seven years by the Potato Board. Many retailers are likely to take part in the promotion again this year, so if you see special potato displays, posters, and recipe and nutrition pamphlets in the produce department, you’ll know why. Nationally, growers raised six percent more potatoes than the year before. Some of the increase may have been to cash in on the fast-moving national trend of serving baked potatoes and potato skins in fast-food and full-service eateries. The supply situation is a little different closer to home. Here in Pennsylvania, growers harvested the same number of acres as last year, but because of favorable growing conditions the supply ended up 20 percent greater than a year ago. Because of the more favorable dollar exchange rate, another problem that growers m the Northeast face is the intense competition from Canadian potato imports. There are many op portunities for retailers to put potatoes on special in the weeks ahead. The grading system for potatoes leaves most consumers mystified. Pennsylvania law requires that Automatic Micro-Mist Sprayer Controls Droplet Size The Automatic Micro-Mist Concentrate Sprayer can be powered by the tractor pto for use on rowcrops, vegetables and orchards. The Automatic Micro-Mist Concentrate Sprayer is a faster, more efficient, economical alternative to conventional boom and aerial spraying of rowcrops, vegetables and orchards. It takes mist blowing techniques a step further by giving the operator the ability to control the diameter of the spray droplets and choose the diameter best for each particular spraying application. Controlling droplet diameter results in increased effectiveness and reduced materials cost. The smaller droplets of the Micro-Mister coat all sides of the target evenly, due to the powerful turbulence produced by the unit. The Micro-Mister ef fectively coats the undersides of leaves, reaches inside trees, even coats the back sides of fruit. The compact size and the utilization of chemical concentrates by the Micro- Mister offers many advantages. The unit comes in models that can be powered by PTO on small tractors, ora gasoline powered skid unit that slides into the bed of any pickup. Because the Micro-Mister eliminates the need for cumbersome water hauling equipment that requires additional manpower and time consuming stops for refilling, the Automatic Micro-Mister saves both time and money. The Automatic Micro-Mister can offer effective coverage up to 250 feet, depending on application, and can operate at speeds up to 12 m.p.h., with no dangerous overspray or drift. ■ 539 Falling Spring Road ■ P.0.80x 219 P Chambersburg, PA 17201-0219 Phone 717-263-9111 Ryder supply pre-packaged potatoes display a U.S. quality grade. The most common grade is U.S. No. 1, while the premium grade is called U.S. Extra No. 1. Lesser grades include U.S. Commercial and U.S. No. 2, which are not generally available in retail stores. If the potatoes cannot meet the standards for any of these grades, then they must be marked Unclassified. The U.S. No 1 grade consists of potatoes of similar varietal characteristics that are firm, fairly clean, fairly well shaped, and generally free from damage. Since potatoes are grown by nature, not all potatoes are per fect. Potatoes are graded by humans, who are known to make mistakes. Sometimes potatoes with defects or damage do get by graders, so the U.S. No. 1 grade makes allowances. A total of eight percent of the potatoes, in a representative sample of a lot or load, may have defects. A cut or bruise requiring more than five percent waste to cut out would be considered a defect. The variation in the size of potatoes within a bag can also upset consumers. Grading for size is not mandatory, except that they must be at least one and seven eights inches in diameter. There is no maximum size specified. Among the more than 30 billion pounds of potatoes that will find their way to market in one form or another this year, more than two thirds will be the Russet Burbank. About one-fourth will be varieties of round whites and less than five percent will be round reds. Comsumers are likely to think of russet potatoes as Idahos, since almost all Idahos are Russet Burbanks. However, not all Russet Burbanks are grown in Idaho. Russet potatoes are long and cylindrical, sometimes oblong. They have shallow eyes and heavily netted skins. They’re ideal for baking. The russet’s high starch, low-moisture content makes it mealy and more dry than moist inside. It’s that mealy dryness that makes for fluffy lightness. Here are some fine points from the Idaho Potato Commission to get the best-baked potato. They say, “spare the-foil or spoil the potato.” The much too prevalent custom of wrapping a potato in aluminum foil ruins the potato’s texture because it steams rather than bakes. The moisture is retained rather than driven out, leaving a soft wrinkled skin in stead of the desired crisp skin. If you want the skin a little softer, rub a little salad oil (some say bacon grease) on the outside of the potato before baking. The next step involves pricking the potato with a fork a few times. Three on the top and three on the bottom is enough. This allows the steam to escape and prevents the * • * « potato from exploding.lt will also make for a drier, mealier texture to ensure fluffiness in the perfect baked potato. To test the potato for doneness, put on an insulated mitt and pinch it. If it feels soft, it’s done. You can also check the inside with a fork. The Commission suggests another step, which is caled the crisscross-pinch technique. As soon as the potato is baked to the soft-to-the-touch stage, take it from the oven and cut an “X” in the ion with a <«rnprts HOLIDAYSBURG - Beth E. Fisher has been named home economist and assistant extension agent in Blair County, W. Wayne Hinish, associate dean and associate director of the Cooperative Extension Service, announced earlier this month. Fisher is responsible for the adult and youth program development, volunteer recruit ment and training, and family living education in Blair County. “Generally, I’ll be responsible for all home economics and 4-H programs in the county,” Fisher says. Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 23,1955-B9 would never dream of opening a baked potato with anything but a fork, held lightly in the hand to avoid tamping down the fluffy, delicate interior. Fisher named Blair Co. extension agent Originally from Dover, Pa. she earned a bachelor’s degree in 1977 and a master’s degree in 1982, both in education, from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She worked with Penn State’s Cooperative Extension Service in York as an Extension assistant from 1977 to 1979. Fisher also worked as a salesclerk in Zolinger’s Depart ment Store in York, as a teacher in the North Star School District in Boswell, and as a teller for the National Bank of Commonwealth in Indiana. She is a member of the Indiana Junior Women’s Civic Club. Then they push some of the potato through the top with slight pressure of the fingers on the peel so that some of the snowy inside shows. This will help the fluffing process by releasing steam. The potato is now ready to ac cept just about any topping you can think of.
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