Lancaster farming. (Lancaster, Pa., etc.) 1955-current, July 18, 1998, Image 61
Family Living Focus by Alletta Schadler Lebanon Co. Extension Salads To Go It’s time for summer salads “to go” to picnics, to covered dish suppers. It is always a challenge to plan ahead to keep food really cold until you’re ready to eat. There are new devices that can help do the chilling job. For example, there are padded insu lated carrying bags that hold casseroles or 9x13-inch pans with chiller units that fit the bag to keep the food cold. There are also double-walled platters and bowls that can be frozen ahead of time and then used to keep the salad chilled. One of the important tech niques to use for maximum food safety is to make sure that when you prepare a salad mixture, all the ingredients like salad dress ing, celery, vegetables, pasta, tuna or other meats or whatev er—are pre-chilled so that you have a chilled mixture when the recipe is complete. Chill chopped potatoes or freshly cooked pasta nr rice before making the salad. If you mix warm foods together \ou will have a thick mixture that Is very slow to cool. Just to set the record ‘■traight —again—salad dressing and mayonnaise are not inher ently perilous foods. Both con tain large amounts of vinegar Maryland Fair Contestants Needed (Continued from Page B 15) able on a first-come, first-served basis. The Fairgrounds encour ages the use of the Light Rail with an easi ly accessible Light Rail Fair. Parking on the Fairgrounds for a mini mal fee and free park ing at the Park and Ride location on Deereco Road are avail- that make them acidy and not hospitable for bacteria by them selves. What does happen though, is that when they are mixed with lots of other protein foods, the acidity is diluted and the contamination potential is increased so it is a good idea to keep salad mixture at 40 degrees or less. If any food has been in the danger zone between 40 and 140 degrees for more than two hours you should think about discarding it. At a picnic, keep most food in the cooler until you need it. Do not return warm food to the cool food con tainer in the cooler. Keep it sep arate or discard it. It is also very important to be attentive to sanitation when you are mixing salads together. Because you have a variety of ingredients, many of which must be chopped or cut and han dled, you have more opportuni ties for cross contamination. Be sure also to thoroughly wash fresh produce that goes into salad mixtures, chasing down any soil particles lurking in the greens. Wash your hands often—with soap. Folks have been asking about some of the waterless hand cleaners that are appearing on the market. Do read the instructions about how to use them but they are not stop at the Fairgrounds’ Cow Palace Gate. For fairgoers’ convenience, Carrollton Bank ATM Machines will be locat ed in front of the 4-H Building, the Cow Palace, the Exhibition Hall and in the center of the Grandstand on the upper and lower levels. For general information call (410) 252-0200, ext. 226. We watch over every step in the manufacture, assembly and construction of your building. Morton operates five manufacturing facilities, strategically located to serve you efficiently. Our high-volume buying power enables us to purchase the finest raw materials at the lowest possible price. Components for your structure are manufactured, fabricated and assembled under the watchful eyes of quality control experts. We maintain a fleet of company-owned and operated trucks, enabling our dnvers to unload your building matenals quickly and safely. From that point, a crew of company-trained, company-employed, and company-insured construction professionals takes over. They are trained to follow the most efficient and safe construction methods possible, and are supplied with state-of-the-art equipment and quality materials to make your facility something to be proud of for years to come. designed for use before handling food with bare hands. If your picnic involved raw chicken or burgers, try to have as much of the handling done before you get to the picnic so you don’t have to handle raw meat with your hands—espe cially if there are poor hand washing facilities. Maybe this is the time to toss some disposable gloves into your picnic basket. Be sure to segregate the raw meats or poultry from other foods that will not be cooked so there is no transfer of bacteria. Think about a separate cooler or at the very least a sealed con tainer inside the regular cooler to keep juices confined. Don’t put the cooked burgers back on the plate that held the raw burg ers. Do not use loose ice that has | :■ 9 1 JRMH ' Pa. Dutch Festival July 30-August 1 Authentic buggy rides are to be only part of the fun when the Pennsylvania coun tryside comes to the city during the Pennsylvania Dutch Festival at Reading Terminal Market, July 30-August 1. The festival runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and features authentic Pennsylvania Dutch handmade quilts, brooms, woodcrafts, cakes, pies, donuts, ice cream, preserves and more. On August 1, the festivities include Amish buggy rides around the Reading Terminal Market, as well as live horses, sheep, goats, chickens, donkeys and calves. For more information about the Pa. Dutch Festival, call (215) 922-2317. been a cooling agent in a chest for putting into drinks. It could have picked up bacteria. Abetter way would be to put the ice into several small zipper-type bags to keep it clean while it cools. Try to get the cooler chilled ahead of time so that when you put in the chilled food, the whole system will keep you at safe tempera tures for longer time. Keep the cooler in the air conditioned part of the vehicle if you can. Here’s one of my favorite summer salads—“ Bloody Mary Turkey Salad.” It is called Bloody Mary because part of the marinade/salad dressing is made with Bloody Mary Drink mix a spicy hot tomato juice plus red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, oil, herbs and garlic. It’s a big hit and easy to prepare. Here’s the recipe: Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 18, 1998-817 BLOODY MARY TURKEY SALAD 2 pounds deli-style cooked turkey breast sliced 1/4 inch thick, then into thin strips 1 1/2 cups Bloody Mary Drink Mix 1/3 cup red wine vinegar 1/4 cup Balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon oregano 1/3 cup salad oil 4 cloves garlic, thin sliced 1/2 pound sliced mushrooms Combine ingredients m 1/2 gallon zipper bag the day before and refrigerate. Turn bag sever al times. At serving time, arrange mixed greens, sliced carrots, radishes, cucumbers, tomato wedges, green pepper strips, hard cooked egg wedges, olives on a large tray. Place turkey with marinade in a bowl. Guest can put down green and veggies and top with turkey. Enjoy! *' j fak MORTON W BUILDINGS 717/624-3331 3368 York Rd. Gettysburg, PA 17325 800-447-7436 TjA -fßMvr «MUfc .5* MTV. Photo by Jerry Irwin 908/454-7900 P.O. Box 126, Phlllipsburg, NJ 08865 Illinois only, call 1-800-426-6686