Tag Archives: summer

Eggplant Cooking Tips

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Eggplant!I recently got the best gift from a friend — 4 small eggplants from her garden. This is the same friend who brought me several pomegranates a couple years ago. I feel so lucky that I have friends that bring me wonderful fruits and vegetables — what great gifts!

Anyway, back to the eggplant.

I don’t usually buy eggplant, largely because I really don’t know what to do with it. My husband likes eggplant Parmesan, but he usually orders it in restaurants. I’d heard so many rumors and old wives’ tales about how to cook eggplant, and found myself baffled by all the conflicting information. For example, do I need to salt the eggplant? I remember my husband’s aunt always salting her eggplants and then weighing them down with books. On the other hand, according to an archived article from Food and Health Communications, you don’t have to bother with this if the eggplants are very fresh.

So how should I treat my eggplants?

Since salting can help remove the bitterness from an eggplant, I decided to salt mine. If you’d like to salt your eggplants before you cook them, first you need to slice or dice the eggplant into the shape you want to use. Sprinkle everything with about half a teaspoon of salt (not the half cup my husband’s aunt used to use) and then let everything sit in a colander for 30-60 minutes while the eggplant drains. Once that time is up, press out any excess liquid and dry the eggplant with a clean towel. You can also rinse the eggplant to remove extra salt before drying it.

So, there I was with salted eggplant. How did I want to cook it?

Grilled EggplantI dug further into the Food and Health Communications recipe archive and found a few articles about eggplant, along with several healthful recipes. Here are some of my favorites…

With time running short, I decided that I wanted to preserve my eggplants to cook later.

According to the National Center for Home Food Preservation, eggplant can be frozen. As far as I could tell, there is not a research-tested recipe for safely canning eggplant.

So, freezing it was!

To freeze eggplant, fill a large pot with 1 gallon of water and half a cup of lemon juice (the lemon will keep the eggplant from darkening). Bring the mixture to a boil. While you’re waiting for the water to heat up, wash, peel, and slice the eggplant into discs that are half an inch thick. Since eggplant does discolor quickly, prepare only what you you can blanch at one time. When you’re ready, place the eggplant slices in the boiling water for 4 minutes. Pluck the slices out of the water with a slotted spoon and drop into an ice bath for another 4 minutes. Then drain and pack up your eggplant. If you want to fry the slices or layer them into eggplant Parmesan or vegetable lasagna, consider placing freezer wrap between the slices before freezing.

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That’s basically what I did, with one little twist. I put the well-drained eggplant slices on a tray and froze them individually. Then I transferred everything to a freezer bag. Hooray! Now I have two quart bags full of sliced eggplant for later this year!

My research also led me to discover a bunch of great eggplant cooking tips. If you ever find yourself with a spare eggplant or two, consider the following…

  • To avoid browning, wait to cut into the eggplant until you absolutely have to — don’t prep that part a few hours in advance!
  • Leave the skin on! This will help color, shape retention, and optimal nutrition. You can find anthocyanins in the purple skin of an eggplant, and since anthocyanins have a positive impact on blood lipids, it would really be a shame to remove the skin.
  • Eggplants do have a tendency to soak up oil during cooking. To keep your dish light and healthful, sauté eggplant in a small amount of very hot oil in a nonstick pan.
  • Want a quick eggplant side? Spray slices with olive oil cooking spray and roast, grill, or broil them.

Anyway, that’s a brief recap of my eggplant adventures. I hope you liked it!

By Cheryle Jones Syracuse, MS, Professor Emeritus at The Ohio State University

Here’s a handout that features the most helpful points from today’s post. Get your copy today!

Eggplant Handout

And for more fun with eggplant, drop by the Nutrition Education Store!

Fruit and Vegetable Activity Set for Kids

I Heart Fruit and Veggies Bookmark

Vegetable Chopping Guide Poster

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Summer Food Safety Quiz

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Summer just seems to scream “let’s eat outdoors!” It’s important to remember that these opportunities for picnics, patio dining, and special summer foods also bring different problems and situations into the food safety picture. Here’s a quick quiz that can be used as a refresher for food safety in the summer.

Summer Food Safety QuizAre the following questions true or false?

  1. The safest homemade ice cream is made with a cooked custard.
  2. It’s safe to eat hot dogs that have been stored unopened in the refrigerator for up to ten days.
  3. Because it’s in a picnic cooler, it’s safe to leave food on the picnic table in a sunny location for over five hours.
  4. This is a great time to marinate meat for the barbeque. Since most of these marinades contain acids, which slows bacteria growth, it’s OK to allow the meat and marinade to “steep” at room temperature like the recipe indicates.
  5. Since it’s already been cooked, it’s OK to leave fried chicken set out all afternoon at the family reunion picnic.

Are you ready for the answers? Here they are!

1. TRUE. If you’re making homemade ice cream, look for a recipe that uses cooked custard. If you must use a recipe that calls for uncooked eggs, get pasteurized eggs or egg whites. Why? Well, there can be salmonella bacteria in raw, uncooked eggs and just because a food has been kept cold or frozen doesn’t eliminate the risk.
2. TRUE. Check the expiration date on those hot dogs. Hot dogs should be used or frozen within three days of the sell-by or use-by date on the package. An unopened package of hot dogs can stay safely in your refrigerator until the expiration date (or two weeks if there is no date). An opened bag of hot dogs should be eaten within a week of opening. Never eat hot dogs that have a cloudy liquid in the bag.
3. FALSE. The “two hour rule” changes to the “one hour rule” when temperatures creep up above 90 degrees F. This means that you should not allow food to sit out at room temperature for longer than one hour. Hot temperatures are just right for allowing the bacteria in food to multiply to numbers that could make people sick. When everyone is done eating, get that food quickly into coolers or a refrigerator.  When storing food in coolers, use lots of ice. It’s hard to keep the temperature of food in coolers below 40 degrees. Five hours may be too long to ensure that food is safe. In that case, don’t eat or save those leftovers! It may seem a waste to throw out half a bowl of potato salad or sliced fruit, but there may be several problems with it in addition to the uncertain temperatures (i.e. bugs, lots of people around — did they double dip?). Unless you are absolutely sure of the safety of the food, pitch any leftovers.
4. FALSE. Marinate your meats in the refrigerator. Yes, most recipes for marinades contain an acid. This may slow but does not stop bacteria growth. Just because the recipe says to allow it to “steep” at room temperature doesn’t mean that it’s safe. Remember, not every celebrity chef or recipe developer has had a food safety or food science class.
5. FALSE. Remember that “one hour rule” for large buckets of fried chicken or plates of burgers and hot dogs. Just because a food item has been cooked does not make it immune to bacteria growth.

While the living can be easy in the summer months, food safety takes a little more effort and planning.

By Cheryle Jones Syracuse, MS, Professor Emeritus at The Ohio State University

There are lots of other amazing summer resources in the Nutrition Education Store! We’re here to help you look your very best, right now!

PowerPoint: Healthy Vacation How-Tos

Food Safety Poster

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Hydrate for Health

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Summer is in full swing at our beach community and it is HOT.

RehydrateWhen the temperature rises, proper hydration is extra important. You need to provide your body with the fluid that it needs in order to keep itself healthy. Water regulates many different body processes, including body temperature, digestion, and heart rate. It also cushions and protects our internal organs. When we don’t get enough of it, our bodies can suffer.

We lose water from our bodies every time we breathe, sweat, or pee. In fact, it’s estimated that you can lose up to 4 cups of water during an hour of exercise in the heat. This water loss can lead to dehydration.

Signs of dehydration include…

  • Dark urine
  • Dizziness
  • Rapid breathing
  • Rapid pulse
  • Headache
  • Cramping

Ultimately, dehydration can lead to extreme thirst, confusion, heat stroke, loss of consciousness, and death.

So, how can you manage staying hydrated in the heat of summer?

One of the keys is not to wait until you’re thirsty. Drink water regularly.

Running ClipFood can also provide some of the water you need every day. Things like watermelon, soup, milk, lettuce, and strawberries can help you get that needed hydration.

In general, sugar-sweetened sports drinks or beverages with added minerals, vitamins, or electrolytes are not necessary unless you are a competitive athlete or in heavy training for an athletic event.

I was chatting with some friends the other night about proper hydration, and they asked about caffeinated beverages like coffee, tea, and soda. The general theory is that people should avoid drinks with caffeine because they are diuretics. But, as the American College of Sports Medicine says, the diuretic effect of soda and coffee is mild compared to the amount of fluid that each beverage contains. I’m guessing the thought here is that — when it comes to staying hydrated — any drink is better than none!*

So, how much water should you be drinking in order to stay hydrated?

This really depends on the person and the activity. In the book, Sports Medicine Guidebook, Nancy Clark stresses that people should be drinking enough so that they will urinate every two to four hours and the color of the urine should be light. If you’re working out, she suggests drinking two cups of water before the activity, 4-6 ounces every 15-20 minutes during the activity, and 16 ounces after an hour-long workout.

Tips for healthful hydration:

  • Start your day with a big glass of water.
  • Carry a water bottle with you. Refill it often.
  • When selecting bottled beverages, look for drinks with fewer than 20 calories per 8 ounces.
  • Ask for water in restaurants. It keeps you hydrated and it’s free!
  • Made infused water by adding slices of lemon, lime, oranges, or other fruit to your tap water. Combine it all in a big pitcher and store it in the refrigerator.
  • Add a splash of juice to your water for a change of flavor.
  • If you’re going to exercise, make sure you drink water before, during, and after your workout.

By Cheryle Jones Syracuse, MS, Professor Emeritus at The Ohio State University

PS As you hydrate, be sure not to take things too far. Avoid hyponatremia, which often occurs with slower athletes during endurance events. The article, How to Avoid Hyponatremia can be a huge help.

Like what you see? Here’s some of the key information from this post, assembled in a handout just for you. Feel free to distribute it to your clients or use it in a summer display!

Hydration Handout

 

Plus, there’s a ton of hydration resources in the Nutrition Education Store!

3 Steps to Better Health Kids and Family Banner

Sports Nutrition Basics PowerPoint

Are You Drinking Candy? Poster

* That said, alcoholic beverages will increase urine output and decrease hydration.

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