August 22, 2007
Robin's August 2007 Update
Direct Teaching
- Judged a Cooking/Baking contest for Miller Park Seniors...Some really great cooks!
- Nutrition and It's Effect on the Sense of Well Being in the Elderly...presentation for the Aging Coalition. This is a great group I really enjoy being involved with.
Coordination in Healthy Family Relationships Programs
- Young at Heart Day --- went great. 620 in attendance. We again had our Healthy Foods booth but can't seem to compete with the donuts and pastries! A new entertainment group...Pop 'n' I did very well. Seniors were singing along and dancing. A visit from the King and Queen followed by the Dynamics duo. New added this year was the opportunity for seniors to display their hobby collections. Prior coordination---Exhibitor display organization mailing converted to e-mail distribution list; calls and coordination directly to additional organizations.
Coordination in Caregiving Relationships Programs
- Caregivers Day Out...Our planning committee had their first meeting on July 12. Looking for motivational/ inspirational speakers. Event will be November 9, 2007. Site has been secured.
- We discussed location; date; duration; motivational speakers; pampering businesses (chair massage, manicures, hot wax hand dips etc)
- Grandparents Raising Grandchildren run through at St. Pat's church was June 27; set up June 29; actual conference June 30. Session one-- "Legal Issues Grandparents Face Raising a New Generation of Children" by Stacey Tutt, Prairie State Legal Services; Session Two--"Love & Logic" by Bess Desch, Partners in Parenting; Lunch with Keynote speaker and inspirational singer, Evelyn Young. Evelyn is director of local Boys and Girls Club. She spoke on "Grand Love"; after noon features were a Caring and Sharing Panel Discussion with grandparents and other professionals in the community. Heart-wrenching personal stories and sharing of resources were very well guided by our "panel mediator", Mike O'Donnel, with the ECIAAA--(East Central Illinois Area Agency on Aging).
- Site for next year's GRG conference may be in Macon County. Theresa Adams, Macon County Extension Community Worker, has already agreed to work with the ECIAAA on that event if it is held there.
Coordination in General Nutrition & Food Safety
- Developed 4 Fact Sheets complete with clip art and recipes for Food Pantries. Topic: Vegetables people need help with---Turnips, Zucchini, Eggplant, and Cabbage.
- It's canning time! Many consumers questions on canning and freezing especially in the past month.
- Children's Discovery Museum...Local committee met July 13 for updates on revisions. I am the liaison from the community for the revising of the nutrition portion of the museum exhibit. There is also a paid consultant for the entire museum revisions.
- H.C.E. (Home and Community Education) annual meeting and program...July 10... Ewing Scholarship and Esposito Scholarships were presented.
- Healthy Kids program planned for a group of Family Child Care Providers scheduled in Feb.. Did some pre-planning afterward scheduling. They would like it centered on topic of childhood obesity and presented in terms of what they as child care providers can do, not necessarily what they can take back to the parents.
- Assisted University of Alabama Extension in accessing our materials on Healthy Moves for Healthy Kids.
National Committees
- I'm on a National Committee for Tri-State Hosting of National Conference in Minnesota in Sept... I'm gathering volunteers from Illinois for various positions prior and during the Friendship Event.
Sampling of inquiries---
Q: I have a recipe that calls for 1/2 Kg of Mango. How much is that? It also calls for 250 mg ginger. The rest of the ingredients are in ounces. Why is that?
A: 1/2 kg= 1.1 lb and 250 mg = 8.8 oz. The recipe must have been written by someone not born in the U.S. is my guess.
Q: "I have a recipe for Molasses Cookies that calls for unsulfered molasses. What is the difference?
A: Sulfur is used as a preservative in molasses. Sometimes people prefer to use unsulfered molasses instead of sulfured in cookies and breads because the flavor is stronger. Unsulfered is more difficult to find--- may have to go to a specialty store.
Q: "Do I have to blanch rhubarb before I freeze?"
A: It is recommended to do so to help preserve the flavor and color.
Q: "Looking for a replacement gasket for my canner. Where can I find one?"
Q: "Can you can grape tomatoes?"
A: You can, some people don't like to deal with all the seeds and skins. Some actually dry them. Others don't mind the seeds or the skins and put them in a food processor and can or freeze them.
Q: How do you microwave corn on the cob?
Q: Can you slice larger cucumbers for dill pickles?
Q: I have an old crock that is pitted & some glazing is gone. Can I use that for pickling?
Q: We took salsa to the fair as a project, brought it home, opened it, ate some but left it out on the counter. In the meantime several of my family has eaten some too. I found it still out this a.m. (Mon.) My family won't get botulism will they?
A: If it was processed properly, probably not. But if anyone gets any of the common symptoms of eating spoiled food, diarrhea, vomiting, aching, see your doctor.
Q: I bake cookies for church. How long can they be kept in the freezer before they are too old?
A: 3 months is the recommended maximum.
Q: I'm seeing here that it is recommended to use Lemon Juice or citric acid to can tomatoes. I've never done that and I don't have either one way out here in rural McLean County.
A: To prevent botulism we need to can tomatoes with acid. There are so many varieties of tomatoes we want to be sure they are all acid enough to can. You may use vinegar if you don't have lemon juice or citric acid. 2T per pint or 4 T per quart.
Q: Does the steam have to visible while you are exhausting your canner?
Q: "I'm looking for locally grown Tilapia fish. Can you help me locate any?"
A: Our country director directed us to a business in Flanagan IL... AquaRanch.com
Q: I have a recipe I've used before for Eggplant and can't remember whether I need to peel the eggplant or not.
Posted by Robin Bagwell at 5:07 PM | Permalink |
August 7, 2007
Judy's August 2007 Update
The summer months have been much slower paced than during the spring. Without the kids' programs, things have slowed down considerably. I still faithfully visit the BHA seniors, the Western Avenue seniors, and the seniors at BroMenn Adult Day Service. I'm excited that Normal Parks has also added me to their list. We have covered such topics as food safety, cool summer cooking, and serving sizes.
Earlier in the summer, I participated in the Health Fair at BHA. My focus was on how to pack a safe picnic meal for your family. My picnic basket included many items that would not spoil quickly if left out of the cooler. It held such things as crackers, peanut butter, juice boxes, carrots, celery, and fresh fruits.
I enjoyed and benefited from the Outlook and Excel classes and the MyExtension training we had during the last couple months. These classes are always helpful.
School will be starting very soon, so I will be contacting Bent and Ridgeview Schools to see if they are interested in continuing the nutrition education classes we started last year. I expect to get a positive response from both of them.
Posted by Robin Bagwell at 4:17 PM | Permalink |
