Archive for March, 2007

Since my family has lived in the South since I was in the third grade, I consider myself a “southerner.” I have eaten catfish, fried green tomatoes, peach cobbler, etc.

For my husband’s birthday, his mother gave him some products from Gullah Gourmet, a line of foods just for those of us who enjoy some down home cooking. While her husband was out of town, we invited her to have dinner with us. We had a feast: salmon, italian bread, marinated artichoke hearts, kalamata olives and Gullah Gourmet Shrimp and Grits.

We didn’t have any shrimp, so we just made the grits and gravy to go with our salmon. Just let me say that it was delicious! We plan on ordering more just so we can try it with the shrimp.

If you want to try good, authentic southern food, stop by the Gullah Gourmet and help yourself

Okay, this is my son’s first year of school (Pre-K) and I signed up for every school party. I have waited so long to finally be able to bake goodies for his class.

I did heart-shaped, chocolate cupcakes for Valentine’s Day. I wanted to do something that no one else would think of for Easter, so I made Rice Krispie Treats shaped like a bunny. Here is a picture of the final product:

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Instead of using regular Rice Krispies, I decided to use the new Berry brand. I thought they looked rather like Easter. My husband did not like this new flavor, but my son loved them. I made some butter cookies for the party as well, just in case others agreed with my husband.

Well, I had nothing to worry about. In fact, the moms liked the bunnies as much as the kids did. My cookies were very successful too. All in all, it was a wonderful first school Easter party

I never thought I would like cranberries; I thought of them only in the context of the traditional Thanksgiving garnish. But several years ago I had problems with cystitis, a very annoying infection that makes you feel like to have to pee every five minutes. I was told that drinking cranberry juice would help. Guess what: it’s true. In about a week, the infection cleared up.

There are three or four different species of cranberries, based on their geographical location. They grow on low lying shrubs, and the berries start out white, and turn red as they ripen. They are naturally tart, so when used in juices, they are sweetened with other juices to make a cranberry juice cocktail.

According to Wikipedia, there are many health benefits associated with cranberries:

Cranberries are a source of polyphenol antioxidants, chemicals which are known to provide certain health benefits to the cardiovascular system and immune system.

There is some use of cranberry juice by people with spinal paralysis; regular consumption of the juice is supposed to reduce the rate of urinary tract infections. While much of the evidence is equivocal, a number of double-blind clinical trials have been carried out that suggest there actually is an effect: a component of the juice appears to competitively inhibit bacterial attachment to the bladder and urethra allowing the bacteria to be flushed out more easily. Cranberries also act as a prebiotic, promoting the growth of beneficial lactobacillus bacteria while inhibiting the growth of harmful E. coli and listeria.

An autumn 2004 caution from the Committee on Safety of Medicines, the UK agency dealing with drug safety, advised patients taking warfarin not to drink cranberry juice after adverse effects were reported.

Cranberries also contain significant concentrations of benzoic acid, which in combination with Vitamin C forms small amounts of the group 1 carcinogen benzene.

Cranberry juice contains a chemical component, a high molecular weight non-dializable material (NDM), that is able to inhibit and even reverse the formation of plaque by Streptococcus mutan pathogens that cause tooth decay.

Cranberry juice also, supposedly prevents the formation of kidney stones.

Cranberries exhibit a level of tannins, in addition to antioxidants. Tannins have anti-clotting properties, and the amount of dental plaque-causing bacteria in the mouth, thus being a prophylaxis for gingivitis.

Today, cranberries can be found in trail mix, muffins, breads, etc. I have found that dried cranberries are very tasty, and I really enjoy them in trail mix. If you haven’t tried cranberry juice or cranberries period, take the time to try them. You will be surprised.

In another warning from the FDA, MSNBC.com reports that eating raw oysters harvested from Texas may cause you to become ill.

Oyster beds in San Antonio Bay have been shut down since February 24th and will remain so until the FDA’s investigation is complete. Two distributors of these oysters have issued a voluntary recall of all product marked with “Gal 1, 2/2/07” tags.

The investigation was started after 25 people became ill (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and other symptoms) after eating raw Texas oysters at an event in Maryland.