Keep food safety in mind as you bake this holiday season. Many people think about the raw eggs in cookies and cake batter. So, they know it is not a good idea to eat raw or undercooked dough. But many do not think about the concerns related to flour and other grain products. (Product labels are in the photo only for product recognition. No endorsement or defamation implied)
Flour recall in 2019
In 2019 there was an outbreak and recall from a major grain provider in the United States. Previous to that, there were cases outside the U.S. but rarely heard of here. Since that outbreak, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has added “say no to raw dough” to their public outreach programs. It is important for people to remember that even though the grains may be highly processed they are not cooked or heated to destroy disease causing bacteria. Many people will make social media posts and suggestions for making their flour safe at home, but these practices have not been proven to successful. These grains grow outdoors in large fields where wildlife roam and birds fly overhead. Some of the wildlife may even feed off the grain before it is harvested.
Cook all foods that contain grains or eggs
Even though the grains are sorted and tested it is impossible to test each grain for safety. That is why it is important to cook all foods that contain grain and all your baked goods with eggs in them. If you have any recipes that call for uncooked grains or eggs, think twice. If you have a recipe for old fashioned mayonnaise (sometimes used as an ingredient in baking), use pasteurized eggs or egg substitutes that have been pasteurized. Typically the biggest concern with raw eggs is salmonella. E-coli is the bacteria that has been found in uncooked grains.
So even though it is not a holiday baked good, think about the overnight oatmeal recipes that add yogurt or milk to raw oats for a quick breakfast. But there are also overnight oatmeal cookie recipes. Oatmeal cookies are generally more nutritious and a good choice, but any time the you add liquid ingredients and allow the grains to sit, they may grow harmful bacteria. (think raw cookie dough kept on the counter during baking or stored in the refrigerator for more than a few hours) If you know you cannot bake the entire batch of dough in the same day, freeze the dough for later.
Check the temperature and doneness
The Home Baking Organization recommends checking the temperature of baked goods. Just like we test the temperature of our holiday meats, here is the chart they recommend for safe temperatures in baked goods. Check out their info graphic on all the things you need to remember when baking, Baking Food Safety . Find the graph with the temperatures for different types of baked goods. For brownies and cookies, many people like them soft and “fudgy” but taking them out of the oven before they are completely baked can be a problem. It is difficult to take the temperature of a cookie. But if you see raw dough when you break a freshly baked cookie, it probably needs more time. Warm chocolate will be soft so be careful when you check for doneness. In the photo below the chocolate is soft but so is the white batter around the chocolate.
Handwashing continues to matter
When you handle raw dough, like rolling into balls before baking or kneading bread dough, wash your hands between steps. Clean and sanitize all areas that may have been in contact with the raw dough. Keep yourself and your family safe by treating baking ingredients with care!
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Comments:
January 7, 2022
Hi Raymond, We planted it in our garden December of 2020 - the temps that December were at 29 in the morning for 5 days and again some in Jan. and the Aster did great! So, I'm assuming it would be fine to plant it now. It bloomed like gangbusters this fall - one grow much more than the others, but all bloomed. Lisa Sanderson
December 31, 2021
great article thanks
December 22, 2021
Can I plant the Aster now in zone 9a or wait till spring?
January 21, 2021
Hi Chuck! I am teaching some classes at The Villages Enrichment Academy- Meet Your Local Wildlife. Hope to see you there or maybe one of our upcoming Hikes. 2/5 and 2/19. If interested on the Hikes, email me dvisshdn@ufl.edu Best, Jim
January 17, 2021
Liked your notes on whistling ducks. We have some in the Bridgeport Lake Sumter neighborhood on Buena Vista. We enjoy their daily flights over our yard nightly. You can hear who they are. Best wishes, have not seen you for while but none of us have really seen anyone for a while.
December 9, 2020
If you use overnight oats, be sure to heat them to steaming before eating them. Technically, it is most safe to cook them before putting them in the refrigerator, but cooked oats get very thick and may need extra liquid.
December 9, 2020
Hi Shirley, Crape myrtles are typically pruned mid-February and then tips and fruits can be removed rather than heading back to one spot. You can always prune dead, diseased and damaged limbs at any time. Thanks for your question! Lisa
December 9, 2020
Hi Steve, I'm not sure there is a magic date of dormancy. Dormancy can be on many plants due to lower temperature or a change in the photoperiod or short day length. Even though crape myrtles may have held onto their leaves perhaps longer than they may have in northern states, they too are going dormant. Many hold onto It's best not to prune them unti mid-February and then only doing small pruning of tips or fruit. Thanks for your question! Lisa
December 9, 2020
Hi Patrick - I believe that this is a duplicate, but if you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me at lsanderson@ufl.edu. Thank you for your questions! Lisa
December 9, 2020
Hi Patrick, This is a great question. Ideally, you don't prune your crape myrtles until mid-February rather than a winter pruning. Often folks think they should have their crape myrtles topped each year, but the February pruning should not be a topping sort of cut, but a cut that may remove smaller selected limbs or fruit if needed. Thanks for your question! Lisa
December 8, 2020
I’m a fan of overnight oats that contain the oats as well as almond milk a bit of cinnamon and berries. I usually just heat it a bit in the microwave about 2 minutes the next morning. Is that enough heat or just stop with the overnight oats?
November 15, 2020
Looking for somebody experienced with crepe myrtle trees cutting them back for winter time
November 15, 2020
Looking for a person experienced in cutting back crepe myrtle trees for winter
October 27, 2020
When is dormant session in Florida? Thank you,
October 25, 2020
Hello. I live in Apopka, FL. I have 2 Crape Myrtle trees in poor shape. When and where on the trees should I prune? I have a photo. Thanks. Shirley Anderson
June 10, 2020
Hi Gary, Thanks for attending! Here is the link to the What is Biting Me Webinar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqi3-0EqR0M If you click the UrbanEnt icon, that is my page and you can view or subscribe to look at other recorded webinars. Here is the link to the IFAS Bookstore with info on snakes http://ifasbooks.ifas.ufl.edu/c-15-natural-resources-and-wildlife.aspx?pagenum=4 Look forward to seeing you in upcoming webinars! Email me at dvisshdn@ufl.edu for any more questions. Thanks! Jim
June 8, 2020
Jim, Thanks for such an informative session about poisonous snakes last Friday! It was my first Zoom experience. Will that session and What's Biting Me? be on YouTube? Also, I did not receive the additional resources in my email (address in field below). And where can I purchase the snake playing cards? Thanks again for a phenomenal presentation!
May 22, 2020
Hi Ron, Eastern Time; Here are upcoming webinars. You can view YouTube webinars at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhmmmlFbJG8&t=3s My channel is UrbanEnt to view more videos May 26 at 1:00 pm Dr. Faith Oi and myself will be presenting on Keeping Bugs and Rats out of your house. Dr. Oi is a world-renowned urban entomologist and the director of UF/IFAS Pest Management University. We will cover rats, cockroaches, ants and simple exclusion techniques. Throughout Florida and the U.S., we are seeing a resurgence of these pests during this time. Is your landscape rat proof? Find out! Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/97733306825 May 29 at 1:00 pm I will be presenting on Common Mammals in the Landscape. I will be going over raccoons, opossums, armadillos, squirrels and more! I will share some interesting facts about some of these critters. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92369361489 June 2 at 11:00 am, Brooke Moffis (UF/IFAS Extension Lake County agent) and I will be presenting on “What’s Biting Me?”. Brooke and I will go over some common biting/stinging insects and arthropods and teach you what to look out for. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92053892707 We look forward to having you. Please log on early. Webinars max out at 100 attendees.
May 22, 2020
Hi Wanda, Hi Barbara, Here are upcoming webinars. You can view YouTube webinars at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhmmmlFbJG8&t=3s My channel is UrbanEnt to view more videos May 26 at 1:00 pm Dr. Faith Oi and myself will be presenting on Keeping Bugs and Rats out of your house. Dr. Oi is a world-renowned urban entomologist and the director of UF/IFAS Pest Management University. We will cover rats, cockroaches, ants and simple exclusion techniques. Throughout Florida and the U.S., we are seeing a resurgence of these pests during this time. Is your landscape rat proof? Find out! Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/97733306825 May 29 at 1:00 pm I will be presenting on Common Mammals in the Landscape. I will be going over raccoons, opossums, armadillos, squirrels and more! I will share some interesting facts about some of these critters. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92369361489 June 2 at 11:00 am, Brooke Moffis (UF/IFAS Extension Lake County agent) and I will be presenting on “What’s Biting Me?”. Brooke and I will go over some common biting/stinging insects and arthropods and teach you what to look out for. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92053892707 We look forward to having you. Please log on early. Webinars max out at 100 attendees.
May 22, 2020
Hi Barbara, Here are upcoming webinars. You can view YouTube webinars at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhmmmlFbJG8&t=3s My channel is UrbanEnt to view more videos May 26 at 1:00 pm Dr. Faith Oi and myself will be presenting on Keeping Bugs and Rats out of your house. Dr. Oi is a world-renowned urban entomologist and the director of UF/IFAS Pest Management University. We will cover rats, cockroaches, ants and simple exclusion techniques. Throughout Florida and the U.S., we are seeing a resurgence of these pests during this time. Is your landscape rat proof? Find out! Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/97733306825 May 29 at 1:00 pm I will be presenting on Common Mammals in the Landscape. I will be going over raccoons, opossums, armadillos, squirrels and more! I will share some interesting facts about some of these critters. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92369361489 June 2 at 11:00 am, Brooke Moffis (UF/IFAS Extension Lake County agent) and I will be presenting on “What’s Biting Me?”. Brooke and I will go over some common biting/stinging insects and arthropods and teach you what to look out for. Zoom Webinar link: https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92053892707 We look forward to having you. Please log on early. Webinars max out at 100 attendees.
May 8, 2020
Is the 1pm time Eastern or Central time? Please specify. Some of us ar on Central time.
May 3, 2020
UF IFAS Sumter County Master Gardeners Chat Conversation Start Jim Davis, I have been watching the zoom webinars by UF on Fridays at 1 p.m. and really wanted to see the one on birds this past Friday but could not connect. You had promoted these on April 6 on the Entomology FB page. I know they changed the zoom meeting account number the Friday before but neither the new or the old meeting number worked. Can you help me? Also is there as way to still watch what I missed on the bird program? Anyone's assistance would be be appreciated! The new zoom meeting number I had was 441950330 The original number was 92836621685
April 29, 2020
good job! thanks
April 17, 2020
Hi Sylvia, Yes, suckers that are coming from the base of a crape myrtle can be removed. Sometimes they may come up due to topping the crape myrtle in the fall, and some varieties that are shrub-like tend to try to return to their previous growth habit.
April 15, 2020
Did you record these Zoom events? Are they posted on Youtube?
April 9, 2020
I too am new to the area and was told by my neighbor that the huge tree in the yard is a white crape myrtle. There are many thin branches coming up from the base. Are they considered to be suckers -and should they be removed? Thank you
March 11, 2020
I have a small crepe Myrtle tree and all the tiny branches look dead. It has dead looking berries on the top also. Should I cut that off? It’s here in California months of early March.
November 30, 2019
Hi Gail, You can prune dead, diseased or crossing limbs at any time, but its best to do pruning during the dormant season. You may notice some people have their crape myrtles topped which is an undesirable method of pruning. It can result in excessive sprouts from the base and a plant that takes longer to flower. Topping results in many sprouts emerging out of the cut limbs. Often crape myrtles don't need any pruning but you can remove the seed clusters. Crape myrtles may flower from perhaps late spring/early summer to late summer depending on the cultivar. They will not flower again until next year, and the leaves should drop so the structure of the crape myrtle should be more apparent. Let me know if you have any other questions!
November 28, 2019
We’re new to FL and crepe Myrtle trees. Do I prune heavy branches where it appears little flowers or berries are brown. They look dried up. How far back do you prune? Thank you
November 10, 2018
Hi Linda, Try http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/managed/gopher-tortoise/rules-and-regulations/ Best, Jim
October 31, 2018
Hi Jim...we have a home at 17743 Lake Lucy Lane in Groveland Florida. The land above us has been sold for development of 500 to 700 homes. There are dozens maybe a hundred gopher tortoises on that property that will be bulldozed under unless someone steps in. There are also pileated woodpeckers and our octagenerian neighbor now deceased told us a small Indian burial ground is located by a pecan grove next to the Lake. I just need some contacts and I thank you for your affection for beautiful gopher tortoises. Keep up the good work. Linda Phipps 561 289 3478 master gardener.
September 19, 2018
Hi Joyce, I would contact FWC http://myfwc.com/ to see what you can do with the collapse burrow. With the female, I would let nature take its course. Hopefully, the little ones will do ok. Best, Jim Davis dvisshdn@ufl.edu
September 16, 2018
What do I do if the gopher tortoise’s burrough has caused my ground to collapse? I had three small gardens and with the rain, and the burrough directly below, it has caused my grass and ground to collapse...also I had a female lay eggs that should be hatching in the next few weeks. Is there anything I need to do for the little ones?
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