food – Page 3 – McLean County Ag in the Classroom

The Friday Five: Bacon & Eggs & Breakfast

September 4, 2015 Anna Ziegler Leave a comment

Bacon lovers rejoice! The object of your meat affection could be about to get even better. If you want a side of eggs with your bacon, however; it might cost you a little bit more – at least for the time being.

Here’s look at those stories plus a few other breakfast related tidbits fresh picked for this week’s Friday Five:

What’s shakin’ bacon? Researchers at Kansas State University are looking at ways to improve the bacon flavor we love to savor and improve the shelf life of this marvelous meat treat, as reported by Feedstuffs newspaper. By the way, tomorrow is International Bacon Day. So fry up a few strips to celebrate!
Are you scrambling to adjust your breakfast menu since eggs are more expensive? It’s the lingering effects of a deadly flu virus that devastated a large number of chickens (don’t worry it’s not a virus that humans can get). But you may be dishing out more per dozen for awhile, especially after the big breakfast announcement that hit the news this week, as CBS News reports.
Like cheddar cheese on your eggs? Find out what makes cheddar cheese orange in this post from a Michigan dairy farmer on the Food Dialogues website.
How about some fruit salad on the side? Be sure to thank plant breeders for your selection, as today’s fruit varieties are thanks to their efforts over hundreds of years. Check out this fun quiz to test your skills at matching modern fruits (and a few vegetables) with their plant ancestors.
Like milk on your cereal? Share the love. For every share of this ‘Strength in Numbers’ image on with #milkdrive during the month of September the Great American Milk Drive will donate one gallon of milk to Feeding America food banks. Click here to share on Facebook or Twitter.

What’s your favorite breakfast food?

The Friday Five: A Better Look at Beef

August 28, 2015 Anna Ziegler Leave a comment

Did you know that yesterday (Aug. 27) was #NationalBurgerDay? Thank you, social media for the heads up.

Coincidentally, there’s also a headline grabbing story floating around this week about the safety of ground beef. Let’s take a better look:

From Food Insights, here’s a few facts and myths to explore about the safety of ground beef. Bottom line: bacteria doesn’t care where your beef came from – wash your hands & cook it to the right temperature (160 degrees)!
For another perspective, check out this article from High Plains Journal. The good news: almost all of the bacteria found in the “study” was not the kind that cause serious foodbourne illnesses
Reading past the headlines is important, especially when it comes to blurbs about scientific studies, as pointed out in this LA Times article.
And here’s an article from Business Insider that looks at some potential problems with the ground beef safety “study”.
For some tips on ways to safely store, handle, thaw & cook beef check here.

What’s your favorite way to eat a hamburger?

What’s Cooking Wednesday: Zucchini Stacks

August 26, 2015 Anna Ziegler Leave a comment

Layers of veggies in a tasty cheese sauce make this a perfect late summer side dish to pair with pretty much anything. And as a bonus it’s super easy to make!

This is a recipe I grew up eating with veggies fresh from our home garden. My mom always called this ‘Zucchini Side Dish’ but I decided to label it ‘Zucchini Stacks’ because I think it’s a little better description what your dish will look like.

Zucchini Stacks

Ingredients:

1 medium green zucchini, sliced in thin rounds (about 1/4″ thick)
1 medium yellow onion, sliced in thin rounds (about 1/4″ thick)
2 medium ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, sliced in rings
2 Tbsp. all purpose flour
About 9 slices of American or mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. basil

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly grease a 8 x 8 glass baking dish.
Fill the bottom with zucchini slices (use the bigger slices for the bottom). Usually about 9 slices, but it depends on the size of your zucchini.
Add an onion slice, then a tomato slice and then a green pepper ring on top of each zucchini slice.
Sprinkle with garlic, basil & flour.
Place 1/2 a slice of cheese on each stack.
Add a second layer of veggies: zucchini, onion, tomato, pepper & then a second 1/2 slice of cheese.
Bake for about 20 minutes until veggies are fork tender and cheese is golden brown.
Serve your stacks & enjoy!

As it cooks, the juices from the vegetables combine with the flour, spices and melted cheese to make the tasty sauce.

What main dish will you pair it with?