Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/499470
ByKimBoatman FortheMercuryNews Most of us are pretty good about buying vegeta- bles. We walk a little more briskly through the farm- ers market with green bits of this and that poking out of our environmentally correct, reusable shopping bags. We might be munch- ing kettle corn, but we've got big plans for the veg- gies. Then the week passes by. We work late one night and grab leftovers. Taco Tues- day comes and goes. We cook various things, but somehow the vegetables languish in the fridge. And in my house, at least, what comes next is our own little walk of shame. The wilted and forlorn vegetables, the ones we bought with such good intentions, must be tossed in the recycling bar- rel or on the compost heap. A while back, I promised I'd become as good about eating my vegetables as I am about buying them. It's not that I find them dis- tasteful. I love all things green. Mostly, time and ef- fort were the obstacles. I wanted quick, simple prep- arations for those hurried weeknight dinners. Most weeks, I simmer a big pot of soup in the slow cooker. No recipe needed; I just start chopping, add a stock and some seasonings and perhaps some sauteed ground turkey or a couple of chicken thighs. But an egg white frit- tata has become my abso- lute favorite veggie vehicle. I adapted the recipe from a version distributed by the Mushroom Council. The frittata is loaded with vege- tables and topped with goat cheese. It's low-calorie -- I believe the original recipe I saw said the whole skil- let has 500 calories. Yet it tastes satisfying and com- forting. I vary the vegetables, de- pending on what I have on hand. I'm looking forward to spring asparagus in my next frittata. And I over- load my frittata so that it's really more veggie than egg. You may want to adjust pro- portions if you're not quite as crazy about the vegeta- bles. It helps to finely dice the vegetables so they saute quickly, but even with chop- ping, the dish comes to- gether easily. The frittata is best warm, of course, but it can be eaten at room temperature or even from the fridge. I make mine in my trusty antique cast-iron skillet. EggWhiteFrittata Adapted from a recipe by the Mushroom Council Serves 4 1 tablespoon olive oil red onion, finely diced 1 to 1 cups cremini mushrooms, diced 1 zucchini, finely diced 1 red bell pepper, finely diced to cup grape toma- toes, quartered 2 cups packed spinach leaves 2 teaspoons Italian herb mix or 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped into slivers Salt and pepper to taste Red pepper flakes to taste 8 to 10 egg whites, de- pending on volume of veg- gies 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese 1. Heat oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet on me- dium-high heat. Add onion and mushrooms; saute un- til golden. 2. Add zucchini and bell pepper; saute until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add toma- toes and saute 2 to 3 min- utes more. Add spinach and herbs; stir just until spinach wilts. 3. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg whites, salt and pepper. Pour the egg mixture over the veg- etables in the skillet, then add a shake of red pepper flakes. Stir gently to com- bine. Reduce heat to me- dium-low; cook without stirring, until the eggs are set on the bottom, about 5 minutes. 4. Sprinkle cheese over frittata, then place in oven under broiler. Broil until cheese melts and top is set, 2 to 3 minutes. VEGETABLES Using up produce can be as easy as breaking eggs Zucchiniandtomatofrittataisperfectservedhotorcold, and is a great way to use up le over vegetables. By Juan A. Lozano The Associated Press HOUSTON Texas-based Blue Bell Creameries has recalled all of its products after two samples of choc- olate chip cookie dough ice cream tested positive for listeria, a potentially deadly bacteria. Federal health officials say they're now aware of 10 listeria illnesses linked to ice cream and other prod- ucts made by the company over the last five years, in- cluding three deaths. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had previously reported eight illnesses from Kan- sas and Texas, including the three deaths in Kan- sas. The agency said Tues- day that two more ill- nesses have been con- firmed in Oklahoma and Arizona. Those sickened fell ill between January 2010 and January 2015. The recall includes ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet and frozen snacks distributed in 23 states and abroad because the products "have the poten- tial to be contaminated," according to the state- ment. The company "can- not say with certainty" how the bacteria was in- troduced to its facilities, Blue Bell's chief execu- tive Paul Kruse said in a statement. "We're committed to do- ing the 100 percent right thing, and the best way to do that is to take all of our products off the mar- ket until we can be confi- dent that they are all safe," Kruse said. The first recall in the family-owned creamery's 108-year history was is- sued last month after the CDC and state health offi- cials linked ice cream con- taminated with listeria to the three deaths at a Kan- sas hospital. The illness was tracked to a production line in Br- enham, Texas, and later to a second line in Broken Ar- row, Oklahoma. Monday's recall also applies to prod- ucts produced in a Syl- acauga, Ala plant. The new samples of tainted ice cream were dis- covered through a testing program the company ini- tiated after its first recall, according to the state- ment. Monday's recall extends to retail outlets in Ala- bama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Geor- gia, Illinois, Indiana, Kan- sas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ne- vada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennes- see, Texas, Virginia, Wyo- ming and international lo- cations. The manufacturing facility in Oklahoma where operations were suspended earlier this month for sanitizing will remain closed as Blue Bell continues to inves- tigate the source of the bacteria, the statement said. Blue Bell is implement- ing a process to test all of its products before re- leasing them to the mar- ket, with plans to re- sume limited distribu- tion soon. The company said it is also expanding its clean- ing and sanitization sys- tem, beefing up its em- ployee training, expand- ing its swabbing system by 800 percent to include more surfaces and is send- ing daily samples to a mi- crobiology laboratory for testing. Listeria primarily af- fects pregnant women and their newborns, older adults and people with im- mune systems weakened by cancer, cancer treat- ments, or other serious conditions. TOTAL RECALL CDC: 10 listeria illnesses linked to Blue Bell foods By Annie Culp I really like carrot cake. It has to be good car- rot cake, though. It can't be that grocery store cake with the piped on car- rots in sickeningly sweet bright orange frosting that you scrape off to get to the anemic, stingily slathered on cream cheese frosting that covers an unbeliev- ably dry cake. It can't be that. I will turn that down every time. The other day I was talking to a friend about her carrot cake. I know you're thinking, "Who talks about carrot cake?" Well, people talk about their favorite reci- pes with me, and I love it especially when the recipe comes with a fun story. This one has a partic- ularly good story. I asked my friend if I could share it with you and she gra- ciously agreed. It all started on a Wednesday. My friend was invited to her daughter's home for Easter dinner and her daughter asked for the famous carrot cake. "Annie, my carrot cake is so good, so moist, it must weigh 10 pounds!" she exclaimed. My friend told her daughter she'd be happy to make the cake, but she would love it if her daugh- ter came to church with her first. Her daughter, not being a church-goer, was reluctant to say the least. But, knowing that going to church on Eas- ter Sunday was impor- tant to her mother, and, even better, the possibil- ity of an apparently glori- ous cake, she agreed. My friend went to work on the cake, which you can make a day ahead, inci- dentally, and awoke on Sunday morning excited to spend the entire day with her daughter. They walked into church together that morning, and my friend was so happy to be spend- ing it with her daughter. I've always felt that food brings people together, but this story exceeded every- thing I've ever known. I made it myself for a group of friends and it was deli- cious and our lives are for- ever changed because of it. I'm just kidding of course, but it was a really good cake that I know you'll love, too. Peggy's Carrot Cake This cake is guaranteed to wow your guests. It is very moist and chock full of goodness. You can make it a day ahead, but be sure to keep it refrigerated because of the cream cheese frost- ing. INGREDIENTSFORCAKE: Original recipe makes one 9-by-13-inch pan, but you can use two 9-inch round cake pans 2cups all-purpose flour 2teaspoons baking soda 1teaspoon baking powder 1teaspoon salt 2teaspoons ground cin- namon 13/4 quarters cups white sugar 1cup vegetable oil 3eggs, beaten 1teaspoon vanilla extract 2cups shredded carrots 1 cup flaked coconut, sweetened 1cup chopped walnuts 1(8ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained INGREDIENTS FOR FROSTING: This makes quite a bit of frosting, but I would recom- mend using all of it: It's the reason many of us eat carrot cake to begin with. 1(8ounce) package cream cheese 1/2 cup butter (one stick), so ened 2cups confectioner's sugar 1teaspoon vanilla DIRECTIONS: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175degrees C). Grease and flour a 9-by- 13-inch pan or two 9-inch round cake pans. 2. Si together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and add sugar, oil, beaten eggs and vanilla. Mix with wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in carrots, coconut, walnuts and pine- apple. Combine completely. 3. Pour batter into 9-by-13- inch pan or rounds. Bake at 350degrees for about 45 minutes or until cake tests done by pricking center with a toothpick that comes out clean. Don't panic, the center will sink a little. Allow to cool. If using rounds, cool for 15minutes on racks and then gently loosen cake with a table knife to release sides, then remove cake from pans by inverting onto racks to cool completely. Frost sides and top of cake when completely cool. 4. To make the frost- ing: Cream the butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer until smooth. Add the confectioner's sugar and vanilla and beat until creamy. Frosting can be kept several days refriger- ated in a sealed tub. Allow frosting to come up to room temperature before frost- ing cake. 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