Ode to Vitamin D

It is that time of year again.  School is back in session.  The kids are swapping germs and bringing their new bugs home to their moms and dads who take them to work to swap with their colleagues who then take them home to their kids.  The virus mutates somewhere along the way and the whole cycle starts over. 

 

Ever since I moved north from Texas in 1999, I have managed to contract at least one upper respiratory virus every winter.  It was usually something that robbed me of my voice, had me carrying around a box of Kleenex everywhere I went, left me popping Sudafed and expectorant every 4 hours, and turned me into a cough drop addict.  Most of the time it would take me 3 or 4 weeks to kick these illnesses completely.  Herbal teas and homeopathic remedies provided some relief but nothing terribly lasting.  Extra Vitamin C, echinacea, and zinc kept things from stretching into 5 or 6 weeks.  In the end, I was left to stoically accept that viruses in the Midwest were different than those in Texas and to hope that my immune system would eventually develop a resistance.



Then, in Fall 2009, my cousin mentioned a new study(1) that she had read about Vitamin D deficiency contributing to illnesses, in particular upper respiratory illnesses.  I looked up the study and did some quick research on Vitamin D dosages (and over dosages) and then bought a bottle of Vitamin D supplements.  I started taking an an extra 1000 IUs per day.  For the first time in 10 years the worst I came down with was a case of sniffles and a slight sore throat which lasted all of 24 hours.  I am definitely a believer. 



Now, following my youngest son's nasty and rather frightening, bout with pneumonia last May, I've started my kids on some children's chewable Vitamin D tablets, just an extra 500 IUs per day.  We have managed to get 3 weeks into this school year and the worst they've had so far has been cough and sniffles that lasted about 3 days.  During the past couple of school years, my oldest son has, within the first week of classes, come down with an upper respiratory virus that has last for a minimum of 10 days.  Now I see the other kids in his class coughing and sniffling and I am feeling pretty good that he is not, at least not yet.

What is Vitamin D and from where does it come?

Vitamin D is actually a group of fat-soluble secosteroids.  The two most important of these are Vitamin D2 (aka ergocalciferol) and Vitamin D3 (aka cholecalciferol).(2)  Nutritionally, it is found in relatively small number of foods.  These are fatty fish (e.g. catfish, salmon, mackerel, sardines, tuna, and eel), eggs, beef liver, fish liver oils (e.g., cod liver oil), and mushrooms.   In fact, mushrooms are the only vegan dietary source of Vitamin D.(3)  The label of my Vitamin D supplement does not specify the source but neither does it stipulate that it's source is vegan.  So if you are vegan, I hope you like mushrooms, lots of mushrooms. In some countries, including the USA, some foods such as milk, breakfast cereals, orange juice, flour, margarine, and butter are fortified with Vitamin D.



In vertebrates, Vitamin D is produced in the skin after exposure to ultraviolet-B (UVB) light, either artificial or from the sun.  Peak synthesis occurs when sunlight is at a UV index greater than 3, which occurs daily in the tropics, daily during the spring and summer months  in temperate regions, and almost never in the arctic circles.(4)  Not all outdoor sunlight exposure is equal.  Overcast skies, shade, and air pollution can block UVB rays by as much as 60%.  UVB radiation does not penetrate glass, so sitting indoors in a sunny window does not produce Vitamin D.  Sunscreens with a sun protection factor of 8 or more also block UVB rays, although practically speaking people generally do not apply sufficient amounts or cover all sun-exposed skin, so it is likely that some Vitamin D production will occur anyway.  Clothing also blocks UVB rays.(5) 

Before we all jump the gun and go get a membership at a tanning salon or start visiting the nearest nudist beach, you should consider that some researchers suggest that 30 minutes of sun exposure to the face, arms, legs, or back without sunscreen from late morning to mid-afternoon at least twice a week is enough to provide to sufficient vitamin D synthesis.(6)  Of course this is a generality.  Dark skinned people need longer exposure times than fair skinned people, obese people need more Vitamin D than skinny people,(7) and everyone's body operates uniquely.  Personally, I prefer not to chance the skin cancer.  I use SPF 30+ sunblock, wear hats, and avoid the intense sun during the heat of the day.



How does the body use Vitamin D?

The Vitamin D obtained from sun exposure or diet is biologically inert and must undergo two changes before it is used by the body.  First it is carried in the bloodstream to the liver, where it is converted into a prohormone, calcidiol. The second change takes place in both the kidneys and in the immune system where the circulating calcidiol is converted into calcitriol, the biologically active form of Vitamin D.(8) 



Vitamin D3 aka Cholecalciferol



Vitamin D is essential for to bone strength.  It promotes calcium absorption in the digestive tract and helps maintain adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations enabling normal mineralization of bone and preventing hypocalcemic tetany.  It is also needed for bone growth and maintenance.  Without sufficient vitamin D, bones can become thin, brittle, or misshapen, symptoms of rickets, osteomalacia, and osteoporosis.(9)

Vitamin D also plays a significant role in neuromuscular and immune function and reduction of inflammation. It also plays a role in regulating cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis, all of which are important in fighting and preventing cancers.(10)  In the immune system, calcitriol behaves as a cytokine and helps defend the body against microbial invaders.(11)

What are safe doses of Vitamin D?

First know this, I am not a doctor or a pharmacist.  You should talk to yours before you go start or change dosage of any supplements.  This is doubly important if you are on any medication, pregnant, nursing, or undergoing medical treatment for anything.  The only thing I will do is point you to some websites that discuss dosage and talk about why I decided on my own dosage.

 

First, as I mentioned earlier, Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin which means that it is stored in the body differently and is easier to over-dose with than a water soluble vitamin, like Vitamin C.  Vitamin D overdose causes hypercalcemia.  Thus, the main symptoms of Vitamin D overdose are those of hypercalcemia.  These include anorexia, nausea, vomiting, polyuria, polydipsia, weakness, nervousness, pruritus, kidney damage, and renal failure.(12) 

A sustained intake of 50,000 IUs can produces toxicity after several months.  However, there can be medical conditions that can make an individuals more sensitive to Vitamin D; thus my cautionary statements.  The U.S. Dietary Reference Intake Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL or maximum amount that can be tolerated without harm) for infants (birth to 12 months) is 1,000 IUs per day. The UL for children and adults is 2,000 IUs per day.(13)  However, some newer studies indicate that a UL of 10,000 IUs is more appropriate.(14)  These UL numbers are total intake values, dietary, sunlight exposure, and supplemental. 



The Food and Nutrition Board at The National Academies' Institute of Medicine established the Adequate Intake levels (AIs) for Vitamin D based on age alone assuming no exposure to sunlight.  They are 200 IUs for ages birth to 50 years,  400 IUs for 51–70 years, and 600 IUs for 71+ years.(15)  However in 2008, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended a higher minimum intake of 400 IUs for infants.(16)

In March 2007, a group of vitamin D and nutrition researchers published a controversial and provocative editorial contending that Vitamin D intakes of 400 IUs per day were insufficient to maintain serum Vitamin D levels at optimal levels in healthy adults and that daily intakes of 1,700 IUs should be recommended.(17)  Just as reference, typical diets in the United States provide about 100 IUs per day.(18)

Based on these recommendations and the data presented in the new studies, I have chosen to take an additional 1,000 IUs per day.  This is over and above anything I eat, the 800 IUs in my daily multi-vitamin, and anything I receive via sunlight exposure.  The way I see it, I am most likely getting about 2,000 IUs per day, which is the UL.



With my kids, I am, of course, more cautious.  A smaller intake for smaller people.  I calculate that they are receiving 1,000 IUs per day across diet, multivitamin, Vitamin D supplement, and sun exposure.  This is half the UL for their age group.  Add to that the fact that I cannot always get them to eat the vitamins each day, I am not worried in the least.  I am however, very happy having healthy children when everyone else around them is hacking up a lung. 

I am sure that  we'll all come down with some kind of virus that knocks us on our butts.  It's unavoidable.  However, if the extra Vitamin D makes it easier for our immune systems to handle what we might contract, then it's doing its job.  My goal, to keep my kids and myself out of the hospital due to pneumonia or anything else that tries to take up residence in our chests and have fewer illnesses overall. 

Footnotes

(1) Archives of Internal Medicine. "Association Between Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Level and Upper Respiratory Tract Infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey." Adit A. Ginde, MD, MPH; Jonathan M. Mansbach, MD; Carlos A. Camargo Jr, MD, DrPH. (2009) 169(4):384-390. (http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/169/4/384)

(2) Institute of Medicine.  Dietary Reference Intakes for Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Vitamin D, and Fluoride.  (1997) (http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309063507&page=250)

(3) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D.  (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(4) The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. "Environmental factors that influence the cutaneous production of vitamin D." MF Holick. (March 1995) 61 (3 Suppl): 638S–645S. (http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/61/3/638S)

(5) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D.  (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(6) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(7) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(8) Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.  "Update in Vitamin D."  J.S. Adams; M. Hewison (Feb 2010) 95 (2): 471–8. (http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/95/2/471)

(9) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(10) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)





(11) Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. "Update in Vitamin D." J.S. Adams; M. Hewison (Feb 2010) 95 (2): 471–8. (http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/95/2/471)  

(12) Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, Professional Edition.  "Vitamin D."  Larry E. Johnson, MD, PhD, editor.  (April 2007) (http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec01/ch004/ch004k.html#sec01-ch004-ch004k-BABBBEAE)
 
(13) Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, Professional Edition. "Vitamin D." Larry E. Johnson, MD, PhD, editor. (April 2007) (http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec01/ch004/ch004k.html#sec01-ch004-ch004k-BABBBEAE)
 
(14) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)
 
(15) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)
 
(16) Pediatrics. "Prevention of rickets and vitamin D deficiency in infants, children, and adolescents."  C. L. Wagner; F. R. Greer.  (January 2009) 123(1):197. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18977996?dopt=Abstract)

(17) National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D. (http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)

(18) Institute of Medicine. Dietary Reference Intakes for Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Vitamin D, and Fluoride.  (1997) (http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=0309063507&page=250)

Cost Analysis: Hunted Venison Vs Store Bought Beef

My cousin posted the following to my FaceBook wall the other day.

“Neal wants a full cost per pound of hunting venison analysis. He swears it’s more expensive than buying in the store. Please post on my page so he can see it.”

After an initial chuckle, I decided that this was a good exercise. Not only does it appeal to the engineer in me, but it’s a handy thing of which to keep track. I have always believed that overall the cost of hunting venison was, worst case, comparable to purchasing beef; and I suspected that it was most likely less. However, I have never sat down and worked up a comparison.  My response is way too long and detailed to post directly on my cousin’s FaceBook wall, and to be honest, this is really good blog fodder. I am not sure what Neal is expecting to see, but I doubt this is it.

Background
I am pro-hunting. When I was a kid, I remember Daddy and Mom stringing up the deer he had hunted from the grapevine trellis off the back deck and doing their own butchering. No meat went to waste and I seem to recall most of the bones ending up in the stew pot to make broth, which Mom froze for later use as soup stock. We ate a lot of rabbit when I was a kid too. Mom has an incredible BBQ Rabbit recipe.

Fast forward to today, my hubby and father-in-law hunt. It consumes their fall and early winter free-time. Everything is planned around it. It’s something they enjoy doing together and it’s great recreation. I have always encouraged Hubby to hunt because he enjoys it so much and because I believe that this kind of father/son time is priceless, regardless of age. At some point in the future, when my kids are old enough, I hope that my hubby and father-in-law will teach them to hunt as well for the same reasons.

The wild game we harvest never goes to waste. Our freezer is not just filled with venison, but also pheasant, duck, and goose. Because Hubby keeps us supplied with wild game, I really don’t buy much in the way of meat from the store, just the occasional pound of bacon or picnic ham to satisfy a pork craving and fish. If a recipe calls for beef, I substitute venison or, sometimes, goose. If it calls for chicken, I use pheasant. For this reason, I classify the expenses associated with Hubby’s hunting under ‘Groceries’ instead of ‘Recreation’ in our family budget.

Other Considerations
There are numerous benefits to eating wild game. It’s not treated with synthetic hormones, questionable antibiotics, nitrates/nitrites, questionable preservatives, or artificial ‘flavor enhancers’. This appeals to me from an organic living standpoint. Nutritionally, it’s very hard to compete with venison and most wild game in general. Per several studies referenced in the September 2000 Deer & Deer Hunting article, "How Healthy is Venison?” (read a reprinted copy here), a 3½ ounce portion of lean ground beef has 31% more calories, 189% more fat, and 118% more cholesterol than an equal portion of venison. Venison also wins hands down in a vitamin and minerals comparison. You don’t have to take my word for it, go the USDA National Nutrient Database and check out the comparisons for yourself. From a health care cost point of view good nutrition has significant monetary value; however, for purposes of this analysis, I have not attempted to quantify it.

Hunting also has advantages in controlling the deer population. We live in Iowa where the food supply for deer is virtually limitless. Because they have so much to eat, the average whitetail doe has two, sometimes three, fawns per year here. Humans have destroyed the natural predator populations and taken over huge acreages of habitat. Without hunting, the only things to keep deer populations in check are Lyme disease, chronic wasting disease, and deer/vehicle collisions; all of these being excruciating ways to die. I shudder to think how the deer population would explode if hunting were not allowed. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) makes deer population and harvest numbers publicly available for anyone who is interested. I am not going to spend a lot of time on the importance that harvesting deer plays in terms of public safety and preventing property damage.  These benefits have tangible monetary value; but, I am not considering them for purposes of this article. Perhaps, I’ll do a follow-up article at a later date.

I think it's worthwhile to mention that all of the revenue generated by hunting license fees in Iowa goes into a constitutionally protected Fish and Wildlife Trust Fund.  This fund is pays for the majority of the IDNR's fish and wildlife management activities including restoration of native habitat, planting food plots, managing wetlands, acquiring additional land for hunting and fishing, paying for lake improvements and access, and law enforcement activities.  Thus, these functions are not paid for with tax payer dollars.

I also think that Iowa's Help Us Stop Hunger (HUSH) program is worth mentioning.  It is cooperative effort among deer hunters, the Food Bank of Iowa, meat lockers, and the IDNR.  It functions to control the deer population while providing red meat to the needy.  The program is funded by a $1 surcharge included in the cost of the deer license.  A hunter can donate any legally taken deer of any sex from any season by dropping it off at a participating meat locker, where it is processed, and then transported to the Iowa Food Bank for distribution.  During the 2009 alone, more than 7,075 deer were donated to HUSH, generating 1.2 million meals to Iowa's less fortunate. 

Harvested Meat Yield
According to IDNR, the typical Iowa whitetail buck ranges between 240 and 265 pounds on the hoof. The typical doe ranges between 140 and 160 pounds. For purposes of this analysis, I used an average buck live weight of 252.5 pounds and an average doe live weight of 150 pounds. The method for estimating realistic meat yield based on live weight is outlined on the Butcher & Packer website. This method condenses down into a single equation: Realistic Meat Yield = 0.2753*Live Weight. Thus, each buck yields 69.5 lbs meat and each doe 41.3 pounds of meat on average. Hubby routinely harvests three deer each year, one buck and two does for an average total of 152.1 lbs of meat, in an assortment cuts.

Capital Investment in Equipment
Most hunters invest in a certain minimum amount of equipment. While it is possible for the occasional hunter to borrow some of this equipment, anyone who hunts routinely should really get his own. Because we live in Iowa, deer season is cold, often with snow on the ground; thus, I have included a good pair of boots and winter wear in this list. My hubby uses this gear for snow blowing the driveway, sledding with the kids, and working outside when it’s cold. So really, this was an investment we would have made regardless; however, for the sake of conservatism, I have included it in the cost of venison. The table below provides an itemized capital equipment list, cost of new equipment, life expectancy, salvage value (if any), and annual straight-line depreciated cost.

Just as a side note for those unfamiliar with deer hunting regulations in Iowa, rifles are not permitted except occasionally during a limited season in one or two of the southern counties. Hunters here use shotguns fitted with slug barrels. There is also a bow season. However, Hubby doesn’t bow hunt so I did not figure those costs into this analysis. Handy capital items not included, because we would own them regardless, are a chest freezer and a pick-up truck.

Please note that the annualized cost of the shot gun shown here is an overestimate for anyone who uses that weapon to hunt anything in addition to deer (e.g. pheasant, goose, duck, and turkey). You would have to account for the total pounds of meat hunted with the gun to make the adjustment. So realistically, for us, the final cost per pound of venison number generated here is a bit high.

Annual Expenses

The annual expenses associated with deer hunting in Iowa are itemized in the following table.

We have our deer butchered and processed at Ruzicka’s, a meat locker in nearby Solon, Iowa. However, you could save the majority of your annual operating expenses by doing the butchering yourself, as my parents did when I was a kid.

Cost Comparison: Our Hunted Venison to Store Bought Beef
Thus, the total annual expense of hunting venison in Iowa is $428.08 with a 152.1 pound meat yield which comes to $2.81 per pound venison, regardless of cut (i.e., everything including steaks, roasts, chops, tenderloin, and ground).

So how does this compare to the current price of beef in the store? (For the sake of argument, I am going to ignore how government subsidies and price supports create an artificially low price for beef.)  The most realistic comparison would be with organic grass-fed beef, which brings a premium in most stores. However, not surprising to me, our hunted venison also bests the prices for the cheaper commercially raised and processed beef as well. I compared prices from three different sources – the USDA Economic Research Service, Hy-Vee (an Iowa based grocery chain), and New Pioneer Coop (our local whole foods store).

Hands down the best nutrition for the best price is our hunted venison. My hubby does a great job bringing home the groceries!

Fast & Easy Fry Bread Donuts

I picked up a Cool Daddy Fryer several weeks ago and have been experimenting with different recipes.  I know fried foods are among the root of dietary evils, especially for anyone trying to lose weight; but I have children now.  Mommies have to be able to make homemade french fries on occasion.  In addition, I have a extremely fond memories of my mom's homemade donuts and banana fritters and I would love for my boys to have similar memories. 

So upon being roused from bed at 6AM this fine Sunday morning by my energetic 3-year old, I decided to surf the Internet for a fast donut recipe, something that did not require 3 hours of rising time.  After a quick Google search, I found "Donut Recipe #2: Fast and Easy Donuts" on Squidoo.com.  I had not seen a donut batter recipe devoid of sugar before.  In fact, this is really more of a fry bread recipe (check out "Cookin' with Three Sisters" for some traditional fry bread recipes).   But as far as breakfast fare goes, I find the lack of sugar to be a big plus rather than a negative. 

This makes a little bit denser, more bread-like donut than what traditional donut recipes. I enjoyed them and, more importantly, my kids and hubby liked them. 

Of course, I have already tinkered with the recipe linked above because it is in my nature to do so and will most likely continue to make small adjustments which I will note here in the future.

Note:  I use canola oil in my deep fryer out of deference to our HDL/LDL ratios. 

----------------------------------------------------

Fast & Easy Fry Bread Donuts

6 eggs

6 tbsp Oil

2 cup milk

2 tbsp ground flax seed meal

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

8 tsp baking powder

7 cup flour

toppings - confectioner's sugar and/or cinnamon & sugar and/or honey

1) Using an electric mixer with a dough hook, combine the liquids and stir until well blended.  Add dry ingredients a little at a time mixing at low speed.  Stop the mixer and scrap the sides of the bowl to ensure good mixing.  Then mix at medium speed for 1 minute.

2) You may drop spoonfuls into hot oil and deep fry.

OR
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board.  Use just enough flour to prevent sticking.  Roll out 1/2 inch thick and cut into shapes.  The less you work the dough the better.

3) Deep fry (375F oil at least) until golden. Roll them in confectioner's sugar or cinnamon sugar mixture when cooked, if desired.  Also good drizzled with honey.

Home Canning - Corn!

'Tis the season in Iowa, sweet corn season that is. While I am not a huge fan of corn or corn products (e.g. corn syrup, corn sweetners, etc.), I do find the occasional ear of sweet corn satisifying. In July and August every year, we are inundated with sweet corn. The grocery stores start having 5 ears/$1 or better sales; road side stands go up all over the place; and, farmers sell the stuff from their homes via child-made signs at the main blacktop which point down gravel county roads. This is the time of year when my mother-in-law calls and says, "Cousin Jim's corn is ready. How many dozen you want?" Two weeks later she calls again saying, "The Tomash's corn is ready. How many dozen you want?" We've lived in Iowa for 7 years now and I have never met any member of the Tomash family but I can tell you that they have green thumbs for growing excellent sweet corn because it is perfection every year.

In the past, I have always been cautious with how many I buy at one time. My fridge gets pretty crowded and I just don't have the space for more than 1 dozen ears. I have always thought how nice it would be to have Cousin Jim's or the Tomash's corn in the winter as well. Last year I tried blanching and freezing some, which works fine but the process takes up a lot of freezer space, which is a premium commodity for us. So this year I decided to can it.

I received a pressure canner for Christmas last year but I had not had occassion to use it until now. I got 3 dozen ears from the Tomash's this year and canned it - 11 pints. I have never pressure canned before. Like my mom, I have only water bath canned; but you can't do that safely with low-acid foods, i.e., most vegetables. For low-acid foods, a pressure canner is necessary to get things hot enough to destroy the nasty microorganisms that would otherwise thrive. Mom always blanched and froze her garden veggies. I remember her saying she was too leery of botulism to try pressure canning; but then she never had a freezer that was packed full with hubby hunted meat, fowl, and fish, so processing and storage space in the freezer was never a big issue for her.

I elected to can the corn cream style. My theory behind this decision being that cream style preparation harvests more corn off each ear than simply cutting it, so you get more serving for the same number of ears. I am all for maximizing production. So following the directions in the Ball Blue Book of Preserving and using a Lee Corn Cutter Tool, I set to work. It took about 5 hours start to finish.

Here is the nutshell version of the process. First scrape/cut/milk the the corn off the cob using the corn cutter. Be careful of your hand placement as the scraper and shedders are hard on the fingers and knuckles. Capture everything in a large bowl. Be sure to hold your off-hand behind the cutter as a back stop to the juices that shoot out, so that they drip down into the capture bowl instead of coating the kitchen wall. Add 1/2 tsp salt and 1 1/4 cups boiling water for every pint of corn. Bring to boil for 3 minutes and then ladle into prepared/sanitized hot pint jars, leaving 1-inch head space. Cap and then process for 85 minutes at 10 pounds pressure in a pressure canner. Be sure to follow the manufacturer's directions for using your pressure canner.

Being a chemical engineer, I am very leery of heating a closed system, even one with a pressure gauge and and relief valve. So, I banned the kids out of the kitchen kept an eagle eye on the pressure gauge. Everythng worked out of course but you never know. Anyway, I am up for round two; some time this week, I'll be picking up another 4 dozen ears from a road side stand and try canning them as cut corn.

Fruit Salad

I thought that I had posted this recipe already but evidently I was wrong; so here it is.

I picked this recipe up in a snail mail recipe swap several years ago from a friend of a friend whose name I don't know. The recipe is simply titled "Fruit Salad from McGraw-Hill". Beyond this, I have no idea which McGraw-Hill book this might be from or who came up with the recipe. What I do know is that this recipe makes a huge salad. Even a half recipe is plenty to take to a potluck. I also know that this salad gets rave reviews at every potluck to which I have taken it and people constantly ask me for the recipe. So I thought I might post it here to save time and effort in sharing.

I would love to know from which cookbook this recipe originated. If anyone out there has such information, please let me know ASAP so I can edit this post to more thoroughly credit the author/editor/publisher.

Note this is the full recipe, as I received it. I always make a half recipe. I also do a lot of substituting. I have never made this salad the same way twice.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Fruit Salad from McGraw-Hill

2 cans peach pie filling
4 to 5 bananas, sliced
3 large cans Mandarin oranges, drained
3 large cans chunk pineapple, drained
1 bunch seedless red grapes, halved
2 bags frozen strawberries, quartered
2 boxes sugar-free strawberry jello, not diluted

Cut frozen strawberries into bowl. Mix in peach pie filling. Wash, slice grapes, and add. Mix in drained oranges and pineapple. Sprinkle both boxes of jello over the fruit mixture and stir until uniform. Add sliced bananas right before serving.

Best if refrigerated over night.
Will last 1 week in the fridge.
May use cherry pie filling, or 1 can cherry pie filling and 1 can peach pie filling.

Blogger's note: I like using 1 can cherry pie filling and 1 can sliced peaches, drained when I make a half recipe.

Tuna Burgers

I am always looking for a way to get my hubby to eat fish without making that face he makes or mumbling things like, "now that I am 40 I don't get to eat good food any more, only things that are good for me." The man likes fishing but not eating fish-go figure. So as I quest to find a way to fix the beautiful, hubby-caught Northern Pike that perpetually graces our family freezer, I try to mix it up with the few fish recipes that I know he likes. These involve tuna and his favorite by far is Tuna Burger.

The tuna burger recipe I started with is not the recipe that I make today. The original recipe, "Tangy Tuna Burgers", is found on page 125 of Where's Dad Now That I Need Him? by B.R. Frandsen, K.J. Frandsen, and K.P. Frandsen. However, over the years, I have modified this recipe enough that the version I make is uniquely mine.

These are good on or off a hamburger bun, with catsup, and with mustard. We like them garnished like a hamburger with lettuce, tomato, pickle and cheese. I would not say that this is a healthy recipe due to the fat content per serving, but it is certainly tasty.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mama Hynek's Tuna Burgers

2 - 4.5 oz. cans of water packed tuna, drained
2 eggs
2 celery stalks, diced small
1/4 cup onion, minced
1/3 cup dill relish
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 tubes of Ritz crackers, crushed into fine crumbs

Stir until mixture is uniform. Form into patties and fry in a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat until each side is brown. Serve and garnish as you would a hamburger. Makes six patties.