'Tis The Season For...Egg Nog!

As I begin to write this blog about food safety and what you can do to keep your loved ones safe and healthy over the holiday season; I can’t help but think about those individuals all along the East Coast that are still digging their way out from the wrath of “Superstorm” Sandy.  How are they celebrating the season?  Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers; they’re going to need all of the support they can get over the coming days, weeks, even months while they acclimate to a new normal.

I love the holiday season.  From Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day...food, food, food and more food!  And, I LOVE food…meat, vegetables, fruit, cookies, desserts and don’t forget the drinks!  One of my favorites, EGGNOG…

Grandma’s Eggnog recipe most likely needs a Safety Update (and, before you say it – NO alcohol does NOT kill the bacteria).  I love my Nanny’s eggnog, what do I do?!  Pasteurized shelled eggs are an option, if you have access to them.  If not you’ll need to go another route.

The key is to heat the eggs to 160°F in order to kill the bacteria.

Ahhhh, but the savvy egg-eater would state that this would make a runny egg an omelet; and, they would be correct.  However, simple alterations to the recipe can correct this issue.  Eggs harden when their proteins coagulate, so in order for them to stay runny, their proteins must remain separate.  This can be achieved by diluting the egg with something like milk or sugar.

The magic number is two tablespoons of sugar per white.  If yolks and whites are being cooked together the American Egg board recommends ¼ cup of liquid or sugar per egg.  This mixture can then be heated to 160°F and it will not harden. 

Following this recommendation will not only keep your eggnog safe, but you can refer to it for other recipes containing raw eggs as well.  No need to change the recipes, just combine the ingredients in a different order.

Now, let’s talk about another source of Salmonella.  As I mentioned before I LOVE food, anything sweet is my weakness (my dentist is cringing right now).

Eggs are the unexciting ingredient that goes into many of these cookies, cakes, and other sweet treats.    Eggs are often added quickly then we move on to something more exciting…Chocolate chips! 

When you purchase your eggs commercially there are regulations in place, so you can expect the exterior of the egg and the carton to have met certain standards.   However, Salmonella can live inside the shell.  This means you need to be careful.

I’m not going to tell you to not eat raw cookie dough or you will never read anything else I write.  What I am going to say is, do it at your own risk.  None of you want to spend the holiday cuddled up to the toilet on the bathroom floor.  Barf Humbug! 

Enjoy the season and everything it has to offer – SAFELY!

Who Am I?

Who Am I?

I am a 50 year old woman, married to a wonderful man; I have two terrific children, both adults one son (engaged to an amazing young lady) and one daughter; and, the funniest, most beautiful granddaughter in the world (yes, I'm biased). 

I have over 30 years of food service industry experience, from the ground up - literally.  During that time there isn't much I didn't see or experience first hand.  I've "jumped down" the trash in dumpsters, cleaned a milkshake machine that had cockroaches floating in the mix (restaurant now closed), put out more than one grease fire (at work and at home), and conducted an audit in a facility that had cockroaches falling from the ceiling (no I'm not exaggerating)...

I've had arguments with owners, operators, and chefs pertaining to the safety of the food that they had stored in their walk-in coolers (rice in a cabro pan at 70 degrees Fahrenheit is NEVER a good thing; nor are chicken wings at 57 degrees Fahrenheit) and I've questioned VP's about their policies and procedures.  This work does not typically make me the most popular person in a facility, often times I feel less liked than an auditor from the IRS.  But, what it does do is increase the safety of the customers at those facilities.  I'm not usually hired because a place has a squeaky clean record, generally their has been an issue.  A complaint to corporate or the health department, an ongoing issue with low health inspection scores, or maybe - just maybe, a company has the foresight to do some "preventative" planning.  That's where I come in...

I own a company that conducts food safety training and certification, audits, inspections, consulting, etc. for the food service industry.  It's an industry that I know and love.  I've worked for small privately owned companies, as well as national corporations and casinos.  Life is interesting to say the least!   Take for example the day I had to explain why it was not permissible for a nursing mother to store her breast milk in the walk-in refrigerator....

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

So  after months of contemplating, I am finally going to do it!  I am going to start a blog.   Now the dilemma - what do I write???  Decisions, decisions, decisions....

I could write about my 30+ years of food service industry experience (which includes everything from cleaning crap off walls to conducting third party audits); I could write about basic food safety and the seemingly daily recalls; I could write about the drive-thru cashier that just took my money with his gloves on, wiped his nose, and then handed me my food, or I could write about the fact that over the Thanksgiving holiday my kids found expired ranch dressing in my cupboard (unopened) and expired olive oil mayo in my fridge - my husband and I don't use a lot of condiments - and my future daughter-in-law (whom I love dearly) pointed out, we always have to check the condiments here! You would think given my profession my condiments would be "in code" but even I get caught up in poor rotation (or simple lack of use)!  UGH! 

I could go on, but no need to share everything...I presume this will be a blog pertaining to current events both personal and professional, local and global.  I hope you enjoy it....