An assortment of tidbits of interest to foodies.
A day for fruitcakes
Got your fruitcake baked for the contest?
If not, you’re running out of time.
Competitors can bring their homebaked fruitcakes to the Schoharie County Historical Society Museum in Schoharie between 10 a.m. and noon on Saturday, Dec. 5. This is the second year for the contest.
Categories are baked non-alcohol, baked with alcohol and not baked, with or without alcohol. Judging by a panel of three will begin at noon, and if you go you’ll have a chance to sample the cakes.
Stick around for the afternoon event. Beginning at 2 p.m. the fourth annual fruitcake toss contest will take place. Kathy Slater, the event coordiantor, says teenage contestants will toss “official, specially aged, store-bought cakes” to win prizes for distance and creativity.
Categories for the fruitcake toss include mechanical or pneumatic devices and “Armstrong” pitching for ages 12 and up. The entry fee for the contest is a nonperishable food item for a local food bank.
Find more information and register online here.
Rachael and the chips
Saratoga Specialties Company is a happy place these days.
Its trademark Moon Brand Original Saratoga Chips will be featured on Monday, Dec. 7, on the “Rachael Ray Show.”
The chips will be featured as the “snack of the day.”
Saratoga Specialties Company — founded by Dan Jameson and Paul Tator — expects “many product inquiries and information requests” as a result of the national TV exposure.
Of course, Rachael Ray is no stranger to Saratoga. She’s an alumna of Lake George High School and has a home in Lake Luzerne. Her nationally syndicated TV show airs at 3 p.m. weekdays on WNYT.
Whole grain cookery
The Regional Farm & Food Project and Saratoga Land Trust will present their final Kitchen Culture Workshop for the year on Saturday, Dec. 5.
The event, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. at the Old Wesley Inn, 537 Barton Hill Road, opposite the Carrot Barn in Schoharie, will focus on “Simple and Good Whole Grain Cookery.”
Participants will learn about the preparation and eating of three whole grain dishes — buckwheat, oats and millet. The presenter will be Louise Frazier, nutrition consultant and former restaurant owner and chef in Europe.
There is a small charge to participate. Register by calling 234-1942.
Did you wash your hands?
The Montgomery County Public Health Department is reminding everyone that fresh fruits and vegetables can carry germs that cause illness — with symptoms of diarrhea, upset stomach, vomiting, cramps, fever, headaches, muscle pain and bloodstream infections.
Raw fruits and vegetables are usually safe to eat if you wash them carefully first. Here are some safety tips from the agency for safe handling of fresh fruits and veggies:
1. Wash your hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 minutse before and after handling fresh fruits and vegetables. (I’m not going to argue with the experts, but I have to say I’ve never washed my hands, or anything else, for 20 minutes; it seems like a long time.)
2. Clean all surfaces and utensils with hot water and soap, including cutting boards, counter tops, peelers and knives that come in contact with fresh produce.
3. Rinse produce under running tap water, including those with skins and rinds that are not eaten. (Packaged fruits and vegetables labeled “ready to eat,” “washed” or “triple washed,” need not be washed.)
4. Rub firm-skin fruits and vegetables under running tap water or scrub with a clean vegetable brush while rinsing with running tap water.
5. Dry fruits and vegetables with a clean cloth towel or paper towel.
6. Never use detergent or bleach to wash fresh fruits or vegetables. (Again, not to argue with the experts, but are there people who wash food with detergent and bleach?)
