Food safety for ‘planned overs’

Have you heard the saying that a meal can be better when it’s reheated and served the next day? As long as we follow a few food safety steps, those ‘planned overs’ will be both healthy and delicious. Cook Food Safely. The first step in having safe ‘planned overs’ is cooking the food safely. If […]

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Halloween Scares: Food Recalls (salami, onions)

While we might expect to be frightened on Halloween when children in scary costumes appear at our door, this year there are several food recalls that add to the excitement of the season. Italian-style salame recalled due to Salmonella contamination. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a notice to consumers not to […]

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The jar sealed, is the food still safe? (and other questions)

Tested recipes recommend glass Mason-style jars and 2-piece self-sealing lids for home canning. In the past few weeks, several calls have come in about jars and lids, and ensuring a good seal when canning foods at home. Handling jars and lids correctly will go a long way towards successfully preserving your garden’s bounty for the […]

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Preparing for a home food preservation season: pressure canners

A pressure canner may have a dial gauge for indicating the pressure or a weighted gauge, for indicating and regulating the pressure. Regardless of the type of canner chosen, the USDA recommends that a canner be large enough to hold at least 4-quart jars standing upright on the rack, with the lid in place. A […]

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Best practices when choosing home canning jars

The most important step in safe home canning is to follow an up-to-date research tested recipe, including using a standard glass jar. Jars for home canning come in a wide variety of sizes, ½ pint, pint, 1½ pint, quart, and ½ gallon sizes. Not all sizes can be safely used in a recipe, so check […]

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U.S. set to declare Sesame as a major allergen

Millions of Americans have food allergies and may experience an adverse reaction to products that contain allergens. Of those that are school age, an estimated 8% of children in the United States have a food allergy. That’s 1 in 13 children, or about 2 students per classroom. A food allergy occurs when the body has […]

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Put a Lid on It! Lids for Home Canning

By far the most important step in safe home canning is to follow an up-to-date, research tested recipe. Research-tested recipes recommend metal 2-piece lids for home canning.  Two-piece lids are sold to fit regular and wide-mouth glass canning jars and are made up of a flat metal lid and a metal screw band.  The lid […]

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Selling Maple Syrup in Wisconsin

Wisconsin ranks 4th in the nation behind Vermont, New York and Maine in production of maple syrup.  In 2014, Wisconsin producers yielded 200,000 gallons of maple syrup, contributing 6.2 percent of the country’s total maple syrup supply. The 2014 crop was valued at about $3.2 million. What are the rules for collecting maple sap and making maple […]

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Focus on food safety when making maple syrup

Making maple syrup is a time-honored tradition in many parts of Wisconsin, and it is as much of an art as a science. Even though sap does run in other trees such as birch and elm in early spring, maples produce more and sweeter sap than any other tree. Collection. Once trees are tapped, a […]

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Unsafe to can tree sap at home

If you have been scrolling the internet of late you might have noticed that some companies are touting the reported health benefits of drinking tree sap. Some ads suggest that drinking tree sap or ‘tree water’ is a natural way to hydrate. Regardless of whether drinking tree sap is a ‘natural way to hydrate’, canning […]

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