Organic? GMO? What is my fruit?

From Liv..."Learned something facinating yesterday in my organic gardening lecture. On the sticker that comes on fruits and veggies has a number that specifies what kind of fruit or veggie they are. Organics start with a 9 and followed by 4 other numbers, like this 9-XXXX. And Genetically Modified fruits and veggies start with an 8 followed by 4 numbers, like this 8-XXXX."

Thanks so much Liv. I found out this info years ago but forgot the exact numbers and have been searching for it for years. I'm so glad that you sent this out.

http://www.plucodes.com/docs/IFPS-plu_codes_users_guide.pdf

Hot Beef Sundaes

http://www.delish.com/recipes/cooking-recipes/unusual-state-fair-food?GT1=47001
"Touted as comfort food at its finest, the hot beef sundae is a generous helping of buttery mashed potatoes surrounded by slow-roasted roast beef and gravy, sprinkled with Cheddar cheese, and garnished with a cherry tomato. It may look like a sundae, but this baby is all Sunday dinner."
How's this for cute? Visit the link for the details and remember to use Feingold safe ingredients.

Easy piping gel for cakes

Piping gel for cakes

1 cup colorful juice or water with natural coloring
1/2 cup sugar (can omit if juice is sweet enough or if using juice concentrate)
1/4 cup corn starch

Mix all ingredients while cold.
Bring to a boil stirring constantly.
Boil for about two minutes.
Let cool, then fill your icing bag and pipe on your letters.

Natural Peeps-you got em!

http://momskitchendesk.blogspot.com/2010/03/natural-easter-peeps.html

These are so cute. There's just something about peeps that are amazingly fun. Marshmallows are super easy, and I never thought of just dipping them in sugar. mmmmmmm

Cake Decorating

What a great idea...

I take approved hard candies and suckers, and chop them in my little food processor to make sprinkles. They work great for cakes and cookies. I use the red and green ones at Christmas and the other colors throughout the year :o)
Jennifer
www.oneverybusymomma.blogspot.com

Jamie Oliver School Lunch Program

http://www.hulu.com/watch/136381/jamie-olivers-food-revolution-episode-101

Another science experiment, Taylor's Fuzzy Brained Mice

http://www.feingold.org/PF/taylorsmice.html
Here's another science experiment for those interested. I've posted it here before but thought it needed a refresher.

Got Petroleum...On your fruit? ewwww

Long story short...
I made an awesome mounds like candy the other day (an invention) and thought that I'd look it up to see a "real" recipe. Well, I found one but it included paraffin.

HUH? I thought that paraffin was a petroleum product for candles and such, not for food. But, upon further research found that it is approved for food and is commonly used in chocolate and as a coating on apples and other fruits and veggies. (Good reason to stick with the food list for chocolate)

I guess when I hear "food grade wax" I think of beeswax. But no, paraffin is considered food grade.

So, random theory based on Danika's wandering thoughts...could this be a reason why so many kids react to apples?

If anyone has info on how to tell if an apple is waxed, oiled, or natural, or any other info related to this, please send it in. In the meantime we'll keep buying our fruit from Azure Standard or wait till our trees come on.

Here's a little Wiki for your reading enjoyment
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraffin

Mexican cole slaw

MMM, made an invention today and I had to share since most of my standbys are already on here.
I started with a basic fresh salsa of diced tomatoes, diced onions, chopped radishes (weird but my friend puts them in and they're wonderful), crushed fresh garlic, chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, and salt.

Then, I saw the cabbage head sitting on the counter, ready for tomorrow's dinner, and I wondered.

The cabbage was sliced thinly like I would for cole slaw, added 1/2 cup of mayo, splash of whole, raw milk, and a sprinkle of salt, and dumped a cup of fresh salsa into it.

It was good that night but when I got it out for lunch today it was awesome. The flavors blended together so well and the cabbage had softened a little with the salt and lime juice. YUM!

Alyssa's science experiment

Alyssa had to do a science experiment and of course, she wanted to do something with Feingold.

The pictures stopped at day 10 but I'll let you know that after this point all of the chemical plants stopped growing. The control is still going strong and is about 8 inches tall with an amazing root system. The kids wanted to see how long they could keep this experiment up but my card reader died so I can't post pictures. I think that the root system is especially interesting. The colored roots wouldn't even hold together as we took them out of their containers. The pictures are harder to see than in reality but the strands of wheat grass were also so tiny with the chemical plants. Thin and spindly.
This was all achieved with 2 oz of water, only 10 drops of food coloring and one packet of aspartame (Equal). The water was reverse osmosis in case the chemicals in tap would have affected the experiment also.
The seeds were hard red wheat that were soaked in the chemical water for 4 hours before planted in regular soil.
The question for this experiment was, "Do petroleum products hurt living things?" and the answer was most definitely, "yes".
Now,  if you want to make a change in your diet, here is my very favorite, #1 book to understand how food works with our bodies and how traditional cultures stayed healthy.