Fruit garden delights
Many of us look forward to the tastes of summer. Some of the first delights are garden-picked strawberries and rhubarb. While I have not seen many people enjoy a raw stick of rhubarb, strawberries appeal to many when eaten right off the vine, with no processing other than a quick washing.
Strawberries and rhubarb are both easily stored in the refrigerator, but are best if used within three days. Also they tend to keep better if they are unwashed and unprocessed, until just before using. Both are also easy to freeze:
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- Rhubarb – Cut stalks in one inch (three centimetres) lengths. Pack without sugar.
- Strawberries – Leave whole, cut into quarters or slice. If leaving whole pack without sugar or add 1Ú2 cup (125 mL) sugar to four cups (one litre) of whole berries. Use 3Ú4 cup (175 mL) sugar to four cups (one L) quartered or sliced berries.
It is often best to freeze berries on a flat tray for the first 30 minutes of freezing. Then pack the fruits in airtight containers with a half inch (one cm) of head space, or in specially designed freezer bags. Always remove as much air as possible, label the date of freezing and the volumes. Fruits can be stored for up to one year at 0 F (-18 C).
Here are some favorite recipes to try:
Rhubarb-strawberry crunch
1 cup all- 250 mL
purpose flour
1 cup packed 250 mL
brown sugar
3Ú4 cup quick 175 mL
cooking rolled oats
1 teaspoon ground 5 mL
cinnamon
1Ú2 cup butter or 125 mL
margarine
4 cups sliced 1 L
fresh or frozen
rhubarb
1 pint fresh 500 mL
strawberries, halved
1 cup sugar 250 mL
2 tablespoons 30 mL
cornstarch
1 cup water 250 mL
1 teaspoon 5 mL
vanilla extract
In a bowl combine the first four ingredients, cut in butter until crumbly. Press half of the mixture into an ungreased nine-inch (22 cm) square baking pan. Combine rhubarb and strawberries, spoon over crust. In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in the water and vanilla and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for two minutes. Pour over fruit. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake at 350 F (180 C) for one hour. Serve with ice cream, if desired. Yield: nine servings.
Source: Taste of Home Annual Recipes, Reiman Publications.
Strawberry daiquiris
6 tablespoons 90 mL
light rum (optional)
1Ú4 cup lime juice 50 mL
2 tablespoons 30 mL
sugar
2 cups frozen 500 mL
or fresh whole
strawberries
Note: If berries are not frozen add some crushed ice to the mixture.
Combine in a blender the rum, lime juice and sugar. Blend to dissolve the sugar. Add partly thawed strawberries and blend until smooth. Serves two.
Sun screening
The skin is the largest organ of the body and is essential to our survival. It protects us from dehydration, from bacterial infections and from man-made aggressors such as consumer products and pollution.
Our skin is constantly under attack and adapts to a variety of stresses. It has several layers of specialized tissue. The outermost skin layer matures quickly and sheds continuously. Skin renews itself every four to six weeks in people who have no skin disease and haven’t been sunburned.
However, the skin’s ability to protect us does have limits. It changes in response to internal or external conditions and sometimes these changes are not repaired and we become ill. This is what happens with skin cancer.
Skin cancer, the most frequent of all cancers, comes in three main varieties – basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and malignant melanoma. Most skin cancers occur late in life. Basal and squamous cell carcinoma develop on skin that is exposed repeatedly to the sun, while malignant melanoma may develop almost anywhere on the body.
Most skin cancers occur in white people, usually on their face, neck and hands. These progress slowly and rarely cause death since they usually don’t spread to other parts of the body. These skin cancers are easily removed.
Malignant melanomas account for only one or two percent of all skin cancers, but they are the type most likely to be fatal. Unlike other skin cancers, they occur earlier in life and progress rapidly. Although the rate of skin cancer in Canada has remained fairly constant over the past 30 years, there has been a recent increase in the incidence of malignant melanoma. The only other type of cancer with a more rapid annual increase of new cases is lung cancer in women.
Detect skin cancer
Examine your skin often and see your doctor if you notice any abnormally dark or discolored patches or spots or any bleeding, crusting or change in the color, size or shape of a mole.
One of the main causes of skin cancer is exposure to UV rays. Ultraviolet light is invisible to the naked eye and is given off by the sun or certain kinds of lamps.
Most often, skin cancer is the result of overexposure to the sun. In some cases, UV rays directly cause skin cancer. In other cases, the action of the ultraviolet rays is indirect – it damages the immune mechanisms in the skin and in the rest of the body, preventing the skin from repairing itself.
Many studies of skin cancer, especially of malignant melanoma, show individual intolerance to sun exposure. People who have tanned poorly and/or suffered severe and frequent sunburns during their childhood or throughout their lives are at increased risk. Fair skin is more vulnerable because it contains very little pigment to decrease penetration by ultraviolet rays.
Children are more vulnerable because their skin is thinner, more sensitive and therefore less protected against the penetration of ultraviolet rays. Infants are particularly vulnerable. Even a brief exposure (as little as 10-15 minutes) to the summer sun between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. can result in serious burns in children. And there is evidence that even a single sunburn in childhood may increase the risk of developing skin cancer later in life.
Protecting the skin
Most people can prevent skin cancer by not overexposing themselves to the sun and to ultraviolet lamps, such as sunlamps.
A suntan and a sunburn are two distinct reactions, but both are evidence of skin injury. When you have a tan, ultraviolet rays have darkened the pigment in your skin called melanin.
This darkened pigment protects your skin from some further ultraviolet penetration, but not enough. It also shows that skin damage has already occurred.
You don’t need to get a sunburn to tan, and you don’t need a suntan to be healthy. To avoid the harmful effects of ultraviolet rays for yourself or your children:
- Select shaded areas for outdoor activities.
- Wear a broad-brimmed hat, tightly woven clothing, a long-sleeved shirt, long pants and gloves when you have to spend long periods in the sun.
- If you can’t cover up, use a sunscreen lotion that has a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of at least 15. Make sure it has both UVA and UVB protection. Reapply it every two hours, as well as after swimming.
- Avoid tanning altogether or at least avoid tanning for long periods, particularly between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. during the summer months.
- Avoid using sunlamps.
- Be careful of medication. Certain prescriptions such as tetracycline can make your skin more sensitive to UV rays. Consult your doctor if you have any questions about your medication.
- Protect your eyes as well as your skin from ultraviolet damage. Wear sunglasses that filter out UV rays. Some sunglasses have labels stating the degree of UV protection they provide.
Health Canada stresses the importance of reading a sunscreen’s label.
The packaging should include a drug identification number, an eight digit number on the panel showing that the product has been reviewed by Health Canada.
You should also ensure that protection is broad spectrum, which blocks UVB and UVA rays.
The Canadian Cancer Society suggests that to achieve this, active ingredients should include parsol and methoxycinnamate. To be on the safe side, use products with the logo for the Canadian Dermatology Association.
More information is available from these Health and Welfare Canada publications:
- The Sun, Your Baby and You: A Parent’s Guide to Sun Protection
- Thinning of the Ozone Layer – The Health Effects (ISSUES EH-92-IE)
Contact a dermatologist or the local office of the Canadian Cancer Society for more information on skin cancer.
Additional publications on the ozone layer and UV are available from: Environment Canada, Enquiry Centre, Ottawa, Ont., K1A 0H3.
Food safety – on the run
If you eat on the run or buy ready-to-serve foods, you depend on others to handle food safely.
To protect against food poisoning, consider these tips from Health Canada.
- Store your lunch or picnic basket in a cool area until mealtime. If refrigeration is not available, use insulated containers, freeze water in leak-proof containers or use freezer packs to keep lunches cold.
- Wash fresh fruit and vegetables well before packing.
- Make sure hot foods are piping hot and cold foods are refrigerator cold when bought from vending machines or food outlets.
- Check the “best before” date on products such as milk, yogurt and cheese.
- Select healthy-looking foods.
- Consider the appearance of food outlets. Dirty utensils, messy tables, or unkempt uniforms can be signs of poor food-handling practices.
- Wipe lids of canned fruit juices, puddings and soups if you are going to consume contents directly from cans.
- Avoid tasting foods from cans that are badly dented, bulging or leaking. Also avoid foods that appear bubbly or spurt out when the cans are opened.
- Refuse to accept ground meat, poultry and pork if they are not well cooked.
- Wash your hands thoroughly before eating, at home, on a picnic or in the field.
