How to Keep Fruits and Veggies Fresh

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http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1103 

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I ALWAYS WONDER WHAT GOES WHERE AS FAR AS STORAGE OF MY PRODUCE.  I CAME ACROSS THIS ARTICLE/TABLE AND I THOUGHT IT WAS HANDY - I THOUGHT I'D SHARE IT!  THERE WERE A FEW SURPRISES IN IT FOR ME!

What to Store Where: A Handy Chart
Use this color-coded key along with the chart below:

• Store unwashed and in a single layer
• Store unwashed and in a plastic bag
• Store in a paper bag
• *Ethylene producers (keep away from other fruits and vegetables)

Store in Refrigerator Apples (storage >7 days) Apricots Cantaloupe Figs Honeydew Artichokes Asparagus Beets Blackberries Blueberries Broccoli Brussels sprouts Cabbage Carrots Cauliflower Celery Cherries Corn Grapes Green beans Green onions Herbs (except basil) Lima beans Leafy vegetables Leeks Lettuce Mushrooms Okra Peas Plums Radishes Raspberries Spinach Sprouts Strawberries Summer squash Yellow squash Zucchini

Store on Countertop Apples (storage < 7 days) Bananas Tomatoes Basil Cucumbers Eggplant Garlic Ginger Grapefruit Jicama Lemons Limes Mangoes Oranges Papayas Peppers Persimmons Pineapple Plantains Pomegranates Watermelon Store in a Cool, Dry Place Acorn squash Butternut squash Onions (away from potatoes) Potatoes (away from onions) Pumpkins Spaghetti squash Sweet potatoes Winter squash Ripen on Counter, Then Refrigerate Avocados Nectarines Peaches Pears Plums Kiwi

*More about Ethylene: Fruits and vegetables give off an odorless, harmless and tasteless gas called ethylene after they're picked. All fruits and vegetables produce it, but some foods produce it in greater quantities. When ethylene-producing foods are kept in close proximity with ethylene-sensitive foods, especially in a confined space (like a bag or drawer), the gas will speed up the ripening process of the other produce. Use this to your advantage if you want to speed up the ripening process of an unripe fruit, for example, by putting an apple in a bag with an unripe avocado. But if you want your already-ripe foods to last longer, remember to keep them away from ethylene-producing foods, as designated in the chart above.

Countertop Storage Tips
There’s nothing as inviting as a big bowl of crisp apples on the kitchen counter. To keep those apples crisp and all countertop-stored produce fresh, store them out of direct sunlight, either directly on the countertop, in an uncovered bowl, or inside a perforated plastic bag.

Refrigerator Storage Tips
For produce that is best stored in the refrigerator, remember the following guidelines.

• Keep produce in perforated plastic bags in the produce drawer of the refrigerator. (To perforate bags, punch holes in the bag with a sharp object, spacing them about as far apart as the holes you see in supermarket apple bags.)
• Keep fruits and vegetables separate, in different drawers, because ethylene can build up in the fridge, causing spoilage.
• When storing herbs (and interestingly, asparagus, too), snip off the ends, store upright in a glass of water (like flowers in a vase) and cover with a plastic bag.

The Smell of an Alcoholic

First things first. You know the five senses – sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. I think we all have a balance of them. But, if you are lacking in one, well, you probably compensate in another. My hearing, well it isn’t so great. Where I make up for it is in smell. I don’t smell as good as a dog, but I tell you, I’m probably the human equivalent of a drug sniffer dog. Except, I’m a alcoholic sniffer person.

So, let me explain. I used to have a supervisor that was an alcoholic. He drank – a lot. and then I had an alcoholic boyfriend for way to many years of my life. I think in both cases, their poison of choice was beer. No matter if I was smelling it while it was being consumed (sorta like bread) or the next day (sorta sour), both those folks had a different smell. And I smelled it often – as I was with both those folks a lot.

So what I’m saying is not only am I sensitive to the smell of fresh beer, I’m sensitive to the way that it is metabolized in an alcoholic. I think an alcoholic processes it differently thus emitting a different odor.
Ok, so lets fast forward 5 to 10 years.

The sound of both the opening of a can and the crunching of a can just makes my skin crawl. It could be a coke and it still has the same affect.

I can still smell beer (fresh or from the day before if it is an alcoholic) on someones breath from about 30 feet away. I’m not just referring to my husband (who drinks fresh beer but does not have the sour smell the day after), I’m talking about standing in line at the grocery store, or passing in the hall, or even waiting at a stoplight if you and I both have our windows down.

1. There are at least two alcoholics in this building. I smell them every day. I avoid walking behind them and I hate it when our paths cross. Sometimes I can smell them before I see them. Oddly enough, they both have red patchy skin and look like they may have high blood pressure.

2. This morning, we were behind a paint van and someone in that van was an alcoholic based on the smell I had coming through my a/c. They were the only car around with the windows down.

3. I work right in the heart of a college town. I realize that a lot of kids drink and party. But, it is funny that not everyone has that alcoholic scent. At least once a week, I brush by one kid who has that sour smell.

4. At least one person I know (personally) has that smell and it bothers me. Like, what do I say? Hey, you have an alcohol problem. I suppose I don’t see them that much anymore so it isn’t a big deal – except for the fact they are ruining their liver.

Is there an extra or strong sense you have? Does it bother you?

blog game - where is this answer.

i can't believe it has been over a month since i've blogged. this has been the longest hiatus ever. i have been really busy though. weekends have been packed and days and nights too.

so, the answer to the question everyone is dying to know (joke) is...
the pasture at the other end of huford harris road (near where my dad grew up).

no one actually KNEW it exactly but when i told where, most said "oh yea, there."