Listeria update

Seventeen more Listeria infections, along with five more deaths, have been linked to a multistate outbreak tied to a Colorado farm's tainted cantaloupes, pushing the total to 72 illnesses and 13 deaths.

Pregnant women are among those vulnerable to listeriosis infections, along with older people and those who have weakened immune systems.

The Listeria monocytogenes outbreak is the deadliest one in the country in nearly a decade, because listeriosis is highly lethal in susceptible groups.Although the cantaloupes have been recalled and are nearing the end of their shelf life, federal officials worry that some of the affected products could still be in people's refrigerators, where Listeria, unlike other foodborne pathogens, can flourish even in cold conditions.(Toss your cantaloupes! The compost pile is a perfect place.) The CDC advised people to check the labels before consuming cantaloupes, and advised them to dispose of the products if the source can't be determined from the label or by asking suppliers.

The outbreak is expected to climb higher, because several other states and local health departments are investigating if their listeriosis cases are connected to the outbreak. CDC said it expects to receive reports of additional cases through October, because the incubation period for the disease is long, and patients can get sick with listeriosis up to 2 months after eating contaminated food.

Four more states—Florida, Kansas, Missouri, and North Dakota—reported their first outbreak-related Listeria infections, pushing the number of affected to states to 18.

At least 25 states received shipments of the Rocky Ford region cantaloupes from Jensen Farms, which recalled its products on Sep 14 after testing revealed the outbreak strain on its cantaloupes and on equipment at its Granada. Colo., facility. That total is eight states more than in the CDC's previous update on Sep 21. The products could have also been further distributed.

No cases so far in Washington State....yet. WASH your vegetables and fruit BEFORE cutting into them. I'm talking a scrub brush! Do I eat cantaloupe? Yes! Do I WASH it?.....always. You never know where that cantaloupe has been! They tend to grow in the ground and roll around in the dirt before they end up in your grocery store. Come on! Be safe!

Mosaic class using wedi board

Big plans today! I'm taking a mosaic class at Seattle Mosaic Art. website: http://www.seattlemosaicarts.com. I'm going to learn how to use Wedi board. Cutting, gluing, building, applying mosaic, etc. The winter project this year is remodeling our bathroom. We're taking it down to the studs. Plans include taking out the tub (that we never use) and build a large - no shower door with all that goo that builds up - large multi-head shower. To do this we'll use wedi board. website: http://www.wedicorp.com. Then I get to play with tile and mosaic. I'd LIKE to make my own tile.....we'll see. It would require access to a kiln. I could sign up for a community college class or joining a group of some kind.

Today, at least, I learn to use wedi board.
There was no progress on the oven yesterday. Painting was the "job of the day". Very nice to stand back and see significant progress.

Exterior painting

I find painting satisfying and relaxing even though it's hard work. It's very gratifying. The house is 20+ years old and we're changing the color as you can see. We want to get it done before the rains begin.
You can see part of the garden and the rain barrels.

Here's the continuing saga on the Listeria outbreak associated with melons. Very Sad - 2 more deaths:

The death toll has risen to 8 in an outbreak of listeria traced to Colorado-grown cantaloupes, officials said Wednesday [21 Sep 2011].

The CDC said that a person in Maryland died from eating the tainted produce. Four deaths have been reported in New Mexico and 2 in Colorado, and one person has died in Oklahoma.

The CDC said 55 people in 14 states have now been confirmed as sickened from eating the cantaloupes. On Mon 19 Sep 2011, the CDC reported 4 deaths and 35 illnesses in 10 states.

The death count, the highest in a known food outbreak since tainted peanuts were linked to 9 deaths almost 3 years ago, could go even higher. The CDC said illnesses in several other states potentially connected to the outbreak were under investigation.

Health officials have said they think the number of illnesses and deaths could continue to grow because the incubation period for listeria can be up to a month. Unlike many pathogens, listeria bacteria can grow at room and refrigerator temperatures. The FDA and CDC recommend anyone who may have one of the contaminated cantaloupes throw it out immediately.

About 800 cases of listeria are found in the United States each year, according to CDC, and there usually are 3 or 4 outbreaks. Most of these are traced to deli meat and soft cheeses, where listeria is most common. Produce has rarely been the culprit, but federal investigators say they have seen more produce-related listeria illnesses in the past 2 years. It was found in sprouts in 2009 and celery in 2010.

While most healthy adults can consume listeria with no ill effects, it can kill the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. It is also dangerous to pregnant women because it easily passes through to the fetus. In the current outbreak, the median age of those sickened is 78, according to the CDC.

Here's a gram stain of Listeria: small gram positive rods. Interestingly enough...it LIKES to grow at room temperatures and does just fine in the refrigerator, just grows slower. it's named after Joseph Lister who promoted the idea of sterile surgery while working at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary. He successfully introduced carbolic acid (now known as phenol) to sterilize surgical instruments and to clean wounds, which led to reducing post-operative infections and made surgery safer for patients.
It's a small world. Speaking of which....here is a wonder blog: Small Things Considered (from the ASM website. ASM=American Society for Microbiology). link: http://schaechter.asmblog.org/schaechter
I highly recommend it.

Wayne's birthday dinner and a present

Wayne told me "Every day is like a birthday dinner...but I LOVE your pasta". So... Home made Papperadela with scallops, in a cream and pesto sauce. The present: small creamery blue cheese. Spinach salad with bacon bits and red onion. Chardonnay for wine. Pumpkin Cake with creame fresh.

Listeria monocytogenes and canteloupe

Wow, if you follow food outbreaks like I do you know about the 10-state outbreak of Listeria. 35 sick and 4 deaths! All the cantaloupe came from one farm. Interestingly, Listeria is usually found in deli meats and home-made cheese. It's normally found in soil and water and animals can be carriers. Pasteurization will kill it. As some of you know... I'm a cheese maker. I also either use pasteurized milk or do it myself. Knowing about bacteria like I do makes me VERY CAREFUL with food.
CDC website: www.CDC.gov

Turquoise, coral and silver necklace

One of the things I like to do in the evening (usually while watching TV) is jewelry/beading. This is turquoise, coral and silver. I have an outfit in mind to wear this but I need to sell some pieces to make some room. A trunk show might be in my future.

I (finally) picked some ripe tomatoes from the garden this year. For those not from the northwest....we have had a cool, long, wet spring and winter. Last weekend we finally had 80+ (F) temps. This is the product. The good news...they are crisp, sweet and VERY tasty. They will be on the menu tonight along with leftovers from the family gathering yesterday.
We had hamburgers from local beef from our favorite LOCAL meat market (Green River Valley Meats). The ground beef is awesome! They use tri-tip and it is lean, tasty and juicy. Along with sourdough rolls for buns and home-made mayo that I turned into my own "secret sauce", fun!
I also poached some chicken breasts for those who did not want beef. Sous vide! What's that? No, I do not have a special tool for my kitchen...I use a gallon freezer zip-lock bag. Marinade the breasts for about 30-60 min. LEAVE them in the bag....make sure all the air is out. Get a large pot of water. Put the bag with the chicken in the water. Bring the water up to 150 degrees - turn OFF the heat, put the lid on the pot. Leave the pot alone for about 45 min. The chicken is DONE and very moist! NOW you can put it on the grill to sear and char the edges. Sooooo simple and very moist.
Sarah made a beautiful pesto bow-tie pasta salad. (she left the left-overs here!). ON the menu tonight. Yuuuumm! Add a green salad, my own balsamic dressing .
The finale.....a scratch red velvet cake frosted with bourbon-butter creame frosting.....everyone was almost comatose by the time they went home.
Did I get pictures? NO (rats!)  Too busy.
I LOVE cooking for people!

We are having a gathering this weekend. My in-laws, Jerry and Al are here and the boys and Sarah and a few friends are joining us today. Jerry and Al have been married 60 YEARS! What a milestone! Tom's birthday was the 15th and Wayne's will be the 19th, so we have a lot to celebrate
I made an awesome pasta last night. It was spinach linguine but I used the 00 flour I ordered and semolina. It was silky smooth and wonderful to work with! I, of course, made wayyyyy too much but we'll put the left overs out today for the party.

I also made a velvet chocolate cake and will frost it today with butter creame frosting (vanilla). First time for me. I cut each 9-in round into 2 layers and put raspberry jam in the layers. It sure smells good!.Pics to follow.

Here are a few pics of the beginnings of the oven. It's just a start and I expect to make mistakes. That's the fun part. I have to remember I'm not building a pyramid to last 3000 years. It's an oven to play with and enjoy with family and friends.

This is the plinth of the clay oven. Just the dry run. I need 1.5 bags (estimate) of mortar. Pick up tomorrow. It's only $5.25/bag! Not too bad. Of course....you can't buy .5 bag, so I have to get 2. I've actually re-designed the plinth. I'm going to add an ash slot to make it easier to clean ash out of the oven. I'll be able to hang an ash bucket under the slot. Hope to get time to work on it tomorrow after work. The weather is perfect.

On another note: The cavatelli press I ordered arrived today! Will try it out tomorrow,

After sooooo many posts on facebook about what we're cooking, building, doing....I think a blog is a good idea. So after a start a few years ago and a long absence this will begin again. Stay tuned.
I'm building a wood fired clay oven. I've been thinking of it for YEARS and have spent several months researching and planning. I have the site set up and prepped. The goal: spend as little as possible by repurposing materials we already have or using materials others have thrown away.
Materials:
Concrete Blocks - these came from my compost pile. It doesn't need them anymore, repurposed
Clay - from my friend and potter Betty. Trimmings from her pots
Gravel - from the driveway
Morter - OK, I have to buy this......one bag from Lowes.
Thats it. Pics to follow