Pistachio Nut Recall – Find a Resource for Safe Pistachios

Justin Sweeney — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:08:39 +0000

Pistachio Product Recalls: Salmonella

This announcement ahs been plastered accross the US and in some cases the Southern Pacific, there is a documented alert for Salmonella poisining from some pistachios products. This alert should not stop you enjoying Pistachios as not all suppliers are under scrutiny for this alert. In fact many have been practicing good food processing and handeling so there products are safe. I have neeb in contact with April Shunn Williams from Paramount farms and have agreed to post this updated news. Please look at the list below for a safe supplier or producer, we must all remember in these hard financial times that to boycott all growers and producers could be detremental to their livelyhood and the industry. We all enjoy the texture and taste of good quality Pistachios in our recipies and should support the industry at this time.

A quick recipie: Lamb cutlets with pistachos and nectarine salsa

Ingredients

Marinade
12 lamb cutlets
1tbsp olive oil
juice 2 oranges
2 tbsp grated orange rind
1/4 cup spicy fruit chutney

Salsa
1/2 punnet Fresh Pistachios, peeled, split and roughly chopped
juice 2 oranges
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1 small cinnamon stick
2 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
3-4 nectarines, cut into chunks

Method
Combine marinade ingredients, add cutlets and refrigerate overnight.
Prepare salsa by combining half the coriander and half the pistachios with all other ingredients. Bring to boil and boil for 2 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick and allow to cool.
Barbecue or char grill or even use the George Forman or simular grill cutlets 2-3 minutes each side.
Serve with fresh pistachio salsa and sprinkle with remaining pistachios and extra coriander if desired.

A list of safe providers and links:

A&P Growers
American Golden
Barons
Berkley & Jensen Pistachios
Braga Farms
Braga Organic Farms
Cal Delights
Cal Fruit and Nut
Country Best
Cowboy
CVS Brand Gold Emblem Natural
Pistachios
CVS Brand Gold Emblem
Pistachio Kernels
Divine Organics
Doug Braga
Eagle Ranch Pistachios
Eden Organic
Everybody’s Nuts Pistachios
Flannigans
Futters Nut Butter
Garvey Nut
Giant
Golden Orchards Pistachios
Gust Picoulas
Harris Ranch
Heart of the Desert
Horizon Growers
Keenan Farms
Kirkland Everybody’s Nuts
Kopali
La Montanita Food
Lattitude 1
Living Intentions
Maisie Jane’s
Mamco
Marra Bros.
Melace Family
Meridian Nut Growers
Mount Hope
Nuts and Spice
Paramount Farms
Rosetti Fine Foods
Royal Himalayan
Sam’s International
San Joaquin Valley Farms
Sherman Thomas Ranch
Snack Club
Snakerz
Southern Grove
Specialty Commodities
Sunkist Pistachios
Sunridge Farms
The Nutty Gourmet
Wonderful Pistachios
Yurosek Farms

http://pistachiorecall.org/
http://www.fda.gov/pistachios/

Eclectic Kitchen™: A Spice of Life

Michelle Norris — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 01:07:08 +0000

Recently, my daughter moved into her first apartment. I was helping her set up her kitchen, buying her dishes, pots, pans, knives, etc. Having a large collection of spices, herbs, vinegars & oils, myself, suddenly – I thought, oh, wow, as a responsible foodie & parent attempting to encourage my daughter’s newly found cooking skills – I just must “stock” a spice rack for her. You know – spices can get really pricey and for those just starting out on their cooking journey, there are some things to consider when determining what you absolutely need when just embarking on your tour of cooking.

The absolute staples are, of course, peppercorns and sea salt as well as kosher salt. You will use these for almost everything. (I highly recommend grinders for both. There is nothing like the taste of fresh cracked pepper – yum, trust me on this. Especially on steak with a bit of brisket rub…mmmm – oh sorry, I was daydreaming. This goes for the salt, too because changing the coarseness/fineness of the salt when prepping makes an all around better dish. I like a finer grind on vegetables and a more coarse grind in pastes, tapenades, sauces, etc… this just gives a better mouthfeel, too.)

To stockpile your spice arsenal you’ll want to include these “must-haves’ for the sweeter side of life – cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, vanilla extract and orange peel. The counterpoint, savory side of things will beg for the standards of rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, tarragon, paprika, sage, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, savory and parsley. These spices should cover most basic recipes for a beginning cook. There will, of course, be an occasional newbie that pops in when you’re testing a recipe but that’s when you’ll be so excited to add another spice to your collection and put another notch on your cooking belt.

After having honed your cooking skills you’ll likely find that you prefer fresh herbs to their dry counterparts and then you’ll wander into a host of other spices, flavors and herbs far beyond these here, who are called upon more often than not to perform with their lovely, fragrant flavors. Once you have, you will definitely need a larger kitchen and a spice rack much like mine.

Remember my food philosophy - “Variety, flavors & herbs are the spices of life. ™“

Spice Rack in My Eclectic Kitchen

Citrus Sugars

Zest of 1 lemon and 1 orange *
1 cup granulated sugar

Place the sugar in a bowl of a mini food processor. Zest the lemon and orange using a zester. Scrape the zest into the sugar in the processor. Process for 15 – 30 seconds to blend.

Store tightly sealed in a glass jar. If the sugar hardens, a fork can break it up before using it.

* You can substitute 2 vanilla pods – split in half and place them in a sealed glass jar filled with sugar. Shaking every few days to distribute. Vanilla sugar will be ready to use in 3 weeks.

Munch Brothers» cinnamon

Pistachio Nut Recall – Find a Resource for Safe Pistachios

Eclectic Kitchen™: A Spice of Life