Lak Air picnic

[aplumma]

It's that time of year were we will all be living out of coolers and cooking on Coleman stoves. It is also the time of year were food poisoning is easily commited.... So here are a few guidelines for food safety Preparing food safely Also if you need to store something cold or use a stove please see someone at cabin 11 we can label it and keep it in the refrigerator or i am sure others in cabins can help do the same.

 

Wash hands before handling food and use clean utensils and containers. Dirty hands, utensils, containers and any work surfaces can contaminate food with harmful bacteria and viruses.

Do not prepare foods more than one day before your picnic unless it is to be frozen. Cooking foods in advance allows for more opportunities for bacteria to grow. Cooked foods need to be rapidly cooled in shallow pans. Spread the food out in as many pans as is needed so that food is no more than two inches deep. Over 67% of reported cases of food borne illness are due to improper cooling. Frozen foods can be used if thawed in the refrigerator.

 

Mayonnaise-based foods need to be kept cold. Mayonnaise alone is too acidic for bacteria to grow in it. However, when mayonnaise is mixed with other foods, (particularly those that have been handled a lot and/or are protein foods), bacteria can grow if this mixture is kept too warm.

 

Cut melons need to be kept cold. Many people do not realize that melons, such as watermelons and cantaloupe, can cause food borne illness. Bacteria, such as Salmonella and Shigella (common causes of food borne illness), are often present on the rind. Therefore, wash melons thoroughly before cutting then promptly refrigerate cut pieces. Melons, unlike most other fruits, are not acidic and so can support the growth of harmful bacteria.

 

Packing for safety

Keep cold food cold. Keep cold food at 40 F or colder to prevent bacterial growth. To do so, pack cold foods in a sturdy, insulated cooler with plenty of ice or frozen gel packs. Freeze your own blocks of ice in milk cartons or plastic containers for use in the cooler. Put cold foods in water-proof containers or wrap in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and completely immerse in the ice inside the cooler. If using frozen gel packs or containers of homemade ice, place them between packages of food. Never just set containers of food on top of ice.

The trunk of your car can reach temperatures of 150 F so it is best to transport coolers in the passenger area of the car. When you arrive at the picnic site, put a blanket over the cooler and place it in the shade to maintain cold temperatures. Keep the cooler closed until ready to use the contents.

 

Keep hot food hot. Keep hot foods at 140oF or hotter to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria. Take-out foods or foods cooked just before being transported to the picnic can be carried hot. Wrap hot food in towels, then newspaper, and place inside a box or heavy paper bag. Keep these foods warm on a lit grill or use within one hour.

 

If you cannot keep cold food cold and hot food hot, take foods that do not need refrigeration:

 

peanut butter sandwiches

dried fruit, nuts, unpeeled fresh fruit -- apples, oranges, bananas

jelly sandwiches

unopened cans of food, meat, fish or fruit

cookies and cakes

crackers

Wash your hands. Pack moist towelettes if you think your picnic site might not have hand washing facilities available. Hands carry harmful bacteria and viruses that contaminate food and cause illness.

Pack plenty of utensils and dishware. Never use the utensils and dishware that have touched raw foods, such as meat, fish and poultry, to store fresh or cooked foods unless they have been washed between use. Juices from some raw foods contain harmful bacteria that can contaminate other foods and cause food borne illness. Because proper washing might be difficult at a picnic, pack extra plates and utensils to prevent cross-contamination. Better yet, consider using disposable plates.

 

Cooking food at the picnic

Wash hands before handling food and use clean utensils and containers. Dirty hands, utensils, containers and any work surfaces can contaminate food with harmful bacteria and viruses.

Thoroughly cook food all at one time. Never partially cook food, let it sit, then finish cooking it later. This provides conditions that allow harmful bacteria to grow and possibly form toxins. (Toxins are poisons formed by some bacteria.) Some toxins are not destroyed by cooking, so reheating the food later will not make it safe.

 

Cooking at the picnic. Whether cooking indoors or outside on a grill, meat and poultry must be cooked thoroughly to ensure that harmful bacteria are destroyed. Grill raw poultry until the juices run clear and there is no pink close to the bone. Hamburgers should not be pink in the center.

 

Serving

Keep cold foods cold during serving the meal. Do not let cold foods sit out for more than one hour. Any leftovers should be put back in the cooler right after they are served. The longer foods are held at unsafe temperatures the more likely that bacteria can grow and cause food borne illness.

Keep hot foods hot during serving the meal. Cooked foods are just as perishable as raw foods, so once grilled foods are cooked do not let them sit out for more than one hour. Plan preparation so food is eaten shortly after it is cooked.

 

Prevent contamination. Keep foods covered to prevent contamination by insects. Many insects can carry harmful bacteria and viruses on their bodies.

 

Handling leftovers

Because most picnic leftovers have been sitting out for more than one hour and have had many people handling them, throw them out. The more time that food has been sitting at unsafe temperature, the more likely harmful bacteria has grown.

Cold foods kept in a cooler that still has ice may be safe. If the ice is melted, throw out the food. Cold water cannot keep foods cold enough to be safe.

 

 

Thank you for reading this notice and not poisoning the nice rednecks this year.

 

Art

Edited June 7, 2008 by aplumma

[snag]

Thank you for reading this notice and not poisoning the nice rednecks this year.

 

If GCD got sick, it was from drinking Canadian beer that actually contains alcohol.

 

 

His complaints of "hot-flashes" were just a lame excuse to disrobe.

[TJQ]

Good advice... so give all your tainted food to the plummas.... its always nice to have to poops on a 36 hour drive home...

 

sagely advice aplumma.. i think ill pin this for a couple of days for ya....

 

... any hangover tips????

[Greencoachdog]

... any hangover tips????

 

Never sober up!

[Beans]

400*F isn't cold...I oven bake my fish at that temp...

 

1400*F...1500*F...We use to stress-relieve welded vessels at lower temps when I worked at Toronto Iron Works...

[Greencoachdog]

If GCD got sick, it was from drinking Canadian beer that actually contains alcohol.

His complaints of "hot-flashes" were just a lame excuse to disrobe.

 

 

I didn't get sick last year, and y'all can have my share of that beer junk!!! I'll be drinkin' the dark run with those funny talkin' British fellers!

 

There very little disrobing for the Dawg up there!!! If it aint colder'n a well diggers butt, those damn blood thirsty skeeters, deer flies, and horse flies will eat you alive up there!!!

 

Usually a couple layers of clothes on me up there... plus the bug suit in the evenin's.

[Greencoachdog]

I would like to pass on a food consumption tip for Rednecks and Coonasses.

 

I personally will be passing on foods prepared with fresh uncooked vegatables and/or mayonnasie.

 

My highly delicate Redneck gizzard isn't used to the Canadian water used to wash the fresh uncooked veggies (salad) and mayonnaise left unchilled in warm weather can go bad very quickly!!!

 

It would be my luck that everyone else would eat these things and be perfectly fine and I would be crapping thru the eye of a needle at 50 paces!

 

Choose the food you put on your plate wisely!

Edited June 5, 2008 by Greencoachdog

[aplumma]

I would like to pass on a food consumption tip for Rednecks and Coonasses.

 

I personally will be passing on foods prepared with fresh uncooked vegatables and/or mayonnasie.

 

My highly delicate Redneck gizzard isn't used to the Canadian water used to wash the fresh uncooked veggies (salad) and mayonnaise left unchilled in warm weather can go bad very quickly!!!

 

It would be my luck that everyone else would eat these things and be perfectly fine and I would be crapping thru the eye of a needle at 50 paces!

 

Choose the food you put on your plate wisely!

 

 

This from the man who eats roadkill possum......

 

Art

[Greencoachdog]

This from the man who eats roadkill possum......

 

Art

 

 

At least I don't eat Bowfin roe and call it caviar like the Coonasses do!!!

[aplumma]

At least I don't eat Bowfin roe and call it caviar like the Coonasses do!!!

 

 

Bowfin eggs on grits with a little squirrel grease is just plum good eattin. bud. It,s got the heck beat out of squished possum liken you'll alabanana folks eat.

 

Art

[Greencoachdog]

Bowfin eggs on grits with a little squirrel grease is just plum good eattin. bud.

 

Art

 

A catfish wouldn't even eat that stuff!!!

[JohnF]

This from the man who eats roadkill possum......

 

Sho'nuff, but asphalt down in them sothren climes must be dang near hot enuf fer all roadkill to be well done.

 

JF

[camillj]

Jeeze GCD ... you gonna miss out on all the bo-bo-tayteee ????

 

I cant believe a little rot-gut will ever keep you from the sweetest tater-salad ... besides .. its very slimming

 

One of these years Im gonna haffta git my butt up there too