Portions

Do you read? Oh of course you do, but I mean…

That is the proportion measurements, serving sizes, on foods that we make in our own homes.

Odd how when the boys, our sons, were home that I just would go right ahead and make enough for our family of four without a second thought and rarely would we have any leftovers, especially when they, the boys, were teenagers, ya know? And then they were active, athletic, slender muscular, surfers, water-skiers, beach volleyball kids! We all were very healthy and active and slender.
But in this day and age it appears from this night’s experience that it’s not only fast food restaurants that are super-sizing, oddly enough pasta box instructions proportions also have been!

Hubby bought, per my request, the no-egg noodles, a bit healthier supposedly, and I have been known to add them to my homemade soups, but tonight they were to become our side dish with a bit of jazzing up spice wise to go with a meat leftover and peas.

I read the instructions, i.e. serving suggestions, perhaps for the first time, I know, a new experience, for someone who was a restaurateur and a cooked, never a chef, for the establishment, not to mention also over all those years of cooking for a family and husband and large family holiday dinners of twenty to thirty people and that one time backyard bash with sixty! Not to mention catering, which we did do while in business...

The kicker was that according to the instructions a single portion was a dry unit of a cup and a half, not what it would yield, and so logically I put in three cups, for two portions that sounded additionally correct? It did look like it was too much, but I thought maybe my eye was not seeing the directions right, who knows… (Odd if I had not read it I probably would have eyeballed it as considerably less.)

It must have meant/said invisibly that whatever that was not written as a measurement to prepare the item was left up to you and left up to one’s imagination or that we should be able to do reverse mathematics, if a cup and half was the finished serving portion, than “what was in a name of the game, do you cook to make it come out to that? I’ll take PORTION CONTROL for two hundred Alex.”

Algebraic problem: 1 and 1/2 yielded finished proportion X= raw?

Leftovers are not what they used to be.

These days, sadly, many are forgotten about until some appear as science experiments, pushed to the rear of the frig and by then they really stink, figuratively and literally, ya know?

Food is way too costly to waste or throw out, but sometimes we have no other choice, ya know, or we seriously could compromise our immune systems?

So what does any of this teach us, hmm?

Sometimes ignorance can be BLISS?

Nah, never, but I will tell you one thing… even with just one working, sort of, baby blue, eye that is, I will from now on and forever use my own judgment and eyeball what looks just right for my Hubby and I to ingest into our delicate digestive systems, and continue to subscribe to the food safety mantra “when in doubt throw out!”

Actually, what they teach you is not more than three days on most leftovers and make sure that when you reheat them to take them up to a safe temperature to kill any possible bacteria!

”How To Use Leftovers Safely Following information is from A Rutgers Cooperative Extension Fact Sheet Leftover" foods are cooked foods that you or your family do not eat within 2 hours after they are cooked. Leftovers include foods that you may eat before or after they have been stored in the refrigerator or freezer. The chance of food poisoning increases the longer you store a food after it is cooked. Improper handling or storing cooked food is one of the most common causes of food poisoning in the home. The careful cook can reduce this threat by following the guidelines below for storing, reheating, and disposing of leftover foods.   How To Store Leftovers All cooked foods should be reheated to 165° F, refrigerated, or frozen within 2 hours after cooking. In hot weather, that time limit is only 1 hour. Remember that the "safe" period starts after the food is cooked. It includes the time that the food sits before being served and the time it sits on the table while the meal is being eaten. This period lasts until the food is actually in the refrigerator or freezer. Remember to wash your hands with soap and water before handling any cooked food, especially food you store to eat later. Use clean utensils to handle the food, and store it in clean containers. Do not put food back into the same container it was in before it was cooked, unless you have carefully cleaned the container with soap and water. Do not place food on a counter or cutting board before refrigerating or freezing, unless you have carefully cleaned the surface beforehand. You should place foods to be refrigerated or frozen in small, shallow containers, 3 inches tall or less, and cover them completely. Don't stack these containers right next to other containers, but leave some air space around them. By using shallow containers and by leaving air space around the containers you can promote rapid, even cooling of the food. When you refrigerate or freeze cooked food in a large, deep container, the food in the center of the container remains warm for a longer time. Dangerous bacteria may grow in this warm spot without making the food look or smell bad. If you eat this food later, you may get food poisoning. Never taste leftovers that are of questionable age or safety. As a general rule, never keep leftovers for more than 4 days. Remember to remove the stuffing from cooked poultry and refrigerate or freeze it separately. You should do this because the stuffing in the center of the bird can stay warm long enough for food poisoning bacteria to grow. By removing the stuffing and placing it in its own container, you allow it to cool more rapidly. If you date leftovers before refrigerating them, this can help you ensure they don't remain in your refrigerator too long. Warming Leftover Foods When leftover foods are reheated; make sure you heat them completely. Leftovers that are merely "warmed" and not heated throughout are much more likely to cause food poisoning. Cover any leftover sauces, soups, gravies, and other "wet" foods, and heat them to a rolling boil before they are served. Heat all other foods to 165° F throughout. Be sure to stir foods while you reheat them, to ensure that all the food reaches the appropriate temperature. Throwing Away Leftovers When leftovers have been in the refrigerator too long or if they look or smell unusual, throw them out! Anytime you are in doubt about the freshness or safety of any food, dispose of it. This is especially important for leftover foods. Dispose of any potentially unsafe food in a garbage disposal or a tightly wrapped package, so that it cannot be eaten by other people or animals. If you follow these suggestions for handling leftover foods safely, you will improve the safety of your family's food. Food poisoning is a preventable tragedy, and you can prevent it by following these simple guidelines for handling leftovers safely.”

For more info goto: http://whatscookingamerica.net/Poultry/leftovers.htm

 Another good site for more info: http://www.ehow.com/how_2301308_reheat-leftovers-properly-prevent-food.html

With the holidays coming up so very soon and family gatherings, it is always nice to be prepared for any and all possibilities and tips are usually welcomed so those were some of mine.

On that upbeat note, allow me to be the very first to wish all of you a very happy good night and ask you to kindly count all of your blessings and share those overages with you know who and we will too!

And next time please be here or be square, ya hear!

Update: I am happy to say I seem to be feeling a little bit better today.

The weather here in south west Florida was outstanding today and so we turned off the air-conditioning and opened the windows for a few hours with seventy-five degree Fahrenheit temperatures and at that time forty-five per cent humidity, but it did go down even further to twenty-nine percent, while they were still open!  I suppose that we have jumped into our dry season, although we are not officially out of Hurricane/Rainy season until the end of this month!

Oh, with all that fresh air percolating through our home it made me tired and so a nap was in order and yes, I did manage about a half an hour, and that was oh so refreshing!