Month: May 2019

DYK~ Why Do We Pour Milk On Our Cereal?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/foodnews/the-reason-why-we-pour-milk-over-cereal/ar-AABCTHz?ocid=spartandhp

Jake Rossen

a plate of food: The Reason Why We Pour Milk Over Cereal

© iStock.com/tomasworks The Reason Why We Pour Milk Over Cereal

Sometimes, if a movie or television show wants to communicate how unusual a character is, they’ll depict them pouring a box of cereal into a bowl and then adding some kind of disgusting liquid—orange juice, water, coffee, possibly alcohol. This is an easy way to illustrate someone’s eccentricity because everyone knows only milk goes in cold cereal. With no exceptions. Even warm milk, which a small number of individuals enjoy, has to be more palatable than the alternatives.

But is milk the acceptable choice for cereal because it’s the best, or because of something else? Is there a reason we don’t simply drown Frosted Flakes in water and call it a day?

The state of our cereal bowls can be traced to the origins of cereal itself. Back in the mid-1800s, Americans were enjoying very hearty breakfasts of bacon, eggs, meat, and other foods that could easily show up on their dinner plates. Many complained of gastrointestinal upset, a condition that health experts (many of them self-appointed) began to refer to as dyspepsia. This ill-defined malady was thought to be the result of consuming massive meals in the morning. Advocates argued that breakfast should be lighter and healthier, comprised of what they considered simple and easily digestible foods.

One such proselytizer was James Caleb Jackson, a vegetarian who ran a sanitarium called Our Home on the Hillside in Dansville, New York. At the time, sanitariums for health were considered retreats and a way to adopt healthier eating and exercise habits. Jackson was a follower of Reverend Sylvester Graham, the inventor of graham crackers and a man who believed the crackers could help curb sexual appetites that flamed in the meat-eating population. In the 1870s, Jackson began to market a product he called granula—graham flour that was baked, crumbled, and baked a second time. The tiny pebbles of flour were hearty and filling.

There’s some debate over whether it was Jackson or his mother, Lucretia, who actually came up with granula. In her son’s newsletters dating back to 1867, Lucretia published recipes for what amounted to the same thing. But whichever Jackson came up with it, there was a problem: Eaten dry, the granula was like trying to swallow construction rubble. In the newsletter, Lucretia cautioned that the cereal had to be soaked in milk or warm water, presumably to make it palatable. Other accounts of granula have consumers soaking it in milk overnight in order to make it chewable. People sometimes referred to it as “wheat rocks.”

Granula developed a following, but it wasn’t until another sanitarium owner named John Harvey Kellogg mimicked the recipe that it truly caught on. Kellogg, who owned the Battle Creek Sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan, offered granula for its purported health benefits but referred to it as granola to avoid any legal entanglements with Jackson. By 1889, Kellogg was selling two tons of granola a week. By 1903, more than 100 cereal companies were operating out of Battle Creek. Kellogg, of course, became famous for his far more appealing Corn Flakes (which he invented because he thought they would curb masturbation).

Even as cereal became more processed and softer, the tendency to soak it in milk never left the public consciousness. Milk was the perfect way to add moisture to the dry food without turning it into a completely soggy mess. Like cereal, milk was also synonymous with health, full of vitamins and calcium. In a 1922 newspaper ad for Corn Flakes, Kellogg’s exhorted the wonders of the combination, offering that:

“With cold milk and luscious fresh fruit, Kellogg’s are extra delightful—so crisp, and appetizing.”

One scientific study published in the Journal of Food Science in 2011 even found that the fat in milk attached itself to the surface of cereal, helping to ward off moisture and keep cereal crunchier for longer than if it were immersed in water.

Of course, milk is no longer required to soften the bricks Lucretia and John Jackson were peddling. Culturally, we’re still predisposed to keeping milk and cereal part of a two-hand breakfast option. Had Lucretia advocated for coffee, orange juice, or something else, things might have turned out differently. And much soggier.

    Unbaked Strawberry Keto Muffin

    keto muffin
    https://www.wickedstuffed.com/keto-recipes/unbaked-strawberry-muffin-keto-low-carb/?utm_source=Keto-Paleo+Recipes+From+Wicked+Stuffed&utm_campaign=aa26396a0e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_05_10_07_26&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_2b7f6bf403-aa26396a0e-366499501

    If you love fresh strawberries, this unbaked strawberry keto muffin dessert is a small but extremely filling morsel of sweetness that will curb any dessert cravings.

    Ingredients

    • 1 oz. cream cheese
    • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
    • 1 tbsp Stevia Blend + 1 tbsp hot water, mixed (or 2 tbsp sugar-free vanilla syrup)
    • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
    • 1 tbsp coconut flour
    • 2 tbsp almond flour
    • 3 chopped strawberries

    Instructions

    1. In a mug, melt cream cheese and butter in the microwave (or in a saucepan if you prefer).
    2. Add Steviva Blend, hot water, and vanilla extract and mix.
    3. Add the coconut flour and almond flour and mix again.
    4. Finally, add in chopped strawberries and mix into a dough, then enjoy!

    Road~ Podcast poem by MwsR

    www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-bif3u-b2514b

    Sunshine Blogger Award Accepted

    Thank you Vicklea https://vicklea.com/author/vicklea/. Check out her page for inspiration and a closer fellowship with God.

    My questions for my nominees:

    1. If you are a Christian, tell your testimony of meeting the Lord as you Savior.

    I was a church goer since childhood, from as far as I can remember. it was at church camp one year, that I asked Jesus into my heart. He has walked with me evr since. Sometimes I run off and leave him but he is always there, when I turn around and look for him. Thank God.

    2. What is the most important thing that you possess? My soul.

    3. Who is the most influential person in your life? My husband and God.

    4. What is your favorite bird or flower? Daisy and a Blue bird.

    5. What motivates you to get up every morning? My need to survive and do something.

    6. What is your favorite kind of music to listen to? Any that speaks to my soul and mind.

    7. How did you meet your best friend? I do not have one best friend. I have many I cherish and love.

    8. Are you a more logical person or more artistic? Equally both.

    9. What do you do to relax? Music and outside just enjoying nature.

    10. If you could change one thing about your life, what would it be and why? I would of walked away from my toxic childhood and found help from someone who cared.

    11. If you could take a walk anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?I would love to walk along the most beautiful places in the world, no one particular comes to mind.

    Note to my nominees: Don’t feel pressured to participate, but if you choose to do so, have fun with it!

      321 Quote Me Challenge Accepted

      321 Quote Me – Expression

      ***

      Thank the Selector

      Post 2 quotes for the dedicated Topic of the Day.

      Select 3 bloggers to take part in ‘3.2.1 Quote Me!’

      ***

      Thank you for nominating me http://gravatar.com/ghostmmnc! I do love me some quotes.

      I nominate~

      https://www.artpens.net/

      http://indianeskitchen.wordpress.com

      http://popsiclesociety.wordpress.com/

      EXPRESSION (Topic)

      “If you have the words, there’s always a chance that you’ll find the way.”
      ― Seamus Heaney

      Seamus Heaney


      “If we don’t believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don’t believe in it at all.”
      ― Noam Chomsky

      Noam Chomsky


      “When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.”
      ― Ansel Adams

      Ansel Adams


      “Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.”
      ― Sigmund Freud

      Sigmund Freud
      Continue reading 321 Quote Me Challenge Accepted

      Quote~Memorial Day

      See the source image

      Memorial Day Facts

      Interesting Memorial Day Facts:
      The true origins of who held the first Memorial Day celebration is a debated subject.
      Approximately 620,000 soldiers on both sides died during the Civil War.
      The Grand Army of the Republic was created by the Union Army to honor their dead. After World War I the American Legion took over their duties.
      Congress passed a law in 2000 that requires all Americans to stop what they are doing at 3pm on Memorial Day to remember and to honor those who have died serving the United States. President Clinton signed this action.
      The flag is supposed to be flown at half-mast until noon, and then raised to full mast until sunset on Memorial Day.
      The tradition of wearing red poppies on Memorial Day originated from John McCrae’s 1915 poem In Flanders Fields. In Canada they wear red poppies to honor their soldiers on Remembrance Day in November each year.
      Although not as popular today, one tradition was to eat a picnic meal while sitting on the ground of a cemetery. There are still some people in the rural areas of the South that continue to practice this tradition.
      It’s common for volunteers to place the American flag on graves in the national cemeteries. Memorial Day is also a popular day for people to visit cemeteries and honor those who have died while serving in the military.
      It’s estimated that approximately 32 million people travel by car over Memorial Day weekend.
      Memorial Day also marks the beginning of the summer vacation season while Labor Day marks the end.
      In some areas of the rural South, they hold annual Decoration Days around this time for certain cemeteries, often in the mountains.
      Memorial Day is sometimes confused with Veterans Day. However, Veterans Day honors all United States military veterans, while Memorial Day honors the soldiers who died while serving.
      In 1966, President Johnson named Waterloo, New York as the original place of Memorial Day.
      There were more American lives lost during the Civil War then the two World Wars combined. Approximately 620,000 died during the Civil War while approximately 116,516 died in World War I and approximately 405,399 died in World War II.
      There are more than 300,000 fallen soldiers buried at Arlington Cemetery. On average, there are 28 burials there each day.
      Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia celebrate Confederate Memorial Day. These are former Confederate states, and they celebrate on various other days ranging from January 19th to June 3rd.
      In 2012 there was a movie made called Memorial Day. John and James Cromwell and Jonathan Bennett starred in the film. The story revolves around a 13 year old boy who finds his grandpa’s footlocker from the 2nd World War.
      Continue reading Memorial Day Facts

      You’ll want to clean this…

      Your Keyboard

      You probably type on your computer every day, so it’s no wonder that the thing is crawling with bacteria. According to a 2018 study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, it may even be teeming with staphylococcus aureus, which can cause potentially-serious infections in humans.

      So, make sure to get out any grime lurking between your keys with a computer duster, and give your keyboard a daily cleaning with an electronics-safe cleaner or rubbing alcohol, making sure not to saturate the cloth you’re applying it with.

      Your Bed

      While washing your bedsheets and pillowcases every day may be overkill, it’s important to clean up your bed on a daily basis for both your mental and physical wellbeing. A 2016 study by Amerisleep found that your pillowcase alone has three million bacteria per square inch by the end of a single week, with that number jumping to 11.96 million by the end of a month.

      On top of that, traditional detritus, from dead skin to hair to crumbs, can make it less comfortable to sleep, leaving you tossing and turning at night. So, at the very least, you should wash your bedsheets once every seven days. And to really keep your sleeping space in top shape, This Is Why You Need to Change Your Pillow Immediately.

      Your Water Bottle

      Any attempts to improve your health by carrying a reusable water bottle might just backfire if you’re not cleaning it on a daily basis. Research published in the Annals of Civil and Environmental Engineering in 2017 revealed that the average amount of bacteria in adults’ reusable water bottles was 75,000 per milliliter. If left uncleaned, that number had the potential to reach up to two million per milliliter within a single day.

      If you want to keep your bottle clean, just make sure to empty the water bottle at the end of every day and wash it with a mixture of antibacterial dish soap and hot water. Or, if you have one, just pop it in the dishwasher. And if you want to reduce the growth of bacteria in the first place, try copper bottles, which have a naturally antimicrobial effect.

      Your Rings

      Your wedding ring’s primary purpose is to serve as a symbol of your commitment to your spouse. But it’s also apparently a breeding ground for some seriously gross bacteria.

      In 2009, researchers at the University of Oslo discovered that wearing rings increased the total number of bacteria on healthcare workers’ hands. In fact, individuals wearing rings were twice as likely to have Enterobacteriaceae (a group that includes E. coli and salmonella) on their hands than those who didn’t wear jewelry. Fortunately, simply putting those rings in a mixture of hot water and antibacterial dish soap or jewelry cleaner can help reduce the bacterial load. And for more surprising sources of germs, you’ve been warned that These Places in Your Home Are Dirtier Than Your Toilet.

      Your Phone

      Hundreds of times each day, you touch your phone—or hold it to your face. Needless to say, the thing could certainly use a regular cleaning. So, just how dirty is your device? According to a 2017 study of healthcare workers’ phones published in the Iranian Journal of Micobiology, 46 percent of participants had six different types of bacterial growth on their phones. Acinetobacter baumannii, a major source of infection in hospitals, and antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus aureus were among the most common.

      However, a simple wipe down with a cloth dampened (not drenched) with rubbing alcohol can quickly kill much of the unwanted bacteria on your phone. And if you need help putting down your device,

      Your Steering Wheel

      Before going out for a drive, you might want to consider wiping down your steering wheel first. A recent study from CarRentals.com revealed that the average steering wheel harbors 629 colony-forming bacterial units per centimeter—four times the amount found on an average public toilet seat! The solution? Give your wheel a wipe-down with an antibacterial cleanser, change your filters regularly, wipe down your vents, and vacuum your car often.

      Your Coffee Cup

      Microbiologist Dr. Charles Gerba told Time that approximately 20 percent of coffee mugs harbor fecal bacteria, and it gets worse: The amount they carry can grow significantly if you’re only rinsing them out instead of giving them a thorough cleaning.

      To keep the growth of bacteria at bay, put your cup in the dishwasher or wash it with hot water with antibacterial dish soap using a dish brush that’s been recently sanitized. And about those dish brushes and sponges…

      Sponges

      Sponges aren’t exactly spotless—actually, far from it. You may use them to clean your dishes and wipe down your countertops, but if you’re not cleaning your dish sponge on a daily basis, all you’re doing is spreading germs around your house. According to research published in the International Journal of Food Microbiology in 2003, kitchen sponges are frequently contaminated by pathogens like E. coli and salmonella. And you can easily transfer these potentially harmful bacteria onto other surfaces when you use them to clean.

      Fortunately, killing the bacteria on your sponge is relatively simple: Just pop it in the dishwasher for a full wash and dry cycle and you’ll have killed about as many pathogens as any cleaning method can. According to Good Housekeeping, you can also disinfect your sponge in the microwave. Simply saturate the sponge in the microwave with water, then heat it on high for one minute to two minutes. And for more ways to clean up your act in the kitchen,

      Your Remote Control

      If you want to keep your home a whole lot cleaner, make a point of wiping down your remote controls at the end of every day. Research presented at the 2012 General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology revealed that remote controls are the most germ-laden items in hotel rooms, with fecal bacteria appearing on 81 percent of remotes studied. Luckily, all it takes is a little rubbing alcohol on a clean cloth—or even just an antibacterial wipe—to kill most of those icky germs.

      Your Kids’ Bath Toys

      Just because they spend their time sitting in suds doesn’t mean bath toys are clean as a whistle. Think of it this way: Bath toys actually spend a good portion of their day soaking in bacteria-laden water. Research published in Biofilms and Microbiomes in 2018 revealed that 58 percent of bath toys contained fungi, while one-third of bath toys had both listeria and L. pneumophila bacteria, the latter being a primary cause of Legionnaires’ disease.

      Doorknobs

      If you think those people using their elbows or paper towels to open doors are being paranoid, think again. According to a 2012 study published in the Continental Journal of Medical Research, among 180 door handles and knobs swabbed by researchers, nearly 87 percent had bacterial contamination, with 30 percent testing positive for staphylococcus aureus, 16 percent testing positive for E. coli, and 26 percent harboring Klebsiella pneumoniae, bacteria associated with the development of pneumonia and bronchitis.

      To get them clean, make sure you’re running them through a sanitizing cycle in your washing machine and thoroughly drying them.24/26 SLIDES© Provided by Best Life

      Your Shower Head

      If you think that your shower head is a self-cleaning entity, you’re sadly mistaken. In fact, to keep everyone in your household healthy, it’s well worth it to wipe your shower head down with an antibacterial cleaner or bleach solution on a daily basis. So, what do you risk if you choose not to? Well, research published in 2018 by the American Society for Microbiology links the bacteria commonly found on shower heads to an increased risk of respiratory illnesses.

      Bath Towels

      Just because your bath towels dry off your supposedly-clean body doesn’t mean they’re clean themselves. Dr. Gerba’s research indicated a 90 percent rate of coliform bacteria contamination on bath towels, with approximately 14 percent of the towels harboring E. coli.

      That’s because the warm, moist air in your bathroom is the perfect environment for such bacteria to multiply, and, if you’re sharing towels, you can also pass along conditions like ringworm and impetigo. To ensure your towels are clean and ready for use, wash and thoroughly dry them on high heat to beat any lingering germs.

      Loofahs

      Exfoliate with a loofah and you could be adding more bacteria to your skin’s surface than you’re sloughing off. An oft-referenced 1994 study published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology revealed that loofahs carry—deep breath—pseudomonas, xanthomonas, klebsiella, enterococcus, and group B streptococcus bacteria. And since loofahs are made of natural material, rendering them difficult to disinfect, you’re better off with a regularly-laundered washcloth or exfoliating silicone mitt (which can be sterilized with boiling water).

      Your Bathroom Sink and Counter

      You use your bathroom sink to wash your face and brush your teeth, but if you’re not cleaning it or its surrounding counters on a daily basis, you could be doing yourself a disservice.

      According to recent research conducted by TravelMath, bathroom counters in hotel rooms harbored an average of 1,288,817 colony-forming bacterial units—and they’re cleaned professionally on a regular basis. That means your home sink could have even more bacteria. Still, there’s no huge need to fret: A daily wipe down with a bleach-and-water solution can kill off those bad bacteria in an instant.

      Those germs you’re washing off your hands aren’t necessarily going straight down the drain; many stick around your sink trap. According to research published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology in 2018, the source of an outbreak of antibiotic-resistant bacteria at an Israeli hospital was traced back to the facility’s sink traps. Running water caused the bacteria harbored therein to become airborne.

      To keep this from happening at your home, clean your sink with antibacterial cleansers on a daily basis, or make your own bleach-and-water solution to pour down the drain.

      A “clean shave” may not be as clean as you think. A 2019 study found that beards contain “significantly higher” amounts of bacteria than dogs, including potentially-harmful varieties, like staphylococcus aureus. When you shave, some of those bacteria are transferred onto your razor, and your bathroom’s frequently-damp environment creates the perfect atmosphere for them to multiply.

      So, how do you take care of this potentially-infectious problem? Replace those blades regularly and give your razor a soak in a solution of half white vinegar, half water to kill off any lingering bacteria.

      Your Toothbrush

      You use your toothbrush to clean food particles, plaque, and other grime off your teeth, so it should come as little surprise that it’s a hotbed of bacterial activity. A review of research published in Nursing Research and Practice in 2012 suggested that toothbrushes are routinely contaminated with things like staphylococcus aureus, E. coli, and pseudomonas. On top of that, traditional storage techniques, like putting a toothbrush on a bathroom counter or covering it with a cap, increase bacterial growth.

      However, there’s a simple fix right in your bathroom: Soaking your toothbrush in antibacterial mouthwash can significantly decrease its bacterial load.

      Your Kitchen Counters

      To put it simply, chances are high your kitchen countertops are disgusting. According to 2011 research from the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), kitchen counters are among the dirtiest parts of a house, with more than 30 percent of counters harboring potentially-harmful coliform bacteria.

      However, a little soap and water, followed up with a diluted bleach solution, can ditch those germs once and for all

      Dishes

      If you want to keep your whole house cleaner, it’s important to not let dishes languish in your sink for days at a time. The combination of food particles and warm water in your sink create the perfect breeding ground for bacteria. In fact, the NSF found that kitchen sinks had the second highest bacterial concentrations in the whole home.

      So, whenever possible, scrape your plates and load them directly into the dishwasher or wash them by hand immediately after use. Then, make sure to wipe down your sink with an antibacterial cleaner or a mixture of bleach and water when you’re done.

      Cutting Boards

      Leaving those just-used cutting boards out on the counter without washing them is a recipe for bacterial growth. According to a 1997 study at France’s National Center for Veterinary and Food Studies, there’s a wealth of bacteria clinging to your cutting board—especially if it’s a wooden one. Worse yet, common means of removing food from cutting boards, like scraping, only gets the bacteria to burrow deeper. So, be sure to hand-wash your cutting boards on the daily!2

      Dish Towels

      If you’re not washing your dish towels every day, you could be putting yourself at risk for illness. Since they’re regularly used to dry hands, clean up countertop spills, and wipe down surfaces, dish towels pick up huge amounts of bacteria on a daily basis. The NSF even listed them as the most germ-laden item in a typical home, sharing the top spot with kitchen sponges.

      To get them clean, make sure you’re running them through a sanitizing cycle in your washing machine and thoroughly drying them.

      Your Windowsills

      Anyone who enjoys keeping their windows open on a temperate spring day would be wise to give their windowsills a daily wipe down. Open windows can contribute to higher-than-average indoor pollen levels. Considering that ragweed pollen season is increasing in duration across the U.S. and that there’s been a potentially-related uptick in environmental allergies and asthma, it’s important to keep any surfaces that could harbor high pollen counts clean.

      Your Cat’s Litter Box

      Keeping your pet comfortable and healthy means more than supplying treats and belly rubs. If you have a feline friend in your house, it’s important that you keep their litter box clean by scooping it on a daily basis. If you don’t, you’re not only potentially creating a source of stress for your cat, you may be inadvertently encouraging them to treat anywhere else in your house—from carpets to cardboard boxes—as their de facto litter box instead. We needn’t explain how gross—and unhealthy—that could get.

      Your Coffee Maker

      If you’re using your coffee maker every day, you should be cleaning it every day, too—just like you would any other food preparation tool. The reservoir in coffee makers takes the fifth spot on the NSF’s household germs list; its dark, damp environment is a perfect breeding ground for mold and bacteria.

      To keep it clean, run a vinegar and water solution through it. And then use the same solution to wipe it down when you’re done using it for the day. And for more ways to get your home seriously spotless,

      Your Bathroom Sink and Counter You use your bathroom sink to wash your face and brush your teeth, but if you’re not cleaning it or its surrounding counters on a daily basis, you could be doing yourself a disservice.

      Continue reading You’ll want to clean this…