Corn based anti-bacterial film wrap

Filed under: Science, Health & Medical

The wonders of modern science never cease to amaze me (and I am not being sarcastic, this time). A scientist at the US Department of Agriculture in Wyndmoor, PA may have an answer to some of our food-borne illness woes.

Tony Jin has created a biodegradable plastic film which has "a natural antimicrobial agent called nisin". Mr Jin claims, and is backed up by testing, that the film kills bacteria that cause Listeria, Salmonella, and E.coli. The film is made from renewable resources like corn residue. It would be used in packaging to wrap meat and line drink containers.

I think this anti-bacterial film wrap sounds promising. I never know quite what to make of this kind of invention. There have been so many innovations that have sounded great in the beginning, but turned into real disasters. If the corn-based plastic wrap really can kill harmful bacteria, and it is implemented, I hope that it is one for the "win" column.

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Pasta with cauliflower and toasted breadcrumbs

Filed under: Dinner, Recipes, On the Blogs, Roasting, Comfort Food

You probably won't win any nutrition awards for this meal (its painfully whitish-tan color reminds us that there aren't many rich nutrients hidden in the dish), but no matter - it's still a delicious dinner choice for meat eaters and veggies alike.

The recipe does call for anchovy filets, so simply omit those if you're a vegetarian (unfortunately, though, anchovies are known to produce a certain je ne se quoi in foods that is hard to reproduce). But there's nothing wrong with a simple pasta and cauliflower dish, too.

One of the keys to this recipe is the roasted cauliflower - you cook them until they're just browned, which is sure to bring out their best flavor. And don't forget the parmesan cheese at the end for an added salty kick.

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Quick & Easy Indian Cooking, Cookbook of the Day

Filed under: Books, Cookbook of the Day

Before I spent a year living with an Indian roommate, I had always though of Indian food as something you only ate in a restaurant. I was intimidated by the spices, the toasting and grinding, and the general foreignness of it. However living with Madhu for 11 months made me far more comfortable with Indian food, and when he moved out, I decided that I needed to get an Indian cookbook to continue my education.

Standing in the aisles of the bookstore, I settled on this volume, Quick & Easy Indian Cooking, by the first lady of Indian cookbooks, Madhur Jaffrey. I've found this book to be totally accessible and written in a voice that invites you to continue reading, even after you've studied the recipe you're planning for that moment. Everything I've made has turned out well and has been so delicious that I was momentarily stunned that I had produced it in my own kitchen. If you want to explore Indian cooking, this book is a great starting place.

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Butternut reduction like you've never seen it before

Filed under: Vegetables, Television/Film, On the Blogs

I am going to have "butternut reduction" stuck in my head all day. I don't want to be singing alone, so I had to share this video with all of you. It's called "Akon Calls T-Pain" and it's brought to you by Super Deluxe.

Anyone want some lime on a steak soaked in wine?

[via Gut Check]

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Where Microsoft and Yahoo! Can Beat Google (pfblogs.org)

With the acquisition of Yahoo by Microsoft looking ever more likely, it's time for the future combined entity (yes, that's right - MicroHoo) to face reality. If the purpose of the merger is to beat Google at search, then it will fail. Google has won the search wars - get over it. Google is now the web's default home page and every potential competitor needs to accept this and figure out how to co-exist. Does this mean MicroHoo is doomed to failure? No - not if they focus their resources in the right areas. If MicroHoo lets Google own search, it opens up the rest of the web to compete in and dominate. Here are the three most important steps MicroHoo needs to take: Stop producing content. As CNET has learned, producing content is expensive and the margins are horrible. Google does not have writers, editors and producers on staff. Google seeks to organize the web's content, not produce it. Both Microsoft and Yahoo have lots of people generating content and as long as resources are going into this area, MicroHoo's margins will never get close to Google's. Instead of producing the content internally, focus on becoming the platform on which users generate their own content. Both Microsoft and Yahoo have jumped on the user generated content bandwagon to a ...

Mea Culpa, But the Fed's Still Unsure About Equities (pfblogs.org)

Macro Man submits: We all make mistakes. One of the benefits of blogging is that when you make one, you tend to have it pointed out to you. A couple of days ago, Macro Man ran a chart purporting to show the close relationship between the Fed custody holdings for foreign central banks and the trajectory of the S&P 500. The chart generated a fair amount of commenting in the comments section of the post, in Macro Man's email box, and elsewhere in the blogosphere. The substance of this comment was "that's not right." So Macro Man went back and checked...and it turns out it wasn't right. Mea culpa. [Editor's Note: this post has been corrected here.] One of the problems with following so many self-calculated indicators is that you sometimes forget which is which. Thursday's chart showed total central bank Agency and Treasury holdings at the Fed, both for the Fed's own account and on behalf of foreign central banks. Obviously, the alphabet soup of measures taken by the Federal Reserve has reduced its holding of Treasuries on its balance sheet, thereby exerting a negative influence on the indicator in the published chart.Complete Story » ...

Homebuilders Emerge From the Penalty Box (pfblogs.org)

Daniel Andres Jacome submits: Amid increasing cancellations, declining land balances, and shrinking cancellations, something funny is going on among the nation's homebuilders: their stocks are going up! We view these stocks as "canaries in the coal mine" and just as they first signaled how bad things were going to get last summer, they may be telegraphing an improvement in the broad market. Many homebuilders have "V bottomed" and unless it is a cosmetic relief rally induced by gleeful short covering, the recent sponsorship behind these stocks is impressive. Fist, a word on the major index: Although the Dow is still well under the 200 moving day average, the MACD reading shows the first climb above zero since right before the Dow topped north of 14,000 in the early Fall. We attribute the latest relief rally to the fact that people simply "feel better" about stocks right now and shorts are winding positions, even as headline after headline continues to evade negativity. A 5.1% unemployment rate, a legion of write offs among financials, and sordid home sale data is not enough to wreak havoc across the tape, apparently. Complete Story » ...

Debt Consolidation

Tip! Go with a company that has a good reputation. Don’t assume that every non-profit company is necessarily going to look out for your interests more than a for profit debt consolidation company.

Debt consolidation programs are devised to make a family that is struggling with the heavy monthly payments debt free in the quickest and most inexpensive manner. Debt consolidation combines all the debts and lowers the monthly charges resulting in savings. If one has got the approval for the loan, then he/she needs to make only a single monthly payment that is then distributed to all the creditors. Even the interest amount that one will pay is low when compared to the higher interest rates on all the previous debts. The borrower can plan the loan for 3 to 5 years.

One can use online debt consolidation services by the companies like the ADNS group of the National Legal Debt Centers, CareOneCredit, FamilyCreditHelp, and DebtAdvocatesOfAmerica. The different debt consolidation tips that need attention are as follows. The borrower needs to renegotiate with the primary lender if his payment is going to be late or if he is struggling with payments. The borrower should not avoid lender’s phone calls, as this will create negative impact on his creditworthiness. Otherwise the borrower can approach Credit Counseling Agency, profit or non-profit, which helps him in achieving control on his credit and also in getting low interest based debt consolidation loan.

Tip! Sort the debts. You should physically put them into two piles: one for monthly bills you can’t do anything about and one for other (these will end up being bills eligible for debt consolidation).

The borrower needs to pay a fixed amount every month to the agency that in turn divides the amount among all the creditors. Another option is transferring all the credit card balances to one credit card that charges no or low interest for a period of time. One more option available in the hands of the borrower is taking loan against life insurance policy, retirement loans or a home equity loan provided the borrower has own home. Under home equity loan, the borrower can avail of refinancing facility on the house owned by him. Generally Credit Unions offer low interest loans for debt consolidation. Debt consolidation information is available online through many Internet sites.

Debt Free provides detailed information about being debt free, debt counseling, and more. Debt Free is affiliated with Company Debt Management Relief.

Tags: money, debt, debt consolidation, get out of debt, bankruptcy

Tags: debt consolidation, consolidation,, debt consolidation loans, loans, money

PRETZELS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was watching "The Office," which is beyond excellent, and Michael, the boss, is all "Soft Pretzel Day." It's about 2:30 in the morning, I have an exam the next day, and all I can think is mmmm preztels. Pretzels are freaking awesome. So I looked up some recipes online and here we go: You need: 4 1/2 cups of Flour (

Posted in H0w 2 k00k Foodz ( 0 links from 0 sites)

Sale on Javelin complete bikes

Just got this email, looks like some good deals to be had. I'm sure, though, that inventory will be limited.

 

For all Team Javelin members and their friends – Javelin Cycles is having a fantastic inventory closeout sale. Javelin has priced their complete bikes to move.Suggested Retail PriceCloseout PriceMULTI-SPORT BIKESNarni$1900.00$799.99Varese$1600.00$549.99Sizzano$1200.00$449.99ROAD BIKESFara$1600.00$599.99Garda$1150.00$349.99Parma (w/aero bars)$ 950.00$224.99CHILDREN’S BIKEDolce$650.00$299.99

When you buy two bikes, sent to the same address, shipping is free.For more information and to buy a bike, please call Dave or Geoff at Javelin, 847.526.0100. Quantities are limited so call soon.

Running in the rain

For years whenever it rained, I used that a use that as an excuse to either not run or run on the dreadmill.  But in recent years I've gone running in the rain and now I think the most perfect running weather is when there is a slight drizzle!  It is drizzling rain here in north Alabama and I think today is the best running weather day of 2008 so far!    I was time limited today as I was on my lunch break but I felt like I could have run all day!  Man it felt good out there!!!  So if any of you shy away from running in the rain, try it....you might like it!~Mike