It's a Sandwich in a Can!

I just stumbled upon a piece of preparedness gold! In this month's Utah Business Magazine there is an article about the Utah based company, Mark One Foods. The company sells the Candwich; a sandwich in a can! The company's website says, "the Candwich has a long shelf life that is perfect for emergency food storage needs in the event of natural disasters." In other words the Candwich will make a perfect addition to your 72-hour kit. Thank you Utah for again showing me the goodness of being prepared! Canned PBJ here I come!

A Safe Cook is a Happy Cook!



Bobby Flay's Pumpkin Pie



This Thanksgiving, I am going to be baking pie after pie after pie. As an aspiring chef or maybe just a Food Network junkie I have been gathering recipes and doing some pre-Holiday research. Research that includes baking, testing, and tasting; starting with a pumpkin cheesecake I made this weekend with every intention of giving away. I caved in and decided I needed to make sure it tasted good before giving as a gift. I'm not sure why I thought it would taste bad what with all the cream cheese, sour cream, butter and graham crackers. It was delicious and I highly recommend it as an addition to your Holiday feast. Click here for Paula Deen's recipe. 

My research will continue this week as I decide which recipe/concotion to bring to my family's Thanksgiving dinner. Next on the agenda is Bobby Flay's Pumpkin Pie with cinnamon crunch and bourbon maple whipped cream. This recipe will put my baking skills to the test, but if you are familiar with Bobby Flay and his show on the Food Network called Throwdown, you know that this recipe is a winner. If you care to try it out, click here.

While I will not be cooking the turkey this year, I have been reading about and watching all the ways to cook your bird. Paula Deen reccomends frying it; Alton Brown says to roast it, and Anne Burrell brines her turkey.

Which ever way you decide to cook your turkey this year and whatever pie you decide to bake, the American Red Cross wants you to stay safe in the kitchen. Thanksgiving is the peak day for home fires; 90% of those fires are caused by unattended cooking. So stay in the kitchen, avoid loose fitted clothing, and keep kids away from the stove and oven. For more tips for safe cooking click here.

Happy cooking!

Youth Council Raises $4,000 for the Measles Initiative

Yesterday the American Red Cross Youth Council concluded their fundraising efforts for the Measles Initiative. The Youth Council learned about the Measles Initiative and the combined efforts of the Red Cross, the CDC, UNICEF, UN, and WHO. They knew they had to help children all over the world dying from this preventable disease. The youth volunteers sold pins for $1 each to their friends, family, and classmates. For each pin purchased, a child in a developing country will be vaccinated for measles. Measles is a terrible illness that kills an estimated 450 people each day.

Over the past two weeks Youth Council members have been selling pins like crazy! About $4,000 pins were sold which means that many young children will have the chance to live another day and receive such an important vaccination.

The youth members had a great time counting money last night and celebrated their success with ice cream sundaes. Check out these photos from their celebration last night!

Holiday Time Already??

This weekend at the Gateway, store fronts had been decorated with Christmas trees, and red and green were prominent colors in every window. Holiday music was playing over the loud speakers, and holiday sales were posted on big signs to draw consumers in. It's hard not to get sucked in to the gift buying/gift giving that is the Holiday season. Pretty sweaters draw you to their cashmere softness. Fifty percent off is just too hard to say no to. And the smell of fresh pine, mixed with "Jingle Bell Rock" makes using that plastic card on shirts, shoes, and holiday trinkets easy as pumpkin pie.

However, as I walked the streets looking in every window, seeing men, women and children walk out with their arms full of bags, I decided to make myself a little promise. (I'm always making promises on this blog, promises to update my 72-hour kit, to make sure I change the batteries in my smoke alarm, etc. And so far I have held my word!) I have been working with the Development team a lot lately with our upcoming Heroes event (more info to come!) last month's Gala in Ogden, and more recently the Holiday Giving Campaign.

With the Red Cross Holiday Giving Campaign, your gifts this Holiday can take the form of many things to support the mission of the Red Cross. For example for $50 you can purchase a full day of emergency shelter for a victim of a disaster in the name of a family member, friend, or loved one. Or for $18 you can purchase 3 blankets to keep disaster victims warm in the middle of the night. Or for $30 you can provide water containers for 6 families in International Disasters.

So next time you brave the winter weather to take a Holiday shopping excursion, keep in mind that while sweaters go out of style and wreathes wither, blankets and water for disaster victims, can go a long way.

Use your Extra Hour to Prepare!!

This weekend we will mysteriously go back in time... That's right the weird phenomenon of Daylight Savings, practiced in every state but Arizona and Hawaii, occurs this Sunday morning. How will you use your extra hour? Will you sleep the hour away? Will you finally have time to clean house? Or will you take that hour and prepare?

The Red Cross recommends that you take this time to update your 72-hour kit. Check the food in your kit, is it about to expire? Does it look a little sketchy? Do the batteries in your flashlight still work? Do you have all important documents and some extra cash? Use your extra hour to check. Here's a list of items we recommend you have.

And while you're at it, check the batteries in your smoke alarms and make sure there is one on every floor of your house and in every bedroom. If you decide to replace your smoke alarms all together, make sure you don't put the old ones in your attic like Phil Dunphy did on Modern Family last night. Because when you hear that chirp, not only is it highly annoying, it also means you could be in danger if there is a fire in your house. For more preparedness tips check out www.utahredcross.org/prepare