Newsletter. February 2015

Transcription

1 Newsletter February 2015 Cooperative Extension Service Wayne County 255 Rolling Hills Blvd. Monticello, KY (606) Fax: (606) Dear Homemaker, Can you believe it s already the second month of the new year? The cold temperatures make me anxious for spring to arrive. We have so much to look forward to in the coming year. If you haven t already, mark your calendar for the Annual Meeting Planning Committee this Thursday, February 5 at 5:30 p.m. We will meet in the board room and will be serving a light meal. Be thinking of ideas on a theme for this year s meeting. Remember, we re celebrating 65 years of Homemakers! Also, if you re planning on participating in the Cultural Arts and Heritage Creative Writing Contest, entries are due to the KEHA Cultural Arts Chairman by March 1 so they will have to be post marked before then. Guidelines and a release form for the contest are enclosed in this newsletter. We had great participation in the Cultural Arts Contest that was recently held. If you received first place in any category, please return the winning items to the Extension Office by February 13 at 4:30 p.m. so that they can be taken to Cumberland County on February 17 for the Area Cultural Arts Competition. Good luck to each of you! Cooperative Extension Agent for Family & Consumer Sciences JGP/clm All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt. - Charles M. Schulz FEBRUARY Roll Call: What is the name of your first love? Thought for the Month: Your love is filled with wonderful ingredients: sharing, caring, supporting, laughing, crying, simply being together; make each day a loving one. Congratulations to Monica Hopper for winning the Homemaker Scholarship! We wish her all the best as she furthers her education!

2 Preserve Some Sunshine This Winter! Last summer s canning season may be over, but you can brighten up gray winter days with homemade marmalade. Use it to bring some sunshine to your own breakfast, or share the goodness with friends and family. This recipe from the National Center for Home Food Preservation does not need added pectin to gel, because citrus fruits contain enough of their own natural pectin. Citrus Marmalade Ingredients: ¾ cup grapefruit peel (from 1 grapefruit) ¾ cup orange peel (from 1 orange) 1/3 cup lemon peel (from 1 lemon) 1 quart cold water pulp of 1 grapefruit pulp of 4 medium-sized oranges 2 cups boiling water 3 cups sugar To prepare fruit: Wash and peel the fruit. Be sure the peel has some of the white membrane found just under the skin of the fruit. This is where most of the pectin is found. Cut peel in thin strips into a saucepan. Add cold water and simmer, covered, until tender (about 30 minutes). Drain. Remove seeds and membrane from peeled fruit. Cut fruit into small pieces to make pulp. To make marmalade: Sterilize 4 half-pint canning jars by boiling for 10 minutes. Prepare two-piece canning lids according to manufacturer s directions. Combine peel and fruit in a saucepan. Add boiling water and sugar. Boil rapidly over high heat, stirring frequently, until gelling point (220 degrees F) is reached, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Skim off foam. To preserve marmalade: Pour hot marmalade into hot, sterile jars, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel. Center lids on jars and apply screw bands fingertip tight. Process jars in a boiling water bath canner for 5 minutes at altitudes up to 1,000 feet. Add 1 minute to the processing time for each additional 1,000 feet of altitude. Yield: about 3 or 4 half-pint jars Nutrition Information (1 tablespoon): 50 Calories, 0 g fat, 13 g carbohydrate, 0 g protein For more information and recipes for safe home canning, visit the National Center for Home Food Preservation website at or contact Jody Paver at the Wayne County Extension Office ( ; 255 Rolling Hills Blvd.) Reference: National Center for Home Food Preservation. (2014, January 13). Brighten up your days with marmalades. Retrieved October 3, 2014, from preservingfoodathome.com/2014/01/13/brighten-up-your-days-with-marmalades/ Source: Debbie Clouthier, Extension Associate for Food Safety and Preservation, University of Kentucky; College of Agriculture, Food and Environment Legal and Financial Planning for Alzheimer s Disease - March 16, 1-3 p.m. This program is being held at the Pulaski County Senior Citizen s Center (125 University Drive, Somerset, KY). It will provide valuable information to families and individuals dealing with Alzheimer s disease and other forms of dementia about how to plan for legal and financial needs. Issues such as powers of attorney, guardianship, and handling the finances and property of a person with dementia will be discussed as well as some assistance programs you may benefit from. *Educational programs are provided by the Alzheimer s Association. To register, call or infoky-in@alz.org.

3 Easy Meatloaf Ingredients: 2 pounds lean ground beef 2 eggs, beaten 1 sleeve saltine crackers, crushed 1 medium onion, chopped 2 cups medium salsa Directions: 1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 2) In a large bowl, mix the beef, eggs, crackers, onion and 1 cup of salsa. 3) Press into greases 2 quart casserole dish or 10 inch iron skillet. 4) Top with remaining salsa. 5) Bake for 1 hour. Slow Cooker Version: 1) Spray slow cooker with vegetable spray. 2) Mix beef, eggs, crackers, onion and 1 cup salsa. 3) Shape into a loaf and place in slow cooker. 4) Top with remaining 1 cup salsa. 5) Cook 6-8 hours on low setting. Makes 8 servings Serving size: 1/8 loaf Nutrition facts per serving: 170 calories; 6g total fat; 2g saturated fat; 0.5g trans fat; 100mg cholesterol ; 550g sodium; 5g carbohydrate; 2g fiber; 3g sugar; 24g protein; 10% Daily Value of vitamin A; 2% Daily Value of vitamin C; 0% Daily Value of calcium; 10% Daily Value of Iron Make it a Meal: Slow cooker meatloaf, steamed broccoli, baked sweet potato, whole grain roll, low-fat milk Food and Nutrition Calendar - Kentucky Favorites Source: Sarah Brandyl, Extension Specialist, University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service Presidents Day - February 16 Presidents Day is an American holiday celebrated on the third Monday in February. Originally established in 1885 in recognition of President George Washington, it is still officially called Washington s Birthday by the federal government. Traditionally celebrated on February 22 Washington s actual day of birth the holiday became popularly known as Presidents Day after it was moved as part of 1971 s Uniform Monday Holiday Act, an attempt to create more three-day weekends for the nation s workers. While several states still have individual holidays honoring the birthdays of Washington, Abraham Lincoln and other figures, Presidents Day is now popularly viewed as a day to celebrate all U.S. presidents past and present. Source: Blood Drive - February 17 The next community blood drive will be held at the Extension Office (lower level) from 12 noon-6 p.m. Clubs to work the drive: Odds & Ends 11:45-3:00 (Town and Country Plaza marquee sign) and Busy Bees 3:00-6:15 p.m. It is important to have one or two people from your club to work. Bring 3 dozen homemade or deli cookies, or something good for donors to eat. ALL Homemakers are asked to tell others about the drive anyway you can. Remember that you can earn Homemaker bucks by volunteering to work the blood drive!

4 Evaluating Your Health Insurance Needs The purpose of insurance is to protect against the unknown by providing financial security when the unexpected happens. Many people receive health insurance through their employers, but individuals who are selfemployed, retired or who have too little or unaffordable coverage should purchase insurance on their own. Many employers, as well as kynect, Kentucky s health benefit exchange, offer open enrollment periods at the beginning of the calendar year. Open enrollment is the time period when you can make changes to your current health insurance coverage. Employers open enrollment periods may end at different times, the kynect open enrollment period ends February 15, Before purchasing health insurance, it may be helpful to consider what you need or want in a health insurance plan. There are several types of coverage that vary in the cost, deductible and level of coverage they provide. Consider the following when determining which level of coverage is the best for you: * Think about the medical services you and your family have used over the last year. It may be helpful to go through an actual calendar month-by-month to help you remember medical expenses. Estimate the number of times that you or your family experienced routine doctor visits, sick doctor visits, urgent treatment center visits, emergency room visits, women s care visits and hospital stays. * Be sure to include the expenses that occur every year, such as a child s sports physical or an annual flu shot. It is difficult to plan for all medical events, such as a broken arm on the playground or a heart attack, but having a baseline for how you use medical services is important in picking a plan that will work best for you and your family. * Consider your current family situation to anticipate any significant changes that may occur within your family over the next year or two. Do you expect a pregnancy or a child who may soon drop from your health plan? Do you already care for a chronic disease such as diabetes? * Review your finances and monthly budget. Do you have a savings account or emergency fund in place to help pay costs associated with co-payments, deductibles and coinsurance? Consider your comfort level. Would you rather pay more per month in premiums, but less in other costs when you use medical services? Or, would you prefer paying less per month, realizing that your co-payments and deductible costs will most likely be higher? These factors will impact the type of health insurance you buy. For example, if you typically only go to the doctor a few times a year, you may prefer a low monthly premium, but you will most likely pay a higher copayment and/or deductible when you do visit the doctor. On the other hand, if you anticipate using medical services often, you may prefer a lower deductible and/or co-payment at the time of your appointment, but your monthly premium will be higher. Although buying health insurance can be intimidating, using the steps outlined above can help you evaluate your family s needs. Identifying your specific wants and requirements in terms of a health insurance policy will help you make a better decision when comparing the healthcare options available to you and your family. Source: Jennifer L. Hunter, Extension Specialist for Family Financial Management and Laura Frey, LMFT, Ph. D. Candidate, Department of Family Sciences; University of Kentucky; College of Agriculture, Food and Environment

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