Grocery shopping tips during Coronavirus quarantine #3

[mickey2942]

At my last produce pick up, almost 2 weeks ago, there was a spaghetti squash. My youngest is not feeling well so, I ask her if she’d like me to do a bit of food prep for her. She’s sitting in my sewing room on my laptop doing an online something or other for school.

I cut the squash in half and thought wow this knife is just gliding thru this. I split it apart and think, Hmm I don’t remember them having seeds like this. As I’m scooping out the seeds, it gets juicy. I notice it smells sort of like honeydew. Then my hands start itching where the juice has dripped on them.

Lightbulb goes off!!! Yeah I know, I’m slow. Holy Melon!!! I’m allergic to melons, as in I carry an epi pen, just because of them!! Holy $!&/!$@ Batman!!! :-o

I immediately wash my hands like 3 or 4 times. Red skin but no blisters and other just about flippin out, my breathing is ok. My face isn’t swelling and my eyes aren’t itching. I’ll live, even tho I felt dumb as hell.

Needless to say, I’ve never in my life seen a yellow melon. Honeydew is green.
My kid comes out of the room and I say by the way, that’s NOT a spaghetti squash! She is just as shocked as me. She puts it in a big baggie and washes up everything for me. She says well that sure looks like a squash!

So her dinner is ruined. I rummage thru the fridge and cabinet, looking for something, besides lettuce, that I can feed her. Finally, I said ok if you can wait a bit, I will make some potato soup. She said that sounded better anyway since she’s not feeling great.

She was stressed over this exam tomorrow and it was comforting to have soup. I had just happened to pick up a pkg of GF rolls thinking that would be good to go with her squash. Anyway, I sent her home with the rest of the soup.

Lordy, a food fail yesterday. Good grief. How did I not know there were yellow melons??? Food allergies suck.

Terrible!

I had never had a mango, before I went to Florida. I had one at a friend's house, and all of the sudden, the inside of my mouth started to itch, the inside of my throat felt scratchy, then, I started having problems breathing.

I found out that I am allergic to mangoes. Fortunately, my friend is a nurse, and gave me Benadryl, I started to feel better immediately.

Mangoes are related to Poison Ivy..who knew?

Poison Ivy and Mango Allergy

 

[Auntie Cipation]

@PayrollNerd remember back in the '70s (I think) there was that trend of funny photos with one food inside the skin of a different food?

That's what you've got there -- a honeydew melon inside the skin of a spaghetti squash.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Terrible!

I had never had a mango, before I went to Florida. I had one at a friend's house, and all of the sudden, the inside of my mouth started to itch, the inside of my throat felt scratchy, then, I started having problems breathing.

I found out that I am allergic to mangoes. Fortunately, my friend is a nurse, and gave me Benadryl, I started to feel better immediately.

Mangoes are related to Poison Ivy..who knew?

Poison Ivy and Mango Allergy

It’s really scary to have a reaction. That’s why I’m so allergic to melons. The vine of poison ivy. I didn’t realize until just months ago that mango was the same way. Blistered my arm immediately.

If I get poison ivy again, it could kill me. I nearly died in 2002. I think I have epi pens stashed in every room, every coat pocket, every bag, etc. They give me 2 new ones every year. But you don’t throw away the old ones. As they age, they may not be 100% effective but the little bit of effectiveness, could save your life.

 

[PayrollNerd]

@PayrollNerd remember back in the '70s (I think) there was that trend of funny photos with one food inside the skin of a different food?

That's what you've got there -- a honeydew melon inside the skin of a spaghetti squash.

Exactly!! Mother Nature is keeping me on my toes!!

 

[acutename]

At my last produce pick up, almost 2 weeks ago, there was a spaghetti squash. My youngest is not feeling well so, I ask her if she’d like me to do a bit of food prep for her. She’s sitting in my sewing room on my laptop doing an online something or other for school.

I cut the squash in half and thought wow this knife is just gliding thru this. I split it apart and think, Hmm I don’t remember them having seeds like this. As I’m scooping out the seeds, it gets juicy. I notice it smells sort of like honeydew. Then my hands start itching where the juice has dripped on them.

Lightbulb goes off!!! Yeah I know, I’m slow. Holy Melon!!! I’m allergic to melons, as in I carry an epi pen, just because of them!! Holy $!&/!$@ Batman!!! :-o

I immediately wash my hands like 3 or 4 times. Red skin but no blisters and other just about flippin out, my breathing is ok. My face isn’t swelling and my eyes aren’t itching. I’ll live, even tho I felt dumb as hell.

Needless to say, I’ve never in my life seen a yellow melon. Honeydew is green.
My kid comes out of the room and I say by the way, that’s NOT a spaghetti squash! She is just as shocked as me. She puts it in a big baggie and washes up everything for me. She says well that sure looks like a squash!

So her dinner is ruined. I rummage thru the fridge and cabinet, looking for something, besides lettuce, that I can feed her. Finally, I said ok if you can wait a bit, I will make some potato soup. She said that sounded better anyway since she’s not feeling great.

She was stressed over this exam tomorrow and it was comforting to have soup. I had just happened to pick up a pkg of GF rolls thinking that would be good to go with her squash. Anyway, I sent her home with the rest of the soup.

Lordy, a food fail yesterday. Good grief. How did I not know there were yellow melons??? Food allergies suck.

Canary melon - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Canary_melon
The Canary melon (Cucumis melo (Inodorus group)) or winter melon is a large, bright-yellow elongated melon with a pale green to white inner flesh. This melon has a distinctively sweet flavor that is slightly tangier than a honeydew melon. The flesh looks like that of a pear but is softer.

Canary Melon Information and Facts - Specialty Produce
specialtyproduce.com › produce › Canary_Melon_4681
Description/Taste. The Canary melon is oval-shaped, with a smooth skin. When the melon is ripe, its hard rind turns bright yellow, it develops a corrugated look ...

but no personal knowledge- hate melons- blech but not allergic

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Has anyone tried Beyond Meat products? Nino's has been featured all Beyond Meat products for 20% off the last couple of weeks. I'd like to try something but don't know what I should get. Any suggestions? The only meat-replacement foods that I've had previously are Morningstar Farms (black bean burger patties, sausage links, etc.).

Quoting myself to report on Beyond Meat experience. We had a 1# package of "ground" Beyond Meat in the freezer for a couple of weeks and thawed it in the fridge overnight for burgers yesterday. I wasn't in the kitchen when DH opened the package and formed two 5" patties. He said, "I hope this tastes better than it smells." He seasoned the burgers with salt and pepper and grilled them for 7 minutes on the first side, flipped them, dotted mine with crumbled blue cheese, and grilled them another 5-6 minutes. We put the patties on toasted English Muffin bread and added sliced tomato, butter lettuce, and mayo. When cut in half, the burgers looked medium rare and juicy. The texture is nice, and the "meat" is actually quite flavorful, but someone who expects a medium rare ground round burger would not be a happy camper. I think the ground meatless product could easily be used in dishes that include ground meat, i.e. Bolognese sauce, chili, Sloppy Joes, shepherd's pie, etc., but the product is pricey.

DH and I have hair, manicure/pedicure appointments this afternoon and will get takeout for dinner. Beautiful salmon from Costco tomorrow.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I think the "spaghetti squash" could be Casaba melon.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Canary melon - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Canary_melon
The Canary melon (Cucumis melo (Inodorus group)) or winter melon is a large, bright-yellow elongated melon with a pale green to white inner flesh. This melon has a distinctively sweet flavor that is slightly tangier than a honeydew melon. The flesh looks like that of a pear but is softer.

Canary Melon Information and Facts - Specialty Produce
specialtyproduce.com › produce › Canary_Melon_4681
Description/Taste. The Canary melon is oval-shaped, with a smooth skin. When the melon is ripe, its hard rind turns bright yellow, it develops a corrugated look ...

but no personal knowledge- hate melons- blech but not allergic

That’s it!! Thank you! I snapped a picture of it before my daughter wrapped it up. That way we can refer back to it. I had to add that to my allergy list so all my doctors know, my kids, my friends..... sheesh.

 

[acutename]

Quoting myself to report on Beyond Meat experience. We had a 1# package of "ground" Beyond Meat in the freezer for a couple of weeks and thawed it in the fridge overnight for burgers yesterday. I wasn't in the kitchen when DH opened the package and formed two 5" patties. He said, "I hope this tastes better than it smells." He seasoned the burgers with salt and pepper and grilled them for 7 minutes on the first side, flipped them, dotted mine with crumbled blue cheese, and grilled them another 5-6 minutes. We put the patties on toasted English Muffin bread and added sliced tomato, butter lettuce, and mayo. When cut in half, the burgers looked medium rare and juicy. The texture is nice, and the "meat" is actually quite flavorful, but someone who expects a medium rare ground round burger would not be a happy camper. I think the ground meatless product could easily be used in dishes that include ground meat, i.e. Bolognese sauce, chili, Sloppy Joes, shepherd's pie, etc., but the product is pricey.

DH and I have hair, manicure/pedicure appointments this afternoon and will get takeout for dinner. Beautiful salmon from Costco tomorrow.

have not eaten meat since 2011- BK used to serve a Morningstar veg burger
which I would occasionally get when pressed to eat fast food; it was relatively healthy, not too $$$ and full of fiber. In came the Beyond Meat burger which is all they have at BK now. It is calorific and pretty high in fat and cholesterol and it costs $7... no bean fiber and it is supposed to look like bloody meat to appease carnivores. To my mind, if you are eating Beyond Meat, maybe you should just eat meat because it does not have any nutritional advantage over meat. IMHO. Not sure if it is acceptable to people who do not at meat for religious reasons.

 

[Tbone144]

I was part of the rolling blackouts in SE TX and when we went to the grocery I was stunned at the lack of vegetables in the store. I joked previously about trying new recipes (like roasted parsnips and pears..yum) because there would be a lack of vegetables available if/when it hits the fan. With the trucks not running I got to see it first hand. There were a couple of bags of cranberries, some bok choy, Brussel sprouts, lots of cucumbers (apparently not a fav when your house is freezing cold), celery root and a couple of bunches of parsley. Everything else was gone. Even the bagged salads were gone except the kale salads. I bought bok choy and made some Dan Dan mian noodles with it which turned out really well and then got some celery root to make a celery root, celery and apple slaw, that turned out really well too. There was also no bread and no milk so I went home and baked some loaves with the bread machine for the guys at work with families. Eggs I’m always flush in, thank you chickens and ducks and geese. Learning to try new things really helped with the lack of choices. I’m not a Brussel sprout fan but I’ve learned I like them deep fried with sriracha Mayo or cooked with bacon and shallots.

 

[acutename]

That’s it!! Thank you! I snapped a picture of it before my daughter wrapped it up. That way we can refer back to it. I had to add that to my allergy list so all my doctors know, my kids, my friends..... sheesh.

I would think that FL is probably full of unusual tropical fruit- it is warm and then close to the Caribbean and influenced by Cuban culture and maybe some latin cuisines...

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

have not eaten meat since 2011- BK used to serve a Morningstar veg burger
which I would occasionally get when pressed to eat fast food; it was relatively healthy, not too $$$ and full of fiber. In came the Beyond Meat burger which is all they have at BK now. It is calorific and pretty high in fat and cholesterol and it costs $7... no bean fiber and it is supposed to look like bloody meat to appease carnivores. To my mind, if you are eating Beyond Meat, maybe you should just eat meat because it does not have any nutritional advantage over meat. IMHO. Not sure if it is acceptable to people who do not at meat for religious reasons.

I can't tell you when I last had any type of fast food, but I have had Morningstar Farms black bean burgers. Haven't bought them in years because DH isn't crazy about them. Beyond Meat burger definitely looked like a medium rare burger, but it doesn't taste like meat and never will. I noticed the high calorie count and gave up trying to read through the lengthy ingredient list. The product is too expensive for what it is, and I probably wouldn't get it again even if it's specially priced.

 

[JDG]

I know when I last had fast food.

Today! Had an early and busy morning, so treated myself to a McD BLT meal and it was scrumptious!

Must admit that since finding a drive through McDs not too far away, I have been tempted a few times lately.

We have tried some vegan 'meat' in the past and it was not very good taste wise, disappointing to say in the least.

That was quite a few years ago though, maybe its improved but dont think I'll be trying it.

One of my Grandmas was a true vegetarian and I spent a lot of time with her as a child so am somewhat informed as to how to get all your nutrients from a vegetarian diet.

She always made fudge for me, so she was my 'special' grannie. lol

ETA: the other grannie was just as 'special' but she lived across the seas in Europe.
She sent me a lot of British chocolate bars and The Girls Annual. (Book)

 

[acutename]

I know when I last had fast food.

Today! Had an early and busy morning, so treated myself to a McD BLT meal and it was scrumptious!

Must admit that since finding a drive through McDs not too far away, I have been tempted a few times lately.

We have tried some vegan 'meat' in the past and it was not very good taste wise, disappointing to say in the least.

That was quite a few years ago though, maybe its improved but dont think I'll be trying it.

One of my Grandmas was a true vegetarian and I spent a lot of time with her as a child so am somewhat informed as to how to get all your nutrients from a vegetarian diet.

She always made fudge for me, so she was my 'special' grannie. lol

ETA: the other grannie was just as 'special' but she lived across the seas in Europe.
She sent me a lot of British chocolate bars and The Girls Annual. (Book)

do not think McD makes a BLT here...

 

[JDG]

do not think McD makes a BLT here...

I'm in Toronto and they make it with either chicken or a quarter pounder burger. I have the quarter pounder BLT.

Totally delicious and real veggies.

 

[LadyL]

Has anyone tried Beyond Meat products? Nino's has been featured all Beyond Meat products for 20% off the last couple of weeks. I'd like to try something but don't know what I should get. Any suggestions? The only meat-replacement foods that I've had previously are Morningstar Farms (black bean burger patties, sausage links, etc.).

my husband LOVES the burgers (I don't)
they're expensive
I can't remember if we've had any of their other products
I think I ordered the sausages a couple times and they were sold out

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Nino's is featuring red peppers this week, so I am making Chicken Paprikash tonight. Asparagus has also been on sale, so we have a lot in the fridge. I found a recipe for ham & asparagus chowder that I think I'll make on Monday. I haven't made homemade soup since Christmas when I used leftover prime rib in mushroom barley soup. Temps are beginning to warm up in these parts, but it's still winter - soup weather.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

I

Nino's is featuring red peppers this week, so I am making Chicken Paprikash tonight. Asparagus has also been on sale, so we have a lot in the fridge. I found a recipe for ham & asparagus chowder that I think I'll make on Monday. I haven't made homemade soup since Christmas when I used leftover prime rib in mushroom barley soup. Temps are beginning to warm up in these parts, but it's still winter - soup weather.

I am making soup today as well, using some sweet meat squash from last summer's garden.

 

[mickey2942]

I

I am making soup today as well, using some sweet meat squash from last summer's garden.

Must be the day for soup. I cleaned out the fridge today, the crockpot is going with veggies and a lone kielbasa.

Reviewed our stock of canned foods, I really did not overstock excess when people were hoarding. Noticed a huge amount of toilet paper at Costco the other day, "No Limit" sign...LOL!

I did buy powdered milk, wasn't sure we would be able to get fresh milk. There hasn't been a problem though.

Signed up for CSA, Community Supported Agriculture again.

 

[Yesiamapirate]

Must be the day for soup. I cleaned out the fridge today, the crockpot is going with veggies and a lone kielbasa.

Reviewed our stock of canned foods, I really did not overstock excess when people were hoarding. Noticed a huge amount of toilet paper at Costco the other day, "No Limit" sign...LOL!

I did buy powdered milk, wasn't sure we would be able to get fresh milk. There hasn't been a problem though.

Signed up for CSA, Community Supported Agriculture again.

It is soup day! Bean soup here.
And I signed up for our CSA today as well.