Tell when fruit or veggies are ripe for the picking!



Have you ever bought a fruit or vegetable from the store and hoped it was a juicy or ripe as the display? I do it all the time. Especially with melons. I will be enticed by the sweet aromas and delicate tastes. I go to reach for it and buy them immediately. I get home and cut it up only to find out that it’s underripe. How disappointing. I have heard of myths and suggestions about feeling the fruit and sniffing the roots and pressing here and there, blah blah blah. If you are not a produce manager or farmer you will be just as disappointed as I am, being unable to tell when its perfect.

Well what if I told you that there will be a way for you to know exactly when fruits and veggies are right for the picking, would you say tell me more?

A University of Arizona professor invented a sticker called RediRipe stickers that will tell you if a fruit or vegetable is ripe for the picking. The stickers will be available to growers next year and could end up in our supermarkets within two to three years, said Mark Riley, a UA assistant professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering.
A marker on Riley’s RediRipe stickers can detect a chemical called ethylene gas, which is released by fruit or vegetables as they ripen.

So when they ripen, the sticker turns from white to blue.

The more ethylene gas the fruit produces, the darker the blue, Riley said.

The color shift doesn’t happen immediately once a sticker is attached. It can take anywhere from about 24 to 48 hours, depending on how fast the fruit is ripening, Riley said.

But hold on, there are some kinks still, These stickers do not change color if fruit is overripe or rotten. Also, not all fruit produces enough ethylene to be detected by the sticker, said Jim McFerson, manager of the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission, a growers’ research group that helped sponsor the research.

“There is still a lot of research to do,” McFerson said.

Each sticker is expected to cost growers and grocers about a penny, Riley said.

There is a patent in process now for the stickers through the UA. Riley said when RediRipe goes to market, the university will keep the patent and the company will license the product.

Research on ethylene’s use in fruit ripening began in the 1940s, and the gas is used to ripen fruits and vegetables in storage.

Riley has done multiple small field tests on his stickers — including at an apple orchard in Willcox — and plans a much larger field test this fall in Washington.

Falan Taylor
Author of Housewife Cuisine
http://housewifecuisine.com

Information provided by,

Source : http://azstarnet.com

The List

My mother is famous for saying, “I’ll make a list.” This can mean anything from a shopping list to a contents log for boxes stashed away in the attic. For Mom, there is a list for everything, and everything belongs in a list. Though I’m not quite as dedicated to organization, I do find lists to be handy for keeping track of some of the essentials in my life. Things like restaurants.

The concept is very simple: whenever I hear about a restaurant that piques my interest, I add it to my “Must-Try Restaurants” list. The List hasn’t quite reached spreadsheet proportions, but it’s definitely heading in that direction. Because there are a lot of different reasons why I go to restaurants, The List includes some vital statistics, plus some additional goodies that I find to be helpful in deciding where to eat on a given night. If you’re just starting out, here are the basics you’ll want to include in your restaurant list:

  1. Name of restaurant
  2. Address (also include the name of the neighborhood if the address isn’t immediately familiar)
  3. Phone number
  4. Type of cuisine

For the hardcore among us, you may also want to include the following:

  1. How you heard about the restaurant (If it turns out to be a good lead, you’ll want to remember where you got it from. And if it was a friend who referred the restaurant, they’ll be flattered when you thank them for such an expert recommendation.)
  2. Hours of operation (This may require some initial research, but it will make future referencing very efficient.)
  3. Website address (for quick menu perusal)
  4. A brief description of the atmosphere and scene (Am I in the mood for intimate conversation or people-watching?)
  5. Price range (If you’ve had a starving-artist month for income, you don’t want to mistakenly book yourself for dinner at the Four Seasons.)

The List has been incredibly valuable to me, since I am notoriously indecisive and have an unreliable memory to boot. Now when I’m asked, “Where should we go to dinner?” finding the answer is a snap. There’s no more brain-wracking, trying in vain to remember the name of that 7-syllable Greek restaurant somebody once told me about during a choppy cell phone conversation. Instead, I simply whip out The List and check out my options.

Looking for a hot new restaurant to try? Check out TasteTV’s profiles and chef demonstrations to see what America’s greatest kitchens are cooking up.

TV Land Adds New Broadband Video Player

Yet more activity on the web for niche or specialty television markets


“TV Land will launch a new broadband video player on its Web site late this summer which will allow fans to stream full-length episodes of both classic shows from the network’s library along with TV Land originals.

The new broadband player will debut on Aug. 24 as part of a larger overhaul of TVLand.com.

Each month, full episodes of a single classic series will be featured, starting with the 1960s western Daniel Boone in September, followed by Star Trek and That Girl later in the year. In addition, in September, select clips and outtakes from the misunderstanding-filled Three’s Company will be highlighted in the new channel.

While a growing number of cable networks have launched branded broadband video channels on the Web over the past year plus, most have focused on repurposing extra footage from original series owned by that particular network–such as MTV Overdrive’s Laguna Beach After Show. “

TasteTV’s MySpace Page


If you didn’t know we had a MySpace page, then stop by and become a friend, leave a comment, and all that jazz!
The address for member “IC FoodTV” is http://www.myspace.com/indiefoodchannel

New TasteTV Host


Greetings! My name is Laurie Gauguin, one of the newest hosts on TasteTV. You’ve probably seen a few of my segments on the network, and I thought you might want to know a little bit about me.

I’m a chef and have worked in professional kitchens for the past 10 years. I’ve been hired to cook everything from fat-free vegan meals to decadent 5-course banquets. The past several years I’ve focused on pastries, after going back to school then apprenticed under a French pastry chef. So, I guess you can say I’ve done it all.

At times I’ve been challenged to coax flavors out of a limited variety of ingredients. Other times I’ve had every rich, decadent ingredient at my disposal and have been given carte blanche to make whatever I wanted. But, whatever a chef is getting hired to cook at the time, it’s always important to have a broad view of the culinary spectrum. My diverse professional background helps me to appreciate, and offer insight to, many styles of cuisine.

There are a lot of great things in store for TasteTV, and I’m excited to be a part of the lineup. I’m located here in San Francisco, and I can’t think of a better place to be. The abundance of farmers, vintners and artisan food producers is astounding and inspiring. Join us as we interview wine makers, watch cooking demonstrations from the hottest chefs and bring you inside some of the most renowned restaurants in the nation.

If you haven’t already seen it, tune into my “PS Chocolates” interview on “Chocolate Television” and watch me sample some incredible truffles and talk chocolate with Peter Schmitt, owner of PS Chocolates. There’s always something great happening on TasteTV, so tune in!

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We’re Glad to be Aboard!


First, we, the producers of the How To video podcast, would like to thank TasteTV for inviting us to be a part of this exciting experience, and for letting us post to their blog! In our posts, we will talk about the experience of producing our show; discuss our philosophies on cooking, creativity and our business; and most importantly, with an emphasis on the easy-to-prepare and inexpensive, we’ll share recipes, favorite foods, tips, and visit some of Madison, WI’s most deserving hot spots.

I’d like to share a little about our show. HOW TO is an up and coming video podcast. Our hostess, Madeline, explores everything from the tried and true, to the newest and most exciting trends in fashion, fitness, entertaining, cooking, and so much more! We produce a food related episode about once per month, and for our submissions to TasteTV, we plan on adding a few “extras” that you won’t get through our regular podcast feed. And next, a little about “us:”

About Madeline

Madeline has always been interested in media in all of it’s forms. She was the host of a local television show, was the 2005 Miss Latino Chamber of Commerce in Madison, WI, and has appeared on the cover of Madison Magazine. In addition, she likes cooking, crafting, and do-it-yourself projects.

Currently, she is focusing on developing and growing the video podcast, How-To, with Eric Wyeth.
Madeline lives in Madison, Wisconsin with her family and beautiful, obese cats.

About Eric

Eric has been videotaping professionally for over five years, and as a hobby since 1989. Apart from his roles as a Director of Photography, editor, director and producer, Eric also serves as a graphic artist, having designed many of the graphics seen on his web site, advertisments, and DVD menus. In addition, he also authors his company’s DVD content. Eric’s current interests lie in exploring opportunities in new media, specifically, the video podcast “How-To,” which is a collaboration between himself and Madeline Merced.

Eric works and lives in Madison, Wisconsin with his lovely wife, Judy, and his shy cat, Nova.