Cable One Movie Nights And Kleiner Park Outdoor Concert Series Movies begin at dusk at Settler’s Park. Bring a blanket or chair and enjoy a free movie in the park July 3 – Penguins of Madagascar July 10 – Maleficent July 17 – Big Hero 6 July 24 – How to Train Your Dragon 2 July 31 – Mr. Peabody and Sherman Concert Series at Kleiner Park – Activities for children begin at 5:30 with the concerts beginning at 6:30 July 2 – 562nd Air Force Band July 9 – Soul Patch July 16 – Sweet Briar July 23 – Hang 11 For additional information about the performers visit http://kleinerparklive.com
Options for Cooling Off in the July Heat! Visit Eagle Island - $5 per carload to enter the park, Eagle Island offers a swimming, fishing, picnic shelters, and rentals of paddleboards at the visitors center. Float the Boise River – rentals of rafts, tubes, and life jackets, as well as the shuttle schedule is available at www.boiseriverraftandtube.com Meridian City Pool is open every day of the week. See www.meridianpool.com for times and prices. July 1317 is free for each person who donates either 2 cans of food or 1 jar of peanut butter at the door. Visit Roaring Springs Waterpark. See www.roaringsprings.com for daily deals and discounts such as buy 2 admissions, and get 1 free on Wednesdays and $13 Thursdays.
Good Ole Potato Salad Summer Food Safety The weather is getting hotter and it’s the perfect time of year for picnics and outdoor get-togethers. Keeping food safe in the heat and outdoors is important to keeping your household healthy. If it’s over 90 degrees outside, food sitting out for more than one hour is at risk for the formation of bacteria, which can make people sick. To avoid this be sure to follow the following guidelines: Keep food pre-chilled or frozen before packing in a cooler. When packing the cooler, put ice on the bottom, then place the food in, adding additional ice around the food items, and then again on top of the food. Keep the packed cooler in the vehicle with the A/C running during your trip, not in the trunk which can reach up to 150 degrees and in turn melt the ice more quickly. Pack separate coolers for food and for drinks. When the weather is hot, people continually go into the cooler for drinks. The best way to ensure the food in the cooler stays cold is to keep it closed as much as possible. If the drinks are in a different cooler, the food cooler will not be opened until the food is needed. Keep raw foods, such as meats, completely wrapped and sealed to prevent cross contamination. While outdoors, serve the food at a specific time, not buffet style with it left sitting out exposed not only to the heat of the day, but also insects. Keep the food out of direct sunlight. Use two serving bowls to serve cold items, nesting a smaller bowl with the food in a larger bowl filled with ice. Don’t reuse platters or utensils from raw foods for cooked foods, especially meats. Have clean ones available to avoid cross contamination.
Nothing is better with a burger or hotdog at a picnic than potato salad. This is one down home, tried and true recipe. Ingredients 5 pounds red potatoes 6 eggs 2 cups mayonnaise 1 onion, diced 2 green onions, thinly sliced 1 small green bell pepper, seeded and diced 3 stalks celery, thinly sliced 2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. ground black pepper
Directions: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender but still firm. Drain. Let the potatoes cool, and then cut into cubes. In a medium saucepan, cover the eggs with cold water. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove from heat and let the eggs sit in the water for 12 minutes. Drain the water and allow the eggs to cool. Peel and chop. In a large bowl mix the potatoes and eggs. Add in the mayonnaise, chopped onion, green onion, green pepper and celery. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight.