The Scott County Record • Page 35 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
Honoring Beef Month
Where it’s not just a month… it’s a way of life.
Scott County beef.
Great for your grill, great for our economy.
The Scott County Record • Page 36 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
What to look for when selecting grades of beef The best beef is shiny and bright red, firm to the touch, with a light scent. The most tender meat has a network of white fat called marbling. This marbling adds a considerable amount of the rich flavor associated with great tasting beef, especially with steak. Look for steaks that are more marbled if you’re interested in the best taste for the style of cut you are buying. If you are concerned with reducing your fat intake, look for a cut with less marbling. Just realize that you will be giving up flavor for lower fat content. Location, Location The location where the cut comes from on the cow has a real effect on its tenderness and flavor. The hindquarter provides cuts which are generally more tender. They are usually cooked quickly by grilling, broiling, pan frying, etc. Cuts from the forequarter are generally less tender. Use slow-cooking
and moist-cooking meth- the USDA applies to the inspection of beef. It comods with them. prises less than 2% of all Beef Grades graded beef. Meat products are It has an abundant among the most highly amount of marbling (the regulated and supervised network of fine lines of products in our food sup- white fat). This marbling, ply. USDA inspectors as well as other factors oversee the processing such as feed quality, and and distribution of all aging, adds to the rich flameat products. It is the vor and fine texture of the USDA that grades beef best cuts. by evaluating it according to uniform standards for Choice tenderness, juiciness, and USDA Choice is the flavor. next best grade of beef. The grade is deterChoice can be nearly as mined by the age and congood as Prime, especially dition of the animal, and in the top 2/3 of the grade. the amount of marbling or Generally, it tends to have intramuscular fat. Beef has more grade a little less marbling (and levels than other meat. Of therefore less complexity the eight grades, the aver- to the flavor) and a slightage consumer only needs ly tougher texture than to be concerned with Prime. Choice is usually the three: Prime, Choice and highest grade found in Select. grocery store meat departments. Prime The best grade of beef Select (or Good) is USDA Prime. USDA Select is the This grade is earmarked for the finest cuts next grade of beef. This grade can be that conform to the complex grading formula that nearly as good as Choice
SO UT hw es t be ef wr ap s Total recipe time High setting: 6 hours Low setting: 10 hours Ingredients 1 beef shoulder roast 1 medium 3 3/4 cup 1 teaspoon 1/2 teaspoon 2 jars (16 oz. each)
boneless or bottom round rump roast (3 to 3-1/2 lbs.) onion, cut into quarters cloves garlic, peeled water salt pepper prepared chunky salsa with cilantro
8 flour tortillas (10-inch diameter), warmed Fresh cilantro (optional) Tomato-Corn Relish: 1 cup 1 cup 2 tablespoons
frozen corn, defrosted chopped fresh tomato chopped fresh cilantro
Directions Cut beef roast into 4 even pieces. Place onion and garlic in 4-1/2 to 5-1/2-quart slow cooker; top with beef. Add water, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on high 5 to 5-1/2 hours, or on low 9 to 9-1/2 hours, or until beef is fork-tender. (No stirring is necessary during cooking.) Remove beef; cool slightly. Strain cooking liquid; skim fat. Shred beef with 2 forks. Place beef in 2-quart microwave-safe dish; add 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Combine relish ingredients in medium bowl; stir in 1/4 cup salsa. Add remaining salsa to beef; mix well. Cove r and microwave on high 8-10 minutes or until heated through, stirring once. Top each tortilla with 3/4 cup beef mixture, leaving 1-1/2-inch border around edge. Top beef with about 1/4 cup relish. Fold right and left sides of tortillas over filling; fold bottom edge over and roll up. Garn ish with cilantro, if desired. Yield: 8 servings
grade (in the top 1/3 of the grade). Select has less marbling than Choice, and will have even less complexity to the flavor. Select can be somewhat more tough in texture. Select can dry out easily when overcooked, especially as steaks. It is the most common grade of beef available to, and bought by, most people. Gourmet Types There are other naming designations that are used to describe and define special categories of beef. Certified Angus Beef is a trademarked brand name of beef that is certified by the USDA to be from Angus cattle. It is reputed to be the best of the best. It is available in most grocery store meat departments, at fine butcher shops, and at custom or specialty suppliers. Dry-Aged Beef is beef that is specially aged and has undergone the dryaging process. It is an all natural method of aging and tenderizing the beef.
Sweet Heat BBQ Sauce
Ingredients: 1 18 oz. bottle ½ cup 1 tsp.
KC Masterpiece Original Barbecue Sauce black cherry juice chipotle powder
Instructions: Prepare grill for medium heat and preheat a small saucepan. Add the barbecue sauce and remaining ingredients to the pan and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring periodically to fully incorporate the flavors in to the sauce. Serve immediately with your favorite grilled or barbecued meats and vegetables.
The Scott County Record • Page 37 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
Cleaning grimy grill grates doesn’t have to be difficult
It seems like a brilliant idea: Take the gunked-up grate from your grill and clean it on the self-clean cycle of the oven or in the dishwasher. Not so fast. Those socalled brilliant ideas which have been floating around the Internet and on various blogs - could be a good way to ruin your dishwasher or fill your kitchen with eye-burning fumes, smoke or even flames, say the experts. The grilling gurus at Weber and the Whirlpool Institute of Kitchen Science offer their take on these unwise schemes. Steve Swayne, in charge of cooking performance for Whirlpool, says putting a grease-caked grill in the oven on the self-clean cycle is a good way to start a fire. “The gunk that collects on your grates is mostly grease and it becomes combustible at high temperatures. You’re risking lots of smoke and maybe fire,” he says. At the very least, he notes, the oven will be left a mess, and there could be permanent staining from all the soot. Putting those greasy grates in the dishwasher is also a bad idea - it can
clog and ruin the appliance, say the experts at Whirlpool. So what is the best way to clean a grimy grill grate? George Rassas, product manager with grill company Weber, says there’s no reason to bring those nasty grates inside for cleaning. Here are some easy cleanup tips - plus a few more ideas for safe grilling this summer: •Take 15 minutes. To clean grates on a gas grill, first preheat the grill by turning the burners to high. After 15 minutes, the grease on the grates will have softened. “Brush them with a stainless steel grill brush. It won’t take long and you won’t need a lot of elbow grease,” says Rassas. Clean grates means foods won’t stick as easily and baked-on gunk won’t flare up, burning your food. Show your lid some love. When the grill is warm but not hot, clean the inside of the grill lid with a damp sponge or, if it’s very dirty, a balled-up piece of foil or a brass brush. The most common question Weber gets from
Grilled Peaches and Cream
This is an easy grilled peach dessert. You can use a honey nut flavored cream cheese spread. Drizzle a little extra honey after they’re grilled. Ingredients 4 peaches, halved and pitted 2 tablespoons clover honey 1 cup soft cream cheese with honey and nuts 1 tablespoon vegetable oil Directions Preheat a grill for medium-high heat. Brush peaches with a light coating of oil. Place pit side down onto the grill. Grill for 5 minutes, or until the surfaces have nice grill marks. Turn the peaches over, and drizzle with a bit of honey. Place a dollop of the cream cheese spread in the place where the pit was. Grill for 2 to 3 more minutes, or until the filling is warm. Serve immediately. Yield: 8 servings
consumers is why the “paint” is peeling on the inside of their grill lids. That isn’t paint, says Rassas. The lids are enameled, so they don’t flake. That’s accumulated grease and smoke that is flaking off. Scrub it off so it doesn’t fall on food or smoke up the grill. •Don’t forget the drip pan. After cooking, empty the drip pan when it’s warm, not hot, to prevent flare-ups the next time. If grease is too thick, use a plastic putty knife to scrape off as much as you can. •Don’t cheat the preheat. That’s one of the
biggest secrets to great grilling that Weber’s Rassas tells consumers. Preheating your grill for 15 minutes not only burns off the excess grease, making the grate easier to clean, but also ensures that food will cook better and you’ll get better searing for those chops and steaks. •Wait to baste. Yes, of course that barbecue sauce is delicious. But it’s also probably high in sugar, which will make it burn easily. Wait until the last 10 minutes or so of cooking before basting your chicken or meat with sauce and you’ll avoid burned food.
Should you pay more for Angus beef? Most of us go to the grocery store to buy beef or order beef at a restaurant without thinking too much about where it came from. Few people know about breeds of cattle, inspection and grading processes, or the marketing that goes on behind the scenes. This is why, when fast food chains and hot dog makers start throwing about a term like “Angus” there is going to be problems and there is going to be confusion. There is even a brand of dog food that touts itself as Angus. Angus is a breed of cattle. It is not a quality of beef, it does not imply that the beef is organic, natural, or of a higher grade than any other type of beef. There are Black and Red Angus, but the Red Angus is not sponsored by the American Angus Association and is a much rarer breed. Angus have a number of advantages (fast growing, reliably tender, well marbled) and quickly became popular as breeding stock to reduce problems of over-breeding in other lines of cattle. Because of this and the general popularity of Angus by ranchers, it has become the most popular breed in the United States.
Advantages of Angus Angus beef develops with better marbling than most cattle. Marbling is the amount of intramuscular fat. Most people agree that marbling improves flavor, tenderness and keeps meat moist while cooking (especially at high temperatures). Beef is graded based on marbling with the highest degree of marbling reserved for the Prime grade (Prime represents less than 3% of all beef produced). Frequently Angus grades better on the USDA scale, but that doesn’t mean that Angus is a grade of quality or that anything you buy labeled Angus is going to be better than any other cut. Why the Higher Cost? Why are you paying more for beef labeled Angus? Good question. The USDA lists certified brands of beef that are registered with them. Only beef meeting the criteria of these independent certification programs can carry the brand name. The government oversees this process and protects the brand names from misuse. Of the 86 USDA recognized certified brands, representing 25% of all produced beef in the United States, 63 contain the word Angus.
Angus is the magic word for beef marketing. The Bottom Line: There is a lot of deception in beef labeling. Stores sell lower grade beef with stickers that say things like “Butcher’s Choice” or “Prime Value.” Similarly lower graded beef, or frequently ungraded beef, gets the Angus stamp on it to be sold to fast food chains and a whole host of uses. This is not to say that these products are not made with Angus beef, but that the implication that Angus always means quality isn’t true. Angus Quality The vast majority of Angus beef produced in the United States comes under the umbrella of the American Angus Association. This organization, in an attempt to increase awareness of Angus beef and to help command a higher price for their members, created the Certified Angus Beef brand in 1978. It is largely due to their efforts that the term Angus has come to command the power that it does today. Certified Angus Beef is graded by the USDA and must be in the top two grades (Prime and Choice) plus it must pass eight additional criteria to be labeled Certified Angus Beef. The shopper’s tip
here is that choice grade Certified Angus Beef is generally of a better quality than an average cuts of choice beef. Final analysis: A fast food hamburger or a mass market hot dog with the Angus name stamped on it are still the lowest quality of beef that can be sold for human consumption even if it comes from Angus cattle. If you like Angus beef, buy Angus beef of quality and not just something labeled Angus.
The Scott County Record • Page 38 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
Mastering the art of grilling can make you a backyard Rembrandt Grilling, like most forms of cooking, is more art than science. You can follow a few basic rules but after that it is your skill and style that will make you a great griller or a not-so-great griller. These tips will help you with many of the problems most people have. As you will notice, maintenance and grill care as a big part of the process. Keep a Clean Grill A dirty grill flares up, smokes incessantly, and leaves a bad flavor on your food. Keeping your grill clean will reduce all of these problems. This means more than turning your grill on high for 10-15 minutes before or after you use it. Certainly much of the grease will get burned off during these high temperature “cleans,” but not all of it. Food that falls into the grill, ash deposits, and other gunk remain until you get down in there and clean it all out.
Take out the grates and burner covers at least twice a year to thoroughly clean your grill. If you grill frequently you should do this more often. You really will notice a difference. Control Flare-Ups You fight a fire when you want to put it out. You control the fire when you want to use it. Flare-ups should be controlled, not fought, so put aside the spray bottle. Keep a portion of your grill empty so you can move food should a flareup occurs. When you do have a flare-up, move the food away from it and let it burn with the lid up. If the fire spreads you might need to evacuate the grill, but the trick is to let the fire burn off the grease and get rid of it as quickly as you can. If your fire gets out of control, remove the food, turn off the burners and gas at the tank. Leave the lid open and let the fire die down on its own.
How to clean a BBQ grill in 15 minutes
Disconnect gas or propane and soak grates Minutes 1 and 2: Make sure that all the dials are in the off position. While the grill is slightly warm, turn off and disconnect the propane tank. Wearing work gloves, remove the grates and the metal plates under them. Place in a bucket of hot water and regular dish soap. Scrub under the hood Minutes 3 and 4: Loosely cover the heating elements with a big piece of foil to protect them. With the grill brush, scrub the underside of the hood. That residue that looks like peeling paint is actually a harmless buildup of carbon from grease and smoke. Clean the inside walls Minutes 5 through 8: Use the grill brush to scrub the inside walls above the elements. (Ash and debris will fall onto the foil.) Wipe the walls with a damp paper towel. Scrub and rinse grates Minutes 9 through 11: Take the grates and the drip pan out of the bucket. Lean them on a wall, scrub them with the grill brush then rinse with a hose spray. Replace innards Minute 12: Toss the foil and wipe the elements with the grill brush. Replace metal plate and grates and drip pan. Reconnect the propane tank. Clean out the cabinet Minute 13: If your grill has a cabinet, sweep out any leaves or debris with a whisk broom. Clean the exterior Minutes 14 and 15: Clean the exterior and the cabinet interior with stainless steel wipes.
Heat and Sugar Sugar burns at 265 degrees. If you are cooking foods with sauces or rubs that contain sugar you need to keep your grilling temperature below this temperature or your food will burn and blacken.
Food Safety Make sure you practice food safety with everything you cook. This means simple things like bringing food in on a different plate than it went out on. Making sure that you cook meats to a safe temperature, particularly Watch your Grill ground beef and keep your Almost every story you cooking area clean and hear about someone burn- sanitized. ing food on the grill starts with, “I just stepped inside Have Plenty of Fuel for . . .” Trying to catch Ever run out of gas the score of the game, put while grilling? Ever done together a side dish, or it while you have a house just hang out with family full of hungry guests waitor friends can leave your ing for dinner? If you have to run out grill to get out of control and burn whatever you are to refill a propane tank you are going to be gone cooking. Successful grilling for awhile. If you have a means paying attention spare, full propane tank to what you are cooking. available it will take you This is particularly true for a couple of minutes to get foods you cook hot and cooking again. Keep extra fast like burgers, chops fuel on hand. and steaks. Make sure you have Use the all your preparations done Correct Temperature before the food hits the Just because your grill grill and stand by to keep goes to high doesn’t mean (See ART on page 41) an eye on your grilling.
s p ic y cheeseburger s l id e r s Total prep and minutes cooking time: 25-30 Ingredients 1 pound 9 small
ground beef buns, split, divided whole wheat hamburger clove garlic, minced 1 wder ground chipotle chili po 1/2 teaspoon t in quarters pepper Jack cheese, cu es 2 slic es, pickles (optional) uce, lettuce, tomato slic Toppings: barbecue sa Directions d processor or blender into pieces. Place in foo n bu er urg mb ha e on Tear crumbs. on and off, to form fine container. Cover; pulse in medium bowl, garlic and chili powder ef, be s, mb cru ad bre Combine ck mini pate into eight 1/2-inch thi ap sh y htl Lig ly. gh rou mixing lightly but tho vered, 8 ties. overed coals. Grill, co h-c as m, diu me er ov ll Place patties on gri 9-10 minutes) until on preheated gas grill, at he m diu me er (ov 0°, to 9 minutes into center registers 16 r inserted horizontally ete om rm the d g. ea t-r llin instan ring last minute of gri enly top with cheese du turning occasionally. Ev . Top with desired topof remaining eight buns ms tto bo on rs rge bu Place pings. Yield: 8 sliders
Cowboy BBQ Marinade and Sauce
Total recipe time: 20 minutes Ingredients 1 cup 1 cup 1/3 cup 1/3 cup 1 tablespoon 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon
finely chopped onion ketchup packed brown sugar red wine vinegar Worcestershire sauce crushed red pepper
Directions Combine all ingredients in small saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove 1 cup to use as marinade. Bring remaining marinade to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until desired sauce consistency is reached, stirring occasionally. Set aside until ready to use as Sauce. Place beef steak(s) and 1 cup marinade in food-safe plastic bag; turn steak(s) to coat. Close bag securely and marinate in refrigerator 15 minutes to 2 hours for tender steaks; 6 hours or as long as overnight for less tender steaks, turning occasionally. Remove steak(s) from bag; discard marinade. Place steak(s) on grid over medium, ash-covered coals or over medium heat on preheated gas grill. Grill according to the chart for medium rare (145 degrees) to medium (160 degrees) doneness, turning occasionally. Yield: about 2-1/2 cups
The Scott County Record • Page 39 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
M a p l e -B a c o n Beer Burger Total prep and minutes cooking time: 20-25 st burger you’ve ever Be prepared for the be Ingredients 1 pound 1/4 cup 2 tablespoons
4 4 slices 4 extra-thick slices
eaten.
ground beef beer Worcestershire sauce er buns, split whole wheat hamburg cheddar cheese con, cut in half Maplewood smoked ba
Directions ire sauce in medium beer and Worcestersh ef, be d un gro ine mb Co -inch thick patties. ghly. Shape into four 1/2 rou tho t bu y htl lig g xin als. Grill on prebowl, mi dium, ash-covered co me er ov d gri on s ttie Place pa ed horizontally d thermometer insert ea t-r tan ins til un ll tes before heated gas gri sionally. About 2 minu ca oc g nin tur , 0° 16 into center registers grid. Grill until lightly ns, cut-side down, on bu ce pla , ne do are burgers toasted. r with cheese. grilling, top each burge During last minute of es. and top with bacon slic Place burgers on buns
Sh re dd ed be ef an d bl ue ch ee se qu es ad ill as
Total recipe time:
50-65 minutes Ingredients 1 pkg. (about 17 ozs.) 8 16 (1/4-inch thick) slices 16 (1/4-inch thick) slices 2 tablespoons 1-1/2 teaspoons 4 large 1/2 cup 1/2 cup
fully-cooked boneless beef pot roast in gravy or au jus red cherry tomatoes, cut in half yellow tomatoes (4 small) tomatillos (4 medium) olive oil salt flour tortillas (11 to 12-inch diameter) shredded Chihuahua or Monterey Jack cheese crumbled blue cheese
Directions Preheat oven to 400°. Place tomatoes and tomat illos on rimmed baking sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Drizzle with oil; sprink le with salt. Roast in 400° oven 25 to 30 minutes or until juices have evaporated and skins are blistered; set aside. Meanwhile, cut 32 rounds from tortillas with 2-1/2 -inch diameter cookie cutter; set aside. Combine cheeses in small bowl; set aside. Heat pot roast in microwave oven according to packa ge directions; cool slightly. Remove from gravy; discard gravy or reserve for another use. Shred pot roast with two forks; set aside. Place 16 tortillas rounds on rimmed baking sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Top each evenly with cheese mixture and shredded beef. Cover with remaining tortilla rounds. Spray tortilla tops with nonstick cooking spray. Bake in 400°F oven about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and tortillas are lightly browned, turning halfway through cooking time. Top each quesadilla with 1 tomatillo slice, yellow tomato slice and cherry tomato half. Serve immediately. Yield: 16 appetizers
The Scott County Record • Page 40 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
10 tips for great grilling
1) Befriend your butcher. Buy from a good butcher shop or from the butcher at your supermarket’s meat counter. Avoid prepackaged steaks - plastic wrap traps in moisture. 2) Get good grades. Spring for USDA Prime or Certified Black Angus steaks if you can. Choice-grade steak is a good, less-expensive alternative. 3) Look for marbling. Thin white streaks of fat throughout a steak, called marbling, keep the meat nice and juicy. Plus, the fat adds flavor. 4) Do a warm-up. Take your steak out of the fridge about 20 minutes before grilling to bring it to room temperature. A freezing-cold steak won’t cook evenly. 5) Pare down the tools. You don’t need elaborate equipment to make a tasty steak - just a solid pair of tongs, a brush and a grill. 6) Feel the heat. Give your grill plenty of time to preheat. If it’s hot enough, you shouldn’t be able to hold your hand over the grates for more than two seconds. 7) Don’t move. Let your steak develop a seared crust on the grill before moving or flipping it. If you try to lift the meat before it’s ready, it’ll stick to the grates. 8) Use the touch test. Check for doneness with a simple tool: your finger. A rare steak feels soft and spongy, medium springs back a bit when pressed, and well-done feels firm. 9) Don’t overdo it. Err on the side of undercooking a steak rather than overcooking it. You can always pop the meat back on the grill if its too rare. 10) Let it rest. Once your steak is off the grill, wait at least five minutes before slicing. This gives the juices a chance to settle back into the meat.
Sweet and ta n g y SLoppy Joes Total recipe time 20-25 minutes
Ingredients 1 pound 1 medium 3/4 cup 1 can (11-1/2 oz.) 3 tablespoons 1 tablespoon 4
ground beef pepper, chopped yellow, green or red bell finely chopped onion juice m spicy 100% vegetable regular or reduced-sodiu packed brown sugar Worcestershire sauce rolls, split mburger buns or Kaiser whole or honey wheat ha
bell pepper and onDirections til hot. Add Ground Beef, un at he m diu me er ov cassionally. Heat large nonstick skillet crumbles and stirring oc ch -in 3/4 o int up ef be , breaking a boil. Reduce heat; ion; cook 8 to 10 minutes stershire sauce; bring to rce Wo d an r ga su wn d thickens Stir in vegetable juice, bro liquid has evaporated an the of st mo til un or 9 minutes simmer, uncovered, 7 to lly. slightly, stirring occasiona
The Scott County Record • Page 41 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
Selecting the best cuts of beef
Here are some keys to improving your cooking and grilling success. Roasts that have connective tissue or little marbling don’t generally roast well. Look for cuts of beef that come from the rib, short loin or sirloin section of the steer. Cuts of roast from these areas are more tender and flavorful than other cuts and tend to roast well. Rib, top sirloin, tri-tip roasts and the tenderloin all make excellent roast choices. Beef tenderloin comes from directly under the spine and so is the least worked muscle on the animal’s body, resulting in the tenderest beef. Most people choose this cut of beef over any other but it pales in flavor compared to a rib roast. Choosing the grade In the United States there are three grades of beef available to consumers: prime, choice and select. Beef is inspected and labeled accordingly depending on the amount of marbling in each cut.
Art
(continued from page 38)
you have to cook everything at that temperature. Thin cuts of lamb, pork or beef including burgers should be cooked hot and fast. More delicate items like fish, vegetables, and chicken should be cooked at medium on your grill’s dial. Roasts, whole chickens, and thick, large cuts should be cooked at lower temperatures, indirectly. Use the right temperature for the food you cook and be patient with the cooking times which will be longer at lower temperatures. Searing Searing is the secret to great grilled flavor. It doesn’t lock in juices like many people say but what it does do is caramelize the surface of meats making a flavorful, crisp surface. This process works with most any cut of beef, lamb or pork. To achieve this, start with a grill as hot as it will go. Put the meat on and wait one minute. Flip and reduce the heat. The high temperature will caramelize the surface of the meat. Once this is done you want to cut back on the heat and continue cooking until the meat is done.
4- Wa y Sl ow co ok er sh re dd ed be ef
Total recipe time
Low setting: 9-1/2 to 10-1/2 hours
High setting: 5-1/2 to 6-1/2 hours
Ingredients 1 beef shoulder, arm or blade roast boneless (2 to 2-1/2 pounds) 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (optional) 1 large onion, chopped 2 tablespoons minced garlic Salt and pepper
Directions For optional browning, heat 1 tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Brown beef roast on all sides . Place onion and garlic in 3-1/2 to 5-quart slow cooker; place roast on top. Cover and cook on low 9-10 hours or on high 5-6 hours or until roast is fork-tender. Remove roast from slow cooker. Skim fat from cooking liquid, if necessary and reserve 1 cup onion mixture. Shred beef with 2 forks. Combine shredded beef and reserved onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper, as desired. Continue as directed in recipe variations below, as desire d. Recipe Variations: Mexican shredded beef: Combine tomato or tomatillo salsa and beef mixture, as desired. Place in large microwave-safe bowl. Cover, vent and microwave until heated through, stirring occasionally. Serve in warmed flour or corn tortillas topped with pico de gallo, slice avocados, shred ded cheese, chopped cilantro and/or chopped white or green onions, as desired. BBQ shredded beef: Combine prepared barbecue sauce and beef mixture. Place in large microwave-safe bowl. Cove r, vent and microwave until heated through, stirring occasionally. Serve on whole wheat rolls topped with creamy horseradish sauce, coleslaw, Cheddar chee se slices, chopped green bell pepper and/or canned French fried onion, as desire d. Yield: 6 servings
Another reason to eat beef
Remember the Atkins Diet that helped sell so much beef back in the early 2000s? It turns out Atkinsstyle high-protein, lowcarbohydrate diets could provide benefits beyond weight loss, by helping prevent the onset of cognitive impairment in older people. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic conducted the study examining relationships between diet and cognitive impairment. The researchers tracked over 1,200 people between 70 and 89, and documented their dietary habits. They identified 940 of the participants who had no sign of cognitive impairment at the beginning of the study, and tracked them for four years. After four years, 200 participants showed signs of mild cognitive impairment, including problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment that were greater than normal age-related changes.
. . . participants with the highest intake of protein were 21 percent less likely to exhibit cognitive impairment than those with the lowest protein intake. Mayo Clinic study
Those who reported the highest carbohydrate intake at the beginning of the study were almost two times likelier to develop mild cognitive impairment than those with the lowest intake of carbohydrates. Sugar also seems to play a role, as participants with the highest sugar intake were 1.5 times likelier to experience mild cognitive impairment than those with the lowest levels, according to a Mayo Clinic news release. On the other hand, participants with the highest intake of protein were 21 percent less likely to exhibit cognitive impairment than those with the lowest protein intake. Those whose diets were highest in fat were 42 percent less likely to face cognitive impairment
compared to those with the lowest fat intake. Mayo Clinic epidemiologist Dr. Rosebud Roberts does not advise radical changes in diet based on these results. “We think it’s important that you eat a healthy balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat, because each of these nutrients has an important role in the body,” she says. The folks behind the Atkins Diet believe the research helps validate the benefits of their dietary philosophy. “This is consistent with what we’ve seen in past published research on how a lower carbohydrate diet can help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s,” says Colette Heimowitz, vice president of education and nutrition at Atkins Nutritionals, Inc.
The Scott County Record • Page 42 • Thursday, May 15, 2014
Beef for breakfast can help with weight loss What a person eats - or doesn’t eat - at breakfast could affect their eating behavior much later in the day according to a recent University of Missouri study. Researchers from Mizzou’s Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology studied groups of overweight or obese females between 18 and 20 years of age. One group skipped breakfast, which is typical for about 60 percent of young people. Another group ate a typical breakfast of ready-to-eat cereal and a third group ate a high-protein breakfast of eggs and lean beef. Each of the breakfasts consisted of 350 calories. The researchers used blood tests, brain scans and questionnaires to evaluate the effects of each treatment on eating behavior later in the day. They found that either breakfast, and especially the high-protein breakfast, helped the subjects feel less hungry throughout the day compared with those who skipped breakfast. The high-protein breakfast also reduced production of hormones associated with hunger later in the day and reduced brain activity associated with late-day food cravings. Subjects in the highprotein group reported less evening snacking on high-fat foods compared with those who skipped breakfast. The short-duration trial did not show differences in weight loss or weight gain, but researchers conclude that eating breakfast, particularly one rich in protein, “might be a useful strategy to reduce food motivation and reward, and improve diet quality in overweight or obese teenage girls.”
USDA certified ‘very tender’ beef makes its debut in N.C.
When purchasing beef in the supermarket you may ask yourself a few questions before you buy. How much am I spending per pound? Where did this beef come from? You might also ask, how tender will this cut turn out? Well, thanks to the USDA you can now purchase what is being labeled “USDA-certified Very Tender beef.” Matthews, N.C.- based Harris Teeter grocery store is the first to debut the “Very Tender” label. Harris Teeter receives its beef from Cargill Meat Solutions, the first processor in the country to have a USDA-certified tender program. According to the USDA, “Tenderness is one of the most significant factors affecting the overall consumer acceptance of beef cuts.” These cuts of very tender beef may not always be graded as USDA-Prime however, they may, in fact, be Choice or even Select. With the program requirements for production it is actually possible to have a USDA-Prime cut of beef that is not as tender as a lower grade cut.