(ARA) – Summer is the season to be outdoors with friends and family at picnics, barbecues and many other events. But the warm weather also brings an increase in foodborne illnesses when food sits out in hot, humid conditions. Make sure your summer party is memorable for reasons other than food poisoning by taking steps to keep food fresh and safe.

Dr. Claudia Fajardo-Lira, spokesperson for the Institute of Food Technologists, says most foodborne bacteria thrive in summer’s steamy conditions. “It’s critical to protect yourself and your family from foodborne illness like E. coli and salmonella,” she says. “Always remember to wash your hands and, if you don’t have running water, bring along a water jug, some soap and paper towels; or use hand sanitizer.”

Fajardo-Lira suggests following food safety steps recommended by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:

Get food safely to its destination

* Keep cold food cold and stored at 40 F or below to prevent the growth of bacteria. Use a cooler with ice or frozen gel packs and limit the number of times you open the cooler.
* Pack beverages and perishable foods in separate coolers.
* Keep raw meat, seafood and poultry wrapped securely to keep juices from contaminating other foods.
* Rinse all fresh fruits and vegetables under running water before packing and eating.

Grill to perfection

* Never marinate foods outdoors or on a kitchen counter. Always marinate in the refrigerator. Do not reuse marinade that has touched raw meat.
* Cook food thoroughly and use a food thermometer to ensure proper temperature. Steaks and fish should reach 145 F, pork 160 F and poultry and hamburgers 165 F. Shellfish should be closed tightly before cooking and cooked until their shells open.
* Keep hot food hot by moving finished meats to the side of the grill rack, away from the coals.
* Do not reuse platters or utensils that have touched raw meat, poultry or seafood.

Keep food out of the “danger zone”

* Never let your picnic food sit outside in temperatures between 40 F and 90 F for more than two hours. When temperatures are above 90 F, food should not sit out for more than one hour. Discard any food that has been left out for a longer time.
* Perishable foods can be placed on ice or in a shallow container set in a deep pan filled with ice.
* Wrap hot food well and place in an insulated container until serving.

For more information about summer food safety visit IFTFoodFacts.org.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Summertime with friends and family is always fun! Y’all have cookouts, beach parties, lazy afternoons at the lake or even a living room picnic! Y’all ever trying to come up with easy ways to feed everyone?  How about some easy finger foods that you can serve at your next carpet party?

Pigs in a Blanket<—-LOVED these as a kid!!

Using refrigerated crescent rolls (have you seen the new ones that are just one sheet and you can cut them to size??) and hotdogs or those little smokies, roll each dog or smokie in an unbaked crescent roll. Place on a 9X13 pan(cookie sheet) and bake according to the crescent roll package directions. Serve with ketchup and mustard or ranch dressing. Smokies LOVE BBQ sauce! YUM!!

Taquitos (little tacos…..literally!)

Warm up some corn tortillas to soften them up. If they are cold, they will tear.(then you have to make chilaquiles(I’ll explain another day)) Place some already prepared taco meat (ground beef and seasonings) and shredded cheddar or jack cheese (shred your own cheese, please, pre-shredded cheese in the bag scares me!!) in each of them and roll them on up! Brush them with some veggie oil and bake on 350F until crispy. (about 10 min) Ole!

Fried Zucchini Great summer veggie!

Cut zucchini into ¼ inch slices. Heat ¼ inch oil (with a pat or two of butter for taste) in a skillet; sprinkle them with garlic powder, a little lemon juice, black pepper and parmesan cheese. Fry them until golden brown and flip. Repeat if needed. Make sure you wipe out the oil in the pan with paper towel after each batch of zucchini to avoid blackening. Blackened zucchini is not on the menu!! It’s hard enough to get folks to eat their veggies!!

Easy Nachos

Get ya some Tostitos Scoops, place a little bit of cooked taco meat (there’s that ground beef and seasonings again!) in each little scoop and top it with shredded cheddar or jack cheese(real cheese again! Maybe I have something here!!). Then load those little guys up with your favorite nacho toppings like sour cream, salsa, olives, jalapenos, chopped onions, etc. You can also put them on a cookie sheet in an oven at 350F for about 8-10 minutes to melt all that cheese!

Pizza Roll-Ups<– THESE are too COOL!! Make you own little hot pockets! (and you KNOW what’s in them!!)

Unroll refrigerated crescent rolls into triangles. Sprinkle each crescent roll with garlic and Italian seasonings. Place a few slices of pepperoni on each triangle. Place ½ a piece of string cheese in each triangle. Roll it up, sprinkle with garlic and Italian seasonings again and bake according to the crescent roll package directions or until brown. Dip in warm pizza sauce or if you are anything like me…..ranch!

Sweet Turkey Wraps

Soften ½ pkg. cream cheese (you know you can soften cream cheese in the microwave, just keep an eye on it and put it in there for about 20 seconds, stir and if it’s not soft enough, you can go another 10 sec or so, remember it will keep softening after you take it out) and mix with 2 tbs. applesauce and 1 tsp. dried thyme until smooth. Spread evenly onto big flour tortillas. Place a leaf of lettuce and thin sliced turkey on each tortilla and roll. Wrap each rollup in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours until firm. Cut into one inch slices (like cinnamon rolls) and serve. MMM-HMMM!

I have TONS of appetizer and finger food ideas but I am making me HUNGRY!!

Hope y’all enjoy!!