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CONSUMERS ASK

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By MARY A. KEITH

Tribune Correspondent

Published: September 3, 2008

Is there a difference in nutrition between non-fat sour cream and fat-free plain yogurt?

They are about the same in protein. The same amount of sour cream contains a little more carbohydrates compared to yogurt's 31 grams. But the yogurt has a lot more calcium, 452 milligrams versus the 360 milligrams in the sour cream.

Will the nutrition in a mixture of a half cup of wheat germ and 1 cup of unbleached white flour equal that of 1.5 cups of whole-wheat flour?

The mixture will have an extra 5 grams of protein - which is about one teaspoon - and a lot more niacin. But it will have barely half the fiber of the whole-wheat flour. White flour, bleached or not, is enriched, which means some vitamins and minerals must be added after the flour is milled.

I left an unopened jar of peanut butter in the car for two days. Is it still be safe to eat?

It will safe, but the oil is likely to have separated. You either can stir the oil back in or pour it off.

I have pineapples that aren't ripening at the same time. Can I freeze them, one at a time as they ripen, then thaw and can the fruit as needed?

It would be safe to do that, but I suspect the canned fruit will be mushy after being frozen and thawed first. That will be fine, though, if you are going to make jam or marmalade. Freeze the pineapple in chunks without sugar so you know exactly how much sugar to add when you make the preserves.

I want to can pears. Where can I find pears that are picked locally?

Our fruit and vegetable specialist does not know of any local pear producers. We're a little too far south to grow pear trees. If you don't mind driving, you might find them in north Florida, up around Gainesville. In Tampa, you may find pears sold by the box at the Tampa Wholesale Produce Market at Hillsborough Avenue and 30th Street. Check with some of the vendors.

Will guavas continue to ripen after they're picked?

As long as they have a little bit of color when they're picked, guavas will continue to ripen on the counter. If you make guava jam or jelly without added pectin you need some slightly green ones anyway. But if the guavas are hard and green when picked, they won't ripen much.

What do I need to do to keep the breading on my pork chops? They get nice and brown when being cooked on one side. But all the breading falls off when I flip them to the other side.

To prepare the chops for cooking, use an egg dip first. This will help the breading to stick. Beat an egg with a tablespoon of water in a shallow bowl. Pat the chops dry and then dip them in the beaten egg, covering both sides. Then dip them in your breading mix.

As meat gets more expensive, I'm planning to buy hamburger because it's cheaper. But I want to preserve my health, too. What can I do?

Use less meat and more beans - or tofu or tempeh - to maintain the protein level in a dish. Instead of using a pound of ground beef in chili, use half a pound and add an additional can of beans. First, brown the beef and cook and crumble it well. Then rinse it with boiling water in a colander and allow the meat to drain. The boiling water will have removed most of the fat. Skim the fat from the water after it cools and put in the garbage instead of down the drain.

Mary A. Keith, a nutrition and health agent at Hillsborough County Extension, can be reached at (813) 744-5519 or mkeith@ufl.edu.

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