Employees Offer Recipes From Mexican Caviar To Jumpin’ Juice

Springtime has got to be just around the corner! And is there any better way to celebrate the onset of Spring than with...Food?!

That’s why now is a perfect time to check out a new cookbook on the market. And it’s not just any ol’ cookbook; this one contains nearly 700 recipes by USDA employees.

The 310-page cookbook is titled “Recipes from the Employees of the United States Department of Agriculture--'We Feed The World’.” It was published by USDA’s Employee Services and Recreation Association, which offers USDA employees at headquarters and field locations recreational, educational, wellness and other activities and services.

“I always thought that a cookbook from USDA’s employees would be a natural thing to happen,” said ESRA General Manager Roger Lancaster, “especially with the number of nutritionists, dieticians, food safety specialists and others who work for USDA.”

According to Sharlene Deskins, a staff attorney in the Office of the General Counsel and president of ESRA’s 28-member Board of Directors, Board members contacted employees in their respective agencies about ESRA’s plans for an employee cookbook. “The message that went out to employees around the country,” she said, “was 'We’re looking for your favorite recipes’.” Attached to those e-mail messages was a standard form for use in writing down the recipe, to ensure a standard format.

Lancaster’s next step was to contact specialists in the Food and Nutrition Service and the Food Safety and Inspection Service to include tips on nutrition and food safety.

“We wanted to get out such food preparation, nutrition and health suggestions as 'When preparing meals, balance foods that have strong flavors with mild-flavored ones’,” said FNS nutritionist Marion Hinners. Such tips are contained at the beginning and end of the cookbook.

FSIS public affairs specialist Holly McPeak added that her agency provided such food safety tips as “Keep the refrigerator clean. This will prevent the spread of bacteria from spilled foods to other foods.”

Teresa Browning, director of ESRA’s Internet operations, said the cookbook costs $15 plus $2 for shipping charges, and can be ordered through ESRA’s toll-free number at 1-800-626-ESRA or through the Internet at http://www.usdaesra.org.

The nearly 700 recipes are grouped into such categories as Appetizers, Beverages, Soups, Salads, Vegetables, Main Dishes, Breads, Rolls, and Desserts.

The book includes such recipes as: “Feathered Corn” (submitted by Jane Ross with the Farm Service Agency in Jefferson, Mo.), “Zucchini Pancakes” (Sevim Erhan, Agricultural Research Service, Peoria, Ill.), “Mushroom Ragout” (Secretary Ann M. Veneman, Washington, DC), “Beer Batter Halibut” (Tom Rainey, Rural Development, Hatcher Pass, Alaska), “Applesauce Oatmeal Drops” (Dawn Cowan, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, Washington, DC), “Chili-Pepper Chicken” (Tonya Ahmed, Risk Management Agency, Washington, DC), “Jane’s Country Pie” (Jane Waters, Agricultural Marketing Service, Orlando, Fla.), “Cowboy Stew” (Tammie Sundin, Office of Inspector General, Temple, Texas), “Jay’s Jumpin’ Juice” (Jay Green, ARS, Beltsville, Md.), “Cocoa-Mallow Cake” (Kristin Marcoe, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, Washington, DC), “Glorious Purple Pickled Eggs” (Linda Ebert, FNS, Alexandria, Va.), “Cheeseburger Soup” (Jerald Carter, ARS, Beckley, W.Va.), “Mexican Caviar” (Kay Lichte, FSIS, Carroll County, Mo.), “Date Fingers” (Jane Hart, Office of Administrative Law Judges, Washington, DC), “Broken Glass Jello” (Marilyn Tagalicod, ARS, Hilo, Hawaii), “Banana Porridge” (Salei’a Afele-Faamuli, Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, Washington, DC), “Irish Soda Bread” (Ann Hassett, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Albany, N.Y.), “Hummingbird Cake” (Sandra Ellixson, Office of Operations, Washington, DC), “Portuguese Sweet Bread” (Catherine Sanchez, FSIS, Yucaipa, Calif.), and “Better Than Robert Redford Cake” (Rebecca Batts, OIG, Washington, DC). “Just let your imagination run along with the recipe,” quipped Batts.

Joyce Jacks, a microbiology technician with ARS’s Southeast Poultry Research Lab in Athens, Ga., submitted 30 recipes for the employee cookbook. “Hey, I love to cook,” she said, “so the cookbook was a great opportunity to share my recipes-–especially for my Peanut Butter Pound Cake--with any USDA colleagues who want to try them out.” •

--Ron Hall