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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Mango Leather

Sliced up mango next to dehydrated rolls of mango

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Yield: 8 fruit rolls from about 2, 14-inch-diameter dryer trays

4 cups mango purée (from about 4 large, unripe mangoes)
1 cup clover honey
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves

Preheat electric dehydrator to 140° F. Wash and peel mangoes, chop roughly into chunks. Purée in blender until smooth. Pass purée through a food mill or sieve; discard any coarse fiber extracted in food mill. Add honey and spices to the purée and mix thoroughly.

Lightly spray two fruit roll tray liners from an electric dehydrator with vegetable oil cooking spray. Spread mango mixture evenly to ¼-inch thickness on the trays. Position fruit roll liners on dryer trays and place in dehydrator. Dry continuously for about 10 hours. Maintain dehydrator air temperature steadily at 140° F. (Monitor the dehydrator air temperature periodically with a thermometer.)

Remove trays from dehydrator when purée is dry, with no sticky areas (about 10 hours—this will be highly dependent on the relative humidity of the drying room). Test for dryness by touching gently in several places near the center of leather; no indentation should be evident.

Peel leather from trays while still warm. Leave the second tray on the dehydrator while peeling the first leather, or re-warm leathers slightly in the dehydrator if they cool too much prior to peeling. Cut into quarters, lay on a piece of clean parchment paper about 1 to 2 inches longer at each end of the leather and roll into fruit leather rolls. When cool, twist the ends of the parchment paper tightly to close.

Store fruit rolls in an airtight container for short-term storage, up to about 1 month. Leathers should be stored in a cool, dark dry place. For longer storage up to one year, place tightly wrapped rolls in the freezer.


Source: National Center for Home Food Preservation


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Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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