Could you give me some tips on how to keep eggs safe when decorating them for Easter?

Decorating Easter eggs is a tradition that can bring enjoyment, but decorators need to remember food safety too. The main concern when dealing with eggs is salmonella. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports 40,000 cases of salmonella each year, and they estimate that up to 20 times that many go unreported.

To decrease the risk of salmonella, cook eggs properly and keep hands clean. Make sure the eggs aren’t broken because cracked eggs could be contaminated. People who raise chickens should gather eggs at least once each day.

Keep eggs refrigerated. If having an Easter egg hunt, only allow eggs to be out of the refrigerator for two hours or less or prepare a separate batch of eggs just to use for the hunt. By the time you take the eggs out of the refrigerator, they get hidden in a number of possibly contaminated areas, then children handle them extensively, it really isn’t a good idea to eat them. Another option is to use the plastic eggs for the Easter egg hunts.

If you plan to decorate eggs that will be eaten, be sure to use a food-safe dye. Commercial egg decorating dyes are food safe, as is food coloring added to a water-vinegar mix. Organic dyes are another option. Tea or coffee will provide a tan or brownish shade. Beet or cranberry juice will produce red dye. For green, use the water from cooked spinach leaves, or for blue, use blueberry juice.

To help color adhere more evenly, wash them in a mild detergent solution before decorating to give a light oil coating.

How long should hard-cooked eggs be kept in the refrigerator?

Hard-cooked eggs in the shell should be used within a week, or within 2 to 3 days if the shell has been removed. Uncooked egg contents from hollowed eggs should be used within a day or two.

What is the best way to hard-cook eggs?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has published guidelines to encourage the safety of preparing hard-cooked Easter eggs. The guidelines are as follows:

1. Put eggs in a single layer in a saucepan and add enough tap water to come at least one inch above the eggs.

2. Cover.

3. Put on high heat until water boils.

4. Turn off heat. If necessary, remove pan from burner to prevent further boiling.

5. Let stand in the hot water 15 minutes for large eggs. Adjust the time up or down by approximately three minutes for each size larger or smaller.

6. Cool immediately and thoroughly in cold water.

7. Decorate and refrigerate until ready for use.

Do you have a microwave recipe for an egg strata?

The American Egg Board just featured a ham and asparagus strata on their Web site at www.aeb.org that sounds scrumptious.

Ham and Asparagus Strata

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Cooking spray

12 to 16 (1/2-inch thick) slices French or Italian bread.

1 cup shredded low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella or Italian blend cheese, divided

1 cup chopped cooked lean ham, divided

8 ounces fresh asparagus spears, cut into 1-inch pieces

6 eggs

1 cup skim or low-fat milk

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Evenly coat 8-inch square baking dish with spray. Layer half of the bread slices on bottom of dish. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the cheese, 1/2 cup of the ham and 1 cup of the asparagus pieces. Cover with the remaining bread slices, laying them flat or in a shingled pattern.

Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, ham and asparagus spears. In medium bowl, beat together eggs, milk, lemon juice and garlic powder.

Pour evenly over layers.

Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave or bake the strata right away or cover and refrigerate it for several hours or even overnight. With a cold mixture, allow a little more cooking time.

Microwave on full power 5 minutes. Rotate dish. Microwave on 50 percent power, rotating dish each 3 to 5 minutes, until thermometer inserted near center reads 160 degrees and knife inserted near center comes out clean, about 10 to 12 minutes.

Conventional oven: Prepare strata as above. Cover dish with aluminum foil. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven until thermometer inserted near center reads 160 degrees and knife inserted near center comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes.

Makes 6 servings.

Cherry Tomato & Portabella Omelet

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1 teaspoon butter or cooking oil or cooking spray

1 cup sliced baby portabello mushrooms

2 cherry tomatoes, wedged, or 4 grape tomatoes, halved

2 eggs

2 tablespoons bottled reduced-fat ranch salad dressing (see note)

1/4 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

In 7- to 10-inch omelet pan or skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil until just hot enough to sizzle a drop of water. Add mushrooms.

Cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook stirring frequently, until tomatoes are heated through, about 1 minute. Remove mushrooms and tomatoes from pan. Cover and keep warm.

In small bowl, beat together eggs and dressing until blended. Pour egg mixture into pan. Mixture should set immediately at edges.

With an inverted pancake turner, carefully push cooked portions at edges toward center so uncooked portions can reach hot pan surface, tilting pan and moving cooked portions as necessary.

When top is thickened and no visible liquid egg remains, fill with reserved mushrooms and tomatoes. Sprinkle with cheese and parsley. With pancake turner, fold omelet in half or roll. Invert onto plate with a quick flip of the wrist or slide from pan onto plate.

To increase the recipe, multiply the ingredients by however many servings you need and use 1/2 cup of the egg mixture for each omelet.

Note: Use any variety of salad dressing you like to spike the egg mixture with flavor.

Makes 1 serving.

— Susan Krumm is an Extension agent in family and consumer sciences with K-State Research and Extension-Douglas County, 2110 Harper St. She can be reached at 843-7058.