Top Items Needed by the Pantries:

• Peanut Butter
• Canned meat (tuna, stew, etc.)
• Soup - canned and dry
  
• Fruit - canned and dry
  
• Beans - canned and dry
  
• Cereal
• Pasta products
• Spaghetti sauce (not in glass jars, please)
• Rice
• Boxed dinners (mac & cheese, hamburger/tuna helper)
• Soap (laundry, dish, and bar)
• Personal care items (shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, toilet paper, etc.)
• Diapers

Updated -The Food and Drug Administration has expanded it's warning and alerting consumers nationwide that a salmonellosis outbreak appears to be linked to consumption of certain types of raw red tomatoes and products containing raw red tomatoes. The bacteria causing the illnesses are Salmonella serotype Saintpaul, an uncommon type of Salmonella.

FDA recommends that consumers not eat raw red Roma, raw red plum, raw red round tomatoes, or products that contain these types of raw red tomatoes unless the tomatoes are from the sources listed below. If unsure of where tomatoes are grown or harvested, consumers are encouraged to contact the store where the tomato purchase was made. Consumers should continue to eat cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached, or tomatoes grown at home.

FDA's recommendation does not apply to the following tomatoes from any source: cherry, grape, and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached.

FDA recommends that retailers, restaurateurs, and food service operators not offer for sale and service raw red Roma, raw red plum, and raw red round tomatoes unless they are from the sources listed above. Cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and tomatoes sold with the vine still attached, may continue to be offered from any source.

Since mid April, there have been 145 reported cases of salmonellosis caused by Salmonella Saintpaul nationwide, including at least 23 hospitalizations. States reporting illnesses linked to the outbreak include: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. Salmonella Saintpaul is an uncommon type of Salmonella.

Salmonella can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections particularly in young children, frail or elderly people, and those with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, the organism can get into the bloodstream and produce more severe illnesses. Consumers who have recently eaten raw tomatoes or foods containing raw tomatoes and are experiencing any of these symptoms should contact their health care provider. All Salmonella infections should be reported to state or local health authorities.

FDA recognizes that the source of the contaminated tomatoes may be limited to a single grower or packer or tomatoes from a specific geographic area. FDA also recognizes that there are many tomato crops across the country and in foreign countries that will be ready for harvest or will become ready in the coming months. In order to ensure that consumers can continue to enjoy tomatoes that are safe to eat, FDA is working diligently with the states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Indian Health Service, and various food industry trade associations to quickly determine the source of the tomatoes associated with the outbreak.

FDA is taking these actions while the agency continues to investigate this outbreak with state and federal partners. Such actions are a key component of FDA's Food Protection Plan, a scientific and risk-based approach to strengthen and protect the nation's food supply.

• persons with increased risk of severe infection, including infants, elderly persons, and those with impaired immune systems, should not eat raw Roma or red round tomatoes other than those sold attached to the vine or grown at home, and
  

• persons who want to reduce their risk of Salmonella infection can avoid consuming raw Roma or red round tomatoes other than those sold attached to the vine or grown at home.

• Avoid purchasing bruised or damaged tomatoes and discard any that appear spoiled.
  

• Thoroughly wash all tomatoes under running water.
  

• Refrigerate within 2 hours or discard cut, peeled, or cooked tomatoes.
  

• Keep tomatoes that will be consumed raw separate from raw meats, raw seafood, and raw produce items.
  

• Wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and counter tops with hot water and soap when switching between types of food products.

Read more: The Food and Drug Administration

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

STAMP OUT HUNGER!

Nation's Largest Food Drive Helps Millions of Americans

On Saturday, May 10, Campbell Soup Company will join forces with the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) to Stamp Out Hunger! across America.  Now in its 16^th year, the Stamp Out Hunger! effort is the nation's largest single-day food drive, having collected more than 836 million pounds of food since its inception in 1993.

To help Stamp Out Hunger! this year, simply leave a sturdy bag containing non-perishable foods, such as canned soup, canned vegetables, pasta, rice or cereal next to your mailbox prior to the time of regular mail delivery on May 10.  Food items should be in non-breakable containers, such as boxes and cans.  The nation's 230,000 letter carriers will then collect donations from homes across the country and deliver them to food bank members of America's Second Harvest - The Nation's Food Bank Network and other hunger relief organizations in more than 10,000 local communities.

"Hunger continues to be a vital issue in this country," said William H. Young, NALC president.  "Many Americans may miss the faces of hunger, but we see it daily out on our routes.  The problem is hunger can strike anyone - the elderly, the working class and even innocent children.  That's why we need your help to make a real difference."

According to America's Second Harvest, more than 35 million people are food insecure, hungry or at risk of hunger.  Approximately one in four people in a soup kitchen line is a child.

 
For more information about the annual Stamp Out Hunger! effort in your community, ask your letter carrier, contact your local post office or visit www.helpstampouthunger.com.

• Cinco de Mayo is one of the largest consumption days of the year for avocados - 53.9 million pounds of avocados are expected to be consumed during this year's Cinco de Mayo celebrations

• Approximately 107.8 million avocados will be consumed during Cinco de Mayo fiestas this year

• Chefs Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger have teamed up with the California Avocado Commission to create unique, avocado-inspired Cinco de Mayo recipes that are available on the California Avocado Commission's Web site, CaliforniaAvocado.com

• California avocados are hand grown in the more than 6,000 avocado groves located in Central and Southern California, by growers who take advantage of the ideal growing conditions of the region to grow this luscious fruit

• April through September marks California avocado season, making it the perfect ingredient for Cinco de Mayo party foods

Never in our history of 15 years of managing grocery data have we seen such a strange economic environment. Many times each day we are reminded of the many crises surrounding our food supply. Rising gas and food prices, food shortages, depleted food banks, rising demands for food assistance. Things are tight and it doesn't look like it is going to be over soon.

Yesterday the Joint Economic Committee of Congress held a special hearing "How Are High Food Prices Impacting American Families?" The testimony given doesn't give a lot of hope for improvement. In short, the era of cheap food is over. Consumers are making lifestyle changes to cope with the food and grocery price increases. They are using more coupons, switching to non-branded products, planning their shopping trips and meals and stocking pantries.

Use GroceryGuide.com to set product alerts and help you save money.

Read more: Joint Economic Committee of Congress - "How Are High Food Prices Impacting American Families?"

The Game: Super Bowl  XLII - Official site http://www.nfl.com/superbowl

Location: Glendale, Arizona

Time: 6 PM ET/3 PM PT

Broadcast on: Fox Network 

Who's playing: New England Patriots and the New York Giants

Halftime Entertainment: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Audience: Fox expects more than 94 million viewers.

Commercials: 63 national network spots averaging $2.7 million each. This is becoming a bigger part of the entertainment value each year.  Check out our insider links below.

Best Foods: Things that can be consumed in front of a television and vacuum easily out of couches.

Food Trivia: There are more pizza deliveries made during Super Bowl Sunday than on any other day of the year.

Although Super Bowl Sunday is one of the biggest days of the year for avocado consumption it ranks third for consumption of avocados behind Cinco de Mayo and Memorial Day. Over 50 million pounds of avocados will be consumed.

There are over 1,000,000 web pages with suggestions for what to fix and how to fix it so we just thought that we would pass on a few of our favorite sites and of course remind you that you can save yourself some time and money by searching for all of your Super Bowl party ingredients here at GroceryGuide.com.  Locate the ingredients, check for coupons, and make a shopping list and go.

Get as much done ahead of time so you can enjoy the game with your guests. Do all your chopping and slicing in advance. Store chopped veggies in plastic bags, ready for your platter. Crockpots are great for keeping foods warm. Borrow extras from your friends to use for cheese dip, meatballs, or sausage links.

Here are a few recipe sites and their special Super Bowl suggestions:

Oh, and take a look at Alton Browns recipes for wings. While he has several the one that I like best is the Buffalo Wings that uses a steamer basket. 

RecipeZaar - Super Bowl Spreads

About - Top 5 Super Bowl Party Recipes  and Super Bowl Recipes and Quick Party Food Tips 

AllRecipes - Kick Off a Winning Super Bowl Party They also have a good Super Bowl: Dip Buffet area with 10 of their best dip recipes. 

Staples to have on hand for dips:

Tortilla chips, Pita triangles, Vegetables (carrots, celery, tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, etc.) Fruits (apples, bananas, etc.), Chips, Crackers, Bread ( rounds or sliced baguettes), Shrimp.

Speaking of dips, I saw a great article in The New York Times this morning.  Dip Once or Dip Twice?

A new scientific report has some new findings that may call for a referee at that communal dip bowl.

The study, to be published later this year in the Journal of Food Safety, was conducted as part of a Clemson University program designed to get undergraduate students involved in scientific research. Prof. Paul L. Dawson, a food microbiologist, proposed it after he saw a rerun of a 1993 "Seinfeld" show in which George Costanza is confronted at a funeral reception by Timmy, his girlfriend’s brother, after dipping the same chip twice. "Did, did you just double dip that chip?" Timmy asks incredulously, later objecting, "That's like putting your whole mouth right in the dip!"

One of my favorites for originality this year however is the Chunky Salsa Cheesecake. Push yourself a little out of the comfort zone and into the end zone with your guests. They'll try it, they'll like it!

Chunky Salsa Cheesecake - from Pace and Campbell Soup Company

Ads: Demand for the 63 national network spots was strong with the sale of the last ad, exceeding the average  $2.7 million price, ``It's the earliest we've ever sold the game out,'' according to Fox Sports spokesman Lou D'Ermilio.  

Super Bowl Ad lineup: The USA Today has the full schedule. Print it out and vote for your favorites.  

Watch this year's ads: Almost 30 pre-released ads and teasers have hit the web. Brian Cavoli has put quite a list together with all the links to get the sneak peek.

Watch last year's Super Bowl ads go to:  www.superbowl-ads.com , or  www.spike.com/superbowl  or http://www.adbowl.com/pastresults.php

Vote on your favorite Super Bowl ad this year:  Adbowl and YouTube

Ad Insider info: Anheuser-Busch again has some surprises with a heart-tugging Budweiser ad involving A-B's Clydesdale horses. A Dalmatian helping "Thunder" get in shape after the horse gets cut from the beer wagon team. Will Ferrell in character from his movie Semi-Pro, due out Feb. 29 appears in another. To see previews of their ads or vote on them go to http://budbowl.com

Well that's all for now, don't scorch the cheese dip and have a safe and happy weekend.

Read more:

National Football League

MSNBC

About.com - The Road to the Super Bowl

Fox Sports