Consumers shouldn’t eat pre-cut cantaloupe if they don’t know the source, U.S. health officials said Thursday, as the number of illnesses and recalls tied to a deadly salmonella outbreak grows.
At least 117 people in 34 U.S. states have been sickened by contaminated cantaloupe, including 61 who were hospitalized and two who died, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Another 63 illnesses, 17 hospitalizations and one death tied to the same outbreak have been reported in Canada.
The illnesses are severe, with more than half of infected people hospitalized, including residents of long-term care centers and children in day care, the CDC said.
Previous recalls of whole and pre-cut cantaloupes have been expanded to include Kwik Trip markets, Bix Produce and distributor GHGA, which sent recalled products to Kroger, Sprouts Farmer’s Markets and Trader Joe’s stores in several states, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
I did it. I actually made a ham and kiwi pizza and tried it because of this post. If you’re interested in my thoughts on it, let me know. I have pictures of it being made and opinions on how it tasted, which I’d be happy to share.
Also, I’m not a weirdo if that’s a concern you have. Just a normal person who became very intrigued by the idea of “Kiwizza” as I’ve dubbed it.
How’d it turn out? I generally make a sweet red sauce to complement the feta so kiwi wouldn’t be terrible on mine. I have no clue whether it’d dump huge amounts of water on the pizza or burn. Spill your secrets, o kiwizza keeper.
So, it was interesting. It was by no means bad, but the kiwi flavor was completely lost. Part of what makes pineapple great on pizza is the texture. It holds up to the heat. The kiwi pieces got so soft and the flavor was overpowered so much by the sauce that it was almost undetectable. It looked nice though, so it wasn’t a total loss.
The shape got a little messed up when I transferred it to the pizza stone.
A small sprinkle of low moisture cheese or a slice of mushroom atop the kiwi would insulate it from the heat and provide mouthfeel. It’s the best way I’ve found to keep fresh mozzarella and basil from overcooking. You’ve made me curious enough to try it as well. But I’m a bit sad that my dream of whole, unhidden kiwi slices hanging out atop a pizza as a vegetarian facsimile of pepperoni is dead. You’re a trailblazer.
Also, it may have actually softened your cheese as well, which is interesting. “Actinidain also makes raw kiwifruit unsuitable for use in desserts containing milk or any other dairy products because the enzyme digests milk proteins. This applies to gelatin-based desserts, due to the fact that the actinidain will dissolve the proteins in gelatin, causing the dessert to either liquefy or prevent it from solidifying.”
Wow, that’s super interesting about the enzyme. Let me know how your experiment goes if you do try it. I’ve got you tagged as “Fellow Kiwizza scientist”