After you have your item list broken down into purchase units (e.g. case) and inventory units (e.g. #10 can), you can begin to visualize the production process. For each ingredient, make a list of units commonly called in recipes. This will vary depending on how many different recipes use each item.

Three common portion methods for recipe ingredients are weight, volume and count. Meat items are often portioned by weight and count. When portioning by the piece, you may have more than one portion size. A strip steak could be sold in two or three portion sizes. For each portion size, imagine the entire strip will be used. You need to answer a simple question. How many steaks would you expect if you only cut the one size from the strip? Repeat the exercise for each portion size.

Use the average weight for popular random weight items. Generally, each case will always have the same number of large cuts (ribs, strips, loins, etc.). The total case weight will vary. Huge weight variances from the average will impact the number of portions per piece. It helps to keep accurate records of the butchering and fabrication process.

Yields may change from week to week. If you expected an 80% yield for a particular cut and you actually hit a 70% figure, your costs would run higher by over 11%. The variance is due to the poor yield alone. Add a price variance and some spoilage and the gross margin will begin to disappear. Portion control steaks provide operators with a consistent yield – one portion. When deciding to purchase portion control meat, you need to consider the hidden costs. Look at the whole picture including labor, equipment, risk of injury, and poor yield in your comparison.

Items portioned by volume or weight are straight forward. It is helpful to know the common conversion units for each method. Volume is expressed in gallons, quarts, pints, cups, liters, fluid ounces, milliliters, shots, tablespoons, teaspoons and fractions of each. Weight may be expressed in pounds, ounces, kilograms, grams, etc. A #10 can has about 6 pints (96 fluid ounces) and often about 6 pounds. Check all weight to volume relationships.

When developing standards, you may find your specifications are different than some of the excellent books. If you trim your produce quickly, the yield will probably be lower than the expectation. One way to reduce the variance is to portion produce items by the piece. A 24 head case of iceberg lettuce will yield 144 wedges if sliced in six pieces per head. Cutting the heads into larger wedges of four per head would yield only 96 portions.

Think of this step as the recipe model equivalent of the prep process. Having accurate recipe costs depends on accurate unit and yield data. The recipe costing programs will re-cost your recipes over and over as prices change. Spend the time initially to get this critical information correct for your operation. Don’t worry about benchmarks for portion size. Use your unique portion sizes in determining the conversions between inventory count units and the units called for in recipes.

Joe Dunbar
Dunbar Associates
(703) 425-6052
(202) 315-3664 eFax
jdunbar401@aol.com
www.joedunbar.com

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The first thing that comes to your mind when you visit folkd is its uncanny resemblance to digg. If you use Mozilla Firefox, you can access this website from the toolbar downloaded as a Firefox extension. The basic purpose of this website is to enable people to share their bookmarks with each other. Further, this site helps you not just find the right link but also determine whether the link in question is a good link or not. This can be determined from the number of votes or ‘folks’ that the link receives. If you have an account with the website, all you need to do is click on the two links given below to either folk it or save it to your list of favorite links. While most of us would vote for a link only if we like it and would save it, it is not mandatory to save all links that you vote on. You can choose to folk it or save it or folk and save the link as you choose.

However, this site is not all about links alone. This site supports various modes of media. You can upload not just images but upload music as well. Once uploaded, you can listen to music as well. Additional media support is not restricted to music and audio alone. You can watch videos on this site as well. This marks the transition of normal social bookmarking websites to fantastic entertainment zones which provide links, music, videos and lots of friends as well.

If you know different languages, you can make good use of the international language support of this site to browse through various links without any language problems. Why restrict yourself to the ‘English’ version of the web when the World Wide Web is available in different languages. Unlike other social networking websites which restrict you to English sites and links alone, this site will take you to all the great sites on the web irrespective of the language of the site.

One problem with such social bookmarking websites is that spammers submit various links which do nothing but take the surfers to different scam and spam websites. However, this website combines voting as well as moderator support to ensure the site is not flooded with fake links and scam websites.

If you do come across a website which you feel should not be on the site, you can report the link and the moderators shall take the final decision.

Another important feature of this website is the easy to navigate design of the website. The design was made popular by Digg and has become the norm for all other social bookmarking websites. Unlike other websites, this website has done a good job of following the standards set by Digg and other such popular websites.

The name of this website emphasizes on the ‘social’ aspect of social bookmarking websites. More and more people are climbing on to the bandwagon to exploit the popularity of such websites. Folkd is one such website to include in your social media portfolio.

Click here to download the firefox extension for folkd

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It was April 2009 where we first covered the emergence of the swine flu. It was then spreading fast in Mexico and some parts of America. On June 11, 2009 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the swine flu is now a Pandemic, not because of its severity, but because of the speed at which it spreads. With the Southern hemisphere flu season now upon us, the WHO declaration is more than justified.

Community level outbreaks started which alarmed the world. The declaration of a pandemic was just a reflection of these outbreaks. No need to needlessly worry, although people should still stay vigilant and exercise proper precautions and personal hygiene at all times.

You can help protect yourself and reduce the spread of any virus. All you need to do is observe proper precautions and personal cleanliness. For example, you can cover your nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing. You should always teach your children to wash their hands with antibacterial soap regularly. You can avoid crowds and tune in to the news for additional information. You can teach your children to avoid touching their eyes, mouth, and nose (this is how sickness can spread). There are a lot of things that you can do to contribute against the swine flu or regular viral infections. We are not completely helpless in this regard.

We are still waiting for a vaccine to be made. Although the French Pharmaceutical company, Novartis, claims to have made an effective batch of swine flu vaccine, it is not yet known when it will be available for public consumption. Australian researchers are also developing a vaccine using caterpillar cells.

Clearly, the vaccine for swine flu is not too far off before we get it. A lot of alarmist mentally has emerged from this debacle, but most people infected by this flu have recovered without needing any medical assistance.

It must be repeated that the swine flu should not be underestimated. It is a real threat. However, alarmist mentality should be negated by proper information of the severity of the threat. The fact is, dengue fever has a much worse casualty count than swine flu. Dengue fever caused by day time, female mosquitoes is a much severe case than this new swine flu cases upon us.

Sources:

news.yahoo.com

Cdc.gov

Wikipedia.org

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At all times, Tea is associated as a khaki-colored concoction, brewed from leaves, leaf buds, and other plant parts served before or after meals, which can be either hot or cold. But for some it’s not just a mere drink; it’s a way of life, a cultural legacy, a comfort, and an art.

In the past if you took “afternoon tea” or “high tea” it was a glance of your social standing.  Afternoon Tea was a light elegant meal served between a light lunch and late dinner, usually between 3 o’clock and 5 o’clock, and was mainly confined to the aristocracy with their leisurely lifestyle.  High Tea was a more substantial meal, including meat and/or fish, and was really an early dinner which well suited the middle and lower classes after a long day at work.

As times and lifestyles changed, the popularity of the formal afternoon tea waned, but has seen a revival in recent years as people once again enjoy its elegance. This formal pause quickly developed into a fashionable social event and spread where afternoon dances were called “tea dances.” During the 1880′s, well-to do, society women had wardrobes including long gowns, gloves and hats especially for afternoon tea. Service was highly stylized, with very specific rituals for serving the tea, usually in the drawing room between four and five o’clock. The occasion called for pleasant conversation among the prettiest table settings, providing the hostess an opportunity to show off her best china and linens and to serve her most delicate cookies and cakes.

As practice, tea party was and is rather concise, lasting 1 to 1 1/2 hours, providing just enough time for a delicious snack and plenty of conversation usually scheduled from mid to late afternoon. An afternoon tea theme may also  be used for a wedding reception, shower, or large afternoon party, as long as the starting time is between 2:00 PM and around 4:30. At a large party, coffee or even punch or iced tea may be added to the menu. Evening teas beginning after dinner are also occasionally scheduled.

At the party, everything is placed on the table .The food is prepared before the guests arrive, and is either presented into a buffet style, or by just passing plates of goodies at the table. This often includes savory, bite size sandwiches, scones or biscuits, and sweets. The only thing that needs to be served is the tea itself, allowing the hostess to have plenty of time with her guests and be relaxed and enjoy the event itself instead of running back and forth to the kitchen.

Napkins and small plates are stacked, but cups are placed on their saucers, not stacked. Each person needs a small spoon for stirring the tea, and a spreader, or butter knife for spreading a scone with clotted cream, but knives and forks for eating interfere with the ease and sociability of the event. The party is kept relatively small so that everyone can be seated around the table or in armchairs with an end table nearby for them to place their cup and saucer and other table appointments. No guests serve their own tea, instead the hostess serves everyone, adding sugar and lemon or cream as requested. At one time it was customary to first pour a little milk into the teacup.  It was thought that the fine porcelain cup may crack if the hot tea was poured directly into the empty cup.  At larger parties, friends of the hostess are asked to serve. It is still considered an honor to be asked to “pour” or serve tea at someone’s tea party.

Tea Party Preparation

If you want to make your tea party to be memorable, here are some suggestions and preparations that will help:

1. Prepare and begin with creative invitations.

2. Purchase or borrow the necessary items for your tea gatherings.

- 1 or more china teapots
- Cups and saucers may with a variety of patterns.
- Cutlery this includes teaspoons, small fork for lemon slices in a dish, serving utensils for cake, forks, and – knives for jam.
- Sugar bowl with tongs for serving sugar. Always use sugar cubes
- Milk Containers. Serve milk, not cream.

3. Choose for classical or vintage type of music.

4. Use candles to create ambiance.

5. Plan and prepare a colorful variety of petit fours, scones, sugar cookies, and of course, chocolate.

6. Set out bouquets of pink and white flowers.

7. Take Polaroid snapshots of guests to add to the fun and chatter.

8. Ask guests to dress up complete with heels, hats, and gloves

Tea for the Party

Tea are sold either in tea bags or loose tea leaves.  At one time, loose tea with its large leaves had a superior flavor as tea bags were made with broken tea leaves and siftings that produced a stronger, darker tea.  The introduction of fine quality tea bags has changed that and now the choice between loose tea leaves or tea bags is based more on personal preference.

There are wonderful assortment fine teas available today.  The three main types are: Black, Oolong or Red, and Green Tea. Assam, Ceylon, China Caravan, Darjeeling, Earl Grey, English Breakfast, Irish Breakfast, Keemun, Kenya, Lapsang Souchong, Nilgiri, Orange Pekoe, Rose Pouchong, Russian, and Yunnan are Black Teas.  Formosa/China Oolong and Formosa/China Pouchong are Oolong or Red Teas, and Gunpowder and Jasmine are Green TeasTea.

Caddies can be used to store both tea leaves and bags.  A small container, once lockable to prevent servants from stealing the expensive tea leaves, it keeps tea leaves fresh for up to 2 years and tea bags for approximately 6 months.

Tea Preparation:

1. Allow at least a pint of tea for each person; this is enough for three ordinary tea cups-full.

2. Fill a tea kettle with purified water and set on stove to boil.

3. Warm up your china teapot by running hot water thru it from the faucet. This will keep your tea warmer for a bit longer.

4. Add your teabags or tea-filled infuser to the teapot using 2-3 tea bags for 4 guests.

5. Pour the boiling water carefully into your teapot and wait 5 minutes, then remove teabags

6. Remember that China Teapots are best at keeping tea warm. Surround teapot with a stylish tea cozy for extra insulation.

I hope you have learned a little history of tea parties and how to throw a tea party like a champ. Enjoy your party and save a cup for me.

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