Monday, January 19, 2026
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Egg Salad, ‘seriously’

By
Debbie Dance Uhrig
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Macaroni & Cheese, mashed potatoes & gravy with radishes, rice pudding, egg nog, chocolate chip cookies, and egg salad are just a ‘few’ of my favorite comfort foods! This week I was asked about a recipe for egg salad!!! Seriously; I didn’t know there was one! Every nationality has their version of egg salad, much like hand pies. It’s been around since forever, the first recorded recipes go back to the late 1800’s, appearing in one of the earliest cookbooks. The salads we are discussing today are all referred to as ‘bound’ salads.

We could spend quite a few hours talking about how to boil eggs for egg salad. There are ‘many’ methods. I usually put my eggs in cold water, bringing it to a hard boil. At that point I time it for 10 minutes, and immediately remove them from the heat. I pour off the hot water rattling the eggs to crack them, pour on ice water, and allow to cool.

Sometimes I put vinegar in the boiling water which is supposed to help the shells to release more easily. But if you really want the shells to come off easily use mature eggs, not the dozen you just picked up at the store.

In one of my columns I wrote about deviled eggs and how funny I think it is that grocery stores put eggs on sale the week of Easter. They should be placed on sale a couple weeks before the big event.

You can study about egg cooking methods and what people like to do to render the perfect hard boiled eggs. Even a little research into how various countries prepare their egg salads.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t always know when I’m going to make a bowl of egg salad. Therefore it’s rare that I get to use fresh dill or parsley in my egg salads. Since deli meats prices started increasing a couple of years ago , I started making lots of chicken salad, tuna salad and egg salad. Lots of protein and it doesn’t run 10-12 dollars a pound.

When making a tuna, chicken, beef or egg salad one very important tip is to use quality mayonnaise. The fat content is very important in making creamy meat, egg or pasta salads. It will be extremely creamy and you will be pleased with the bind. Years ago when low fat mayonnaise first came out I didn’t know what was wrong with my tuna salads, they seemed extra runny, with lousy ‘body’. Well; I certainly learned a few things since those days. I.E. with tuna salad I always use albacore tuna. Water or oil based? They actually say oil based makes a better salad. Mayonnaise, I failed to tell you the 2 tie winners for first place, mayonnaise, it was Duke’s and Hellman’s. My brand came in second place, which is the ‘Kraft mayo’ brand.

A little mustard is a nice addition to an egg salad. Everything from prepared mustard, to Dijon, or stone ground are options. There are times I also use dry mustard. When I made all my own pickles I would chop them by hand for salads, these days I usually reach for dill relish, well drained for the pickle portion. When my dad was alive he always wanted ‘sweet’ relish or pickles in his salads. There will be a few that say leave out the pickle entirely, all good, but don’t forget a little pickle juice or vinegar added to the dressing.

Celery, if I have it on hand it’s going to be in the salad! You will have some family members that won’t care for it in the salad. I seldom use it in tuna or beef salads. I make chicken salads with celery but my favorite chicken salad is with the yogurt based dressing, grapes, celery and nuts added.

Probably the fastest egg salad is made from leftover deviled eggs. This produces a very tight egg salad. Have you ever grilled an egg salad sandwich? I highly recommend toasting at least the inside of the bread, before adding the salad. In my research I even found that folks will use leftover scrambled eggs to make egg salad. Hmmm…I’ll pass on that one. Let’s journey into this easy heart warming salad. Simply yours, The Covered Dish.

Simple Egg Salad

Green Onion, 4-6 finely chopped, include the good part of the green tops

Celery, 3 stalks, sliced

12 eggs, hard boiled, peeled

(And easy cut is to use your egg slicer, cut one direction, then switch directions.)

1-2 teaspoons dry mustard or prepared mustard 2-3 teaspoons

1 teaspoon black pepper could use ground white instead-

Drained Dill relish, ½ cup, if you like the pickles, add a tad more, drain-

1-2 teaspoons dry dill weed

Mayonnaise, ½ – ¾ cups

Panko to bind should it be runny and not tight.

Years ago I started keeping panko plain and Italian on hand at all times. It can rescue a runny salad, by fixing the bind. No one will ever know, unless you spill the beans.

Don’t Scratch that Itch!

By
Steve Gilliland
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My mom was so allergic to poison ivy I still believe to this day she could have caught it by merely looking at the plants. I remember her being hospitalized once with poison ivy so bad on her hand that it resembled raw hamburger. My dad on the other hand could’ve rolled around in the stuff and never known it. One night a few years back I went to change a flat tire on our mobile deer blind which was still in the woods, and found it to be afloat in a sea of the healthiest poison ivy I’d ever seen. I chopped it down all around the tire, wore gloves and was pretty careful as I worked, but three or four days later I had a small patch of rash on one arm, the first time I ever “got” poison ivy.

Each stem of a poison ivy plant has three shiny, pointed green leaves, thus the old saying “Leaves of three, let them be.” The troublemaker is the oil called “Urushiol” that is found on poison ivy plants. Urushiol by itself is fairly harmless, but when absorbed by our skin, our body attacks to it as an intruder and the red, itchy rash follows. Urushiol is found in ALL parts of a poison ivy plant ALL year round, and has actually been found to be present in plants that have been dead for up to five years. Animals and pets do not react to urushiol but can carry it on their fur or hide and infect humans that way. It can also remain indefinitely on clothing and tools. Liquid from poison ivy blisters WILL NOT spread poison ivy; urushiol must be absorbed by our skin to cause a reaction and by the time a rash develops the oil has long since been absorbed. Sensitivity to poison ivy is thought to be genetic so it can run in the family; someone sensitive to poison ivy can also have a reaction from the smoke of burning poison ivy plants.

To keep this from reading like a pamphlet about poison ivy you’d pick up at the County Extension office, I’ve put together a little fun trivia about the “leaves-of-three” plant, plus few not-so-common facts and cures for poison ivy rash.

Five hundred people could itch from the amount of urushiol found on the head of a pin. It’s estimated that 85% of the world’s population would have an allergic reaction to poison ivy. Samples of urushiol several centuries old have still been found to cause skin irritation on sensitive people.

If using water to attempt to rinse urushiol off your skin before it’s absorbed, ALWAYS rinse with COOL water as hot water will actually open skin pores and speed absorption.

Capsaicin cream, labeled for arthritis pain can suppress the itch of poison ivy rash for hours.

Apple cider vinegar, rubbing alcohol or lemon juice poured liberally over your skin can rinse off urushiol if done soon enough after contact. Either liquid can also help heal poison ivy rash if drizzled over the rash or used on a compress.

Other ways to soothe poison ivy rash include coating the rash with cucumber slices or a paste made from cucumber, and rubbing the rash with the inside of a banana peel or cool melon rind.

Witch hazel, strongly brewed tea, buttermilk or yogurt dabbed on poison ivy rash with a cotton ball can help draw toxins out of the rash and dry up seeping blisters.

Aloe Vera juice will soothe poison ivy rash like it soothes sunburn.

One cup of oatmeal ground into a fine powder, put into an old pair of pantyhose and used like a teabag in a tub of cool bathwater can provide relief from the intense itching of poison ivy rash.

Three teaspoons of baking soda mixed with one teaspoon of water makes a good paste to spread over poison ivy rash to aid in healing and offer temporary relief from itching.

In summary, lots of things can give relief from the itch of poison ivy rash, but the only sure way to prevent a reaction is to rinse off the urushiol oil before it can be absorbed into the skin. The opening lines of the old Coasters song “Poison Ivy” say “she comes on like a rose but everybody knows she’ll get you in dutch, you can look but you better not touch; poison ivy, poison ivy, at night when you’re sleepin’ poison ivy comes creeping around.” …Continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors

Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected]

Gardeners enter home stretch for onions, tomatoes

By
Guest Columnist
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K-State horticulture expert shares tips for successfully growing two garden staples.

If gardeners are crying about their onions right now, it’s not because they’re slicing them in their kitchen. But they may soon.

“This is the time of time of year that onions grow and develop rapidly,” said Kansas State University horticulture expert Cynthia Domenghini. “Regular watering – if the soil is dry – and a light fertilization are helpful to maximize growth.”

In soils that tend to be alkaline, Domenghini suggests using ammonium sulfate (21-0-0) at the rate of ½ cup per 10 feet of row. The number combination refers to the rates of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contained in the fertilizer.

“You can use lawn fertilizer (such as 29-5-5, 27-3-3, or similar) but only use 1/3 cup per 10 feet of row,” she said. “Make sure the lawn fertilizer does not have a weed preventer or weed killer included. Sprinkle the fertilizer 2-3 inches alongside the row and water in. Do not fertilize after the onions start to bulb.”

Domenghini said that as onions develop, as much as 2/3 of the bulb remains out of the soil. She said that is normal and there is no need to cover the bulb with soil.

Tomatoes

Another garden favorite – tomatoes – could benefit from mulching as long as soils are warm enough and not saturated with water, according to Domenghini.

“Tomatoes prefer even levels of soil moisture, and mulches provide that by preventing excessive evaporation,” she said.

Mulch also helps to suppress weeds, moderate soil temperatures, and prevent the formation of hard crust on the soil. Crusted soils restrict air movement and slow the water infiltration rate.

Domenghini said hay and straw mulches are “very popular for tomatoes, but may contain weed or volunteer grain seeds.” Grass clippings can be used as mulch, but should be applied in a thin layer – “only 2-3 inches thick,” Domenghini said.

“Do not use clippings from lawns that have been treated with weed killer until some time has passed,” she said. “With most types of weed killers, clippings from the fourth mowing after treatment may be used.”

Domenghini and her colleagues in K-State’s Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources produce a weekly Horticulture Newsletter with tips for maintaining home landscapes and gardens. The newsletter is available to view online or can be delivered by email each week.

Interested persons can also send their garden and yard-related questions to Domenghini at [email protected], or contact your local K-State Research and Extension office.

Tall fescue adds to heat stress in cattle

By
Guest Columnist
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Cattle rid their bodies of heat in three ways: radiation, convection and evaporation. “If your cattle can’t use all three methods, they’ll overheat fast,” says University of Missouri Extension state beef nutrition specialist Eric Bailey.

Summer heat knocks weight off calves and pounds off milk, Bailey says. Losses come in the form of less gain, weaker fertility and other health issues. “Heat stress costs real money,” he says.

Producers can reduce heat stress by providing adequate shade, proper fly control, access to water and the right choice of pasture grass.

Tall fescue pastures turn up the heat

Cattle grazing on tall fescue grass when temperatures rise is a recipe for disaster.

Toxic endophytes in fescue can turn up the cattle’s body heat. Their efforts to keep cool can melt profits. But there are practical fixes that keep weight and profits steady, Bailey says.

Most fescue pastures in the Fescue Belt carry endophytes that make toxic ergot alkaloids, which mess with your cattle’s ability to stay cool, he says.

These toxins tighten blood vessels, cut blood flow to the skin and prevent heat from escaping. They make it hard for cattle to sweat and pant, essential tasks to rid their bodies of heat. Third, ergot alkaloids delay shedding by lowering prolactin. This leaves cattle with shaggy coats that trap summer heat.

Summer temperatures, especially heat waves, make cattle on fescue vulnerable to problems. Normally, cattle can tolerate temperatures of 31 C or 88 F. Cows likely consume enough ergovaline by Memorial Day to make heat stress worse during the summer.

Small amounts cause big losses

Even ingesting small amounts of ergot alkaloids can result in reduced weight gain and smaller calves, less milk, lower fertility and lighter wallets, says Bailey. He offers these suggestions on avoiding losses from heat stress:

• Rotate toxic tall fescues with other grasses such as clover, or interseed pastures with nontoxic novel-endophyte fescue to dilute.

• Consider investing in full pasture renovation on the worst fields. See the Alliance for Grassland Renewal website for information on renovating tall fescue pastures.

• Provide supplemental feed in the range of 0.5% to 1.0% of bodyweight per day to dilute ergovaline in the diet.

Maintain good fly control

If you have cows on tall fescue, pay special attention to fly control.

“If your cattle are on toxic tall fescue and they are crowding together to dodge flies, the deck is stacked against them,” says Bailey.

Cattle tend to bunch up to avoid flies, especially stable flies that attack their legs. They congregate in the middle of the pasture and avoid the field edges where flies gather most.

Bunching traps heat, cuts radiation and convection in half, and raises humidity significantly. “In severe cases, cows quit radiating heat and actually begin to heat up even in the shade,” says Bailey.

Here’s the fix:

• Drag pastures to break up manure, which is a breeding ground for flies.

• Use fly tags, traps or parasitic wasps to cut fly numbers.

• Finally, rotate pastures to break fly life cycles.

Give your herd shade

Bailey gives guidelines to discourage bunching and encourage cattle to space out in pastures:

• Provide 20-30 square feet of shade per cow.

• Provide portable shade structures that allow airflow.

• Place water troughs 50-100 feet apart to encourage animals to spread out.

Finally, radiation and convection need cool surroundings and airflow to work, says Bailey. “They fail when it’s hot and crowded. Evaporation is the last line of defense in a heat wave, but humidity and fescue toxins can cripple it,” he says.

For more information, see the MU Extension publication “Tall Fescue Toxicosis” (G4669), which is available for free download.

From bison to ticks, these are the 12 deadliest animals found in Kansas

By
Guest Columnist
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Potentially deadly Kansas creatures range in size from as big as a bison to as tiny as a tick.

The WorldAtlas website spotlights a dozen such animals in an entry titled, “The 12 Deadliest Animals in Kansas.”

The site focuses on 12 animals, at least two of which it doesn’t document as having caused any human deaths.

American bison

The American bison appears tame at first glance but can be “unpredictably dangerous,” said the WorldAtlas site.

The bison since 1955 has been the state animal of Kansas. It is the largest mammal in North America, yet is capable of running as fast as 35 mph, the WorldAtlas site said.

A bison gored its owner to death in August 2022 in central Kansas.

That animal subsequently threw an Ellsworth County sheriff’s deputy 10 to 12 feet into the air, and appeared to be charging at him when it was fatally shot by another deputy. The downed deputy survived.

Snakes on the plains

Four venomous snakes indigenous to Kansas are among the 12 types of creatures highlighted on the WorldAtlas site.

Those are the prairie rattlesnake, the timber rattlesnake, the massasauga rattlesnake and the copperhead snake.

All venomous snakes found in Kansas are pit vipers, meaning they have heat-sensitive pits in front of each eye to help locate prey, according to the website of the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

It said the timber rattler can be found in the eastern fourth of Kansas, the prairie rattler in the western half of the state, the massasauga rattler in the eastern two-thirds of the state;and the copperhead in the state’s eastern third.

Deaths from snake bites in Kansas are rare, according to a “A Pocket Guide to Kansas Snakes” — written by Joseph T. Collins, Suzanne L. Collins and Travis W. Taggart — which is on its sixth edition after initially being published in 2011.

“There is only one documented fatality in Kansas since 1950,” it said.

Kansas has two types of poisonous spiders

The poisonous black widow and brown recluse spiders are two others among the 12 potentially deadly Kansas creatures listed on the WorldAtlas site.

“A black widow spider bite is rarely fatal but may harbor a neurotoxic venom that causes severe muscle cramping, nausea, localized pain, vomiting, headaches, sweating, and trembling,” it said. “In rare cases, these bites may induce tremors, convulsions, breathing difficulties, or suffocation.”

The WorldAtlas site added, “Though a majority of reported bites from a brown recluse often cause little to no symptoms, a human reaction to a bite from a brown recluse spider can vary depending on the amount of venom injected in the victim and the victim’s sensitivity to the spider’s venom.”

Bites from the brown recluse almost never cause death in humans, said the website healthline.com.

List includes two types of ticks found in Kansas

The lone star tick and black-legged, or deer, tick are two others among the 12 potentially deadly Kansas creatures listed on the WorldAtlas site.

Ticks are slow-crawling, wingless parasites that attach themselves to hosts and feed on their blood.

Exposure to ticks puts humans and animals at risk of becoming infected by various diseases.

A tick-borne disease in May 2022 killed a Topeka family’s cat.

Black-legged or deer ticks are said to be the primary species that transmit Lyme disease in Kansas, the WorldAtlas website said.

Lone star ticks, which get their name from the single white dot often seen on the back of the female, can also transmit that disease, it said.

Lyme disease can be fatal but rarely kills humans, according to the Medical News Today website. Between 1985 and 2019, 11 people worldwide died due to the related heart condition Lyme carditis, it said.

‘Kissing bug’ can cause a potentially fatal disease

Triatominae, also known as the “kissing bug,” got that name because it was initially thought that it often bites the face of its victims, though it can actually can target any part of a victim’s body, said the WorldAtlas site.

Kissing bugs may carry a parasite that that causes Chagas disease, a potentially deadly inflammatory and infectious disease that can cause heart or digestive issues if left untreated.

“It is estimated that about 50% of kissing bugs carry the disease, though the number of infected insects varies by location,” the WorldAtlas site said.

Common snapping turtle

The snapping turtle, a semi-aquatic and omnivorous freshwater turtle species, tends to be short-tempered and stand its ground when provoked, the World Atlas site said.

Snapping turtles, when disturbed, may also emit a foul-smelling musk, the site said.

“They can be vicious if removed from the water,” it said. “As the name suggests, snapping turtles may inflict painful bites, albeit uncommonly.”

The WorldAtlas site didn’t document any human deaths caused by snapping turtles.

‘Velvet ant’ is actually a wasp

The “velvet ant,” a furry-bodied insect that is actually part of the wasp family, is another Kansas creature mentioned on WorldAtlas.

Velvet ants are not aggressive but females will sting if they are being held or stepped on, that site said.

“The sting of a velvet ant is excruciatingly more painful than a bee sting,” it said. “Its sting is so painful that the wasp is referred to as the ‘cow killer!’ While the venom is not very toxic, individuals ought to avoid handling velvet ants to prevent getting a jab of their painful sting.”

The WorldAtlas site didn’t document any human deaths caused by velvet ants.

As reported in the Topeka Capital Journal

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