How Do You Kill Squashzilla? With Cinnamon Maple Squash Butter

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SQUASHZILLA

Have you ever had a vegetable or fruit grow in your garden and it simply took over? The result, veggie like zucchini or squash so large that it could feed you as well as the French Foreign Legion. You’ve won that blue ribbon, you don’t want to tackle eating it, now what do you do? Well I realize this recipe is a bit out of season but I was figuring that something like this may have happened to you. The harvest is over, and the biggest items remain in your root cellar throughout the winter until it expires, and you have to throw it away, or do you vow to do something with it? Anything at all, just don’t let it go to waste.

Recently I had to take on a 45 pound squash beast, species unknown… It’s skin was reminiscent of the gourd we carve at Halloween. It had wavy scale’s, orange and lumpy, mostly pumpkinesque, but with much longer teeth, reaching north and south. Taking up tons of space, it had to be eaten. The squashes expiration in the root cellar was imminent, and about to destroy Tokyo, or my kitchen as fate would have it.

So, how do you approach Squashzilla? Barely fitting on my counter it was as long as my table, I think I contracted carpal tunnel due to it taking me several minutes to piece it apart. 5 pans later to bake it went, bowing the racks in my oven.

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Husband asks me nicely, to try not to break the oven.

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My kitchen isn’t big enough for the both of us…

About 20 minutes into the baking my husband asked me, “What’s burning?” One of the pans a vintage Pyrex that had been owned by my mother, paid the price of doing battle with Squashzilla, it broke in two under its’ weight. Sorry mom. I should have lined the pan with foil…The sweet syrup of the squash dripped to the bottom of my oven, turning the smell in my house from pie to disappointment. Still I pressed on.

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This is why you need to line your baking pans with foil..
Sorry mom!

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Puree until it is as smooth as you can get it.

When the squash was nicely roasted, I peeled the skin and pureed it in the food processor.

I set half of the baked squash aside to give to a neighbor (there was seriously a ton) and I placed about 10 cups of puree in a large pot and added the ingredients, and cooked it, and cooked it and dang it! I cooked it!

Since the squash mixture was high in liquid it was bubbling over. Every-freaking-where, like a volcanic science fair experiment. So I covered the pot and put it on low stirring every 15 minutes for about 6 hours. During the last hour I removed the lid and cooked away the remaining liquid through the steam, and watched it carefully until it was very thick, and stood up on its own. I’m pretty sure everyone’s cooking time will vary depending upon the pot and the type of squash you use with the recipe. Just make sure the liquid is gone and you can see the bottom of the pan when you move the spoon across the surface.

The result me :10  Squashzilla :3

Yippee! I won because it came out FANTASTIC!

When it's nice and thick it's done.

When it’s nice and thick it’s done.

It’s a thick rich copper colored spread, that is just sweet enough, full of spice and rich flavors. It would make a perfect pie filling or glaze for pork. Right away my daughter wanted a sandwich with it and marshmallow fluff.

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NOM!

The USDA doesn’t want you to can any pureed squash product because they cant guarantee any heat penetration, so canning is at your own discretion. Just refrigerate in a tight jar and use within two to three weeks. When you give the butter as a gift instruct the recipients to do so as well.

I put nice labels on the jars and will gift them to my mother and neighbors. It made about 4 quarts of butter.

Enjoy the recipe… I will be busy for quite a while, cleaning the squash off my kitchen ceiling.

Perfect on a sandwich with fluff. The 11 year old approves.

Perfect on a sandwich with fluff. The 11-year-old approves.

Ingredients:

10 cups of roasted squash pureed (any kind)

1 cup of packed brown sugar

1-cup pure maple syrup

½ cup molasses

1½ tablespoons of cinnamon

½ tablespoon of salt

½ tablespoon of ground nutmeg

½ tablespoon of ground cloves

1 tablespoon of vanilla paste or extract

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Halve the squash and remove the seeds and stringy flesh.

Line a baking pan with aluminum foil.

Place the squash cut-side-down in the pan and roast at 425F. for 40 minutes, until the flesh of the squash has softened completely.

Let cool.  (You can even do this part in advance, and keep the roasted squash in the fridge until you are ready to use it).

Using a food processor blend the squash until smooth.  Add the squash along with the remaining ingredients to a large heavy pot.

Over medium heat, bring the squash mixture to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, depending upon the breed of squash and your pot. Be careful it will want to pop and bubble everywhere like Mt. Vesuvius.

Stir every 5 to 15 minutes, then in the final cooking stage the puree will have reduced to half in size and will be steaming.

Watch it closely it will be done when you can run your spoon across the bottom of the pot, and it parts like the red sea.

Decorate the jars with nice labels, a ribbon and give to a neighbor.

Decorate the jars with nice labels, a ribbon and give to a neighbor.

Enjoy! ~ Amy Wexler

A 40 Year Old Murder In Cape Cod. The Phone. The House. The Priest

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It was late one night in November 1972 when Stephen Anglesy made a quest to the cottage on the water in Woods Hole Massachusetts, he was a 15 year old boy full of rage and vendetta, ashamed he wanted closure to the way he was feeling. The rumor is that he had been violated mentally possibly even physically, we will never know, the story died with him.

Father Mason Leonard sat next to the wood-burning stove and kept warm, the snow was coming that night and it was to be the first of the season. The cottage perched in the cove of the wealthy Cape Cod community allowed for an excellent view of the boats and ferries comings and goings several times per day. It was a two-room cottage with austere furnishings with only a crucifix adorning the wall. A simple dresser sat in the corner with a black rotary dial phone perched atop. This served as the priest’s only communication to the outside world, the closest neighbor was a half mile away.

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The priest was the caretaker of the grander home 100 yards behind his cottage; he had been residing there for almost 13 years. The properties previous owner had died in the 1920’s, leaving no heirs and a battle for ownership of the grand 10 acres with an ocean view. The estate remained consistently chattered about in this wealthy community with constant fodder. It had been tied up for generations of red tape, involving banks, lawyers, family and the Catholic Church. Even the scientific community had some unseen entitlement to the property.

When the glass of Father Leonard’s front window shattered. A piece of granite tossed through the pane gave Stephen enough space to jump through the frame with ease. In the 1970’s three taps on the clear plastic receiver buttons brought the local operator on the line. When the connection was made the sleepy operator working from a switchboard in her home, heard the screams of Father Leonard, a smash and sound of a bell, a shot, then silence…

When it was over the priest was dead, as was his assailant with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, Father Leonard had been hit with his own telephone and then stabbed over forty times. Leaving others only to speculate. Why?

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After the murder everyone walked away from the house, no one wanted it, not the church because of whatever mysteries were abound, it was better that they wash their hands of the situation. The community roared and mourned for two generations, with gossip and rumors spoken in whispers and urban legends. The actual truth for the majority concerned was lost to time, eventually fading into the present.

When we got the call that the house was coming down from our friends who own a salvage business, we jumped on it. Even in the sad state falling down and melting into the sea, the formerly grand home and property sold for 9 million. Unlived in and unloved for a little under a 100 years we had the opportunity to repurpose the mahogany stairs, we need them because at Christmas time our house was involved in a flood.

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Upon arrival in Woods Hole it was as if time stood still. Vines and trees grew through the floor, the ivy creeping from the grey gardens up banisters and into the sheet rock that crumbled at our touch. Bird dung specifically geese and pigeon required us to adorn protective equipment and lead stain and asbestos presented challenges as well, yet we were on a mission to salvage what we could from the old home, because the wrecking ball was coming the next day.

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We were told two stipulations upon entering the house do not touch the stones or landscaping, and do not touch the priest’s cottage, they are the landmarks the conservation teams will be preserving. We were however invited to see the small cottage where the priest died, and along the way heard the grisly tale.

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Although a majority of the furnishings were gone, the floor where the priest was murdered had been painted red, in the corner lay the black rotary phone, the weapon used to disable the priest still was plugged into the wall. His only method of communication failed him in his last moments. The irony is that all of these photos were taken with my iPhone. Would having one of these saved his life? Too many questions and variables to answer.

As I wandered through the property I kept returning to where the telephone lay as if it could answer the mysteries to the property in my mind. Questions that will remain unanswered as the ocean breeze stood silent not giving up any of her secrets. I slowly picked up the receiver, feeling the heavy plastic and not so ergonomic cradle, I bravely said hello. No, there was no one there, no ghostly voice on the other end confessing a crime, no operator asking me to direct my call. Just silent space, that seemed to speak volumes about the past. The smell of decay prompted me to quickly put the phone back where I found it. I then briskly walked away from the house, and it’s history. I put the darkness behind me just like the people of Woods Hole did back in 1972.

At 2 AM the night we returned from repurposing salvage from the house. My phone buzzed and when I unlocked it, this photograph appeared. It was taken by me and had been in the middle of my camera roll with about 40 other photos of the house. For some reason that I cannot explain it had been mysteriously texted to me. From a blocked number…

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Vanilla Chamomile Infused Maple Syrup

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Beginning the process of sugaring, outside a rolling boil all day before being brought inside to the final syrup phase.

The infusion of sweet botanicals is extremely simple. Dried herbs and fragrant flowers will willingly release their active ingredients and soothing aromas when allowed to marry with things like honey, liquors or oils. It also works fantastic with maple syrup and tis the season to cook that sap down to experiment with what our own woods can provide.

Dried chamomile flower first was discovered in ancient Egypt and its popularity as a medicinal drug grew throughout the Middle Ages, when people turned to it as a remedy for numerous medical complaints including asthma, colic, fevers, inflammations, nervousness, skin diseases and cancer.

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Recent and on-going research has identified chamomile’s specific anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and sedative properties, and currently the herb Chamomile is included as a drug in the pharmacopoeia of 26 countries. Chamomile is an ideal herb for an infusion it’s normal use is that of a soothing tea that is wonderful with honey and lemon. It’s by far my favorite to infuse in maple syrup…

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In the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico vanilla beans have been reportedly been used for their potential stimulant and aphrodisiac effects. It flavors in baked goods and ice creams surpass none when added to a sweet dish. It smells wonderful and tastes even better, so it’s going in the pot today as well.

Infuse the herbs in cheesecloth and add a vanilla bean.

Infuse the herbs in cheesecloth and add a vanilla bean.

When making an infusion into sugar syrups the liquid is typically boiled (or brought to another appropriate temperature) and then poured over the herbs. When infusing syrup, boil to it’s final stages about one to two hours remaining before syrup is formed, then add a cheese cloth bag of about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of herbs and a vanilla bean that has been split open, to about three to four cups of syrup. Cook down until it reaches a temperature of about 215 degrees on the hydrometer, candy thermometer or to your specified syrup consistency. Then remove the bag of herbs and filter twice through additional cheesecloth to remove any sediment. (I would buy two packages for this project) If you don’t sugar your own sap, this can be done easily with real maple syrup from the market. Just pour into a pot and add the herbs and allow to steep on very low for about an hour.

The next batch for me will be a lavender vanilla infusion and going forward you can use anything combination you like. Cinnamon, chili peppers, rosemary, coffee beans or rose petals, the sky is the limit. Bottle and label, as an added step I found some decorative sealing wax to close up the cork. Give as an Easter gift to your favorite neighbor or someone you care about. You can keep it out of the fridge for a few days, but to prevent mold you should keep it in the refrigerator for four to six months.

Just be creative and you will really make those pancakes, French toast and waffles something to talk about. Aromatherapy at it’s finest and if it ever reaches my breakfast it will be a miracle… I will probably drink it all as a soothing tonic just sipping it straight from the bottle. Enjoy.

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How To Bring Back An Extinct Strawberry…Will You Help Save The Marshall?

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“The pasture and lawn are rich with yellow of dandelion blossoms, on the roadside the bluets and Marshall Strawberry blossoms welcome the bobolinks as they run about in the grass or sing above them.  There is a hum of bees and mosquitoes, an accompaniment to the song of the birds.” ~ A Harvard College article 1896

I have had a bit of a revival in my life, from gardening to writing my blog on homesteading and survival, I read voraciously about topics that are important to our survival and health. Currently I am reading a book called “Silent Spring,” By Rachel Carson. Written in 1962 it was a groundbreaking step for the environmental movement, it’s title and context revolves around the extinction of food and several species of birds, and the gist is it’s pretty much our fault.

Although the book has been challenged and called on the carpet on several topics, (big money and politics surrounding the pros and cons of DDT to under mind her writing)… Say what you will, Rachel was right! The Nostradamus of food culture you may say, from breast cancer to the extinction of Passenger Pigeons she predicted the long-term side effects of pesticides and the damage chemical genetic modification brings. How certain birds, mammals and foods would vanish from existence over a short period of time, simply due to our meddling. In the past it’s been our quest for the biggest, plumpest and prettiest food, we have strayed from the truth and skewed our perception about what is the perfect fruit is. Now it is our job to fix that damage, so I wanted to share with you a story… I give you the Marshall Strawberry.

A Lovely Image Of The Marshall Strawberry Courtesy Of Leah At Marshall Strawberry .com

A Lovely Image Of The Marshall Strawberry Courtesy Of Leah At Marshall Strawberry .com

About a hundred years ago a sweet petite strawberry garnered top attention in the food world. Named after its creator Marshall Ewell, he discovered a seedling by chance, he introduced it to the world in 1893 at a fair in Marshfield Hills Massachusetts and sold a majority of his first plants to a strawberry farm along the “Salmon Nation” off the San Juan Islands, in Washington State. The Marshall took off like a shot on the West Coast, blessed with testimonials like, “It is a great wonder, one of the deepest red handsomest berries I have ever seen.” “The vines enormous standing at least 20 inches in height.” ~ James Rogers 1893.

Marshall berries fast became the most popular berries in the nation, it’s capital being Oregon’s Willamette Valley and the star of heirloom seed catalogs until the 1940′s. Then by the beginning of World War II, Marshall’s were severely injured by crop diseases that were brought in by other countries. They stopped thriving when we began altering the soil conditions adding chemicals for the diseases causing irreparable damage to the Marshall, but seemed to be able to support other larger modified varieties. By the 1960’s bigger, faster, and (allegedly) better was the era of food, and the Marshall simply vanished… Almost.

Ten years ago the Marshall was deemed one of the 5 most important endangered foods, no plants could be located to be propagated or seeds located to be planted. One perfect strain of the Marshall was conserved at the USDA’s National Clonal Germplasm Repository in Corvallis Oregon, and there it slept until 2007… enter the heroine.

Leah Gauthier is an intermedia and relational artist from Bloomington Indiana. Her love of food and history inspired her to write a letter to the repository and simply ask for some. Since she was using them for her food and not experimenting on them, they happily sent her a few of the runners off the original “mother” plant.  After 6 years those little plants have produced 600 more little ones, and now Leah is making them available to the public.  I read about them in an article on Beekman1802.com, which inspired me to become a mom to this very rare plant. Let me tell you once you see them, you know how special they really are. Each baby Marshall Strawberry is individually numbered with a metal tag, shipped overnight in tiny mesh bags, included with a personalized letter and instructions. A treasured plant I will be treating like a pet, and any runners will be preserved in my garden or given as a gifts with their history attached.

After Performing A Bit Of Microsurgery To Get Them Out Of The Box They Are Free And Ready To Be Potted.

After Performing A Bit Of Microsurgery To Get Them Out Of The Box They Are Free And Ready To Be Potted. They Arrive Healthy Wrapped In These Little Bags And Numbered.

I have number 180 and 181 out of 600 berry plants in existence.

I have number 180 and 181 out of 600 berry plants in existence.

Leah, The Beekman Boys and I don’t want to be the only one to pick up the charge for the Marshall berries. If we want them to survive we all need to help. Even David Karp the self titled “fruit detective.” A writer for the New York Times and Gourmet Magazine has his doubts about its preservation and how it struggles to survive he says, “it’s a struggle to find any producers willing to maintain the exquisite Marshall Strawberry.” “Too many farms are wrapped up in 21st Century dependence on chemically intensive agricultural systems for them to thrive.”

Just Unpacked My Marshall's Sit In The Sun Resting Until I Put Them Into Pots...

Just Unpacked My Marshall’s Sit In The Sun Resting Until I Put Them Into Pots…

Now heres the rub, if you choose to get in on the revival, it’s not a cheap endeavor to purchase an endangered plant. At $30.00 per plant plus overnight shipping, you may cringe, but over time I truly believe it will be worth it and the berries will pay for themselves. From everything I have read they are the sweetest berries ever to have existed and I for one cannot wait for them to grow up, and produce fruit.

Please go to marshallstrawberry.com to buy your own. If you do please leave a comment here with your numbers, we can all connect together and be berry brothers.

“You will be helping to ensure a diverse and healthy food supply and to make sure this rare and delicious strawberry is available for future generations to enjoy.” ~ Leah Gauthier

I think Rachel Carson is smiling down at us happy about saving the Marshall, and would be inspired in the fact that we are bringing back the sounds of spring.

~ Amy Wexler

Welome Little Strawberries You Will Live Indoors Until It's Nice And Warm...

Welome Little Strawberries You Will Live Indoors Until It’s Nice And Warm…

References:

Renewing Americas Food Traditions by Gary Paul Nabhan

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson 1962

Beekman1802.com and

Marshallstrawberry.com

 

Firm Turns Shipping Pallets Into Transitional Homes

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Every year over 21 million shipping pallets end up in a landfill. Used worldwide to ship goods of all kinds in mass quantities, a Brooklyn-based design firm looked past the intended use of a pallet and saw a versatile, recyclable, sustainable and inexpensive building material that could be used to address another issue: improving housing quality for refugees.

The inspiration behind I-Beam design firm’s Pallet House Project came from a mind-boggling statistic that 84 percent of the world’s refugees could be housed with a year’s worth of repurposed American pallets.

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A pallet is the perfect material to provide a better standard of living — they are readily available in most countries and they can be used first to carry aid to displaced people in the form of clothing, food and medical supplies (to name but a few) and then recycled into shelters.

The average refugee stays in a refugee camp for seven years, and the Pallet House (a 250 square-foot structure composed of 100 reused pallets),  is a sturdier alternative to the tent shelters most common in refugee camps. Additionally, it can be easily converted from a temporary or emergency shelter to a permanent residence with the addition of more sturdy construction materials found in the area.

The houses are easy to assemble: once the pallets arrive, it only takes four to five people to nail together the house, and it can be built in less than a week. At first, when more standard construction materials are less available, the structures can be put together with the help of temporary supplies like tarps to keep the inside dry until materials from the surrounding area can make a more solid roof.

As time passes, pallets can be fitted with add-ons like insulation or plywood for the interiors(this can all be done prior to shipping as well), and stucco and plaster or roofing tiles for the exterior, if/when the materials become available. Due to the flexibility of the design, each occupant can build a shelter that fits their specific needs.

Though the Pallet House was originally conceived as a temporary transitional shelter for refugees making their way back to Kosovo, and has since been used to house people uprooted by natural disasters, famines and wars,  I-Beam has widened the scope of the Pallet House to include a much bigger population by using the module as a pre-fab solution to affordable housing everywhere.

An estimated one billion people live in substandard housing, and I-Beam believes that the Pallet House could help to provide better conditions for people in need around the world.

The Pallet House has already turned many heads for its innovative take on temporary housing, and it took home the Architecture for Humanity Award in 1999. I-Beam has built Pallet structures in New York, Indiana, and the Architecture Triennial in Milan and have been active recently in Haiti and Pakistan.

By Beth Carter

Originally posted December 21, 2011

 

Horseradish Peppercorn Infused Vodka

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There are so many varieties of infused vodkas out there, candy colored and a bit too campy. At this juncture you might be yearning for the purists to instigate an upheaval, and demand a high-ball, old fashioned retrenchment. No you can put away your picket signs for now and read on for something different, like for example a spicy horseradish vodka that is perfect in a bloody mary and can provide you with some medicinal qualities as well. So for now you can just ignore the Skittles vodka until it’s time for Halloween.

The Egyptians knew about horseradish as far back as 1500 B.C. Early Greeks used it as a rub for low back pain and an aphrodisiac. Jews still use it during Passover Seders as one of the bitter herbs. Some used horseradish syrup as an expectorant cough medicine; others were convinced it cured everything from rheumatism to tuberculosis. I forage wild horseradish in the spring, the woody root is fairly easy to find and prepare. (if you want to know more about finding your own wild horsey root click here)

I was inspired by a portland distiller named Josh Badcock, he and I were inspired by the Russian tradition of adding horseradish to vodka to give it a warming quality. This warming infusion is an effective tool to help the good people through the fierce Moscow winters and mask the rotten potato taste in the cheap vodka that the average человек can afford. Badcock’s vodka has been improved and americanized via a shi shi filtering technique, where it is run through crushed organic rock 5 times to make it oh so smooth!

Not to be outdone, I found comparable recipe in an old 70′s jewish cook book from my husbands grandmother, made modifications and upgraded the vodka to Ketel One. It’s got a bit more kick and flavor than Badcock, so if you want more subtle zing you can buy his elixer or modify my recipe.

The result: You will have a spicy savory vodka that is perfect in a bloody mary or as a straight shot to warm you up while this winter continues to hang on like a cheap suit.

1 tablespoon of celery seed

2 teaspoons of black peppercorns

4-inch-long piece of fresh peeled horseradish, thinly sliced lengthwise.

750 milliliter bottle of good quality vodka (about 3 cups)

Place horseradish slices, peppercorns and celery seed in a clean 1-quart jar. Using a wooden spoon, lightly crush the horseradish slices against the side of the jar. Add vodka.

Cover jar tightly with a nonmetallic lid (or cover jar with plastic wrap and tightly seal with a metal lid). Let stand in the freezer for 4 days.

Pour vodka through a fine mesh sieve to remove all solids.

Return infused vodka to jar, or to give as a gift, pour infused vodka into a decorative jar, label and and seal.

Place jar in the freezer up to 3 months to store. Makes about 3 cups (24 1-ounce servings)

By the way it’s amazing with a big steak!

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How The Flu Affects Us Every Year

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Nothing puts you behind the schedule of your daily life quite like getting sick—missing out on even a day or two of school or work can set you behind much more than you’d think. And when it comes to getting sick, few things can get you down as hard as the flu.

The flu comes in a few different shapes and sizes, and none of them are your friend. It’s no surprise then that the words “flu season” strike fear into the hearts of many, especially those who are more susceptible to it.

Some years aren’t as bad, but the winter of 2013 has been hit particularly hard by a strain of the nasty bug, and who could forget the swine flu epidemic from a few years back?

For college students living in close quarters, colleagues sharing cubicle space, or even larger families all in the same house, transferring germs back and forth can be unavoidable, and quickly lead to the spread of the flu virus.

The following infographic takes a look at just how many people get the flu, as well as how it affects us from year to year. Between medical expenses and the expense of lost time, the flu can have a serious impact on every aspect of your life.

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Thanks to Allison Morris for the creation of the graphic which is also found here: http://www.onlineeducation.net/2013/02/04/the-flu-and-you