By Randall Barnes

Now that your summer vegetables have been growing, here are some tips about when to harvest and recipes to further enjoy your summer treats.

Pumpkin: Once the pumpkins have turned the expected color and the vines are starting to decline, they can be cut from their vines.

Pumpkin Curry Soup
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Number of servings:  4
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 1.0

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp butter
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup diced celery
1 tsp curry powder
1/8 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
3 cups water
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 32 oz can pumpkin puree
1 cup fat free half-and-half

Directions:
Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, and garlic; cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in curry powder, coriander and crushed red pepper; cook for 1 minute. Add water and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes to develop flavors. Stir in pumpkin and half-and-half; cook for 5 minutes or until heated through. Transfer mixture to food processor or blender (in batches, if necessary); cover. Blend until creamy. Serve warm or reheat to desired temperature. Garnish with dollop of sour cream and chives.

Preparation Tip: Soup may be prepared the day ahead. Cool to room temperature after adding pumpkin and half-and-half. Cover and refrigerate. Just before serving, blend then reheat to serving temperature, but do not boil.

Preheat oven to 300° F. Cut pumpkin into small manageable pieces and cut off pith and seeds. Place cut pumpkin, skin side up, in a large roasting pan. Add ¼ cup water, and bake uncovered for 1 hour or until tender. Remove from oven, and allow pumpkin to cool. When cooled, cut away skin, and mash or puree the pumpkin flesh. Use in any recipe that calls for canned pureed pumpkin.

Cantaloupe: The color should be beige and the fruit will "slip" from the stem easily. You may be able to to notice a sweet smell when ripe.

Cantaloupe Salsa
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Number of servings: 4
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 1.0

Ingredients:
1/2 large ripe cantaloupe
3/4 finely diced cup red bell pepper
1/4 finely chopped cup cilantro
3 Tbsp finely chopped scallions
Juice of 1 lime
Pinch of salt and hot pepper flakes

Directions:
Remove seeds and rind from cantaloupe. (You should have approximately ½ pound cantaloupe flesh.) Chop cantaloupe into very small diced pieces. Put diced cantaloupe into a bowl. Add diced red pepper, cilantro, scallions and lime juice. Stir. Add pinch of salt and pepper flakes. Chill. Serve with grilled chicken, fish or steaks.

Cantaloupe Slush with Mango
Preparation time: 4 hours, 20 minutes
Number of servings: 4
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 1.0

Ingredients:
1 medium sized cantaloupe
Juice of half a lemon
2 tsp honey
1 mango

Directions:
Peel and seed the cantaloupe. Cut into 1-inch pieces. (It should equal about 6 cups.) Place in blender or food processor with lemon juice and honey, and puree until very smooth. Pour mixture into a shallow "9x12" glass pan and set in the freezer for two hours.  With a fork, chip and stir the icy mixture and return it to the freezer for two to four hours.  Peel and cut mango into long, thin, attractive slices, avoiding the pit (which is shaped like a large almond). Again with a fork, chip the frozen cantaloupe mixture so it resembles a snow cone or shaved ice. Spoon it into clear bowls, top with mango slices, and serve.

Watermelons: The white spot on the bottom of the melon should change to yellow when ripe. Some people can hear a change in the sound made when the melon is thumped.

Jeweled Watermelon Soup
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Number of servings: 4
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 2.0

Ingredients:
1 pink grapefruit
1 pomegranate
6 cups 1-inch cubes watermelon, seeded
Juice of 1 lime
2 tsp confectioners’ sugar

Directions:
Peel grapefruit. Slice horizontally into thin, attractive slices; discard (or eat) end pieces. Set aside. Seed pomegranate and discard peel and membrane. Set aside. Place watermelon, lime juice and sugar in a blender or food processor and puree until very smooth. Pour into shallow bowls and garnish with a grapefruit slice or two and a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds. Serve chilled.

Caribbean Watermelon Salsa
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Number of servings: 8
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 0.5

Ingredients:
2 cups watermelon, chopped and seeded
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
1 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp jerk seasoning

Directions:
In large bowl, combine all ingredients; mix well. Refrigerate, covered, at least one hour to blend flavors. Stir before serving.

Watermelon Bits
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Number of servings: 6
Cups of fruits and vegetables per person: 1.0

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp hot-pepper sauce
6 cups watermelon, seeded

Directions:
In a small bowl suitable for dipping, stir together lime juice, salt, and hot pepper sauce; adjust seasoning to taste. Place bowl in center of large platter, arrange watermelon around bowl, and serve with wooden picks.

These recipes are from the website for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You can get the nutritional facts and diabetic exchange information from the website for each recipe. The website is http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/dnparecipe/recipesearch.aspx

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH) are leading this initiative and are in partnership with other health organizations. The goal is to achieve increased daily consumption of fruits and vegetables.

For more information on the Fruits and Veggies — More Matters health initiative, brand and logo, please visit PBH at: www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org. You will also find activities and tips for getting children involved as well as more recipes.

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The pesky little insect has ruined countless hikes, BBQ's and campouts. This vector has literally killed millions of people throughout history, and still affects millions around the world today. As daunting as this sounds, there are steps you can take to co-exist and stay healthy.

What attracts the mosquito? After 30 million years of evolution, the mosquito has perfected its hunting skills. The mosquito uses three sensors to attract its prey:

• Chemical sensors: Mosquitoes sense carbon dioxide and lactic acid up to 100 feet away. Unfortunately, we give off these gases as part of our normal breathing.
• Visual sensors: Clothing that contrasts with the background enables the mosquito to "zero-in" on you.
• Heat sensors: Mosquitoes detect heat, so they can find warm-blooded mammals very easily.

The best thing you can do to control mosquitoes is to use a mosquito repellant with deet and eliminate standing water around your home. A mosquito can lay up to 250 eggs at one time in still water, and they can hatch as fast as 7 days. Check your gutters frequently for collected water (especially if they sag and aren't level), along with birdbaths, buckets or boggy areas of the garden.

Burning citronella candles, using an electronic bug zapper, or spraying surfaces near entertainment areas with a mosquito barrier spray like Master Nursery Mosquito and Gnat Barrier will also help kill and repel mosquitoes. We also highly recommend using Mosquito Dunks if you have areas of standing water that you can't drain.

The West Nile Virus was first introduced in the U.S. in 1999. It has since spread to almost every state, with over 3,000 cases in 2006. Diligence is your best protection. Stay indoors at dawn and dusk hours, wear long-sleeve pants and shirts if possible, avoid any standing water, and repair broken screens.

Although it can be a constant battle, by incorporating the use of insect repellents and breeding prevention (eliminating standing water), mosquitoes and the diseases they carry can be reduced, making the outdoors more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.

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