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Tuesday, August 30, 2022
The Observer & Baker City Herald
It’s all
Dreamstime/TNS
Temperatures don’t have to reach triple digits
for your pet to overheat, so pet parents should
become more mindful of these potential dangers
when temperatures are as low as 80 degrees.
Keep your
pets cool
on hot days
By KAILYN BROWN
Los Angeles Times
LOS ANGELES — During the
summer months when temperatures are
hotter than normal, it’s important to take
extra precautions to keep yourself and
your loved ones cool — this includes your
furry friends.
“One thing that I always like to talk to
my pet parents about is, ‘If it’s too hot for
us, then it’s definitely too hot for them,’”
says Dr. Phillip An, small animal general
practitioner and owner of Sunset Veter-
inary Center, which is slated to open in
September in Diamond Bar, California.
He notes that pets — particularly cats and
dogs — don’t have as many sweat glands
as humans. Instead, they primarily regu-
late their temperature through panting.
But placing your pet in hot conditions,
such as by taking them along on a lengthy
hike on a warm, sunny day, can lead to
life-threatening and sometimes fatal con-
sequences given that heat exhaustion can
progress to heatstroke in just a matter of
moments.
“Our pets, especially dogs, can be so
loyal that they won’t show any discomfort
until it’s too late,” says Dr. Jennifer Haw-
kins, a veterinarian who is the executive
director for the Southern California Vet-
erinary Medical Association (SCVMA),
which is based in Cypress. “So whether
you’re throwing a ball in the middle of a
hot day and you might feel OK, you may
have a dog that’s going to keep going after
that ball until they suffer heatstroke.”
She adds, “That’s where I think pet
owners may not realize that while we
know we’re starting to feel uncomfortable
and we can go inside and get some water
and cool off, our pets may not let you
know until they’re sick.”
Hawkins notes that temperatures don’t
have to reach triple digits for your pet to
overheat, so pet parents should become
more mindful of these potential dan-
gers when temperatures are as low as 80
degrees.
Among the most vulnerable pets to
suffer from heat-related complications
are dogs that are very young and old and
short-nosed dogs such as pugs and bull-
dogs because they can’t breathe as easily
as those with longer noses. Pets with med-
ical issues also face higher risk of heat-re-
lated illness, along with other small mam-
mals like rabbits and guinea pigs.
“If you have a rabbit, chinchilla or
guinea pig … they are very sensitive
to the heat and they can die inside the
house if it gets to be 85 or 90 [degrees]
and there’s no movement of air,” says Dr.
Clyde Pitts, owner of Studio City Animal
Hospital.
PEACHY
Celebrate the
fruit with
crostata, a
free-form
pastry
By GRETCHEN McKAY
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
I
t’s peach season.
123RF
Time to pull
out your rolling
pin and celebrate the
juicy stone fruit with
the free-form pastry
known as a crostata.
Unlike a pie, which
requires some fancy finger
work and precision rolling,
this flat, rustic summer des-
sert is a breeze to prepare.
After a brief chill in the
fridge, the pastry is simply
rolled out in whatever shape
you like — circle or rect-
angle, your choice — topped
with a pile of fresh fruit, and
then the edges are folded up
and over some of the sugary
slices to make a crust. If
it’s misshapen, no worries:
that’s part of the dessert’s
charm for both the eater and
the baker.
It’s finished when the
fruit is bubbling and easily
pierced with the tip of a
knife, and the crust is fra-
grant, golden brown and
slightly crispy.
I like to top the dessert
with a scoop of vanilla ice
cream, but a spoonful or two
of fresh whipped cream also
works wonders, if that’s your
preference.
In my opinion, a fruit
crostata is best served when
it’s still a little warm so the
ice cream softens with each
bite. Then again, it’s a great
stand-in for a bagel or crois-
sant when served room tem-
perature with a cup of coffee
for breakfast.
Look for peaches that
are ripe but not overly
squishy; there should only
be a little bit of give when
you (gently) squeeze it.
Unless you’re
going for looks
over flavor, to peel or
not to peel can be a game
day decision — the skin is
completely edible and will
fall off as it bakes.
PEACH
CROSTATA
For pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) cold unsalted
butter, cut into 1/4 -inch pieces
1/4 cup ice water
For filling
1 1/2 pounds peaches,
sliced 1/2 inch thick
1/3 cup granulated sugar
Dash of vanilla extract
Pinch of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch or flour
1 large egg, beaten
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Vanilla ice cream or whipped
cream, for serving
Make
pastry: Pulse flour,
sugar and salt in a food
processor until combined. Add
butter, and process until mixture
resembles coarse meal, about
10 seconds. With the machine
running, add ice water in a slow,
steady stream until mixture just
begins to hold together.
Shape dough into 2 disks. Wrap
each in plastic, and refrigerate for
at least 1 hour or up to 3 days (or
freeze for up to 1 month; thaw in
refrigerator before using).
When ready to bake, preheat
oven to 375 degrees. Line a
rimmed baking sheet with foil,
then parchment.
Stir together sliced fruit, granulat-
ed sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, lemon
juice, salt and cornstarch or flour.
Roll out one of the pastry disks
(reserving the other for use later)
into a 12-inch round, about 1/8
inch thick, on a lightly floured
surface (or whatever shape works
for you — no need to sweat it out).
Transfer to baking sheet.
Arrange peaches in the center,
leaving a 2-inch border. Fold over
border to enclose the fruit, leaving
the center open. Brush crust with
beaten egg and sprinkle with a
little sugar.
Bake until golden brown and
bubbling in center, about 70
minutes. Let cool on baking sheet
for 10 minutes, then slide crostata
onto parchment on a wire rack. Let
cool completely.
Serve with whipped cream or a
scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A free-form peach crostata is easier to make than pie, but just as sweet
of a taste of summer.
Serves 6-8.
— Adapted from marthastewart.com
See, Pets/Page B6
Frost or flood, raised-bed
gardening works wonders
JENNIE
HAGEN
GARDENING WITH GRANDMA
I
t was quite by accident that the thought
of raised-bed gardening happened so
many years — no, decades — ago. It
was a garden I’d developed at an old ranch
house, then a rental, and recipient of won-
derful loamy soil that had laid untouched
for thousands of years. I had decided to
make the garden beds about 4 feet across so
even the middle of the bed could be reached
from either side. And at 4,300 feet, it was
definitely high-elevation, cold climate gar-
dening in south-central Oregon!
On a frosty April morning, the sun had
just come up over the rim and was shining
on the south side of the beds. Steam was
rising. It was then I realized my idea of
raised beds, originally designed to conserve
water, were a wonderful source of “micro-
climate,” as the remaining areas around the
garden were still thickly encased in frost
even an hour later. Yet these beds were rap-
idly heating up just from the simple appli-
cation of having the south side elevated for
the sun to reach.
But my determination to conserve water
was met with disappointment when the
water would just run down the sides of the
beds and not where all the plants were.
Then there was the moment of “raised beds
with dikes!” That’s all it took. Dike up soil
around the beds, even just 2 inches, and
the water stayed right there in between the
sides.
As mentioned in the previous “Gar-
dening With Grandma,” here are some
tips for dealing with intense rain or flash
Jill Toyoshiba/Kansas City Star-TNS
Raised beds can protect vegetables and flowers from frost and flooding.
flooding. These suggestions are certainly
not meant to apply to the type of intense
thunderstorm from just a few weeks ago.
Nothing can really prepare you for the cata-
strophic hail that so many of our neighbors
incurred. But from a small-scale garden,
here are some benefits of raised beds, and
the diking, that can help prevent a total
washout.
While permanent raised beds, those of
See, Gardening/Page B2