A lot of the fear of this is just cultural. I'm sure our ancestors prior to the discovery of the first pesticides, arsenic compounds in the 19th century, ate a LOT of wormy fruit, either directly or indirectly in processed form, and didn't give it much second thought. And, I'm sure that in many poor countries around the world, it's still the norm, not the exception, to have to eat things untreated with pesticides. Most of those people no doubt also just "eat around" the parts that are too damaged to be edible. They probably turn the bad stuff into food indirectly by feeding it to chickens, pigs, goats, or whatever which then provides a human food source. And, of course, there are many cultures around the world that directly eat and enjoy insects. Aborigines in Australia ate many, many kinds of insects. In Thailand, giant water bugs, dipped in batter and deep fried, are a gourmet delicacy and are becoming very expensive, the supply being limited due to overharvesting, pesticide runoff, etc. I also recently saw an episode of Rick Bayliss' PBS series 'Mexico One Plate at a Time' where he was in a very exclusive restaurant in Mexico city that was serving fried grasshoppers. Really, any time you eat most commercially processed foods of plant origin, such as breads, juices, etc., you are getting trace amounts of insect proteins. The federal government sets allowable levels of insect matter in all kinds of foodstuffs. "Zero" just isn't realistically attainable in a cost-effective way. Here is a link to an FDA publication which shows the allowable level of contamination of various types of things in certain foods. Some of it may be higher than many people know -- for example, 4% of cocoa beans can be infested and still be sold in the US food trade. Canned tomatoes can have no more than 2 fruit fly larvae per 500 gram (slightly larger than a pound) can. Ground nutmeg can have no more than 100 insect fragments per 10 grams. Here is a link that might be useful: FDA guide to allowable contamination levels in food.

Hasenfeffer (Sour Rabbit Stew) SUBMITTED BY: NXNER "Original German rabbit stew recipe passed down from my great-grandmother who immigrated to US in 1889. This is a lot of work to make but well worth it. It is an acquired taste dish; once hooked, you can't get enough. Serve with fresh mashed potatoes and celery sticks. Use the stock as gravy for mashed potatoes. Always tastes better as leftovers. Hope you enjoy!" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PREP TIME 1 Hr COOK TIME 1 Hr 15 Min READY IN 10 Hrs 15 Min INGREDIENTS 2 3/4 cups red wine vinegar 3 cups water 1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar 8 whole cloves 1 medium onion, thinly sliced 5 stalks celery, chopped 1 lemon, thinly sliced 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 tablespoon salt 1 teaspoon pickling spice 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 (2 1/2 pound) rabbit, cleaned and cut into pieces 3 tablespoons vegetable oil DIRECTIONS In a large pot, combine the water, white sugar, whole cloves, onion, celery, lemon, cinnamon, ground cloves, salt, pickling spice and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn off and allow to cool. Place the rabbit pieces into the mixture to marinate. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spread flour out onto a parchment or aluminum foil lined baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flour is a light brown color. Remove the rabbit from the marinade and pat dry. Strain the marinade, and discard the solids. Reserve the liquid for later. Heat the oil in a deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Coat the chicken with the toasted flour. Place into the hot oil, and cook until browned on both sides. Remove from the pan, and set aside. If there is oil left in the pan, sprinkle enough of the toasted flour over it to absorb the liquid. In a jar with a lid, mix 1/2 cup of the marinade with 1/4 cup of the remaining toasted flour. Close the lid, and shake vigorously until well blended with no lumps. Heat the pan with the rabbit drippings over low heat. Gradually stir in the marinade mixture, stirring constantly until slightly thickened. Return the rabbit pieces to the pan. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour, or until the meat is falling off of the bones. You may remove the bones prior to serving if desired.

Hi Eve, The cure is worse than the cause, its just our good climate that helps these fungal problems along, humidity, moisture and high temperatures help make a very good petrie dish for all these things. I think you may have to bite the bullet and try for some winter crops, vegies, fruits. Please don't blame the nurseries they sell what some people want, its just not a good season for these things at present.Good luck. Peter r.

HI raee_gw, yes, they said it's supposed to be gentle removal. They will take the sinks and faucets back to their factory so all major cutting is done away from my home. If they need to make some slight adjustments on site, they will do it outside on my driveway. I do have a lot of bottom drawers - I think I should cover them with something - maybe plastic wrap so no dust gets in he runners or drawers. Thanks. wags4fun - wow, that Sea Pearl quartzite is stunning - I hope you are thrilled with them once they are in place. Please post photos when they are done, I love to see gorgeous quartzites . And yes, good idea to remove the top drawers. I've been told that they measure and then go back to the shop and make my counters - then they come back to install and the plumber comes the next day. They told me they can't template the backsplash until the counter top is in, so that they come back a few days later to install. BTW, I love your name - you must have some happy dogs in your house? My3dogs - LOL, I'm glad you posted about your beadboard - I think I'll borrow that idea for the family bathroom which is next on my list. Thanks all for the positive vibes.....I'm hopeful it will all go smoothly.