If you love to use ricotta cheese in your recipes, heads up. There’s a warning from the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which says some ricotta cheese is tainted with listeria bacteria. That bacterium is linked to 14 illnesses and at least one death. The imported Italian ricotta salata cheese distributed by Forever Cheese, Inc., of New York is linked to illnesses in 11 states, including Florida between June 20 and August 9. The importer, Jeff DiMeo of Forever Cheese said the recalled Frescolina brand ricotta salata cheese is from one batch manufactured in Italy's Puglia region. It would be tough for us to know where that cheese came from should we become ill, because it came in large wheels that’s generally used by restaurants. The important distinction is that this is not the same soft ricotta cheese that most of use to make that wonderful lasagna.

The word from the CDC is the ricotta can have up to a four-month shelf life and to throw it out if you happen to have some. The disease is rare, but deadly and very dangerous for pregnant women, older people and anyone with a compromised immune system. Illness have already been reported in Maryland, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The CDC said two of the illnesses were in newborn babies.

Here’s the official word from the CDC. This would also be a good time to check the fridge and pantry for outdated items and give it a good cleaning. It’s cold and flu season, and keeping a clean home can only help. For additional information on recalls, please check the CDC web site, and for some natural ideas at keeping it clean, Green American has ten simple ideas for that. Give them a try this weekend and leave the toxic stuff behind.

WORDS OF WISDOM FROM KELLY’S KITCHEN

Cleanliness is very important. If you let kids make a total mess in the kitchen and then leave, you're not really teaching them anything - Emeril Lagasse