Food news antipasto

In the market for new cookware? Head over to Food & Wine, which brings us the best cookware deals in Amazon’s Spring Sale. The offerings include Lodge, Le Creuset, and other favorite brands. Once you see what you like, we ask that you navigate to Amazon’s site from the links on our homepage (Amazon US, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon AUS) before putting anything into your cart. We earn a small affiliate fee when you do so including using our Le Creuset* link, and we use those fees to make upgrades and improvements to the EYB site.

Have you ever used a menu hotline? I hadn’t heard of it before reading about it in Taste, but apparently they were once commonplace (although dwindling now). You call the number and learn about a restaurant’s daily specials or full menus. Andy Sturdevant, a Minneapolis-based artist and writer, started compiling dozens of these hotline numbers into a zine called Directory of American Menu Hotlines. The hotlines described in the article belong to a variety of places ranging from Army cafeterias to church kitchens to family restaurants.

Keeping with the cookware theme, the next article features the cooking and baking pans that Yotam Ottolenghi finds the most indispensable. He says that for someone who is cooking for 1 or 2, there are three essential pans: a small saucepan, a medium sauté pan/skillet, and a larger, high-sided Dutch oven. Ottolenghi also discusses his three favorite baking pans, and advises people to be practical rather than inspirational.

Fans of Top Chef saw some changes to the show for its recent premier on BravoTV. Former contestant Kristen Kish replaces Padma Lakshmi in hosting the program, and the episodes are much longer as well (75 minutes versus 45 minutes in previous seasons). Also, the rules for how contestants have been eliminated have changed – winning the Quickfire no longer means immunity from elimination.

The 2020s will be remembered for the pandemic, but a side note will probably belong to the age of mash-ups and collaborations between brands. Over at Good Food (Aus), Callan Boys and Bianca Hrovat completed a taste test of several so-called “crossover” foods, such as the Twisties x Donut King and Arnott’s Shapes x Vegemite, to see if they are as good as their social media hype. The verdict? It’s a mixed bag, with some being great (KitKat x Milo) and not so great (doughnut flavored Twisties).

*Link to all Le Creuset specials. Bonus with purchase: receive a free Set of 2 flower bowls with $250 purchase available March 8, 2024 – March 31, 2024, or while supplies last. Must use code BOUQUETS at checkout. We recommend checking Le Creuset‘s site as often times you may get a better deal buying directly.