Building a well-stocked pantry

March 25, 2012 by
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The Food 52 editors have an interesting  discussion on the basic foods people need  to  create and maintain a well-stocked pantry and refrigerator. It's not as easy as it sounds. As they say: "When we first began, we thought this list would be straightforward: here's what you should buy every time you go to the grocery store. End of story.… read more

Designer fruit-the iMandarin

March 25, 2012 by
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Described as a "celebration of a fruit's perfect design," the Smithsonian blog, Designer Decoded, has a seven-part article on the Cutie - a seedless, easily peelable mandarin designed specifically to be kid-friendly. We're not talking about genetic modification, rather a design and marketing approach almost as intense as what created the iPhone, As the blog says: "While more obviously designed objects are… read more

The favorite cookbooks of Jeremiah Tower

March 24, 2012 by
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  Jeremiah Tower, the founding chef at Chez Panisse and the founder of the legendary Stars restaurant in San Francisco, has now retired from professional cooking.  But he is still writing and reading and he shares in Eater's column The Cookbook Shelf, which are the most important books he owns. read more

Weird but wonderful fruits

March 23, 2012 by
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Given the enthusiasm our members have for recipes, we're sure many of you have seen references to fruits named "Horned Melon," "Buddha's Hand," "Noni,"-but have you ever seen them? The site Mental Floss has compiled photos of twelve beautiful but strange fruits, and we thought these would make fun viewing on a Friday afternoon. Enjoy. read more

Eat intensely flavored food to keep portion sizes small

March 23, 2012 by
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According to the Salt (NPR's food blog) and a study in Flavour, smell can affect how much we eat. The more intense the aroma, the smaller the bite. It's logical; when we encounter a new especially aromatic food, we tend to try it out with just a nibble. This could be a diet approach that even the most avid foodie… read more

A whole new look, a new blog and a new home page!

March 23, 2012 by
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You will have noticed a new look to Eat Your Books when you signed in today.  We have done a bit of a reorg and we hope you like it.   Your Home page will now feed you the latest news on books, recipes, authors and what's happening in the food world.  The latest blog items will feature on your… read more

What’s new in the natural products expo

March 22, 2012 by
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Remember chia pets? They're back....but now on your plate-at least the seeds are. The largest natural products exposition was recently held in Los Angeles and, besides reintroducing chia seeds, it highlighted some interesting trends in natural foods. Supplements are losing favor while old-fashioned ingredients are making a comeback. Snacks, drinks, and baby foods are all "hot" categories. And a big… read more

Gail Monaghan on what makes a great chef

March 22, 2012 by
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In this brief (less than 2 minute) video, Gail Monaghan explores the mind of a chef, including the difference in mentality between a pastry chef and a cook. She also gives some basic tips that any good cook should follow to become a great cook, including a visual aid for adding the right amount of salt and a reminder to trust… read more

The selling of style

March 22, 2012 by
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Something odd is going on in cookbook merchandising, and I'm trying to understand it. We're all familiar with the explosion of food websites and food blogs in the last 10 years and their inevitable transition into print. From Heidi Swanson and the Tipsy Baker to Food52 and Serious Eats, there's an abundance of popular online hosts who've turned author, and… read more

Setting up a container garden

March 21, 2012 by
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It's so warm and sunny here that thoughts of gardening are impossible to push off. Amy Pennington over at Food52 has an excellent series of articles on apartment gardening-how to start growing your own food, no matter how tiny your garden or apartment is. read more

James Beard award nominations

March 20, 2012 by
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The James Beard Foundation have announced its annual award nominations for book awards, journalism, design and graphics, broadcast and media, and restaurant and chefs. Known as the 'Oscars of the food world', the ceremonies are spread over two nights with media on May 4th and restaurants and chefs on May 7th.   For a list of the cookbook nominations see the… read more

New book: Maman’s Homesick Pie

March 20, 2012 by
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The first day of spring is celebrated in many parts of the MidEast as the New Year (in Persian, "Nourouz"), a time of rebirth and renewal. Donia Bijan's new cookbook, Maman's Homesick Pie, introduces us to homecooking, Persian style, supplemented by some of the techniques she learned in France and opening her bistro in California. While the locale and recipes… read more

Celebrate the first day of spring with asparagus

March 20, 2012 by
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How better to celebrate the first day of spring than with an asparagus recipe. This recipe for  Absurdly Addictive Asparagus won Food 52's Best Asparagus Recipe last year, earning such accolades as "Oh yeah, you've made my heart go zing" and "the kids had one taste and gobbled it up like it was chocolate cake." Enjoy! read more

Now’s the time for CSA signups

March 19, 2012 by
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I'm sure many know about CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) projects. For those who don't, here are the basics: a farmer offers for sale a certain number of shares to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (essentially funding the farmer's harvest) and in return… read more

How cooking for a 5 yo can drive you to distraction

March 19, 2012 by
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Debbie Koenig has a new cookbook out Parents Need to Eat Too.  In the Huffington Post today she explains why she is quitting her job (well almost) as chef to her fussy 5 year-old son. read more

Andrew Carmellini comes clean on ghostwriters

March 19, 2012 by
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I just saw a funny tweet where chef Andrew Carmellini owns up to the important role his co-writer played in the writing of his two cookbooks.  If only all cookbook "authors" were this honest.  Though in full disclosure, his co-writer is also his wife! read more

Now Gwyneth too denies using ghostwriters

March 18, 2012 by
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Gwyneth Paltrow has added her voice to the chorus of cookbook authors denying they use ghostwriters.  It is interesting though that her book My Father's Daughter was used to illustrate the article in the New York Times that stirred up this hornet's nest.  What exactly did her co-writer Julia Turshen do if Gwyneth wrote every word herself, as she now claims? read more

New book: How Carrots Won the Trojan War

March 18, 2012 by
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Over on Serious Eats, Leah Douglas has posted a review of the book, How Carrots Won the Trojan War (Curious but True Stores of Common Vegetables) by Rebecca Rupp. While the review is mixed, if nothing else this book has to win the award for the year's to date "most intriguing title." And Douglas includes probably the best quote about radishes and beans… read more

Heston Blumenthal on the Olympics

March 17, 2012 by
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Heston ruminates in the Financial Times on what the Olympics will mean for London.  He also explains how he and Simon Hulstone, a young chef he mentored, have developed a new menu for British Airways, an Olympics sponsor, to be served July to September. Four of the recipes are included in the article. read more

Pizza cornucopias

March 16, 2012 by
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With the release of the new iPad, other innovations have received little attention. But the recent pizza expo in Las Vegas-attended by 10,000 people-highlighted some fun developments in the world of pizza. So are pizza cones the next big pizza thing? read more

Guinness stout beef stew

March 15, 2012 by
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We appreciate that everyone might not love the classic St. Patrick's dish-corned beef and cabbage. Over at Serious Eats, they're producing a Guinness Week of recipes. This Guinness stout beef stew may please your leprechauns a bit more than cabbage and corned beef. read more

Rachael Ray denies using cookbook ghosts

March 15, 2012 by
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Yesterday we noted a fascinating New York Times article, I Was a Cookbook Ghostwriter, by Julia Moskin that revealed the extent to which cookbook authors don't write or test their recipes. The article has gone viral so it's not surprising that the first salvo has been fired back. Rachael Ray, who has authored 20 cookbooks over the last ten years along with… read more

Would you pay $225 for a cookbook with just one recipe?

March 14, 2012 by
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Susie reviews in the Boston Globe a new book Notes from a Kitchen which documents the obsessions of 10 different chefs.  There is just one recipe, for a cocktail, with 14 pages of instructions. The book costs $225 on Amazon - is this a book you could ever see yourself buying? read more

Who writes the cookbooks you buy?

March 14, 2012 by
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A couple of interesting articles today on cookbooks: The Boston Globe has a feature on whether cookbooks are moving from books to cook from to books to look at. Not at EYB we think! The New York Times has a fascinating article by Julia Moskin about her experiences ghost-writing cookbooks for celebrity chefs.  I just wish there were some names attached! read more

Hear Susie talk about how her job as a cookbook reviewer impacts her kids

March 13, 2012 by
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Fascinating radio piece by Susie on New England Public Radio on how her constant testing of cookbooks for her reviewing jobs at NPR Radio, The Boston Globe and of course EYB, mean that her children very rarely get repeat dinners.  And how their palates have had to adjust to the exotic and (sometimes) downright bad. read more
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