Food news antipasto

We’re going to start off this week’s review of interesting stories on the sweet side. As an avid jam-maker, the more I learn about this old-school craft the more I realize that I have only scratched the surface of knowledge on the subject. I appreciate it when experts weigh in on things that can go wrong when doing what on the surface appears to be a simple project. Over at The Guardian, Anna Berrill holds answers a reader’s question about why a jam made with frozen fruit won’t set properly. Not only does this question get answered, the post is almost a mini-course on jam making.

Another sweet subject is explored by Becky Krystal in The Washington Post. Her story is basically a primer about maple syrup, explaining the differences in the grades of syrup, how to store it, and how to create your own flavored syrup. She even provides advice on how to substitute for it if you are making a recipe and run out of it.

Stories about Le Creuset always attract my attention and this week there are two articles on the subject. One, from Eater, explores the reasons why Le Creuset became such a global phenomenon. Quality is one reason, but other factors played a role as well. If that article inspires you to expand your own Le Creuset collection, then head over to Epicurious, where you will find a guide to choosing the right size and shape of Dutch oven to fit your needs.

We owe our final subject to EYB Member sir_ken_g, who alerted us to a nifty chart ranking countries around the world by their dominance on the world’s dinner tables. Italy comes out on top by a wide margin, followed by Japan and Mexico. If you have time, navigate throught to the actual study conducted by Joel Waldfogel. Its explanatory paragraphs are fascinating.