Food news antipasto

Having GBBO withdrawals? Head over to The Guardian to read an interview with Jürgen Krauss, who was eliminated in the semi-finals. He has made peace with not making it through to the end, and he offers insight into what happens in the tent. In particular, I was interested in his take on hosts Matt Lucas and Noel Fielding, who he says helped contestants stay grounded: “They really add a lightness to the tent. Although they are not as much there as you would think from watching the show, they reminded me that it’s not that serious. There is a world outside the tent.”

Although digital cookbook sales still lag behind print cookbooks, their numbers continue to grow, albeit slowly. For some food bloggers, digital books make sense, both from economic as well as aesthetic viewpoints. Eater explains the advantages of digital publishing, as well as some of the drawbacks, in this deep dive into the subject.

Have you ever wished you could write as successfully as a food writer like Jay Rayner? Now you have an opportunity to learn from an expert, as Rayner is offering a masterclass on column writing. There are a few in-person spots remaining, but anyone can stream the class, which features a live Q&A in addition to his talk.

‘Tis the season for “best of” lists for cookbooks. Jenny is working on her rundown of the year’s top books and Jane is diligently tallying the various lists she finds to come up with our own “best of the best” list. In the meantime, we will share a few of those lists with you. First up is Nik Sharma’s favorite 15 cooking and baking books of 2021. Australian Gourmet Traveller has also compiled a best cookbooks list that features eight titles. If you see any lists that you think might go overlooked, please send a link to info@eatyourbooks.com.

As I emptied the closet I used as a pantry in preparation for my kitchen remodel, I found several items that had been lingering there for quite some time. Since we know that “best by” dates for canned and dry goods are suggestions at best, it was a challenge to determine whether I should keep these items or if they should be sent to the compost pile. I found a recent Southern Living article featuring Chef Lane Richardson helpful in this regard. The chef provides his thoughts on how often you should replace pantry items.