Food news antipasto

We begin this week with another passing to report. Former New York Magazine Restaurant critic Gael Greene died this week at age 88. Greene revolutionized restaurant criticism. According to the NYT obit, “she put a premium on lively prose and colorful detail, throwing overboard the pompousness of the professional gourmets who dominated the profession.” People noted the sensuality that came through in her writing.

The website Eater, to which we frequently refer for food news and information, is branching out. The site announced that it was partnering with publishing house Abrams on a line of cookbooks and city guides. The seven-book deal includes three cookbooks and four guides. Up first is a cookbook featuring restaurant recipes by Eater restaurant editor Hillary Dixler Canavan (coming next year), as well as travel guides to New York City and Los Angeles (due in 2024).

It’s never too early to start planning holiday meals. In the US, Thanksgiving is up next, less than three weeks away. Epicurious has assembled their best tips, tricks, recipes, menus, and strategies for making the most of your gathering, whether large or small. This advice will serve you well for the rest of the holiday season too.

Speaking of holidays, while the focus is usually on the large gatherings on special days, Rob Broadfield makes a case for celebrating with smaller groups before the holidays as well. “It’s a nice time of the year to get loved ones around your table ahead of the Christmas madness and relax over good food, great wine and the laughter, dodgy humour and assertive opinions of your mates,” he says, offering advice on how to put together an impressive yet less fussy meal.

Over the past few months we have reported on a number of distressing food inflation figures, so we are happy to be able to bring some good news for once (at least for US Members). Avocado prices, which were soaring in July, have dropped drastically in recent weeks and are actually lower year-over-year, an outlier in the produce aisle. A perfect storm of events has led to this dramatic price reduction, so go ahead and enjoy Avocado toasts with kale-pistachio pesto from Food Network Magazine (pictured above).

Would you fancy an 81-year-old single malt Scotch? If so, you might want to investigate the upcoming Sotheby’s auction featuring a 1940 Macallan, described as having tasting notes of “treacle toffee, bramble jam, liquorice, crystalised ginger, nutmeg, charred pineapple, pecans and woodsmoke”, while the finish will be “intensely rich, sweet and smoky”. You will have to come up with  £110,000 to  £200,000 to own this rare bottle, which comes in a bespoke case with a custom sculpture.