Recipes to welcome summer

Our US members have a long weekend for the Memorial Day holiday. While the day itself is a time for somber appreciation for those who gave all in defense of our nation, the unofficial event that coincides with the holiday is the welcoming of summer. As I walked through my neighborhood today it seemed like every backyard contained a grill,… read more

Going bananas

If you are a certain age, you probably remember the scene from Raiders of the Lost Art (1981) when Harrison Ford's character says "Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?" I was reminded of that scene when I watched a recent episode of Chopped, where one of the contestants discovers that a particular fruit was in the mystery ingredient… read more

The ebb and flow of ingredients

If you looked into my refrigerator daily over the past 20 years, you would have been hard pressed to find a day where you did not see a container of yogurt prominently displayed. As a recent Food & Wine article noted, there are legions of dishes that start with or are finished by a dollop of the tangy dairy product.… read more

Food news antipasto

Most of us know that Betty Crocker isn't a real person; she was concocted by the marketing folks at the Washburn-Crosby Company (the precursor to General Mills) in 1921. However, another names that is displayed on boxes of cake mixes across the US is (or was) a real person: Duncan Hines. Southern Living explores the history of Mr. Hines, who… read more

James Beard Award-winning chef to open indigenous food lab

Chef Sean Sherman, whose Minneapolis restaurant Owamni was named the Best New Restaurant for 2022 by the James Beard Foundation and whose cookbook The Sioux Chef also won a JBF Award, has his sights set on a new venture in the Twin Cities that he is hoping to expand across the country. In conjunction with his nonprofit NATIFS, the chef… read more

What are your bad habits in the kitchen?

In a perfect food world, there would never be any cross contamination, surfaces would remain pristine, and everyone would religiously follow food safety rules. In the real world, however, nothing's perfect - including Jay Rayner. He confesses to some "unsavoury" habits in the kitchen, but he feels secure that he is in good company. Rayner shares that while filming a… read more

2023 Art of Eating Prize winner announced

The Art of Eating Prize is awarded annually to the author of the year’s best book about food (or food and drink together). Where other food book awards involve nominations in diverse categories, The Art of Eating Prize focuses on a single best book. The founders of the prize, by rewarding the highest quality work, hope to encourage the excellence… read more

Food news antipasto

As we eagerly await the announcement of the winners of the 2023 James Beard Media Awards, yet another controversy is brewing around the James Beard Foundation. This time it comes from a couple of judges resigning and a former winner smashing his award with a brick. As Eater explains, "In the wake of disqualifying a Birmingham [Alabama] chef, two judges… read more

Alkalinity can work wonders with food

The title to Samin Nosrat's excellent book indicates what she feels to be the most important elements in cooking - salt, fat, acid, heat. While acid plays an important role in cooking, it might be better to think about pH more broadly than just acid, as alkaline substances offer important benefits in the kitchen as well. Food writer Caroline Hatchett… read more

Fortnum & Mason winners

On May 11, food and drink celebrities gathered at The Royal Exchange in London to fete winners of the Fortnum & Mason Food and Drink Awards. These prestigious annual awards celebrate the achievements of the UK’s current and emerging food writers, publishers, photographers, broadcasters, and personalities. The ceremony was presented by Andi Oliver, alongside celebrated chef and Awards judging panel… read more

On recipe writing

"Jump to recipe." If seeing those words in a blog post to which you've navigated after seeing an image float across your social media feed makes you happy, this post may not be for you. The internet is rife with people joking about what they view as exaggerated prose that precedes the recipe in a food blog. "I just want… read more

Are home composting machines the answer to food waste?

Unless you live in a suburban or rural area and have a decent-sized yard, your food waste probably goes into the trash and eventually into a landfill. Food waste produces tremendous amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Municipalities have been slow to implement city-wide composting, so what's a consumer to do? Even the most conscientious… read more

Food news antipasto

Jamie Oliver is set to return to the London restaurant scene with his first new location since the 2019 collapse of his UK restaurant group. The chef will launch a site at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, and the restaurant will feature a seasonal menu highlighting British produce. Oliver said: "I was devastated when I lost my UK restaurants. Without doubt,… read more

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo

Much like St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo is a holiday celebrated by people far outside the borders of its original nation. It’s likely that many people who celebrate this day do not understand its significance and history. It is not, as many people believe, Mexico’s Independence Day, which falls on September 16. Rather, it’s a relatively minor holiday in… read more

Voraciously offers a new way to eat more vegetables

Voraciously, the food section of The Washington Post, is debuting a newsletter by cookbook author Hetty Lui McKinnon aimed at taking your plant-based meals to the next level. Titled "Voraciously: Plant Powered II", the newsletter will run weekly for 10 weeks beginning Tuesday, May 16 and will feature 10 vegan recipes highlighting 20 ingredients. McKinnon, author of several EYB Member… read more

Another management shakeup at Bon Appétit

Food editors and writers who were recently laid off might want to dust off their résumés because Bon Appétit will be in the market for a new editor, as Dawn Davis resigned last week to rejoin publishing giant Simon & Schuster (gift link). “I’ve made the difficult decision to return to book publishing,” Ms. Davis wrote in a note to… read more

MasterChef judge and chef Jock Zonfrillo dies at age 46

On the eve of the latest season of Masterchef Australia, the family of judge Jock Zonfrillo posted that he had passed away on Sunday at the age of 46. No cause of death was given, and a police spokesperson said that were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death. The program was set to premiere on Monday but was pulled after… read more

Food news antipasto

If you recently purchased ground cumin and you live in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin, you may want to check your pantry. Michigan-based Lipari Foods is recalling six ounce tubs of ground cumin because of potential Salmonella contamination.   In a recent tweet, Jose Andres dangled a carrot in… read more

Is pasta primavera poised for a comeback?

A jumble of vegetables including broccoli, peas, and halved grape tomatoes rests atop of lightly sauced spaghetti noodles on a plain round white plate.
In the 1980s and 1990s, pasta primavera was on nearly every menu in the US. Although interpretations varied, the dish - which used the Italian word for springtime - usually featured an array of vegetables and long pasta in a creamy sauce. As with most things, once it became ubiquitous there was nowhere to go but down, so pasta primavera… read more

Jay Rayner’s tips on choosing a restaurant

If you are traveling to a new destination or live in a large city with oodles of restaurants, it can be difficult to determine which ones are worth your time (and money). While there are review sites like Yelp, they can be hit or miss, so it's wise to use additional criteria to judge whether a place is worthy of… read more

James Beard Foundation 2023 Media Award Nominees

The James Beard Foundation has announced the nominees for its 2023 Media Awards, which includes cookbooks. JBF again made changes to the categories including a separate category for Bread.  “As the culinary world continues to evolve, it is essential that we celebrate and uplift diverse voices and perspectives,” said Erica Skolnik, Chair of the James Beard Foundation’s Book Awards program. “With… read more

Member Notes can save the day

Trying new recipes is one of my favorite pastimes, although there is a drawback to constantly making dishes new to you in that things don't always go to plan. That is why I (along with many of our Members, I'm sure) appreciate the Notes feature in the EYB Library. Going to the listing of notes you can see how popular… read more

Food news antipasto

Earlier this week King Charles III announced the signature dish of his upcoming coronation: quiche. The official Coronation quiche features an...interesting combination of spinach, broad beans, and tarragon. As one royal commentator said, the dish is "the gastronomic equivalent of King Charles himself." If that particular combination doesn't appeal to you, The Independent's Hannah Twigg offers five alternative fillings. The… read more

Celebrating Anzac Day

Anzac Day, celebrated on April 25, is taken seriously by Australians and New Zealanders, so much so that there is an official recipe on the books that decides what does and doesn't count as one. For those who don't know, Anzac Day commemorates the first major military campaign of Australian and New Zealand troops during WWI in 1915. ANZAC stands for Australian… read more

Boston chef Barbara Lynch accused of workplace abuse

Chef Barbara Lynch has long been the darling of the Boston restaurant scene. Her rags-to-riches story was chronicled in a 2017 memoir that recounts her rise from a hard-knocks South Boston childhood to culinary stardom. Now the James Beard Award-winning chef is facing criticism for alleged abuse and harassment at her restaurants (gift link; no account required). The New York… read more
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