Cookery writer Margaret Fulton dies at 94

We have sad news to announce. Margaret Fulton, Australia's best known and most loved cookery writer, has died at the age of 94. Through her magazine columns, cookbooks, and later, television appearances, Fulton exerted an extraordinary influence over Australia's culinary landscape. She introduced the nation to the "exotic" flavors of Italian, French, Greek, Spanish, and Chinese cuisine. Beginning with her 1968… read more

All three Masterchef Australia judges quit in pay dispute

Masterchef Australia will be getting an extreme makeover in 2020, as all three of its current judges have quit amidst a pay dispute. Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris, all walked away from the program after Australia's Network 10 refused to increase their pay by 40 percent.  This is not the first time Calombaris has made the news regarding a row… read more

The history behind biscuits and gravy

If you are not from the United States, and specifically the Southern U.S., you may not be familiar with the breakfast dish of biscuits and gravy. Its popularity is growing, however, and it can now be found on menus across the country and for good reason: it's both hearty and tasty. If you are a fan of biscuits and gravy,… read more

David Chang has yet another show in the works

David Chang is one busy chef. In addition to overseeing his Momofuku restaurant empire, starring in the Netflix series 'Ugly Delicious,' and working with Chrissy Teigen on a Hulu talk show, he is working on a new television program as well. Called 'Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner,' the new series features Chang joining celebrity guests to celebrate the cuisine and culture… read more

Homemade ice cream: low effort, high reward

Some food items have a very low reward to effort ratio. Foods like homemade ketchup seem like a lot of work for a product that is, to most people, little to no better than the purchased version. Every person has his own effort to reward ratio that guides his cooking. But no matter what your cooking style may be, you… read more

Sticky fingers

When I was 15 years old, I traveled without my family for the first time, going over a thousand miles from home as part of a school club. To remember this momentous occasion, I tucked a glass from the hotel restaurant, emblazoned with its logo, into my suitcase. I used that glass for years, until a moment of clumsiness led… read more

The case for cookbooks without photos

Images of food are a huge component of many people's Instagram and Facebook feeds, and most cookbooks today feature amazing photos that are close to works of art in and of themselves. It is difficult to imagine a cookbook without lush images, but they used to be the norm. Cookbook author Andrea Nguyen thinks you can learn a lot from… read more

The future of Dean & Deluca is in doubt

In the early 1990s, when I was a fresh-faced recent college graduate working in my first "real" job, I also leased my first apartment and therefore had my first "real" kitchen. No more dorm room microwave cooking for me, I thought triumphantly. I began to experiment in the kitchen, scouring food magazines for new recipes, but never straying far from… read more

The Levain cookie empire expands

You might remember back in March when Jenny published the battle of the Levain Bakery chocolate chip walnut cookie, reviewing ten different copycat recipes for the absurdly thick and decadent cookies. (She settled on  Levain Bakery copycat chocolate chip walnut cookie part two by Parsley Sage Sweet as the winner of the copycat challenge.) The lines at the handful of Levain… read more

Best cookbooks of the 21st century (so far)

It is difficult - nearly impossible, for me - to consider that we are 20 percent of the way through the 21st century. Nevertheless, it is true. That means we have 20 years of cookbooks to think about when discussing the best books of the century. Helen Rosner at The New Yorker breaks down which books she believes are standouts. … read more

Food news antipasto

After struggling for years to find the best way to store rolls of aluminum foil and plastic wrap that doesn't take up valuable counter space or result in jammed drawers, I spied a method that might actually work. Head over to The Kitchn to see this easy and inexpensive hack.  One incensed French chef is asking to be removed from the… read more

The best French cookbooks, according to French chefs

It's always enlightening to learn which cookbooks chefs find useful and inspirational. When it comes to French cookbooks, who better than Jacques Pépin, Daniel Boulud, and Dominique Ansel to weigh in on which of these cookbooks they recommend. That's what Lauren Masur of The Kitchn thinks, too. She interviewed these esteemed chefs and compiled a list of the best French… read more

Spice support: basil

Few things scream summertime more than a caprese salad with fresh basil. A member of the mint family, basil is a workhorse in the Italian kitchen, but that is far from the only cuisine that makes good use of this aromatic herb.  Like mint, basil has several varieties, each with its own unique aroma and flavor. There are also several related… read more

Ingenious dishwasher hacks

Piggy-backing on Tuesday's post, today we will discuss more hacks for kitchen equipment. This time it's the dishwasher. While not everyone has a dishwasher, most people who do have one will never go back - and after reading the fifteen unique uses for your dishwasher offered by Taste of Home, those who don't yet have one may reconsider their decision.… read more

Bastille Day recipe ideas

The upcoming Bastille Day holiday provides the perfect excuse (like we need any) to make delicious French food and celebrate liberté, égalité, and fraternité. The holiday is the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, a turning point in the French Revolution, as well as the  Fête de la Fédération which celebrated the unity of the French people on July 14, 1790.… read more

Tips for getting the most out of your Dutch oven

A Dutch oven is a workhorse in the kitchen. The versatile pans are equally at home on the stovetop or in the oven, and are perfect for everything from deep frying to braising to holding hearty soups and stews. Those are not the only uses for Dutch ovens, however, as America's Test Kitchen explains. They provide five innovative uses for… read more

YouTube cooking stars challenge traditional show

Between excellent programs like Netflix's Chef's Table; Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat; and Ugly Delicious - not to mention terrific shows on network and cable television - people who love food programs have never had it better. This plethora of good choices is continuing, but not via traditional media streams. As Stevie Chick of The Guardian explains, new YouTube channels feature… read more

Food news antipasto

Alton Brown's new show Good Eats: The Return debuts in August, and earlier this week Brown gave his fans topics that will be covered in the first season. Via social media, he said that we could expect to see the following this fall: "steak tartare, latkes, chicken parm, ancient grains, Oyster Poor Boy, Immersion Circulator cooking (sous vide), Shakshuka, Sauces… read more

Substitutes save the day

Has the following scenario ever happened to you? In the middle of measuring ingredients to make a cake, pie, or batch of cookies, you realize that you are out of one of the key ingredients: cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, or something else that you could have sworn you had in stock. When this happens, you can be stuck -… read more

Anyone can be a cook

If you are an avid cook or baker and make food for others to enjoy, you often hear someone say "I wish I could cook but I just don't have a knack for it" or words to that effect. When this happens I am often at a loss for what to say. The next time it comes up in conversation… read more

Uses for leftover hot dog buns

I firmly believe there is a conspiracy afoot between hot dog makers and hot dog bun manufacturers. How else can you explain that hot dogs generally come in packages of 10 but the buns are sold in 8-packs? This means you have to buy an extra package of buns to make sure there is a bun for every dog, which… read more

When politics hit the dinner plate

Tariffs are in the headlines the world over these days. Most of the news emanates from the US, where President Donald Trump has threatened tariffs on a number of goods in various countries and regions. While food lovers might want to 'stay out of politics', that position is becoming increasingly untenable. In the most recent volley in the trade dispute… read more

The world’s most expensive ingredients

Most of us know that saffron, pound for pound the world's most expensive spice, costing up to $10,000 USD per pound. But it isn't even close to being the costliest food, as Fodor's explains in its list of the ten most expensive foods in the world.  None of the other foods is a spice, although a few are used mostly… read more

Get ready – Prime Day is just around the corner

If you took advantage of Amazon's Prime Day sales in the past but wished the window for savings was larger, you are in for a treat this year. Amazon recently announced that it was having its longest Prime Day ever, billing it as "a two-day parade of non-stop deals." For the first time, Prime Day will run for 48 hours, offering… read more

UK Guild of Food Writers announces 2019 award winners

The Guild of Food Writers is the UK's professional association of food writers and broadcasters, and is the longest-established and largest of its kind. Established in 1984, it now has around 480 authors, broadcasters, columnists and journalists among its members. The Guild's goals include bringing  together professional food journalists, broadcasters and authors; arranging discussions, forums, and workshops; encouraging new writers;… read more
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