Hand harvesting of salt makes a comeback in France

August 24, 2017 by
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  Ever since I read the fascinating tome Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky, I have a new appreciation for one of the world's oldest seasonings. You will find several varieties of salt in my cupboards, from basic granulated to kosher to sea salt from the Antarctic (courtesy of a friend). NPR recently examined how the demand for sea… read more

New tricks for an old dish

August 23, 2017 by
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  No matter how many foods I make (or attempt to make), I am always amazed at the new ideas that spring from the minds of inventive chefs and home cooks. The latest comes via Tasting Table, which relates the curious pasta technique from Sarah Grueneberg, who earlier this year won a James Beard Foundation Award for Best New Chef.  Grueneberg… read more

The best food television shows of 2017

August 22, 2017 by
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For cookbook lovers, nothing beats cracking open a favorite book and settling in to browse and dream of new tastes and techniques. Sometimes you have to put down the book, however. Thank goodness for a plethora of television shows to fill the time in between book reading sessions! This fall, everyone's favorite baking show, The Great British Bake Off, debuts… read more

Foods to commemorate the eclipse

August 21, 2017 by
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Millions of people in the United States donned special sunglasses today to view the solar eclipse. This was the first time totality occurred over most of the continental US since 1932, and thousands of folks traveled for hundreds of miles in search of optimal viewing conditions, with photographic equipment and family members in tow. While many viewers experienced the eerie… read more

Spice support: pandan leaf

August 20, 2017 by
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  When Yvonne Ruperti moved to Singapore, she noticed that there were a lot of green foods - things that non-natives would not expect to be green, like cakes, buns, and bread. At first she assumed they were flavored and colored with green tea, but she soon learned that pandan leaf contributed the bright green hues and delicate floral flavor. … read more

Why you should be using fish sauce in more foods

August 19, 2017 by
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 If you have a bottle of fish sauce in your refrigerator, you probably purchased it to make a Thai dish, but you don't use it much - if at all - outside of that cuisine. Kay Plunkett-Hogge thinks that's a shame. She believes that the funky sauce and its close relatives can add a unique punch to savory recipes of… read more

More female chefs mean a change in kitchen culture

August 18, 2017 by
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  Twenty years ago, it was rare to find a restaurant kitchen helmed by a female chef. Pioneers like Judy Rodgers and Alice Waters paved the way for change, and in recent years the number of female-run kitchens has increased dramatically, up by more than 50 percent in the last ten years. Tamar Adler (writing for Vogue) takes a look… read more

Jamie Oliver gets back to basics

August 17, 2017 by
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  Jamie Oliver's career has been going strong for nearly 20 years. Beginning Monday, August 21, he is adding to his lengthy credentials by returning to the small screen with a new program called 'Jamie's Quick and Easy Food'. The chef recently spoke with Food & Wine to discuss why he chose to get back to basics in his new… read more

Is it time to bring back the bread machine?

August 16, 2017 by
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  The Instant Pot may be today's "must-have" small appliance, but 20 years ago that title belonged to the bread machine. In the early 1990s, they consumed copious amounts of precious counter space, providing users a "set and forget" tool for fresh bread. After the turn of the century, their popularity waned and most were relegated to the trash bin… read more

What is ‘nduja?

August 15, 2017 by
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Spreadable salumi might sound like an oxymoron, but it is in fact a product, namely an Italian specialty called 'nduja. Made from pork, chilli peppers, herbs and spices, the fiery spread (pronounced en-doo-yah) comes from the Calabrian region of Italy. As Australian Gourmet Traveller explains, its spicy flavor enhances many dishes, from eggs to pizza and beyond.  In addition to its… read more

Joan Nathan’s list of the best Jewish cookbooks

August 14, 2017 by
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  Joan Nathan knows a thing or two about Jewish cooking. She is the author of over a dozen cookbooks in the genre, including Jewish Cooking in America, which won both the James Beard Award and the IACP / Julia Child Cookbook of the Year Award in 1994. (Learn more about Joan in her EYB author story.) Recently she spoke with… read more

Chefs recall their greatest influences

August 13, 2017 by
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  Every chef - and probably most passionate home cooks as well - can recall a dish that inspired them to dive headlong into the world of food, whether it was a top chef who guided them or a family member passing down cherished treasures. I find these stories fascinating so I was tickled to see top chefs recently sharing… read more

The story of food in photography

August 12, 2017 by
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In the Instagram age, where everyone's screens are saturated with lush, colorful, and precisely arranged images of food and drink, we have to be reminded that for most of human existence, people did not have photographs of food to entice them to eat or guide them to cook. From photography's earliest days to the present, however, food and photography have… read more

In defense of an over-stuffed pantry

August 11, 2017 by
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  Every so often I go through my pantry, promising myself that I will be ruthless and get rid of all of the things I don't use, like that 1/8 of a bag of forbidden rice or those nori sheets that have been in my pantry for longer than I care to admit. (Also, how did I end up with… read more

Making bad drinks good

August 10, 2017 by
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  Drinks of the 21st century - which often incorporate exotic infusions of herb and spices, feature high-quality craft spirits, and offer sophisticated flavors - have elevated cocktail hour from the days of sickly-sweet Cosmos and Amaretto Sours. Now bartenders are reimagining these and other much-maligned drinks like Midori Sours and the Grasshopper (a drink I recall from grandparent's supper-club… read more

Why did Rocco DiSpirito quit cooking?

August 9, 2017 by
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In the late 1990s and into the early aughts, Rocco Dispirito was at the top of his game. He had a successful New York City restaurant, Union Pacific, that was praised by critics and frequented by celebrities.  He was one of the earliest "celebrity chefs," before food television and social media rocketed an entire cadre of chefs into the spotlight. But in 2004,… read more

Cooking up history

August 8, 2017 by
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If you live near Washington, DC, or are planning a visit there and love food, one "can't miss" attraction is the National Museum of American History. The museum features an entire exhibition on food, plus a monthly class called "Cooking up History". The classes take place in museum's demonstration kitchen on the Coulter Performance Plaza and each showcases a guest chef, along… read more

Is harissa going to be the next Sriracha?

August 7, 2017 by
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  As food trends go, the rise and continued popularity of Sriracha has outlasted many flash-in-the-pan foods that have since lost their luster. The spicy condiment continues to find new devotees, and it has even found its way into other condiments (Sriracha ketchup, anyone?). So what is the poised to be the next Sriracha, taking the world by storm? The Washington… read more

Spice support: the differences between Mexican and Mediterranean oregano

August 6, 2017 by
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  The Latin name for Mediterranean oregano (on the right, above) provides a clue as to how ubiquitous it has become in kitchens all over the world. Origanum vulgare -vulgare coming from the Latin word vulgus, meaning 'the common people' or 'the masses' - is a pungent herb related to mint that is used extensively in Mediterranean cooking, particularly in Italian… read more

What’s the difference between baking soda and baking powder?

August 5, 2017 by
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  Even if you are not an avid baker, there's a good chance you have baking soda in your kitchen because it is used in a variety of other applications. Baking powder might not be in your cupboard unless you do a lot of baking. If you were inspired to bake and didn't have baking powder on hand, you might… read more

Preparing for the new GBBO, and what’s next for Mary Berry

August 4, 2017 by
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Channel 4 Productions has just released its first trailer for the upcoming season of The Great British Bake Off, the first season that the show is not airing on the BBC. The advertisement features a variety food items, whimsically animated and singing along to Paul McCartney's song 'We All Stand Together'. What we can see in the clip does not substantially… read more

Are these the best cookbooks of the 21st century?

August 3, 2017 by
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  While almost every 'best-of' cookbook list is dominated by the heavyweights published before the turn of the last century like Mastering the Art of French Cooking, there is no doubt that the 21st century has been good for cookbook lovers. In fact, there is an entire generation of cooks that have never cooked a single recipe from the 20th… read more

Legendary editor Judith Jones has died

August 2, 2017 by
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The culinary world is in mourning today after learning of the death of legendary cookbook editor and author Judith Jones. Jones passed away last evening at her summer home in Walden, Vermont, from complications of Alzheimer's disease. She was 93.  Jones was a long-time senior editor and vice president at Alfred A. Knopf. She was instrumental in the publication of… read more

Mario Batali working on new show

August 1, 2017 by
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  It seems that Mario Batali isn't busy enough being on the daytime talk show The Chew along with running several restaurants and Eataly locations. Eater reports that the chef has started filming on a new television program. We don't know much about the show other than the fact that Batali was shooting on location in northern Michigan.  However, a… read more

The gentrification of food

July 31, 2017 by
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  Grubstreet posted an article today on how the price of chicken wings has drastically increased in recent months. Wings were once little more than throw-away pieces, with low prices to match their low popularity. Then sports bars across the US - and to some extent, around the world - starting making spicy wings a mainstay of their menus, causing… read more
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