Your Nutella is safe with me

July 8, 2025 by
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Closeup of a jar of chocolate hazelnut spread with two slices of artisan bread out of focus to the left.
Classic food pairings like apple and cinnamon, peanut butter and jelly, or tomato and basil work together for many reasons. Complex chemical compounds play off each other and cultural factors can also play a role in how we perceive certain combinations of flavors. For most people these couplings seem natural and elevate the separate components to exceed what each offer… read more

Food news antipasto

July 6, 2025 by
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The strawberries and cream sandwich from Marks & Spencer has taken England by storm. People who enjoy this dainty treat, inspired by the Japanese "sando" may be dismayed to learn that it could soon be subject to the 20% VAT on desserts. According to VAT expert Simon Knivett: “If the bread is sweetened and the product is held in the… read more

Getting to the heart of it

July 6, 2025 by
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After I learned a few years ago that Italian amaretti are traditionally made with apricot kernels, I thought it would be fun to make them someday. Recently I bought apricots and decided that someday was now. After using the fruit in a cake, I stashed the pits in a mason jar until I had enough time to tackle the project.… read more

The history of barbecue

July 4, 2025 by
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This weekend, grills across the US will be blazing with a multitude of meats, vegetables, and fish set atop the racks. Some will enjoy quickly cooked items like hot dogs and hamburgers, but in many households (mine included), low and slow barbecuing will take place. The roots of barbecue date back centuries, and its modern day incarnation owes a lot… read more

Can the can continue?

July 2, 2025 by
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Del Monte Foods, one of the largest canned fruit and vegetable processors in the world, filed for bankruptcy earlier this week. The filing aims to stabilize the company with interim financing until a sale of the company can go forward. In addition to the canned goods carrying the 139-year-old company's iconic logo, Del Monte owns the Contadina tomato brand, College… read more

Any way you slice it

July 1, 2025 by
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A reader comment to a recent article in The Guardian asked why bread slices have gotten thicker over the years. The same reader lamented that you cannot find thin sliced bread in the supermarket any more, and that by making the slices thicker, food companies were contributing to obesity issues. While I do not know if bread has actually gotten… read more

Introducing libraries to EYB at ALA

July 1, 2025 by
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In Sunday's Food News Antipasto, Darcie wrote about our experience at the American Libraries Association (ALA) Conference this past weekend - meeting hundreds of librarians, having dinner with the authors of the upcoming stunner Heartland Masala and having fun chats with EYB members who dropped by our booth. The reaction from librarians to our new library feature was overwhelmingly positive… read more

Food news antipasto

June 29, 2025 by
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Jane and I spent the weekend at the American Library Association annual conference in Philadelphia, promoting our Library memberships. Highlights of the trip included seeing several EYB Members who stopped by to say hello, wonderful cocktails at Almanac, and a meal with two absolutely delightful authors Jyoti and Auyon Mukharji, who had a demonstration on the What’s Cooking stage at the… read more

Tea innovations

June 27, 2025 by
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Forget pumpkin spice lattes, the latest thing in beverages is pumpkin spice tea. That, and along with other trends, is driving an uptick in the popularity of tea, especially in the US, which has not always been tea-friendly. (We got a little salty about it back in 1776 and never got over it.) But now Americans are embracing tea, and… read more

Grocery store trickery

June 24, 2025 by
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One of the grocery stores in my city vexes me to no end by its constant rearranging of products. As soon as I get used to learning where to find the items that I regularly buy, everything moves to a new location. This shuffling of items is probably not just due to changing inventory, but rather a deliberate attempt to… read more

Food news antipasto

June 22, 2025 by
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We covered the James Beard Media Awards over the weekend, but there were more honors given on Monday, when the JBF announced the winners of its Restaurant and Chef Awards, representing the best food and drink in the US. Fine dining establishments took home many of the honors, but there were plenty of casual restaurants in the mix. Take a… read more

Strategies for when it’s too hot to cook

June 21, 2025 by
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This year the solstice brought with it a record-breaking heat wave for much of the US. When the temperatures and dew points both spike this high, standing over a hot stove for any length of time is unappealing, to say the least. Keeping cool while cooking in the midst of a heat wave is difficult, but there are ways to… read more

Are you in the rhubarb lovers’ club?

June 20, 2025 by
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I will never forget the time a 20-something coworker wrinkled her nose in disgust when I brought a rhubarb pie to the office. "Only old people like rhubarb," she said. Being only in my early 40s at the time, I bristled at the notion. It turns out that she might not be totally wrong, as rhubarb sales have been stagnant… read more

James Beard Awards Weekend in Chicago

June 18, 2025 by
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Jane, Katie and I attended the James Beard award ceremony on June 14th in Chicago, where the the James Beard Foundation announced the winners of its 2025 Media Awards, which includes books, broadcast media, and journalism. This was the 35th Anniversary of the awards and the air was charged with excitement and positivity. As we shared in our post delivering the… read more

Celebrity chef Anne Burrell dies at 55

June 17, 2025 by
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We received the sad news that Anne Burrell, popular Food Network host and chef, passed away today at her New York home. Burrell was the long time host of Worst Cooks in America, which ran on Food Network from 2010 to the present. Known for her spiky platinum-blond hairdo, Burrell coached teams through hundreds of episodes of the program. Born… read more

Food news antipasto

June 15, 2025 by
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We start this week with news that is sure to make you smile. A small town in Mississippi is home to the world's only apron museum. For over 20 years, Carolyn and Henry Terry have been running the Apron Museum in the small town of Iuka. The museum houses a collection of more than 5,000 aprons, spanning the globe and… read more

A well-connected kitchen

June 12, 2025 by
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As I read an article about how to ensure your dishwasher lasts for many years, I was a little surprised to read that many dishwashers are now wifi compatible. I am not sure why I was taken aback, after all, it is becoming difficult to find kitchen appliances that don't come with an app. While I can see potential upsides… read more

Planet-friendly eating is more than meat vs. vegetables

June 12, 2025 by
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People wanting to make food choices that are better for sustainable agriculture often think in terms of eating less meat and more fruits, nuts, and vegetables. However, the concept of a planet-friendly diet is not as simple as swapping meat-based proteins for vegetable-based ones. There are additional considerations that also come into play such as how the food is grown… read more

Who invented Taco Tuesday?

June 10, 2025 by
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Recent events reminded me of the phrase Taco Tuesday, which has become ubiquitous in the US. From 1989 until 2023, the Midwest chain Taco John's owned the trademark for Taco Tuesday in 49 states, claiming that they were the first to use the phrase. The company aggressively pursued its trademark, sending cease and desist letters to eateries who used the… read more

Food news antipasto

June 8, 2025 by
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The Guinness Book of World Records has come a long way since the Guinness Brewery's managing director, Sir Hugh Beaver, devised the concept while arguing with his mates about which game bird was the fastest. Today the Guinness Book contains all sort of records, including ones that involve food. In addition to individuals, companies can have world records, and Chowhound… read more

Bartenders spill on their most controversial takes

June 7, 2025 by
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The cocktail scene has had many ups and downs in its history, and at the center of it all have been the bartenders. They are the ones who have created iconic drinks that have stood the test of time, and they have opinions about those cocktail and more. Vinepair asked several bartenders about their most controversial cocktail opinions, and some… read more

You can pry my croissant from my cold, dead hands

June 4, 2025 by
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Eating a balanced diet full of vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein is a laudable goal. Such a diet can help you stay healthy and avoid certain diseases. Endless advice is available on what foods to eat and which to avoid if you want to achieve this goal, such as the recent article from The Sydney Morning Herald's Good Food… read more

Food news antipasto

June 2, 2025 by
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Samin Nosrat shared news with her followers: she is moving to Substack with a newsletter called a grain of salt. Nosrat is "looking forward to building a vibrant community focused on cooking, gardening, reading, and general good living" in her new venture. She is also offering a free online cooking class for people who preorder her upcoming book Good Things.… read more

Reduce, recycle – but don’t reuse

May 31, 2025 by
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Two generic white containers with lids
When I was growing up, finding out what leftovers were available in our refrigerator was like a treasure hunt. That's because we used plastic tubs from margarine, cottage cheese, Cool Whip, and other ready-to-eat foods to store leftovers. All of the plastic was opaque, so there was no way to tell what was inside. Sometimes it was a tasty surprise,… read more

Kitchen analysis paralysis

May 29, 2025 by
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I have been called an overthinker, and my husband says that choices are bad for me. Both of these are truths that I must painfully admit. Ruminating over even the simplest of decisions can result in analysis paralysis, where you never achieve forward progress because you worry about making the wrong decision. For me, this issue extends to the kitchen,… read more
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