Going bananas

May 25, 2023 by
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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

May 23, 2023 by
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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

May 21, 2023 by
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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

What are your bad habits in the kitchen?

May 18, 2023 by
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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

Food news antipasto

May 14, 2023 by
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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

May 13, 2023 by
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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

On recipe writing

May 10, 2023 by
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"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?

May 9, 2023 by
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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

May 8, 2023 by
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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

Food news antipasto

April 30, 2023 by
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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?

April 29, 2023 by
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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

April 27, 2023 by
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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

Member Notes can save the day

April 25, 2023 by
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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

April 23, 2023 by
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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

New Le Creuset color alert

April 18, 2023 by
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This is not a drill! Le Creuset has just unveiled its latest color, Shallot. On the Le Creuset website the company explains that the color is "named after the allium fundamental to French cuisine," describing the shade as hovering "between the palest purple and pink with an extremely light whisper of lavender and gray." Unlike 2017's Millennial Pink, Shallot is… read more

Food news antipasto

April 16, 2023 by
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Somehow the news got past us that the Guinness World Record cookbook collection changed in 2019. Lisa Ekus of Hatfield, Massachusetts (of cookbook literary agency fame) now holds the certified world record at 4,239 book. Ekus actually has thousands more (near 7,000), but some of these may be pamphlets or others that are not included in the official count. The… read more

Predicting the future through asparagus

April 15, 2023 by
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There are many ways to have your fortune read, the most popular methods being crystal balls, Tarot cards, and tea leaves. According to one woman in the UK, we can add another method to the list: asparagus spears. Jemima Packington, aka The Mystic Veg, who resides in the city of Bath, says she can predict the future by reading asparagus.… read more

Is this the end of Tupperware?

April 14, 2023 by
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In the US, the term Tupperware is shorthand for any plastic reusable storage container, whether made by Tupperware or not. Most women (and probably many men) over the age of 40 have been to a Tupperware party, and few are the households of that demographic that don't have at least one Tupperware-branded item. However, the iconic company is teetering on… read more

Food news antipasto

April 9, 2023 by
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With spring in the air in the Northern Hemisphere, blooms are starting to pop up on what was, in many places, frozen ground just a few weeks ago. Seeing these cheery flowers might tempt you to use them as a garnish for cake or even salad, but be careful about which blooms you perch atop your food, cautions Epicurious. Some… read more

Dispelling myths about salt

April 8, 2023 by
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Salt is the most important and ubiquitous seasoning on the planet. It's played a vital role in human food since humans started cooking, appearing in the most ancient recipes known to man. While salt is a basic component of most recipes, many myths have developed around this pantry staple. The Washington Post's Becky Krystal decided to debunk seven of the… read more

Countdown to The Great American Baking Show begins

April 6, 2023 by
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In December we mentioned that the Great American Baking Show would be coming to your screens in 2023, and now we have an exact date: Friday, May 5. People has an exclusive trailer that we can watch (below) in anticipation of the premier. GABS (not the worst acronym, I have to admit) is filmed in the same tent as GBBO… read more

A pepper primer

April 4, 2023 by
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Black pepper is undoubtedly the most popular spice on the planet, a perennial companion to salt. While there is a contingent that believes black pepper is drastically overused, the general consensus is that pepper adds something worthwhile to the dishes in which it is used. Of course there is more to the world of pepper than black peppercorns, and Food… read more

Food news antipasto

April 2, 2023 by
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We learned the sad news that Raghavan Iyer passed away Friday while on a visit to San Francisco. "Raghavan was a dear friend to many around the globe," said Anne Spaeth, owner of the Lynhall restaurants in Minneapolis [where Iyer lived with his partner Terry Erickson] and Edina. "The world lost a beautiful soul and consummate educator of his beloved… read more

April Fool’s Day food pranks

April 1, 2023 by
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After waking up to six inches of fresh snow this morning, I knew no one could pull a better April Fool's day prank than Mother Nature herself. However, I did scroll through several social media accounts to see if I could find some good ones to share with our Members but did not see many. Either the algorithms failed and… read more

Dispelling food origin myths

March 31, 2023 by
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A while back I wrote that I was surprised to learn that I was older than ciabatta. After reading a recent article in The Telegraph about food origins, it would seem that's not the only Italian food story that I did not know - and that there are other foods worldwide whose accepted origin stories are little more than myths.… read more
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