Hold the Chicken
I have chia seeds soaking in almond milk in the refrigerator. Earlier in the week I tried adding the raw, dry seeds to a smoothie that I quickly slurped down. I had questions about whether they should be eaten whole or ground up. Rather than Google the answer, tonight I posted the question in a private Facebook group of four friends. We all are trying to eat healthy – two of us follow a vegan diet – and within...
Banana Split Cake: All-American Dessert
This article originally appeared in The Curator July 24, 2009. My cooking skills are laughable - or they were, until a few months ago. No one ever taught me to cook, so my abilities never stretched beyond making macaroni topped with shredded cheese or popping a frozen pizza in the oven and pairing it with a sliced cucumber. It's embarrassing to admit. My husband jokes that when he married me I could burn water. And ...
To Share the Table
I recently read an article in Saveur's December 2010 issue entitled "Personal Space: an Editor's Kitchen Reflects a Lifetime." The piece is about Judith Jones (the accomplished cookbook editor famous for editing Julia Child), her kitchen and recent publications, and about how one's kitchen can be a telling reflection of the style and personality of the cook who spends time there. This was a thoughtful article, but wh...
Outstanding in the Field
Somehow, through the graces of friends who are chefs, wine dealers, and farmer's market directors, my husband Kenny and I have meandered our way into the "foodie circuit" here in Nashville as the musical accompaniment to $200-per-plate gourmet events - such as the Outstanding in the Field dinner we attended on September 13. We did get paid, but the clincher: we got to eat. Nice work if you can get it. [caption id=...
Best things to eat, ever
From The Observer: The 50 best things to eat in the world, and where to eat them. From cake, steak and tapas, to oysters, chicken and burgers, Killian Fox roamed the world to find the 50 best things to eat and the best places to eat them in, with a little help from professionals like Raymond Blanc, Michel Roux, Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray....
Big Food vs. Big Insurance
From the New York Times: Michael Pollan on Big Food vs. Big Insurance. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three-quarters of health care spending now goes to treat "preventable chronic diseases." Not all of these diseases are linked to diet - there's smoking, for instance - but many, if not most, of them are. We're spending $147 billion to treat obesity, $116 billion to treat diabetes, an...
Are prepared foods making us fat?
From The Atlantic: Are prepared foods making us fat? It is a topic I am pursuing, and I continue to be surprised at the dearth of studies. Barbara Rolls and colleagues have shown that portion size influences caloric intake; because prepared foods are often served in large portions, it seems likely that they promote excessive caloric intake and weight gain. But we need more research to make the connection between pre...
Finding Home Where the Hearth Is
Photo: Puck Photography The rootedness of most New Yorkers - their attachment to the city and their intention to stay there - can often be measured by their kitchen. First: do they have one? Second: is it an approximation of a covert freshman dorm kitchen (hot plate and mini-fridge), or does it have adult-sized appliances? Third: what is actually in the appliances? New York apartment lore is rife with tales of ove...
