The Feed: August 28, 2013

The Feed is my weekly round up of interesting food-related stories from newspapers, magazines, blogs and websites.


New York Times: “Building a Better Mass-Market Tomato," by Kenneth Chang.
It’s pretty clear at this point that supermarket tomatoes are basically worthless: tasteless, mushy, ghostly looking replicas of real tomatoes you can grow yourself or buy locally grown from farmers markets. The tomatoes at the store have been bred to look pretty and ship well, to the determent of taste and nutrients. One University of Florida researcher is trying to change that though and bring back flavor to the grocery store tomato. A noble enterprise for sure--I hope he’s successful.

Bon Appétit: “Why Sherry Is Suddenly Cool,” by David Lynch.
For a long time, people had sherry in their fridge for those times when Chinese stir-fry recipes called for a splash. No one was actually drinking the stuff. Times have changed though, and drinking sherry is back in vogue. This article includes a handy guide to some common styles and even a delicious-sounding sherry cocktail with Aperol, honey and citrus courtesy of Portland’s Ava Gene’s restaurant.

The Roaming Gastronome: “Apple Onion Chutney and Canning for the First Time,” by Jason Andros.
I’ve never tried canning anything for long-term storage. And although I’m convinced I’m not up to trying it (for lack of storage space), that won’t dissuade me from making a small batch of The Roaming Gastronome’s amazing-sounding Apple Onion Chutney. Sounds like such a great combo that would be good with lots of meats—particularly chicken or pork chops—or slathered on whole grain bread, perhaps with a spread of some soft brie. Mmm… For those who would like to try canning it, Andros includes links for how to do that successfully.

Huffington Post: “Seeking Longevity? Eat Real Food,” by Andy Bellatti.
Bellatti, a dietician and author of Small Bites, points out how stories espousing the longevity of certain pockets of native cultures often peg their health on the consumption of a particular food, while ignoring the (possibly) more likely culprit: the absence of industrialized food products. He also offers five rather sensible suggestions for healthy eating.

The Guardian: “The brightest bulb: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's garlic recipes,” by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
Who doesn’t love garlic? I certainly do—we go through a head every week or two. Fearnley-Whittingstall shares some great tips for cooking with garlic: when it’s better crushed vs. sliced, for example. He shares some great garlic recipes too.

Hunger Angler Gardener Cook: “Poached Salmon with Dill-Horseradish Cream,” by Hank Shaw.
Shaw’s salmon dishes always look really good and this is no exception: a butter-poached salmon fillet with a simple dill cream sauce spiked with horseradish. Sounds delicious!

Annarasa - Essence of Food: “Lemon Quinoa / Lemony Quinoa Pilaf,” by Apu.
Inspired by south Indian-style lemon rice, Annarasa has concocted this delicious and fairly simple sounding recipe with quinoa. The only challenge might be acquiring some of the ingredients, but I bet you could make a few substitutions and still have a great dish. If you like vegetarian and vegan recipes, her site has quite a few great ones.

CNN: “Oreos high school experiment: Double and Mega Stuf filling doesn't add up,” by Michaela Perreira and Ed Payne.
A high school science class experiment revealed that “Double Stuf” Oreos don’t actually contain twice as much filling as the regular ones, but rather 1.86 times. I wasn’t surprised to find Double Stuf Oreos don’t have exactly twice the filling, but apparently Oreo was, who insisted the recipe does include double the filling. I think the class should next tackle exactly what’s in the Oreo “cream” filling (hint: it’s not a dairy product).

NPR: “Julia Child Was Wrong: Don't Wash Your Raw Chicken, Folks,” by Maria Godoy.
Think washing your chicken before cooking it is safe? Think again. According to Godoy’s story, the practice will do more to spread germs in your kitchen than it will to disinfect the chicken (which gets properly disinfected by cooking it at a high enough temperature). I love the “germ-vision” video, which shows a home cook rinsing her chicken and spreading germs all over her kitchen. Yikes!

Washington City Paper: “Against Rum Day. And National Watermelon Day. And National Crème Brûlée Day. And National Filet Mignon Day,” by Jessica Sidman.
These days every day is a holiday if you count food holidays: the practice of celebrating various foods each year on a set day. They can be a fun marketing gimmick, and I often use them as an excuse to showcase my old recipes on Twitter. They’ve become quite popular lately. As they say, there’s even an app for that. But, when something like a cherry turnover gets its own food holiday—today in fact—has the practice gone too far? Sidman thinks so: on the day her story ran, she declared it “International Food Days Are A Sham Day.”

CNN Eatocracy: “Sommelier turns water into cash,” by Dantel Hood.
A water sommelier? It may sound like The Emperor’s New Clothes, but It exists.