Slashfood
July 31, 2010
00:00
Breakfast & Brunch Cocktails -- LeNell it All
Filed under: Drinks
Photo: Demián Camacho Santa Ana
Whether you're having guests for brunch or just nursing a hangover alone, the Bloody Mary is without a doubt the quintessential brunch drink. What we know today as the Bloody Mary actually started off as a simple tomato juice and vodka drink without all the seasonings. Try mixing up equal parts vodka (gin and aquavit also work well) and tomato water as a nod to the Mary's origins without all the trash. If you're pressed for time, tomato water can be as simple as opening a can of tomatoes and draining off the liquid or taking fresh tomato purée and straining the liquid through a fine sieve. Mix the vodka and tomato water over ice in your Boston shaker, pouring the mixture from glass to metal tin until chilled and thoroughly mixed (or shake if you don't mind a little foaminess). Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. If you can't resist adding more, perhaps rim the edge with smoked salt, celery salt, or a chunky salt-and-pepper mix and add a lemon wheel for garnish.
If coffee is the only way to start your day, you must try a cocktail that goes by a variety of names -- Espresso Martini, Vodka Espresso, and Pharmaceutical Stimulant. Supposedly it was created by a bartender in London after a customer asked him for a cocktail that would wake 'em up and screw 'em up.
Recipes after the jump...Continue reading Breakfast & Brunch Cocktails -- LeNell it All
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
00:00
Breakfast & Brunch Cocktails -- LeNell it All
Filed under: Drinks
Photo: Demián Camacho Santa Ana
Whether you're having guests for brunch or just nursing a hangover alone, the Bloody Mary is without a doubt the quintessential brunch drink. What we know today as the Bloody Mary actually started off as a simple tomato juice and vodka drink without all the seasonings. Try mixing up equal parts vodka (gin and aquavit also work well) and tomato water as a nod to the Mary's origins without all the trash. If you're pressed for time, tomato water can be as simple as opening a can of tomatoes and draining off the liquid or taking fresh tomato purée and straining the liquid through a fine sieve. Mix the vodka and tomato water over ice in your Boston shaker, pouring the mixture from glass to metal tin until chilled and thoroughly mixed (or shake if you don't mind a little foaminess). Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. If you can't resist adding more, perhaps rim the edge with smoked salt, celery salt, or a chunky salt-and-pepper mix and add a lemon wheel for garnish.
If coffee is the only way to start your day, you must try a cocktail that goes by a variety of names -- Espresso Martini, Vodka Espresso, and Pharmaceutical Stimulant. Supposedly it was created by a bartender in London after a customer asked him for a cocktail that would wake 'em up and screw 'em up.
Recipes after the jump...Continue reading Breakfast & Brunch Cocktails -- LeNell it All
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
July 30, 2010
23:30
Specialty Farms Brand Sprouts Recalled
Filed under: Recalls
Photo: jessicareeder, Flickr
You might want to think twice before tossing those sprouts in your salad. They're the latest packaged food product to be recalled for potential contamination.
Specialty Farms Organic Alfalfa Sprouts Blend (upc 509800108) and Specialty Farms Organic Sprout Salad (upc 8192400024) have been added to the list of sprout products recalled by Specialty Farms, Examiner.com reported. Both have a "best if sold by" date of 8/03/10. The sprouts are being recalled for potential Lysteria Monocytogenes contamination.
Listeria can be especially harmful to children, the elderly and pregnant women as it can cause miscarriage and stillbirth. Symptoms include headache, fever, abdominal pain, stiffness, vomiting and diarrhea.
Specialty Farms issued the voluntary recall on July 29, 2010 after lab tests showed positive results from retail samples. No illnesses have been reported, the FDA said in a statement. The company is working to determine the source of the potential contamination in its facilities and will be immediately remedying problems as they are identified, the agency said.Continue reading Specialty Farms Brand Sprouts Recalled
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
23:30
Specialty Farms Brand Sprouts Recalled
Filed under: Recalls
Photo: jessicareeder, Flickr
You might want to think twice before tossing those sprouts in your salad. They're the latest packaged food product to be recalled for potential contamination.
Specialty Farms Organic Alfalfa Sprouts Blend (upc 509800108) and Specialty Farms Organic Sprout Salad (upc 8192400024) have been added to the list of sprout products recalled by Specialty Farms, Examiner.com reported. Both have a "best if sold by" date of 8/03/10. The sprouts are being recalled for potential Lysteria Monocytogenes contamination.
Listeria can be especially harmful to children, the elderly and pregnant women as it can cause miscarriage and stillbirth. Symptoms include headache, fever, abdominal pain, stiffness, vomiting and diarrhea.
Specialty Farms issued the voluntary recall on July 29, 2010 after lab tests showed positive results from retail samples. No illnesses have been reported, the FDA said in a statement. The company is working to determine the source of the potential contamination in its facilities and will be immediately remedying problems as they are identified, the agency said.Continue reading Specialty Farms Brand Sprouts Recalled
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
23:00
The Rise in Supermarket Solar Panels
Filed under: Trends, Eco-Friendly
Photo: Jason Morrison, Flickr
Yesterday, the Stop & Shop supermarket chain announced complete installation of solar panels on eight of its stores in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Jersey. We're guessing this news will elicit one of three reactions: satisfaction that another company has signed on to the reusable energy cause; disinterest because so many already have; or disbelief that any of these mounted plates are worth what they preach.
Many of us have seen the price comparison of what a standard home will save with Energy Star equipment, but imagine what a grocery store, open 24-hours with a 500K-sq-ft paneled roof, can save. Many big name grocery stores like ShopRite, Costco, Walmart, Safeway and Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market are starting to see the benefit, too, but it didn't come without technological tweaking and decades of convincing.
It all started back in the 1860s -- actually, right around the time commercial refrigeration was invented -- when a man named Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel started playing with solar cells.Continue reading The Rise in Supermarket Solar Panels
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
23:00
The Rise in Supermarket Solar Panels
Filed under: Trends, Eco-Friendly
Photo: Jason Morrison, Flickr
Yesterday, the Stop & Shop supermarket chain announced complete installation of solar panels on eight of its stores in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Jersey. We're guessing this news will elicit one of three reactions: satisfaction that another company has signed on to the reusable energy cause; disinterest because so many already have; or disbelief that any of these mounted plates are worth what they preach.
Many of us have seen the price comparison of what a standard home will save with Energy Star equipment, but imagine what a grocery store, open 24-hours with a 500K-sq-ft paneled roof, can save. Many big name grocery stores like ShopRite, Costco, Walmart, Safeway and Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market are starting to see the benefit, too, but it didn't come without technological tweaking and decades of convincing.
It all started back in the 1860s -- actually, right around the time commercial refrigeration was invented -- when a man named Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel started playing with solar cells.Continue reading The Rise in Supermarket Solar Panels
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
22:00
How "Natural" Is Your Chicken?
Filed under: Health & Medical, News
Photo: hectorir, Flickr
Say you're in the meat aisle at the grocery store, choosing a chicken for tonight's dinner. The first bird claims to be "natural"; the next one doesn't. You put the first bird in your cart -- but are you getting what you think you're getting?
"Natural," according to the US Department of Agriculture, does not equal "unadulterated." Per the USDA, poultry can be labeled "natural" if it contains no artificial ingredients, preservatives, or added color. However, this leaves a lot of room for other additives, such as salt, water, or broth (all perfectly natural ingredients). Sometimes these additives can increase the bird's weight by upwards of 15 percent, according to the Associated Press -- which strikes some politicians and consumer advocates as (you guessed it) unnatural.
One politician pushing for more clarity in labeling is California Senator Barbara Boxer. In a statement last spring, Boxer pointed out that hidden sodium in a chicken misleadingly called "natural" creates a public health risk. "[T]here is nothing 'all natural' about chicken injected with sodium additives," she maintained. "Consider that a serving of poultry unaltered by additives contains about 40 to 65 milligrams of sodium, while sodium injected chicken can contain more than 330 mgs of sodium - five to eight times more salt per serving than a real natural chicken."Continue reading How "Natural" Is Your Chicken?
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
22:00
How "Natural" Is Your Chicken?
Filed under: Health & Medical, News
Photo: hectorir, Flickr
Say you're in the meat aisle at the grocery store, choosing a chicken for tonight's dinner. The first bird claims to be "natural"; the next one doesn't. You put the first bird in your cart -- but are you getting what you think you're getting?
"Natural," according to the US Department of Agriculture, does not equal "unadulterated." Per the USDA, poultry can be labeled "natural" if it contains no artificial ingredients, preservatives, or added color. However, this leaves a lot of room for other additives, such as salt, water, or broth (all perfectly natural ingredients). Sometimes these additives can increase the bird's weight by upwards of 15 percent, according to the Associated Press -- which strikes some politicians and consumer advocates as (you guessed it) unnatural.
One politician pushing for more clarity in labeling is California Senator Barbara Boxer. In a statement last spring, Boxer pointed out that hidden sodium in a chicken misleadingly called "natural" creates a public health risk. "[T]here is nothing 'all natural' about chicken injected with sodium additives," she maintained. "Consider that a serving of poultry unaltered by additives contains about 40 to 65 milligrams of sodium, while sodium injected chicken can contain more than 330 mgs of sodium - five to eight times more salt per serving than a real natural chicken."Continue reading How "Natural" Is Your Chicken?
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
21:30
Loss of Food Legend Michael Batterberry
Filed under: News
Photo: YouTube
The foodie Twitterverse spread quickly with sad news yesterday of food legend Michael Batterberry's passing late Wednesday. Batterberry was the founder of Food & Wine magazine as well as Food Arts magazine, and was honored with a lifetime achievement award at this year's James Beard Foundation Awards. "A very sad loss for the food world," tweets Ruth Reichl, former editor in chief of Gourmet. Head over to The New York Times for the official obituary for the Manhattan resident.
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
21:30
Loss of Food Legend Michael Batterberry
Filed under: News
Photo: YouTube
The foodie Twitterverse spread quickly with sad news yesterday of food legend Michael Batterberry's passing late Wednesday. Batterberry was the founder of Food & Wine magazine as well as Food Arts magazine, and was honored with a lifetime achievement award at this year's James Beard Foundation Awards. "A very sad loss for the food world," tweets Ruth Reichl, former editor in chief of Gourmet. Head over to The New York Times for the official obituary for the Manhattan resident.
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
21:00
McDonald's Touting Locavore Cred?
Filed under: Fast Food
Photo: Corbis
It's the core of a summer promotion called "From Here" running in western Washington state: McDonald's is using TV and print ads, billboards and a website to hype the local potatoes, apples, fish and milk it uses.
True? Yeah.
A wee bit disingenuous? Yeah. Since McDonald's was 1) Already using all this stuff anyway, and 2) The region in question happens to be the largest national supplier of most of these products.
A McDonald's spokeswoman said "From Here" grew out of focus groups last spring with customers in western Washington, who said they wanted to know more about where their food came from. (Did they really need a focus group to know "local" is hot?)Continue reading McDonald's Touting Locavore Cred?
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
21:00
McDonald's Touting Locavore Cred?
Filed under: Fast Food
Photo: Corbis
It's the core of a summer promotion called "From Here" running in western Washington state: McDonald's is using TV and print ads, billboards and a website to hype the local potatoes, apples, fish and milk it uses.
True? Yeah.
A wee bit disingenuous? Yeah. Since McDonald's was 1) Already using all this stuff anyway, and 2) The region in question happens to be the largest national supplier of most of these products.
A McDonald's spokeswoman said "From Here" grew out of focus groups last spring with customers in western Washington, who said they wanted to know more about where their food came from. (Did they really need a focus group to know "local" is hot?)Continue reading McDonald's Touting Locavore Cred?
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
20:00
Freshwater, Not Oil, Forces Oysters Off Menus
Filed under: News
Photo: avlxyz, Flickr
In a city renowned for one of America's most distinct and vibrant food cultures, a way of life is in danger: One by one, New Orleans restaurants are beginning to drop oysters from their menus, and it's not a matter of food safety.
"I wish we could change people's perception about our seafood," Gerald Amato, owner of Mother's Restaurant lamented this morning. "We had one customer say the catfish tasted oily. Catfish is pond-raised! It's just perception," he stressed. "Seafood has never been tested more than it is now and we can't sell it if it's not safe."
It comes down to supply. Amato pointed to an empty pan in the kitchen next to another heaped with pink Gulf shrimp. "That's where the oysters would go. We're supposed to get a shipment in tomorrow," Amato said. His oysters are supplied from P&J Oyster Company, the longest running oyster house in America, who earlier this summer was forced to lay off the majority of its shuckers due to supply shortages for the first time in 134 years.Continue reading Freshwater, Not Oil, Forces Oysters Off Menus
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
20:00
Freshwater, Not Oil, Forces Oysters Off Menus
Filed under: News
Photo: avlxyz, Flickr
In a city renowned for one of America's most distinct and vibrant food cultures, a way of life is in danger: One by one, New Orleans restaurants are beginning to drop oysters from their menus, and it's not a matter of food safety.
"I wish we could change people's perception about our seafood," Gerald Amato, owner of Mother's Restaurant lamented this morning. "We had one customer say the catfish tasted oily. Catfish is pond-raised! It's just perception," he stressed. "Seafood has never been tested more than it is now and we can't sell it if it's not safe."
It comes down to supply. Amato pointed to an empty pan in the kitchen next to another heaped with pink Gulf shrimp. "That's where the oysters would go. We're supposed to get a shipment in tomorrow," Amato said. His oysters are supplied from P&J Oyster Company, the longest running oyster house in America, who earlier this summer was forced to lay off the majority of its shuckers due to supply shortages for the first time in 134 years.Continue reading Freshwater, Not Oil, Forces Oysters Off Menus
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
19:00
Peking Duck and Weeds for Dinner: The L.A. Times in 60 Seconds
Filed under: Newspapers, In Sixty Seconds, In 60 Seconds
Photo: joyosity, Flickr
- Those weeds in the backyard could be dinner.
- No need for a separation from Church & State -- it's evolving, and that's okay.
- Ever made Peking duck at home? Here's a step-by-step primer, with photos.
- A quintessential dive, Ye Coach & Horses is facing eviction. It won't go down without a fight, though.
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
19:00
Peking Duck and Weeds for Dinner: The L.A. Times in 60 Seconds
Filed under: Newspapers, In Sixty Seconds, In 60 Seconds
Photo: joyosity, Flickr
- Those weeds in the backyard could be dinner.
- No need for a separation from Church & State -- it's evolving, and that's okay.
- Ever made Peking duck at home? Here's a step-by-step primer, with photos.
- A quintessential dive, Ye Coach & Horses is facing eviction. It won't go down without a fight, though.
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
18:00
August Food Festivals
Filed under: Events
Photo: selfnoise, Flickr
August is considered the hottest month from coast to coast, border to border -- anyone notices the heat wave? -- but there are several chances to cool down with some berries and beverages. This month is berry, berry good. Sorry, we couldn't help ourselves.
FarmFest '10, Aug. 3-5, Gilfillan Estate, Redwood County, Minn.: A chance for farmers and industry types to gab about the latest in farming tech, this 29th annual aggie party hasn't forgotten families. There's the bio-diesel tractor pull. If that's not your bushel of apples, perhaps the pancake breakfast or farm family of the year is for you. The event that will surely draw the kiddies is the farm safety carnival -- with the chance to win a prize.
Estherville Sweet Corn Days, Aug. 5-8, Estherville, Iowa: Summer isn't the same without sweet corn. During this four-day fete, the corn is free! Also featured during this festival, one of many nationwide corn tributes, are opportunities for bird watching, kayaking the Iowa River and fireworks. At this time, we cannot confirm that any of the pyrotechnics will be corn shaped.Continue reading August Food Festivals
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
17:00
Chatting with the Latest Exiled Top Chef
Filed under: Television/Film
Photo: David Giesbrecht / Bravo
This week marks the return of Slashfood's exclusive exit interviews with the latest Top Chef contestant to get the boot. In an effort to prevent spoilers, we've included the text after the jump.Continue reading Chatting with the Latest Exiled Top Chef
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
16:00
Raspberry Mousse - Feast Your Eyes
Filed under: Feast Your Eyes
Photo: Guillaume Brialon, Flickr
The fourth entry in this Berry Week extravaganza (well, ok, let's not get carried away), is this light, frothy mousse, made with red raspberries. (Get a raspberry-mousse recipe here.) This is a dessert for when the temperature pushes 100, and the idea of eating a slab of berry pie might put you over the edge. And it's also a perfect dessert for those of us who claim not to be "dessert people," but put a frozen fruit in front of us and all of that talk goes out the window.
Eggs whites, sugar, cream, gelatin, berries, and an optional garnish of mint leaves. It doesn't get much simpler, and more chill, than this.
Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool for a shot of having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
00:00
Seas of Sangria -- LeNell it All
Filed under: Drinks
Photo: divya_, Flickr
Long before we gulped down something called sangria, sangaree was a favorite tipple -- made with wine, spirit, or beer diluted with water, sweetened with sugar, and spiced with nutmeg. Sangria could have easily evolved from sangaree.
The English loved their Bordeaux, which they often referred to as claret, and a claret cup punch (red wine, lemon, sugar, and sparkling water) traveled with them as they influenced the world. This punch sometimes contained various fruits, spirits, and spices depending on the location. In many Spanish speaking areas of the world, claret cup became clericot, a sangria-like drink made with white wine.
Throughout history wine has been made more palatable by adding water, honey, herbs, spices, or fruits, but some cite the 1964-1965 World's Fair in NYC as the breakthrough moment for what we know as sangria. While it's true that Spanish concessionaires at the World's Fair introduced many people to the drink, records show sangria on Spanish restaurant menus in the US before 1964. And prior to the World's Fair, the New York Times had already reported on a social affair hosted by a Palm Beach socialite who fashionably served "Sangria, a red wine and fruit drink."Continue reading Seas of Sangria -- LeNell it All
Categories: Food & Related News, Food Blogs in English
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