Food Headlines
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Perhaps to prove that what's goes around really does come around, a Williamsburg, Brooklyn delivery man has taken to the blogosphere to broadcast all the bad tippers he comes in contact with. His blog, 15%, chronicles the tight purse strings tendencies of certain customers, in an effort to publicly shame their stinginess. Customer addresses have now been removed, due to Tumblr's request, reports Gawker.com.
The mastermind behind the blog is Larry Fox, a 20-year-old designer and developer. He told Gothamist that the reason for starting his blog was that he "just got tired of all these big companies, these TV shows and movie sets giving us two or three dollar tips on a $90 order." Fox is not only broadcasting bad tippers, but also answering readers' questions. Some highlights (also submitted by other delivery men):
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"Went out into a Level Two Snow Emergency (We are not even supposed to be delivering, but dedication wins out over common sense) And got a whopping 0.50 tip from the guy."
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"Lorimer St. tipped me one dollar to bring him a sandwich during a hail/rain/thunder storm....I hate you."
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"Manhattan Ave. greenpoint took you 8 minutes exactly to come downstairs after two phonecalls (14 stairs in a standard american stairwell) because you don't have a functional buzzer like everyone else in brooklyn."
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"corner of meserole ave. end of delivery zone - about 23 blocks from my restaurant for 4 slices of pie during prime dinnertime. two bucks for well over a mile. thanks for the two bucks to bust my ass because you didn't specify your cross-street as meserole ave from street bro. not on deck. i dropped your food a few times. whoops."
In 2004, Congress gave the FDA until 2008 to create a definition for what a gluten-free product actually means. Three years after that deadline, we're still waiting.
The Washington Post reports that as celiac disease rates are rising, the government still has no set definition for gluten-free products.
Although the U.S. gluten-free product industry is booming (revenues were $2.6 billion last year, up from $100 million in 2003), they still have quite a bit of wiggle room. The Washington Post explains that some companies "might fail to test their products or might allow small amounts of gluten but still label their foods as gluten-free."
Other countries including Canada, Brazil and Australia have defined gluten-free foods as containing no more than 0.0007 of an ounce of gluten for every 2.2 pounds of food. Though the FDA has no set definition, it does offer a FAQ page about gluten-free labeling.
On May 4, the world's largest gluten-free cake will be brought to Capitol Hill to call attention to the issue. Currently, at least three million Americans have celiac disease, and 18 million have gluten sensitivity.
Starbucks has done just about everything it can to make you as comfortable as possible and to turn its ubiquitous coffee shops into your home away from home--but maybe it's made you too comfortable.
One important difference between your living room and your local Starbucks is (presumably) you don't have an army of strangers traipsing through your living room as your kick back with your iPad and your morning cup of coffee. It seems obvious enough, but apparently, according to the New York Times, it's a distinction that's increasingly lost on a number of people -- and they're losing their purses, wallets and laptops, too.
"Cats." "The Lion King." "Top Chef?"
While you might not be able to picture the Bravo reality show in marquee lights, restaurateur (and Top Chef judge) Tom Colicchio reportedly thinks the program is a natural fit for the Great White Way.
Bravo's program director, Andy Cohen, told New York magazine, "He thinks he has a great idea about doing something like that." Perhaps thinking about the hazards involved with fire and sharp knives onstage, Cohen wasn't initially sold. "I told him, 'I'm not so sure,' but he's trying to convince me!"
The magazine rounded up some reactions from former cast members, who were largely game for the idea of a Broadway production.
Marcel Vigneron had our favorite response: "Totally, of course, I'd love to do it. I'm a pretty decent dancer, I'm not gonna lie. Actually, I was cutting a rug for six hours last night. Yeah, I could definitely handle the freestyle hip-hop scenes."
In a country where candy displays are perched next to cash registers at every retail outlet imaginable and drinking soda is a birthright, it can hardly be surprising that Americans consume a large amount of sugar. But 22 teaspoons a day? That's hard to swallow.
Yet the statistic is true. U.S. adults consume 22.2 teaspoons of sugar daily -- or 355 calories, reports UPI. That wildly exceeds the daily recommended amount, says Phil Lempert, a food industry analyst. He says average-sized women should be consuming no more than 6.25 teaspoons; men 9.4.
Not only is the sugar bad for your waistline, but diets high in the sweet stuff have been shown to contribute to high blood pressure, increased triglycerides and cardiovascular disease, the American Heart Association says.
As is usually the case with dietary matters, a little moderation goes a long way.
Whether your house is full of sci-fi lovers or you want to bake out-of-this-world desserts for a kids' birthday party, these Alien Invasion cupcakes are sure to be a hit. Encased in a 'spaceship' made out of cups, these aliens are ever ready for transport.
Get the recipe for Alien Invasion Cupcakes.
Yes, it's a gimmick. But it's a pretty cool one. Who wouldn't like an omelet recipe printed right on their egg? (Never mind that almost everyone knows how to make an omelet.) What's cool here is that artist Dnewman came up with a clever use for the Egg-Bot, a 3D printer that can "draw on spherical or egg-shaped objects from the size of a ping pong ball to that of a small grapefruit." But as one commenter over at Boing Boing points out: "Why print the recipe for two servings on one egg?"
If you have plans to vacation in Britain, Turkey, Morocco, and the Philippines this year, you might just find a tart, cold reminder of home. By the end of 2011, Pinkberry is planning to to be in 17 different international markets, according to Nation's Restaurant News.
The chain currently has 122 outposts in eight countries, and hopes to gain 30 more international locations (this in addition to more U.S. outposts). Part of the success of Pinkberry's growth is attributed to Starbucks, as many of its international franchisees also operate Starbucks locations. Moreover, Starbucks' president and CEO Howard Schultz sits on Pinkberry's board.
"Consumer brands have to look at the landscape through a global lens, as opposed to the domestic lens that Starbucks started from 40 years ago," Schultz told Business Week. Although Pinkberry has plenty of competition in the U.S. market--Cold Stone Creamery is adding froyo to its line this spring and Red Mango has plans to nearly double its domestic stores--there is less competition in the worldwide arena, explains Business Week. In fact, Pinkberry's highest-volume store is in Kuwait.
You've probably seen some breathtaking wedding cakes in your lifetime, but we doubt you've encountered anything like this.
The cake for Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, was an eight-tiered ivory showpiece decorated with 900 delicate sugar-paste flowers. The cake was showcased at this afternoon's Buckingham Palace reception, reports The Daily Mail.
How long does it take to make a cake like this? Think weeks, not days. Five weeks, to be exact.The palace contacted baker Fiona Cairns and her team in Febraury to request the cake, and it turns out the bride had some specific requests.
"Catherine did not want it to be seven feet tall, she didn't want it to be towering and thin, and I think we succeeded," says Cairns.
The bride also wanted elements from the Joseph Lambeth technique of cake decoration, so the cake features a lot of intricate piping work, as you can see from the photos.
A hidden treat for architecuture buffs? Cairns used some of the details of the reception room in the design. 'We reflected some of the architectural details in the room so the garlands on the walls were reproduced loosely on the fourth tier - we've used roses, acorns, ivy leaves, apple blossom and bridal rose," she says.
We'd be too afraid to knock Grandma's matzoh ball soup (and, seriously, it is delicious), but Josh Ozersky has no such qualms. He argues in his TIME magazine piece that Eastern European Jewish food just isn't that tasty.
Dissing on kugel? He should probably watch out for all those bubbes out there--they're fierce when wielding wooden spoons.
The battle over sweeteners just got a whole lot more bitter.
As the Associated Press reports, a group of sugar farmers and refiners, including big names like C&H Sugar, have filed suit against the makers of high-fructose corn syrup. Their beef? They want the corn industry to stop trying to hawk their souped-up sweetener as "corn sugar."
As the country has watched its collective waistline get bigger and a generation of kids turn into outsized roly-polys, perhaps no product has come to be as maligned as high-fructose corn syrup. Indeed, among certain members of the Bugaboo-stroller set, feeding your kids anything that contains the super sweetener might as well be the equivalent of letting them snack on crack.
Faced with an image crisis (American consumption of high-fructose corn syrup fell to a 20-year low last year), the corn industry went on the offense, running golden-hued ads of bucolic American farmscapes that essentially touted high-fructose corn syrup as nutritionally the same as sugar and asking the federal government for permission to market the stuff accordingly as "corn sugar."
Anyone who has ever tangled with food poisoning knows it's nothing to fool around with. But it's often difficult to nail down what, exactly, made you sick.
A new report from the University of Florida Emerging Pathogens Institute points the finger in one clear direction: poultry. Birds contaminated with Campylobacter bacteria is the food-pathogen combination that causes the highest number of illnesses in the U.S. Just how many people fall victim? More than 600,000 people a year.
The top five illness-causing pathogens -- Campylobacter, Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, Toxoplasma gondii and norovirus -- cause $12.7 billion in economic losses each year, with the top 10 pathogen-food combinations accounting for more than $8 billion a year, according to the report. (Lost productivity, medical care and serious complications or chronic disabilities associated with the illness are all factored together to come up with these figures.)
So enjoy your grilled chicken this summer -- just invest in a meat thermometer and make sure you see 165 degrees on it before you begin your feast.
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Top 12 Recipes
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 Banana Crumb Muffins
A basic banana muffin is made extraordinary with a cinnamon-and-brown-sugar streusel topping.
 World's Best Lasagna
Filling and satisfying lasagna with sausage, ground beef and three types of cheese.
 Delicious Ham and Potato Soup
This is a delicious recipe for ham and potato soup that a friend gave to me. It is very easy and the great thing about it is that you can add additional ingredients, more ham, potatoes, etc and it still turns out great.
 Chicken Pot Pie IX
A delicious chicken pie made from scratch with carrots, peas and celery. A delicious and heartwarming meal.
 Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread
Spiced with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves, this bread improves with age, so plan to make it a day ahead if possible.
 Clone of a Cinnabon
Save yourself a lot of money by making your own homemade cinnamon rolls! The dough is made in the bread machine and everything else is done by hand.
 Apple Pie by Grandma Ople
Grandmas from all around can be proud of this unique recipe that brings fabulous results. Sliced apples are mounded in a prepared pie shell, covered with a latticed crust, and just before slipping into the oven, doused with a sugary butter syrup.
 Mom's Zucchini Bread
Really, really good and moist- my kids eat it as quickly as I can make it. Bread will freeze well, and keep in refrigerator for weeks.
 Annie's Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips
This delicious salsa made with fresh kiwis, apples and berries is a sweet, succulent treat when served on homemade cinnamon tortilla chips. Enjoy it as a summer appetizer or an easy dessert.
 Guacamole
Cilantro and cayenne give this tasty guacamole a kick. Makes four servings.
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Food Headlines
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Even Your Mother Will Approve Of Vegetable ChipsIf you're like most Americans, you love chips, particularly potato chips. But that gloriously crunchy, fried snack isn't that good for you. These baked veggie chips are a health food in comparison. By making your own, you control what goes into them, and what stays out. Vermont Beer Makers Bring Back Old-Time Maple Sap BrewsBoiling down the last of the season maple sap and brewing a strong dark beer to share in the summer was a common tradition on Vermont farms a couple of generations ago. The practice had all but died out but is being revived now, thanks to a handful of local brewers. Vermont Beer Makers Bring Back Old-Time Maple Sap BrewsBoiling down the last of the season maple sap and brewing a strong dark beer to share in the summer was a common tradition on Vermont farms a couple of generations ago. The practice had all but died out, but is being revived now, thanks to a handful of local brewers. Even Your Mother Will Approve Of Vegetable ChipsIf you're like most Americans, you love chips, particularly potato chips. But that gloriously crunchy snack isn't that good for you. Veggie chips — especially baked ones — are a health food in comparison. And by making your own, you control what goes into them, and what stays out. At Basque Cooking Clubs, Food And Fraternity Mix HeartilyTxokos are bustling, food-centered social clubs, somewhere between dinner party and fraternal lodge. And Basques often point to txokos to explain their renowned cuisine and wealth of Michelin-starred restaurants like Arzak and Mugaritz. Sizing Up Americans In 'The Weight Of The Nation'A new four-part documentary airing on HBO next week looks at America's growing weight problem. John Hoffman, vice president of HBO Documentary Films and executive producer of The Weight Of The Nation, describes his three year-project to document the causes and effects of being overweight and obese in America. |
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