La Dolce Vita Under the Tuscan Sun

Culinary Travel> Italy on The VancouverSun.com
A pot is simmering on the stove and eager clients are gathered to watch Umberto Menghi work his magic in the kitchen. The setting is not downtown Vancouver, ...
... however, nor even the Trattoria Di Umberto in Whistler.
These clients have flown halfway around the world to be tutored in the culinary arts by the famed Vancouver master at his Hotel Villa Delia in Tuscany.
Full Story: La Dolce Vita under the Tuscan sun. Guests learn about cooking and a way of life at Umberto Menghi's hotel in Italy; by Gillian Shaw,

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The Gourmet Capital of Ireland. Kenmare vs. Kinsale

Culinary Travel on the VancouverSun.com
Two small Irish towns. Two large claims to fame. Both Kenmare in County Kerry and Kinsale in County Cork boast about being "The Gourmet Capital of Ireland." ...
... Anxious to find out which claim was true and, indeed, to see if Irish cuisine deserved the recent acclaim it's been receiving, we ventured overseas for a week of culinary discovery.
Kenmare
After an overnight Aer Lingus flight to Shannon we rented a car and headed south through Limerick and Killarny and ...
Full Story: Kenmare vs. Kinsale ... but everyone wins with luscious new cuisine; By John and Sandra Nowlan

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Feel-Good Food Rules in a Tough Year! [Tasty Recipes]

Food on The SunTimes.com
The 10 best Chicago Sun-Times recipes in 2008 include a rich lasagna, an heirloom tomato salad and a dense brownie. Also on the list are lime and ginger cream-cheese bars, barbecue shrimp on corn bread squares, and honey-thyme-glazed chicken with three-onion jam. ...
... Savor all seasons with 10 recipes worth one more try. What a year. It has been a rough one for many of us. Recessions do that to people. But looking at our 10 best recipes of 2008, you'd never know it. This is feel-good food. Brownies so rich and dense, one small square will do. An heirloom tomato salad that sings of summer. ...
Full Story: Feel-good food: The best of 2008;
Photo: 'Lasagna' by roboppy.

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A Checklist for Eating Right this March

Nutrition from TheLeafChronicle.com
The theme of this year's National Nutrition Month is "Eat Right." The American Dietetic Association, which started the month-long designation in 1973, suggests planning meals, focusing on nutrient-rich foods and upping daily physical activity, among other tips. ...
... These 31 days were set aside in 1973 by the American Dietetic Association to focus the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. This year’s theme is “Eat Right.”
With today’s tough economic picture, eating right is becoming a real challenge for many people in Stewart and Houston counties. ...
Full Story: March is National Nutrition Month; by Stewart Houston Times Editioral

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Alinea's 25-Course Meal

EATING OUT from The WSJ.com
A four-hour dinner of surprises at Alinea, the country's most radical restaurant. The 25-course $225 meal at Chicago's Alinea restaurant includes trout roe with parsnip, licorice and ginger, and sweet potato with bourbon, brown sugar and smoldering cinnamon. ...
... Constant novelty is the hallmark of Grant Achatz's latest "tour" menu, with never a dull moment. After the 17th or 18th dazzling little course at the nation's most radical restaurant, the mind wants to cry uncle, but the physical appetite for Alinea's improbable transmogrifications of food presses you on to the end of chef Grant Achatz's latest "tour" menu. ...
Full Story: Savoring a 25-Course Meal; By RAYMOND SOKOLOV

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Trying to Make Bluefin Tuna Sustainable

Food & Dining from The WashingtonPost.com
Kindai, a type of bluefin tuna farmed from hatched eggs in Japan, is putting the fish back on the menu at some restaurants that previously considered bluefin tuna socially unacceptable. The practice still isn't fully sustainable, though. ...
... For years sushi aficionados have reserved their most lavish praise - and their spare cash - for bluefin tuna, the fatty, pinkish fish featured at high-end restaurants across the globe. But as wild stocks of the fish have plummeted, ordering bluefin has become as socially unacceptable as consuming the once-ubiquitous Chilean sea bass. ...
Full Story: A More Sustainable Tuna?; By Juliet Eilperin

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A Walled City in Tuscany Clings to Its Ancient Menu

World News> Lucca Journal on The New York Times
LUCCA, Italy — With its pink-hued medieval churches, tree-lined city walls and a famously excellent regional cuisine, Lucca seems the perfect Tuscan city. But that charm is precisely what has made it the latest battleground in a tug of war ...
... between the romantic Italy of the popular imagination and the more complex reality. Lucca’s center-right city council recently stirred much contention, and accusations of racism, by prohibiting new ethnic food restaurants from opening within its gorgeous historical center. ...
Full Story: A Walled City in Tuscany Clings to Its Ancient Menu; By RACHEL DONADIO

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Hot Peppers Bring Tingle to Recipes [Recipes Included]

Food & Dining> The Gastronomer from The WashingthonPost.com
The capsaicin in hot peppers induces physical pain in the form of a burning sensation on the tongue and enhances the perception of flavors. Maybe that's why this food has conquered the world like few others. ...
... Even people who are otherwise gastronomically conservative will eat chili-pepper-spiked food as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Perhaps it is. Chilis, native to the Americas, have conquered the world in a way few other foods have. Five centuries after Columbus sampled a fiery-hot pepper on his first visit in 1492, ...
Full Story: The Pleasure Is in the Pain; By Andreas Viestad

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Unlock the Flavor with a Little Acidity

THE CALIFORNIA COOK on LATimes.com
Tart ingredients such as vinegars, lemons and red wines can wake up flavors when used in moderation. Recipes for butternut squash soup and a stew of white beans and shrimp show how a little acidity can make a big difference. ...
... When most cooks read "season to taste," they automatically reach for the salt shaker. That's not a bad start: A judicious sprinkling with salt will awaken many a dull dish. But if you stop there, many times you'll be missing a key ingredient. Because just as a little salt unlocks flavor, so can a few drops of acidity. ...
Full Story: A splash of seasoning can be better than a shake; By RUSS PARSONS

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Thinking Outside the Chocolate Box

CHEFS AT HOME on The WSJ.com
Chocolatier Andrew Shotts of Garrison Confections is raising the standard for American confectionaries. He prepares chocolate-and-brioche-stuffed veal chop, and winter fruit fricassee with Mayan chocolate ...
... THE CHEF: Artisanal chocolatier Andrew Shotts, owner of Garrison Confections in Providence, R.I. Mr. Shotts, formerly a pastry chef at Lutèce, La Côte Basque and the Russian Tea Room in New York City, was tapped in 2007 by the Food Network as its favorite U.S. chocolatier. ...
Full Story: A Chocolate-Infused Dinner; By CLARE LESCHIN-HOAR

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Angela Hartnett on How to Make Pasta!

Food & Drink on The Telegraph.co.uk
Part one of a two-part series looking at making the most of your pasta. There’s always pasta on the menu at York and Albany. ...
... Although nominally one of Gordon Ramsay’s group, the chic Camden restaurant-with-rooms is the baby of chef Angela Hartnett and her Italian heritage (Hartnett’s maternal grandparents emigrated from Northern Italy to Wales) is very much in evidence. ...
Full Story: Angela Hartnett on how to make pasta; By Xanthe Clay



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Oil you Need to Know: Olive Oil

Make the Most of Olive Oil on BBC.co.uk
Before the British culinary revolution, olive oil could only be sourced from chemists who sold it for medicinal purposes. Now, hundreds of varieties are sold in supermarkets and specialist delis, and ...
... olive oil connoisseurs rival wine buffs for their knowledge of estates, blends and varieties. The complex flavours and characteristics of olive oil bring so much to Mediterranean dishes. Find out how to buy the best and make the most of this indispensable oil.
Full Story: OLIVE OIL; by Clarissa Hyman

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It Might Have the Green Seal, But is Organic Safe?

Sustainability - Dining & Wine on The New York Times
The U.S. organic movement was built on trust between the farmer and the consumer, using growing methods thought to be better for the land and to produce healthier food. But, on the heels of the recent salmonella outbreak, some people are questioning whether organic food is really healthier. ...
... MOST of the chicken, fruit and vegetables in Ellen Devlin-Sample’s kitchen are organic. She thinks those foods taste better than their conventional counterparts. And she hopes they are healthier for her children. Lately, though, she is not so sure. ...
Full Story: It’s Organic, but Does That Mean It’s Safer?; By KIM SEVERSON and ANDREW MARTIN

LIFESTYLE ESSENTIALS: Clarins > ≈ Organic > ≈ ≈ ≈ Mix > ≈

Lentils Are Healthful and Versatile

Recipes for Health from The New York Times
High-fiber, protein-rich lentils require no soaking and often have a cooking time of less than half an hour. They are delicious in a nutritious minestrone with tomatoes, greens and pasta. ...
... If you have lentils, you have dinner. This high-fiber, protein-rich legume cooks in 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the dish, and requires no soaking. Lentils are the basis for many starters and salads, soups and stews, side dishes and Middle Eastern pastas. The distinctive flavor has been adapted to a variety of classic cuisines, from France to the Mediterranean, from India to Mexico and North America. ...
Full Story: Lentils: A Versatile Staple Flavors Classic International Dishes; By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN



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Giant Clams, Giant Statement in Philippines

Ecotourism from BootsnAll.com
Jennifer Pemberton snorkels with man-eating giant clams in the dangerous waters of a controversial conservation in the Philippines. ...
... Ecotourism is an exotic word in the Philippines, a slow conversion for someone to give up a livelihood of spearing fish and instead, take tourists to look at the very same fish, to let them slip away into the coral. It is even more difficult to convince people to stop eating giant clams, to use their giant shells as baptismal fonts. ...
Full Story: Full Story: Giant Clams, Giant Statement - Camiguin Island, Philippines, Asia
Photo of the Giant Clam [Tridacna gigas] from Wikipedia



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Kicking The Can: How To Break Your Soda Habit

Beverage Industry> Health Tips from the ChicagoTribune.com
Soda is loaded with more calories, sugar and chemicals than many people realize. Here are nutritionists' tips for cutting it out, or ...
... at least down: •Get some perspective. Estimate how much soda you drink in a week (if you have no idea, keep a food diary for seven days). Then use a calculator to add up how many calories and sugar grams your habit costs you. ...
Full Story: Kicking The Can: How To Break Your Soda Habit; By ALISON JOHNSON
★ Photo from Wikipedia

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Marketing to the Ethical Carnivore a Bold Venture

Entertaining from NJ.com
When Stephen McDonnell decided to get into business for himself, the former hippie-vegetarian-macrobiotic-granola-eater made an unusual choice: He bought a smokehouse. ...
... Today Applegate Farms is pioneering the "friendly carnivorism" niche with low-fat, organic, nitrate-free offerings sourced from 300 family farms. The company has even launched a program to bring healthful snacks to kindergartners near its New Jersey headquarters. Stephen McDonnell was the worst vegetarian ever. He had spent every Sunday night of his Atomic Age childhood in Peapack feasting on Sunday roasts, but ...
Full Story: Building a better hot dog; by Vicki Hyman

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Fasting for One Day Each Month Unlocks a World of Health Benefits

Health & Wellbeing > Features from The Indipendent.co.uk
Fasting for one day each month unlocks a world of health benefits and can add years to your life. Hugh Wilson explains the science of starvation – and puts his willpower to the test ...
... Starvation, you'd think, is never a good idea, and subjecting yourself voluntarily to a period of fasting – starvation for a short time – is usually associated with religious practice. And within traditional Christian culture, the common view is that, when we fast, we punish ourselves and harm our bodies. But the latest research suggests the opposite, in fact, might be true. ...
Full Story: The no-food diet; by Hugh Wilson

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8 Foods to Keep Your Brain Young and Healthy

Health Experts> Dr. Mao Secrets of Longevity from Yahoo.com
Senility, Alzheimer's, and age-related memory loss: these conditions of mental decline that come with aging can be delayed or even prevented. Besides engaging in daily activities that work out your brain, ...
... a regular and balanced diet rich with essential amino acids, omega oils, minerals and vitamins will ensure a vibrant and sharp memory. Eat these foods to give your brain the nutrition it needs.
1. Fish - Protein, an important component in the making of neurotransmitters, is essential to improve mental performance ...
Ful Story: 8 Foods to Keep Your Brain Young and Healthy; By Dr. Maoshing Ni

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Can You Boil Pasta in Less Water? ... FM Briefs

Sustainability ~
How Much Water Does Pasta Really Need? ~

"Cooking pasta in less water cuts energy usage and does not harm the final product, as long as you stir while cooking. As another benefit, the resulting pasta water is thick and flavorful, almost a sauce in itself..."

... SOME time ago, as I emptied a big pot of pasta water into the sink and waited for the fog to lift from my glasses, a simple question occurred ...
Read more: How Much Water Does Pasta Really Need? ; nytimes.com

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