Oklahoma lawmaker wants to stop Pepsi from using aborted fetus cells

Oklahoma lawmaker wants to stop Pepsi from using aborted fetus cells in soda flavoring research Ethan A. Huff
Thursday, January 26, 2012
http://www.naturalnews.com/034777_Pepsi_aborted_fetus_cells_soda_flavoring.html

In order to simulate various flavors in processed foods, some food manufacturers are actually using aborted fetal cells to test and produce these artificial chemical enhancers that millions of Americans consume every single day. Concerned about the ethical and moral implications of such a process, Oklahoma Senator Ralph Shortey has introduced new legislation to prohibit this practice from occurring in his home state.

Senomyx, a California-based biotechnology company that specializes in developing food flavorings, is one such company that uses aborted embryonic cells to create "isolated human taste receptors," which are used in the production of food chemicals. And this company has partnered with several major food manufacturers, including Kraft, PepsiCo, and Nestle.

"There is a potential that there are companies that are using aborted human babies in their research and development of basically enhancing flavor for artificial flavors," Sen. Shortey is quoted as saying by KRMG News Talk Radio. "What I am saying is that if it does happen then we are not going to allow it to manufacture here."

According to Children of God for Life (CGL), a pro-life watchdog group, Senomyx uses HEK 293 to produce its artificial flavor enhancing chemicals. HEK 293 is code for human embryonic kidney cells that are manipulated to produce taste receptors that express a specific protein known as the G protein. But CGL says the company could also use animal, insect, or other more acceptably-derived cells instead, and still procure the same results.

While aborted fetal cells are not necessarily in the final products made by PepsiCo, Kraft, or Nestle, such cells appear to needlessly play a part in the production of artificial flavor chemicals used by these companies. And since there are viable alternatives to this questionable practice, Sen. Shortey, CGL, and many others are calling for its end.

As we reported previously, the Campbell Soup company used to be a Senomyx partner until CGL contacted them about the fetal cell issue. Shortly thereafter, reports indicate that Campbell's officially cut ties with Senomyx, which in 2003 filed a patent for "recombinant (genetically modified) methods for expressing a functional sweet taste receptor."

Sources for this article include:

http://www.krmg.com/news/news/local/food-containing-fetuses-targeted-under-new-oklaho/nG7P7/

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pro-life-groups-call-for-pepsi-boycott-over-aborted-fetal-cell-lines/

http://www.naturalnews.com/032043_human_fetal_cells_artificial_flavors.html

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/01/20/145539661/state-bill-outlaws-use-of-fetuses-in-food-industry-meets-visceral-reaction

2011's Over-the-Top Fast Foods

Source: Yahoo Shine
http://shine.yahoo.com/tistheseason/2011s-over-top-fast-foods-225000779.html

Burger King Stuffed Steakhouse Burger
Calories - 590
If fast food has taught us one thing, it is this: Any food item can be stuffed inside any other. Burger King's Stuffed Steakhouse Burger, introduced earlier this year, is a prime example. Not content to simply put cheese atop a burger patty, the chain stuffed bits of Cheddar and jalapeño inside the beef, for "an experience you can see and taste in every bite."

Pizza Hut's Big Dinner Box
Calories - 4,860 (for the lowest calorie options)
Pizza Hut's "epic-size" repast offers up two medium pizzas, eight wings, and five breadsticks - in one convenient box! For the low prize of $20, ravenous diners might be tempted to scarf down the entire thing themselves, but please, make this one a family affair: The items in a single box are estimated to contain around 5,000 calories.

Dunkin' Donuts Sausage Pancake Bites
Calories - 300 (for 3)
If you're craving a pancake and sausage breakfast, but just can't find the time, Dunkin' Donuts discovered a solution in 2011. An order of the chain's Sausage Pancake Bites offered diners three nuggets of flapjack dough that each enclosed a sausage link. A trio of nuggets also managed to enclose 20 grams of fat, more than most doughnuts.

Taco Bell Doritos Locos Tacos
Calories - 350 (for 1)
Think outside the bun - and the conventional taco shell. In an apparent bid to include as much junk as possible in a single meal, Taco Bell used California and Ohio residents as guinea pigs to test shells made entirely of Doritos' nacho-flavored chips. The cheesy delicacy might be introduced nationwide next year, when, presumably, the chain will also swaps burrito wraps for potato chips.

Friendly's Ultimate Grilled-Cheese Burger Melt
Calories - 1,500
Why eat one sandwich, when you can eat three? The KFC Double Down may have replaced a burger bun with fried chicken, but this year, Friendly's managed to outdo even that monstrosity. They swapped out a cheeseburger's bread with two entire grilled cheese sandwiches. This gastronomical innovation, not surprisingly, is also a caloric nightmare: 1,500 per sandwich(es)...

Stoner Cooking 12-2-11

Falafel Drive-In

2301 Stevens Creek Boulevard
San Jose, CA 95128
(408) 294-7886
http://sanjose.schmap.com/restaurants/falafel_drive_in

This original Bay Area Middle Eastern joint looks like a beat-up drive-in, but it is one of San Jose's oldest foreign restaurants. In fact, it is a landmark. Since the 1960s, the falafels and gyros have been some of the best anywhere, and hardly anything on the menu is over $7. People from all over the world have visited this place, and many repeat customers have been coming for 15 to 20 years. It is highly recommended. Note: No credit cards accepted.

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5 Undefeated Eating Challenges
Paul Toscano
Wed, Nov 23, 2011
http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/5-undefeated-eating-challenges-171400230.html

For many people, the word eating challenge evokes the iconic scene in the movie "The Great Outdoors,"when John Candy tackles "The Old 96er" to the chagrin of his digestive tract. More recently, the Travel Channel's "Man vs. Food" show has popularized eating challenges, which have increasingly become a strategy for restaurants across the country to make a name for themselves, draw in new customers, and simply have fun.

For those testing their fortitude through eating challenges, clearing a plate of outrageously large or spicy meals will often win them a T-shirt, their photo on the wall, and dinner on the house. There are some challenges, however, that push the limits of consumption and no individual has yet to cross the proverbial finish line.

So, which eating challenges remain undefeated?

'That Burger' Challenge
Restaurant: That Bar
Location: Danville, California

A massive, undefeated burger challenge can be found at That Bar in Danville, California. Appropriately named "That Burger," the monstrous mass of meat and cheese measures approximately 1 foot in diameter, and includes two 100 percent Angus beef patties, one of which has a hole in the middle where a grilled cheese sandwich is placed. Each patty is topped with four different cheeses - cheddar, American, pepper jack and Swiss - as well as a woven bacon patty. Finally, the burger is topped with crispy shoestring fries and doused in barbeque sauce, with an appropriately sized bun. The challenge also includes one-quarter pound each of fries and onion rings on the side.

In more than 40 attempts, nobody has been able to finish the challenge in the allotted time of one hour. "We're going to need a professional eater to do this challenge," says Stephanie Emig, co-owner and co-founder of That Bar, which is located about 30 minutes outside of San Francisco. "We wanted to have a giant burger. It was a collaboration between the three owners and our chef, and it took a couple tries but eventually we got it to work."

Emig says the burger was created in order to have an interesting menu item. When someone does place an order for the That Burger, it's likely for a group to share. "It's a popular burger on weekend nights for big groups. And if someone does manage to get through this pile of meat and grease all by themselves: They will earn a T-shirt that reads "I ate That Burger at That Bar and it was That Good."

The Inferno Bowl
Restaurant: Nitally's ThaiMex Cuisine
Location: St. Petersburg, Florida

Generally, there are two things that make an eating challenge difficult: sheer size of the portion, or overwhelming heat or spice. The Inferno Bowl at Nitally's ThaiMex Cuisine has both.

The soup is served in a 48 ounce bowl and includes no less than 12 different peppers from around the world. Although the mix changes with the season, it always includes bhut jolokia (also known as the "ghost chili"). The chilies themselves comprise about 16 ounces of the soup. The restaurant uses both Thai and Mexican techniques to draw as much heat out of the peppers as possible.

Ally Valdez, who owns Nitally's with his wife, describes how the dish was created: "My wife is from Thailand and my family is from Mexico...we always argued about who ate the hottest food. So, we went out of our way to find the hottest peppers we could use and made a soup that hardly any family members could eat." They served the soup in traditional Chinese bowls meant for family-sized servings, but limited it to one person. "We found that the people who could eat the hot food couldn't eat that much, and the family members who could deal with the quantity couldn't handle the heat."

Valdez says that since the challenge began in 2009, 116 people have attempted to finish the Inferno Bowl. The closest challenger came within two spoonfuls before throwing in the towel. Others throw in more than that. The Inferno Soup is so spicy that the restaurant requires challengers to eat it outside, since about 40 percent of the challengers have vomited while trying to finish the soup within the 30 minutes allotted.

"You have to come from the depths of hell to finish this," says Valdez, who is currently offering a jackpot of $800 to the first person to conquer the Inferno Bowl.

The Full-o-Bull Challenge
Restaurant: Cowtown Diner
Location: Fort Worth, Texas

Not only does Cowtown Diner's Full-o-Bull Challenge boast that it serves the largest chicken fried steak in the world, it might very well be the largest eating challenge, to boot. That's not a surprising claim, given that things are always bigger in Texas. The Full-o-Bull "is Texas to the core," says Scott Jones, owner of Cowtown Diner.

The challenge includes a 64 ounce chicken fried steak, served on an extra-large pizza pan, measures 14 inches in diameter and weighs about 10 pounds with gravy. But wait, that's not all: You must also finish the Texas-sized sides, which include four pounds of mashed potatoes and 10 pieces of Texas toast.
There's one piece of good news: The time limit to the Full-o-Bull challenge is relatively leisurely. You have from when the restaurant opens at 7 a.m. to the time it closes at 2 a.m. to finish the meal.

In the nearly two years since the challenge was created, close to 175 challengers have tried and failed to finish the Full-o-Bull. Jones says the inspiration for the challenge was to have "bragging rights in a place that is known for its beef," and notes that when someone takes on the challenge, the staff sings songs and draws attention to the event.

If anyone ever wins the challenge, they'll get their $70 meal on the house and a shirt that reads "I came to Cowtown Diner hungry and left Full-o-Bull."

The J&J's Kitchen Sink Challenge
Restaurant: J&J's Pizza Shack
Location: Northern Indiana (five locations)

In what is perhaps the oldest undefeated eating challenge in the country, the Kitchen Sink challenge at J&J's Pizza Shack in Indiana has confounded eaters for 27 years. The pizza is the brainchild of John Bogdan, the now-retired founder of J&J's, who created the 16-inch round deep-dish pizza, It includes sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, green olives, black olives, ham, Canadian bacon, bacon bits, and mozzarella cheese; it weighs about 6 pounds and must be completed within one hour.

Kim S., the manager at the Lake Station restaurant, says the Kitchen Sink is an extremely popular dish for J&J's, because most orders are for groups and corporate events. In fact, The Kitchen Sink is the restaurant's best-selling specialty pizza.

The pizza, which is intended to feed four to six people, has an estimated two to three challengers per year, and at least 100 people have attempted the challenge in the history of J&J's. Surprisingly, the closest anyone has come in recent history to finishing the pizza was a 12-year-old girl, who ate 16 of the 20 pieces before she had to give in.

"When someone does try, the wait staff is all curious, because we really want to see someone do it," says Kim. And, what does someone win if they do finish off the pie? They don't have to pay the bill - the $27.55 pizza is free.

The Hail Mary Challenge
Restaurant: Stadium Grill
Location: Columbia, Missouri

Since opening in August 2009, Stadium Grill in Columbia, Missouri has been offering the "Hail Mary Challenge," which involves finishing the "Unnecessary Roughness," a massive burger measuring an impressive 8 inches high. Restaurant manager Joe Collins says more than 150 challengers have attempted to conquer the burger, including competitive eater Randy Santel. All have failed.

The Unnecessary Roughness includes five-plus pounds of meat, including griddled burgers, bacon, and pulled pork, three cheeses, onion rings, and fried eggs, all stacked between two buns. To complete the challenge, a contender not only must finish the burger but also polish off a full pound of French fries, all within 60 minutes. If someone can conquer The Hail Mary challenge, they will be rewarded with their meal on the house (a $50 value) and $50 in food and drink every month for a year. Best of all, you will become legend in your own time: The Stadium Grill will name the burger after the first victor.

Collins says the burger does a good job of bringing business to the restaurant. "We display it on the weekends for people to see, and we'll sometimes display it out in front of the door." Those that do order it are most likely to share it with friends. "That's not part of the challenge," says Collins, but he's happy to sell it anyway he can.

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Brazos Bottom Pecan Pie in Wooden Box
http://www.goodecompanystore.com/pecan-pie.html

$35.00

Cooked slow with just the right amount of sweetness and plenty of pecans. It makes Grandma proud. Nine inch pecan pie in Pine Gift Box. We'll include a gift card with a note from you when shipped. Pies will keep for 3 weeks stored at room temperature, or 3 months if kept refrigerated.

The Brazos Bottom Pecan Pie is rich in taste and tradition. You’ll soon understand why I often say, ”You might give some serious thought to thanking your lucky stars you’re in Texas!”"

- Levi Goode

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Peppermint-OREO Cookie Balls
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/peppermint-oreo-cookie-balls-124156.aspx

total time 1 hr 30 min
prep 20 min
servings 48

6 candy canes, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup), divided
1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (16.6 oz.) OREO Cookies, finely crushed
2 pkg. (8 squares each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted

RESERVE 1 Tbsp. chopped candy. Mix remaining candy with cream cheese and cookie crumbs until well blended.

SHAPE into 48 (1-inch) balls. Freeze 10 min. Dip balls in melted chocolate; place in single layer in shallow waxed paper-lined pan. Sprinkle with reserved candy.

REFRIGERATE 1 hour or until firm.

Kraft Kitchens Tips

Size-Wise
These cookie balls have their own-built in portion control and can be enjoyed on occasion but remember to keep tabs on portions.

How to Melt Chocolate
Place unwrapped chocolate squares in microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 2-1/2 min. or until chocolate is completely melted, stirring every 30 sec.

How to Easily Dip Cookie Balls
To easily coat cookie balls with the melted chocolate, add balls, in batches, to bowl of melted chocolate. Use 2 forks to roll balls in chocolate until evenly coated. Remove balls with forks, letting excess chocolate drip back into bowl. Place balls in prepared pan; let stand until chocolate coating is firm.

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Devils on Hatchback
http://www.food52.com/recipes/3058_devils_on_hatchback

Serves 40

20 fresh Hatch green chile peppers, or New Mexico green chile peppers

8 ounces cream cheese

20 slices of thin, center cut bacon

1 tablespoon honey, or maybe more, its just for drizzling

black pepper

1. Roast the Hatch peppers. To do this, put the peppers on a baking sheet and broil them until they are black on the outside, turning occasionally. Then, remove them from the oven, and put them in a ziploc bag so that they can steam for ten minutes. Then take out the peppers and rub them gently so that all the charred skin comes off of the peppers. This can be done ahead of time and they also freeze beautifully.

2. Cut the peppers in half and cut the stem end off as well. Make one slit lengthwise through the pepper halves and open them up so that you can see inside. Remove some of the seeds and vein (leave in more if you like your devils spicier).

3. Put about a teaspoon of cream cheese in the center of each pepper half, wrap the pepper around it so that it closes, then place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Do not worry if your tender peppers tear and you can see the cheese come through a bit, the bacon will help contain everything.

4. Cut the twenty strips of bacon in half and wrap around each little devil and place back on the baking sheet. Be sure to place them seam side down so that the bacon doesn't curl and open up in the oven. Crack black pepper over the devils and put them in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Some of your cheese may ooze out of your devils, but not to worry, because they will still be delicious!

5. After 45 minutes, drizzle a generous amount of honey over the devils and bake for 5 more minutes. Take them out of the oven and pop them into your mouth.

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PUMPKIN PIE SPICE "ICE CREAM"
http://www.naturalnews.com/034237_Thanksgiving_desserts.html

HEALTH BENEFITS OF THIS RECIPE

Bananas
Bananas are loaded with potassium, which increases energy and protects against high blood pressure, atherosclerosis and stroke. Bananas also contain soluble fiber that helps maintain regular digestion.

Pumpkin Pie Spice
A typical commercial blend of pumpkin pie spice contains: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. All of these spices promote good health. Cinnamon helps regulate blood sugar, even in folks with type 2 diabetes. It also contains antioxidants, which contribute to cardiovascular health. Ginger has been shown to reduce inflammation and nausea, and it may also lower cholesterol. Nutmeg promotes sleep, and it actually kills cavity-causing bacteria in the mouth. Cloves can reduce heartburn, aid in digestion and ease toothache pain. Cloves also contain high levels of antioxidants to neutralize free radicals!

Walnuts
These wonderful nuts contain high concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids, which help improve blood flow and promote overall heart and bone health. Like many nuts, they also lower the risk of gallstones and help prevent weight gain.

PUMPKIN PIE SPICE "ICE CREAM" RECIPE
2 frozen bananas, chopped into 1-inch slices (peel and freeze at least one day in advance)
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice*
1/4-1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Place the chopped bananas into a food processor, and process on high speed until a crumbly consistency is achieved. Remove lid, scrape down the sides and sprinkle in the pumpkin pie spice. Process on high (scraping the sides, as needed) until the banana crumbles come together to form one large mass and the texture resembles ice cream. Transfer the mixture to bowls, sprinkle with nuts (optional) and enjoy! This recipe serves 1 to 2 guests.

*Pumpkin pie spice is a blend of spices that is available in most baking aisles. Be sure to read the ingredients list to verify that it contains no additives. Choose a brand that contains just "cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves."

More than 75 percent of all 'honey' contains no honey at all

More than 75 percent of all 'honey' sold in grocery stores contains no honey at all
Wednesday, November 09, 2011
Ethan A. Huff
http://www.naturalnews.com/034102_honey_consumer_alert.html

(NaturalNews) Just because those cute little bear-shaped bottles at the grocery store say "honey" on them does not necessarily mean that they actually contain honey. A comprehensive investigation conducted by Food Safety News (FSN) has found that the vast majority of so-called honey products sold at grocery stores, big box stores, drug stores, and restaurants do not contain any pollen, which means they are not real honey.

For the investigation, Vaughn Bryant, one of the nation's leading melissopalynologists, or experts in identifying pollen in honey, and director of the Palynology Research Laboratory at Texas A&M University, evaluated more than 60 products labeled as "honey" that had been purchased by FSN from ten states and the District of Columbia.

Bryant found that 76 percent of "honey" samples purchased from major grocery store chains like Kroger and Safeway, and 77 percent of samples purchased from big box chains like Sam's Club and Wal-Mart, did not contain any pollen. Even worse were "honey" samples taken from drug stores like Walgreens and CVS, and fast food restaurants like McDonald's and KFC, 100 percent of which were found to contain not a trace of pollen.
So what is all this phony honey made of? It is difficult to say for sure, as pollen is the key to verifying that honey is real. According to FSN, much of this imposter honey is more likely being secretly imported from China, and may even be contaminated with antibiotic drugs and other foreign materials.

Most conventional honey products have been illegally ultra-filtered to hide their true nature

According to FSN, the lack of pollen in most conventional "honey" products is due to these products having been ultra-filtered. This means that they have been intensely heated, forced through extremely tiny filters, and potentially even watered down or adulterated in some way prior to hitting store shelves.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) holds the position that any so-called honey products that have been ultra-filtered are not actually honey. But the agency refuses to do anything to stop this influx of illegitimate "honey" from flooding the North American market. It also continues to stonewall all petitions to establish a national regulatory standard for verifying the integrity of honey.

Assuming that there is any real honey at all in the phony honey products tested by FSN, the removal of pollen and other delicate materials via ultra-filtering renders them medicinally dead. Raw honey is a health-promoting food that can help alleviate stomach problems, anemia, allergies, and other health conditions. Ultra-filtered honey is nothing more than a health-destroying processed sugar in the same vein as white table sugar or high fructose corn syrup.

The good news is that all of the honey products FSN tested from farmers markets, food cooperatives, and "natural" stores like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, were found to contain pollen and a full array of antioxidants and other nutrients. Local beekeepers are another great source of obtaining raw, unprocessed, real honey.

Stoner Cooking Special: Fast Food Items You Can't Have

Matt Brownell
Sunday, October 16, 2011
http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/113657/fast-food-items-cant-have-247wallstreet

Fast food chains like McDonald's don't become global brands by cooking up the same old burgers and fries in every country.

Chains wishing to hang a shingle in a new country generally follow a strategy known as "localization," tailoring their menus to fit local tastes. In some cases it's subtle (in China, for instance, you can get chili garlic sauce with your McNuggets) while in other cases the menu is almost unrecognizable (in India, you won't find any beef or pork at burger chains).

That means that fast food fans in other countries get menu items that Americans can only dream of. Here are a few we wish we could have.

The Meat Monster (Burger King, Japan)
When most people want to put something on their burgers, they usually think of toppings like cheese, bacon, onions and tomatoes. The geniuses at Burger King put all of that on, then decided to throw on a chicken breast for good measure.

The result is the Meat Monster, a sandwich available at Burger King in Japan only. Perhaps the beast of a burger was meant to appeal to Japan's love of kaiju (monster) movies; in any case, we know it appeals to us. Bring this one stateside, Burger King.

McVeggie (McDonald's, India)

McDonald's has never been a preferred destination for vegetarians. While the fries no longer contain beef flavoring (the company discontinued the practice in 2001 in response to a lawsuit), meat-free customers still don't have too many choices beyond a few token salads.

Things are a bit different in India, though. Hinduism is the dominant religion there, which forbids consumption of beef and pork, and vegetarianism is widespread. The result is the rare spectacle of a McDonald's with no hamburgers. In addition to the standard Filet-O-Fish, you also get the Chicken Maharaja Mac and the McVeggie, the latter of which uses bread, potato, peas, carrots and Indian spices.

McZüri (McDonald's, Switzerland)
Starting this month, McDonald's Switzerland has starting rolling out experimental new items that cater to local tastes. While the McGrillschnägg — a sausage made from Swiss pork — certainly looks appetizing, the standout star for us is the McZüri, made from 100% Swiss veal. Yes, we said veal. The patty is accompanied by mushrooms and caramelized onions. Apparently McDonald's is a bit more upscale in Europe.

Paneer Tikka Sub (Subway, India)
Subway's menu isn't as beef-intensive as McDonald's meat-centric offerings, so its 223 Indian locations aren't as unrecognizable as McDonald's Indian restaurants. But there's definitely some local flavor there in addition to the usual lineup for sandwiches, including chicken tandoori and tikka subs. And there are plenty of options for vegetarian customers, including the paneer tikka, which the site describes as "cottage cheese slices marinated with barbeque seasoning and roasted to a light crispness."

Krushers (KFC, Germany)
In the U.S., KFC has focused on chicken products and generally stayed away from doing anything too creative in the dessert space, but in other countries it's a much different story. KFC locations in Australia, Germany, South Africa and other countries offer a line of dessert drinks known as Krushers, which come in such flavors as mango, strawberry, Kit Kat and Triple Choc Crunch. The drinks are mixed with large chunks of fruit or candy (including sliced-up strawberries and Oreo cookies). To slurp up the chunks, the drinks come with extra-wide straws.

Bubur Ayam McD (McDonald's, Malaysia)
Apparently bubur ayam — which translates to "chicken broth," according to Google — is a traditional Malaysian dish. And according to the English-language McDonald's Malaysia website, the Bubur Ayam McD consists of "juicy chicken strips in mouth-watering porridge, garnished with spring onions, sliced ginger, fried shallots and diced chilies ... just like mum's cooking!" We're guessing that this dish won't be coming to the U.S. anytime soon, but we'd still be curious to try it.

Trio Supremo (Burger King, Brazil)
Burger King is now owned by a Brazilian company, 3G Capital, so we expect the Brazilian locations to have top-notch cuisine. And Burger King Brazil has indeed come up big with the Trio Supremo, which comes with chicken nuggets, onion rings and French fries smothered in cheddar cheese and bacon bits. The whole thing amounts to 1,072 calories and 58 grams of fat. As far as we're concerned, America is up to the challenge of this one.

Stoner Cooking: Meatballs

The Meatball Recipe to Conquer All Others
By Chef Shane Solomon, Pizzeria Stella, Philadelphia
Esquire.com on Tue Sep 27, 2011
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/the-meatball-recipe-to-conquer-all-others-2570299

Philadelphia is a red-sauce town — what we call "gravy" — but I'm not a big fan of spaghetti and meatballs. I prefer to make a meatball that stands alone, maybe resting on a small base of polenta or some good grilled bread. Nothing that detracts from the meatball itself. This habit of mine is likely rooted in the various Italian regional ways of serving meatballs without pasta, sometimes as a second course, or even the Sicilian polpettine alla griglia (grilled meatballs with a touch of lemon) that make me think meatballs are related to the ground-meat kebabs of the Arabs and Greeks who dominated that island for centuries.

In any case, making a tender meatball relies on a few basic principles: First there's ratio, and about 20 percent of the meat mix should be fat. In my restaurant — and this is a huge benefit of being a pizzeria — I can grind the end nubs of cured meats like prosciutto or sopressata to get fat and flavor at the same time. But at home, I use pancetta or nice smoky bacon. Quality matters because during the low, slow oven cooking, the fat flows out of the meatballs and goes right into the tomato sauce.

Then there's shape, and here you want to make sure to get all the air out as you form the meatball. For that I use an old-fashioned trigger ice-cream scoop. Firmly pack the meat into the scoop, pressing down on the flat side with your palm. Then use the spring trigger to release it, and roll it between your flattened palms into a ball. Of course, in between the mix and the shaping comes the filler, added for texture and to help retain shape. I go really easy — bread crumbs, salt, and pepper. A meatball should taste like meat.

Meat mix: 1 lb ground beef (80 percent lean/20 percent fat), 1 lb ground pork, 1 lb ground veal
1 lb pancetta or thick-sliced smoky bacon, finely minced
2 whole eggs
1/3 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
½ cup finely diced yellow onion
8 garlic cloves, minced
Herb mix: ¼ cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, 2 tbsp chopped oregano, 2 tbsp chopped rosemary

Combine above ingredients and mix well, kneading the mixture with your hands like dough.

1/3 cup fine, dry unseasoned bread crumbs
about 4 oz (½ cup) whole milk
about 1 tsp coarse salt
about 1 ½ tsp ground black pepper
Slowly add milk to bread crumbs, stirring until the mixture has the consistency of wet sand. Immediately add to the meat mixture, season with the salt and pepper, and mix well. To taste for seasoning: Heat a small amount of canola oil in a small pan. When it's hot — it will ripple in the pan — pinch off a bit of meat and fry in the oil. Remove with a spoon, taste, and correct seasoning, adding more salt if necessary. Refrigerate the meat mixture for about 30 minutes.

canola oil for browning
about 12 cups good-quality tomato sauce, kept warm over low heat
finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, for serving

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Shape meatballs, preferably using an ice-cream scoop (see introduction). In a large skillet, heat about a quarter-inch canola oil until very hot. Working in batches, brown all sides of each meatball.

As they finish, transfer browned meatballs to a deep, ovenproof casserole. Cover meatballs with tomato sauce. (Don't skimp — they must be totally submerged.) Place in oven and bake until well done, about 1 ¾ to 2 hours. When done, they should feel firm to the touch, or an instant-read meat thermometer should read 160 degrees.

To serve: Spoon sauce over meatballs (2 or 3 per person), top with grated cheese, and pass crusty bread. Makes 25 to 30 meatballs. Serves 8 to 10 as an entrée, with leftovers.

Food Porn of the Week: Buffalo Wing Soda

Or try some Bacon Soda. Courtesy of Tosh.0:

http://tosh.comedycentral.com/blog/2011/09/27/whos-thirsty-for-some-buffalo-wings

Fast Food Hamburger of the Month

The Spicy Chipotle D.T. Double: two fresh, North American beef patties with delicious melted Pepper Jack cheese and sliced jalapeños. All for just $2.99.

Wendys.com

Deep-fried bubble gum pops up at Texas State Fair

Liz Kelly Nelson
September 6, 2011
http://blog.zap2it.com/pop2it/2011/09/deep-fried-bubble-gum-pops-up-at-texas-state-fair.html

Leave it to Texas to take the whole fried food thing way over the top. At the state's annual fair, the Big Tex Choice Awards had amateur fry chefs dropping everything from bubble gum to salsa into vats of boiling oil.

About that bubble gum first, though: There isn't actually any gum in the treat. It's actually, according to "Today," a bubblegum-flavored marshmallow ball dipped in batter, fried, then topped with icing. It topped some other serious contenders -- including deep-fried salsa, deep-fried pineapple upside-down cake and fried tacos -- to take honors as the most creative entry.

The contest's big winner, though, was deep-fried buffalo chicken in a flapjack which took home honors as the tastiest entry. It is, as one would imagine, a "buffalo chicken strip coated in pancake batter, rolled in jalapeno breadcrumbs, deep fried and served with a side of syrup."

And we thought deep-fried Kool-Aid was bad. What will it be next?

The Fattiest Foods in America!

Source: David Zinczenko with Matt Goulding, Yahoo Health Aug 22, 2011
http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eatthis/the-fattiest-foods-america

FAT OFFENDER #6: A BURGER
Ruby Tuesday Triple Prime Bacon Cheddar Burger
1,333 calories
101 g fat
1,892 mg sodium

New rule: The more syllables in a menu item's name, the more fat there's likely to be in the dish. Less than 3 percent of the beef produced in this country earns the USDA's "prime" rating, and that's not a bad thing. Prime beef, as it turns out, is the fattiest beef you can sink your teeth into. (Follow me on Twitter for more of the fat-melting secrets I come across every day as the editor-in-chief of Men’s Health and Women's Health magazines—and lose your belly fat without ever dieting again.)

If you really want a burger, you're better off heading elsewhere. Not one of Ruby's has fewer than 700 calories. Go with the Plain Grilled Top Sirloin and earn all the beefy protein without the superfluous calories.

Eat This Instead!
Plain Grilled Top Sirloin
290 calories
12 g fat
420 mg sodium

FAT OFFENDER #5: A STEAK
Chili’s Flame-Grilled Ribeye with broccoli and mashed potatoes
1,460 calories
106 g fat (44 g saturated)
3,700 mg sodium

For a healthy diet, the USDA recommends you cap your daily saturated fat intake at 20 grams. This meal more than doubles that, and it's only 12 ounces of meat. Sure, ribeye is a notoriously fatty cut, but it's primarily the bath of butter that pushes this steak's fat count to such unhealthy heights. Switch to the Guiltless Grill Classic Sirloin and save an astounding 1,090 calories.

Eat This Instead!
Guiltless Grill Classic Sirloin with steamed veggies
370 calories
9 g fat (4 g saturated)
3,680 mg sodium

FAT OFFENDER #4: MEXICAN FOOD
Chili’s Bacon Ranch Chicken Quesadilla
1,650 calories
107 g fat (39 g saturated)
3,450 mg sodium

Traditional Mexican food is big on seasoning and light on cheese, but with this quesadilla, Chili's takes a different approach. Trying to appease palates primed for indulgence, the restaurant layers on the fat in four ways: cheese, ranch, bacon, and sour cream. Go with the Margarita Grilled Chicken and you'll cut the overall fat content by more than 80 percent.

Eat This Instead!
Margarita Grilled Chicken
550 calories
14 g fat (4 g saturated)
1,870 mg sodium

FAT OFFENDER #3: A 'HEALTHY' SALAD
IHOP Chicken and Spinach Salad
1,600 calories
118 g fat (32 g saturated)
2,340 mg sodium

Chicken? Good. Spinach? Good. IHOP’s Chicken and Spinach Salad—downright deplorable. You'll need to i-hop for four hours to burn it off. This salad is exactly what makes restaurant food so questionable and potentially unhealthy. The name makes it sound like a paragon of nutritious eating, yet the numbers reveal it to be just the opposite. The chicken here is actually fried chicken, and the spinach is little more than a small bed for bacon and cheddar cheese. You could snarf down six pancake short stacks and still take in less fat. Save yourself the waistline damage and opt for the Simple & Fit Simply Chicken Sandwich instead.

Eat This Instead!
Simply Chicken Sandwich with fresh fruit, side salad, and reduced-fat Italian dressing
565 calories
12.5 g fat (3.5 g saturated)
1,085 mg sodium

FAT OFFENDER #2: 'HEALTHY' FISH
Applebee’s New England Fish & Chips
1,930 calories
138 g fat (24 g saturated)
3,180 mg sodium

The American Heart Association recommends eating fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids at least twice a week. By doing so, you lower your risk of such chronic diseases as heart disease and cancer. But if you prepare fish by deep frying it in a tub of bubbling fat—like Applebee's does with this artery-clogging monstrosity—you reverse all those benefits. Opt for Applebee's Garlic Herb Salmon instead. It offers 109 fewer grams of fat, nearly two-thirds fewer calories, and a heap of flavor that will still leave you satiated.

Eat This Instead!
Applebee’s Garlic Herb Salmon
690 calories
29 g fat (8 g saturated)
1,460 mg sodium

FAT OFFENDER #1: PASTA
Cheesecake Factory Fettuccini Alfredo with Chicken
2,300 calories
103 g saturated fat
1,517 mg sodium

Cheesecake Factory prefers to keep its nutritional stats hidden, but a law in California forced it to reveal saturated fat. Total fat is still a mystery, but this meal breaks through the 100-gram ceiling on saturated fat alone! The culprits here are the oversized portion and the thick, fat-riddled alfredo sauce. The typical restaurant recipe for this sauce relies on some combination of cream, butter, oil, and cheese, and there's no reason to believe that Cheesecake's version strays from the norm. Unfortunately, the chain offers no single pasta dish with fewer than 1,100 calories, so keep yourself safe by sticking to the new Skinnylicious menu.

Eat This Instead!
Skinnylicious Herb-Crusted Salmon
570 calories
9 g saturated fat
687 mg sodium

America's favorite fast food chains

Sorry McDonald's, you don't make the cut
Piper Weiss, Shine Staff
Thu Jun 30, 2011
http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/food/americas-favorite-fast-food-chains-sorry-mcdonalds-you-dont-make-the-cut-2504452

For the best restaurants in the country ask a Michelin guide reviewer. For the best fast food joints, ask everyone else. That's what Consumer Reports did in their new survey out today. They polled 36,733 subscribers to their magazine on their favorite go-to chains for instant gratification.

Based on over 98,000 visits to 53 chains, readers judged the service, speed, cost and overall deliciousness of their quick dining experience. The big surprise: the highest rated fast food didn't come from the biggest chains. McDonald's, Taco Bell, and KFC, also took a backseat to the slightly smaller franchises. Here are readers' picks for the best fast food experience.

Burgers: In-N-Out burger. The West Coast chain beat out Burger King, McDonald's, and countless other burger-flipping joints to rate highest in taste, speed and service. Their freshly prepared, preservative-free patties were a shoe-in for flavor, and also earned high marks for value. Who needs super-sizing when you've got a super-secret menu?

Mexican: Chiptole Mexican Grill. With only 8 chains in this category, the competition is slim, but readers gave this tacos-and-guac haven the highest marks not only for flavor but for speed and service.

Chicken: Chick-fil-A. The fried chicken trays and sandwiches at this nationwide chain beat out KFC's buckets by a long shot.

Sandwiches and Subs: Jason's Deli. The little guy stepped out of the shadows of Quiznos and Subway, as a top pick. It's massive menu options (subs, muffalettas, wraps and even pasta) and "grab-and-go" meals, garnered big-time service and speed points.

Pizza: Papa Murphy's Take N' Bake Pizza. Don't bother making the pizza, we can do it ourselves. That's the message with this surprising fan favorite, a pizza chain that sells prepped, uncooked pizzas that you heat up at home.

Best overall value: Papa Murphy's, CiCi Pizza and In-N-Out Burger. Readers picked these three chains medium-sized chains as the best bang for your buck.

Not everyone was so positive about the fast food experience. Readers rated Round Table Pizza, KFC and the struggling Italian chain, Sbarro's, as offering the least value. And casual dining restaurants like Cracker Barrel and Outback Steakhouse pleased patrons far in terms of experience than the standard to-go chains. Not surprisingly, only 13 percent of those surveyed considered the last meal they ate at a fast food restaurant "healthful." Despite a growing number of lower-fat menu options one thing is clear: they don't turn to the drive-through for diet tips.

Peach contains an almond-like nut containing anti-cancer medicine

Amazing food facts: The seed of a peach contains an almond-like nut containing the anti-cancer medicine laetrile Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Editor of NaturalNews.com
Monday, July 25, 2011
http://www.naturalnews.com/033123_laetrile_vitamin_B17.html

(NaturalNews) Peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots and almonds are all closely related fruit trees with very similar pits. In all these fruits, the pit must be broken open to reveal the almond-shaped kernel within. In fact, this is what almonds actually are: the kernel within the pit of the fruit of the almond tree!

The kernels of all these species contain high concentrations of a chemical known as laetrile. It's also known as amygdalin or vitamin B-17. Research has shown that laetrile induces programmed cell death in cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone. It's sort of like Mother Nature's chemotherapy except that it doesn't make you suffer the way man-made synthetic chemotherapy does.

Laetrile appears to work because the nutrient is actually composed of four separate molecules: two of glucose, one of benzaldyhide and one of cyanide. The latter two chemicals are toxic, but are bound up in a non-bioavailable form. Cancer cells contain an enzyme that healthy cells do not, known as beta-glucosidase. This enzyme actually breaks apart the component pieces of laetrile, and the cell is poisoned by a combination of benzaldyhide and cyanide. Healthy cells do not undergo this effect, which is why they remain unaffected by laetrile.

The medical establishment, learning about this natural "chemotherapy" that killed cancer cells and didn't even require a prescription, quickly began to attack it by spreading lies about the dangers of laetrile. The FDA, long an enemy of healing through nutrition, banned laetrile in 1971. Highly toxic chemotherapy substances, however, remain perfectly legal and continue to kill hundreds of thousands of people every single year. (Most people who "die from cancer" are actually killed by chemotherapy and radiation, not from the cancer itself. "Cancer survivors" are people who miraculously survive chemotherapy.)

The Zen of the Vanilla Milkshake

Swingers Diner, 2010
Paul Kimball
Friday, July 22, 2011
http://philosopherpak.blogspot.com/2011/07/zen-of-vanilla-milkshake-swingers-diner.html

Swingers - Santa Monica, CA
A "zen" moment

The perfect meal - vanilla milkshake, cheeseburger, and mashed potatoes with gravy!
The best milkshake I've had yet in Los Angeles, where there are so many great ones from which to choose, has been at Swingers Diner, in Santa Monica. The food and service is great as well, and the location - just a couple of blocks from Santa Monica Pier and the Pacific Ocean - can't be beat...

http://www.swingersdiner.com/

The Klondike Bar

http://www.retroland.com/klondike

“It’s that chocolaty-coated ice cream
So big and thick, no room for a stick!”

Has anyone ever actually stopped to contemplate what he or she would be willing to do for a Klondike Bar? Perhaps only in the commercials, for most of us are fortunate to have a plentiful supply in the local frozen foods aisle. Why jump through hoops when you can simply toss a six-pack of the delightful, stick-less ice cream bars into your cart. And that’s exactly what millions of people have been doing for decades. It’s but a small price to pay to sink your teeth into one of those foil-wrapped delicacies, adorned with a familiar picture of the smiling polar bear wearing a red scarf.

It all started in Youngstown, Ohio, when a family of Swiss immigrants brought their dairy expertise to America around the turn of the century. From their small chain of dairy stores in the area, they began selling little square slices of vanilla ice cream that had been dipped into a pan full of rich, milk chocolate. They named the treats “Klondike Bars” purportedly after the Klondike River in Canada’s Yukon Territory (the site of a gold rush in the 1890s.) One of the Isaly brothers brought a stack of the family-made bars to the staff of a local newspaper in 1922 and word of frozen treats quickly spread to folks in the surrounding areas. By the 1940s, the Isaly family had 7 dairy facilities and over 300 stores. Things were looking up.

It wasn’t until 1978, however, that the Klondike Bar made its way out of Pennsylvania and Ohio. Thanks to the help of a newly built factory in Florida, The Klondike Bar began showing up along the East coast, particularly in New England, New York and Florida. And with a few years, a national marketing plan had swung into full force.

Klondike Bar television commercials began appearing around the clock, featuring man-on-the-street style interviews and asking seemingly-normal folks what they’d do for a Klondike Bar, even suggesting such tasks as playing patty cake or riding around on tricycles. Famous folks even got in on the “What would you do?” act during the “Famous Mouths” campaign, which featured celebrities such as: Wheel of Fortune hostess Vanna White, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous host Robin Leach, comedian Steve Allen and Today Show movie critic Gene Shalit – each biting into and devouring the ice cream for all of TV-Land to witness.

Today, there are many flavors of Klondike bar, each bearing an image of the familiar smiling bear. If vanilla isn’t your thing, perhaps you would like chocolate, or the more exotic Neopolitan, Oreo Cookie, Cappucino, or Heath-flavored bars (to name but a few.) And should the day come when we are required to ride a tricycle, do a backflip, sing a song, or perform any other activity to acquire one these popular snacks, we probably will. It’s a small price to pay for something so sinfully delicious.

Deep-fried Girl Scout cookies and Kool-Aid?

And other new, calorie-defying creations at the County Fair
Keli Dailey
June 8, 2011
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/08/your-whats-new-fair-food-itinerary/

Deep-fried Kool-Aid! Deep-fried Thin Mints! Deep-fried Rolaids!

Maybe not that last one.

But the crazy-food carnival we call the San Diego County Fair is back. And check out the new forbidden, frizzled and sizzled creations.

Deep-Fried Girl Scout Cookies — Thin Mints

Puts the iconic Girl Scout cookie into a sweet batter and a hot fryer. This revisits vendor “Chicken” Charlie Boghosian’s origins: He caused a fair-circuit sensation when he invented Deep-Fried Oreos. Oddly enough, deep frying Thin Mints — that minty, chocolate wafer coated in chocolate — steps this up from girly-fundraiser-cookie to man-diet material. Still, I’m Team-Samoas.

Where: Chicken Charlie’s booth on the concourse

FryBQ Ribs

With a crunchy crust and as much meat as a scrawny chicken wing, the good parts of this dish are its spicy, albeit alarmingly pink, sauce and the bed of skinny fries underneath. This one gets by just because it’s in the taboo food group. “We want what we can’t have,” Chicken Charlie explains about our fascination with his fried foods. His grilled chicken-breast kebabs are big savory logs and his top sellers, though.

Where: Chicken Charlie’s

Cornucopia

Quite possibly the corniest idea at the Fair. Literally. It’s corn-on-corn — a sweet cornbread coating fried around a mini ear of corn. Complete the corn hat trick with a Coca-Cola. It’s got high-fructose corn syrup.

Where: Del Mar Diner at Plaza de Mexico

Deep-Fried Beer Battered Bacon Bliss

This vendor changed its name from the Heart Attack Cafe. But they have the same old score to settle with your unclogged arteries. Can you handle thick-cut bacon cloaked in a zesty batter and submerged briefly in hot oil? Oh really?

Where: Deep-Fried Butter Stand at Avenue of the Palms

Also new here: Chocolate-Covered Corn Dog with Sprinkles, Deep-Fried Pig in a Blanket on a Stick and Deep-Fried Chocolate Covered Bacon on a Stick.

Deep-Fried Brownie

Like a pain au chocolat — except that croissant is fried cake and filled with a melted brownie reminiscent of Easy-Bake Oven dessert goo.

Where: Chicken Charlie’s

Deep-Fried Beef Jerky

Hooray for the vendor who figured out something bizarre to do with beef.

Where: Juicy’s booth on the infield

Deep-Fried Kool-Aid

The very idea is thrilling. And having eaten it I’ll say it was better than regular liquid Kool-Aid. However this treat deserves a clap and a slap for being the best concept and the most misleading. You’re thinking actual damp and splashing Kool-Aid undergoes some molecular gastronomy technique on its way to a hot soybean-oil bath. No. Instead sugar-reduced cherry Kool-Aid powder is mixed into a sweet batter, like flavoring. The fried-up result is a doughnut. How is this an improvement over its liquid form? It’s nicely spongy, and doesn’t stain your tongue cherry-red.

Where: Chicken Charlie’s

Also new this year: The Hollywood icon Pink’s Hot Dogs has a booth near the Bing Crosby Hall. Or get your Planet Hollywood Dog at Pink's Harrah's Rincon.

keli.dailey@uniontrib.com • (619) 293-1541 • Twitter @kelidailey

How the hot dog became the most American food

Served everywhere from Coney Island to the FDR White House, the wiener has come to symbolize our way of life
Felisa Rogers, Eatymology
Saturday, Jun 11, 2011
http://www.salon.com/food/feature/2011/06/11/hot_dog_history/index.html

As the Coney Island boardwalk gives way to textured cement, and traditional Coney Island haunts such as Ruby's and the Cha Cha celebrate their last summer in the shadow of forced demolition, it seems an opportune time to take a look at the history of Coney Island's most iconic emblem: the hot dog.

Although Coney Island is at the epicenter of hot dog history, the dog did not originate on the boardwalk. The lowbrow snack is the bastard American descendant of sausages brought to the New World by immigrants from Germany and Austria (hence the origin of a word that has been getting a lot of press lately: "wiener," which stems from the name of Austria's capital, Vienna, or Wien). Sausage vending was a relatively inexpensive home business for upwardly mobile immigrants, and by the 1860s, the strolling meat purveyors were a fixture of urban street scenes. On September 1894, the Duluth News Tribune described a visit to Chicago:

More numerous than the lunch wagon is the strolling salesman of "red hots." This individual clothed in ragged trousers, a white coat and cook's cap, and unlimited cheek, obstructs the night prowler at every corner. He carries a tank in which are swimming and sizzling hundreds of Frankforters or Wieners. These mysterious denizens of the steaming deep are sold for five cents, which modest charge includes an allowance of horseradish or some other tear-producing substance.
Early frankfurters were prepared in small butcher shops or kitchens and probably featured a coarser grind of meat than does the average modern hot dog, which is the product of emulsifying technology. But it's hard to pinpoint "average." Even today, the definition of "hot dog" is vague: Hot dogs can be made of beef or pork or both, with or without casings. According to the Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink: "Most hot dogs are made from emulsified or finely chopped skeletal meats, but some contain organs and other 'variety' meats."

The origin of the term "hot dog" is so contentious that there is a 300-page scholarly book on the subject. The author, David Cohen, has been researching the term since 1978. His co-author, the incomparable word sleuth Barry Popik (who is famous in etymology circles for his contributions to the academic study of the word "dude") uncovered the proletarian dog's curiously blue-blooded roots: "Hot dog" was popular slang on the Yale campus in the 1890s; the "dog" was a humorous reference to the dubious origins of sausage meat. As Cohen says, "College students since time immemorial have combined a keen sense of wit with occasional bad taste. Both came into play in referring to a hot sausage as 'hot dog.' The term at first was disgusting, but of course it gradually caught on."

To complicate matters further: Since the publication of Cohen's "Origin of the Term 'Hot Dog,'" an earlier printed reference to hot dogs has emerged: an 1892 article in New Jersey's Paterson Daily Press:

The "hot dog" was quickly inserted in a gash in a roll, a dash of mustard also splashed on to the "dog" with a piece of flat whittled stick, and the order was fulfilled.

Although Germans traditionally serve bread with sausages, our modern hot dog bun may in fact be a product of Coney Island. A 1904 obituary for Ignatz Frischmann describes the Austrian baker as an innovator who experimented until he invented the perfect "Vienna roll" with which to supply Coney Island hot dog vendors. By the time of Frischmann's death, his rolls were indelibly associated with the hot dog. When dealing with such a controversial issue, it's best to get a second opinion. We asked hot dog historian Bruce Kraig (the author of "Hot Dog: A Global History") to confirm the theory, and he said, "I don't see why the Frischmann story can't be true. His creation was emulated by many afterward." In academic terms, that's practically a ringing endorsement.

While it's amusing to imagine academic types devoting a lifetime to the study of "hot dog" etymology, perhaps it's no more ridiculous than anything else. Historians have written treatises on the provenance of Bach's Sonata number 3. Who's to say the humble hot dog should not receive equal attention? The story of the hot dog is the story of the industrious immigrant, the genius of marketing, the creative cook, the boy at the ballpark, the illustrious academic. American nostalgia for the hot dog is almost unequaled: In the popular imagination the hot dog is synonymous with summertime, baseball, camping and, of course, the working man's Riviera.

A Mecca of glittering Americana, Coney Island had it all: racetracks, roller coasters, and legendary amusement parks: Steeplechase Park, Luna Park, and Dreamland, which was ablaze with 1 million electric lights. (On a 1907 visit, Maxim Gorky described Coney Island as a "fantastic city all of fire.") Three rambling luxury hotels catered to the elite, while the Elephant Hotel, which was shaped like an actual elephant (with a cigar store in one leg) had a reputation for prostitution. Prostitutes, dance hall girls, hucksters, gamblers and drunks provided entertainment in other nefarious blocks such as "The Gut," a shantytown in West Brighton, and the Ocean View Walk, a fetid alley nicknamed "The Bowery" because it resembled the dangerous and degenerate Manhattan neighborhood of the same name. While the rich dined on clams at seafood palaces such as Villepigue's, the poor picnicked on sausages from one of the beach resort's many stands.

Charles Feltman is credited with opening Coney Island's first hot dog restaurant, but Kraig debunks the story as a myth, pointing out that Feltman's restaurant was a seafood joint.

"By the 1880s there were many sausage sellers at Coney Island, but Feltman was not one of them. As a good German, he did serve sausages, but in fact he disliked hot dog vendors," Kraig says, adding, "In 1886 he is reported to have railed against sausage stands. Likely the Feltman story came from his association with the great hot dog entrepreneur and publicity genius, Nathan Handwerker."

Handwerker emigrated from Poland and got a job at Feltman's restaurant in 1916. After working there for a year, Handwerker saved enough money to open his own hot dog stand. The hot dogs were produced according to his wife, Ida's, recipe, and Handwerker cooked the dogs on a 12-foot grill. When the subway increased traffic to Coney Island in the 1920s, he was poised to capitalize on the low-budget hordes. Four years after coming to America, Handwerker had founded an empire -- between 1930 and 1950, Nathan's sold up to 50,000 dogs a day. Nathan's dogs are now sold internationally under the slogan "America's Favorite Hot Dog," though I prefer an older Nathan's slogan: "From a Hot Dog to a National Habit."

Like many of our other national habits, the hot dog is complicated. For example, the deep-fried "Texas hot weiner" is not from Texas -- it was invented in Paterson, N.J., by a Greek immigrant who drew on his own cultural roots to create a "Texas chili dog" with a chili reminiscent of Greek spaghetti sauce, savory with slow-cooked meat, cayenne, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and cumin. (A dog's historical origins are always disputed -- Pittsburgh, Pa., and Olean, N.Y., also have claims on the Texas hot weiner.)

Meanwhile, the "Coney" should not be confused with a hot dog from Coney Island -- Coneys (chili dogs as interpreted by Macedonian immigrants) are a beloved Midwestern tradition. And "New York System" is the name of a type of dog sold in Providence, R.I. The dog's esteem in the public eye is equally varied. Hot dogs were so indelibly lower class that the Coney Island chamber of commerce attempted to sever the association between hot dogs and Coney Island: In 1913, it passed a resolution forbidding the use of the word "hot dog" on signage. But by 1938, the dog was on the upswing: Eleanor Roosevelt insisted that hot dogs were on the menu when Crown Princess Louise of Sweden picnicked with the Roosevelts on Duchess Hill. Evidently encouraged by the Louise's reaction, the first lady served hot dogs again in 1939, when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of England visited America. Though the queen ate her hot dog with a knife and fork, the meal was a success. To the embarrassment of some of the royal couple's stuffier cohorts, the king returned for a second helping. The New York Times reported:

It was with some obvious misgivings that Mr. McDermott first conceded ... that the King had eaten hot dogs at the picnic. He said that it was safe to assume that the King had done so since he had announced that he had been looking forward to the chance of sampling the favorite American snack. Later it was ascertained that the King not only came back for more hot-dog sandwiches but that he drank beer with them.
Eleanor's menus prompted the term "hot dog diplomacy," most recently applied to President Obama's dealings with Iran.

There's a hot dog to reflect every facet of America's cultural landscape. In Anchorage, Alaska, reindeer dogs reign supreme. Southerners tout slaw dogs. In Texas you can order a deep-friend coyote tail, or a hot dog wrapped in a flour tortilla and deep fried. The Tijuana dog (wrapped in bacon and piled with traditional taco toppings and conventional dog condiments) has been slowly migrating across the country since the 1950s. An East Coast variation called the Jersey breakfast dog is served with eggs. The Sonora dog, popular in Arizona, is served on a delicious bolillo (a baguette-like roll that probably stems from the French invasion of Mexico in 1861). During the "exotic" food fads of the 1960s, Chinese hot dogs (dogs wrapped like Chinese dumplings) appeared at dinner parties. Kraig believes that the famous Chicago dog (a steamed poppy seed bun cradling an all-beef dog, topped with tomatoes, minced raw onion, peppers, pickle spear, tomato slices, celery salt and neon relish) is the result of immigrant hot dog vendors in the 1920s who sought to one-up each other by offering insane quantities of toppings. Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, you'll find the Philly combo, a kosher-inspired classic that involves an all-beef hot dog and a potato-and-fish cake.

Apart from the variations in actual dogs, the variations in vernacular are equally dizzying: You can eat a dirty water dog (New York/New Jersey 1990s), a pimp steak (Harlem, 1940s), a tube steak (1930s), a red hot (Chicago, 1860s), or just, tellingly, Coney Island chicken.

Felisa Rogers studied history and nonfiction writing at the Evergreen State College and went on to teach writing to kids for five years. She lives in Oregon’s coast range, where she works as a freelance writer and editor.

The USDA Ditches the Food Pyramid for a Plate

Meredith Melnick
Thursday, June 2, 2011
http://healthland.time.com/2011/06/02/the-usda-ditches-the-food-pyramid-and-offers-a-plate

So long, pyramid. Welcome, MyPlate! First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled on Thursday the government's new symbol for healthy eating, a colorful plate divided into the basic food groups, which will officially replace the well-recognized but perplexing food pyramid.

With Surgeon General Regina Benjamin and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, the First Lady announced the new nutrition icon, known as MyPlate, as part of her ongoing campaign against obesity.

The plate, which is based on the nutrition advice contained in the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans, is quartered into sections: fruits, vegetables, grains and protein. Half the plate is taken up by fruits and vegetables. Another smaller circle appears next to the plate representing dairy. Health officials have high hopes that the simple, clear "visual cue" will prompt consumers to make healthier eating choices — something that the decades-old food pyramid largely failed to do.

Even Secretary Vilsack said that he had never been able to make sense of the pyramid — first introduced in 1992, then revamped in 2005 — before taking his post at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). "The reality is that [the pyramid] is a really complex symbol," Vilsack said during the press conference announcing the plate icon on Thursday. "It has a lot of good information, but the reality is that it's too complex a symbol to translate well to meals for Americans."

MyPlate, by contrast, is a "simple, visual, research-based icon that is a clear, unmistakable message about portion size," Vilsack said.

Critics of the original pyramid, which placed foods that made up the largest portions of a recommended diet (grains, fruits and vegetables) at its base, with foods that should be eaten more sparingly (meat, dairy, fat, sugar) at the narrower top, said it was not easily translatable to most Americans' dining habits. For one thing, it told people to eat a specific number of "servings" — an inscrutable measure of food — of each food group per day. Further, the pyramid did not distinguish between healthy foods like brown rice or fish and less healthy foods like white rice or sausage. (Not to mention that the design was tweaked in order to please agricultural and meat lobbies, to which the USDA is responsible.)

The revamped pyramid, which turned the original's bricks into colorful vertical stripes representing food groups, and added a stick figure running up the side to note the importance of exercise, was even more widely ridiculed for offering no meaningful information.

The circular MyPlate departs from the original symbol's shape and better represents how the average person eats — on a plate. "What's more useful than a plate? What's more simple than a plate?" said the First Lady during the press conference. "After a long day of work, parents are asked to be the chef, the referee, the clean-up crew. You name it, we're on it. We can't be nutritionists as well."

The First Lady admitted that even she did not know how much protein was in an ounce of meat. "We can't be expected to measure three ounces of chicken or look up a portion size of rice or broccoli."

The government's updated dietary guidelines released in January suggest that Americans reduce their consumption of salt, sugar and fat; they also advise people increase fruits, veggies and fish. MyPlate reflects those guidelines, showing vegetables and fruits as a bigger proportion of the plate than grains, for example.

However, the dietary guidelines also urge Americans to eat less overall — a message that health officials haven't yet addressed. The New York Times reports:

Officials said they planned to use the plate in a campaign to communicate essential dietary guidelines to consumers, emphasizing one message at a time for best effect.

The first part of the campaign will encourage people to make half their plate fruit and vegetables. Later phases of the campaign will instruct consumers to avoid oversize portions, enjoy their food but eat less of it and to drink water instead of sugary drinks.

Nutritionists said the plate is a step up from the pyramid. "It's better than the pyramid but that's not saying a lot," Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University, told the Times. She said that including a large section of the plate labeled "protein" is confusing and unnecessary, because it does not clarify that grains and dairy are important sources of protein and because most Americans already get more protein than they need, the Times reports.

The new icon was created by USDA in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and input from the First Lady's team. The USDA said it had conducted focus groups with about 4,500 people, including children, to develop the symbol.

Subway jumps on avocado bandwagon

Bruce Horovitz, USA TODAY
5-26-11
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2011-05-26-avocados-at-subway_n.htm

Subway today will unveil plans to roll out avocado next week as a sandwich option nationwide. The public embrace of avocados by the sandwich giant, which with 24,188 U.S. stores has more domestic locations than McDonald's, is pegged to the healthier eating theme that's been crucial to Subway's success.

The move is expected to nudge other major fast-food chains to elevate the vitamin-, mineral- and calorie-packed fruit to their menus. At Subway, avocado makes its debut as preservative-free, 100% avocado spread in a Turkey & Bacon Avocado sandwich that sells for about $7.

Customers will have to pay from 50 cents to $1 to have the mashed avocado spread added to most other sandwiches. On the West Coast, instead of the spread, sliced avocados are offered at many Subways. Both have sold very well in tests, Subway marketing chief Tony Pace says.

"We'll help avocado go mainstream," Pace says. So mainstream, that upcoming TV spots will showcase spokesjocks Michael Phelps and Apolo Ohno juggling avocados.

The move comes at a time avocado is showing up in new chips, dips and cooking oils. More than 75 new products made with avocado have rolled out over the past five years, Datamonitor reports. And domestic avocado sales rocketed to 1.3 billion pounds in 2010, up 16%, the Hass Avocado Board says.

Don't be surprised if some burger giants — under pressure to add nutritional offerings — soon embrace avocados, says Tom Vierhile, director of product launch analytics at researcher Datamonitor.

Subway's move is a bid to separate itself from major fast-food chains while luring customers from fast-casual chains such as Panera and Chipotle, where avocado is common. Rival Quiznos has sold subs with guacamole for years.

Subway is eager to boost its own better-for-you image. Last month it announced that it had cut sodium in its sandwich line by 15%.

Subway will tout the slogan "Grab the Green" in TV spots that promote avocados as well as the upcoming summer flick Green Lantern. Avocado also will be available on its breakfast sandwiches, Pace says.

"It's very good news nutritionally if you're substituting avocado for mayo," dietitian Hope Warshaw says. But she says, with the avocado spread at 70 calories per serving, "from a calorie perspective you can't do better than mustard and vinegar."

Konformist Book Club: Guy Fieri Food

Guy Fieri Food: Cookin' It, Livin' It, Lovin' It
Guy Fieri (Author), Ann Volkwein (Author)

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Amazon Exclusive: Guy Fieri on Writing Guy Fieri Food: Cookin' It, Livin' It, Lovin' It

The idea behind creating Guy Fieri Food was to pull together the stories and recipes that show how I got to where I am today. I’ve put everything into this book as if it was the last thing I will ever do. That’s a huge position to take, and everyone who participated, from family to friends to supporting teams, had the same attitude from beginning to end. It was Go Big or Go Home.

With my Guy Fieri Knuckle Sandwich team, I developed recipes for the book by brainstorming on camping trips, on airplanes, through texts, over voicemails, on cocktail napkins, and by stepping into somebody’s kitchen while on the road. Every moment, all the time, the recipe machine was on. I can’t taste it, look at it, see it, smell it, want it, or be around it without thinking what more it could be, where it could be used and how it could be served. Creating new recipes is like playing on a giant culinary playground—as long as you bring a fearless attitude you’re in the game.

This book has it all. Dozens and dozens of kickass recipes? Got ‘em. Stories of my younger days wrangling pigs, becoming Mr. Awesome Pretzel, and mastering flambé captain duties? Of course! But I’ll also give you the backstory behind starting my restaurants and the recipes that became my culinary foundation, and I’ll even lead you through a tour of vegetables with my go-to methods on when to get them and how to best cook ‘em up. This is a 360 experience, from my roots to my restaurants to my shows and all the great food in between. Guy Fieri Food will feed all your senses, and if we had a good scratch and sniff it would’ve been in there.
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From Guy Fieri Food: Cookin' It, Livin' It, Lovin' It: S’more Pizza

Makes 2 pizzas

Ingredients

2 store-bought 1-pound pizza dough balls
1/4 cup slivered almonds
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 sleeve graham crackers, crushed (about 1-1/4 cups crumbs)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup fine cornmeal
3 cups mini marshmallows
Two 4-ounce dark chocolate bars, broken into 1/4- inch chunks
Special Equipment: pizza peel and pizza stone (or pizza pan)

I say it on Triple D all the time— everything has a “kicker.” It’s what it takes to make the dish outta bounds. The kicker here is chili and cayenne. . . . Ooooh yeahhhhhh!

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Form the pizza dough into two 12- to 14- inch rounds, 1/4-inch thick. Bake, preferably on a pizza stone, for 4 to 6 minutes, until just beginning to brown. (See page 157 for more help on shaping and baking pizza crusts.) Leave the oven on at 400°F.

3. While the pizza crust is baking, toast the almonds in a dry medium skillet over medium- high heat. Transfer the almonds to a plate to cool.

4. Melt the butter in the skillet. Add the graham cracker crumbs, chili powder, cayenne, and salt. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the crumbs are well- coated. Remove from the heat and set aside.

5. For each pizza, top the crust with half of the marshmallows and scatter half of the chocolate over the marshmallows. Return to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes, until the marshmallows are puffed and lightly browned. Sprinkle the pizza with half of the graham cracker mixture and top with half of the almonds. Let rest 3 to 4 minutes, slice, and serve. Repeat to make the second pizza.

Product Description

If you've checked out my Diners, Drive-ins and Dives books or visited my restaurants, Johnny Garlic's and Tex Wasabi's, you know I'm down with all types of good food—and that I'll do what's required to track it down. In Guy Fieri Food, I'm cookin' it my way, from the perfect recipe for Pepper Jack Pretzels (from Mr. Awesome Pretzel himself—that's me) to how to pull together a Red Rocker Margarita Chicken sandwich to a full-on vegetable Guy'd (bet you didn't see that one comin'!). Before I'm finished I'll have you throwing parties with everything from Bacon-Jalapeno Duck appe-tapas to Chicago Beef Pizza to Johnny Garlic's Cedar Plank Salmon.

Fact is, I've been cookin' it, livin' it, and lovin' it since I was just a kid, and it's a privilege to help you bring home some of my own classic, big, and bold flavors.

About the Author

In 2006, Guy Fieri premiered his first show, Guy's Big Bite, on Food Network after winning season two of The Next Food Network Star. Today, this “culinary rock star” hosts two additional top-rated shows on the network: Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and Tailgate Warriors. And on March 14, 2010, Guy made his debut as a game show host on the NBC prime­time series Minute to Win It.

In 2011, Guy officially launched CWK (Cooking with Kids;), a program that encourages developing healthy eating habits to address the childhood obesity crisis, strengthen the family unit by sharing quality time in the kitchen, and as a result increase our children's self-esteem in a fun and positive way.

Guy's first two books were the New York Times bestselling Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives: An All-American Road Trip . . . with Recipes! and More Diners, Drive-ins and Dives: Another Drop-Top Culinary Cruise Through America's Finest and Funkiest Joints.

Guy owns five restaurants in Northern California, including three Johnny Garlic's and two Tex Wasabi's, and resides in Northern California with his wife, Lori, and two boys, Hunter and Ryder.

Product Details
Hardcover: 416 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks (May 3, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061894559
ISBN-13: 978-0061894558

Hardcover Edition: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061894559/thekonformist

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Guy-Fieri-Food-Cookin-ebook/dp/B004JN1D50/thekonformist

Stoner Cooking: SuperFood Omelet

http://www.naturalnews.com/032263_superfoods_brain_health.html

SuperFood Omelet helps the brain and body
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Dr. David Jockers

(NaturalNews) Foods that have an incredible array of health benefits that go well beyond just their nutrient value are considered 'super-foods.' When we combine certain superfoods together it creates nutritional synergy that boosts the bioavailability of the nutrients found within. The new superfood omelet is an example of superfood synergy that both powers up your brain and body.

Eggs: This has been a misaligned food for the past 40 years. Many people eat egg whites for the high quality bioavailability of the amino acids found within. Egg yolks, often discarded due to fears over saturated fat and cholesterol, are considered the most nutrient dense region of the egg. The yolk is loaded with anti-oxidants and B vitamins that have been shown in studies to raise HDL (the good cholesterol) and lower triglycerides. Egg yolk also significantly boosts metabolism and fat burning.

Eggs are a major source of the brain enhancing B vitamin choline. Choline also helps the liver detoxify correctly and increases fat-loss potential. According to Iowa State researchers in 2007, 90% of the American population is choline deficient. Egg yolks and egg based lecithins are some of the richest and most bioavailable sources of choline.

Choline is important for the brain for several reasons. It helps to produce phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin. These two molecules make up a particularly high percentage of the brain's total mass. Choline also helps to form a critical neurotransmitter in the brain called acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is the body's primary molecule for sending messages between nerves & muscles.

Choline also helps protect the body's stores of a folic acid which is a key B vitamin for the development and maintenance of the nervous system. Finally, choline has important anti-inflammatory properties called methylation. This process of methylation plays a significant role in many chemical events which actually turn certain genes on and off in the body.

Spinach: Popeye got it right with this nutrient rich vegetable. Spinach contains its own type of plant based steroids called phytoecdysteroids. Phytoecdysteroids are similar to insect molting hormones and have been shown to dramatically increase glucose metabolism. This keeps blood sugar levels stable and minimizes the need for the critical fat-storage hormone insulin. Additionally, phytoecdysteroids increase human muscle tissue growth rates by 20% when applied in a culture medium.
Spinach is also rich in the powerful carotenoid anti-oxidants lutein and zeaxanthin. These phytonutrients are extremely important for healthy vision & brain function. Additionally, spinach is an important source of copper, zinc and selenium which boost immunity.

Red onions: These contain sulfur groups that powerfully assist the body in weight loss and detoxification. Red onions are also a rich source of the flavonoid anti-oxidant quercetin and the polyphenol anti-oxidant anthocyanin. These anti-oxidants prevent the oxidation of dietary and cellular fatty acids. This helps stabilize and protect the essential fatty acids we are consuming in our egg omelet. Additionally, red onions are a fantastic source of chromium which lowers blood sugar and enhances cellular insulin sensitivity.

SuperFood Omelet:

3-6 large organic, free-range eggs with organic coconut milk for creaminess - whip it up.
2 Tbsp of Extra Virgin Coconut oil
2 cups of Spinach
1/4 red onion freshly diced
Stainless Steel Pan

Apply coconut oil to pan and begin heating. Pour egg/coconut milk into pan and begin cooking. Flip one half over the other to keep onions in the center. Omelet should be solid but not black or burned in any way. Put it on a bed of raw spinach and apply apple cider vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, pink salt, and herbs. Homemade salsa or ketchup can be used as well.

About the author

Dr. David Jockers owns and operates Exodus Health Center in Kennesaw, Ga. He is a Maximized Living doctor. His expertise is in weight loss, customized nutrition & exercise, & structural corrective chiropractic care. For more information go to www.exodushc.com To find a Maximized Living doctor near you go to http://www.maximizedliving.com/