Category: food

I ate 3/4 of a bottle of ketchup the other night. I didn’t really mean to do it, it just kind of happened. Let’s face it, when someone goes out to happy hour and doesn’t get a real meal until about 11pm, ordering a sausage and cheese omelet and hash browns is one of the only acceptable choices. And what goes better with that than ketchup? Ok, so maybe not so much ketchup, but you get the idea: I really like ketchup.

Speaking of which, is there anything more obnoxious than ordering a ketchup-friendly meal and discovering that the restaurant does not have Heinz? Watery Hunt’s just doesn’t cut it! Once in Richmond, Virginia at a pizza place called Mary Angela’s (which, despite what I am about to tell you, has the best pizza in Richmond), the bottle of Heinz on our table had run out. I went up to the counter to get more, but quickly recoiled in horror as I watched the waitress fill up the friendly Heinz bottle with drivel from a big tub of HUNT’S! Utter devastation!

This happens more often than you think. Ever wonder why sometimes the Heinz flows right out of the bottle and other times it is difficult to get out? Because IT’S NOT ALWAYS HEINZ. Next time your ketchup comes out a little to easy, pay close attention the flavor… You are probably a victim of the Heinz Hoodwink.

When I was in 8th grade, my french class took a 5-day field trip up to Québec City in Canada. Letting a group of junior high school kids loose in a foreign country isn’t exactly the wisest idea, but that’s another story for another time.

One thing I will always remember from that trip was our visit to an authentic Canadian sugar shack, or “cabane à sucre“, which is basically a “farm” where maple syrup and other maple products are harvested. Many sugar shacks, however, have become tourist destinations where people go each spring (maple sap harvest time) to load up on sugar after a barren Canadian winter. The feast includes lots of pancakes and syrup, obviously, but also traditional sugar shack fare such as pea soup, baked beans, maple-cured ham, “oreilles de crisse” (fried strips of salt pork), omelettes, and maple-sweetened desserts like sugar pie, crepes and “grands-pères” (dumplings poached in maple syrup). And there’s plenty of syrup to go on each and every one of these delicacies.

Now, I have no memory of eating pea soup with maple syrup in 8th grade (although I must admit the idea of returning to do this seems intriguing), but I most certainly will never forget the one culinary delight that simply blew me away at first taste: Maple Butter. This delicious spread is made by cooking, cooling, then whipping pure maple syrup. It is best served on toast, but it can also be put on pancakes, french toast, etc. Yum!

So I purchased a small bottle of this maple butter from the sugar shack, and it was a huge hit at home. Problem was, the bottle was gone after about a week. No more maple butter! And, while this stuff is readily available in QC, it was pretty hard to come by in the US (unless you lived in Vermont). Years passed, and while I never had another chance to try maple butter, it still entered my thoughts from time to time.

(Get ready for another one of Mike’s “how great is the internet” stories)

So, the beauty of the internet is that, a few years ago, I was able to find maple butter from a Canadian e-commerce site. I have to admit it was not as good as that fresh butter I had right from the sugar shack years ago, it was pretty damn “sweet” to have maple butter back in my life. In recent years, I’ve seen it more and more often in specialty food stores and catalogs. Two years ago I was able to find a bottle in Williams-Sonoma, and just the other day I saw a jar in Whole Foods (although I did not buy it since a recent trip to Canada has a bottle of the real stuff in my fridge).

You can also get Maple Butter at Amazon.com (from Vermont) or from Canadian Maple Delights (From Canada). Note that I haven’t tried either of these brands.

If you like maple syrup, maple glazed salmon, or pretty much anything sweet, find a bottle of maple butter and give it a try. You won’t be disappointed. (And get to a sugar shack in QC if you ever have the opportunity!)

Tomorrow brings the annual “Royal Stumble” beer event at Nodding Head in Philly. It is always a really fun event, but don’t take my word for it — read these testimonials:

Local Beer Expert J. Wisdom says:

This wacked-out event pits brewer against brewer in a wrestling-style smackdown! Brewers dress in pro-wrestling garb and compete to see who can drain their kegs the fastest – awwwwwww yeahh! Always a blast and come hell or high water I’ll be there. (ed note: the 2005 theme is superheroes)

Regional Beer Expert Lew Bryson says:

“Best Local Beer Event”: The Royal Stumble at Nodding Head. Brewers dress up in silly outfits and chase you with beer. Sometimes they even bring along pretty young women to chase you with beer. Everyone brings their best session beer…unless they decide to just be crazy and bring something else, and they chase you with it. Why the chasing? Because whosoever’s keg kicks first, wins. It’s fast, it’s furious, it’s funny… Mothers, hide your children.

Mike from songoose.com says:

This event is a lazy man’s dream! Grab a booth and sit back while brewers bring you their beer and try to convince you to have more. Of course, if you like to get up and mingle, I suppose you can do that too.

Sorry, but this event is sold out. Still, if it sounds like something you’d like to attend, keep an eye out for a beer festival near you. They are great events to try new specialty beers that you wouldn’t find at your local watering hole or distributor. Plus, since there is a reasonable cost and no American Light Lager (i.e. Miller Lite) to be found, the crowd is a bit different than that of a regular bar. These people are out to have fun, but also to do something different and expand their culinary horizons. Although typically a wine event would get higher “snob” points, it is quite easy to get caught up in the world of specialty beers and the mini-culture that surrounds it.

I recently wrote the following letter to Post Cereals/Kraft Foods. No, I’m not trying to organize a mass boycott, but I do feel strongly and wanted to share my letter with the world. Feel free to contact Kraft Foods yourself if you agree.

**************************************************************************
To Whom it May Concern:

Firstly, I’d like to say that Honey Bunches of Oats is without a doubt the best tasting cereal ever created. It has it all — just the right amount of sweetness (not too much like most sugared cereals), crunch of oats, softer flakes… it is really just the perfect cereal. Or so I thought, until recently.

I’ve decided to take my health much more seriously, and pay more attention to what I eat. (I’ve also noticed that you are taking advantage of the “Whole Grain” craze on your new boxes.) So, imagine my surprise when I discovered that your “perfect” cereal has a little secret: Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, a.k.a. TRANS FAT.

As I’m sure you know, trans fatty acids are pretty much the worst thing a person can put in their body. (I’d hardly call anything made with them “the greatest” anything!) I am hopeful that you are already taking measures to remove this from your cereal, since I’ve noticed some other Kraft foods making the change (Wheat Thins, Triscuit, etc.) to become trans fat free, but nothing is certain, which is why I am writing this note..

I really do hope that you eliminate this horrible part of a great cereal. Although it is only 0.5 grams per serving, I for one am looking to keep my diet as trans fat free as possible. That said, ** I will not buy another box of Honey Bunches of Oats until you stop using Partially Hydrogenated Oils. Period. **

Please change your formula soon. For me, so I can go back to my favorite cereal, and for the rest of the country, to promote good health everywhere.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has finally released their updated food pyramid. Check out mypyramid.gov for your “personalized” pyramid.

My first thoughts are that this is a huge improvement over the previous pyramid, which has become insanely out of date. Gone is the absurd reliance on all grains, including refined breads and pastas. Gone is the insistence that all oils and fats should be used sparingly. Instead, the new system describes a “Healthy Diet” as one that:

* Emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products;
* Includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts; and
* Is low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars.

The food pyramid, while still utilized here, is presented with a twist: individualized plans are based on a person’s age, gender and amount of daily activity. At first this makes perfect sense, because everyone is different and needs to find the diet that works best for them. However, I also have some fears that the added complexity of this individual plan may be a problem for many Americans who have attention spans shorter than your average TV commercial. If people do take the time to research mypyramid.gov, however, they should find some good information that will encourage a healthy lifestyle. (more…)