Food And Wine News Archive

WHERE TO FIND IT

Paella pans are fairly easy to find in well-stocked cookware departments. Here are some resources for specialty Spanish ingredients and cookware: Read more…

Omit butter to make vegetarian dish vegan

I appreciated Aleta Watson's article offering a Thanksgiving vegetarian main dish (``Don't leave vegetarians out in the cold,'' Nov. 15). Vegetarians are generally neglected in this arena (I always end up making my own main to add to my family's food selection), and the recipe looked like an excellent option. Read more…

Share New Orleans food tales

If you have enjoyed food in New Orleans, the Southern Foodways Alliance wants to hear from you. The organization is teaming with the McIlhenny Co., makers of Tabasco sauce, to preserve the culinary stories of the region -- many lost to Hurricane Katrina. Read more…

Stew from the old country

My 81-year-old mother was born in Ohio, but she didn't learn to speak English until she was 5. In those days, Cleveland's East Side was its own little Eastern Bloc, a jigsaw map of immigrant Slovaks, Hungarians, Poles, Romanians, Bohemians and Slovenians, and a girl didn't need to know any language but her neighbors' until she went to school. The men worked in steel mills and machine-parts factories. The women (who often worked, too) cooked and scrubbed and otherwise reprised the lives they'd had... Read more…

Food 101: What you should know about olive oil standards

Q My mother says that EVOO should not be used for cooking because it can be dangerous to one's health at high temperatures. She tells me that it should be used only for salad dressing. Is that true? If not, what can I say to her to convince her that it is false? If EVOO shouldn't be used for cooking, I doubt that so many of the TV chefs would use it. Read more…

Produce picks: Tomato prices

We are starting to see higher tomato prices again. And not just on the slicing round tomatoes, but on Roma, cherry, grape and cocktail tomatoes as well. Prices will be dancing in the $3 to $4 per pound price range. The main problem is bad weather in Mexico, which supplies tomatoes to California from Thanksgiving to Mother's Day. Mexico's premier tomato growing region is in the state of Sinaloa, primarily in the valley between Los Mochis and Culiac�n. Most growers say that hurricanes John... Read more…

N.Y. pastry chef dishes secrets on four-star desserts

Pity the poor pastry chef. To become one of the better ones, you typically spend years in cooking school, then apprentice for years in top restaurants to master your craft. Finally, you get your own kitchen, only to find that the lavish meals leave some customers with little room for dessert. Read more…

More Morsels: Whole Foods joins battle on hunger

It's the season for giving. And it's easy to do so through these holiday food and wine programs. At Whole Foods' 20 Northern California locations through Dec. 31, you can purchase a pre-packed ``Stop Hunger Now'' bag of groceries, which the stores are donating to local food banks. Each $6.99 bag contains packages of Whole Foods' private-label rice, pasta, beans, canned tuna, macaroni and cheese, and peanut butter. For store locations, go to www.whole foods.com. Read more…

Home Plates: Readers share icebox fruitcake memories

Icebox fruitcake dates itself. As far as recipe names go, icebox fruitcake is Sansabelts and support hose. But while iceboxes have given way to smart fridges, this chilled fruitcake-esque concoction lives on. A number of you understood just why Susan Machado's dad misses icebox fruitcake; you shared recipes that for the most part use graham crackers, marshmallows and the usual fruitcake culprits: nuts, raisins and candied fruit. Read more…

Daniel: How to buy party wine -- and stay on budget

As we move into the holiday party season, most of us will be buying wine either for our own parties or to take a couple of bottles to a BYO celebration. You probably don't want to spend too much money, but you also may not want to resort to Two-Buck Chuck. (Your guests, of course, will know how little you spent!) Read more…

Spanish modern: Science, sorcery give chefs new flair

Into the stainless steel mixing bowl goes liquid nitrogen, so cold it's below minus-320 degrees. A witch's cauldron of wispy vapors spew as a mixture of ordinary olive oil and clear tomato juice is sprayed in. Then the extraordinary begins. Read more…

BSE case reported In Czech Republic - (Meatingplace.com)

A new case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy has been reported in the Czech Republic, bringing the country's total to 25, an official said Monday. A 6-year-old cow from a farm in Semily, 100 kilometers northeast of Prague, tested positive for BSE. The Czech Republic's first case of BSE was reported in June 2001. More than a million cows have been tested in the country for the disease since early 2001. Read more…

US -- South Korea -- Beef - (Associated Press)

WASHINGTON -- Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns was cited as telling reporters Tuesday in Washington that South Korea authorities had "invented" a standard for imports when they halted beef shipments from a U.S. meatpacker, adding, "They have applied a standard we did not agree to. It was a standard that they invented along the way." Cut off by mad cow disease in 2003, American beef shipments had resumed only recently after lengthy negotiations with South Korea. The country was a major buyer of U.S. beef, purchasing more than $1.2 billion in beef products in the year before the ban, according to the Agriculture Department. Only Japan, with a market once worth $1.4 billion to U.S. producers, was a bigger customer. Both countries have agreed to accept only boneless beef from the United States because some Asian countries consider bone to carry a greater risk for mad cow disease. That is stricter than international rules, which deem many bone-in cuts of beef to be safe. Last week, South Korea suspended imports from Creekstone Farms Premium Beef because authorities said they found a bone fragment in boneless beef. Creekstone raises Black Angus cattle in Kentucky and slaughters them in Arkansas City, Kan. Johanns was further quoted as saying, "They found a small piece of cartilage, rejected the whole shipment, notwithstanding the fact that this is not a threat to anyone. They acknowledge it's not a threat to anyone. And I've got a company�a very good company, I might add�who has gone to the expense of shipping product over there with a promise that the market is open, only to find out that the market isn't even close to open." Kim Chang-seob, the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry's chief veterinary officer, was cited as saying last week he expects U.S. officials to visit for talks about the bone fragment, and that once South Korea's concerns are addressed, imports from the slaughterhouse could resume. Read more…

Produce Safety & Security International Inc. announces cost effective food safe ozone process proactive solution for Fresh Produce Pilot Plant at Prescott Arizona facility - (Produce Safety & Security International, Inc.)

PRESCOTT, Ariz -- Produce Safety and Security International, Inc. (Pink Sheets:PDSC), (�PDSC�), an ozone and chemical sanitation disinfectant process supplier to the food and medical industries, provides a Ozone Food Safe Process Pilot Plant Program at the Prescott, Arizona facility and warehouse. Clarence W. Karney, CEO of Produce Safety & Security International, Inc., states, �the cost effective Ozone Food Safe Process and Spherequat� 6400 EPA Registered product will provide a complete Pilot Plant Program Food Safe Process for the removal of Food Borne Illness Bacteria. The new Pilot Plant Food Safe Process will provide a complete training program and audit trail. The Food Safe Process will provide cost savings for the producer and customer showing a reduction of liability insurance premiums, extension of shelf-life and product confidence of a Food Safe Product. The Pilot Plant Program will provide training for Food Industry Personnel for all aspects of Food Safety Process for the Food Industry at all levels." About Produce Safety & Security International, Inc. (PDSC) PDSC has developed and patented products for extending the shelf life of perishables. The EPA-registered products sanitize and disinfect against food-borne illness pathogens and disease-causing bacteria. PDSC provides a range of options for retail stores, restaurants, cruise ship lines, disaster cleanups and municipal programs. Furthermore, the process incorporates a complete audit trail, an essential component for complying with government regulations in the USA, Canada and Mexico. PDSC's state-of-the-art ozone process has been shown to extend the shelf life and remove food borne illness bacteria. This process will provide retail produce departments reduced shrinkage, increase the bottom line and provide a fresher product for the consumer. The customer will be assured of a safe food product, by use of this process, which may be used on organic produce to remove the pathogens. This process uses no chemicals thus meeting the requirements of organic certification. For further product information, joint venture opportunities, distributorship program information, or program applications, please go to PDSC's website www.foodsafeint.com. Read more…

The raw milk debate - (Owen Sound Sun Times (ON))

Paul Hallman, Chairman, Grey Bruce Landowners Association, writes to say "thanks for Brae Surgeoner and Hazel Lynn for their researched and comprehensive contributions in your recent editorial section. "Together, indeed individually, the two pieces outline the risks associated with raw milk. If true, they detail the safety and nutritional value of pasteurized milk. "Yet Hallman hasn�t read anything to conclude that any risks associated with raw milk trump an individual's right to choose. "The members of Michael Schmidt's farm have researched and concluded that they require or prefer raw milk against reviewing all opposing arguments. "If they were acting above the law, why didn't the government respond to Michael's invitations to review the situation? And why the use of the MNR battle division? It appeared to be overkill. "I drink red wine, sometimes more then the one glass per day. On the other hand, I take whole grains and fruit for breakfast. Yet I'll have coffee, then later a salad, then a little trans fat. And I enjoy the occasional tobacco product. Some choices come with health risks, others with benefits. I weigh and assume them. "Driving, working, sports, recreation, socializing, in short living, has risks, some immediately serious or fatal. Life is raw, not pasteurized. Imagine life if it were any other way. "I greatly appreciate Surgeoner's statement "Adults, do whatever you think works ..." The critical word in that statement is think (left out the don't inflict it on your kids part -- dp) "As a species we live or die by our minds. The ability to acquire information, reason and form conclusions sets us apart and defines us as human. We have no other faculty of survival. In destroying our minds we undermine our existence. "One destroyer of minds is the use of force to compel citizens to act against their conclusions. If the state does everyone's thinking for them, we will have a homogenized society. Minds as such will cease to exist. Following that, the world we work to understand for our benefit will in turn bewilder us and the result will be a return to the primitive. "The government's proper function is the use of force to prevent and punish those who choose or act to harm others. Other than that, the domain of choice is hands off for the state. "Regardless of which side of the raw milk debate you stand on, the membership of Michael Schmidt's farm have done nothing to harm others. They have made personal choices affecting their personal lives. They assume all risks. "Education, information and promotion are acceptable tools in a case such as this. "There is no moral justification to force them to stop, even if done in the name of their own good. "To be sure, it is beyond possibility to use force - to use the state - against its citizens for their own good." +++++++++++++++++++++ Gordon Hume of Meaford, Ont., writes that "in the debate about selling unpasteurized milk, one significant item seems to have been neglected. "Children (and adults) are at risk of serious illness from drinking raw milk. "I know because as a child I was sick for 10 months with undulant fever, which doctors told me can only come from two sources - either unpasteurized milk or raw fish. "We never ate raw fish. In cows, it emanates from the disease brucellosis and in cows it can cause abortions. "Even though no such cattle were found on our family farm or my uncle's farm, I still caught the disease. "As a result, I ended up in Sick Children's Hospital in Toronto where I was eventually diagnosed and treated. "I suffered some side effects for several years, but finally recovered. Doctors and veterinarians are now aware of this disease, but I have not seen it mentioned in any of the articles or letters to the papers. "Parents especially need to be aware of this risk to their children, even if the cows test free of brucellosis. "I fully support those who say that raw milk should not be available to the public." +++++++++++++++++++++++ Kim White of Chatsworth, Ont., writes that "pasteurization does not destroy all of the vitamins in milk, but it does denature fragile milk proteins and it does destroy enzymes, beneficial bacteria and a special fat-soluble catalyst that promotes optimum mineral assimilation. "It is associated with increased tooth decay, allergies, growth problems in children, osteoporosis, heart disease and arthritis. "Let's not forget that the number of deaths today from drinking raw milk is quite small (mostly because of modern sanitation and treatments) and that the illnesses that do occur are much more likely in those with already compromised immune systems (such as those taking certain prescription or non-prescription drugs, or those with complications from mercury dental amalgams that have been put in our mouths for years, which they still will not admit to having poisoned us with). "Would not the same individuals need to be concerned about infection from any number of different sources? "And don't forget that pasteurization does not always kill pathogens. One particular resistant germ infects most confinement cows and has been linked to Crohn's disease. "Meanwhile, raw milk from pasture-fed cows has many health- promoting benefits, such as lots of "good" fatty acids which stimulate the immune system and protect against disease. "By Dr. Lynn's own records, there have been no illnesses reported that have been linked to Michael Schmidt's farm in the many years that he and others have been drinking his milk. Why? "He invited our health officials to become involved and learn, but instead we still have the same old situation of poor quality (hazardous, actually) commercial milk and others producing raw milk using improper methods with a greater chance of making themselves, or others, sick. "Legalizing the sale of raw milk that is properly produced and allowing smaller farms to sell directly to consumers would, however, cut into the market of the 'big guys.'" Read more…

Raid by police, health authorities flabbergasts Ontario dairy farmer - (Canadian Press/Toronto Star)

TORONTO -- Michael Schmidt, a hunger-striking Ontario farmer who ran afoul of decades-old legislation forbidding the sale of raw milk found himself at the centre of a standoff with police and public health authorities Tuesday when they surrounded a bus from which he sells organic food. Schmidt was cited as saying he had parked his bus in a suburban parking lot north of Toronto when he found himself surrounded by a phalanx of police officers and public health inspectors, but he refused to let police board the bus because they did not have a search warrant, adding, "They kind of stood around the whole bus for probably over an hour. Finally, they left." The story says that the show of force came one week after Schmidt's farm near Durham, Ont., about 45 kilometres south of Owen Sound, was raided last week by Ministry of Natural Resources inspectors -- a raid that has made him a cause celebre for those who favour natural foods. He's also become a lightning rod for the anger of farmers who say they're fed up with heavy-handed bureaucracy. Canadian health authorities say unpasteurized milk can contain potentially lethal E. coli, salmonella or other dangerous organisms. Federal law prevents the sale or giving away of unpasteurized milk in Canada and Ontario's own Milk Act contains a similar ban. Ontario Agriculture Minister Leona Dombrowsky was quoted as saying, "There has been a law in Ontario that any milk sold to the public has to be pasteurized that's been on the books since the 1930s. It's important that it's there. It's there for a good reason." Cow shareholder Judith McGill, of Richmond Hill, just north of Toronto, was quoted as calling the bust "outrageous" adding, "We prefer to buy our foods through farmers; we want to have a relationship with the farmer. This is a foolproof system: to buy food from people you know and trust." Ontario Landowners Association president Randy Hillier was quoted as saying, "This is just another example of government's thirst to control each and every aspect of people's lives in this country and creating regulations that provide no value to anybody. We are not going to take this intrusion and this removal of our freedoms lightly. We are going to stand and defend ourselves." Karim Kurji, acting medical officer of health for York Region was cited as saying the raid was the culmination of an 18-month investigation that involved several public health units, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, and the OPP, adding, "We regard unpasteurized milk as a health risk and we want to ensure that the public is protected from being able to consume it." For the last few years, a number of health units, including York Region, have known that unpasteurized milk was being sold within their borders. In 2005, three people - two in Simcoe County and one in Toronto - became infected with E.coli 0157: H7. According to Kurji, the cases were linked, through DNA-typing, to samples of unpasteurized milk. Yesterday, York Region Public Health tried to stop Schmidt from selling raw milk from the blue bus. But Kurji says they were denied access to the premises. York Region is currently looking for alternate ways, including legal options, to safeguard the public's health. Schmidt was quoted as saying, "There is enough evidence that raw milk, if it's properly produced, is never a health hazard. I have total faith in my product. I've been doing this for 33 years. I know what I'm doing. I'm coming from a country (Germany) where they are not so nutcases with respect to sterilizing the whole food so that you eat lifeless food. � It should be a regulated market, just like in Europe or some (American) states where they have a certifying body for organic milk." Read more…

Freshly baked handouts forbidden in Fairfax - (Washington Post)

Health officials were cited as saying yesterday that under a tough new Fairfax County policy, residents can no longer donate food prepared in their homes or a church kitchen -- be it a tuna casserole, sandwiches or even a batch of cookies -- unless the kitchen is approved by the county, and that the crackdown on home-cooked meals is aimed at preventing food poisoning among homeless people. But, the story says, it is infuriating operators of shelters for the homeless and leaders of a coalition of churches that provides shelter and meals to homeless people during the winter. They said the strict standards for food served in the shelters will make it more difficult to serve healthy, hot meals to homeless people. The enforcement also, they said, makes little sense. Jim Brigl, chief executive of Fairfax Area Christian Emergency & Transitional Services., was quoted as saying, "We're very aware that a number of homeless people eat out of dumpsters, and mom's pot roast has got to be healthier than that. But that doesn't meet the code." For the complete news item, please visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/28/AR2006112801583.html Read more…

Boil-water advisory was 'the right decision' - (The Vancouver Sun)

GREATER VANCOUVER -- Water commissioner Johnny Carline was quoted as saying during a news conference near the beginning of the 12-day boil-water advisory that, "Nobody is dying in the streets." The story says that when things go badly wrong with drinking water systems, people die. In 1993 in Milwaukee, Wis., 400,000 people got sick and 100 died after the parasite cryptosporidium got into the water supply. In North Battleford, Sask., five years ago, 7,000 people became ill, also because of cryptosporidium. The deaths of several people who caught the bug were attributed to other causes. In Walkerton, Ont., hundreds were ill and seven died in 2000 when the water was contaminated with E. coli bacteria. Vancouver Coastal medical health officer Dr. Patricia Daly was quoted as saying Tuesday, "So far, we don't have any evidence of an increase in reportable disease rates. I think from our point of view it went very well. We've never dealt with anything on this scale before." While there was no major outbreak of illness, officials won't know until statistics trickle in from various agencies whether there was a minor uptick. Some of the other questions that will be asked: Was the boil-water advisory really necessary? Daly was quoted as saying, "We believe it was necessary, that we made the right decision. What we're going to be looking at in our debrief is, what are our criteria for doing this in the future? What did we learn from this? Can we refine what we know about the watershed?" Medical health officers will get together in mid-December for a formal debriefing. Did the advisory cause a panic when people cleaned stores out of bottled water in the first two days? Daly said residents wouldn't have to rush out for bottled water if they kept a three-day emergency supply on hand -- two litres per person per day. This is, after all, an earthquake zone and when the Big One hits, there may be no running water and no outside help for a few days. She said the public reacted much as expected, but next fall before the rainy season begins, the health authorities may remind residents to stock up on water, just in case. Did the authorities do a good job of communicating with the public? The major communications strategy was news conferences, half a dozen of them during the 12-day advisory, with health and water experts on hand. You can't knock on every door in a region of two million people, Daly said, and news conferences were the most efficient way to reach the maximum number of people. The strategy worked. The water story led the news virtually every day of the advisory, and Carline said the reports hit the right notes, getting a sense of urgency out to the public without spreading panic. Read more…

Another mixed fruit recall in Hampton Roads - (WTKR Your NewsChannel 3 - Norfolk, VA)

For the second time this month, a Norfolk food packer has voluntarily recalled its mixed fruit product. The owner of Krisp-Pak tells Your NewsChannel 3 that one sample of the mixed fruit tested positive for listeria. Of the 49 samples sent out for testing, only one came back positive Monday. The samples were taken from Krisp-Pak on November 14th. Local grocery stores have been notified. 40 Farm Fresh stores across Hampton Roads and two Super K-Marts, one on Military Highway and another on Holland Road, have pulled the mixed fruit from their shelves. So far, there have been no reports of anyone being sick. Read more…

Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies advisory committee; notice of meeting - (Federal Register, Vol. 71, No. 229)

[Federal Register: (Volume 71, Number 229)] [Page 69134-69135] [DOCID:fr29no06-62] AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS. ACTION: Notice. This notice announces a forthcoming meeting of a public advisory committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The meeting will be open to the public. Name of Committee: Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Advisory Committee. General Function of the Committee: To provide advice and recommendations to the agency on FDA's regulatory issues. Date and Time: The meeting will be held on December 15, 2006, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Location: Crown Plaza Silver Spring, 8777 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, MD. The hotel telephone number is 301-589-0800. Contact Person: William Freas, or Rosanna L. Harvey, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (HFM-71), Food and Drug Administration, 1401 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-1448, 301-827-0314, or FDA Advisory Committee Information Line, 1-800-741-8138 (301-443-0572 in the Washington, DC area), code 3014512392. Please call the Information Line for up-to-date information on this meeting. Agenda: On December 15, 2006, the committee will discuss FDA's risk assessment for potential exposure to variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in human plasma-derived antihemophilic factor (FVIII) products manufactured from U. S. plasma donors and related communication materials. In the afternoon, the committee will discuss levels of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy clearance in the manufacture of plasma-derived Factor VIII products. FDA intends to make background material available to the public no later than one business day before the meeting. If FDA is unable to post the background material on its Web site prior to the meeting, the background material will be made publicly available at the location of the advisory committee meeting, and the background material will be posted on FDA's Web site after the meeting. Background material is available at http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/ac/acmenu.htm, click on the year 2006 and scroll down to the appropriate advisory committee link. Procedure: Interested persons may present data, information, or views, orally or in writing, on issues pending before the committee. Written submissions may be made to the contact person on or before December 11, 2006. Oral presentations from the public will be scheduled between approximately 10:25 and 10:55 a.m. and 1:35 and 2:05 p.m. on December 15, 2006. Those desiring to make formal oral presentations should notify the contact person and submit a brief statement of the general nature of the evidence or arguments they wish to present, the names and addresses of proposed participants, and an indication of the approximate time requested to make their presentation on or before December 7, 2006. Time allotted for each presentation may be limited. If the number of registrants requesting to speak is greater than can be reasonably accommodated during the scheduled open public hearing session, FDA may conduct a lottery to determine the speakers for the scheduled open public hearing session. The contact person will notify interested persons regarding their request to speak by December 8, 2006. Persons attending FDA's advisory committee meetings are advised that the agency is not responsible for providing access to electrical outlets. FDA welcomes the attendance of the public at its advisory committee meetings and will make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability, please contact William Freas or Rosanna L. Harvey at least 7 days in advance of the meeting. Notice of this meeting is given under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. app. 2). Read more…

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