CK Food Links--Friday May 15, 2009

Here's yet another selection of particularly interesting links from around the internet. As always, I welcome your thoughts and your feedback.

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Frank Bruni Steps Down at the New York Times
The man who made the world safe for prompous food writing is retiring from his job as restaurant critic of the NY Times. In a move that one commenter said "has the stench of cost-cutting," the Times kicks Bruni upstairs to a part time gig with the Times Magazine.

Sugar Stacks
A brand new site that will show you in easy to understand terms (i.e. stacks of sugar cubes) exactly how much sugar is in the various foods we eat. And it's particularly horrifyingly to see how much sugar there is in soda (uh, the equivalent of 27 and a half sugar cubes for a 1-liter bottle of Coke!).

A Culture of Thrift from the New York Times
"The economic downturn is forcing a return to a culture of thrift that many economists say could last well beyond the inevitable recovery." I could think of worse things that could happen to our society.

Make Your Own Vanilla Extract from Eggs on Sunday
Amy has a wonderful post on how to make a homemade and much cheaper version of one of the pantry's most expensive items.

The Girl Drink Drunk
This video carries some extra sting because these kinds of drinks are all they serve in Hawaii. I tried to say that it takes a real man, who is truly confident with his masculinity, to drink these sweet and fruity beverages, but nobody seems to believe me. Thanks to Living in the Kitchen with Puppies for this one.

The Truth About Mayonnaise from Dana McCauley's Food Blog
"Although commercial mayo actually contains enough acid to deter bacterial growth, it encourages foods to cling to one another. The close proximity of the ingredients in these salads can cause any bacteria present to grow and spread throughout the dish quickly." Oh vile, acrid goo, now you cause my food to become co-dependent too?

What Have You Given Up That You Don't Miss? at The Reductionist
I really like this meme because there is no better way to save money than to cut out things you find you don't even want. The idea started with No More Spending, but the Reductionist has added a few favorite items we scorn here at CK, including cereal, bottled water and several examples of second-order foods.

Spontaneous Chicken Breasts at Stacey Snacks
Sick of boring old chicken breasts? Stacey brings us a creative and really easy recipe to dress them up. For another variation, see Dave Katz's Stuffed Chicken Breasts over at Accidental Hedonist.

In Offense of Food on The Colbert Report
Steven Colbert samples $1,000 menu items at three restaurants--it's worth watching if only to see Colbert smear caviar on his face and then skip out when the check arrives.




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