soupnancy

Bits and Bites Jan 2013

3 Sweet/Pastry shops to try in Montreal  http://fr.chatelaine.com/cuisine/gastronomie-cuisine/3-patissieres-dici/

5 Places to Eat in Little Italy via mayssamaha  http://www.tourisme-montreal.org/blog/where-to-eat/5-places-to-eat-in-little-italy/

Sans gluten et le danger des faux allergies – bien dit! http://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/marie-claude-lortie/201301/25/01-4614933-le-vrai-et-surtout-le-faux-sur-le-gluten.php

Quinoa, the back story – important to think about where all your food comes from, not just meat say http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/16/vegans-stomach-unpalatable-truth-quinoa

Tendances Culinaires selon 8 chefs de Mtl  www.casatv.ca/a-table/tendances-culinaires-2013-selon-8-chefs/

Think about it! Food waste is astronomical and nonsensical.. There have been many articles about this recently, I chose this one.  So, Yes we all have to waste less in the home and restaurant; and yes more importantly, we need to change the industrial food system, which operates askew creating lots of mal-distributed cheap food that sits in the field or ends up in the supermarket bin.  I think that comes down to forgetting about abundant cheap (and pretty) food, more about valuing food, following the seasons, staying close to home.  If you grow your own or buy local from a small producer and get what you get given what is harvested - taking big/small/oblong, you will be less inclined to waste, you put up.  With a direct link between producer and consumer, things don’t get so screwed up..  Food shouldn’t be a commodity, controlled by corporations or the stock market.. Developing countries would be better off concentrating on feeding themselves as opposed to participating in a global economy that just nails them in the end so that Westerners can have cheap food to throw out. www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/jan/10/half-world-food-waste

Dommage que ‘le foodie culture’ n’inspire pas plus; c’est vrai que c’est plus important de cuisiner point! simplement mais pour vrai, sans nécessairement savoir c’est quoi une mandoline ou une truffe http://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/marie-claude-lortie/201301/09/01-4609545-cuisiner-sur-terre.php

A new chapter in Montreal and ‘Canadian cuisine’ – in any case, a well written article by Adam Gollner  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/food-trends/wheres-some-of-the-best-qubcois-food-in-montreal-you-might-be-surprised/article7044220/

To try: Gluten free gnocchi
blog.ideasinfood.com/ideas_in_food/2013/01/janauary-3-2012.html

The ten hottest restaurants ‘in the world’ now http://blog.zagat.com/2013/01/the-10-hottest-restaurants-in-world.html#.UOVXC-vcacg.twitter

Important Foodie reading – the big stuff people in the food world aren’t talking about  I love the spirit of this post, I think a lot of it rings true..  I don’t agree with some of the 20 things, but yes enough with the celebrity chefs when most of your meals are cooked by illegal immigrants; yes the food world has been hijacked by the media, clubs and charlatans; yes we need to rethink the tipping system; and yes nostalgia props up a lot of bad food.  Not sure about foie gras or if I’m willing to say all wine tastes the same, but it doesn’t need to be so complicated either, like sustainable/good food doesn’t have to be a white/upper class thing. http://firstwefeast.com/eat/20-things-everyone-thinks-about-the-food-world-but-nobody-will-say/s/29176/

Food trends for 2013  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/02/dining/after-crispy-pig-ears-10-trends-for-2013.html?ref=dining&_r=2&

A call for renewed resolve (and patience) to fix our food problem  http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/01/fixing-our-food-problem

The history of peanut butter http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2012/11/a-chunky-history-of-peanut-butter.html

Les tables et quartiers Mtl  - Montreal restaurant scene alive more and more in a neighbourhood nearyou http://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/marie-claude-lortie/201301/02/01-4607906-les-tables-et-leurs-quartiers.php

Bits and Bites December 2012

Veronique Rivest – sommelière de Québec, meilleure des Amériques http://www.larvf.com/,veronique-rivest-meilleure-sommeliere-des-ameriques,10337,4267356.asp

‘Dietary Seatbelts’ perhaps necessary because policy as is only “helps big producers make as much money as they can regardless of the consequences.” to our health, environment, society.. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/dietary-seat-belts/?ref=markbittman

Cookbook pics by both the French and English Mtl food book store owners http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/Cookbook+store+owners+choose+their+favourites/7584300/story.html

Maple syrup thiefs http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2012/12/18/quebec-theft-maple-syrup-court.html

My garden includes weeds.  Don’t understand why you wouldn’t want a somewhat natural landscape.. http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/state/lawn-or-meadow-it-takes-a-jersey-judge-to-reaffirm-that-one-mans-weed-is-another-mans-wildflower

Top Montreal Restaurants for 2012 selon Lesley Chesterman http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/food-wine/Fine+Dining+Lesley+Chesterman+restaurants+2012/7702501/story.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Escargot Caviar  Without having tasted it, don’t know if it’s more hype and trendy due to rarity and expense or just really good.. http://www.starchefs.com/cook/savory/product/escargot-caviar

Achats responsible http://www.recyc-quebec.gouv.qc.ca/client/fr/rubriques/liens.asp?idTypeLib=60 (move)

A Montreal ‘Best of’ list for 2012 by J.P. Tastet– restaurants and books.. http://mixeur.tv/actualite/best-of-2012

Now, Forager, a poor review of a what seems to be a potentially very interesting movie featuring wild mushrooms, promoting Slow Food http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/now-forager-2012-film-review-by-neil-mitchell

Montréal en Lumière 2013 : Feb.21st to March 3rd - Buenos Aires, Philly and Lac St-Jean http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/food-wine/Montr%C3%A9al+Lumi%C3%A8re+2013+Welcome+Buenos+Aires/7682735/story.html

Programmation: http://www.montrealenlumiere.com/gastronomie/activites-jour.aspx

France still la reference?  Or losing its bearings as the rest of the world catches up to the old France.. A case of the student surpassing the teacher or just normalization with globalization - they become more like us and us more like them.  Whether there is a steeper curve of creativity/evolution or not, not sure about better value here being something to covet, at what cost.. The truth is we should be charging more here for better (non-industrial) food grown and prepared by (better paid) farmers and cooks. http://www.france-amerique.com/articles/2012/12/05/le_declin_conteste_de_la_cuisine_francaise.html

Love this art! A tribute to cooks behind the scene - artist Quang-Ho http://recettesbonetblanc.com/lart-culinaire/

Saving oysters.. Yes please!  What I thought was one of our last yummy sustainable choices. Hope this doesn’t hit the Atlantic and my preferred east coast oysters, but that would be wishful thinking.. http://civileats.com/2012/12/03/troubled-waters-farmers-and-scientists-work-together-to-save-oysters/#more-15884

Chef plagiarism – tricky to pinpoint; everyone’s constantly influenced by everyone before them and around, the zeitgeist.. Directly copying is another story.  For sure, the new world with internet makes it even more complicated, as well as easier to copy.  I remember a time when ideas and references were less accessible - you had to work hard to tap into what others were doing, techniques weren’t spelled out, you were forced to source from within or be a product of your strict surroundings.  Regardless, I don’t understand a chef who needs to copy!  There is inspiration everywhere yes, but you have to have a lot inside - drive and ideas and everything else to make it in this métier, so by the  time you’re making menus, normally you have something real and personal going on, of course built partly on all those influences, the main ones you should be able to note, never shy to note a new one. http://eater.com/archives/2012/12/03/attributing-sources.php

Black Ivory coffee made from elephant dung – the priciest/hottest coffee now after the weasel dung one.. Whatever.  http://www.nbcnews.com/travel/itineraries/elephant-dung-coffee-exotic-brew-50-pop-1C7490082

Femmes engagées à nourrir le Québec : a new book out (more historical than cookbook) that honours all kinds of women and their work in the Que food realm, including me ?! http://www.katerinerollet.com/medias/femmes-engagees-a-nourrir-le-quebec/