soupnancy

B&B August 2016

THE MOST EXCLUSIVE RESTAURANT IN AMERICA Damon Baehrel’s methods are a marvel, and his tables are all booked until 2025. Or are they? By Nick Paumgarten  http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/08/29/damon-baehrel-the-most-exclusive-restaurant-in-america Ridiculous! Unlikely that he’s alone (and why would that be a good thing?) His concoctions sound gross anyway, even dangerous! If he really lived so completely off the land, there would be more mention of real wild vegetables, more than bark, sap, goldenrod and powders. And a 10yr waiting list, c’mon. It all sounds so incredibly exaggerated. Hardly surprising with all the BS out there these days. If  Baehrel didn’t exist, foodies would have to invent him.’ 

Where to eat in Montreal according to another:  Covers most of the tops, including newbies, looks like a good list.. http://www.foodrepublic.com/2016/08/24/where-to-eat-in-montreal-quebec/

Gluten probably not to blame Unless You Have Celiac Disease says another study http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/unless-you-have-celiac-disease-gluten-sensitivity-is-probably-just-in-your-head/

The Colonel Sanders recipe of 11 herbs& spices revealed ! In case you want to make KFC at home.. http://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/a39634/kfc-chicken-secret-recipe-revealed/

The Secret to a long and healthy life: A plant based diet with more beans than meat and Weeds, Community, Walking, Wine, Sex and Naps http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/04/150412-longevity-health-blue-zones-obesity-diet-ngbooktalk/

Indigenous foods that are underrated. Move over kale! And we at Les Jardins Sauvages have a hundred more! http://civileats.com/2016/08/23/the-native-foods-we-should-be-eating/

About the person not the gender – I agree fully with her, my experience being similar as a woman in the kitchen http://luckypeach.com/its-about-the-person-not-the-gender/

The rise of the Hipster sommelier not always Delicious https://grapecollective.com/articles/how-the-hipster-somms-could-get-away-with-murder-and-how-we-can-stop-them

How Plants get such wierd names I love the common names and the weirder the better (although the latin names do come in handy once and a while) http://luckypeach.com/a-plant-by-any-other-name/

57 things to eat/drink before you die in Montreal according to someone http://dailyhive.com/montreal/things-to-eat-in-montreal

On Michel Richard, legendary French-American chef, after his passing http://articles.latimes.com/2006/nov/01/food/fo-calcook1

SlowMeat: Eat less better quality meat http://www.slowfood.com/what-we-do/themes/slow-meat/

A Name You Should Know: Eugénie Brazier,  a great (and underappreciated) Michelin starred French Chef from the 1930’s. Love this quote of hers and signature dish: ‘Of cooking, she would write that it’s "not complicated… you have to be well organized, to remember things, and to have a bit of taste." Among the many dishes she became famous for, volaille demi-deuilis a rich and aromatic masterpiece. An abundance of black truffle slices are slid between the flesh and the skin of a Bresse chicken, to perfume the meat while it poaches in bouillon. It’s finished with a cream-enriched sauce made from the reduced cooking liquid.’ http://www.eater.com/2016/8/12/12382076/eugenie-brazier

Review your oyster knowledge with Rowan Jacobson’s twenty (new) rules for Oyster eating http://luckypeach.com/guides/the-new-rules-of-oyster-eating/

Huel – the food of the future? Yuck, I hope not. “If I had to eat this, I’d lose the will to live pretty quickly.” https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/jul/31/huel-human-fuel-hi-tech-food-powder?CMP=twt_a-lifeandstyle_b-gdnfood

I love the idea of a community oven.. https://food52.com/blog/17568-the-centuries-old-form-of-public-cooking-that-s-making-a-comeback?

Bio et Rentable: Promising future for organic farming with work towards a sustainable/profitable business model (in French) http://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/2171e9ca-ba61-4b25-a359-6c8b33cd6aa3%7CpuEIeZ1h_e0g.html

Mushroom Leather - Neat! http://grist.org/living/your-next-leather-accessory-might-be-made-from-mushrooms/

The Science of Baking Cookies http://luckypeach.com/the-science-of-baking-cookies/

Food fraud and misleading marketing  You have to be on your toes when shopping at the supermarket. Frustrating. Yes even Oasis juice has at its base that apple/pear concoction that likely contains apples grown in China with pesticides that are banned here.  http://firstwefeast.com/features/2016/08/food-fraud-at-supermarkets/

How food became pop culture: Mario Batali sums up the last 40 years or so of the North American food scene. Good read, especially for younger cooks and foodies for a bit of perspective. http://luckypeach.com/how-food-became-pop-culture-mario-batali/

The Globe & Mail’s Food 53 - Influential people in Canadian food http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/the-food-53-thegatekeepers/article31118114/#index?cmpid=mktg16

Bits and Bites June 2014

Organic farming is great but not easy – Hipster alert! And same with Foraging..  Lots of hard work while dancing with Mother Nature, super fun, but you cannot drink the coolaid without commitment, blood,sweat and tears. Forget about survival, let a lone making a living if you’re too zen and want to smoke joints while communing with nature.. Especially not in the wild where you need to know your shit in terms of identification and so as not to get lost.  And No you can’t take a one day or week class or rely on one book. You have to really love it and invest time and energy! To start, and then again, forever. Back to the land, be it organic farming, foraging, nose to tail and avoiding waste, it's all the old fashioned way rediscovered, logical yet labour intensive. Like you have to really scrub your pans without harsh chemicals, normal stuff that so many people seem to have forgotten.. Real life is work for all its beauty/rewards.  grist.org/food/organic-farming-is-so-much-harder-than-just-getting-stoned-and-picking-tomatoes/

35 courses of modernist cuisine with a feminine touch, sounded interesting.. And if Ruth Reichl (whom I respect) is enamoured, it must be worth checking out I figured even if I’m no longer into reading menus and viewing food photos so much, but still curious and wanting to stay somewhat in touch.. So very cool, however neat, hot or not, I guess I’m officially no longer that kind of foodie because I could barely read through it, let alone want to book a ticket. I couldn’t help but think I would be craving an actual vegetable and some crunch amidst the purees and froths perfectly executed. And seriously who wants 35 courses? unless you're a young foodie maybe or a journalist in need of material for an article.. http://www.ruthreichl.com/2014/06/my-dinner-with-nathan-and-tk-fabulous-women.html

Sugar in ‘nouveau’ red wines; is labelling in order? Bill thinks so.  Please, we don’t need bogus nutrition labels on everything, but ingredient information and transparency yes. If you’re buying coffee, you know it’s hot and are silly to sue the business for hot coffee, if you’re drinking wine, you know you’re consuming alcohol=sugar. But in this new global world of wine, I guess added sugar and preservatives should be noted, say in the ingredient list. Especially if the SAQ has the breakdown info, make it available! Unlike a small artisan who has no problem revealing what’s in their product but is reluctant to pay for all the analysis and costly labelling (organic/nutritional/etc) given volume/cost, the SAQ has the resources, so all marketing, just avoiding people knowing the truth. Not that most Quebeckers will care, even if they read the fine print, but a #g/L or something more specific than the current system will serve diabetics, dieters and people who dislike residual or hidden sugar in their wine. http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/food-wine/Bill+Zacharkiw+wine+much+sugar+your+wine/9958772/story.html

Montreal terasses – another of Mayssam’s great lists http://www.tourisme-montreal.org/blog/10-great-restaurant-terrasses-in-montreal/

Lessons from The French Laundry Former cooks reminisce about career ‘lightbulb’ moments which I love, only hints of the FL legacy /impact on a generation of cooks.. http://www.foodandwine.com/blogs/2014/6/12/15-lessons-from-cooking-at-the-french-laundry

Apparently, Gluten-Free is here to stay.. I’m not so sure, but if a trend to avoid gluten means that people choose less processed foods and a more varied diet, then fine. Any pressure on the food industry to produce less crap and more quality, not take the consumer for granted is positive. Less but better should be the way, like with meat. A good slice of artisanal bread a treat, a Sunday roast of natural meat - less but better, local & natural from small producers and healthy soil/agriculture.. Minus the Round Up and big ag industial practices (and toxic chemicals in house products, furniture, cosmetics etc), I’m sure many food ‘allergies’ and ‘intolerances’ would disappear. www.nytimes.com/2014/06/18/dining/gluten-free-eating-appears-to-be-here-to-stay.html?

 Interview with Jody Adams, vet female chef..  ‘Jody Adams remembers her first job as a 25-year-old cook, working directly on the hot line. “I cut myself. I burned myself. I was a mess; I cried,” she said. “But I survived.”’ Yup, ditto. http://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/boss/2014/06/12/women-who-belong-in-the-kitchen-jody-adams/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Buying reservations  More of A NYC issue, but anyway. Don’t love the idea at all, but if there’s a market for it, who's to say.. And I sympathize with restaurateurs who just want their tables booked as simply as possible. So if people want to pay a premium and scalp tickets then whatever. I would personally prefer control of my reservation book, but that’s me, small-time.. A priority would be having customers pay for a reservation not honoured. mobile.nytimes.com/2014/06/14/dining/getting-a-good-table-by-flicking-an-app-not-greasing-a-palm.html?

What Chefs stress out about that no one really sees – and there’s much more than that, like staffing issues, say.. http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2014/06/09/55-chef-anxiety/

Chez Bocuse, then and now http://www.montrealgazette.com/touch/story.html?id=9914461

Restaurant life, not sexy, rarely profitable, but great somehow, for anyone cut from the cloth..  http://www.esquire.com/blogs/food-for-men/what-its-like-to-cook-for-a-living?src=soc_twtr

The 15 worst and best fruit & veg for pesticides, noteworthy for when to extra wash or make a point of buying organic http://nutritionnisteurbain.ca/infographiques/les-15-fruits-legumes-contenant-moins-residus-pesticides/?utm_source=http://chocolateandzucchini.com&utm_medium=e-mail&utm_campaign=2014-06-newsletter-vo