Betty Crocker Podcast

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Jamie Oliver is doing it, so is Emeril, so why not Betty Crocker? All are creating downloadable podcasts of recipes from their books and television shows. Betty's entry is with two shows, Betty Crocker Red Spoon Diaries for Big Red, the colossal, basic cookbook from General Mills that features American cooking at its simplest. The other is targeting young Hispanic Americans who want to cook American food and have picked up the bilingual version of Big Red, Cocina Betty Crocker (click here for previous review). General Mills told the Minneapolis St Paul Business Journal that since their launch in late November, the podcasts have been downloaded more than 10,000 times -- enough traffic to land them in the Top 100 List of food podcasts on Apple iTunes, though they have not broken that number down between the Spanish and English podcasts. It is hard to believe that hip Latinos are downloading podcasts for Swiss Steak and Sloppy Joes when they could be choosing the latest hip-hop song or tango... The Spanish podcast is hosted by General Mills employee Ursula Mejia-Melgar, who shares recipes from the book as well as tips and other ideas in seven- or eight-minute segments. The English version features Heidi Losleben, a cookbook editor for the company, who also has a blog about learning to cook using Big Red (which worked for blogger Julie Powell's now defunct Julie on Julia. Luis Fitch, principal of the U N O advertising agency in Minneapolis, which claims to be the only advertising agency specializing in the Latino market in that market, is surprised by the marketing push to ipods. It makes sense, it's easy, they (General Mills) have the content, they get it translated and do voice over. And they are getting a lot of media attention, but in English. But for un-acculturated and semi-acculturated Hispanics the last thing they want to learn is American food. It isn't part of our culture: we miss our food, novellas, movies. Why would I want to learn to make apple pie when I can go to a supermarket and buy one? I haven't met a Latino who thinks American food is better. He says that young Latino kids with ipods won't be wasting their time downloading recipes. Cooking in Latino households is learned from parents and grandparents, not from cookbooks, and still less from podcasts. Fitch also points out that few General Mills brands exist in Latin countries: Betty Crocker is unknown. The Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal quotes Kim Walter, director of book and online publishing for General Mills' Equity Enterprises publishing division: Betty Crocker is not just a brand, she's a person. Her persona is so expandable it enables us ... to try these different channels of communication and reach out in different ways. In fact, Betty Crocker is a brand and not a person, and an unknown brand to most Latino consumers. Podcasts are cheap to produce, but who really is going to listen? Spanish language students? Previous articles: The Ethics in Betty Crocker? Syndicated: Superchefblog on Betty Crocker Houston Chronicle Interviews Superchefblog Cocina Betty Crocker: Portent? Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

Learn from Japanese Food TV

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Imitation is the highest form of flattery -– and now that the Food Network has borrowed sucesful Japanese formulas like Iron Chef and its US spin-off Iron Chef America , are more such shows slated for American airwaves? According to a Washington Post article (Print versin) by Anthony Faiola: Food has long been a major staple of Japanese broadcasting. But with most popular cooking and gourmet shows far cheaper to produce than star-powered dramas, TV producers and researchers say food shows now account for an estimated 35 to 40 percent of all domestic programming. Sounds like there are plenty of hits to borrow. Could NBC by borrowing from Japan, like the Food Network with Iron Chef? The Post states, "Presentation and visual appeal are as important as taste" -- a standard cliche in the absence of any taste via TV to date, despite a recommendnation for "Smell-a-Vison" by super chef Susan Feniger (see Super Chef, p. 162. This is not to be confused with "Odorama," the special effect used by director John Waters in Polyester). Of course, the Japanese are fascinated by sophisticated cooking, not the Rachael Ray-brand of peppy and cheap which sells so well in America. Perhaps with more care American food TV can also encourage better eating and better cooking. "The Japanese love the culture of food," said Yukio Hattori, one of the creators of Iron Chef, now with nine (9) food-related shows on the air in Japan. "But we have to be careful. We don't want to lose sight of the need to eat right." Good Food TV can and should foster both. If you can't get it right from Americans, why not borrow more from the Japanese? Previous articles: Iron Chef America Meets Survivor [Food Television - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

FOOD FLICKS: Matrix Cow

By JULIETTE ROSSANT OK, animal rights activists: what would happen if "they" could fight back? Move over, Meatrix: meet the Matrix Cow, if you dare... Click here to watch today's Friday FOOD FLICKS feature: Matrix Cow (run time: 2 min 33 sec) Stay tuned for more "Food Flicks" each Friday! FOOD FLICKS: FOOD FLICKS: Swedish Chef & Squirrel Stew FOOD FLICKS: Dan Barber in Blue Hill FOOD FLICKS: Curry-N-Rice Girl FOOD FLICKS: Julia Child Interviews FOOD FLICKS: Gordon Ramsay the Sailor FOOD FLICKS: Google Video Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Food Flicks --> back to superchefblog

Foie Gras War: Bird Flu!

By JULIETTE ROSSANT A quick news sweep reveals that the Foie Gras War -- the war to ban foie gras due to the pain inflicted upon fowl by the process of gavage -- continues unabated. In Israel yesterday, where conflict with Palestinians makes daily headlines, the High Court of Justice still makes time for geese -- and yesterday, ruled against the Geese Growers Association, ordering an end to gavage with the immediate slaughter of 57,000 geese, a cruel victory for Let the Animals Live and Anonymous for Animal Rights, reports The Globe. Back here at home last week, the Humane Society asked the Food Network to take foie gras off the air. The Humane Society singled out re-runs of Iron Chef because of its "Battle Foie Gras" episode. Their request should prove relatively easy to comply with, as the Food Network moves further and further away from Fine Dining into lower-cost ingredients and dishes and shows a la Rachael Ray. It's not that foie gras is gone or even going. It is still a norm in Fine Dining. The New York Times still talks about it as an important part of Fine Dining, as in this recent article about David Kinch, or this article about home dining. In Washington, DC, at the National Gallery of Art, foie gras lollipops were served as part of a fete for the largest-ever Dada exhibit, reports The Washington Post. No, the joke on anti-foie gras activists is that they may find their banning efforts moot and, worse, the public mood swinging back for foie gras -- as the Asian Bird Flu (or "Avian Influenza") begins to ravage duck and geese stocks, making foie gras rare. According to The Financial Times (also, Print version), the European Union (urged by France and the Netherlands) is already planning bird flu vaccines limited for 900,000 ducks and geese in three high-risk risk areas, "including the Landes region that is a leading producer of foie gras." So, despite (or, from Mother Nature's viewpoint, perhaps to spite) the costly, exhaustive efforts of anti-foie gras campaigners to humanize gavage through celebrity endorsements and the gorey, bizarre, and often brilliant poster campaigns (e.g., PMAF and Animauzine) of activists, we may soon see a foie gras hunger roll through the world as never before. Soon, we may be seeing gorey pictures depicting vicious flu-murders of foie-gras-producing geese and ducks, while the rich endulge in a little gavage themselves on scarcity-priced foie gras. Previous articles - Bird Flu: Bird Flu Death Count Passes 50 in Asia Food Vermin -- Bird Flu, Next Course? Previous articles - Foie Gas War: Foie Gras War: Liver is for Lovers Foie Gras War: Rocco Saves Seals Gordon Ramsay v James Bond Foie Gras War: Voodoo and Vigilantes Foie Gras War: Chicago Slaughterhouse New York Times on Foie Gras Before STORE WARS: The Meatrix Foie Gras War 2: Ban All Poultry? Foie Gras War From Boulud's gourmet hamburgers arise... delicate Philly cheesesteaks? Super Chef vs. Governator: Todd English Fights For Foie Gras Rights Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, foie gras --> back to superchefblog

Bones: Jennifer McLagan

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Never skip the Acknowledgements section of any book: it is often a treasure trove. It can tell you about who the writer has worked or studied with, befriended or loved, and it can tell you of any special arrangements that made the book possible. It is especially true in Bones: Recipes, History & Lore (William Morrow, 2005) by Jennifer McLagan. She starts by thanking grandparents, aunts and mother and then includes this interesting reference: Leila Batten and Stanley Janecek at Whitehouse Meats, John Rierkerk at Second Wind Elk, Elizabeth and Peter Bzikot and their sheep, Chang Lin at Pisces Fish, and Mary Lou Dolan at Beretta Organic Farms. My butcher in Paris deserves special mention. Watching Joel Lachable work is a joy and an education. It reveals the art form that is good butchery. I often don't want to cook the meat he has prepared; I am content to just admire its beauty. (pp. ix-x) Google them all! Then set out on a trip to eat their succulent meat and fish, or just admire it. In an era of Mad Cow Disease and carbon monoxide infuse plastic wrap for steak (see the terrific article by Marian Burros in The New York Times yesterday), the glories of butchers and farms seem so out of place. And yet, who can forget the physical power of a great butcher who can dissect an animal into such pleasing parts? What makes bones so special? You can feel your bones in your arms, jaw, or legs. The fact that bones in our own bodies are so easily mentally connected to the bones of a steer or a hen, while muscle itself is given so many other names (beef, chicken, pork, veal and so on) gives bones a special place. We know what they are and yet what is so magical is the flavor they give food when cooked together with muscle. Bringing back that flavor and bone-in cooking is Jennifer's mission: Restoring bones to their deserved place in our kitchen will not be easy. Firs, we must fight against the current fascination with fast and quick, boneless food. Then we need to familiarize ourselves with the whole animal, its essentail structure. When we understand where the bones are, we will be able to cook the meat attached to them. (p. 3) Of course the problem in this age of filet-filled supermarkets is finding that great butcher to provide you with all those bones in the first place. The chapter on Beef and Veal (p. 7) starts with a wonderful black and white photograph by Colin Faulkner and descriptions of the animals and butcher's cuts. There are fine recipes for stock and consommé (pp. 12-5), and then plenty of recipes for ribs and steak. Four Bones in One Pot (pp. 37-8) is one of the more fanciful recipes with beef shank, short ribs, oxtail and marrow bones and plenty of vegetables. There is a simple straightforward recipe for Roasted Marrow Bones (pp. 44-5) served with either Fleur de Sel (for us Francophiles) or a Parsley Salad (for Anglophiles). Jennifer has an essay on bone marrow, useful for reading while devouring marrow on toast, on page 51, with the extra tip for the cautious: "Spinal marrow is found in the bones of chops and ribs, the neck, and tail. The safest bone marrow is that from the leg bones, because it has had no direct contact with the brain." There are chapters on Pork (p. 53) with nifty information about ancient use of bones as musical instruments (p. 89) and Lamb (p. 91) with a curious bit of information about lamb bones used as ice skates in the Bronze Age (p. 104) and bone games like jacks (p. 117). In the Poultry chapter (p. 125) among the recipes for duck and turkey, the story of wishbones is explored in several essays, one primarily on the Anglo-Saxon traditions (p. 137) and another on a Persian Wishbone games (p. 153). Although, it is marvelous to see a recipe for Spicy Steamed Chicken Feet (p. 161) an overlooked delicacy, there is no Persian poultry dish like Fesenjan , the walnut-and-pomegranate-syrup-laced chicken stew, mentioned to accompany the wishbone game. There are also fine chapters on Fish (p. 165) though not mollusks for obvious reasons and Game (p. 199), with no less than four recipes for rabbit including Rabbit in Saffron Sauce with Spring Vegetables, in which the rabbit liver is served as a spread for accompanying bread (pp. 216-7). There is also a great tidbit on Bone China (p. 219) appropriate to read while eating off your favorite (bone china is 50% bone ash). Jennifer managed to find bone desserts for her final chapter, Bonelogue (p. 239) pointing out that gelatin used in many desserts is made from boiling animal feet. If the idea of a savory dessert made of bones or marrow bothers you, try faux Bone Cookies (p. 243), based on a recipe for osi di morto and shaped to look like Milkbones.(Ruff, ruff, yum, yum!) Book details: Publisher Amazon.com Barnes & Noble Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, cookbooks --> back to superchefblog

Juliette Rossant in Heart & Soul

Heart & Soul magazine has re-launched this month with an article by Juliette Rossant called "Chef Appeal" recounting how three black women chefs are breaking into Fine Dining: Reva Bell Hannah Sweets Deborah Fewell The magazine is available on newstands; the article is available in high-resolution PDF files for download only, compressed in .ZIP (67.3MB) and .SIT (67.7MB) formats. (You can see Deborah in action on The Food Network's The Next Food Network Star by clicking here.) Previous articles: Katrina Relief: Restaurants to the Rescue? G. Garvin: MegaFest Star Augustus Jackson: African-American White House Chef Winner of Next Food Network Star Next Food Network Star's Multimedia Blitz Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, African Americans --> back to superchefblog

President's Day Holiday

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Superchefblog rests for President's Day (technically called Washington's Birthday under U.S. Law). Please feel free to read previous articles, or search by your own taste by clicking here. Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

FOOD FLICKS: Swedish Chef & Squirrel Stew

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Once upon a calmer time, during the 1970s, The Muppet Show ruled gently over the land. One of its enduring stars was the Swedish Chef, operated by Muppets creator, the late Jim Henson (read more about him at The Jim Henson Foundation and in TIME Magazine. Today, Superchefblog invites you to enjoy a few moments of nostalgia -- or, perhaps, to enjoy the thrill of discovering one of Television's greatest chefs. Click here to watch today's Friday FOOD FLICKS feature: Swedish Chef: Squirrel Stew (run time: 1 min 20 sec) Stay tuned for more "Food Flicks" each Friday! FOOD FLICKS: FOOD FLICKS: Dan Barber in Blue Hill FOOD FLICKS: Curry-N-Rice Girl FOOD FLICKS: Julia Child Interviews FOOD FLICKS: Gordon Ramsay the Sailor FOOD FLICKS: Google Video Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Food Flicks --> back to superchefblog

Sustainable Seafood Day

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Marian Burros reported in Wednesday's New York Times about confusion surrounding eating fish in the US in her article, "Advisories on Fish and the Pitfalls of Good Intent" (print version). Her article covers the conflicting information consumers are getting about the health benefits and dangers of eating fish. Today, Australians celebrate the first Sustainable Seafood Day, as reported in The Herald Sun. It is being organized by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) to raise awareness of the dwindling supplies of seafood caused by overfishing. The day will focus on the importance of observing responsible fishing practices. Australians are being encouraged by the MSC to eat only sustainably caught fish marked with the MSC label. Duncan Leadbitter, Regional Director of the Asia Pacific for the Marine Stewardship Council, told Superchefblog: We are asking that people actively select sustinably caught fish and this is easiest done via recognising our label. Secondly they could avoid overfished species.... We are definitely not asking people refrain from eating fish! Fish is great health food and there are sustinable choices. MSC provided Superchefblog with the following list of species to avoid: silver trevally deep sea perch/orange roughy ocean perch, redfish southern blue fin tuna, blue warehou broadbill swordfish john dory silver dory jackass morwong (usually sold as deep sea bream) southern shark - school shark (sold as flake) eastern gemfish (used to be called hake) described as "overfished and unable to be rebuilt" The MSC is an non-profit international body with head offices in London whose role is to identify via a stringent certification program well-managed fisheries. There are currently 15 certified fisheries around the world that cover 2 million tons of fish. Over 300 products worldwide bear the MSC logo. The effort is being promoted by Whiteworks Public Relations in Australia. Previous articles: Alice Waters: Ms. Smith Goes to Washington Todd Gray Champions Mid-Atlantic Cuisine Profile: Mary Sue Milliken & Susan Feniger for White House Chef Profile: Nora Pouillon for White House Chef Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

Cat Cora Talks Money to Forbes

By JULIETTE ROSSANT For Valentine's Day yesterday, Forbes magazine talked to Iron Chef America star Cat Cora about -- well, money. Cat managed to squeeze in mention of Chefs For Humanity, family, her latest art purchase, and her upcoming book Cooking From The Hip with Houghton Mifflin, based on column by the same name. (click here to read the Forbes article.) Last November alone, Cat appeared in Vanity Fair about holidays kitchen items (same picture, too), The Tony Danza Show (her fourth appearance in 12 months) and on the road in home state Mississippi and over at Millsap College. Meanwhile, she is promoting herself with partners like McCormick and Olivia Cruises & Resort, aided by All American speakers bureau. Last year, she also launched her own charity, Chefs For Humanity (see previous article): last month, the UNICEF announced that she would be a UNICEF spokesperson on humanitarian disasters. This month, she will appear at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival and the 20th Annual Masters of Food & Wine. Cat's on the prowl! Previous articles: Juliette Rossant: Forbes Tastemakers Cat Cora: Chefs for Humanity Results: White House Woman Chef Profile: Cat Cora for White House Chef Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Cat Cora: Iron Chef America's First Lady World AIDS Day II: Iron Chef Cat Cora Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

Arab Table: May Bsisu

By JULIETTE ROSSANT The cuisines of the Arab World stretches from Morocco to Iraq and Oman (see map). Syrians, Lebanese, and Iraqis (to name a few) often argue about whose is the greatest Arab cuisine, just as French, Italian and Spanish cooks argue about the greatest European cuisine, and follow suit in borrowing from one another, creating versions of the same dish, and rivaling each other for the best ingredients. It is best to take advantage of such rivalry and find a book like The Arab Table (Harper Collins 2005) that explores the riches of each tradition. Lucky for us, May Bsisu is a wanderer. She was born in Amman, Jordan, of a Palestinian father and Lebanese Jordanian mother. She lived in Beirut, Lebanon, during her schooling and then moved with her Palestinian husband to Kuwait, England, and eventually the US in Cincinnati, Ohio. May starts her book with a brief introduction to the food of each country. For Syria, she writes, "Aleppo, in the north bordering Turkey, is recognized in the Middle East as a temple of haute cuisine and is known throughout the Arab world for making the finest sweets." (p. 7) She has a guide to ingredients, including more unusual ingredients like freka, the marvelous roasted grains of green wheat used in Chicken Freka with Ground Beef (p. 184) and jameed the sour sheep's milk cheese essential for Lamb in Creamy Sheep's Milk Yogurt (p. 205). May has recipes for spice mixes from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Yemen (pp. 40-41) as well as a recipe for zaatar (p. 38), the spice blend used across the Arab World as a topping for bread and as an ingredient in many cold and hot dishes. The Saudi Spice mixture is used to make kabsa, Saudi Arabian Slow-Cooked Lamb (p. 213) flavored with saffron, cardamom, cinnamon and allspice. She also has a recipe for Grandmother Nazleh's Seven-Spice Mix (p. 73) for use in kibeh nayeh [sic], the steak tartare of Lebanon. Each recipe has a story attached about how other regions would make the dish or how she came across the best example. May also has in depth sections on the food of religious holidays like Eid Al Adha (the feast ending the hajj or pilgrimage) (pp. 90-1) and Ramadan (pp. 258-66). There is a whole section on kibeh, Middle Eastern ground meat patties, starting with an explanation on pages 224-225, then recipes like Kibeh in the Tray (p. 227) and Potato Kibeh (p. 232-3) followed by a section on kafta, a related meatball dish and its variations (pp. 233-241). Closing the book is a chapter on drinks and one on desserts featuring some of the splendid sweets from Aleppo and Beirut with intriguing names like Znood Al Sit or Ladies' Arms (p. 305) and the less poetic kunafa bi jibin or Shredded Pastry with Cheese (pp. 307-10) a marvelous confection of crisp shredded dough cooked in butter and stuffed with sweetened cheese. It is crisp and creamy, sweet and decadent. Anyone who has eaten it in a great pastry shop in Aleppo, Amman or Istanbul never forgets where they had their best kunafa: Appreciation for the traditional techniques and fine ingredients that go into a great Kunafa certainly add to my love for this dessert. And whenever I make it, I am reminded of my father, skillfully manipulating buttery shreds of phyllo in his fingers–attired as always, in a business suit and dress shoes. (p. 311) The only warning to the reader is to beware the transliterations of Arabic words, in case you know any of the dishes or ingredients form elsewhere. Like most recipe writers of Arab cuisine in English, May does not attempt to standardize her spellings: her "kibeh" would more likely be spelled kibbeh for starters, since in Arabic the word doubles its b's. However, this is a small shortcoming in return for a such trove of Middle East treats. Sample recipes: LisaEkus.com Book details: Publisher Amazon.com Barnes & Noble Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, cookbooks --> back to superchefblog

Cooking For Life: Vikas Khanna

By JULIETTE ROSSANT There is singles tourism, gay tourism and family tourism. Chef Vikas Khanna wants to make sure that there is also disabled tourism, that is access for the disabled at historical sites around the world. Vikas was the executive chef at New York's Salaam Bombay Restaurant and is currently a consultant to restaurants like Tamarind, Tandoor Palace, Saffron among others. Several years ago he set up a non-profit foundation called New York Chefs Cooking for Life three years ago to help raise awareness and funds for relief efforts around the world. It has spread nationally and internationally. Cooking for Life has helped organize events for Hurricane Katrina relief, Tsunami relief, and is publishing a cookbook to benefit Save the Children. Together with the Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (SATH) he has organized an ambitious series of celebrity chef dinners in premier tourism locations. The first, scheduled for July 20th, is in Cairo at the great pyramids. The dinner will bring together New York chefs from restaurant groups like B. R. Guest, Myriad, and Chanterelle for a dinner at the Oberoi Mena House, located next to the pyramids and built in 1869, now part of the Dehli-based Oberoi Hotel Group. "We are going to have a series all over the world: the Taj Mahl next year, China, and in all these places we are helping to create accessibility and awareness," says Vikas. "I am not Bono. I can't do everything. But we have bigger voices than just our local customers." Vikas is planning on making the most of the event by creating a cookbook and video to raise further funds. Of funds raised, 100% goes to charities; everyone in Vikas' organization is a volunteer. Vikas' connection with SATH is personal. He was born lame and then lost sight in one eye after an accident in 1990. He teaches workshops designed for people with visual disabilities to understand the sense of taste and aromas. He also has a separate non-profit called SAKIV to reach out to different EYE foundations around South Asia. SAKIV-world was established in 2005 to host vision expos all around the world. Previous articles: Cat Cora: Chefs For Humanity Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, charity, philanthropy, Egypt, India, pyramids --> back to superchefblog

Edna Lewis RIP

By JULIETTE ROSSANT With sadness Superchefblog reports the passing of a great American chef, Edna Lewis (April 13, 1916 - February 13, 2006), author of The Taste of Country Cooking (Knopf 1976, 2003) and other cookbooks. Sheila O’Shea, Associate Director of Publicity at Alfred A. Knopf, informed Superchefblog that Edna passed away in her sleep this morning in Dectur, Georgia. "Her long-time friend and co-author, Scott Peacock, was at her side." Useful links: Southern Foodways Alliance Hall of Fame University of Virginia Press Conde Nast Traveler Random House Virginia Commonwealth University blog New York Times Previous articles: Julia Child: The Queen is Dead Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

Walter Scheib: American Chef

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Clinton-appointed Walter Scheib, the ex-White House chef, is building up speed for his new venture, The American Chef, "It's a cross between Emeril [Lagasse] and Garrison Keillor," Scheib reently told US News & World Report. Scheib puts on corporate and private events billed as "dinner and a conversation" around his stories and recipes from the Bush and Clinton White Houses. Since leaving the White House last year, Scheib has been building up corporate publicity, appearing for ClubCorp in the Washington area and Taste of Atlanta last Fall. He even appeared on TV, such as CBS Early Morning. He is represented by YC Media. Related news: Baltimore Sun [PDF] Wonkette Previous articles: Kitchen Chat with Walter Scheib Wanted: White House Chef [White House - complete coverage] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, White House --> back to superchefblog

FOOD FLICKS: Dan Barber in Blue Hill

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Enjoy chef Dan Barber show off Blue Hill in this film short by Perry Street Productions LLC, produced by Jennifer Usdan, and available also at savory wiki. Click here to watch today's Friday FOOD FLICKS feature: Blue Hill (run time: 1 min 19 sec) Stay tuned for more "Food Flicks" each Friday! FOOD FLICKS: FOOD FLICKS: Curry-N-Rice Girl FOOD FLICKS: Julia Child Interviews FOOD FLICKS: Gordon Ramsay the Sailor FOOD FLICKS: Google Video Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Google video, Food Flicks --> back to superchefblog

Jack Abramoff's Chef Morou of Signatures

By JULIETTE ROSSANT What happens when politics and not food sustain a restaurant? The Washington Post's Judith Weinraub interviewed Chef Morou Ouattara to find out. Chef Morou rose to prominence under super chef Mark Miller at Red Sage, which became a favorite restaurant of President Clinton's in the 1990s, but the kitchen in question of late has been Signatures, the restuarant owned by disgraced mega-lobiest Jack Abramoff (see Post summary), which closed November 16. To read the full article, click here. Not to worry much: Chef Morou is now one of the owners of the new but unnamed restaurant. And the restaurant before the Abramoff scandal won serious acclaim (see The New York Times.) And Chef Morou made news throughout last year, whether connected to (The Boston Globe, Daily Kos, The Hill, Washington City Paper) or separate from the Abramoff scandal (2005 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Today Show). He won a RAMMY Award from the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington. The best press of all may be his landing an appearance on Iron Chef America which has gotten him mention from the District of Columbia's Mayor's Office, Washington Life Magazine PR for Signatures is handled by Linda Roth. Previous articles: Plame-Rove Affair: Culinary Institute of America [first White House executive chef - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Jack Abramoff --> back to superchefblog

86 Recipes New York

By JULIETTE ROSSANT We have been bombarded by recipes from the beginning of time, from ancient Sumer to the present. There are websites, search engines, magazines, cookbooks, supermarket checkout counter pamphlets with tips on how to cook the ultimate aphrodisiac-filled repast for Valentine's Day. Health-conscious, indulgent, fresh, fruity, meaty, you-name-it-kind of recipe. Do you really need another vehicle for recipes? Yes, if you can't get a reservation on Valentine's Day at your favorite restaurant and yet you and your main squeeze are pining for that one dish you can't find anywhere else – or worse, you are pining for a dish at one restaurant and your partner wants a dish at another. Remember those old fashioned (read "retro") recipe boxes with smudged index cards of Aunt So-and-So's famous chicken pot pie? Cleo Papanikolas main character in her novel, Cook Until Desired Tenderness, is a recipe box. The recipes are cherished, if a bit dated. That is the idea behind 86 recipe boxes. 86 New York: Recipes from Top Restaurants for the Home Kitchen is a box (laminated cardboard, not metal) with cards (glossy) that promise 86 of the best, most-sought after recipes from New York's top restaurants is an answer to that Valentine's Day quandary. ("86" refers to restaurant speak for a dish that is sold out, thus the idea that you get the recipe and make them at home.) Each card has a photo of the restaurant, a map of its location, and website and on the back a recipe like Homard Poele – Lobster in a Pan with Julienne Garden Vegetables from Markt, perfect for a Valentine's Day main course. You'll find the chef's name and helpful hints for the recipe, too. But if you don't care for seafood, you could try the Filete con Hongos – Beef Medallions with Mushroom-Tequila Cream Sauce from Rosa Mexicano and serve that with the Manchego-Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms with Piquillo Sauce from Anita Lo's Annisa. Restaurants like Daniel Boulud's Restaurant Daniel is represented with Guinea Hen Casserole with Morels, Fava Beans and Fiddlehead Ferns and Marcus Samuelsson's Aquavit with Gravlax with Mustard Sauce, but you won't find any of Tom Colicchio's Craft restaurants, or Suvir Saran's Devi though many of Danny Meyer's restaurants (Blue Smoke, Eleven Madison Park, Union Square Cafe), are represented. Many of these New York chefs have their own cookbooks so you could grab one of Tom's or Suvir's, but it's extra fun making a romantic Valentine's dinner from a stack of cards in this nifty box o' recipes. Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Valentine's Day, cookbooks --> back to superchefblog

Foie Gras War: Liver is for Lovers

By JULIETTE ROSSANT With Washington (state) and Hawaii gearing up to join the ban on foie gras, this may be one of the last years of plentiful supply, particularly if PETA and Farm Sanctuary get their way. To counter their efforts, D'Artagnan, America's leading foie gras purveyor, is waging this "Too Good To Be Lega" ad campaign theme. The heart of Valentine's Day is indulgence, not political correctness, and for this year, D'Artagnan's owner Ariane Daguin urges Americans to throw caution to the wind and order up some Too Good to be Legal Foie Gras for dinner. All you need is a silver spoon, a pile of toast, a bit of fleur de sel to go for this earthly nirvana. Related news: Google News Previous articles: Foie Gras War: Rocco Saves Seals Gordon Ramsay v James Bond Foie Gras War: Voodoo and Vigilantes Foie Gras War: Chicago Slaughterhouse New York Times on Foie Gras Before STORE WARS: The Meatrix Foie Gras War 2: Ban All Poultry? Foie Gras War From Boulud's gourmet hamburgers arise... delicate Philly cheesesteaks? Super Chef vs. Governator: Todd English Fights For Foie Gras Rights Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, foie gras --> back to superchefblog

Columnists Thumb Emeril

By JULIETTE ROSSANT It started last Thursday in The New York Post, when columnist Cindy Adams reported comments by super chef Emeril Lagasse as follows: The mayor's a clunk. The governor is also a clunk. They don't know their (nether sections) from a hole in the ground. All my three restaurants got hit. I've reopened Emeril's, but only a few locals come. There's no tourists. No visitors. No spenders. No money. No future. No people. It's lost. It'll never come back. Enter Times-Picayune columnist Chris Rose. He resented Emeril's comments so much that his article-in-reply is titled "Stay in the kitchen: Shut up and cook" and opens with the recommendation that Emeril's new special should be Foot-in-Mouth, followed by an explanation of how citizens in New Orleans feel betrayed. Emeril's corporate headquarters sent the following statement to The Times-Picayune's restaurant critic Brett Anderson: The article is not an accurate representation of the way I feel about New Orleans. I completely support the city, which is the reason I have based both my family and my business operations here for over 20 years. I did, however, express my concerns about the leadership in our city and the state. I have absolutely not lost hope in our city, I just sometimes lose patience, as I feel that things should be moving forward much faster than they are at this time. I did not say that the city or the people will never come back. I am committed to this city, and I have no doubt that New Orleans will be back, and that it will be better than ever. I am also extremely grateful to all of our local customers -- it is because of them that we are able to operate in this unbelievably difficult time. I believe that we are all in this together, and we need to work together to encourage each other, not discourage the positive growth in our city. I will continue to support this great city in the rebuilding effort in any way I can. Rose notes accurately that Emeril has reopened only two of his three restaurants in New Orleans (Emeril's and NOLA but not Delmonico's), but Emeril has not explained why Delmonico's remains closed at this pont in time, though he did announce his plan to re-open all his restaurants back in September 2005 (see press release). What are further Emeril's plans? So far, he continues to re-open to a greater degree in the city, having just added some lunches back to Emeril's and NOLA late last month (see press release). (See our previous article.) Rose claims that other restaurants are packed and blames Emeril for not re-opening Delmonico's, too, and for laying off staff. An earlier article notes that Emeril has been missing from the city. What Rose and colleagues are missing is that Emeril is simply not a New Orleans chef: he's a national chef, a super chef -- an "empire-building celebrity chef." This is no defense or excuse but fact: he has many other commitments outside of New Orleans and a schedule that includes TV and other Media appearances. A business empire also means that he has deputies and other staff to delegate to. If Rose's article speaks for a majority or large number of New Orleans residents, then it would appear that Emeril may need to clarify to the city that while New Orleans is his home base, he has other commitments equally if not more important. Of course, that's a message that would not go down well, either, in New Orleans just now. Subsequent stories: Scripps Howard News Service Super chefs: Emeril Lagasse Related news: Times-Picayune New York Post Cleveland Plain Dealer Previous articles: Emeril Re-Opens in New Orleans Halloween: Emeril's Delmonico Cookbook Emeril Lagasse: Carnivale du Vin All-Stars Emeril: Miami Rocks for Relief Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

FOOD FLICKS: Curry-N-Rice Girl

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Wanna see a hot new Indian video? When we say hot, we're talking curry-hot, courtesy of NDN Productions / Fobbed Out Entertainment. We haven't seen anything like this since Apache Indian hit the scene with his "Raggamuffin Girl." Click here to watch today's Friday FOOD FLICKS feature: Curry-N-Rice Girl (run time: 3 min 35 sec) Stay tuned for more "Food Flicks" each Friday! FOOD FLICKS: FOOD FLICKS: Julia Child Interviews FOOD FLICKS: Gordon Ramsay the Sailor FOOD FLICKS: Google Video Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, Google video, Food Flicks --> back to superchefblog