Food Sites for December 2021
Friday, November 12, 2021
November delivered our first killing frost.
There was a time, not that long ago, in our collective memory, when gardens died each year—and, if we didn’t “put food by”—we would too. It wasn’t a joke when people alluded to “the dead of winter.” But countless generations filled root cellars [speaking of which, make sure to check out The Botanist in the Root Cellar, below] with carrots and turnips and beets and potatoes—plus jars (or barrels) of all sorts of pickled produce. Their attics held strings of dried fruits, mushrooms, and herbs. Sometimes, they’d bury apples, layered with straw, the longest-keeping varieties at the bottom, to be exhumed through the dark months of the year.
By the end of winter everyone would be mighty tired of preserved food. But Spring would always come (at least for those who had prudently prepared before the Winter) and jaded appetites rediscovered fresh food. Today, a quick trip to the supermarket allows us to eat anything we want, anytime we want, and seasons have been rendered irrelevant. Of course, all of that out-of-season produce—shipped from far-away places—comes with a price, the biggest of which is flavor. Perhaps a winter of pickles was not too much to pay for the joy of encountering the first ripe in-season strawberry of Spring?
We haven’t published anything new this month—shocking, right?—but we have begun writing a sort of nostalgic novella. Tentatively titled Beer Taste (on a Champagne Budget), it’s a little like The Wonder Years, but with food—and recipes.
You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs), and Twitter. Still more of our older online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, mostly about our food writing.
We’ve dug into the pantry for a few excerpts from On the Table’s culinary quote collection:
The jelly—the jam and the marmalade,
And the cherry-and quince-“preserves” she made!
And the sweet-sour pickles of peach and pear,
With cinnamon in ‘em, and all things rare!
And the more we ate was the more to spare,
Out to old Aunt Mary’s! Ah! James Whitcomb Riley
The rule is, jam to-morrow and jam yesterday—but never jam today. Lewis Carroll
Marmalade in the morning has the same effect on taste buds that a cold shower has on the body. Jeanine Larmoth
In the last analysis, a pickle is a cucumber with experience. Irena Chalmers
Gary
December, 2021
PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our hat to Sheila Ratcliffe), thanks, and keep them coming!
PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.
— the new sites —
(New York Magazine article, by Robin Raisfeld and Rob Patronite, on meatless options in the Big Apple)
Botanist in the Root Cellar, The
(the taxonomy of all the foods we casually refer to as “roots”)
(dedicated to preserving the culture & history of beer, they don’t have a physical location yet—but the museum has coordinated exhibits elsewhere and has even developed a few beers of its own)
Culinary Detectives Try to Recover the Formula for a Deliciously Fishy Roman Condiment
(Taras Grescoe’s article, in Smithsonian, about trying to recreate the long-lost garum sociorum)
Female Cooks Who Shaped French Cuisine, The
(Rachel E. Black’s essay about women in the celebrated kitchens of Lyon, in Zocalo; an excerpt from Cheffes de Cuisine: Women and Work in the Professional French Kitchen)
(“the think tank for food;” articles about responsible food systems, sustainability, etc.)
From Pythagorean to Pescatarian; The Evolution of Vegetarianism
(Tori Avey’s account, fresh from The History Kitchen)
Fry Bread Is Beloved, but Also Divisive
(Kevin Noble Maillard’ New York Times article on a Native American foodstuff with a history that shares origins that are similar to that of “soul food”)
(Ian Parker’s New Yorker exposé of why things are not always what they seem—or claim to be)
How Korean Cuisine Got Huge in America (and Why It Took So Long)
(John Surico gets an answer from Matt Rodbard—one of the authors of Koreatown: A Cookbook—for Serious Eats)
(Dawn MacKeen on the latest medical opinion, in The New York Times)
(Nathan Steinmeyer’s report, in Bible History Daily, on the excavation of a Byzantine winery at Tel Yavne, in Israel)
(Jonathan Laden’s report on archaeological work in Israel; in Bible History Daily)
(The Botanist in the Kitchen’s taxonomic table of food plants grouped by their botanical relationships)
People All Over the World Love Adobo—But What Is It?
(whether it’s from Spain, Mexico, the Philippines, or Puerto Rico, Bettina Makalintal has the answer at Bon Appetit)
Search for the Competitive Edge: A History of Dietary Fads and Supplements
(Louis Grivetti’s 1997 paper in The Journal of Nutrition)
True Story of Pizza Margherita: a Food Fit for a Queen, The
(Francine Segan traces the ancient roots of pizza for La Cucina Italiana)
Untold Story of Sushi in America, The
(Daniel Fromson’s New York Times article about the connection between sushi and the Rev. Sun Myung Moon)
(Amiel Stanek‘s article, in Bon Appétit, offers a quick answer)
World War Wednesday: Save a Loaf a Week
(Sarah Wassberg Johnson’s blog, The Food Historian, looks at food rationing campaigns during World War I)
— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —
Building Blocks: Chapulines, a Bug’s Culinary Life in Oaxaca
Definitive History of Dorie Greenspan’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, The
Does Wine Have a Subject Matter?
Free Man of Color Whose Invention Revolutionized the Sugar Industry, The
How a Librarian and a Food Historian Rediscovered the Recipes of Moorish Spain
How Capicola Became Gabagool: The Italian New Jersey Accent, Explained
How Much Syrup Can a Doughnut Leak?
How to Cook from a Historical Recipe
How to Make Twitter a Better Place—With Emotional Food Memories
How to Start a Writing Podcast
In Shanghai, Teahouses Offer Both Community and Solitude
Laurie Colwin’s Recipe for Being Yourself in the Kitchen
London Chef Elizabeth Haigh’s Cookbook Withdrawn After Plagiarism Allegations
Return of the American Rail Dining Car, The
Rise and Rise of Mother Gin, The
Small Cautionary Tale about Cookbooks and Authenticity, A
Traveling the World for Recipes, but Always Looking for Home
Two Mustard Seeds, Lime-Sized Balls of Tamarind, and Hand Smells
Why Cookbook Stores Are the Antidote We Need Right Now
— more blogs —
— podcasts, etcetera —
Art of Eating, The (Calhum Trailer Final)
Barbara Haber: The Lioness at the Library
Buried Treasure: Weeds, Seeds, and Zombies
Conversation with Melissa Clark, A
“Every Time You Make A Recipe, You Take A Risk,” An Interview With David Sutton
How We Find Our Writer’s Voice, with Dianne Jacob
JULIA | Official Trailer (2021)
New Book Brings Foodies on a Global Culinary Adventure
Rise and Folly of the Refugee Cookbook, The
Taste of Louisiana, A: Mainstreaming Blackness Through Food in The Princess and the Frog
Tip of the Tongue 100: 100th Episode Special with Ken Albala
Why the Recession Helped the Donut
Why You Should Eat Oysters at Home (And How to Shuck Them!)
Women Left Out of Cocktail History, The
— changed URL —
— that’s all for now —
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:
As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.
Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here, and provide them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.
Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:
The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)
The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)
The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)
Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)
Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)
Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)
Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier
Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)
How to Write a Great Book
The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...
...for the moment, anyway.
______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #254 is protected by copyright, and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.
Copyright ©2021 by Gary Allen.
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