Omnivorium

Eating and drinking

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How One Artist Captures the Deprivation of Prison Food

Julie Green paints the first meals eaten after those wrongly convicted of crimes leave prison for the first time

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I'm Samin Nosrat, Host and Executive Producer of 'Salt Fat Acid Heat,' and This Is How I Eat

In the world of food media, Samin Nosrat is a palate cleanser. Though she is a fount of cooking knowledge and wisdom, neither her award winning book nor her Netflix show ever feel prescriptive. Instead, she invites the reader or viewer to learn about, eat and enjoy food, all while radiating joy and warmth. Keeping in that spirit of generosity, she was kind enough to tell us how she takes her coffee, her favorite Trader Joe’s meal, and why eating boiled vegetables can sometimes feel like a vacation. (She also let us look inside her fridge.)

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Almond Biscotti: The Perfect Care-Package Cookie

Forget the butter-loaded version common to American coffee shops. Real Italian biscotti are wonderfully lean, giving them a near-miraculous shelf life and the capacity to withstand a good dunking in hot coffee.

In January, I’ll be going in for surgery on my foot, followed by six weeks of not being allowed to leave the house. I can’t think why the words “care package” even caught my attention. Strange, isn’t it? 

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Give a Jar of No-Knead Sourdough for Others To Feed

Give the gift of a sourdough starter in a jar with explicit instructions on how to care for it—your bread-obsessed friends will love it.

Not a bad idea, if you know anyone inclined. 

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Sugar does rot your brain after all: Scientists connect to Alzheimer's

Is Alzheimer's triggered by too much sugar? We have long known that consuming too much sugar is related to obesity and diabetes. A new UK study has found a molecular "tipping point," where a crucial enzyme related to insulin regulation is damaged by excess glucose. This may have a major impact on our understanding of the cognitive disease along with our diet.

I see a lot of things wrong with this theory, but yeah too much sugar is bad. And fat people should be ashamed of themselves, as should diabetics. I’m fat and diabetic, and I approved this message, I guess. 

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The first list of antidepressant foods restructures the "standard" American diet

The first list of antidepressant food scores restructures the "standard" American diet.

I’ll have the oysters with watercress puree, please. Note: no mention of chocolate. 

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To cook the best stovetop bacon, start with a cold pan (and other skillet bacon tips)

I run a butcher shop in Chicago called The Butcher & Larder. As you can imagine, in the eight years I’ve spent behind the butcher counter, bacon has played a big roll in my day-to-day business. The butchering team cuts, cures, smokes, slices, and packages hundreds of pounds of bacon every week, and the public never tires of it.

There are as many ways to cook bacon perfectly, it seems, as there are people to ask. Here’s a couple more. I recommend the cast-iron skillet method, because then you can show off about having a cast-iron skillet. My own tip: it used to belong to your grandmother, no matter when you bought it. Got that? 

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Heston Blumenthal reveals how new found taste for pebbles from Provence has transformed his dishes

Home cooks who want to give soup a little extra flavour can add seasoning, or perhaps a pinch of herbs.

Potage de pierres, not recommended if you’re trying to lose weight.  Heston, eh? What’s he like? 

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Food service sector in deep trouble

The food and drinks service sector, known conveniently in Europe as horeca (hotel, restaurant, catering) is undergoing a serious crisis, according to federal minister for small businesses Denis Ducarme. The industry, needless to say, could have told him that three years ago. 

First there were the murderous attacks in Paris in November 2015, which led to a four-day shutdown of businesses in the centre of Brussels, and even when that was over, a depression in customer numbers from which it has never really recovered. 

The later bomb attacks in Brussels in March 2016, as well as the construction of the vanity project that is the central pedestrian zone (whose originators are now all gone and anything but lamented), made the situation worse. 

Now the government has finally recognised the problem, and admitted its importance to the whole tourism sector and the economy, and decided to do something about it. Among the measures being proposed, albeit vaguely for the time being, are the amendment, postponement or scrapping altogether of social security contributions. 

More details when, and indeed if, they emerge. 

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Leave the gun, bring the cannoli. 

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Belgium takes the lead in beer exports

Belgium has moved into first place for beer exports from the EU, according to the Federation of European Brewers. Belgium took over from Germany, with a total of 15.8 million hectolitres, just in front of Germany’s 15.75 million Hl. 

The figure illustrates the importance of exports to Belgian producers, compared to domestic consumption. Belgium is only seventh in Europe according to production, but exports a larger proportion of that than anyone else -- 70% last year. 

Germany produces most beer, with 93 million Hl last year, a huge share of the EU’s total of 397 million. On a European level, around a fifth is exported. Major export markets are the US (11 million Hl), China (5.2 million) and Canada (2.1 million)

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This pizza is forever -- at $200 a slice

Forever Pizza was created by artist Steph Mantis for an art show, and now she’s found a way to make them in numbers for sale via her website. The pizza inside is real, if slightly overcooked by the process of encasing it in resin like dinosaur DNA. Steph also sells other pizza-related artifacts, such as T-shirts with the names of toppings, so you can get used to walking around with mozzarella and tomato sauce down your front, as if you aren’t already. 

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Morgana comes of age

Say hello to Morgana, a new variety of apple developed by Belgian growers as a competitor for the Pink Lady. Morgana was launched last week at the fruit industry fair Fructura in Hasselt. 

The apple has taken 14 years to come to erm fruition, developed by the breeding specialists Better3Fruit in Rillar, with trees group by a subsidiary of grower Carolus. It’s expected to be in warehouses in 2021, after 30,000 Morgana trees are planted in Limburg province this winter. 

According to the editorial team at Het Nieuwsblad, who tried it, the apple tastes somewhat honeyish, lacking in acidity, but scoring on structure and juice, compared to four other varieties. 

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The Brussels Times - Food safety agency issues warning about contaminated meat

The federal food safety agency has ordered two Belgian companies to recall a number of products because of a risk of salmonella. The agency was acting...

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I always love to visit Gent! The old city centre with historical buildings, the cafés and bars along the canal, the great foodie plac...

An all too rare entry in Iris’ blog, which always has excellent recommendations for food and drink. She says this place is a bit of a trek from the station, but it sounds like it’s worth it. 

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More louely and more temperate

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picnic

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Usually, a brewery is passed from father to son. In the case of Oud Beersel, as Alan Hope finds out, the next generation took matters into his own hands