Gary Allen's Blog, page 17

Vellichor

Pope’s Works, with a life by Dr. Johnson

Even before the door opens, a cart full of books tries to tempt me… but I know from long experience that there won’t be anything worthwhile. There’s a reason why they’re free or just really, really cheap. This is the place where failed wannabe bestsellers go to die, usually in the company of how-to books for software that’s been out-of-date for decades.
Still, I look (because one collector found a first edition of Moby Dick on a wheelbarrow outside one of those long-gone Fourth Avenue booksellers’ shops—a book that was signed by Melville to Hawthorne). I’ve never found anything remotely like that, but you never know…
Once through the front door, a second table of inexpensive books, or sometimes titles just recently added to the store’s stock. Always worth a peek. Sometimes, perhaps in an effort to justify the “rare books” portion of the store window’s “Used & Rare Books” signage, antique glass-fronted book cases hold the shop’s treasures: signed first editions; incunabulae; an unbound section of Pope’s Essay on Man; bizarre misprints—like 1631‘s Wicked Bible. I glance at these with a mixture of longing and parsimony. There will be nothing I can afford in those cases.
Further in, a wall of elegant leather-bound sets speak, in reserved tones, of opulent private libraries, lined in dark woods, and paved with thick sound-deadening carpets. These ancient volumes, wearing a patina that suggests, simultaneously, generations of care and the likelihood that they have never been read. I open one carefully, see the un-cut pages, inhale the fragrance of benign decrepitude, run the tip of a finger over the indentations of early letterpress upon ever-so-slightly foxed rag paper, then slide it back on the shelf. None of these books would satisfy anyone but an illiterate snob or his interior decorator. Who, among us, longs to read through twenty-eight volumes of seventeenth-century sermons written by an obscure pastor from an unpronounceable parish in Wales? Or pore over the military memoirs of a retired officer, recounting forgotten and inconsequential deeds in neglected corners of a long-gone empire?
These books arerare, and deservedly so.
I walk away from these shelves, respectfully—as if stepping between the stones of a cemetery, the graves filled with people I never knew, or even knew of. There may be nothing there for me, but there’s no need to be rude, either. I’m impatient to get into the parts of the bookshop that pander to my particular forms of book lust, but I’m vaguely aware of another urge, something perhaps more visceral in nature.
I ignore its implied message, and head to the alphabetically-organized shelves of favorite authors. I look to see if they have the one volume of Boswell’s journals that I’m missing. Alas, no—but they do have a better copy of the first one I acquired, and I’m tempted to upgrade. I hold off, since the day is young, my budget is limited, and I have no idea what serendipitous wonders are lurking back in the stacks.
How about TC Boyle? My living room has one shelf bulging with his books, but I’d like to replace a couple of paperbacks with hardcovers, especially the early Water Music. Alas, there are many copies of his later books, printed when his fame justified huge print runs. I’m beginning to feel a little anxious about my chances for a big haul, or maybe it’s an unsettled something-or-other in the abdominal region.
Perhaps I should have had breakfast before starting this book trek. Never mind; I’m here now; let’s see what finds are in store.
Do they have any of the four volumes that would fill out my set of complete works of John Burroughs? Not likely. I do find yet another copy of Locusts & Wild Honey—a tasty book, to be sure, but I already have two editions of it and a third would place an uncalled-for burden on already over-stuffed bookshelves.
Speaking of burdens, those complaints from my nether regions are becoming more insistent. It is becoming obvious that the problem is not the emptiness of my upper abdomen, but quite the opposite. While writers of books may be metaphorically full of shit, this collector of books is literally so. Why don’t I ever remember to void my bowels before wading into the vowels (and consonants) of a major book hunt? For some reason, moments after entering a bookstore, the urging of my corporal (and less ethereal or aesthetic) nature begin to dictate my behavior. This has happened so often that I suspect there may be an element of causality at work.
Is it because I read in bathrooms—and all that literature is telling me it’s time to find a private place to sit and read?
Is it a variant on the gastrointestinal effects of fright and flight—the urge to empty one’s colon to ease an escape? If so, what could I possibly fear in a bookstore—finding more treasures than I can fit in my book-jammed house? Not likely, since I rarely pass up the opportunity to acquire more books.Perhaps the urge to purge is metaphorical—my body telling me to make room before ingesting yet more volumes? Or does the smell of old books—“vellichor,” the word itself suggesting the Proustian aroma of parchment perdu—merely trigger ancient memories of reading in restrooms? Do rolls of toilet paper mimic the scrolls in the library at Alexandria?
Whatever the reason, I soon find myself in a small room at the back of the shop, seated between walls covered with old New Yorker covers, portraits of authors long gone, photos of the great libraries of Europe—a kind of sanctum sanctorum, consecrated with icons of literary lives, real or imagined. These bookshop bathrooms invariably hold a few books to distract the temporary occupants from their mundane tasks.

No longer burdened by the baser elements of my nature, I emerge fully refreshed and refocused. Where was I? 
Ah yes, “C.” 
I wonder if they might they have any Calvino or Catullus that I’ve not yet perused...

Food Sites for July 2015

Chive blossom, last week, in Ithaca, NY


“Svmer is icumen in, Lhude sing cuccu…” and yes, we’re cuckoo about cook-outs. Here in the US, on July Fourth alone, uncountable tons of charcoal will contribute their carbon to the atmosphere, the smoke of innumerable chickens, cows, and pigs will float to the heavens—a savory sacrifice to the gods of gluttony—and the cholesterol levels and BMIs of the multitudes will rise along with them.

Life can be grand.  
Even better with butter-drenched corn-on-the-cob and strawberry shortcake.
Last month, Roll Magazine published our rant, “Too Hungry for Dinner at Hate,”  an exercise in deciding who not to invite to an imaginary dinner.  In other news, Reaktion has published a Japanese-language version of Herbs: A Global History. Apparently it's called  Habu no rekishi . While we can’t read a word of Japanese, it looks very nice.

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served,  directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. 

You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook,  and Twitter.  Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner.

This month’s quotes (from On the Table’s culinary quote collection) are a celebration of summer (we just quote ‘em; we don’t necessarily agree with every little politically-incorrect comment tossed out beside the grill):

Around here, grillin’s grillin’ and barbecue is, well—sigh, sweat—what dinin’ in heaven’s got to be all about. Jane Garvey 

Grilling, broiling, barbecuing—whatever you want to call it—is an art, not just a matter of building a pyre and throwing on a piece of meat as a sacrifice to the gods of the stomach. James Beard

I’m a man. Men cook outside. Women make the three-bean salad. That’s the way it is and always has been, since the first settlers of Levittown. That outdoor grilling is a manly pursuit has long been beyond question. If this wasn’t firmly understood, you’d never get grown men to put on those aprons with pictures of dancing wienies and things on the front... William Geist

You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with …a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism. Erma Bombeck

GaryJuly, 2015
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 of you who have introduced us to sites like the ones in this newsletter (such as Jonell Galloway & Elatia Harris), 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. You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
Brief History of the Hot Texas Wiener, A
(as explained by the Library of Congress)

Cooking Issues
(delightfully geeky food technology articles from The International Culinary Center)

Eat Insects for Fun, Not to Help the Environment 
(Ophelia Deroy writes: “people will only be persuaded to eat them if they seem appealing”; a PDF)

Eating the Earth
(John Whiting’s Oxford Symposium paper on the double-edged sword that is agriculture)

Food & Consequences: The Meaning of “Food”
(Aaron Their, in Lucky Peach, on what constitutes “food”)

Food is Culture Too, and Freedom of Culture is a Fundamental Right
(op-ed piece, in The Asian Age, on official gastronomic intolerance in India)

Good Digestion
(Sadie Stein on the relation between appetite and happiness; in The Paris Review)

Life & Thyme
(magazine of “culinary storytelling”)

New Religion, The: How The Emphasis on “Clean Eating” Has Created a Moral Hierarchy for Food
(Sarah Boesveld on self-righteous neo-puritanical eating choices; in Canada’s National Post)

Offal-Eater’s Handbook, The: Untangling the Myths of Organ Meats
(first half of Robert Sietsema’s two part essay, defining offal)

Offal-Eater’s Handbook, The: Where to Eat Organs All Over the World
(second half of Robert Sietsema’s two part essay, a country-by-country listing of dishes that you might—if you really try—find in the US)

On Veganism
(Tara Kaushal on why she should be—but isn’t—a vegan; at 3 Quarks Daily)

Reconstructing Cuisines and Recipes from the Ancient World
(James Wiener’s interview with The Silk Road Gourmet’s Laura Kelley; at Ancient History Et Cetera)

Utopian Studies
(a special issue devoted to papers on food utopias, from the seventeenth century to today; downloadable PDF)

Warning: This Article Could Radically Alter the Way You Eat 
(Amy Fleming, on gastrophysics—the science behind how our perception of flavor and satiety are altered byall of our other senses; in The Guardian)

What Does a Food Historian Do?
(Rick Paulas’ interview with Ken Albala)

What to Eat in France: Camembert
(Jonell Galloway speaks fluent Fromage)

You’re Eating Fake Tortillas, and Diana Kennedy Is Pissed About It
(Daniel Hernández’s interview with the “Michael Moore of [Mexican] food”)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) site for writers/bloggers ----
5 Lessons I Learned Writing the Genius Recipes Cookbook

13 Rules to Maximize Writing Productivity

Blogging 101: Why Start a Food or Author Blog?

Comma Sense

Food Blogging 101: More Computer Info for Food Writers

How I Broke Into Food Writing: Advice From Tasting Table’s Senior Editor

How to Pitch a Newspaper or Magazine Feature: Dianne Jacob’s Valuable Advice

In Defense of Food Writing: A Reader’s Manifesto

Nigella Lawson: Why I Became a Cookbook Writer

RecipeWriter

Writing a Cookbook Proposal


---- other blogs ----
Andrea Maraschi 

Cookblog

Danger! Men Cooking!

Eccentric Culinary History, An

Food Institute Blog, The


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers (Paper)(Kindle)
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)(Hardcover, in Japanese)  (Kindle)
Sausage: A Global History (available for pre-order)(Hardcover)
Terms of Vegery(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
“The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #177” 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

Food Sites for June 2015

Hama Hama oysters, on the shore of Washington’s Hood Canal

We’ve been traveling, for the past three weeks or so, and have eaten well—and not-so-well—across some twenty states. Unfortunately, while driving along the Interstates, we find nothing but fast-food chains. Never-ending variations on the theme of fried flesh and starch. We search in vain for something raw or even fresh—and must often abandon all hope of finding any decent vegetables. However, by exiting the endless divided highway for back roads, some toothsome surprises may be encountered.

We suspect that there’s a metaphor here about food writing, but we’ll leave its discovery to you, gentle reader.

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served, directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. For example, “A Study in Contrasts,” a recent exercise in self-indulgence, addresses some mixed feelings that one might experience when guided by one’s stomach. 

You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner.

This month’s quotes from On the Table’s culinary quote collection are all from another American traveler:

A man accustomed to American food and American domestic cookery would not starve to death suddenly in Europe, but I think he would gradually waste away, and eventually die. Mark Twain 

After a few months’ acquaintance with European ‘coffee’ one’s mind weakens, and his faith with it, and he begins to wonder if the rich beverage of home, with its clotted layer of yellow cream on top of it, is not a mere dream after all, and a thing which never existed. Mark Twain

 Sacred cows make the best hamburger. Mark Twain

GaryJune, 2015
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 of you who have suggested sites—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. There’re You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
20 Delicious Bug Recipes from Chefs
(Mandy Oaklander on the latest in creepy-crawly cuisine; in Time magazine)

Bro and a Philosopher Debate the True Meaning of a Sandwich, A
(it’s not a simple question to answer…)

Culinary Historians of Piedmont North Carolina
(meetings held at Flyleaf Books, 752 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Chapel Hill, NC)

Fruits and Vegetables Are Trying to Kill You
(Moises Velasquez-Manoff on recent research into the relationship between plant stressors and human health)

How to Read a Wine
(Dwight Furrow: “…when you taste a wine you taste the residue of geography and culture”)

Human Cheese
(experimenting with bacteria from our bodies to produce cheeses)

Let’s Eat Together: How Immigration Made British Food Great
(the gastronomic melting pot is not a solely American phenomenon)

On Food Labels, Calorie Miscounts
(Philip J. Hilts on a more scientific method for counting calories, in The New York Times)

Real North Carolina Barbecue
(“barbecue” is always a contentious subject, so don’t expect this article to mince words)

Science Giveth and Science Taketh Away
(Dwight Furrow on glass shape and the perception of wine)

Science: The Missing Ingredient in the So-Called Art of Cooking
(Cynthia Bertelsen’s plea for, and links to sources of, scientific literacy for cooks—and, by extension, food writers)

Shared Meals
(Jan Whitaker, on some of the less-than-savory things restaurants used to serve)

UC Food Observer
(food and agriculture news from University of California)

When Eating Dairy Was a Life-or-Death Question
(Susan Cosier on archaeological evidence for early cheese-making and the evolution of milk-tolerance in adults)

Why Comfort Food Comforts
(Cari Romm’s psychological insights, in The Atlantic)

Why (Western) Philosophers are Late to the Dinner Party
(philosopher Dwight Furrow considers the reasons other philosophers have so rarely considered food to be a worthy topic)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) site for writers/bloggers ----
5 Ways to Get Publicity for Your Book (That Aren’t Related to Your Book Launch or Book Tour)

How to Start a Food Blog: 10 Tips from a Veteran Blogger

How to Start a Food Blog: A Step by Step Dummy Proof Guide

Kidnapped!* A Case of Plagiarism


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 



Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 
It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper) (Kindle)
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)
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #176 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

A Study in Contrasts

Last weekend, we were in NYC—and, being little more than peripatetic gullets, we wanted to experience some of the unique dining opportunities Gastropolis had to offer. Such visits always remind me of ravening wolves descending upon a village.On Saturday night, we went to Eataly, the rightfully ballyhooed emporium of Italian gourmandise. Even before opening the door, it was obvious that every cubic inch of that palace of the palate was filled with people—an awe-stricken gawk-jawed Eatalian swarm. There was certainly much to inspire their awe: shelf after never-ending shelf of exquisite comestibles; display cases filled with meats, fish, cheeses, pastries, and breads—of a fineness never to be seen in suburban supermarkets; ample opportunities to sample the output of several kitchens (assuming—admittedly a rather large assumption—that one could find an empty seat to occupy); books; cleanly-designed cookware; perfect fruits and vegetables; rare olive oils and ancient vinegars; pasta in shapes and sizes to dazzle the imagination; plus souvenirs to prove that one has made it to the promised land. The bounty—displayed in spanking new splendor, seemed never-ending. At table, the food and service were faultless. That itself was a managerial miracle, considering the frantic ambiance of the place—an odd amalgamation of first day of vacation season at Disneyworld, the seventh game of a subway World Series, and the tossing of the first Christian to the lions at the Coliseum.The next morning, we schlepped down to Houston Street, for a late breakfast at a New York landmark. For those who’ve never been to Yonah Shimmel, the place is tiny (twenty people would probably over-crowd the place… and would barely leave room for a few of their colossal knishes). I suspect they’ve never changed their recipes for egg creams, knishes, half-sours, and coleslaw—even slightly— in over a century. In place of the polished faux rusticity of Eataly, Yonah Shimmel sports fifty-year old formica, a thick coat of red enamel that tried (and failed) to rejuvenate the even older battered chair-rails, and several generations’ of faded celebrity photos and autographs, valentines from notable noshers of the past.
Restaurants like Yonah Shimmel are fast-disappearing, victims of rising rents, changing demographics, real estate prices, and fickle tastes. They’re being replaced by high-rise condos and the mega-glitz of places like Eataly. Don’t get me wrong—I thoroughly enjoyed eating at both places. However, while I felt restored (not to mention stuffed) on Houston Street, Eataly’s unabashed excess left me with a kind of metaphorical emptiness, a slight tristesse of embarrassment. Perhaps that was not a bad thing; after too much self-indulgence, a little class-conscious guilt can be just the right digestif.

Food Sites for May 2015

The Hudson Valley’s first violets of the year.

‘tis May, almost, and we’re about to go on a big road-trip—one of our favorite things. There will be a lot of eating, audio books, eating, gawking at scenery, eating, taking thousands of photos, and possibly some more eating. Because we won’t have much internet access,  June’s issue will likely be late and probably a little scrawny. You may, however, count yourself lucky if you are not among the few unfortunates who will be subjected to the traditional post-vacation soporific slide show.

My latest addition to Reaktion Books’ Edible series, Sausage: A Global History , (all about our favorite mystery meat) is complete, edited, indexed, and in their spring catalog. It will be released in September—along with Brian Yarvin’s Lamb: A Global History (between us, we’ll cover much of the succulent entrée category). Our next book, on preserved foods, has passed through its second edit and is current lounging on a desk somewhere in Greater London (it’s publication is a year or so away—so you'll have plenty of time to digest all that sausage and lamb).

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served,  directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter.  Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner.

This month’s quotes from On the Table’s culinary quote collection are—like road-trips themselves—a mixed bag, a traveler’s pot-luck:

“When you come to a fork in the road, it’s time to eat.” Bob DelGrosso 

“I don’t think the road to heaven is paved with bean curd.” David Shaw 

 “He that travels in theory has no inconveniences; he has shade and sunshine at his disposal, and wherever he alights finds tables of plenty and looks of gaiety. These ideas are indulged till the day of departure arrives, the chaise is called, and the progress of happiness begins. A few miles teach him the fallacies of imagination. The road is dusty, the air is sultry, the horses are sluggish. He longs for the time of dinner that he may eat and rest. The inn is crowded, his orders are neglected, and nothing remains but that he devour in haste what the cook has spoiled, and drive on in quest of better entertainment. He finds at night a more commodious house, but the best is always worse than he expected.” Samuel Johnson 

“Las Vegas is Everyman’s cut-rate Babylon. Not far away there is, or was, a roadside lunch counter and over it a sign proclaiming in three words that a Roman emperor’s orgy is now a democratic institution... ‘Topless Pizza Lunch.’” Alistair Cooke

GaryMay, 2015
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 of you who have suggested sites—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 frankly 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. You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
eatfeed
(“Food porn for the intellectual cook;” podcasts for people like us… who care, perhaps too much, about food)

Food Babe Blogger Is Full of Shit, The
(a real scientist, Yvette d’Entremont, looks at the kind of pseudoscience that often appears in food blogs)

Food: The Newest Celebrity
(Megan Garber, in The Atlantic, on the kind of porn whose “…subjects are often actual pieces of meat…”)

How Snobbery Helped Take the Spice Out of European Cooking
(reflecting on flavor and history, from NPR)

Inside Louis’ Lunch, the 120-Year-Old Birthplace of the Hamburger
(Erin DeJesus on the historic New Haven eatery)

Interlibrary Snacking
(some food history from The New York Academy of Medicine)

Introduction of Chili Peppers to India, The
(Laura Kelley, the Silk Road Gourmet, traces their earliest appearance in written recipes)

Marlena Spieler
(a food writer & broadcaster’s site)

My Obsession: The Laurel Family
(Deborah Madison on the Lauraceae, with special attention to bay leaves and avocados)

Smoke: Why We Love It, for Cooking and Eating
(Jim Shahin waxes rhapsodic—and a little scientific—in The Washington Post)

Stupid Wine Journalism
(food and wine journalists beware—Dwight Furrow is paying attention)

Thai Food Glossary
(just a small part of Clay Irving’s huge recipe site)

Trash Food
(Chris Offutt on class, suspicion, guilt—in part revealed by what’s on our plates)

Why the Beef? Empire and Cuisine
(an essay by Rachel Laudan)

Writing Food History
(an outlined overview of the various directions the field can take, by Peter Scholliers)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) site for writers/bloggers ----
How to Shine Blogging for a Single Reader!


---- yet another blog ----
Brian Yarvin


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper) (Kindle)
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)PRE-ORDER
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #175 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

Food Sites for April 2015

Is this news or crass hucksterism? Your call.

Despite what one poet had to say about the cruelness of April, this one promises to be especially kind around here. First, of course is that our wicked witch of a winter will be “really most sincerely dead.” Where’s the cruelty in that, Mr. Eliot?

This April, moreover, has even more good news for us. We were interviewed for an HBO special, Thought Crimes , which will premiere at the Tribeca Film festival this month. OUP is about to release The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets, which includes our lengthy article, “Insects.” OK, the news, so far is kinda’ creepy (and occasionally crawly)—but there is some tastier news.

My latest addition to Reaktion Books’ Edible series, Sausage: A Global History , (all about our favorite mystery meat) is complete, edited, indexed, and on its way to press. It is already listed online and will be included in Reaktion’s spring catalog (and at stand 6A109 of the London Book Fair, April 14-16).

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served,  directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. 
You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner. While this newsletter is mostly about food, food history, food science, food writing—let’s face it, it’s about filling our faces and thinking about the process, before, during, and after the fact.

This month’s quotes from On the Table’s culinary quote collection are entirely self-serving. Well, mostly self-serving...

A highbrow is the kind of person who looks at a sausage and thinks of Picasso. Alan Patrick Herbert 

What? Sunday morning in an English family and no sausages? God bless my soul, what’s the world coming to? Dorothy Sayers 

Doctor, do you think it could have been the sausage? last words of Paul Claudel

GaryApril, 2015

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 of you who have suggested sites—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. There’re You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
Basic Fare: Club Sandwiches
(Jan Whitaker dishes on the popular double-decker standby)
at NYC’s New School)

Celebrating a Hawaian Lu’au
(Jeanelle Kam and Rachel Laudan serve a detailed description of the preparation of this traditional feast)

Early Vegetarian Restaurants
(Jan Whitaker on some pre-hippie—that is, doomed—attempts at meatlessness)

Food & Food Preparation: Bread, Biscuit, Waffles & Wafers
(a slide show of eighteenth-century baking images and items)

Food and Back Migration: The Cornish Pasty Plot Thickens
(Rachel Laudan knocks the stuffing out another food fallacy)

FRENCH BREAD HISTORY: Gallo-Roman Bread
(more from bread historian Jim Chevallier)

History and Ritual of Brunch, The: with Farha Ternikar
(a video lecture, sponsored by Culinary Historians of New York and the Food Studies Program)

How the Apothecary Gave Birth to the Modern Cocktail Movement
(Warren Bobrow takes a cordial look at mixology in his Eater article)

How the Tudors Invented Breakfast
(Ian Mortimer in BBC History Magazine)

(Claire Chambers on London’s curry houses)

Listening, Tasting, Reading, Touching: Interdisciplinary Histories of American Food
(four scholars take on the “inherent interdisciplinarity of food history;” at the American Historical Association’s annual meeting)

Taste-Based Medicine
(India Mandelkern looks at the connection between gastronomic and medical practices in various cultures)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) site for writers/bloggers ----
Branding as a Writer, Rebranding as a Foodwriter


---- yet more blogs ----
Code of Eatics, A

Insatiable



---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper)(Kindle)
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)
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #174 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

Foodsites for March 2015

March is pretty much devoid of holidays, unless you count the First Day of Spring (which is usually a let-down for folks who have endured months of the kind of weather we’re seeing right now). We long for balmy days, sauntering through budding forests, stooping to pluck the occasional ramp or morel, or watching a dry fly drifting toward an especially cooperative brookie, while wildflowers nod on mossy banks, and soft breezes carry melodious birdsong. 

March provides none of that. 

What we do have is a window view of a snow-topped bird-feeder (surrounded by juncos, cardinals, downy woodpeckers, chickadees, and sparrows—so many greedy bickering sparrows), a warm house, soon to be filled with smell of slow-cooked foods suitable for the season, and the chance to forestall the onerous shoveling of snow by producing this newsletter.

Regular subscribers to this newsletter receive them from our blog, Just Served, directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner. 

This month’s quotation is not from On the Table’s culinary quote collection but, we feel, is more along the lines of venting:

Winter is icummen in, 

Lhude sing Goddamm, 

Raineth drop and staineth slop,  

And how the wind doth ramm!   

         Sing: Goddamm. 

Skiddeth bus and sloppeth us,  

An ague hath my ham,  

Freezeth river, turneth liver,  

          Damn you, sing: Goddamm.  

Goddamm, Goddamm, ‘tis why I am, Goddamm,  

          So ’gainst the winter’s balm.  

Sing goddamm, damm, sing Goddamm.  

Sing goddamm, sing goddamm, DAMM.  - Ezra Pound

GaryMarch, 2015

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed (as has my virtual friend, Elatia Harris)—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those of you who have suggested sites: 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. You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
5 Things to Look for Next Time You Buy a Cookbook 
(Emily Contois, at Zester Daily, on Nika Hazelton’s advice; it was good in 1963, and it still is)

American Food, Whatever That Is
(interview with Jonathan Gold and Robert Sietsema, on food and food writing)

Cherry Bombe
(biennial magazine on women and food)

Country Housewife ’ s Family Companion, The
(facsimile edition of William Ellis’ 1750 book)

Diner Journal
(independent ad-free food magazine)

Early English Books Online: Text Creation Partnership (EEBO-TCP)
(searchable database of many old texts)

EARLY ENGLISH BREAD: Barm or sourdough?
(Jim Chevallier’s efforts to thresh out the truth about Medieval British baking)

Euell Gibbons: The Father of Modern Wild Foods 
(a short biography by John Kallas; see also John McPhee’s New Yorker profile of Gibbons)

Food and Romance: The Tissue of Little Things
(Dwight Furrow, writing at the intersection of the two primary hungers)

HANNAH GLASSE: Stolen Identity During the Eighteenth Century
(food writers might have a hard time today, but Victoria Rumble explains that it was once worse…)

How the Sense of Taste Has Shaped Who We Are
(“…John McQuaid on the science and history of flavor;” in Scientific American)

Mysteries of Chili Heat, The: Why People Love the Pain
(John McQuaid summarizes the latest scientific evidence, in Salon)

Regional Chinese Cooking
(Joe DiStefano’s series at Serious Eats:
More Than Ma La: A Deeper Introduction to Sichuan Cuisine
Secrets of Cantonese Cooking, The: America's First Chinese Cuisine
Song of Spice and Fire, A: The Real Deal With Hunan Cuisine)

Science of Saturated Fat, The: A Big Fat Surprise About Nutrition?
(Nina Teicholz, in The Independent, with good news for butter lovers)

Short Stack
(publisher of small single-subject cookbooks)

Toast
(e-zine; “a celebration of food & ideas”)

What Americans Can Learn from Other Food Cultures
(Amy Choi, via TED)

What Gives Wine its Color?
(Eleanor Shannon provides a brief introduction to the subject)

Why Lyon is Food Capital of the World
(Bill Buford, in The Guardian)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers ----
Curse of Modern Food Writing, The: The Dearth of Pleasure

Essay Expert, The

How Food Journalism Got as Stale as Day-Old Bread

It’s All About Trust and Ethics in Food Blogging


---- yet more blogs ----
China South of the Clouds

eat this poem 

Les Leftovers

Maureen B. Fant: Discovering Italy through its Food 

Science Meets Food


---- one changed URL ----
Red Cook


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper) (Kindle)
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)
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #173 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

Foodsites for February 2015

Right now, it might feel about as far from Spring as can be imagined, but we’re about to put all of our faith in the prognostications of rodent in Pennsylvania. 

February, an otherwise dismal month, attempts to be relieved by several holidays.

In the US we have President’s Day (which used to be two holidays, until the powers-that-be decided that two holidays constituted entirely too much fun). As a child I remember that Washington’s Birthday was always celebrated with a homemade cherry pie, but today it just seems to be an excuse for sales of all sorts of items we don’t actually need.

The other two holidays (the ones that don’t provide days off) celebrate—appropriately enough—possibly unrequited longing: Valentine’s Day and Groundhog Day. The folks who invented the calendar must have realized how depressing February can be—otherwise, why would they have made it the shortest month?

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served, directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. 

You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner. 

In honor of Groundhog Day (when, each year, we substitute desperate hope for bitter experience), we’ll extract something about Marmota monax from On the Table’s culinary quote collection: 

As I came home through the woods with my string of fish, trailing my pole, it being now quite dark, I caught a glimpse of a woodchuck stealing across my path, and felt a strange thrill of savage delight, and was strongly tempted to seize and devour him raw; not that I was hungry then, except for that wildness which he represented. Henry David Thoreau

GaryFebruary 2015
PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed (as has my virtual friend, Karen Resta)—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those of you who have suggested sites—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. You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
American Menu, The
(historic musings from menu collector Henry B. Voigt)

Behind the Recipe -- Jeri Quinzio
(food history from the author of Of Sugar and Snow: A History of Ice Cream Making)

Books, Food & History 
(site of the University of Amsterdam’s Special Collection on the History of Food)

Brief History of the French Baguette, A
(the classic French loaf is not as ancient as we might think…)

Cook in Colonial Africa, A
(Cynthia Bertelsen, on what it was like for tropical cooks to prepare typical British meals)

Cookbook of Unknown Ladies, The
(“Curious recipes and hidden histories from Westminster City Archives”)

Eat Your History: A Shared Table
(food history from down under)

Forgotten Cuisines of America
(Robert Sietsema’s exploration of the eclectic roots of American food, in Gourmet: 
Part 1: The Barrier Islands of South Carolina
Part 2: The Hmong
Part 3: Silicon Valley
Part 4: Tex-Mex
Part 5: Tex-Mex
Part 6: German-American)

Historic Cooking School
(Rena Goff on cookbooks—with many links to free e-versions, historic kitchens, and food museums)

Historic Foodie, The
(site of Martin & Victoria Rumble; foodwriting, bookselling, and historic recreating in the Appalachians)

Homo Gastronomicus
(thinking about eating, mostly British eating)

How Coffee Fueled the Civil War
(not your typical war story; from War History Online)

How I Became a Food Historian 
(Rachel Laudan tells all…)

Hushpuppy Nation 
(American food, southern style)

La Cocina Histórica
(exploring the collection of Mexican cookbooks at The University of Texas at San Antonio)

On Food and History 
(Lynn Nelson on food news, historic cookbooks, films that feature food, and suchlike tasty topics)

On MSG and Chinese Restaurant Syndrome
(Harold McGee puts another food fallacy to rest)

On the Idea of Novelty in Cuisine: A Brief Historical Insight 
(Bénédict Beaugé, in the International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science)

Short History of the Dining Room, A (Part 1)
(Christine Baumgarthuber’s article in The New Inquiry)

Tiny Bubbles: Where Food Met Science, Medicine, and Religion
(Rachel Laudan effervesces about the mostly Western fascination with aerated food and drink)

Why Black Eyed Peas? Why Greens?
(Michael W. Twitty on some southern staple foods; at Afroculinaria)

Why the Kitchen Computing Dream of the 80s Never Caught On
(Maureen Ryan on a bit of techie nostalgia for something that never really happened)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers ----
Amazon Is Not the Reader’s Friend, Says Debate Audience

Confusion Among Bloggers on Disclosing Compensation

Has Your Content Been Stolen? A Lawyer’s Guide To Defending Your Online Content

Mark Strand: Living Gorgeously

Questions from a Recipe Copy Editor

What’s Lost as Handwriting Fades


---- yet another blog ----
Opusculum


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper), (Kindle)
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)
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)
Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #172 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

Food Sites for January 2015

Not what it looks like outside our door right now… but it’s only a matter of time.

January is named for the Roman god of doorways, and has two faces—one for looking forward and one for looking back. Janus seems quite appropriate for those of us who write about food, especially food historians. We’re always trying new things, but thinking about them in the context of the past. On the other hand, for those of us who have also raised children, the Roman god Edusa might deserve some supplication. She was responsible for getting the young ones to eat their veggies (and anything else they might reject untasted).

Despite the fact that feasting might have lost some of its appeal after all our holiday meals, this issue is—once again—over-stuffed. If it’s any consolation, the updates newsletters are always 100% calorie, cholesterol, gluten, and trans-fat free.

Regular subscribers to our updates newsletter receive these updates from our blog, Just Served, directly—but there is much more at the blog that isn’t delivered automatically. 

You can, if you wish, follow us on Facebook, and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner.

It’s a media tradition—around this time—to revisit major events of the past year. Bowing to peer pressure, On the Table’s culinary quote collection serves up it’s own leftover dish:

I was trying new green vegetables on my dog, Mabon. So, with all this talk that you could hardly survive without eating kale three times a day, I decided to try a little bit. I stir-fried it and put three little clumps in his dish. And he sniffed each clump, picked each one up and put it over there, and there, and there—and walked away. I was proud of him. Good boy! Judith Jones

GaryJanuary 2015

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed (as has my friend Cynthia Bertelsen)—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those of you who have suggested sites—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. You’ll find links at the bottom of this page to fix everything to your liking.



---- the new sites ----
American Food History Project, The
(a series of exhibits at the Smithsonian; podcasts and videos)

Beyond Casserole: Mapping Out The Country’s Funeral Food Traditions
(regional variations on preferred comfort[ing] foods)

Bibliography of Sub-Saharan African Cookery Books
(link to downloadable Word document)

Boiling Fish
(Leanne Ogasawara on scent, memory, Marseilles, and the making of bouillabaisse; in 3 Quarks Daily)

Bread in the Middle Ages
(history, and a couple of recipes)

California Taco Trail, The: How Mexican Food Conquered America
(Carolina Miranda’s report on NPR)

Cara De Silva
(website of one very busy food journalist/historian/public speaker/editor/teacher)

Chef Leticia
(website & blog of expatriate Brazilian chef and cookbook author, Leticia Moreinos Schwartz)

Dobby’s Signature
(recipes from Nigeria)

Feats of Clay: The Role of the Qvevri in Georgian Winemaking
(Doug Wregg’s article about a traditional method of fermenting wine—in the Caucasus, where wine was first made—but is not at all like wine production anywhere else)

Food Borne Illness Prevention
(comprehensive list of links to pathogens and their medical implications, as well as federal and local regulations and standards for controlling them)

Graduate Association for Food Studies, The
(from Boston University’s Gastronomy Program and Harvard University, with far-flung faculty advisors from across the spectrum of food scholarship)

Grape Collective
(wine magazine)

History Cook, The: Food of Christmas Past
(a day in the kitchen with Ivan Day)

Human Ancestors Were Consuming Alcohol 10 Million Years Ago
(Carl Engelking, on genetic clues about our ability to metabolize booze, in Discover)

Hungry African, A
(African recipe site)

Italian Deli Meats
(“a journey through flavor, renewed nutritional quality and health benefits of a symbol of Italian culinary art;” PDF)

Meat Fermentation at the Crossroads of Innovation and Tradition: A Historical Outlook
(report by Frédéric Leroy, Anneke Geyzen, Maarten Janssens, Luc De Vuyst, and Peter Scholliers in Trends in Food Science & Technology)

Mzansi Style Cuisine
(modern South African recipes)

PAXIMADIA: Barley Biscuits’ Past and Present
(a traditional food of Crete)

Preserving Tradition: Appalachian Food Storybank Collects Tales of Mountain Meals
(“…a project of the Heritage Food Committee of Slow Foods Asheville,” North Carolina)

Roosevelt Family Built a New York Coffee Chain 50 Years Before Starbucks, The
(Jancee Dunn’s article in the Smithsonian Magazine)

Shrooming in Late Capitalism: The Way of the Truffle
(a personal account, and some history, of Tuber melanosporum & magnatum – with a soupcon of lesser-known truffle genera: Terfezia & Tirmania)

Special Sauce for Measuring Food Trends: The Fried Calamari Index
(Neil Irwin on the way certain foods rise from obscurity to cult status, then become so familiar that they are no longer mentioned in The New York Times)

Suzy Homemaker, a Slice of Life from the 1960s
(Judith Gradwohl’s article, on a Smithsonian exhibit that uses a domestic toy to revisit a turbulent moment in our domestic history)

Taste of Tanzania
(Miriam Kinunda’s site about Swahili food and culture)

Viennese Delights: Remarks on the History of Food and Sociability in Eighteenth-Century Central Europe
(David Do Paço’s paper, published as part of the Max Weber Programme  of the European University Institute)

Visit to the Kitchen of Legendary Cookbook Editor Judith Jones, A
(Charlotte Druckman’s article in The Wall Street Journal)

Why Kant Was Wrong About Food
(Dwight Furrow provides philosophical justification for our intellectual fascination with the things we stuff in our mouths)


---- inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers ----
Caught Between Gefilte Fish and Campbell’s Soup

Self-Publishing is Self-Correcting

Working for Free Has Value at Each Stage of a Career


---- yet more blogs ----
Adventures in Bread Making

Amuse-Bouches, Intermèdes et Mignardises

Chef Afrik

Come. Con. Ella.

Daily Dish

Emiko Davies

Food Lover’s Feast, A

foodgeekology

It Takes a Kitchen

Life in the Food Lane

My Darling Lemon Thyme

My Mission: Tastes of SF

Salad for President

Science and Food 


---- that’s all for now ----
Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

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: 

Want to support On the Table, without spending a dime of your own money on it? 

It’s easy. Whenever you want to shop on Amazon. Com, click on any of the book links below, then whatever you buy there (it doesn’t even have to be one of our books) will earn a commission for this newsletter.


The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Paper), (Kindle)
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)
Terms of Vegery
(Kindle)
How to Serve Man: On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Kindle)


Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________
The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #171 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 (c) 2015 by Gary Allen.

A Huck Finn Moment, Recalled

I first met Pete Seeger at Whiz Bang Quick City II (a four-day experimental architecture event held outside of Phoenicia, NY) in 1972. At the time, I was part of Big Foot Foam, a small team of folks using sprayed urethane foam to build energy-efficient homes. Pete was intrigued by the tiny floating foam shelter I had made, on the spot, in which I slept—mid-pond—on that long weekend. He told me that he had an idea for a vessel that could travel up and down the Hudson using no power other than its currents and tides. Sailors would simply go with the flow, while it was moved in their desired direction, and drop anchor when it did not. He said it could be built like a large raft, using discarded oil drums filled with urethane foam.


Top left: My small frog-like home-from-home, migrating to the pond.

Pete was so charmingly free of technological savvy that I didn’t have the heart to tell him about the environmental hazards of the petrochemicals used to make urethane foam, nor that the used oil drums would work perfectly well for his raft—all by themselves.

References to Whiz Bang Quick City II “A Temporary City Celebrates Cooperation and Creativity.” Mother Earth News, July/August 1972.
O’Corozine, Rich. “Off the Map.” Home Hudson Valley, May 14, 2012.