David Bouley Delivers a Ducatini to Ducati

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Just when you thought it was safe again to walk in the streets of New York... [If you have a broadband connection, be sure to click here for any browser -- if a small window does not pop up in the top-right of your screen (e.g., Firefox users), then click here and move the pop-up page to the side so you may continue reading.] VrooOOOMMMM! Ducati bikes roar down from their rendezvous in front of the Javits Center ("Marketplace for the World") at 34th Street and 11th Avenue to announce their return to the City, " with the magnetic roar of Italian L-twin power" as Superbike Planet described last week. The New York City Police Department gave the Ducatisti a special motorcycle escort down Washington Street to the grand opening festivities at their new location. And New York Chef David Bouley concocted an Italian-themed dinner at the new Ducati New York, including his new drink the "Ducatini." Salute, Davide! (Click here to see the photo gallary of the New York opening.) Previous articles: David Bouley's Bubble Blue Hill: Everybody Must Get Stoned Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding --> back to superchefblog

Sneak Peak: Hell's Kitchen, with Gordon Ramsay

By JULIETTE ROSSANT If you would like to catch a sneak preview of Hell's Kitchen, which premieres on Fox tonight at 9:00 p.m. ET, click here (needs Windows Media Player plug-in) and catch a videostream of Gordon Ramsay talking about a subject that he seems to know and like better than Food, which is, well... himself! Previous articles: Gordon Ramsay Joins Richard Branson in Fox's Reality TV Hell Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding Reality TV Hell's Kitchen --> back to superchefblog

Before STORE WARS: The Meatrix

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Before making the year's most important movie, production house Free Range Studios made another smash hit in 2003 called The Meatrix about "the lie we tell ourselves about where our food comes from," which won a Webby Award just recently. These things have a life of their own, in cyberspace -- you know, in the Matrix (click here to see The Meatrix -- then click here to see the original The Matrix trailer and compare the two). The motto of Free Range Studios is "A life's work should create, not corrupt": what do you think? Previous articles: Last Supper for Star Wars Star Wars' Super Chef: "Droidmaker" George Lucas STORE WARS: The Making of the Movie Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS Gabby Hayes: White House Chef? A Bite Out of "The Gates" Inauguration Spells Alphabet Soup Disaster Slow Food Thanksgiving, by Alice Waters and Prince Charles Politics, Billboards & Champagne Politics, Chefs & Billboards Inside Scoop on Dinner in the Control Room Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding slow food organic food film movies matrix --> back to superchefblog

Alain Senderens: The Next Revolution?

By MOIRA CHAMBERS in Paris Mon Dieu! Quel scandale! The luster of Michelin stars seems to be dimming, for Alain Senderens, one of France’s culinary geniuses credited with the invention of Nouvelle Cuisine, is surrendering his stars. For 28 years this chef has held stars (often called macarons or "stickers" in the French Press), but now Senderens is closing the doors of Lucas Carton, his famous restaurant on Place de la Madeleine. But wait! He's closing for just two months, only to reopen with a few changes -- starting with a drop in the menu price from €400 to €100. The chef states he wants the liberty to create something more in tune with modern life, not only in terms of food but also environment. His new restaurant will have a “more sensual, more feminine” atmosphere than the "old" Carton. Currently, Lucas Carton provides four waiters for each table: that's more waiters per table than Michelin stars for the restaurant. Senderens is cutting back on both. But what does Senderens' move portend for the future of French (Nouvelle) Haute Cuisine? Nouvelle Cuisine is hardly new anymore: at 65, Senderens is one of the younger Enfantes terribles (see previous article). It's one thing for a top chef to open a bistrot or cafe in addition to his or her flagship fine dining restaurant -- but it is quite another to ditch (or convert) a flagship altogether for a more casual restaurant. There are financial considerations, of course, which are likely inclining Senderens in this direction -- but there are also artistic considerations. Can a cafe or bistrot support the kind of innovation that led to Nouvelle Cuisine and the derivative "California Cuisine"? Or are we on the brink of the next phase of Food -- namely La Cuisine Pauvre? Caviar and foie gras are under attack in the States (see previous article). French chefs are suffering -- even killing themselves, in Bernard Loiseau's case (see prevous article) -- for the sake of gaining and maintaining a few Michelin stars. Maybe Joachim Splichal found the solution that balances the equation -- vive le pomme de terre! -- except that he sold out to Restaurant Associates... So, maybe the sage Senderens is emerging again as a leader of the next generation's culinary revolution, as he was in the last. Previous articles: The Perfectionist by Rudoph Chelminski Foie Gras War 2: Ban All Poultry? Les Enfantes Terribles devient terriblement vieux Nick Valenti: Super Chef Master? Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding Nouvelle Cuisine Haute Cuisine --> back to superchefblog

Aussies Battle Yanks Over Chowder

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Memorial Day is coming up, and and I have no place to set up a BBQ -- reminding me about my other summer favorite, a great chowder. This summer, I have a chance at a chowder by none other than Australian Chefs Benjamin Christie and Vic Cherikoff. Yes, the Aussies are taking up the challenge against the New Englanders at the 2005 Schweppes Great Chowder Cook-Off in Newport Beach, Rhode Island, on Saturday, June 4th. This is America's first and longest running clam chowder championship -- and adds an extra 3,000 gallons of clam chowder to the millions of gallons of seawater you can experience as you tramp the beaches of Newport and gaze upon its mansions. You can also get Jill Cordes sign a copy of Food Network Best Of the Best Of. Many of may think of chowder as an "American," but actually chowders date back to 16th- and 17th-Century shipping towns along coastal France and England, according to the What's Cooking America. Chowder comes from Latin calderia, which meant a place to warm things is related to the English word "cauldron" and the French "chaudiere." Small wonder that settlers to both the American and Australian colonies brought with them chowder recipes. Benjamin Christie's recipe, Australian Clam Chowder with Wildfire Spice is in fact American inspired -- a creamy thick soup with large chunks of clams, bacon and potato, with pepper. Previous articles: Ozzie Dining Downunder and Bushfood Benjamin Christie: Australian Emeril? Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding --> back to superchefblog

Superchefblog cited by Netscape Channels

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Superchefblog was recently cited on Netscape's Home and Real Estate section as a resource -- see COOK 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM: Top 5 Chefs In the U.S. Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding --> back to superchefblog

Alice Waters: Green Screen Film Festival

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Like many Americans, I love to learn from Film, whether it's science films or historical films or even ones based on the Bible. I believe that Film is one of the best ways to reach an audience and change hearts and minds about political and social issues. The great Iranian films of the 1980s and 90s have done much to widen our perception of Iran... but what if they served Iranian snacks at the movie theater? That is one idea involved in the Green Screen Environmental Film Festival which runs June 1-5 at the Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St. in San Francisco. The festival is being held in conjunction with United Nations' World Environmental Day 2005, which is also convening in San Francisco this year. Now, get this: Slow Food, a international organization dedicated to the pleasures of dining and rejecting fast food, will be featuring an environmentally friendly snack bar. Instead of stale popcorn and supersized candy bars, you'll be able to buy organic popcorn, organic ice cream, organic free-trade coffee, artisanal chocolate bars from E. Guittard, grass-fed beef jerky from Marin Sun Farms and seasonal organic fruit bowls. On June 4, Lady Slow Food herself, Alice Waters, will be on hand, and among the free screenings films will be free that day from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.: thank you, Alice and Slow Food! For more information call (415) 338-1236 or visit greenscreenfilmfestival.org. Previous articles: STORE WARS: The Making of the Movie Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS Profile: Alice Waters for White House Chef Slow Food Thanksgiving, by Alice Waters and Prince Charles Politics, Billboards & Champagne Politics, Chefs & Billboards Inside Scoop on Dinner in the Control Room Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding slow food film film festival --> back to superchefblog

American Gulag: Bad Gulash?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT When I hear the word "gulag" I always think first of "gulash" -- but a new description of "gulag" has arisen of late: Hypocrisy, an overarching war mentality and a disregard for basic human rights principles and international legal obligations... Thus reads the latest report by Amnesty International on global human rights abuses in "gulags." Only problem is that the country which Amnesty associates with "gulag" is the United States of America, and the location is Guantanamo Bay... Of course, even The New Yorker tried to push off responsibility for the riots which exploded in Afghanistan and Pakistan (in particular) in the wake of Newsweek's infamous May 9 article: The New Yorker blamed Pakistan's former cricket master (now politician) Imran Khan. Now, I understand it when someone like The Weekly Standard's David Brooks uses national television to shift blame from Newsweek to Muslims for inciting their own riots over Koran abuse -- he's a neo-conservative in New York Times clothing. But The New Yorker, home of Seymour Hersch...? Besides, that was just fancy footwork on the part of neo-cons like Brooks, who rightly say "they should focus on who are the real villains here, and that's not Newsweek" -- Newsweek was never to blame in the first place for inciting riots -- only the abusers at Guantanamo and their bosses are to blame for any riots and deaths. Maybe our guys are just eating a lot of bad gulash down at Gitmo? A silly, wishful thought: horrors like Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay are really happening. Today's New York Times cites previous allegations of "Koran abuse," thus justifyng Newsweek's famous May 9 article about the flushing of a Koran down a toilet at Gitmo. According to the Times, "military personnel... in one case in 2002... had flushed a Koran down a toilet.." (So why did Newsweek retracted their story?...) What's wrong with our country? Weren't gulags supposed to be a Soviet thing? If memory serves, we even welcomed ex-gulag inmates like the Nobel Prize-winning author Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, who went on to write books like The Gulag Archipelago. National Review, that bastion of old conservatism, claimed not too long ago in an article that "This is a magazine that was pro-Solzhenitsyn before pro-Solzhenitsyn was cool." It goes on to ask whether National Review is cool now. NR seems to think so -- but I'll only bellieve that when I see them criticize this Administration on Guantanamo Bay, for starters. Instead, however, in a relatively recent article, NR criticized the International Red Cross for "going after Gitmo again." Thus does National Review dishonor their hero Solzhenitsyn -- and, no, that's definitely not cool, not at all. What was the word Amnesty used? "Hyprocrisy"?... This topic is not outside the scope of a blog about super chefs, in light of the many humanitarian works of chefs. Many chefs were very forthcoming when it came to relief for victims of the 2004 Tsnunami. My challenge to super chefs is: what are you going to do about horrors closer to home -- like Guantanamo Bay? Aren't Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib even worse -- not because our country pepetrates such crimes there, but because they are caused by humans and not by unpredictable, uncontrollable forces of Nature? Paul Prudhomme visited Gitmo last year (see previous article): anyone going to get on a plane with a trunk full of Korans -- and some really good gulash? Alexandr Solzhenitsyn wrote in The Gulag Archipelago: "Pride grows in the human heart like lard on a pig." Chefs, knives out! -- We've got some fat to trim! And forget the new USDA food pyramid: chefs, what we really need is good old humble pie. (Click here to see a BBC video interview with Amnesty International's secretary general Irene Khan.) Related articles: New York Times UPI (Dalal Saoud) Previous articles: Paul Prudhomme Seasons US Troops at Gitmo Technorati Tags: chefs food politics democracy Guantanamo --> back to superchefblog

Tyler Florence: Eat This Book

By JULIETTE ROSSANT I just got a copy of Eat This Book (Clarkson Potter April 2005), Tyler Florence's new cookbook, and fortunately it's easy to decipher. The subtitle is Cooking with Global Flavors, based on his globetrotting, and this is the resulting book. Tyler is one the beautiful young chefs generation along with Jamie Oliver, and like Oliver, this book is oriented towards cooking with friends. On the cover, handsome, hip, and busy Tyler is cruising down some street in New York's China Town, inviting us to come along. Inside, the chapters read like a list of synonyms: "Eating" (sauces), "Devouring" (appetizers), "Noshing" (informal, shared dishes), "Consuming" (quick, simple dishes), "Tasting" (summer dishes), "Savoring" (fall dishes), and "Licking the Plate Clean" (desserts). Very cute. Tyler wants us to use his book all year round, and it is surprisingly well-thought out book, with an impressive handle on global cuisines. I especially like a section in the front on Fresh-Milled Spices (pp. 27-29). Too often I have been invited to cook at a friend's house, only to find that spices are years old and no longer have any taste. Tyler gives recipes for North African Spice Mix, Turkish Spice Mix (to add to ground meat for kofte), and a Grapefruit and Nori Powder. One thing that might have been handy for readers is to list recipes in the index under the spices. Some of the dishes that stood out to me were Curried Cauliflower with Chickpeas and Tomatoes, including a glorious picture on the facing page (pp. 114-5), and the Steamed Black Bass in Miso Soup with Udon and Shitakes (p. 131), again with the photo of the dish facing the recipe. There are some playful combinations of ingredients, like Grilled Steak Salad with peaches and Lime Dressing (pp. 182-3) that Bobby Flay would approve of -- grilled peaches and lime and micro greens. I liked the sound of Potted Rabbit and Baby Pears with Creamy Polenta (pp. 218-220), one of the few dishes that takes more than a page. Petrina Tinslay has provided beautfiul photos, from the mundane like a carton of eggs (p. 140) or a simple, opened oyster (p. 193) to celebrity snapshots which garnish the entire book: Tyler with crabs, Tyler with pumpkins, Tyler with giant fish and fish monger. There are also snaps of his son Miles with the desserts. You might have to get a few extra ingredients for these recipes, but they are clear and fun and inspiring and it definitely is a book you could use year round. Previous articles: The Perfectionist by Rudolph Chelminski Bobby Flay's Grilling for Life Mother's Day Gift: Finding Betty Crocker The Sensual Language of Baklava: Diana Abu-Jaber Paula Deen & Friends Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Puerto Rico: Grand Cuisine of the Caribbean Don Pintabona: Shared Table Annabel Karmel: First Meals Nigella Lawson's Feast Cook Like a Kyrgyz Personal Favorites: The Chefs of Las Vegas Anne Willan: The Good Cook Gale Gand's short+sweet More Food from Alton Brown Manju Malhi's India With Passion SOS: Baking from the Heart Madhur Jaffrey: Our Lady of India, CBE Amazon UK's Steamy Xmas Chefs All Hail Alfred Portale Agassi's Star Palate: Celebrity Chefs Book links: Publisher Amazon.com Technorati Tags: chefs restaurants food cookbooks branding television -> back to superchefblog

Allison Vines-Rushing Heads South

By JULIETTE ROSSANT As soon as I heard Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing had bought Artesia in Abita Springs, Louisiana, and renamed it "Longbranch," I started planning a trip down south. I called Allison to check on when the restaurant would be ready to receive guests. "I think September, maybe August -- I need to asses what needs to be done." Having two chefs in one restaurant is a feat in itself. One usually heads for the front of the house to give the other room, as Olivia English did for ex-husband Todd English at Olives. Mark Peel took over the kitchen of Campanile, while Nancy Silverton focused on baking -- and started the nationally retailed LaBrea Bakery (though Mark and Nancy are now divorced as well). Perhaps the marriage lasts longer if one is not a chef: for Wolfgang Puck, long-time (but now former) wife and (still) business partner Barbara Lazaroff designed and ran the front of the house for a great number of their restaurants. One of the few instances of two chefs in a single kitchen that has worked for years on end is the case of Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken. With such discouraging statistics, what would be the roles of Slade and Allison in the new restaurant, especially after having already been co-chefs at Jack's Luxury Oyster House since February 2005, six months after the restaurant opened? The case of the Rushings is also quite unusual, in that Slade has the pastry background, most notably at Rubicon, rather than Allison. "We are going to be co-chefs and co-owners. We are pretty even-steven. One cooks, one does dishes -- we share roles. He is a meat man for sure: his meats and sauces are incredible. I have more garde mange experience. As far as our knowledge goes, there are strengths and weakeness... Two heads are better than one, no matter what -- as long as you work together. Sometimes one hangs out in pastry one day... -- you change things up. We like that: it keeps things new. There is no egos in the role. We are a team: it's not for one or the other person." Why did they want this particular restaurant so much? "It's every chefs dream place: a few acres of land, a greenhouse, a big, old, beautiful house. You feel like you are in someone's home. It's a special environment." According to Allison, the town of Abita is preserved and full of historic buildings, but it is surrounded by a fast growing area north of New Orleans. How big is the restaurant? Jack's has only 28 seats, and Long Branch will have 80 seats. "I am going to miss the intimacy of Jack's. It is so special and small. Growing is hard thing to do, but this place has a homey quality. I hope it translates." What will be the cuisine of the new restaurant? "It is what we are doing now -- that is our cuisine, but for a new audience. We have had tons of Southerners come to eat at Jack's, and they love it. I think they will love it there, too. We will have to consider portion size. New Yorkers love small portion sizes, but in the South large portions are perceive value on the plate. It will be nice to work with local products – Creole tomatoes, Ruston peaches, Ponchachula strawberries, ingredients from our childhood so special to us. It will be a blast to work with them." Allison and Slade bought the restaurant with family investors, though Allison notes that they may bring in outside investors at a later date. Are they thinking of multiple restaurants? "Right now we are focused on this one. We have had offers to go to Vegas. But to run multiple restaurants you have to be a seasoned chef, who has trained people. We don't want to jump into that too quickly. We have seen people grow too quickly and lose what it is all about. We don't want to do that, especially with this restaurant at home. Of course, we would love to have a reason to be back in New York. We have to figure that out. Perhaps a very casual place." In addition to the new restaurant, Allison and Slade are working on a cookbook. Previous articles: Profile: Allison Vines-Rushing for White House Chef Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding --> back to superchefblog

Last Supper for Star Wars

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Former NBC broadcast graphic designer Eric Deschamps has come up with a special "Last Supper" desktop poster for Giant Magazine to mark the opening of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, which opened yesterday around the country. Eric's own website has many wonderful graphics in addition to the Star Wars image (found under Posters). Is it art, or is it kitsch? You be the judge -- and be sure to click here to see the longest movie trailer (Quicktime). Previous articles: Star Wars' Super Chef: "Droidmaker" George Lucas STORE WARS: The Making of the Movie Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding star wars --> back to superchefblog

Todd English: Pitching After Puck

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Todd English has another new gig. His boyhood dream of playing professional ball haunts him still, so he is doing the next-best thing: cooking for the pre-game show on NESN (New England Sports Network). Todd has signed up for a weekly broadcast on the Red Sox's pre-game report. He started a few weeks ago, showing fans how to make flat bread chili dogs and jalapeno popcorn. This week he was featured at his newest restaurant, English is Italian, making mozzarella salad from homemade mozzarella, not something most sports fans will make at home... but it isn't that hard to find fresh mozzarella at better markets, especially in Boston's Italian neighborhoods, so Todd is on safe ground here. There is something about sports and chefs. Most of the chefs I profiled in Super Chef are avid athletes since they were in high school. Charlie Palmer played into football, Todd played baseball, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger were on school teams, and Tom Colicchio played baseball and now plays basketball and also fly-fishes. Many chefs take up golf once they are well established -- no doubt in part for the contacts they make on the courses. Most chefs I have interviewed believe that teamwork, camaraderie and leadership skills they developed from team sports helped them in the kitchen. Wolfgang Puck has never talked about sports per se -- other than to jog and get in shape for his Food Network TV shows. Yet Wolf is Todd's West Coast model, in the form of a deal with Levy Restaurants and Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) to provide food for their sporting and music venues (see previous article). Still, can Food lure sports fans and non-sports fans to watch games on TV? The point is to lure Todd's kind of fans -- women. The Boston Globe, which is one of the owners of NESN, reports that the: Cable sports channel is offering viewers a glimpse of player lifestyles and off-the-field interests through features, such as pitcher Bronson Arroyo hanging out with rock bands and David Wells talking about "being Boomer."' Johnny Damon's wife Michelle also has a weekly spot in the pre-game show. The effort is partly aimed at female viewers. "I think (fans) are interested in other things,'' English said. "We'll go find the best lobster rolls. We'll go see what the best produce markets are. We'll see what Little Leaguers eat.'' The only chef involved in this new cooking spot is Todd, according to Karen Verzone, promotions coordinator for NESN. What about involving some of Boston's great female chefs? Why not have Barbara Lynch, Jody Adams, Lydia Shire and the rest show us how its done? Previous articles: English Is Italian: No Stars Todd English's Foodie Hotel Todd English Dishes Out Charity Todd English: Pots and Pans Pucked? Todd English: Childrens Oscars (Update) Ming Tsai TV Todd English Winner Gets "English is Italian"? Todd English Cooks for the Governors Ball? Todd English Slums With Jeffrey Chodorow Todd English: Trip Over Table? Todd English Flipflops Between Bush & Kerry? Super Chef vs. Governator: Todd English Fights For Foie Gras Rights Todd English: American Chef Gone Wild Euro Puck Technorati Tags: chefs food restaurants cooking branding baseball television --> back to superchefblog

The Perfectionist by Rudolph Chelminski

By JULIETTE ROSSANT In The Perfectionist (Gotham, May 2005 -- listed by Amazon.com for publication tomorrow, May 19), author Rudolph Chelminski tells the story of Bernard Loiseau, the chef of France’s La Côte D’Or, who committed suicide in 2003. This isn't the first book about Loiseau, a colorful, driven man caught up in the pressure of keeping his three Michelin stars. His wife Dominique penned a book soon after his death, Bernard Loiseau Mon Mari and William Echikson wrote about his struggle for his third Michelin Star in Burgundy Stars: A Year in the Life of a Great French Restaurant. Don't read The Perfectionist to find out the "truth" about Bernard Loiseau but rather to luxuriate in a well researched book of gossip and wonderful descriptions of the great chefs of France, the details about meals, ego and influence. Rudolph Chelminski followed Louiseau's career for three decades. When I interviewed Barry Wine for Super Chef, he gave me a glimpse of what an American would have found visiting France in the sparkling years when Nouvelle Cuisine was revolutionizing French cuisine. The movement opened Wine's eyes, just as it did for Claude Verger, Loiseau's patron, who hired him as chef, first at the Barniere de Clichy, then at La Côte D'Or. Chelminski puts Nouvelle Cuisine in perspective, drawing out the ingredients that were each chef's contribution. There are terrific descriptions of Loiseau's and Michel Guerard's dishes and plenty about the business of fine dining. Chelminski quotes Verger on Loiseau's drive: "His ambition was there right from the start," Verger told me, "and I never put him down. He was the kind of guy who would be destroyed if you discouraged him."Verger's intution proved to be tragically prescient, but it was also perfectly apt." (p. 102) Passages like these kept me focused on Loiseau's end, though doubt did enter my mind as to whether Verger would have actually had these thoughts at the time -- literary license? Cheminski takes special care in describing the rise of the gastronomic press' importance in the making of young stars in France (and later the US). "Journalists are hungry but their pay is lousy, so be nice to them," Cheminski records Verger's advice to a very young Loiseau. (p. 105). It could just have easily been advice whispered into the ear of Wolfgang Puck (probaby by Barbara Lazaroff) or the legions of young chefs to follow him to America. Cheminski then quotes Pierre Troisgros: Jean and I were of the generation of cooks who had to work their way up, and you could never get to the position of chef before you had a certian maturity. Chef de cuisine at twenty-one or twenty-two struck us as an aberration. But Verger knew exactly the style of restaurant he wanted and the kind of modern cuisine he intended to serve in it. And he came on the scene at a time when gastronomic journalism was evolving, and Gault and Millau were looking for young chefs to make into stars. Just a few years earlier a success like that would have been unthinkable. Bernard and the Barniere would have remained completely anonymous." (p.106) This very exultation of the new and youth would eventually put pressure on Loiseau, who was challenged by the newest crop of chefs practicing even more outlandish cuisines like Michel Troisgros, Olivier Roellinger, Pierre Gagnaire, Michel Bras, Marc Veyrat, and Ferran Adria (pp. 292-3). Louiseau was also at a disadvantage since he was in a town, Saulieu, with virtually no tourism in the winter months. Chelminski quotes Andre Daguin about the financial burden of a three star restaurant: After all the investment you put into the place, and the cost of the personel, on those winter evenings when you've got two or three clients, a business like that is like a vacuum cleaner for your money... So what do you do to survive? You do things on the side. You open a bistro next door. You write books. You endorse products. You do special gastronomic weeks. That's how I got by in Auch. (p. 259) That could be a play book for any American celebrity chef as well, but it didn't work for Loiseau. There are terrific stories in The Perfectionist, like Paul Bocuse's bash for Loiseau when he won his third star. Chelminski provides the sumptuous menu and includes a description of Bocuse meeting Loiseau atop one of two elephants he had borrowed from the circus, getting Loiseau to get up on the second with a magnum of champagne (pp. 255-6). Previous articles: Bobby Flay's Grilling for Life Mother's Day Gift: Finding Betty Crocker The Sensual Language of Baklava: Diana Abu-Jaber Paula Deen & Friends Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Puerto Rico: Grand Cuisine of the Caribbean Don Pintabona: Shared Table Annabel Karmel: First Meals Nigella Lawson's Feast Cook Like a Kyrgyz Personal Favorites: The Chefs of Las Vegas Anne Willan: The Good Cook Gale Gand's short+sweet More Food from Alton Brown Manju Malhi's India With Passion SOS: Baking from the Heart Madhur Jaffrey: Our Lady of India, CBE Amazon UK's Steamy Xmas Chefs All Hail Alfred Portale Agassi's Star Palate: Celebrity Chefs Book links: Publisher Amazon.com Technorati Tags: chefs restaurants food cookbooks biography branding -> back to superchefblog

Jean-Georges Vongerichten: Miss Universe 2005

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Did you wonder what Jean-Georges Vongerichten would get for catering the Donald Trump's latest nuptuals? Donald would have to give him back something money can't buy -- at least, not easily. Rather than being judged, Jean-Georges is going to become a judge -- for one in the greatest spectacles of misplaced feminine pride on Television, the 2005 Miss Universe Contest! The Trump connection? The Miss Universe Press Release notes: The Miss Universe Organization, producers of the MISS UNIVERSE(R), MISS USA(R) and MISS TEEN USA(R) competitions, is a Donald J. Trump-NBC partnership. Talk about chef-branding through Mass Media: how many eyeballs will be watching this show? "Hundreds of millions of television viewers around the world" is the litany. This year's host, Thailand, is getting ready for contestants from 80 countries vying on the live broadcast on NBC and Telemundo on May 30th, 2005. Given Jean-Georges softspot for Thai food, he ought to have a lot of fun. Miss Universe 2005 will be chosen by an international judging panel which includes: Carson Kressley from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy Kevin Bright, Executive Producer of NBC's Friends and Joey Bryan Dattilo from Days of Our Lives Anne Martin, Vice President of Global Cosmetics and Marketing for Procter & Gamble Louis Licari, Hair Stylist to the stars Jean-GeorgesVongerichten, World-Renowned Chef and former Bangkok resident Heidi Albertsen, Danish Model Cassie Lewis, Supermodel Mario Cimarro, Telemundo Latin Superstar Alexandra Nikolayenko, Model and Former Miss Ukraine Universe Chutinant "Nidnoi" Bhirombhakdi, Executive Vice President and Director of Boon Rawd Brewery Co., Ltd. Porntip "Bui" Nakhirunkanok Simon, Miss Universe 1988 from Thailand. Access Hollywood's Nancy O'Dell and Billy Bush, who recently co-hosted the Miss USA 2005 competition in Baltimore, will team up again to emcee the worldwide event. Previous articles: Tsunami Update 10: Jean-Georges Vongerichten Vongerichten's Gift for Trump's 3rd Wedding Jean-Georges Vongerichten in Minneapolis Tags: chefs food restaurants reality tv donald trump miss universe --> back to superchefblog

Star Wars' Super Chef: "Droidmaker" George Lucas

By JULIETTE ROSSANT While Super Chef explores the inner workings of celebrity chef empires, this week's release of the final episode of Star Wars should draw attention to a book on the inner workings of a super director's empire. I'm talking about Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution. Given the expansion of film franchise empires, it is very interesting to compare Star Wars (1977) with, say, the rise of Wolfgang Puck who at the time was already famous at Ma Maison. As a former employee of the Computer Division, author Michael Rubin takes you inside Lucasfilm as few others can -- having already documented some of the technical feats of Mr. Lucas in his earlier book, Nonlinear -- easily the most important textbook on nonlinear editing, now in its fourth edition. Equally exciting, Michael Rubin's continued good standing won him unprecedented access to images and key participants at Lucasfilm, Pixar, and Zoetrope: George Lucas, his executives, and real-life pioneering scientists. Lucasfilm is the catalyst (if not source) for Pixar, digital video editing, videogame avitars, and THX sound, among others. This book commands such depth that George Lucas has asked that it not be published until this last Star Wars episode comes out later this year on DVD -- but you can order an advance copy -- and click here to keep up-to-date on Droidmaker's official website. (Michael Rubin appeared in this month's Wired magazine article on George Lucas and Star Wars -- click here to read the article). Other articles: Life After Darth (Wired 2005.05) Somewhat Individual (Forbes 1996.03.11) Previous articles: STORE WARS: The Making of the Movie Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS Tags: Star Wars George Lucas --> back to superchefblog

Supreme Court Permits Direct Wine Sales

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Yesterday, the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to overturn trade-barring Prohibition laws that prohibited direct interstate wine sales. This frees out-of-state vinyards to sell directly to states all across the nation. Previously, a number of states barred out-of-state direct sales from vinyards, ostensibly to protect in-state vinyards but de facto to protect state-licenses wholesalers. Now, buyers in any state can purchase directly from vinyards of any size, not those who were able to penetrate powerful wholesale distributors. Three cases were combined for the ruling: Granholm v. Heald, No. 03-1116; Michigan Beer & Wine Wholesalers Association v. Heald, No. 03-1120; and Swedenburg v. Kelly, No. 03-1274, which were then combined (see Supreme Court summary of questions and Duke University's summary). "An important principle was defended—states are part of a national economic union where discrimination is not tolerated," said Kenneth W. Starr, former independent counsel in the Whitewater Affair and now counsel to the Coalition for Free Trade as well as dean of Pepperdine Law School. Starr and Kathleen Sullivan of Stanford University's law school represented Michigan plaintiffs last December. Other states with similar laws are: Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, and Ohio. The states already permitting direct shipment number 27. However, another 15 states ban direct shipments equally from out-of-state and in-state sources and thus unaffected by the Supreme Court ruling. It is a major victory for wine producers: as The Washington Post explained this morning: While the number of small wineries is growing rapidly -- there are 4,000 in the United States, each typically producing less than 5,000 cases a year -- the number of distributors has decreased through a series of mergers. Small wineries complain that the national distributors are too expensive to work with and ignore small companies in favor of a few big brands... As a result, 80 percent of wine sales come from just 100 brands such as E&J Gallo Winery, Robert Mondavi Corp. and Beringer Blass Wine Estates Ltd., according to WineAmerica, an industry trade group. "In this David versus Goliath battle, the ruling is a triumph for America’s family wine farmers,” said W. Reed Foster, president of the Coalition for Free Trade and chairman emeritus of Ravenswood Winery said in a press statement. "It is an historic day for the U.S. wine industry," said Paul Kronenberg, president of Family Winemakers of California. "The only way that most small wineries can survive economically is to open up new markets and that means shipping directly to consumers," he added. The hero of the hour is Juanita Swedenburg -- click here to read her story in The Washington Post. What will the effects of this ruling be? There should be an increase in the total amount of wine sold, since it will be sold more freely. Will wine prices really go down? And what will lower wine prices lead to? The gallicization of American eating, with more meals served with wine and thus better and better wines grown -- or higher incidences of drunk driving and alcoholism? And with increased direct sales, will we see more chef branding of wines? Daniel Boulud offers a Cuvee Daniel: will newly "liberated" vinyards now freely court chefs to put their faces on wine labels, like pasta sauces? Previous articles: Foie Gras War 2: Ban All Poultry? "G" is for Wine: Guler Sabanci Xmas Spirits: "Club Rocco" Brand? Foie Gras War Chef Branding: B&G Foods Exposes Emeril? Super Chef vs. Governator: Todd English Fights For Foie Gras Rights Tags: wine --> back to superchefblog

Newsweek Bets on Mario Batali's Basting Brush

By JULIETTE ROSSANT The upcoming issue of Newsweek -- the people who reported on the desecration of the Holy Koran by US soldiers at Guantanamo Bay and then retracted their report -- lists a silicone basting brush by Mario Batali among the winners of its Design Dozen. (Danny Meyer of Union Square Hospitality Group and Peter Bentel of Bentel and Bentel were also mentioned for their restaurant at MOMA -- see previous article). Mario's partner is Copco, once a cast-iron cookware designer, now a leading teakettle manufacturer. Copco is not usually a headline-maker -- a recent article that circualted nationwide mentioned a bagel cutter -- but they retail in major chains such as Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Filene's, Hecht's, JC Penney's, K-Mart (look out, Martha!), Kohl's, Le Gourmet Chef, Linens 'N Things, Macy's, Meijer, Sears, Target, Wal-Mart, and Wegman's. An interesting design note from Newsweek: "He swears his is better than other celeb chefs' because'I designed everything!' " What does that say about other kitchenware -- like the forthcoming "culinary collection" by Todd English (see previoius article)? Let's see... who was Todd's partner again? Oh yes: the HSN's Joy Mangano AKA the Miracle Mop Lady. Or will Newsweek simply retract their Design Dozen choices in about two weeks? Mario certainly is a busy boy these days. Besides showbiz on the Food Network, he's got a new pizza kit, a new restaurant venture with Nancy Silverton pending called tentatively Mozza, and so on. Newsweek articles: Newsmakers: May 9 Issue The Designer Dozen The Design Dozen (p 4) Blog Talk Design Marketplace Previous articles: Emeril Lagasse: iPod ReciPods Last-Minute Mother's Day: Fresh Pasta Easter Special: Super Pastry Chef Get Your piPod for your iPlod One "Epi To Go," Please! Emeril Lagasse Lays Apple iPod Valentine's Tea: Bouquets to Drink Valentine's Knives: Cut to the Heart Todd English: Pots and Pans Pucked? Coffee Puck: Heats in Your Hands Tags: chefs --> back to superchefblog

STORE WARS: The Making of the Movie

By JULIETTE ROSSANT What are the ingredients that go into the making of the "Years Most Important Movie: STORE WARS? First, you need motive, and if you're a service organization like Free Range Studios, that means you need a client. And so late last year, the Organic Trade Association approached Free Range late last year about doing an internet film to get their message across. Founders Jonah Sachs and Louis Fox, and Director of Strategy Tate Hausman who have been playmates since they were three years old in Woodstock, New York, brainstormed about what to do. Star Wars was their game. "I was Luke, and Jonah was Han Solo forever," said Tate. After mulling over various metaphors, they realized that Star Wars fit perfectly. It's about the Jedi ruling in harmony with the Universe and then the Evil Empire (of machinery and technology) taking over and destroying the Force (family farms). A small band of rebels (organic farmers) fight back. It took a month of script-writing, a week of filming, and three weeks of post-production to get the live-action film onto the Internet. Free Range chose live puppetry rather than the flash cartoon technique they had used in previous films. According to Tate,"It's got to be new on the internet, new technology. Flash is a little old -- though it is not dead. It burst on the scene three years ago. With faster speeds people are able to access live-action films on the web." Live-action puppetry is more expensive and more difficult to do, but a lot more fun, according to Tate. They filmed Store Wars in two supermarkets in San Francisco. In one scene, as egg troopers and rebels veggies were battling it out, they put a fire cracker inside one of the eggs... and spent the next few hours cleaning up the sticky mess from the market's ceiling. "I think we went through four Cuke's, one Ham... It got pretty gnarly at end of the shoot. We used twelve dozen Cannolis: they were ver fragile and broke easily, so we had to keep making them." They worked at night in the markets and paid for all the organic food they used. Previous articles: Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS Tags: Star Wars --> back to superchefblog

Slate's David Greenberg on Blogging in NYT

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Today, a very fun piece on blogging appeared in The New York Times by Slate columnist David Greenberg. Click here to read the full article. Tags: blogs --> back to superchefblog

RIMAG: Rossant on Restaurant Blogging

Restaurants & Institutions Magazine (AKA RIMAG) interviewed Superchefblog's publisher and editor Juliette Rossant for her take on blogging among restaurants -- read their article "Taming the Techies." Previous articles: [Citations] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to superchefblog

Iron Chef America Meets Survivor

By JULIETTE ROSSANT I tender these thoughts to the Food Network to see whether they agree that Iron Chef America could be kicked up several notches (as Emeril Lagasse might say). Now that I have sat in the audience (see previous article) as well, I feel better able to make these comments -- though I still would like to be a judge. Despite the buzz around Reality TV, it seems the obvious has been overlooked in top Food Reality TV. Lots of talk continues about the ongoing success of CBS's Survivor, yet few seem to have transferred its successful to different subjects. I think Survivor is quite directly applicable to Iron Chef America. Iron Chef Survivor Most chefs talk to the Media at one point about heading out into the marketplace to find the freshest ingredients -- so, fly chefs around the country to cities outside home base (where they have no restaurants themselves, thus no everyday experience) and set them not just to cook but first to shop. Food Network executives will reflexively balk at this idea at first because it involves travel during production, and that means a show is no longer a cheap, in-house, "dump-and-stir" production (that's an industry term, that is). But costs need not skyrocket: start peppy and cheap with shoots in cities and towns near New York -- Philadelphia, New Haven, Poughkeepsie (that will bring the CIA running), Hartford, Allentown... Get into smaller American cities -- and get Americans excited about Iron Chef Survivor coming to their cities. The point is, get those chefs into hunter-gatherer mode -- and then set them to cooking. How does this play out? You send a crew with the two chefs and their teams out to one of these cities. You give them a few hours to shop, providing each with yellow pages (there's a sponsor!) and address of the local information center and chamber of commerce (more sponsors!). They get three hours to shop. There is no secret ingredient because this is harder than that: they don't know what they will find! Send them out for lunch or dinner, so a few moments to highlight local restaurants and chef (in-kind contribution from local restaurants). You overnight them somewhere (nothing too fancy -- but not too cheap), and next morning, early, you stick them into some local cooking facility -- again, they cook with whatever is on hand in terms of kitchen. They have one hour to turn their findings into something delicious. Don't forget some humor. Half of the top chefs in the country have their own food product lines now, right? Well, have some fun with that. When Anito Lo goes for a rematch with Mario Batali, point Anita in the direction of a Trader Joe's and let her walk into an aisle that is lined up and down with Mario Batali sauces. It's a Candid Camera moment -- should be fun to see her reaction! Or, let Bobby Flay take on buddy Ming Tsai again -- and have Ming use all of Bobby's sauces, while Bobby has to cook with all of Ming's. How about a Halloween special, when all the iron chefs cook against each other -- and have to choose from among the others' food products -- dread, mon, really dread! Cooking Under Camera A-ha!, the TV-observant reader interjects: much of this concept ran last night on last night's episode of Cooking Under Fire. True -- but I wrote most this article two days ago and before I had the faintest inkling about that episode's content. A-ha! but it did not save Cooking Under Fire last night! True again -- I'm already on record as disappointed by that show's self-consciousness, or what I called Cooking Under Camera (see prevous article. Besides, the shopping run did not work on Cooking Under Fire because the show does not work. American Idol does not translate over into Food. Watching ordinary, amateur people stand up in front of a national TV audience and make jackasses of themselves touches all of us, since almost everyone is afraid of standing up in front of an audience. Watching line cooks (can I say "amateur chefs" here, to keep the flow?) perform in front of a national audience is not as exciting: it's just cooking. Iron Chef America pits great chefs against each other -- and injects more excitement into food preparation. Beside the hustle and bustle that keeps all Americans, no matter how attention-deficit, somehow glued to the tube, the only thing about Iron Chef America that appeals to me is the modicum of education involved. I like the side comments about the ingredients and how they are used: I love Alton Brown. Don't get me wrong: I love those folk over at PBS and WGBH. They just need to stick to their guns. Frontline -- there just isn't any television better than that. Serve me up something by Ken Burns any time. And let us not forget Julia Child or Jacques Pepin. The "girl thing" and the ethnic flavors with chefs like Anita, Alex Lee, and Roberto Trevino you've been adding are good and will prop up Iron Chef America's ratings to keep it going a season or two longer. So, Food Network, do you like these ideas, you are welcome to respect my thoughts (is this still my own intellectual property if I publish my thoughts like this?)? You are welcome to bring me on board to ramp this show up. I'm looking 1-2 season out: I'm talking about Iron Chef Survivor -- funkier and more furious. Previous articles: In the Audience of Iron Chef America Today Show Emulates Iron Chef America Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Anita Lo Defeats Mario Batali on Iron Chef America Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Iron Chef Pizza Wars: Batali vs. Puck Bobby Flay: Married and Motivated Ming Tsai TV Cat Cora: Iron Chef America's First Lady Roberto Trevino: Viva Aguaviva Nancy Silverton and Mario Batali's Mozza Iron Chef America: Running on Empty World AIDS Day II: Iron Chef Cat Cora More Reality TV Chefs (Or Less)? Real TV Cooking? Kitchen Confidential a la Sex and the City Molto Mario Massacres Mahi Todd English: American Chef Gone Wild Iron Chef: America vs. USA Tags: reality TV --> back to superchefblog

Emeril Lagasse: iPod ReciPods

By JULIETTE ROSSANT What do you call a cookbook that you can download into an Apple iPod? Well, Emeril Lagasse calls them "ReciPods," but they're cookbooks all the same, just in a new medium and currently without pictures. Here's the simple pitch: 10,000 songs in your pocket? Big deal! How about 1000 Emeril recipes in your pocket? Go home, put on some tunes and create a little love and magic in the kitchen! Not too much information there, is there, but then again it is targeted at young, attention-deficit Americans... Oh, and it's very official, too, and someone who works for Emerils is a Mac-head, no doubt: there is already a VersionTracker page for this stuff. Well, there is one surprise in all this: Apple has not jumped all over this application with their own branding. The e-cookbooks have been available for almost two weeks now, a quiet release which some toolhead undoubtedly said was the way to go: "Just wait till the iPod alpha market tastes these, and people will be howling for 'em around the Net in no time." That's not quite how it played out on the little screen: a number of initial downloaders got only "gibberish" to pop up, though some managed to view them successfully. The successful one were left with the real problem though: what to do with these things? I mean, who ever said that kids cook? Best comment online so far: "not sure i’ll ever use them (drink menus are pretty handy) but a nice way to use the ‘notes’ section of your ipod." Imagine the text messages being shot around by masses of youth whose only kitchen experience centers on refrigerator raids. They read something like this: "Dude, meet @ McD to figure out over BigMac w fries." Whoah, Dude, supersize me! As The Boston Herald notes (and I agree), "The offering is so large that it is broken up into several different sets," which causes just another problem because iPod Notes cannot hold more than one set at a time. ReciPods come in two computer downloads, each with 17 identical sections averaging 25 or 30 recipes each. Did they forget to mention, too, that iPod Notes uses a font so small font that you cannot glance back and forth from stove to iPod while cooking? In that case, it might as well be a coffeetable-sized tome like Thomas Keller's wonderful The French Laundry Cookbook for all the good it does the cook. Lastly, long recipes require scrolling -- now your iPod is covered with tomato-sauce or cake-icing fingerprints. Good points -- and a funny climax -- from The Herald: click here to read the full article. Subsequent stories: TIME Previous articles: Get Your piPod for your iPod Emeril Lagasse Lays Apple iPod One "Epi to Go," Please! Tags: iPod --> back to superchefblog

In the Audience of Iron Chef America

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Recently, I joined the studio audience for a taping of Iron Chef America. I knew both teams of chefs: Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger (see Super Chef, chapter 5) versus Iron Chef Bobby Flay. While all of us signed away our rights to write about what happened or what the secret ingredient was, there is still the audience story. We were told to arrive by 7:30 a.m. at the studio. In the second of two waiting rooms, Bobby came out to meet and greet. Then, crew led audience members out in groups to sit down, and we sat through segment shoots of the president's greeting of the contestants Susan and Mary Sue, his choosing of the iron chef to combat, and the revealing of the secret ingredient. The actual kitchen battle really took only one hour. Even from the audience section -- right behind the spice rack on the Iron Chef side of the studio -- the frenetic pace of both chefs and camera crews as they raced about the half-hidden set were exciting. We got an extra bang the when a camera cable caught on fire and momentarily added its own pungent smoke to that of the cooking food. Flat screens showed one of the sous chefs peeling a hard boiled egg, while Alton Brown made light of the cable disaster. It is amazing to watch how parts of a dish are brought together on a plate from scattered places all over the kitchen. Logical steps begin to reveal themselves in the flurrying parade of preparation. It was like a three-ring circus, with something exciting all the time in each ring. To watched one was to miss the others, but that is part of the magic, circus or kitchen. Besides, it was marvelous to see a gaggle of top chefs at work rather than interviewing them. For Foodies (or unfed breakfasters, take your pick), it was hard to keep seated throughtout. The smell is intoxicating, even for savory foods at 8:00 a.m. As the shooting wrapped by lunch time, I was horrified to see the crew dump all the food into the trash. I guess next time I'll come as a judge -- I can't watch, hear, and smell all that food without tasting it! Previous articles on Bobby Flay: Bobby Flay: Married and Motivated The Passing of Mr. "Easy-Bake Oven" Previous articles on Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger: Results: White House Woman Chef Catch the Milliken and Feniger Top Ten Profile: Mary Sue Milliken & Susan Feniger for White House Chef Vote for White House Woman Chef Results of White House Chef Vote Mary Sue Milliken: California Beats Japan Elections West: First Drinks on Mary Sue and Susan Halloween Mexicana: Day of the Dead a la Super Chef New York Welcomes 'Cool Comedy - Hot Cuisine' Mary Sue & Susan: California's Restaurateurs of the Year Previous articles on Iron Chef America: Today Show Emulates Iron Chef America Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Anita Lo Defeats Mario Batali on Iron Chef America Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Iron Chef Pizza Wars: Batali vs. Puck Bobby Flay: Married and Motivated Ming Tsai TV Cat Cora: Iron Chef America's First Lady Roberto Trevino: Viva Aguaviva Nancy Silverton and Mario Batali's Mozza Iron Chef America: Running on Empty World AIDS Day II: Iron Chef Cat Cora More Reality TV Chefs (Or Less)? Real TV Cooking? Kitchen Confidential a la Sex and the City Molto Mario Massacres Mahi Iron Chef: America vs. USA Tags: reality TV --> back to superchefblog

Bobby Flay's Grilling For Life

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Maybe it's the red hair or the grin, but when I think of Bobby Flay, somehow The Incredibles' Buddy (AKA "IncrediBoy") keeps coming to mind (though the words that I hear are those of "Syndrome"): "It's bigger. It's badder. And, Ladies and Gentlemen... it's finally ready." So, here it is: Bobby's newest grilling cookbook. "Sure it was difficult, but you were worth it." Do we need another book on grilling from grill master Bobby Flay? Sure! I love grilled meats and sea food. Bobby Flay's new book, Grilling For Life (Simon & Schuster May 2005) is a continuation of a theme he has taken up in two previous books, Boy Gets Grill and Boy Meets Grill, not to mention his Food Network shows, Boy Meets Grill and BBQ with Bobby Flay. With a new restaurant, Bar Americaine, that opened in New York last month, Bobby is busy -- so new, the restaurant is not even listed on his website. (On top of it, Bobby met and married his Girl -- see previous article). Grilling makes sense to Bobby, who believes in eating light and the recipes in this book come with a handy nutritional analysis at the bottom of each recipe. Grilling certainly can be a fast way to cook, once you get your grill lit and Grilling for Life has recommendations on technique, the use of a chimney starter and all the accouterments. A chapter follows on spices that includes a handy guide to chiles and chile powder and a heat scale. The recipes in the book are mostly approachable, fun dishes that use plenty of fresh spices, peppers and snappy dressings. Bobby loves sauces, vinaigrettes, relishes and pestos. Check out Grilled Sea Scallops with Avocado Vinaigrette and Jalepeno Pesto (pp. 84-85) or Grilled Chicken Tenders with Spicy Chipotle Sauce and Blue Cheese-Yogurt Sauce (pp. 130-1), Bobby's version of Buffalo Chicken Wings. At the end of the book is a handy Mix and Match chapter (pp.193-4) in which he suggests which of the many sauces can go with Fish, Chicken and Turkey and Beef and Pork. There are some good color photos of finished dishes and B&W that show Bobby firing up a chimney starter, but other are wasted –- Bobby pouring on sauce on a dish that doesn't match the recipe. One recipe calls for first boiling sweet potatoes, then making a warm dressing on the stove and finally grilling the sweet potatoes, slicing them, and then pouring on the dressing. It all sounds good, but it's a lot of work for Grilled German Sweet Potato Salad (p. 43) -- why not roast the potatoes on the grill and avoid the boiling? At the end of the book, Bobby offers some fun desserts from the grill, including Grilled Apricots with Bitter Sweet Chocolate and Almonds (p. 186) and Grilled Figs with Vanilla-Orange Creme Fraiche and Toasted Pistachios (pp. 190-191). This may be my favorite cookbook of Bobby's grilling series. And the timing of the release is great: Summer 2005 is just firing up. Looks like I'm armed and ready for a fun, hot summer. Book details: Publisher Amazon.com Barnes & Noble Super chefs: Bobby Flay Previous reviews: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, cookbooks --> back to superchefblog

English Is Italian: No Stars

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Having eaten at a few Olives myself, I was not too surprised to read Frank Bruni's dismal review of Todd English's new restaurant English is Italian in today's New York Times. His summary says it all: But there's nothing amicable or admirable about food prepared and presented as carelessly as this restaurant's often is, about an emphasis on quantity that turns a blind eye to quality. If Mr. English is going to use the name of this restaurant to describe himself accurately, he should stretch out the sentence to include a few more adjectives. He could add inconsistent and inattentive and keep his assonance intact. Let's hope Todd and Jeffrey Chodorow can get together quickly and save this restaurant -- or the winning chef of Cooking Under Fire may not have a restaurant to go to. Previous articles: Todd English Winner Gets "English is Italian"? Tags: chefs --> back to superchefblog

Kitchen Chat with Walter Scheib

By JULIETTE ROSSANT The last White House executive chef, Walter Scheib, was just interviewed on National Public Radio's Day to Day and talked about the running of the White House kitchen and his dismissal from service after 11 years. (Click here to listen with RealPlayer.) Previous articles: White House Chef: Fat Lady Sings? White House Chef Slot: Closer? Tell Laura Bush: White House Woman Chef Results: White House Woman Chef Shortlisting White House Chefs? Vote for White House Woman Chef Tags: white house chefs --> back to superchefblog

Year's Most Important Movie: STORE WARS

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Just when you were starting to get nostalgic about the sixth and final episode, here is the latest news about this year's most important movie, a film three decades in the making -- and the only episode made for Foodies... [ASIDE: Trumpets, please!] Ladies and Gentlemen, behold: Not so long ago, in a supermarket not so far away..... Yes, thanks to the Organic Trade Association and the magic of JibJab rival Free Range Studios, there is at last an online movie for Foodies whose like we may never see again. Without giving too much away, the movie tells the tale of the all-encompassing Farm, the source of all power, a "field" that creates all edible things... Meet your old friends in their new Foodie forms. [Ham: I see 'em, I see 'em!] Confront the evil lord of the Dark Side as you have never seen him before. Watch the movie. Join young Cuke and learn the ways of The Farm. Decide whether you too are ready to join the Organic Reblellion. And remember: when the market you visit, from the Dark Side keep you your family and your planet safe -- by choosing organic. (Click here to watch movie, in Quicktime and WMP, low-band and high-band.) (Check back on Thursday, May 12, for a story on Free Range Studioes.) Previous articles: Gabby Hayes: White House Chef? A Bite Out of "The Gates" Inauguration Spells Alphabet Soup Disaster Tags: star wars chefs --> back to superchefblog

Cooking Under Fire: Already Over Done?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT When I watch a good cooking show, I want to rush to the kitchen and try my hand at the recipe I have just seen or at least rummage through the refrigerator. Watching PBS's Cooking Under Fire just makes me yawn. How is it that Todd English, who has tremendous energy and sparkle in real life, translates to such a dull performer on TV? The same goes for Ming Tsai and Michael Ruhlman. Rather than experts watching amateurs, I feel like we viewers are watching nothing but amateurs. What is a whirl of excitement on the Food Network's Iron Chef America is merely talk-talk-talk and inept cooking students without pizzazz on Cooking Under Fire. The real-time experience of Iron Chef America (whose audience I recently joined -- see upcoming article) makes me feel like I am in the kitchen: I don't want to go near Cooking Under Fire. Mind you, it has been so long since I predicted that Cooking Under Fire would fall flat (see last December's article) that I was able to view the show freshly, with doubts aside (forgotten). Nor have I been Iron Chef America's cheerleader (see Iron Chef America: Running on Empty). In last week's episode, the cooks were instructed to use kaffir lime leaves, duck, and a few other ingredients. The kitchen is so crowded, few can prepare anything that dazzles, and the confusion is painful to watch. Maybe a real restaurant kitchen is as tightly packed, but having to invent a dish on top of the lack of space plus a TV crew and one or two celebrity chefs watching your every move is not what cooking is all about. I am unconvinced that the aspiring cooks are learning much or having much fun -- and I don't feel like I am, either. Somehow, the show seems out of proportion on the little screen of TV: rather than exude the tension implied by its name Cooking Under Fire, I cannot help but think that the show is merely over-hyped and over-done. It is self-conscious: no one seems able to forget for one moment that they're cooking under camera. Previous articles: Ming Tsai TV Iron Chef America: Running on Empty Todd English: Trip Over Table? Gordon Ramsay Joins Richard Branson in Fox's Reality TV Hell Iron Chef: America vs. USA Todd English: American Chef Gone Wild

White House Chef: Fat Lady Sings?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT The tide is mounting behind one particular candidate for White House executive chef. Gannet's The Shreveport Times reported yesterday that Chris Ward, "a former Shreveporter[,] is in the running to become executive chef at the White House" and did indeed apply for the job and cook for the President and First Lady. As other newspapers have already reported, former White House executive pastry chef Roland Mesnier recommended Ward to the Bush Family. Also, The Times noted, Laura Bush has dined at one of Ward's restaurants, though it did not specify how recently. (Click here to read the full article.) According to superchefblog's sources, which include top organizations recommending chefs, the White House went silent a few weeks back. And superchefblog dares to ask: who backs Chris Ward's candidacy? Can a chef just "apply" for the job -- in this or any other White House? Or does it take big-time supporters?... Will we see a woman as executive chef in the Bush White House? You know the old song: It ain't over till the Fat Lady sings. (Click here to listen to En Vogue's rendition.) So, stay tuned. Previous articles: White House Chef Slot: Closer? Tell Laura Bush: White House Woman Chef Results: White House Woman Chef Shortlisting White House Chefs? Vote for White House Woman Chef --> back to superchefblog

Foie Gras War 2: Ban All Poultry?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT One, two, three, four I declare a Foie Gras War Now that the dust is settling on the last round in the Foie Gras War, let's review the near past for a moment and then take stock of the situation. One might say that the Foie Gras War was well underway by July 2004, when CNN Money recognized the issue in an article entitled "Crisis in the foie gras biz." In September 2004, "Gubernator" Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a law forbidding foie gras production and sale in California by 2012, a move whose opposition included Todd English (see previous article and SB 1520 of 2003-4. Also, read PETA's celebration.) In March 2005, New York stepped up its foie gras offensive. The New York State Assembly introduced Bill No. 6212--A, sponsored by assemblymember John J. McEneny (104th Assembly District), to "amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to making it unlawful to force feed birds under certain circumstances." The bill includes language in S353-c which "Makes it unlawful to force feed birds by intubation for the purpose of enlarging the liver of such birds." As of April 25, 2005, the bill's status is amended and returned to reconsideration by the agriculture committee. A version in New York State Senate is supported by senator John J. Bonacic. Then, in April 2005, with a movie-mocking title "Liver and Let Live" in The Chicago Tribune, an Entertainment reporter force-fed us further controversy. The subtitle said it all: "Charlie Trotter now says force-feeding ducks to create foie gras is a cruel, bird-brained idea. Rick Tramonto says he is a hypocrite." This month, Newsweek magazine got into the act this month (see May 2nd issue, "A Flap over Foie Gras"): ...Within an hour of Cardinal Ratzinger's recent elevation as Pope Benedictus XVI, an exultant e-mail went out from Bruce Friedrich, director of vegan campaigns for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), calling media attention to the new pope's views on animal husbandry. In a 2002 interview, Ratzinger opined that "degrading living creatures to a commodity," specifically by force-feeding geese and confining chickens in crowded factory-farm cages, seems "to contradict the relationship of mutuality that comes across in the Bible." Why all this venting of spleen over bloated goose or duck liver? Part of it, of course, it just hype and poor reportage. After all, having pitting Trotter against Tramonto, how could The Chicago Tribune's report have failed to get more of the story? Mark Caro -- an Entertainment reporter, not a Food or Restaurant reporter -- glibly said "Trotter said he stopped including foie gras on his menus about three years ago but only is talking about the decision now" but then missed the major contradictory news that only two weeks earlier Trotter had served three courses with foie gras during Food & Wine's Best New Chefs party (see The New York Post). Small reward that the Trib got scooped by The New York Post -- meanwhile, chefs and foodies joined the fracas for days and weeks thereafter (see eGullet and Slow Food Forum). Nevertheless, the Trib article does point out that foie gras has been with us for 5,000 years -- oh, and ducks and geese actually don't feel any pain during le gavage. Ariane Daguin of D'Artagnan, an importer, wholesaler, and retailer, which supplies foie gras among other fine foods, refuses to let tripe be stuffed down her throat. She related to me the stance of Alain Ducasse: line fishing can be far more cruel. When a fish is hooked ona line, it gasps for breath in agony (unless you clobber it on the head). All they say is "Poor ducks!"... [but] ducks do force feed themselves while migrating. These are healthy, not diseased, livers. [Also] the cuticle inside the neck (when they are force fed by tube) has no sense of feeling, so they are not in pain. What PETA wants, she claims, is to ban eating meat altogether.: foie gras is just an easy target, because it is an elitist food -- and because Americans look upon the eating of an organ like liver as something weird. Meanwhile, things are moving quickly among anti-foie gras activists. Illinois, Massachusetts, and Oregon are all following California’s example and considering laws banning the production and/or the sale of foie gras. New York could pass a law as early as June 2005, according to Daguin, to ban production. "The wording of the California law could be applied to ban most poultry raised in America"... Daguin pointed out that the wording of the California law could be applied to ban most poultry raised in America, since most turkey and chicken are fed more than they would foraging for themselves. She contacted the Poultry and Egg Council, but when “I told them that in seven years you won’t be able to eat meat in the California, all they did is laugh at me.” By the way, PETA for one has not overlooked Ducasse's wisdom: they have already started a national campaign called "Fishing Hurts" to stop fishing because "fish are smart, interesting animals with their own unique personalities." Such antics have already earned them mention twice on the CBS Evening News, once back in November 2004 and then again just last month in April 2005. Daguin is not waiting for animal activists to walk away with hook, line, and sinker. With New York’s two foie gras producers, she has hired a lobbyist to stop the onslaught. And she has started a fund to support this counter-lobbying activity (click here to read more). Will other chefs who serve foie gras get involved? Daguin thinks not: "They don’t want to jeopardize the vegetarian wife of a tycoon [client]," while PETA & Co. have been lining up big celebrities to toot their horn. Stay tuned; this war is not over yet by a long stretch. Previous articles: 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, foie gras, New York, California --> back to superchefblog

Emeril Excites eBay

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Emeril Lagasse is raising money for his Emeril Lagasse Foundation in celebration of Emeril Live's 1,500the (!) episode on the Food Network with a charity auction on eBay which started last night, May 8, at 8:00 p.m. EDT. Emeril's website sent out a automated email at 8:00 p.m. sharp, which means those who want to bid had little time to get ready. The auction includes "exclusive Emeril Lagasse Restaurant experiences, signed memorabilia including Emeril's chef coat, his black blazer and T-shirt worn on the show, his shoes, his cutting boards and more!" Click here to go to the eBay webpage. The Emerial Lagasse Foundation supports programs for children within the communities where Emeril's restaurants operate. Previous articles: Emeril Lagasse Lays Apple iPod Emeril! - The Magazine? Hello Kitty, Meet Emeril Lagasse Chef Branding: B&G Foods Exposes Emeril? --> back to superchefblog

White House Chef Slot: Closer?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT While Cox News Service was reporting, "Still unfilled is the White House chef post, the only slot where the outgoing incumbent said anything approaching unkind about the boss," Knight Ridder's The Times Argus was leaking suspicion that Chris Ward, partner of the Restaurant Life Group whose restaurants include Mi Cocina and the Fort Worth Chop House, might be "the One" favored as the next White House executive chef. D Magazine claims that Chris' wife and Mercury general manager Pamela Rogers said that Chris and another chef from Rhode Island are last two on the short list. Cox News reported that Chris has traveled to Washington twice this spring, first to interview, then to cook for President Bush and first lady Laura Bush. Earlier, superchefblog caught the scent with an earlier report that also talks about a Louisiana-born, Texas-based chef (see previous article). This news, added to a recent performance during the annual White House Correspondents Association, which received comments from The New York Times to Russian president Vladimir Putin, led Cox News to note the "queries and conspiracy theories" regarding the second-term role of First Lady Laura Bush. (Click here to read the full article). Remember to click here and "Tell Laura Bush" about all the different women chefs she might hire as White House executive chef. (Click here to send the First Lady an automatically configured email.) Previous articles: Tell Laura Bush: White House Woman Chef Results: White House Woman Chef Shortlisting White House Chefs? Vote for White House Woman Chef --> back to superchefblog

Last-Minute Mother's Day: Fresh Pasta

By JULIETTE ROSSANT So, you got Mom a copy of Finding Betty Crocker (see previous article) for Mother's Day -- but what do you serve her when she comes over to pick up her well earned spoils? More from Betty Crocker? Why not surprise her with something like... fresh pasta! I just dug into the first batch of an order I had overnighted from 1-800-Gourmet -- lemon-pepper fettucini -- and it was superb, light and smooth-textured the way only fresh pasta can be. The maker is Ohio City Pasta; 1-800-Gourmet does the rest. I added grated cheese and ollive oil and fed my family. Mom may be expecting a meal that you have slaved over, but why not update her a bit on 21st Century lifestyles by serving her fresh pasta that you ordered rather than made? Yummy! Previous articles: Easter Special: Super Pastry Chefs Valentine's Tea: Bouquets to Drink Valentine's Knives: Cut to the Heart --> back to superchefblog

Wall Street Journal: Beef over Chef Sponsorship?

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Recently, The Wall Street Journal interviewed me for an article entitled "The Sponsored Chef." I didn't make it in, but that is not why I want to raise a bit of beef with The Wall Street Journal: with all due respect to the paper and the author, I happen to disagree rather entirely with the article's premise -- that when chefs get some kind of bargain from a supplier, they are supposed to inform their customers. The article opens with a stab at current Cooking Under Fire co-star and co-judge, Ming Tsai. Apparently, Ming served a "Miso Risotto with Shrimp Mousse and Roulade of Seared Monkfish" whose shrimp was frozen and not fresh. Worse, The Journal contends, he got the shrimp "below cost" from a TV sponsor in return for featuring the shrimp on 2-3 episodes. Yes, can you believe it! "Famous cooks are increasingly accepting money and freebies from food-industry trade groups and manufacturers in return for promoting their products." There is even a table of chefs, menu items, and sponsors, and the chef list includes Rick Bayless, David Burke, Rick Tramonto, and Charlie Trotter. Maybe I'm missing something here, but a chef is judged first and foremost by the quality of food served. The Journal presents a remark by Ming as a slip: "For me, frozen is a tastier shrimp. Fresh is not as fresh as frozen, I think." In fact, Ming is speaking as an expert: of course, there are times when flash-frozen seafood can arrive at the market or the kitchen in better condition -- "fresher" -- than "fresh" seafood which may have suffered during transportation. Moreover, if Ming or any chef can get away with frozen shrimp instead of fresh and I the customer cannot distinguish the difference, then he must be a pretty damned good chef and more power to him! Furhter, if Ming wants to serve shrimp for breakfast, lunch, and dinner because his sponsor has dumped so much cheap shrimp on him, he's going to have get very creative with that shrimp to keep any regular customers (the bedrock of successful fine dining) not only happy but interested. It really doesn't matter whether the ingredients are expensive, cheap, or free. The action isn't in some slight of hand by a magician-chef; the action is always on the plate where customers must be satisfied. False advertising or lying is a different matter, but non-disclosure by a chef and non-detection by a diner is fair game. I remember a lovely, long morning at the home of Joachim Splichal, when he described his career to me up to the first few years of Patina. Joachim had lost his first restaurant Max Au Triangle and was determined to make Patina succeed -- so he turned to potatoes. He made everything he could from potatoes. He made so much from potatoes that he became famous for his potato inventions. Thanks to that inexpensive ingredient -- and the amazing creativity added by the chef -- Patina paid back investors in less than two years (quite a feat in the restaurant business), and Joachim packed in stars and other fine diners. Would it have made any difference whether those potatoes were cheap or even free? No -- because the crucial ingredient is a chef's skill. Sure, one hopes to make finer food from finer ingredients -- fresh shrimp over frozen -- but if a chef can make a lesser ingredient please a customer...? As for mentioning whether a chef has some deal with a supplier, if an American consumer of the 21st Century cannot put two and two together to realize that a chef who is mentioning a maker's name with an ingredient has very likely got some deal going, then they are too dimwitted to be eating at a fine dining restaurant. Again, as long as the chef is not lying and manages to wow me, more power to him or her. Where The Wall Street Journal really fell down is chef sponsorship for non-food, non-kitchen products: Emeril Lagasse for Crest, Nobu Matsuhisa for Callaway golf clubs, Mario Batali for plastic wrap. Again, the consumer must exercise some modicum of brainpower. What does Emeril know about toothpaste? Does Mario have a chemical engineering degree in plastics? And does Nobu really care what golf club he uses, as long as he get enough time on the green (which a good golfclub endorsement should guarantee) -- would you? The Rick Bayless-Burger King affair is extraneous to this story, because there was nothing hidden about his deal with the devil. Rick fell into hot oil becuase he was promoting junk food, plain and simple -- and a different issue in chef sponsorship. After reading the whole article, the only question remaining for me was: so, what is The Wall Street Journal's beef with chef sponsorship? (Click here to read the full WSJ article.) There was a sizzling story to be told, which played out last January for the Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver and over beans, not beef. According to The Guardian, Heinz paid £15,000 (some $28,500) to have beans on toast included on the menu of his restaurant Fifteen -- at £7 ($13). "'Best Baked Bean Bruschetta' was described as a 'signature dish' of one of Oliver's trainees and was served with olive oil, cherry tomatoes, red chillies and parmesan on ciabatta," said The Guardian. "Now Oliver has revealed the dish was a publicity stunt created after Heinz paid him £15,000 to include baked beans on the menu." Thanks to a little unannounced publicity gimmick by Heinz marketing, and, according the Jamie, "next thing I know, we've got giant baked beans running across the restaurant and paparazzi outside shouting Oliver's a wanker!" In this case, the sponsor spoiled the goods by spilling the beans on an overpriced dish. My criticism, though strong, is well intended, and I am sure The Journal will continue its excellent Food coverage. Previous articles: Adam Sandler's Secret Spice: Thomas Keller Buzz-Buzz-Splash, Super Chef Chef Branding: B&G Foods Exposes Emeril? --> back to superchefblog

No Hanging Chad: White House Woman Chef

By JULIETTE ROSSANT "There were no hanging chads" during the "Vote for White House Woman Chef" poll, reported yesterday's The Ventura County. The Star noted with some pleasure that Ojai's own Diane Forley was second runner-up. Previous articles: Tell Laura Bush: White House Woman Chef Results: White House Woman Chef Ventura, CA, Gets Into White House Chef Search Profile: Diane Forley for White House Chef Vote for White House Woman Chef --> back to superchefblog

Cookbooks via Supermarket

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Last week, The New York Times reported on the rise of hardcover books at supermarkets as if it were something novel. "Supermarkets, long the domain of paperback romances, pulp thrillers and astrology guides, are the new frontier of book selling." In fact, this is not a new frontier at all. As Melani McAlister reports in Epic Encounters: Culture, Media, and U.S. Interests in the Middle East, 1945-2000, Ben Hur (1880) sold over a million special edition copies via Sears & Roebuck, a number that would still today make any publisher slobber and drool. Catalog sales were the precursors of giant department stores and supermarkets. "Eye-catching displays of new hardcovers are sprinkled throughout the stores, encouraging impulse purchases" -- most of us have witnessed this ploy. How often you seen cookbooks by Ina Garten and Martha Stewart in Costco? Many times, you answer, but have you asked yourself why they are there? The New York Times focuses on the benefit which publishers see going to retailers. They report HarperCollins's Josh Marwell as saying, "Supermarkets are definitely taking a bigger share of our business... Hardcover bestsellers have become more of an everyday commodity." They also note the high mark-up price for supermarkets as retailers, higher than typical supermarket food products. Left unsaid there is a discussion about product costs and price from the consumter perspective. Ever pick up a hardcover these days and wonder whether you've got a lightweight paperback in your hands? Publishers have found ways to reduce the weight of both binding and paper that goes into hardcover. The result is a less expensive book -- after years of rising paperback prices. Publishers are betting that we consumers will not notice this decline in hardback quality but that we will note the closing price gap beetween discounted hardbacks and reglarly priced paperbacks. Which do you prefer, if the price is relatively close: a hardback or a paperback? Take Paula Deen's new cookbook, Paul Deen & Friends (click here for superchefblog's review) retails full-price for $25. You can buy it online at Barnes & Noble for $20 ($18 for members) and Amazon.com for $16.50. Or, you can buy it on impulse at Costco for under $15 -- and have the book in-hand immediately, no waiting. Best of all, publishers push hardcover sales back up, where profits are higher than paperbacks -- and test out which books are so popular that they will make for great paperback sellers. And let's know forget that at a bricks-and-mortar store like Costco you can still have a live appearance, from mega-names like Hilary Clinton. Hardback sales may only be a fraction of overall general interest books sales, but their sales have risen 50% over the past three years, as The New York Times notes. And, yes, bookstore owners should be scared of this trend, as publishers find yet another way to sell best sellers in big volumes, robbing from the relatively poor independent bookstores (and even biggies like Barnes & Noble) and giving to the ever rich mega-chains, from Walmart & Co. (which are emerging as supermarkets + department stores in the Mid-West) to supermarkets like Kroger. Previous reviews: Mother's Day Gift: Finding Betty Crocker The Sensual Language of Baklava: Diana Abu-Jaber Paula Deen & Friends Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Puerto Rico: Grand Cuisine of the Caribbean Don Pintabona: Shared Table Annabel Karmel: First Meals Nigella Lawson's Feast Cook Like a Kyrgyz Personal Favorites: The Chefs of Las Vegas Anne Willen: The Good Cook Gale Gand's short+sweet More Food from Alton Brown Manju Malhi's India With Passion SOS: Baking from the Heart Madhur Jaffrey: Our Lady of India, CBE Amazon UK's Steamy Xmas Chefs All Hail Alfred Portale Agassi's Star Palate: Celebrity Chefs --> back to superchefblog

Mother's Day Gift: Finding Betty Crocker

By JULIETTE ROSSANT I heard stories when I was growing up of my French mother's first encounter with American housewives. My American grandmother would take her new French daughter-in-law to endless teas where Jell-O molds and icebox cakes were served. American food of the 1950s was a mystery to my mother. Part of that mystery is explored in the best Mother's Day present for any Foodie: Finding Better Crocker (Simon & Schuster 2005). It is as much the story of the building of a culinary icon as the many women who wrote to her revealing their problems, aspirations and despair. Amid the book's wonderful history of this pre-Julia Child imaginary cooking teacher, are the simple recipes of the era, like Chocolate Joy Cake (p.209). Author Susan Marks has achieved a near wonder in this book. Delicately, she recounts fascinating research without ever overwhelming the story of her heroine Betty Crocker. Nevertheless, behind the story of the "person" lies one of the greatest branding stories of 20th Century America. Marks' book starts off with her own personal quest. "Do you remember when I thought you were Betty Crocker?" she asks her mother in the introduction. In fact, that was the point of Betty Crocker: she embodied the best of the American homemaker -- "Mom" -- and inspired her to ever higher heights. Betty was not a real person but a nifty marketing tool developed in 1921 by the Washburn Crosby Company in Mineapolis to sell their Gold Medal Flour and impart cooking tips. The book traces Betty's rise through the introduction of electric appliances, to the depression and WWII as she dished out advice on cooking, catching and retaining a husband, and raising a family. Marjorie Child Husted, the marketing genius who, starting in 1926, was responsible for Betty's image the first half of the 20th century, was among the voices who taught generations of Americans how to cook via radio on the Betty Crocker Cooking School of the Air. Husted went on to Hollywood in the 1930s and, impersonating Betty, interviewed stars in their kitchens. Betty was even "outed" in a famous Fortune Magazine story from 1945 that called her the second best known woman in America, after Eleanor Roosevelt (pp. 114-116). Americans didn't care that Betty wasn't real; what she offered in her personalized letters, and radio and television programs, was advice to isolated women and some men at home who were trying to cope. If you think today's food shows are original, it turns out Betty Crocker did them all first. From quick and easy meals (Rachael Ray) to teaching men to cook (Emeril LaGasse) to economical shortcuts (The Frugal Gourmet) to making food that can win a mate (Bobby Flay, Tyler Florence, and every chef who uses sex appeal). The thousand of students who received diplomas from the school had to fill out a member report questionaire with their completed lessons and their grocer's signature to prove that they only used Gold Medal Flour. Talk about great marketing! Can you imagine Jacques Pepin or Julia demanding that we use only olive oil from one region of France for making one of his dishes? Book links: Publisher Amazon.com Barnes & Noble Subsequent articles: Betty Crocker Podcast The Ethics in Betty Crocker Syndicated: Superchefblog on Betty Crocker Houston Chronicle Interviews Superchefblog Cocina Betty Crocker: Portent? Previous articles: [Cookbook Reviews - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, cookbooks, Betty Crocker --> back to superchefblog

Tell Laura Bush: White House Woman Chef

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Over 5,000 people voted to have a woman selected as White House executive chef (and no one wrote in to complain or ask that a man be selected instead or even that no weight be given to the female gender) -- but why stop with that poll? Who knows whether the White House will now listen to the People? Go the extra mile -- or, if you did not vote in superchefblog's poll, take a moment now to ask First Lady Laura Bush to be sure to select a woman for White House executive chef: Here are the components of the email letter to copy-and-paste into an email message: - To: first.lady@whitehouse.gov - cc: superchef@superchefblog.com - Here is some text you might include: Dear Mrs. Bush: I hope you have seen the election results of the nationwide readers' poll 'Vote for White House Woman Chef' at superchefblog. My family and I are very excited about the prospects of having a woman chef at last as White House executive chef and hope just this once that preference will be given to the female gender, as encouragement to women chefs everywhere (not only in America). Sincerely [YOUR NAME]. Take a moment to let the White House know how you feel about having a woman as executive chef at long last. Previous articles: Elections Analysis: White House Woman Chef Results: White House Woman Chef Last Day: Vote for White House Woman Chef Media (2) on Vote for White House Woman Chef Gabby Hayes: White House Chef? Chef John Bubala Votes Sarah Stegner Paula Deen & Friends Sante Magazine Recognizes Jody Adams Shortlisting White House Chefs? Times-Picayune: Spicer for President(ial chef) NAMC Newswire: A Woman in the White House Before 2008? Ventura, CA, Gets Into White House Chef Search Dallas-Ft. Worth Notes Chef Louise's White House Nomination Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Congratulations: James Beard Awards Nominees Ojai Valley News: Diane Forley for White House Chef Denver Supports Jennifer Jasinski for White House Chef James Beard Awards: Dearth of Top Women Chefs? Today Show Emulates Iron Chef America Wireless Flash: White House Woman Chef Fortune Smiles on superchefblog's White House Chef Poll Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Anita Lo Defeats Mario Batali on Iron Chef America Atlantic Monthly: White House Chefs Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Joe Guzzardi: If Not Governor, White House Chef Reminder 1: Vote for White House Woman Chef Vote For White House Woman Chef Superchefblog: Catalyst for White House Woman Chef? --> back to superchefblog

Election Analysis: White House Woman Chef

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Online elections and polls are still relatively new, and for those who are interested in how superchefblog conducted the poll or are interested in conducting web polls themselves, here is an analysis. Campaigning: Those chefs who campaigned were by far more successful than those who did not. Media leverage which was visible to superchefblog included email, radio, and print. Of those media, email proved to be the most reliable, attributable to the immediacy of a one-to-one email message and the convenience for voting: email ensured a high Click-Through Rate -- which makes perfect sense for an online-only poll. Other media such as radio and print often haveonline presence and so faciliate (though without the same one-to-one immediacy): however, if anyone accesses these media in traditional fashion, that person has to make an extra effort just to get online. Chefs were also helped by their own strong Media presences. Cat Cora appears on the Food Network nationwide and in Canada. Nancy Silverton has a nationwide bread company La Brea Bread (though her name is not part of the marketing), numerous cookbooks, and a daughter who appeared on the second-to-last day of Air America's Unfiltered show and mentioned her mom. Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger have a radio show in Los Angeles ("Red Hot Tamales in the KFI Kitchen" on KFI 640 AM -- click here to listen live, Sundays, 9:00-11:00 a.m. Pacfic Time). Get Out the Vote: Superchefblog approached a number of culinary and women's professional organizations to help "get out the vote." No major chef-oriented organization supported the poll officially in any capacity -- out of political considerations, since most of them, starting with Women Chefs and Restaurateurs and other professional organizations extending all the way to the major culinary schools such as the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) and the French Culinary Institute (FCI), were making formal, behind-the-scense recommendations to the White House, and of course were recommending chefs based on a non-gender basis (or, in WCR's case, simply on a private basis) which they did not wish to jeopardize with a public endorsement of any kind. These organizations even went so far as to decline mention of superchefblog's poll in any email messages, etc. Superchefblog respects the high level of professionalism exhibited by these organizations in their attempts to remain professional advisors to the White House. Interestingly, other non-profit and non-governmental organizations (or "NGOs") concerned with Women's Issues also declined to participate because the issue of a woman chef for White House executive chef was too narrow for their constuencies. Chad: Superchefblog's "Vote for White House Woman Chef" poll had its own technical problem. The poll laid out headshots of all the chefs, in three groups based on geography. Running a mouse cursor over a headshot would reveal the chef's name, flagship restaurant, and location. One click on the headshot would generate an email message automatically configured and ready to be sent with the vote for that chef. The problem came when a computer was not fully configured, i.e., when a browser was not configured to open an email software program which was itself already configured to send email. Thus, superchefblog failed to take into account public computers, which almost always have no email software configured (public users send email messages from webmail -- browser-based email services, usually available from ISPs.) Fortunately, superchefblog discovered the problem without reader comment, noting for future reference that this problem may have discouraged some voters from voting. Fortunately, voter turn-out was not so high that it caused a situation like chad in Florida's ballots during the 2000 US Presidential Elections. Significance: One entertaining byproduct of this poll was an American Idol-like search for the most popular woman chef in America, which superchefblog leveraged to help drive votes within a short amount of time -- 34 days, with pre-campaign promotion. The absence of pre-campaign promotion also that meant that only those chefs who were willing and able to participate on short notice sent in profiles, so that some of the nominated chefs still have no profiles on superchefblog. (All chefs were contacted except Roxanne Klein, who appears to be have been traveling.) To read more about the importance of this particular poll, please click here. To read more about the follow-on "Tell Laura Bush" email campaign, click here. Previous articles: Results: White House Woman Chef Last Day: Vote for White House Woman Chef Media (2) on Vote for White House Woman Chef Gabby Hayes: White House Chef? Chef John Bubala Votes Sarah Stegner Paula Deen & Friends Sante Magazine Recognizes Jody Adams Shortlisting White House Chefs? Times-Picayune: Spicer for President(ial chef) NAMC Newswire: A Woman in the White House Before 2008? Ventura, CA, Gets Into White House Chef Search Dallas-Ft. Worth Notes Chef Louise's White House Nomination Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Congratulations: James Beard Awards Nominees Ojai Valley News: Diane Forley for White House Chef Denver Supports Jennifer Jasinski for White House Chef James Beard Awards: Dearth of Top Women Chefs? Today Show Emulates Iron Chef America Wireless Flash: White House Woman Chef Fortune Smiles on superchefblog's White House Chef Poll Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Anita Lo Defeats Mario Batali on Iron Chef America Atlantic Monthly: White House Chefs Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Joe Guzzardi: If Not Governor, White House Chef Reminder 1: Vote for White House Woman Chef Vote For White House Woman Chef Superchefblog: Catalyst for White House Woman Chef? --> back to superchefblog

Results: White House Woman Chef

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Winners: The winner of superchefblog's nationwide online readers' poll is Cat Cora. Runners-up were, in order: Nancy Silverton Diane Forley Louise Lamensdorf and Allison Vines-Rushing (tied) Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger Chris Comerford * * The White House did not respond to requests for biographical and other details for a profile on Chris Comerford, nor is there any other website with many details about Chef Comerford. Count: The total vote count came to just over 5,000 -- click here to read superchefblog's elections analysis. For the record, the other women chefs who were nominated by superchefblog for this poll are (in order of appearance on the poll page): Traci Des Jardins, Judy Rodgers, Roxanne Klein, Josie Le Balch, Suzanne Goin, Scooter Kanfer-Cartmill, Christine Keff, Melissa Perello, Tamara Murphy, Suzanne Tracht, Alice Waters, Jennifer Naylor, Lucia Watson, Kathleen Daelemans, Deborah Knight, Julie Francis, Jennifer Jasinski, Sarah Stegner, Carrie Nahabedian, Anita Jaisinghani, Susan Spicer, Kathy Cary, Lidia Bastianich, Nora Pouillon, Jody Adams, Patricia Yeo, Barbara Lynch, Allison Vines-Rushing, Sara Moulton, Susanna Foo, Lydia Shire, Zarela Martinez, Katy Sparks, Anita Lo, Paula Deen, and Anne Cashion. Importance: The important product of the poll is the total number of votes garnered -- 5,000 votes -- to present to the White House -- and this is merely a means by which to bring White House attention to the need to promote women among America's top chefs. Within the hour this morning, superchefblog will launch it's "Tell Laura Bush" email campaign to bring greater White House attention to poll results. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, several of the chefs nominated did express sincere interest in the position of White House executive chef, and superchefblog was able to help make sure that their names did come before the White House committee in charge of the selection process. Of course, it would be wonderful were one of the chefs nominated by superchefblog to be chosen by the White House as the next executive chef, but any top woman chef would suffice as executive chef. Previous Profiles for White House Woman Chef: Profile: Zarela Martinez for White House Chef Profile: Melissa Perello for White House Chef Profile: Alice Waters for White House Chef Profile: Jody Adams for White House Chef Profile: Tamara Murphy for White House Chef Profile: Allison Vines-Rushing for White House Chef Profile: Lucia Watson for White House Chef Profile: Barbara Lynch for White House Chef Profile: Suzanne Goin for White House Chef Profile: Louise Lamensdorf for White House Chef Profile: Anita Jaisinghani for White House Chef Profile: Julie Francis for White House Chef Profile: Mary Sue Milliken & Susan Feniger for White House Chef Profile: Traci Des Jardins for White House Chef Profile: Anita Lo for White House Chef Profile: Sara Moulton for White House Chef Profile: Nora Pouillon for White House Chef Profile: Scooter Kanfer for White House Chef Profile: Cat Cora for White House Chef Profile: Diane Forley for White House Chef Previous articles: Last Day: Vote for White House Woman Chef Media (2) on Vote for White House Woman Chef Gabby Hayes: White House Chef? Chef John Bubala Votes Sarah Stegner Paula Deen & Friends Sante Magazine Recognizes Jody Adams Shortlisting White House Chefs? Times-Picayune: Spicer for President(ial chef) NAMC Newswire: A Woman in the White House Before 2008? Ventura, CA, Gets Into White House Chef Search Dallas-Ft. Worth Notes Chef Louise's White House Nomination Roland Mesnier's Dessert University Congratulations: James Beard Awards Nominees Ojai Valley News: Diane Forley for White House Chef Denver Supports Jennifer Jasinski for White House Chef James Beard Awards: Dearth of Top Women Chefs? Today Show Emulates Iron Chef America Wireless Flash: White House Woman Chef Fortune Smiles on superchefblog's White House Chef Poll Cat Cora Wins on Iron Chef America Anita Lo Defeats Mario Batali on Iron Chef America Atlantic Monthly: White House Chefs Cat Cora, Anita Lo: Sexing Up Iron Chef America Joe Guzzardi: If Not Governor, White House Chef Reminder 1: Vote for White House Woman Chef Vote For White House Woman Chef Superchefblog: Catalyst for White House Woman Chef? --> back to superchefblog