Kitchen Report

Last Friday I had the opportunity to meet New York Times food writer Mark Bittman. I was in a group of about a dozen journalists who sat down with the kitchen guru at a natural food expo in Boston.

Butternut squash on pasta

Bittman, besides being a cookbook author of “How To Cook Everything,” has recently published “Food Matters,” which includes a one-month food plan based on the guideline that foodies are advocating right now: eat mostly plants and less in general.

Our chat was informal, but one thing in particular stood out to me: He said that his life really changed when he went into the produce section and bought one of everything he saw so he was forced to learn how to cook and enjoy new dishes. (more…)

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Working in a newsroom and writing about food occasionally means that interesting packages sometimes end up on my desk. For instance, a yellow and blue can of Old Bay seasoning.

Good Friends: Steamed shrimp & Old Bay seasoning

Old Bay is celebrating its 70th year since a German immigrant named Gustav Brunn settled in Baltimore and started seasoning local crabs and shrimp with heavy doses of paprika, pepper, and a dozen other “secret” ingredients. Despite Old Bay’s aggressive ad campaign the spice had never really registered with me until 6 ounces of it arrived in the mail.

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