AccidentalHedonist

If I may throw in a comment from the sidelines, if the recipe calls for Canadian Club, then the use of Alberta is probably not a fair substitute. Back in the later part of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th, Canadian Club Whisky as made by Hiram Walker, was only one of several different types of whisky made in Windsor. The one we're familiar with came into popularity because it was popular with various bars, taverns, and yes, clubs, throughout the midwest and Ontario. Hence the name "Club Whisky". It was likely popular because not only did it have a pleasant taste, it was also likely economical when compared against other quality whiskies available. This means it was likely cheaper, which in turn means that it was likely a made from a mash with a grain composition that included corn, wheat, and/or barley, rather than a pure malted rye. Canadian Club Whisky from 1920 was likely to be more akin to the whiskies of turn of the century Pennsylvania, than a uniquely all-rye, all-the-time one.

I have done a amount of digging into HFCS, and have yet to find any study that says the HFCS is worse for you than cane sugar. But there are two important points to be made in regard to this - 1) This doesn't mean that, health wise, HFCS is the same as cane sugar. It means that no one has yet to prove that HFCS is better, worse or the same as cane sugar. 2) There are damn few studies concerning HFCS, let alone comparing it to cane sugar. My own take is similar to Marion Nestle's. Sugar is sugar, whether it comes from sugar cane, beets or corn. There will be taste variations, and perhaps health effects resulting from production techniques, but at the very core of the health issue is that HFCS is a sugar and it's put into a great majority of our products. Someone mentioned Thomas's English Muffins. It's also in Ketchup, tomato paste, cottage cheese, yogurts, even children's cough syrup. In a different post, I listed statistics on our sugar consumption prior to and after the development of HFCS and it's implementation into the processed food industry- So while we've reduced refined sugar intake over the past 24 years, we've replaced it with HFCS and then added another 22 lbs of HFCS to our annual diet. This, in my opinion, is where the obesity battle has to start. And when you consider that the government does in fact subsidize corn production and restricts cane sugar importation, it doesn't take too much a of leap of logic to deduce that the government is helping subsidize our nation's weight gain, albeit unintentionally. There are likely some side health issues with HFCS, mostly regarding people's reaction to corn products or the enzymes used in HFCS production, but again, there has been no studies to prove this hypothesis of mine. But the first and foremost health issue surrounding HFCS comes from any health issues surrounding obesity.

From Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink via FoodTimeline.org: The history of doughnuts is interesting and complicated. Even the story about the how the hole was invented is full of conflicting evidence. Although ancient Roman cooks were known to fry sweet breads in oil, food historians generally credit the invention of deep-fried yeast pastries (oly koeks) to the people of Northern Europe. Presumably during Medieval times. The actual 'inventor' of the doughnut and their name has probably has been lost to the tides of time.

Here's one I've done... <a href="http://www.accidentalhedonist.com/media/motivator7308319.jpg" width="750" height="600" alt="" />Absinthe</a>

For the record, I should state that the definitions in the post are strictly my own. I'm not looking to codify any label. Rather, I was simply looking to refute a troll's assertion that all foodies are "classist" and "elitist". Your own definitions may vary. ← Cool, and my apologies for misreading you. I think we're actually on the same track then ... only I was foolhardy enough to expend energy trying to guess at your troll's argument, which they seemed insufficiently capable of articulating effectively. ← No harm, no foul. :-)

For the record, I should state that the definitions in the post are strictly my own. I'm not looking to codify any label. Rather, I was simply looking to refute a troll's assertion that all foodies are "classist" and "elitist". Your own definitions may vary.

The idea that the number of cases of cattle infected with BSE is miniscule is not correct. It may be, it may not be. The truth of the matter is that the USDA has no idea how many cows may or may not be infected with the disease. The problem is twofold: Firstly only four tenths of one percent of the entire US cattle population has been tested for BSE, hardly a well developed sample of the population. Secondly, there's some question if the tests that have been performed have been done using the Western Blot test, the most effective test out of all in the industry. As far as how prevelant BSE is in humans via food transmission is as yet, also undetermined, as symptoms may go unnoticed for years. To say definitively that Mad Cow is no big deal is a dangerous bet to make. Mad Cow may be no big deal, but there are also indicators that prove that it may be a big deal. The real issue is that the USDA and the Cattle industry don't want to find out.

Is there any locations within the Seattle city limits that sell raw milk or raw cream? Or is this something I'll have to go directly to a farm to pick up? Any help in locating these products will be very much appreciated.

It's been said twice and I'll add my own voice to this point. If you're looking for readers, find a specific focus on how you do your food writing. When I started, I was all over the place, doing restaurant reviews, visiting food events, and doing recipes. Since establishing that I'm researching and providing recipes for ingredients and cuisines, I've found that my writing is getting better and people have caught on my approach. (I've even had readers send me books to help in my research, something which totally shocked me). That being said, if you're just starting a blog to practice various writing skills, and drawing readership is lower on your list of priorities, then simply write, write, write. I recommend Food Blog S'cool as a good place to start to see what issues other food bloggers are running into. It's important to realize that blogs are a new medium, and thus there is no proven way to be successful as a food blog. What this means is that you will have to define what "success" means to you. Does it mean getting a lot of daily readers? Does it mean using the blog as a tool to get readers to other mediums? How you define success will invariably dictate how you approach your blog and your writing. As a side discussion... some of the articles written by the press were indeed sold to other publications. I've seen the Washington Post Article in at least a half dozen publications, as well as the Boston Globe article. I agree with you that there are many, many food blogs not recognized by the Mainstream Press, but at this point last year, there were only two blogs that were nationally recognized (Chocolate & Zucchini and AmateurGourmet....Julie/Julia had shut down by this point). That they've recognized eight to ten blogs now I think is a great improvement. Hopefully by this point next year, we can get 2 dozen or so recognized.

The Hot Mama's vs. Piecora's battle could go either way, IMO. Hot Mama's crusts are to die for (in the NY Pizza tradition), but alas, they use those frozen sausage pellets that just depress me. Piecora's, in my experience, tends to be a bit off and on. But their pizza is much better on location than delivered. I'm still not sure why that is.

Aww Jason! I didn't know you cared! Is it a coincidence that you mentioned two food blogs from Seattle? Hmmmmmm.....

I'll second Cafe Campagne if you want to do a brunch, or (staying in Pike Place Market), Place Pigalle , where I had a wonderful Rabbit Cassoulet a few months back. They're open on Sat, 11:30am-3:30pm

The food is just .. okay, but they do have a room (which is desperately hard to find on Cap Hill).. try Galerias 611 Broadway Ave E Seattle, WA 98102 206-322-5757

And snickers bars are now de rigeur :-)

Good or Bad? If you would have asked me 20+ years ago, I probably would have been a little more upset...but now as an adult, I realize that even companies have lifespans. I would think that the youth today might be a little bothered, but the reality is that there are many other sweets that a child can choose from (of course, as Steve Almond alerted us to, not as many as in years past). I feel bad for all whose livelihoods are to be affected, but as an icon that has seen better days, I can barely muster a 'Meh' to see them go away, if they even go at all. Now Tasty-Cakes... that's another matter entirely.