Cookbook author first to decipher the Crock-Pot

The Crock-Pot came out in 1971, an innovation over an earlier slow cooker designed to cook beans.  With increasing numbers of women working outside the home, many were eager to try a device that would have dinner ready when they came home in the evening. Mabel Hoffman, a food stylist and home economist, published "Crockery Cookery" in 1975, and it was an instant success.

How Restaurant Menus Make You Spend More

Lynne Rosette Kasper describes a menu as an "invitation to pleasure" but a smart restaurateur uses menu design to maximize profits.  Francis Lam at Salon explores menu design psychology and why we spend more for dinner than we anticipated.

Portland Restaurants Receive 12 Beard Nominations

IACP's own Mike Thelin reports in Portland Monthly that the James Beard Foundation unveiled the first round of nominees for its annual awards.

He writes, "[Portland] contenders in national categories include Higgins Restaurant and Bar for Outstanding Restaurant, Le Pigeon’s Gabe Rucker and Castagna’s Matt Lightner as Rising Star Chefs, and Ping as Best New Restaurant. For the first time in a few years, Portland dominates Seattle in the Best Chef Northwest category with seven of all 20 spots. Nominees include Nostrana’s Cathy Whims, Gabe Rucker, Autentica’s Oswaldo Bibiano, Toro Bravo’s John Gorham, Beast’s Naomi Pomeroy, Pok Pok’s Andy Ricker, and Jenn Lewis of Lincoln."

Matching Wine to Music

The Telegraph says that matching wine to music may help create a seductive atmosphere on Valentine's Day.  Listening to certain music enhances the pleasure of drinking certain wines, as has been suggested by research at Heriot-Watt University.

IACP Conference Buzz from Nashville

The Nashville Scene reports on the upcoming 2010 IACP Annual Conference in Portland and the incredible, in-depth educational programming offered.  Nicki Wood writes, "the IACP is the awesomest [food association], if only for its incredible annual conference."  Thanks, Nicki!

2011 Budget Requests for FDA

According to 2011 federal budget requests, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration would see a 6 percent jump in its budget to $2.51 billion. In part, the funds would be spent on food safety, which has been flagged as a domestic priority. 

Goat Meat Becoming Popular on Chicago Menus

Goat is a protein of choice in Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa, and is now seeing an emergence on menus at Chicago restaurants like Girl and the Goat.

Restaurants Help Haiti

IACP 2010 Annual Conference featured speaker Kim Severson reports in the NYT Diner's Journal that restaurant communities in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and other major cities are helping raise money for the Haitian earthquake relief effort.

Menu Trends for 2010

Restaurants & Institutions magazine shares their 20 menu trends for 2010 - the ingredients, recipes and strategies that will drive menus in the year ahead.

Bourdain Shares his View on a Foodie Nation

In an op-ed New York Times column, Anthony Bourdain talks about the shift in the world of food that brought bloggers, burger joints, "Top Chef," a Pulitzer Prize-winning food writer, personalities with saute pans, and the “epiphany” scene in Pixar's "Ratatouille" to the forefront.

Oliver Awarded Top US Ideas Prize

British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver will win the 2010 TED Prize next month for his work on a UK school dinners campaign, the Fifteen Foundation, as well as the television series "Food Revolution USA." The award, which lists President Bill Clinton, Bono and Dave Eggers among its previous winners, will see the chef receive $100,000 and be granted "one wish to change the world.”

Restaurants Turning Deep Fryer Oil into Energy Savings

Listen to James Peret, the inventor of the Vegawatt, on NPR's All Things Considered. The Vegawatt is a generator that turns the used oil from a restaurant's deep fryer and sends it right back into the restaurant as electricity.

Chestnuts at the Winter Table

Laura McCandlish from NPR reports that Thanksgiving is about the only time Americans cook with chestnuts, in stuffing for the turkey or with Brussels sprouts. There are, she says, more unusual preparations that could be part of any winter holiday feast or weeknight meal. Chestnut soup, chestnut flour latkes, maple-chestnut ice cream...

Back-To-Basics Leads 2010 Food Trends

A focus on building a menu from quality, basic ingredients leads the Food Channel's list of top food trends for 2010. This version of back-to-basics suggests a growing trend toward real, from-scratch cooking.

How to Uncook an Egg

Dr Hervé This has a novel suggestion for how to cook the turkey this Christmas: in the dishwasher. Presumably the founder of molecular gastronomy and the author of a new book entitled "The Science of the Oven" has thought through this efficient way of doing Christmas Eve’s dishes at the same time as tenderising the bird for the big day. But is it definitely going to be edible?