Subject: Foods

• The Mainstreet Theatre’s Marquee Bar & Grill gets top billing

  June 4, 2009

• Do brunch! Be trendy!

  Cupcakes have been a fad for so long that magazines have started guessing what's next. (Best current guess is corn dogs.) But like Jay Leno, every time you think cupcakes have gone away, they somehow reappear. For some reason the cupcake trend hasn't morphed with the other food du jour: bacon. Until now. Enter bacon's cousin ham, and delicious-looking honey baked ham cupcakes, which are proving to be popular and could become a fixture of brunches everywhere.The idea came from realizing that ham

  May 27, 2009

• Today is National German Chocolate Cake Day

  No, this particular delicacy isn't actually of German heritage and it's not a pastry you'll find in many German restaurants -- although Margo at the Rheinland Restaurant in Independence just baked one today! -- since the name of the cake wasn't inspired by the country that gave us strudel, lebkuchen (gingerbread) and Gummi Bears...but an American man named Sam German. And who, you're asking, was Sam German? Well, in 1852, he was an employee at the Baker's Chocolate company outside

  June 11, 2009

• Beware of pine mouth

  As a salad topping, a pesto ingredient and a healthy snack, the pine nut is popular. But it's left a bad taste -- or, in the worst-case, no taste at all -- in the mouths of thousands of people worldwide.While people have ingested pine nuts for thousands of years, only in the past decade has "pine mouth" started occurring. The cases all follow a similar pattern: A couple of days after eating pine nuts, raw or in pesto, people notice a bitter, metallic taste they can't get rid of. The problem ling

  June 23, 2009

• This return to Ophelia’s is a classic tale of forgiveness and redemption

  June 25, 2009

• It's national chocolate pudding day!

  Are you planning to celebrate National Chocolate Pudding Day? First you have to find it. Lately, I've seen variations on bread pudding everywhere. But the only time I see chocolate pudding in a restaurant is on the buffet at a Chinese restaurant. If you're a fan of this dessert, which I think of as a purely childhood dessert -- probably from all those Jello pudding commercials featuring Bill Cosby -- you'll have to hit a buffet (which uses the canned variety, I suspect), a cafeteria o

  June 26, 2009

• It's National Catfish Day!

  Yes, today is National Catfish Day! No, not the giant, man-eating catfish that was allegedly discovered in the Guangdang Reservoir or the former Kansas City Athletics star "Catfish" Hunter...but the smaller, whiskered variety that was, before the days of quick refrigerated deliveries, the closest thing Midwestern diners had to "seafood" for many years. Once a staple on menus in the heartland, it's not so easy to find fried catfish on a lot of modern restaurant menus: it'

  June 25, 2009

• Lawsuit wants warning labels on hot dogs

  After buck night at The K, a lot of people wish hot dogs came with warnings. And if the Cancer Project in New Jersey gets its wish, hot dog packaging would come with the following label: "Warning: Consuming hot dogs and other processed meats increases the risk of cancer."  The nonprofit vegan advocacy organization filed a lawsuit yesterday asking the Essex County superior court to issue a judgment requiring companies selling hot dogs in New Jersey to put a warning label on every package

  July 23, 2009

• Battle of the Dishes: Frozen Custard

  ​There are differences, sometimes barely noticeable, between two dishes that look exactly alike. Egg rolls, come to mind. Or a slice of apple pie. Today we taste and consider frozen custard. Not the ne plus ultra of local frozen custard, the independently owned and revered Foo's Frozen Custard, which is in a category all its own, but the two national chains -- Overland Park-based Sheridan's Frozen Custard and Wisconsin-based Culver's -- who have been in a hea

  July 28, 2009

• Kansas City's Top Ten cheap tacos

  ​Tacos may be the best-loved Mexican-American dish served in the United States. The Food Lover's Companion describes a taco as "a Mexican-style 'sandwich' consisting of a folded corn tortilla filled with various ingredients such as beef, pork, chicken, chorizo sausage, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, onion ... Most tacos in the United States are made with crisp (fried) tortilla shells, but there are also soft (pliable) versions." Over the years, tacos -- which are relatively inexpensive t

  July 29, 2009

• What's in season: Cucumbers

  ​Tea sandwich and pickling enthusiasts rejoice -- it's time for cucumbers! And cucumbers are one of the easiest vegetables to eat. "We just eat them raw. We don't have boxed snacks, so instead we just pick our snack food off a vine and eat them," says Dan Heryer, one for the farmers at Badseed Farm. Cucumbers are available throughout the year, but are best in the summer months. Pick ones that are medium to dark green and firm to the touch.

  July 30, 2009

• Whoopie pies are the new cupcakes

  ​There is always some new pastry on the block attempting to dethrone cupcakes. Now, The New York Times is certain that the next best hand-held dessert is nearly as old as the tiny cakes we've been enjoying since grade school. Ever had a whoopie pie? The standard version is two round cakes, resembling hamburger buns, around a white icing that's typically vanilla. Whoopie pies share some flavor similarities with black-and-white cookies. The icing can be tooth-achingly sweet and the cake portion

  August 3, 2009

• Generation Crap: Your age determines your comfort food

  Little Debbie rules the world...​An article posted on last Friday's Marketing Daily site says that what people consider to be comfort foods generally cross generational lines. "However, more subtle differences in comfort food preferences do exist among age groups according to a new 'Generational Comfort Foods' trend mapping report from the Center for Culinary Development (CCD) and Packaged Facts." Until now, I didn't even know there was an organization called the Center for Culinar

  August 3, 2009

• What's in season: Eggplant

  ​Eggplant seems like a vegetable best buried under mountains of sauce and cheese. You can't go wrong with eggplant parmesan. That's a slimmed-down version of the dish in the photo above, with quick cooking directions below. In picking out an eggplant at market, you want a firm, dark-colored vegetable with smooth and shiny skin. When you pick it up, it should feel lighter than you thought it might (pick up a few, this will make sense). Eggplants that are overripe will be soft and dull in co

  August 4, 2009

• Find your sandwich soulmate

  ​You can tell a lot about a man or woman by his or her sandwich order. And might replace the Zodiac as your predictor of happiness in a potential relationship. Hellman's and Best Foods sponsored a recent study to try to match lunch selections with personality types. The Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation analyzed the sandwich orders of 2,747 adults -- offering them eight choices and then cross-examining those decisions with the results of comprehensive personality tests.More su

  August 5, 2009

• Today is National Frozen Custard Day!

  ​We love frozen custard in Fat City and recently did a "battle of the frozen custards" using samples from the best-known national frozen custard chains: Culver's and Sheridan's. We also explained the difference between frozen custard and soft-serve. Since today is supposed to be gruelingly hot, I'm going to make a devotional pilgrimage to one of the local frozen custard vendors for a cup of something cold and creamy. (Image via Flickr: Red Oak Kid)

  August 8, 2009

• Adventures in ice cream

  ​This is the time of year when ice cream always sounds good. However, some of the offerings uncovered by Better Homes and Gardens might not sound as appealing. Ice cream is apparently the next frontier for unusual tastes. At first the list is tame, with flavors like sweet corn and grilled potato. Corn seems an easy leap for cream; after all, its natural summer sweetness works well in cold soups and risotto. And, naturally, bacon is now an ice cream flavor -- why now, since Whole Foods sells a

  August 13, 2009

• Green Dirt Farm cheese wins gold, bronze awards

  Green Dirt Farm's Bossa...is the boss​Green Dirt Farm, the lamb farm and artisan cheese maker in Weston, Missouri, was honored last Friday at the 2009 American Cheese Society Competition in Austin, Texas. This was the first year that cheesemaker Sarah Hoffman -- who owns the farm with Jacquie Smith -- has entered the competition, but good fortune was definitely with her: Green Dirt Farm's Bossa won the gold medal in the washed rind sheep's milk category and two other cheeses -- Fresh Pl

  August 13, 2009

• The myth/legend of New York bagels

  ​If you believe a New Yorker, there are New York bagels and then there's really nothing else that compares. Steve Fassberg is attempting to tweak that argument by recreating the taste and composition of New York City tap water in order to provide what he feels is the right base for bagels at his recently opened shop in Del Ray, Florida. "There are a lot of elements in a perfect bagel, but the key ingredient is water," Fassberg tells the Sun Sentinel. Like the doughnut conveyors at Krispy Kreme

  August 14, 2009

• In Season: Watermelon

  ​We're getting to the time of year when watermelon can go either way -- a great burst of sweet juice or something that tastes vaguely of fruit water. Still, it's the right time to dive in while you've got a better shot at the former than the latter, because as long as there is watermelon on the table, you can hang on to summer. Picking watermelon can be tricky. You want to avoid bruises and dents, the same as if you were picking apples or tomatoes. A decent tip-off for ripeness involves

  August 17, 2009

• For the love of a pluot

  ​It's not usually up to fruit to rock your world. When was the last time you had an apple that made you reconsider all previous apples? But one fruit that's now in season might just shift your paradigm right there in the produce section. The pluot is a sweet, juicy cross-blend of a plum (approximately 70 percent) and apricot (approximately 30 percent). It looks like a plum, pink or red in color, and you're likely to miss it if you're not looking at labels. Pluots are grown in Califo

  August 31, 2009

• More energy drinks, less taurine

  ​Pick a synonym for "movement" and there's probably an energy drink or shot attached to it: Amp. Charge. Go Fast. Explosion. Even Steven Seagal has a Lightning Bolt energy drink (with the disquieting flavor of Asian Experience). The energy drink market has blown up this decade, with sales increasing 240 percent between 2004 and 2009. Analysts have predicted it will be a $10 billion (that's billion) market by 2010. With that much money being poured into game fuel, companies are considering the

  September 1, 2009

• In an old neighborhood, a couple of new favorites

  September 3, 2009

• The cupcake has peaked

  ​With the cupcake trend in full swing, one writer believes that all of the different iterations and new storefronts are leading to the bursting of the cupcake bubble. On Slate, Daniel Gross argues that cupcakes are a luxury item and all of the new options are reactionary, retro-fitted onto a pastry that is meant to be simple. "Indeed, they are being pitched as affordable luxuries. In an age when discretionary, feel-good spending is at a nadir, cupcake bakeries are trying to persuade people to

  September 8, 2009

• What's in season: Okra

  ​Okra is like politics -- you've probably got a strong opinion, whether you're willing to share it or not. But before you cast your vote, consider the possibilities for this shopping-cart candidate. Most okra is green, but right now you can get purple okra at farmer's markets. The color change might help win over some folks who think of it as a slimy vegetable because of the juice inside the body.When it's ripe, okra is soft and fuzzy. This means that it's also fragile, bruising easily and be

  September 8, 2009

• Meat: Your worst nightmare?

  ​You figure cows wake up screaming to images of Rocky punching sides of beef in a freezer. But people, well, we struggle with an entirely different kind of meatmare. The Food Section considers vegetarians' "horrifying visions of meat or the (troubling) experience of eating meat" with tales culled from an online forum called Veggie Boards: "I had one a few weeks ago. I was on like a hotel balcony just stuffing bacon in my mouth. I could hear my conscious mind telling me not to eat it, that i

  September 9, 2009

• This week in sandwiches

  ​You should never go more than 48 hours between sandwiches. That's because sometime in that 48 hours, you'll be faced with a choice between a sandwich or another entree, and you'll choose the non-sandwich alternative. It will inevitably be the wrong choice. And since it's been a big week for sandwiches, Fat City's going to go around the horn to look in at the latest things to happen between two slices of bread. You know it's a wacky week when there's a flood in the town of Sandwich, Massachuse

  September 15, 2009

• Can promise conquer problems at the Westside Local? Here’s hoping so

  September 17, 2009

• In season: Figs

  ​Eating a fresh fig can be a bit like getting on a motorcycle for the first time -- slightly intimidating but joyous.While I've heard their taste described as a mix between a peach and a strawberry, it's safe to say that the pulpy flesh is richly sweet and juicy when they're properly ripened. If you're picking figs, you want to know what color they are supposed to be when they're ripe -- there are a number of varieties from yellow to black. While the texture should have some give, as with most

  October 5, 2009

• Parkville’s Iron Horse bistro is on the right track

  October 8, 2009

• Battle of the Dishes: Candy Corn Alternatives

  ​Candy corn is one of those seasonal items that appears well before the holiday to which it's attached. We wanted to sample candy corn weeks ahead of Halloween -- before it had time to age on grocery store shelves. Today's battle of the dishes pits two new candy corn alternatives against one another. In one corner, we have Brach's Milk Maid Candy Apple Candy Corn. In the other, Hershey Kisses' Candy Corn. Acting as a palate cleanser and baseline will be traditional Brach's Autumn Mix -- which

  October 9, 2009

• Ra Sushi is saucily seductive

  October 15, 2009

• In Season: Sweet potatoes

  ​We're right on the cusp of sweet potato season, and this versatile vegetable deserves a spot on your plate outside of Thanksgiving dinner. Everybody can pick out a good sweet potato. Just avoid cracks or bruised vegetables and opt for firm potatoes. Sweet potatoes don't need to be refrigerated and can last for several weeks as long as they remain dry. Cooked sweet potatoes can last for up to a week in a Tupperware container in the refrigerator.

  October 14, 2009

• The skinny on the world of cheesecakes

  ​As a boy growing up on the East Coast, there were certain inalienable truths. Among them was that the only place to get bagels and cheesecakes done the right way was New York City. And to this day, cheesecake remains a food that, outside of Manhattan, isn't the same. Whether it's a question of water or baking practices, or simply because it's a food that can't be replicated because it has already been fixed in my mind, the ideal of a slice of New York City cheesecake holds its value. It is th

  October 20, 2009

• Lee Chai’s new Hot Basil gets us all worked up

  October 22, 2009

• Chocolate: The Exhibition turns out to be ... bittersweet

    The ancient Mayans prized the beverage created from the cacao There was quite a bit of hype leading up to last weekend's opening of Chocolate: The Exhibition at Union Station, so I wondered if there would be a line to get into the interactive touring show -- created by Chicago's Field Museum -- on Sunday afternoon. The answer was no, and that was fine. After all, who wants to fight crowds for a glimpse of the historical relics?Of course, many of the "relics" in this particular exhi

  October 21, 2009

• Pranks and beans

  ​The world of pranks has come to jelly beans with Bean Boozled Jelly Beans -- the latest product from the Jelly Belly Candy Company. It's a clever repackaging of the Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans -- a licensed Harry Potter candy that featured ear wax, vomit and bacon flavors. (The bacon was kind of tasty in an artificially bacon sort of way.) But with Harry Potter leaving movie theaters shortly and the books having ceased publication in 2007, Jelly Belly needed to find a use for its collect

  October 22, 2009

• In season: Radishes

  ​You probably have a strong opinion about radishes. Many people find the spicy, almost peppery flavor of raw radishes too bitter, missing out on what could be a colorful and flavorful addition to sides and dishes. Radish season begins in November, and because the red and white vegetables are a surprisingly good source of Vitamin C, you might give them a try this winter. When you're buying radishes at the supermarket, they should be fine as long as they are not discolored or soft. For stor

  October 28, 2009

• Infused vinegar is the hot new condiment

  ​As a potential topping or finishing drizzle, vinegar is the forgotten sister. But because it has the potential to be infused in as many different ways as oil, it's about time we started looking at the other half of the caddy on Italian restaurant tables.Herb-infused vinegar is delightfully straightforward to make. You just need your herbs of choice and a jar or container that can be sealed. After about a week, you pour the vinegar through a strainer and you're done. It will keep for several m

  October 28, 2009

• Battle of the Dishes: Fast-food breakfast

  ​Does a fried chicken biscuit sandwich really sound that appealing for breakfast? Not really, unless you're a serious fan of Chick-fil-A and love to start the day with a little cardboard box of Chick-n-Minis: three little buttered biscuits, about the size of a 50-cent piece, stuffed with a ball of not-so-crispy fried chicken, slightly larger than a marble. Very salty, with 2.5 grams of saturated fat and 260 calories. Even with a container of orange juice, not so good for you. The bre

  October 29, 2009

• Top 10 pumpkin dishes in Kansas City

  ​When it's not busy being carved into a jack-o-lantern, a pumpkin is one of the most versatile things in the city. Jonathan Bender and Charles Ferruzza discovered an entire menu from, start to finish, inspired by the orange fruit.  10.) Pumpkin donut holes at Hy-Vee. The dense holes from the bakery are sugary, sweet and mini -- so it's not like eating a whole donut. Unless you consume a dozen, which is fairly easy.  9.) Pumpkin bisque at Souperman. The soups consistently rotate

  October 29, 2009

• Ingredient opens downtown location

  ​Ingredient opened its fourth location on Monday at 1111 Main Street, in the downtown space formerly occupied by the Mango Room. The fast-casual restaurant's concept is defined in the "formulate satisfaction" slogan from the sign: In addition to an expansive menu of salads, sandwiches, soups and pizza, Ingredient offers salads and pizzas made-to-order from a bevy of options.  ​Salads on the menu run from $7.95 (caesar) to $10.95 (Tuna Nicoise with grilled ahi tuna). Grilled sandwiches a

  October 30, 2009

• Battle of the dishes: Caramel Candy Corn vs. Chocolate Caramel Candy Corn

  ​The final battle of the dishes for Halloween candy is a test of Brach's new line of alternative candy corn flavors -- Caramel Candy Corn and Chocolate Caramel Candy Corn. In one sense, this follows up our sampling of caramel apple candy corn just a few weeks ago -- it's taken that long for to forget what a bad idea that was. But, we're here again to see whether any of the other flavors are worth adding to the annual ritual of buying candy corn, gorging on it for several weeks and then not cra

  October 30, 2009

• Forget man caves, the future is cheese caves

  ​For the past two decades, options for what to do with your old fridge have been limited to turning it into a beer fridge or, if you're a bit more committed and own some power tools, a kegerator. But instead of banishing it to the garage or hoping that somebody won't flake out after contacting you about your Craiglist ad, consider turning your old fridge into a cheese cave. It's your first step towards getting off the cheese grid and becoming fully cheese independent. Kraft conspiracies aside,

  November 4, 2009

• Now Open: Shabby Hattie's Tea Room

  It's girly, but the portions are man-sized at Shabby Hattie's Tea Room in Parkville​Professional seamstress and former cocktail waitress Marcia Cherrito (the niece of local entertainer Frank Cherrito) had a dream: She wanted to open her own little tea room that served baked goods, breakfast, lunches and tea. Last week Cherrito threw open the doors to her turquoise-and-teal tea room on downtown Parkville's main drag (113 N. Main). Shabby Hattie's Tea Room and Boutique (named for Cherrito

  November 9, 2009

• Yes we pecan

  ​November is National Pecan Month -- so, it's your obligation to give pecans a try in either all their raw glory or via the traditional intake: pecan pie.Earlier this year, pecans were the inspiration for a limited-edition Ben & Jerry's flavor, the Obama tribute Yes Pecan! This January featured flavor consisted of "amber waves of buttery ice cream with roasted non-partisan pecans." Here's how you can make your own butter pecan ice cream at home.Even though they work well in ice cream, peca

  November 9, 2009

• Kansas City's first official Casserole Party

  Emily Farris is crazy about casseroles, seriously​Emily Farris, blogger and author of the cookbook Casserole Crazy: Hot Stuff for Your Oven (Penguin, 2008) hosts her first Kansas City Casserole Party next Monday, November 16 at Pryde's Old Westport. It's open to anyone who wants to compete in the casserole competition, but space is limited and the last day to register is this Friday (read the rules and regulations here).Farris, who works part-time at Pryde's, began hosting casserol

  November 9, 2009

• Here's what you missed at last night's Casserole Party

  Nadia PflaumTubs o' goodness​Holy casseroles. Eighteen of them, to be exact. It was a great turnout on a chilly, wet night, which means Kansas City's first casserole party was truly a success. Fork yeah!After seeing 18 casseroles lugged through the doors of Pryde's Old Westport, each swaddled in warming towels, I had a whole new respect for Emily Farris' original, Brooklyn-based party -- can you imagine taking a casserole on the subway? Farris told me that one year, a lady shlepped her cassero

  November 17, 2009

• At Julian, Celina Tio delivers on her promise of "feel good food"

  November 19, 2009

• Lee's Summit scoop shop gets national recognition

  ​When real estate appraiser Greg Berry realized that the real estate market was getting to the point where he could no longer support his family, he set about appraising what other business opportunities might exist around his neighborhood in Lee's Summit. He saw a need for ice cream. "We looked into opening an ice cream store without going the franchise route and that's when we started to learn that we could make our own ice cream in the shop," says Berry. Berry and wife Amy signed up for a w

  November 19, 2009