#89 | Drinking Putin Khuyloslava
MSG is good for you
Hello!
In light of the tragedy in Texas this week, instead of a poem, we’re sharing this powerful woodcut by German artist Käthe Kollwitz; The Mothers (Die Mütter). It’s from a portfolio of seven woodcuts published in 1923 that focus on the sorrows of mothers, widows, and children in World War I.
The Mothers, part of the War portfolio, shows a group of women locked into a solid sculptural mass that forms a protective barrier for the infant held by one and the two children who peer out between their mothers’ skirts. Though implying that mothers will stand together to prevent their children from marching off to future wars, the women are defensive and anxious. The woodcut evokes the sacrifice and suffering of German mothers who sent their sons off to war for their country’s honor and now fear losing the flower of the next generation to future militarist adventures. Cranbrook Art Museum
By the way, I'm Bruce Cole, Publisher of Edible San Francisco. If you’re new here, welcome to EAT.DRINK.THINK., a newsletter spotlighting seasonal recipes (like Samin Nosrat’s Grilled Artichokes), the latest SF Bay Area food news, poetry, and more!
👉 ICYMI: The most-clicked link from last week’s newsletter was the recipe for Hawaiian Furikake Salmon.
Do you know someone who likes skinny margaritas? Send them this newsletter!
WHAT WE’RE DRINKING
Forlorn Hope, Putin Khuyloslava, Ukraine 2017 Muscat: This whole cluster muscat was pressed, fermented in neutral oak, bottled in 2019, and had been idly aging ever since. When Russia invaded Ukraine this past winter, winemaker Matthew Rorick and his partner Mara struck upon the idea to use it as a fundraiser, with proceeds donated to World Central Kitchen. Ukrainian graphic designer and Mara’s cousin, Nadin Itter, designed the label. Bone dry with grippy acidity (almost Chenin blanc-like) and Asian pear, and apple notes. We purchased this bottle directly from Forlorn Hope. Order your bottle and read the compelling story behind the naming of this wine.
Food For All: Director Ron Howard’s documentary of Jose Andres and World Central Kitchen, We Feed People, began streaming on Disney+ yesterday. WCK was founded in 2010 to provide meals for residents in Haiti after a devasting earthquake and has since served more than 60 million fresh meals to people impacted by natural disasters and other crises around the world.
“The emergency has this amazing way to speak to you—you only have to listen. You can listen to the situation. You can listen to the wind. You can listen to the people.” —Jose Andres. Watch the We Feed People trailer. National Geographic
Got MSG? Watch Dan Souza, Editor in Chief of Cooks Illustrated, and Kenji Lopez Alt, the author of The Wok, use MSG to make fried rice, chili crisp (with vanilla ice cream!), and a dirty martini. And yes, Dan puts the rest the age-old myth that MSG is an allergen that causes side effects after consuming it. That is unless you are allergic to Doritos (read the label), tomatoes, parmesan cheese, mushrooms, and a host of other foods that naturally contain glutamate compounds. YouTube
e le aɖe Test Kitchen: Selasie Dotse, sous/pastry chef at Copas, the Northern California-inflected Spanish-Mexican restaurant on Market Street launches her Elade Test Kitchen, a culinary exploration of her Ghanaian heritage with a handful of West African dishes. KQED
West Sonoma Coast AVA: Is Sonoma County’s newest American Viticultural Area approved by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on Monday. The fog-shrouded vineyards that make up the area are known for their low alcohol levels and higher acidity, making them a food-friendly choice. Press Democrat
Wineries include Littorai Wines in Sebastopol, Alma Fria Wines in Occidental, Peay Vineyards in Cloverdale, Marine Layer Wines, Flowers Winery in Healdsburg, and Hirsch Vineyards in Cazadero.
Don’t Touch That Dial: The Black Creole Chef Who Paved the Way for Food TV.
“In 1949 — more than a decade before Julia Child’s television debut — a boisterous Creole chef put on a cook’s uniform and made history. That was the year New Orleans NBC affiliate WDSU aired the first of many episodes of “Lena Richard's New Orleans Cook Book.” Running twice a week through 1950, its host, Lena Richard, would become the first Black woman to have her own cooking television show, breaking through barriers imposed by the Jim Crow-era South, and helping a wider audience learn more about the Black roots of Creole cuisine.” Bittman Project
Julia Child Was Wrong: Although washing a chicken in the sink before cooking spreads/splashes dangerous bacteria like salmonella and campylobacter all over your kitchen (and you), many cooks still believe in the practice, once recommended by Julia Child in Mastering the Art of French Cooking. In reality, cooking chicken to the USDA recommended temperature of 165ºF kills all bacteria, making it safe to eat. Epicurious
Where’s The Beef? Good Meat, a division of vegan egg maker Eat Just Inc. (formerly known as Hampton Creek) in Alameda, is building the world’s largest bioreactors capable of growing 30 million pounds of cultured meat per year. SF Chronicle
Related: Beyond Meat hires Kim Kardashian as its new ‘Chief Taste Consultant’ in a bid to improve sagging sales. Bloomberg
🤮 Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should: Ritz Crackers and Oreo Cookies will be releasing a new, one part Ritz and one part Oreo, joined together by peanut butter flavored creme and Oreo cookie creme. Yahoo Finance
🌯 For Real? Recent graduates of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore invented an edible product, Tastee Tape, for use in taping shut poorly made burritos and wraps. Because obviously, they don’t know how to fold burritos on the east coast. SFist
Back Away From The Bug Spray: Insect and pollinator populations are steadily declining worldwide, threatening the production of the cultivated crops we depend on for food. Civil Eats
“They are a foundation for our terrestrial ecosystems, they’re food for many of the animals that we cherish and admire, and they help pollinate around a third of the food we eat. But culturally, we don’t value them. We need them far more than they need us.” —Oliver Milman, author of The Insect Crisis: The Fall of The Tiny Empires That Run The World
Jump To Recipe? Cookbooks these days are less about the recipes and more of a memoir vehicle for cooks and chefs. Bon Appetit
“San Francisco Chef Reem Assil wanted to write a more classic memoir, but she found ways to weave her story together with recipes, creating a book that seamlessly combines an exploration of Arab foodways with her own experiences as an Arab woman in America. “They tell the story of war, of occupation and our displacement, and xenophobia in this country. And I didn’t want to shy away from that because I felt if readers knew the story behind the food, the experience of eating that food would be more transformative for them.”
Looks like a great newsletter series. Over the course of three weeks these are the topics:
Day 1: Is there a place for meat?
Day 2: Do I have to go vegan?
Day 3: Does local really matter?
Day 4: What makes seafood sustainable?
Day 5: How can I throw away less food?
Day 6: Can we change how we think about food, our planet and ourselves?
Sign up here:
Cooked: The Search for Sustainable Eats
LISTEN On repeat this week: “The Truth Is,” the latest video/single from Σtella’s forthcoming Redinho-produced LP Up and Away. A totally chill track for sliding into the Memorial Day weekend.
We’re outta here. Be well and take care,
–Bruce
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"Despite its artistic intentions and its many accomplishments, humankind owes its existence to a six-inch layer of topsoil and the fact that it rains." —Anonymous
Coolio!