When I was a child at summer camp in northern Wisconsin, I made the astonishing discovery that there were plants throughout the forests with fruit on them. Even though my family was keen on buying from local farmers, you had to drive to the farm, and you had to pay someone for the fruit (which was, by the way, already picked—not much charm in that for a child). But there I was, surrounded by fruit just waiting to be plucked from a gracefully arching branch. I could eat it any time I wanted—and it was free. This made me almost giddy with delight. While there were a few incredibly sweet wild blueberries, the most abundant fruit was raspberries. More »

1 – My name is Ludovic Lefebvre and I will have sex with you with my eyes.

2 – But, that being said, I have a man crush on Rick Bayless. He makes me want to do yoga.

3 – My name is Wilo and I’m a misogynist.

4 – Why isn’t Kelly Choi eating?

5 – I think Ludacris is gonna be pissed that this French dude is stealing and mangling his nickname.

6 – It scared me when Cindy said “testicles”.

7 – Talk about providence. Bayless draws tongue. I mean is there a better taco?

8 - I like how Bayless thinks the quesadilla idea is horrible, but he doesn’t discourage Ludo.

9 – Bayless pulls the bacon card.

10 – “Once Rick Bayless has slipped you tongue, you never forget it.”

11 – Wilo made homemade Cheez Whiz

12 – It’s funny how Fabio’s foreigner lothario persona came off as charming, but Ludo is just an ass.

13 – Cindy’s dish is perfect for Kelly Choi since she looks a little short on good circulation.

14 - Jay Rayner would make a great professor of the dark arts in the next Harry Potter movie.

15 – Bayless wins.

When you think about it, the lemon is the only really important fruit that nobody actually eats. It’s one of the most popular flavors in the world, but no one sits down and bites into a nice, juicy lemon. But that’s not the only odd thing about lemons. More »

From our Cincinnati bureau: A true story

Last Friday morning, a young deer was wandering in the parking lot of a local “upscale” Cincinnati shopping plaza when he became disoriented by the seemingly endless sea of Lexus RX350’s confronting him at every turn. Driven by instinct and panic, the deer bolted toward the first building in his line of sight, a Whole Foods market, the reigning symbol of affluence, sophistication, and moral self-righteousness. The store was originally built as a Wild Oats market, which was acquired by Whole Foods last year, re-badged, and re-stocked, all to the delight of the center’s owners, who so carefully cultivate its haughty, uber-demographic image. More »

1- If Graham Elliot Bowles’ style is punk rock, then what does that make Michael Carlson of Schwa? Speed Metal?
2- Frying an egg is molecular gastronomy, FYI.
3- If the camera puts on ten pounds, is Kelly Choi invisible in real life?
4- I am Suzanne Tracht. I am a zombie robot sent by my children to talk about my children.
5- Wylie seems to have some anger-management issues.
6- Nothing says Top Chef Masters like Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio
7- Gael, there’s nothing “chemical” about sous vide.
8- Suzanne Tracht earns the right to lose to Rick Bayless (who talks smack next week by saying “What does a French guy know about quesadillas?”) in the finals.

There may be no better time in our history to hit the bottle. Certainly we are not lacking for motivation, what with all the layoffs, pay reductions, bankruptcies and mortgage adjustments. But, more importantly, even with thinner wallets, because of the over-production of wine, the growth in negociants (folks who often capitalize on that over-production by buying great wines for a song and selling them for a comparably low price at retail), and increases in manufacturing efficiencies, we’ve never had greater opportunity to buy relatively low-priced wine. More »

If you’ve ever wanted to meet legendary LTHforum founder, local foodie godfather and general Barbecue Life Coach Gary Wiviott, he and food writer Colleen Rush will be signing copies of and giving selected readings from “Low & Slow: Master the Art of Barbecue in 5 Easy Lessons” this weekend.

June 13th at 11am
The Book Stall at Chestnut Court
811 Elm Street
Winnetka Illinois 60093
847-446-8880
Book signing

June 14th at Noon
Barnes and Noble
297 Oakbrook Center
Oak Brook, IL 60523
630-684-0586
Book Signing

1- I’ll never recognize Gael Greene because of her sneaky hat disguises.
2- Is Jay Rayner Marco Pierre White’s long lost twin?
3- It’s really scary how Kelly Choi over-annunciates exactly like Padma.
4- Seriously, even the Top Chef Masters are retards – dude watch the show. For like 10 seasons they have been doing dessert. If you don’t know how to make a great dessert by now, go home.
5- Tim Love is an alcoholic. And yeah, we get it dude, you’re just an aww-shucks boy from Texas.
6- The chicken fried strawberry negates the fact that nothing says 1984 like chocolate covered strawberries.
7- Is GE Monogram gonna be pissed that their logo got flashed when the cakes weren’t baking?
8- In this case, some of these chefs really are getting schooled by little girls.
9- Yo, my dorm room didn’’t have a shiny stainless steel toaster oven and microwave.
10- This Michelob Light is for you Mr. Rolling Cooler Cooler Roller.
11- These judges are almost reverent of these dudes. I almost miss Toby Young.
12- Cooking competition rule #1: Never cook risotto
13- Hubert Keller wins. I was pretty certain of this halfway through the episode.