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Contemporary Terroir
Interesting People

Mitch Bechard, Glenfiddich's Brand Amabassador West, shares the very best. Thank you, thank you!

Lamberto Frescobaldi has been appointed the new President of Marchesi de' Frescobaldi, Tuscany's legendary 700-year old winemaking group. Bravo!

Food Arts just awarded their July/August 2013 Silver Spoon Award to Seattle Chef Tom Douglas for sterling performance. Bravo, bravo, bravo!

Patrick Norquet, the Product Designer Bringing Style to McDonald's French Division 

Sylvia Woods, 1926-2012. Harlem's Queen of Soul Food Who Taught a Whole Nation to Appreciate Its Complete Culinary Heritage

Marion Cunningham, 1922-2012. Inspired Advocate of American Home Cooking, James Beard Colleague, Author and Esteemed Grand Dame d'Escoffier

 La Mancha Wine Ambassador Gregorio Martin-Zarco shares a true Spanish treasure with the world.

Naeem Khan, Style Setting Designer of Michelle Obama's WHCD Dress

Terron Schaefer, Sak's Senior Vice President of Creative Marketing - Co-Creator of The Snowflake and the Bubble 

Pete Wells, the NEW Restaurant Critic for the venerated New York Times - Enjoy the Feast! Ah Bon Appetit!

Garry Trudeau Who Transferred the Faces and Feelings of the 1968 Harvard - Yale Game into the Insightful Doonesbury Commentary Cartoons

Chef Patron Massimo Riccioli of London's Famed Massimo Restaurant and Oyster Bar - Celebrity Perfect 

Carl Warner, Creator of Food Landscapes, a Culinary Terrain Extraordinary

Howard Schiffer, Founder of Vitamin Angels, Giving Healthly Future to Millions of Children

Françoise Branget, French National Assembly Deputy AND editor of La Cuisine de la République, Cuisinez avec vos députés! (or The Cuisine of the Republic: Cook With Your Deputies!)

Professor Hanshan Dong, Developer of the New Antibacterial Stainless Steel - No More Kitchen Germs!

Frieda Caplan, Founder of Frieda's - Innovative Vendor Who Introduced New & Rare Produce to U.S. Well Done Frieda!

Adam D. Tihany, International Famed Hotel & Restaurant Designer To Be New CIA Art Director - FANTASTIC CHOICE!

George Lang, Founder of New York's Trend-Setting Café des Artistes sadly Passed Away Tuesday, July 5, 2011. Rest in Peace.  A Great Gentleman. 

Chef Pasquale Vari of ITHQ - Canada

Nach Waxman, Owner of the Legendary Kitchen Arts & Letters Culinary Bookstore, NYC

Chef Roberto Santibanez, Noted Master of the True Mexican Cuisine - Both Historic and Modern 

Jeremy Goring, the Fourth Goring to Direct the Legendary Goring Hotel, London

Elena Arzak, Master Chef of Arzak, Basque Restaurant in Spain

Yula Zubritsky, Photographer to the Culinary Greats including Chef Anne-Sophie Pic

Adam Rapoport, New Editor in Chief of Bon Appetit

Christine Muhlke, New Executive Editor of Bon Appetit, which recently relocated to New York City

Darren McGrady, Private Chef to the Beloved Princess Diana 

Master French Chef Paul Locuse, Esteemed Founder of the Bocuse d'Or Culinary Championship

Graydon Carter, Editor Extraordinaire and Host of the Most Elite of Post Oscar Parties, The Vanity Fair Gala

Cheryl Cecchetto, Event Designer for Oscar Governor's Ball 2011

Antonio Galloni, the New California Wine Reviewer at Wine Advocate

Tim Walker, Moet & Chandon's New Photographer Extraordinaire

John R. Hanny, White House Food Writer 

Nancy Verde Barr, Friend and Colleague of Julia Child

David Tanis, Co-Chef of Chez Panisse and Paris

Colman AndrewsAuthor of Ferran

Special Finds

Thanks to the IceBag, your Champagne will now always be chilled. Bravo, Bravo, Bravo!

Canada's Crystal Head Vodka, 2011 Double Gold Winner at San Francisco World Spirits Competition - Though Halloween Perfect It's So Much More Than a Pretty Bottle: Fastastic Taste 

Post It Paper Watchbands - How to Remember Anything in Unforgettable Style

     
Kai Young Coconut Shochu - Stunning New Rice 'Vodka' from Vietnam, the Full Flavor of a Coconut in a Bottle!

Mandarian Hotel Group Now Offers Diners the Newest Cyber Currency - Worldwide E-Gift Cards

Qkies Cookies Makes QR Codes So Sweet

Air France Brings Art Aloft with New Menu Covers

Moet's Ice Imperial Champagne, a New Summer Favorite at Cannes Film Fetival Designed to Serve on Ice! 


P8tch, Customized Cloth URL patches - Perfect for Website ID Link on a Chef's Knife Roll

Dexter's New Knife Shape, the DuoGlide - An Innovative Design that More Than Makes the Cut & Then Some!

Spring Cupcakes, Perfect for Easter and Beyond, Thanks to Jelly Beans

Chocolates as Stunning as Rare Jewels from Promise Me Chocolate: Great for Mardi Gras or Elegant Weddings

Microplane's Fantastic New Hard Cheese Mill Exclusively from Williams-Sonoma

Be Enchanted by Red Italian Rosa Regale Sparkling Wine, Perfect with Chocolate for a Rose Themed Wedding

Moet & Chandon, the Official Champagne of the Oscars

Hu2 Design,  Art Stickers for the Kitchen 

Dry Fly Vodka of Washington State

New Portability with the Collapsible X-Grill by Picnic Basket

Before there was Champagne, there was Saint-Hilaire, the original sparkling wine

Chilean Winers to Remind Us All of True Courage

Monk's Head or Tete de Moine Cheese Slicer by Boska

The Amazing Smoking Gun by Poly Science

Maytag - Great Blue Cheese

Bookshelf

Ukutya Kwasekhaya - Tastes from Nelson Mandela's Kitchen is more than a just a book of recipes. Each dish tells one part of the 20 year journey the Mandela Family's cook traveled on South Africa's path to freedom.

Like Water for Choclate uses Magical Realism to capture the transformative qualities of everyday food and drink into something more. Also consider reading (and enjoying) Joanne Harris' amazing Chocolat.

Seven Fires by Argentine Grill Master Francis Mallmann is a must have book as all things Latin are set to become a major culinary trend.

Food Landscapes by Carl Warner, London's Amazing Commercial Food Photographer (and yes, there is a 2012 Image Calendar for your wall - Happy New Year!)

Trading Up by Michael J. Silverstein and Neil Fiske, a Must Read for All Who Market Luxury

Las Cocinas del Camino de Santiago de Compostela Captures the Essence of this Great Spanish Journey of Discovery

La Cuisine de la République, Cuisinez avec vos députés! (The Cuisine of the Republic: Cook With Your Deputies!) by Françoise Branget

Toast by English Food Writer Nigel Slater

Dinner at Buckingham Palace by Charles Oliver, Royal Household Servant

Tihany Design by Adam D. Tihany and Paul Goldberger - Truly Inspiring!

Hollywood Cocktails by Tobias & Ben Reed

The Art of the Chocolatier by Master Chef Ewald Notter, National Pastry Team Champion

The Stork Club Bar Book by bon vivant and culinary critic Lucius Beebe

Les Gouttes de Dieu, French Edition

Great Places

Entries in Christmas (12)

Thursday
Dec222011

Gingerbread White House Truly Captures Obama Christmas Holiday

In a strange twist of fate, this year’s holiday model of the White House crafted from gingerbread and white chocolate, echoes the reality of the U.S. President Obama. As of today, the President is there alone in the beautifully decorated White House (except for the family dog Bo) waiting for conservative members of the House of Representative to address the much desired payroll tax cut.

Perhaps the beauty of this year’s amazing gingerbread White House, created by the Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses with the thoughtful guidance of First Lady Michelle Obama, will offer him some additional holiday cheer.

Working from the original architectural drawing for the White House, Chef Yosses has created yet another stunning holiday masterpiece – this time weighing over 400 pounds!

Gingerbread house construction bgean in late September when sheets of gingerbread were baked using the traditional gingerbread recipe long used by the White House kitchen (see recipe below). This allowed ample time for the gingerbread sheets to harden before they were cut into wall and floor panels ready for assembling.

With Assistant Pastry Chef Susie Morrison acting as a supervising construction contractor in the famed China Room, where the various presidential china collections are displayed, the model began to take form.  When finally completed this year’s culinary wonder was displayed on a marble-topped console table in the State Dining Room.

At the suggestion of First Lady Michelle Obama, the 2011 replica included chocolate models of the White House culinary garden complete with beehives and sheltered vegetables rows.  

Their thoughtful display was a wonderful way to say yet once again that healthy eating should be something all American shoould focus on each and enjoy every day.

And, of course, Bo the beloved pet of the First Family was present in the display bigger than ever. 

Made with ample royal icing, his addition to the scene surely brought a smile to the over 85,000 pre-Christmas Day White House visitors. Now that’s a full house any hotel would envy!

Yet come Christmas Day, it’s currently unclear if the President of the United States will be joining his wife and daughters in Hawaii as he waits in Washington DC for the conservative Republicans of the House to address the nation’s urgent needs.

Perhaps those hesitant members of the House should remember what every great chef knows by heart and something so clearly declared to Scrooge by the ghost of his deceased business partner in Charles Dickens' memorable morality story, A Christmas Carol:

"Business! Mankind was my business.

The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence were all my business.”   

We in the hospitality industry craft, not with laws and legistation, but in sugar and with cuisine and service, but these are only a means of expression.

The true meaning of our profession hinges on the quality of our choices, the depth of values that we choose to express though our everyday actions. That said, may we all, like the newly enlightened Scrooge, keep that spirit of compassion within our hearts all year long as we serve and create!

Happy Holidays!

White House Holiday Gingerbread Cookies with Royal Icing

Ingredients for the Cookies

8 oz (2 sticks) butter, soft
2 cups dark brown sugar
2 eggs, large
1 cup molasses
7 cups All Purpose flour
¼ tsp ginger ground
¼ tsp cinnamon, ground
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Lemon zest from 1 lemon
Orange zest from 1 orange

Method
1. Cream butter and sugar in an electric mixer for a minimum 5 minutes.
2. Add eggs one by one, then molasses.
3. Put mixer on slow, sift spices, salt, baking powder and baking soda with flour then add these dry ingredients in three increments and scrape bowl each time.
4. Add zests and mix until incorporated, but do not over mix.
5. Remove dough from bowl and place on plastic wrap and spread to 1" thickness over wrap and cover with another sheet of plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
6. Remove dough from refrigerator and roll out a small piece on a floured surface. This dough is very wet, so add flour when necessary to prevent sticking and turn over often.
7. Roll out to 1/8 to ¼ inch thickness for cookies. Cut out Gingerbread shapes.
8.  Bake for 12 minutes at 350°F for cookies; 25 minutes or more for ornaments or gingerbread houses.
9. Decorate with Royal Icing

Royal Icing

Ingredients
2 cups Confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 egg white
1 tsp lemon juice

Method
Mix with paddle attachment on electric blender (or by hand) for 5 minutes. If icing is too thick, add more lemon juice or a little egg white to desired consistency.

Post Note, 12/23/2011: Perhaps the conservative Republicans of the U.S. House of Representatives have heard the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future as they have finally agreed to pass the expension of the payroll tax cut.

With additional dollars to spend millions of people will enjoy the Holidays much more in warmer homes and many welcoming restaurants. And so perhaps now we can all return to the true meaning of these final winter days, expressed so well in the closing words of Dickens' beloved A Christmas Carol.

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2011

Saturday
Nov262011

Snowflakes and Champagne Bubbles Will Be Major Holiday Themes as Sak Lights Up NYC in Amazing 3-D Style

New York it is a visual treasure during the December holidays. First there was Lady Gaga's designer Windows at Barney's - very modern, very cutting edge.

But last night Sak may have stolen the show with their stunning visual light display shown on the side of their famed Fifth Avenue store.

Expanding on their traditional snowflake theme, the designers at Iris worked with Terron Schaefer, group senior vice president of creative marketing at Saks, added champagne bubbles this year. The result was a moving dance of motion and meaning and is simply unforgettable. 

Initially the snowflakes and bubbles competed with each other but finally joined together to represent the concept of diversity as a positive force in our world. Even Sak’s shopping bags and jewelry echo this theme of unity – one that hotels know well.

 

With such a stunning display nightly on Sak’s wall (and guaranteed to be seen around the world via the Internet), snowflakes and champagne bubbles are sure to be popular themes for this winter season. 

And why not – they dazzle, they sparkle – each unique, each special just like the many guests that will celebrate in the lobbies and guestrooms of the world's hotels.

Because our staffs also represent that diversity, may we also sparkle and shine this holiday season as we serve and present an example of peace and harmony to a world that too often forgets what is possible with a smile and an understanding heart.

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2011

Friday
Nov252011

New York Health Department Plays Grinch to Algonquin Hotel Beloved Cat

‘Tis the holiday season, a time for fun and good cheer when all are friends and kindness fills the air.

Or should be…

In what can only be called a ‘cat-astrophe’, the New York City Health Department apparently forgot to refer to their calendar when they recently banned the Algonquin's ‘direcfurr of guest relations’, the beautiful kitty Matilda III from many sections of this historic hotel.

Now certainly the Health Department has a valuable job to do but perhaps this is an overreaction to a tradition that since the 1930s has harmed no one.

Matilda, the Algonquin's famed cat, is part of a proud line of feline greeters who have been delighting guests since the first kitty was welcomed, cold and hungry, out of a stormy night by the hotel's compassionate owner Frank Case.

Honored by no less than the actor John Barrymore with the names “Hamlet” or “Matilda”, depending on their sex, the current kitty can now only grace the registration area – and only while on a leash.

All these restrictions are thanks to the NYC Health Department’s grumpy ‘grinch-y’ attitude during a season of supposed cheer and good well.

Surely the ghosts of such legendary literarties as Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, Mark Conley, Edna Ferber and George F. Kaufman, all members of the Hotel’s famed Round Table, would object to such an injustice against a noble kitty who is dedicated to the very spirit of a warm welcome and a gentle purr. 

One can hope that amidst all the glorious sparkle and glitter that typifies New York City during the winter holidays, the New York City's Health Department will perhaps review their decision and adopt a more objective perspective that honors both the values of the Season and the traditions of welcome that are the hallmark of our Industry all year round.

Post Note, November 28, 2011 - If you're interested in learning more about the Round Table of Literary Greats that gathered during the 1920's at the Algonquin Hotel, be sure to check out the film, Mrs. Parker and Her Vicious Circle

The hotel's insightful owner Frank Case often sent complimentary popover rolls and celery to their corner table as those gathered there tended to talk first, drink second (whiskey sours were a favorite) and eat last - a combination that anyone in the Industry knows is not the best for any guest no matter their talent or the season. 

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2011

Sunday
Oct302011

Warner's Food Landscapes Are Perfect for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas Displays

Well, we should correct that title - actually Carl Warner's imaginative landscapes, crafted entirely from edible foods, are absolutely eye-catchers year round. 

And his stunning images created from piles of cheese and pieces of bread more than prove that point. Trained as a photographer, he uses silver fish fillets to create a simmering sea and bacon to reproduce a country waterfall.

Add in a skilled support staff at his London studio and the latest in digital imagery software and results are those that any chef can envy (and want to duplicate).

If you are inspired, check out his recent book, Food Landscape - it is truly amazing and can reminds us all that true creativity is boundless and exciting. 

Why not then create something different this holiday season and truly put your culinary talents 'on display'?

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2011

Monday
Dec202010

Make It a Memorable Christmas with a Gift of English Royal Wedding China

England’s long anticipated next royal wedding is set for April 29th in 2011 but the commemorative wedding china was released today, just in time for last minute Christmas shopping.  And it's beautiful!

Prince William and his lovely bride-to-be Kate Middleton selected their elegant design earlier this month while at the Royal Collection located in Stoke-on-Trent.  

Each piece is made of fine white bone china accented with the entwined initials of the Prince and his future princess in gold and silver.

The charming commemorative china is now available for purchase from the gift shops at the various royal residencies.  It's a perfect Christmas gift.

All the resulting revenue will go towards the cost of this sure to be much watched wedding and the upkeep of the Royal Collection itself.

With a bride on his arm as beautiful as the beloved Princess Diana, one can only wish the young prince and his sweet lady many happy years together.

Your Culinary World copyright Ana Kinkaid/Peter Schlagel 2010