If you’re an American who loves kiwi, jackfruit or jicama, you have this 96-year-old woman to thank
By Kristen Hartke

TRILOBITES
Prehistoric Parents Used Baby Bottles Made of Pottery
With the advent of agriculture, parents began feeding animal milk to children, a change in how babies were weaned.

Late Bronze Age feeding vessels from Vösendorf, Austria, about 3,000 years old. They were probably used as baby bottles.
By James Gorman

That Perplexing Red Meat Controversy: 5 Things to Know
It may be the most unexpected dietary finding to come along in years.
By Gina Kolata

Avocado Toast, Meet Gene Editing
Scientists in the U.S. and Mexico have mapped the DNA of several varieties, work that could help the fruit survive the effects of climate change.
By David Yaffe-Bellany

Want to Write a Cookbook? Don’t Count the Money Just Yet
A crop of publishers offers would-be authors very low or no advances, and may ask them to forgo royalties or sign nondisclosure agreements.
By Priya Krishna

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
What It’s Really Like to Eat Your Way Around the Globe
Our Australia critic went on a whirlwind dining tour for two magazines. Here’s what happened.
By Besha Rodell

A Dinner Party That’s Easy to Love, and Easier to Put Together
In his new monthly column, David Tanis will feature cohesive, celebratory menus for hosting — all mouthwatering, none difficult.

By David Tanis

How to Throw an Intimate Dinner at Home, the Parisian Way
For the fashion designer Julie de Libran, a seasonal meal is filled with lively conversation, close friends — and, of course, copious amounts of wine.
By Kin Woo

This high-tech vegan ice cream may be good enough to fool even die-hard dairy lovers
By Emily Heil

A GOOD APPETITE
A Muffin to Top Them All

It may not be as trendy as kouign-amann or Cronuts, but a buttered, toasted corn muffin is a thing of beauty.
By Melissa Clark

EAT
The Secret to Poundcake That Really Pops

By Sam Sifton

Now Rising to the Top of the Beer World: Foam
That billowy head of bubbles, long dismissed as empty fluff, is finally getting some attention from American brewers.
By Joshua M. Bernstein

FRONT BURNER
The Book for Cider Lovers
Andy Brennan, a cidermaker in the Hudson Valley, has written a how-to of sorts on his craft.

By Florence Fabricant

So Saturday night, we made crab cakes for the dinner a la Short at B&K’s. I used a pound of crab claw meat, head of a clove, 4-5 allspice berries, some black pepper, thyme, Italian flat parsley, and cilantro, mustard powder, Worcestershire sauce, red peppers from the garden, shallots, garlic, two eggs, and ground Ritz crackers in ’em and on ’em. We didn’t form them up ahead of time, so that was a PIA. Thong did most of the breading and I did the flipping. We also made a fried corn salsa for them with grilled corn (3 cobs), parsley, cilantro, several hottish peppers, garlic, garlic chives, salt, and lime juice. We added one green hot pepper at the end that had a real kick to it. I also mixed some siracha sauce into a store-bought olive oil mayonnaise. We lined the plates with red lettuce leaves from the farmers market, an X of garlic chives, and a sprig o’ parsley or cilantro. I stuck the cake on top of the garlic chives, which was stupid of me. We started making small crab cakes, but they rapidly got bigger. B said, as we started, “Remember, there’s seven more courses.” He also ate one of the extra crab cakes, despite my reminding him of the courses to come.

‘I’ve Been Dishonored’: French Chef Sues Michelin Guide Over Lost Star

Marc Veyrat is disputing the downgrade of La Maison des Bois, his restaurant in the French Alps, which lost the guide’s maximum three-star rating.
By Aurelien Breeden

Would You Like a Tiny Fish With That?

Anchovies are gaining ground as a tasty and sustainable option.
By Maya Kosoff

When Mac & Cheese and Ketchup Don’t Mix: The Kraft Heinz Merger Falters
The company behind brands like a famous ketchup and Oscar Mayer meats is dealing with slumping sales, shareholder lawsuits, layoffs and questions about its accounting practices.
By Julie Creswell and David Yaffe-Bellany

Dean & DeLuca Closes Its Midtown Store
As the company falters, only its flagship shop in SoHo remains open in New York.
By Amelia Nierenberg

Is the New Meat Any Better Than the Old Meat?
The Impossible Whopper and other plant-based burgers are a hit. But are they an improvement for you and the planet?
By Alina Tugend

Where’s the Waste? A ‘Circular’ Food Economy Could Combat Climate Change
An ice company’s wastewater can feed a produce garden. Spent grain from a brewery goes to compost. Local, shared, recycled. Welcome to the future of food.
By Eduardo Garcia

You Might Not Want to Eat Bugs. But Would You Eat Meat That Ate Bugs?
Companies across the globe are banking on it.
By Eduardo Garcia

What Omnivores Get Wrong About Vegetarian Cooking
When you (or your kid, partner or roommate) goes vegetarian, you’ll need to change up your weeknight cooking strategies.

Smoked paprika and tomato paste give deep, round flavor to a vegetarian dinner of spiced eggplant and pearl couscous.
By Julia Moskin

The Vegetarian Recipes You’ve Got to Make (Plus Something for the Meat-Eaters, Too)
Our cheesy white bean-tomato bake, seared eggplant with pearl couscous, pasta with mushrooms and, naturally, The Stew.
By Emily Weinstein

Weeknight Dinner Around the World
We asked 18 families to show us what they have for dinner on a typical weeknight.
By SARA BONISTEEL, KIM GOUGENHEIM and LISA DALSIMER

Junk Food at Monticello? Alice Waters Helps Lead a Revolution
Spurred by the pioneering chef, the cafe at Jefferson’s estate has reconnected with his agrarian ideals.
By JANE BLACK

How to Boil the Perfect Egg
In his first column for The Times, J. Kenji López-Alt tests his way to the best egg: perfectly peelable and tender throughout.

To determine the best method for cooking boiled eggs, J. Kenji López-Alt orchestrated a double-blind experiment at his restaurant, Wursthall, in San Mateo, Calif.
By J. Kenji López-Alt

What to Do With Boiled Eggs

If you keep them on hand in the refrigerator, you’re never far away from a meal.
By J. Kenji López-Alt

Do They Give Out Pulitzers for Chicken Recipes?
Because this tangy sheet-pan number from Alison Roman could be a contender.

Weeknight cooking doesn’t mean lazier; it means smarter.
By Alison Roman

A Love Letter to Canned Food
Ingredients like canned artichokes, pumpkin, chickpeas and coconut milk can turn a weeknight meal into a semi-homemade form of art.
By Melissa Clark

How To Win School Lunch

Tonight’s chicken ragù with fennel can fill tomorrow’s hand pies.
By Kim Severson

27 Amazing Slow Cooker Recipes
Chipotle-honey chicken tacos, white bean-Parmesan soup and more recipes.

THE POUR
20 Under $20: Minimal Effort, Maximum Pleasure

On those nights when you just need to flop, find a wine that’s alive, interesting, easy to enjoy and moderately priced. It is the reward you deserve.
By Eric Asimov

The Future of Wine: Very, Very Dry
Scientists are testing techniques for growing vines in a hot, parched future.
By Amy Yee

Carl Ruiz, Celebrity Chef and Restaurateur, Dies at 44

He made frequent appearances on the Food Network as a competitive chef and celebrity judge.
By Mariel Padilla

‘Oh-Oh, Ay-Ay!’ Riding to an Italian Rhythm on the Transumanza
On the twice-yearly journey to move grazing animals between summer and winter pastures, a writer finds a deep connection to an ancient tradition.
By Maria Russo

An Anthony Bourdain Auction Will Include His Treasured Knife
A year after the celebrity chef’s death, some of his things are going on sale to benefit his family and the Culinary Institute of America.
By Jonah Engel Bromwich

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
California’s Luxury Dining Circuit: Delicious and Dull
The French Laundry, the Restaurant at Meadowood and SingleThread have much in common: amazing precision, sky-high prices and a sedating sort of predictability.
By TEJAL RAO

The James Beard Awards Redraws Its Map
California, Texas and New York will become their own regions for the competition, reflecting shifts in population and dining.
By Kim Severson

Food & Wine Hires a Restaurant Editor Who Wants More Inclusivity
Khushbu Shah aims to expand and vary the legacy magazine’s coverage from a new bureau in Los Angeles.
By Amelia Nierenberg

Maple Butter Roast Chicken Is Everything

Make this sweet-and-salty recipe soon.

A GOOD APPETITE
A Sweetly Savory Kind of Bird
Roasted figs and pears lend a gentle sweetness to roast chicken.

This stunning roasted chicken splits the difference between savory and sweet.
By Melissa Clark

For Libyan Jews, This Spicy Fish Stew Is the Taste of Rosh Hashana
Most of the Jewish families with roots in Libya now live in Italy and Israel. Bright red aharaimi reminds them of home.

Traditionally, Libyan Jews eat a spicy tomato fish dish called aharaimi to celebrate Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year.
By Joan Nathan

EAT
My Mother’s Best (and Only) Recipe: Baked Apples
A workingwoman of the ’50s, my mother did not cook — except for this one perfect dish.

“I remember my mother in a soft cashmere wrap coat, a sequined cocktail dress (that’s what she was wearing when she came home to find that I’d burned down the kitchen) and in Capri pants with kitten heels.”
By Dorie Greenspan

FRONT BURNER
Pomegranate Mandelbrot for Rosh Hashana

By the Way Bakery’s new rimon mandelbrot offers fruitfulness for the Jewish New Year.
By Florence Fabricant

Here’s Your Monday Night Dinner
Make kalpudding, a Swedish dish that’s essentially a meatloaf with caramelized cabbage.
By Sam Sifton

The Ingredients Yotam Ottolenghi Uses Most
He’s been known to push the limits with tahini and lean too heavily on lemons. But don’t try to take away our columnist’s cilantro.

Yotam Ottolenghi’s sweet and spicy ribs use one of his favorite ingredients — cilantro (or coriander, as it’s also known) — a few different ways to deepen flavor.
“There are two ways in which you can push cilantro into the spotlight like that. One method, which many cooks revert to instinctively without even knowing they’re doing so, is pairing it with other members in a large family of ingredients called Umbelliferae. This biological grouping may sound obscure, but carrot, parsnip, celery, parsley, dill and cumin all fall under this umbrella and so, unsurprisingly, go well together.”
By Yotam Ottolenghi

The 13 Best Cookbooks of Fall 2019
Our favorite new books of the season, selected by Food reporters and editors from The New York Times.

Let’s see, I started early for me getting ready, although I left too many things until the last minute.

I bought too much cheese. There are four or five the survived, but someone found the hidden wrappers and threw them out this morning. One brie was from Costco, one Feta was from Bill’s, and the rest were from Surdyks. I bought some country pate at Surdyks, but never put it out.

I bought one bag of Pita bread at Bill’s but never put it out.

I was out of brandy! I use it in my chicken liver pate.

I used a different gravlax recipe and it was a little too salty, but I liked the orange and lemon zest. I also threw in some coriander and caraway seed just cause that’s what you do. I think less salt and some allspice if I make it again. It was great on pumpernickel with some Kerrygold butter. There was a tiny bit left. We cut up the salmon before serving it. People ate the red onion I sliced for the plate. I bought the salmon at Cub and I was surprised after feeling it up that the bones had been yanked — which was the main reason we cut it up in the kitchen.

I make the Taramasalata with either a red onion or a huge shallot and the color was much brighter than usual.

The German pumpernickel vanished completely. The American knock-off only a little.

I should have set the bread up out of the bags. We ate two baguettes, one caraway rye, one Italian long loaf, one package of German pumpernickel and a bit of flatbread I bought at the Mindekirchen Xmas sale. I also had one long loaf of cocktail pumpernickel, but it was barely touched. One round sourdough was left. We’re working on it.

Too many cooks hotted-up the dill dip, but nobody ever eats it anyway.

I forgot to put out green onions. They’re dear right now, and once again, I’m the only one that eats them.

I forgot to do any hummus. Oh well.

I shoulda moved the chairs out from around the table at the start.

This year everybody wanted to drink fizzy water. I only got 12 cans and forgot about the ones I stashed upstairs.

I spent too much time in the kitchen and played two hands of Wizzard at the end of the night.

I made no sweets, but people brought some.

Mike and Sarah brought beer. Judy brought beer too. People drank beer, which is unusual.

Not as much wine was drunk as usual. I probably shoulda set out more bottles.

It was a midweek New Year’s Day, which is always quiet.

I have a head cold and several others had medical issues.

Somebody complained bitterly that I could have bought two ducks for what I paid for the roast pork. All the two ducks vanished. Part of the pig remains. Somebody would rather have two ducks than a whole pig. Somebody also ate rice with pig today.

I put the chicken liver pate in three smallish bowls. That worked very well, especially when I stirred in the brandy at the end. I was left with one bowl at the end.

I put the taramasalata and fava bean pate out in large ramekins. That worked great, although I did not have to refill them.

I put a mess of olives in a bowl with some red peppers from Lunds. The bowl was quite lower by the end of the night. I also got some roasted garlic from Lunds and that bowl went down.

I cooked one Cub bag of Brussel sprouts. That was about perfect. I put ’em out warm and they got et.

One bag of IKEA meatballs — set out hot and cooled, but only about four balls were left at the end of the night. Coulda used a chafer but never got them out of the basement.

I turned all the cheese of yesteryears into cheese balls, which was probably a waste of time. The cheese I buy ain’t for the weak. I decorated the backyard with the balls at the end of the night. I hope The house rabbit enjoys it, and that it’s far enough away from the house that it lures the house mice out.

I forgot to put any pickles out

Someone was much more helpful this year.

I shoulda heated some of the Pig, Duck, Taters and Peppers separately for various diets.

What we et:

Breads, various
Crackers: Water, Digestive, Rice, and Dill Triskets
Butter – Land o’ Lakes, Goat, and Kerrygold
Chicken Liver Pate
Taramasalata
Fava Bean Pate
Cheeses, 7-8, with Black Grapes and dried Figs
Smoked Salmon
Herring: Plain, Plain with Dill, Mustard, Sherry, Sour Cream, and Sour Cream with Dill
Smoked Mussels
Olives, mixed with Red Peppers
Garlic, roasted
Veggies: Red Pepper, Yellow Pepper, English Cucumber, Cucumber, Carrots, Celery, and Radish
Dill Dip
Capers
Brussel Sprouts with toasted Sesame, Soya Sauce, and Sugar
IKEA Meatballs with Knorr sauces, Milk, and Dill
Duck, roast
Pork, roast
Baby Taters and Peppers, roast
Gravlax with Red Onion
Chex Mix
Brownies, Shortbreads, Pizzelle, Bananas, and various Oranges

Happy Large Fowl Day! (And no, that’s not a long book by Stephen Donaldson.)

Magnus Nilsson gave a talk and book signing today at the American Swedish Institute and when asked how he compiled the recipes from his cookbooks, he said they created a website where people could comment and upload recipes. And he said that everyone’s grandmother lied.

They all uploaded “The best recipe for pickled herring that’s been in the family for years.” and the recipe exactly matched the recipe published in a 1940s Swedish cookbook, down to the number of peppercorns.

Potato Salad with Vermouth
(All amounts are estimates and can be changed to your taste)

2 bags of My Little Potatoes fingerling/multi-colored, etc.
– OR –
6# of Fingerlings or other Potato suitable for potato salad
Fresh Parsley, stems and all chopped coarsely
Fresh Dill, stems and all chopped coarsely
Fresh Tarragon, leaves only chopped coarsely
Thyme (Prefer fresh, but dry is fine), leaves only until you can’t be bothered
½ large Vidalia Onion, coarsely diced (Alternatively, green onions or other sweet onions work fine.)
1 gigantic Shallot diced, or a couple of smaller ones diced. (If you have no shallots, leave ‘em out.)
2 cloves Garlic, smashed and diced (Green garlic would also be great if’n it’s Spring.)
You could add other crunchy things like celery, radishes, etc.

~3/4 cup of Dry White Vermouth
~3/4 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 lemons, zested and juiced
Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
Tabasco, a few drops
Sriracha, a good squirt
Moutarde de mieux

Boil the clean potatoes in salted water until not quite done. My bags said 15 minutes, so I cooked ‘em 12. Run under cold water to cool for handling. You basically just want them to slice and hold together so you can mix it up without mashing them.

Cut the potatoes into eating sized pieces and layer with salt, black pepper, and fresh herbs.

Make the dressing by mixing vermouth, olive oil, mustard, salt, black pepper, Tabasco, lemon juice and zest, and Sriracha together. Pour over salad, add any leftover herbs, and mix. If you want to hide anything, throw the dressing in a blender and blend it in. In general, potatoes can use a lot of salt and pepper, but you can always add more to taste at the end. Taste it when it’s all mixed together and adjust seasoning, lemon, etc. I like the tongue to tingle after tasting some, but not burn.

I made another tater salad yesterday for a friend’s wedding reception.

It started with me lusting after fingerlings at the Mpls Farmer’s Market. I found some nice purple taters at an end booth, which I bought with another basket (two for $5) and then wandered back to the booth with the bestest looking fingerlings in the Farmer’s Market (not the Annex). I was torn between the baby fingerlings (PIA to cut up) and the, err, more mature fingerlings, which would require considerably less whacking to cut to nice slices. Like any good size queen, I went for the big ones — one basket o’ white fingerlings and one basket o’ red fingerlings (again, two for $5).

At home, I asked someone for a stock pot to cook the taters in, and realized that I had a fucking lot o’ taters, and I either needed the bigger stock pot or cook less. I went for the bigger stock pot, threw in the red and the white fingerlings, some thyme, and set a timer for fifteen minutes and five minutes, when I wanted to throw in the smaller purple fingerlings. At the five minute mark, I threw in the purples. At the fifteen minute mark, I poked a big white fingerling, and reset one of the timers for five more minutes. At the twenty minute mark, I dumped them in a colander and cooled them under cold running water, until I could start slicing them up. I layered them with a mixture of colors, salt, fresh tarragon, thyme, dill, olive oil, vermouth, and leek cooked in olive oil. I had a small bowl o’ taters left over that went in the fridge. When I was done, it was time to brave a trip to the Uptown Lunds, sitting the heart of the Uptown Art Fair for the lemons I forgot to get and for the garlic that I had to get after I discover mine had gone south along with a rather rotten onion in the bottom of the onion bowl.

So, after braving the streets o’ Uptown, I smashed some peppercorns, an allspice berry that I plucked out of a hundred year old mixed pickling spice jar, and three cloves of garlic with some salt. That all went into a bowl, rinsed out with vodka. (Did I mention I’m not really in love with my vermouth? And that I can’t get Cinzano no more? Yes, I help buy umbrellas for every bar in Europe when I can.) A nice squeeze of Sriracha, mustard de meaux, the zest and juice of three large lemons, and over the taters it went. I finally remembered to cut up some parsley as well. Then I cut a bunch of garlic chives and separated out the blossoms, cut some leaves up and tossed on the top after adjusting the lemon and salt. I stuck the two-foot tall blossoms at the back of the tater salad — it was wedding reception, after all. (At least I thought it was pretty funny.)

My arrival, somewhat botched by Google Maps sending me on a wild goose chase and the Minnesota summer road construction season, late as it was due to the shopping trip, and not, I’m sure, to the glasses of cheap vermouth I downed while making the salad, nor err, resting my eyes afterwards. I came back with a wee bit o’ salad. I left the flower spikes littering the lawn. It wasn’t the Green Garlic with three heads, but it got a bunch o’ compliments, and it got et.

For a wonderful and recent birthday party (not mine thankfully) I made a green garlic potato salad, that not only served a quite large group, but is guaranteed to keep vampires away at least for the life of the party.

Green Garlic Tater Salad

Five pounds of russet taters cooked, peeled, and cut up however you fancy
Vermouth, dry, white and a lot more than showing it the bottle
EVOO
8 stalks of green garlic, tender bits sliced or chopped (less would be quite enough for most people — cook lightly, or leave them in the lemon juice to pickle for a bit)
2 lemons zest and juice
1 boatload of salt or to taste
Fresh ground black pepper or to taste
Thyme, tarragon, and dill weed or other fresh potato-friendly herb
Sriracha and/or Tabasco to taste
Moutard de meaux

Cook the taters to your taste but not too much. Cool under cold running water until you can peel and slice them. Add olive oil and vermouth in generous amounts.

Zest two lemons, and then juice them. (If you want to mild the garlic, quickly cook it or add them to the lemon juice and let set for a bit to pickle.) Add salt, black pepper, and Sriracha and/or Tabasco. Add some mustard and mix to dissolve the salt. Pull the leaves off the thyme and tarragon, and coarsely chop along with the dill. Chop up the tender white bits of the green garlic. Mix it all together with the taters. Taste for salt, vermouth, olive oil, and peppers — ideally it should taste like the potatoes and garlic are having a party in your mouth. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Throw some of the left over herbs on top as garnish. I put thyme forests at each end, a path o’ tarragon between, and I ringed the pan with fresh red green-top radishes.