Slashfood

Food TV Amps Up with New Shows from ABC and Scripps

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 4:00PM

ABC announces new series Photos: Andrew Kent/Getty Images; Kevin Mazur/WireImage; ABC

You can almost hear the "Hootie Hoo!" call-and-response now. Former "Top Chef All-Stars" cheftestant Carla Hall is going to be a host on ABC's new food show, "The Chew," debuting in September 2011. Hall will be among a rotating team of hosts such as Mario Batali, Michael Symon ("Iron Chef"), and nutrition expert Daphne Oz (The Dorm Room Diet) to create a show that covers "food from EVERY angle -- as a source of joy, health, family ritual, friendship, breaking news, dating, fitness, weight loss, travel adventures and life's moments," notes an ABC press release. In other words, "The View" comes to the kitchen.

Also on deck at ABC, "The Revolution," premiering in January 2012, a lifestyle show focusing on taking the weight off and changing your life. Hosted by fashion guru Tim Gunn ("Project Runway"), and produced by "Biggest Loser" alum J.D. Roth, "The Revolution," says ABC, features "a unique concept: each week one woman's five-month weight-loss journey will unfold in just five days, with daily results and a final transformational reveal on Friday."

Meanwhile, over at The Cooking Channel and Food Network, there's a slew of new shows coming up.

Filed under: Television/Film, Celebrities

Chinese Food Chain Panda Express Goes to China

COMMENTS 1

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 3:00PM

Panda Express Photo: inazakira, Flickr

In a move not at all meant to be ironic, Panda Express is seeking to expand to (drumroll, please) China, reports Forbes Magazine. Chinese-American chairman Andrew Cherng states that he's "working on some angles" and might do business with Golden Eagle retail group, a large Nanjing-based retail and real estate company.

But can the makers of Beijing Beef and Kung Pao Chicken sell food to the folks who invented bird's-nest soup? Chinese food in America is often radically different than what is actually served in China, notes the blog Foodista. And what has thus far succeeded in China are the U.S.-based chains that do all-American fast food, including McDonald's, Starbucks, Yum!, Dairy Queen and Papa John's. Kentucky Fried Chicken alone has about 3,000 Chinese outposts. That said, the menus are often modified to suit a Chinese palate.

"When Andrew moved to America, he brought his father's recipes with him," explains the Panda Express website. With the help and business savvy of his wife Peggy, he knew that a real meal served fast, hot and fresh would catch on like a wok on fire! And did it ever."

Let's see if bringing those the same recipes back to his homeland is equally as hot.

Filed under: Chain Stores / Restaurants

President Obama's Passover Seder

COMMENTS 13

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 2:00PM

President Obama's White House Seder Photo: Pete Souza, The White House / AP Photo

President Obama is hosting his third annual White House Seder on the first night of Passover, April 18, 2011, complete with a full Seder menu including brisket, noodle kugel and macaroons.

The tradition started in a windowless basement of the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Sheraton , during the April 2008 campaign, when Eric Lesser, then Ground Logistic Coordinator (he's now the Director of Strategic Planning for Austan Goolsbee, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers), got his hands on an "emergency Seder kit" from the University of Pennsylvania's Hillel Center. As Lesser and his fellow campaign staffers Arun Chaudhary and Herbie Ziskend were about to begin the Seder, Obama asked if he could join.

Instead of ending the meal with the customary "Next year in Jerusalem," Obama said "Next year in the White House." True to his word, the Seder continues at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Filed under: Holidays, Celebrities

Kate Middleton Jelly Bean To Be Auctioned on eBay

COMMENTS 3

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 1:00PM

Kate Middleton's face on a jelly bean Photos: Indigo/Getty Images; SWNS.com

Seems Kate Middleton is having a Willy Wonka moment. Her image has turned into a Golden Ticket for a Somerset, England, man who claims he's not only spotted the soon-to-be Princess of Wales on a jelly bean, but he's selling the Kate-like Kandy on eBay!

When Wesley Hosie opened his jar of Jelly Bean Factory sweets, one mango-flavored bean stood out, he told The Telegraph. The speckles on the candy's surface had formed a pattern that created an image of Kate Middleton, flowing hair, Mona Lisa smile, and all. "She was literally lying there staring back at me," he told the paper. (Question: Wesley, what were you drinking with those jelly beans?)

Another man would have just popped the Kate-like candy in his mouth and gone back to watching the cricket match. But not Mr. Hosie, who has decided to take the jelly bean to the world, through eBay, where the starting bid will be 500 pounds sterling (about $800 and change). Next up, a Prince William chocolate bar?

Filed under: Celebrities

Staph Bacteria Found in Half of U.S. Meat

COMMENTS 44

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 12:00PM

meat at grocery store Photo: Charlie Neibergall / AP Photo

What's lurking in the meat you're buying for your family? Plenty of bacteria, according to a new study, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. Almost half of all the beef, chicken, pork, and turkey bought in five U.S. cities and sampled by researchers, was found to contain drug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, reports CBS News.

"Staph" bacteria is nothing to fool around with-it can cause everything from a rash to life-threatening sepsis and endocarditis. And because we've consumed so many antibiotics, the staph bacteria isn't easily controllable by drugs. In fact, in the tests done by study researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute, 47 percent of the meat contained bacteria resistant to three types of antibiotics.

Sure, you can kill "staph" by cooking the meat, but one contaminated cutting board is all it takes to set the bacteria in motion for many cooks. How many ways can we say it's time to give up the steak tartare?

Filed under: Health & Medical, Food News

Tax Day Food Deals

COMMENTS 0

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 11:00AM

Arby's free fries for Tax Weekend 2011 Photo: Arby's

It's Tax Day (well, ok, Tax Weekend, since you have until Monday the 18th to file). Restaurants around the country want you to know they feel your pain as you fill out your 1040. Tax Day and Tax Weekend deals on food, from Cinnabon (free Cinnabon Bites from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday) to RA Sushi (extended "Magic Monday" happy hour), will keep you chewing on more than your fingernails as you cut that check to the IRS. Or give you more ways to spend your refund.

Arby's is declaring today Free FryDay (Curly Fries giveaway after printing a coupon from its Facebook page)

At Hooters, buy 10 wings and get 10 free.

Subway is offering an extended "tax break": buy one Footlong and get one free, through April 29.

Get the whole story at Nation's Restaurant News, where there's a full line-up of the giveaways and deals.

Filed under: Chain Stores / Restaurants, Deals / Free Food

Honey Roasted Duck with Saffron Almond Rice: Recipe of the Day

COMMENTS 0

by Slashfood Editor, Posted Apr 15th 2011 10:00AM

Honey Roasted Duck with Saffron Almond Rice recipe Photo: Adam Macchia

Looking for a dish that will impress without a lot of effort? Try Marcus Samuelsson's Honey Roasted Duck with Saffron Almond Rice. Fresh thyme and a hint of garam masala give the duck breasts layers of flavor, while coconut milk lends richness to the rice. The best part? The whole thing comes together in less than 30 minutes.

Get Marcus' recipe for Honey Roasted Duck with Saffron Almond Rice.

Filed under: Recipes

Coffee's Role in Your Sex Life

COMMENTS 2

by Jessie Cacciola, Posted Apr 14th 2011 5:00PM

Coffee, Philosophy for Everyone: Grounds for Debate Photo: Amazon

If you're reading this over a cup of joe, you're likely a modern, optimistic existentialist -- so says Jill Hernandez, author of one of 18 essays in the newly released book on the storied beverage, Coffee, Philosophy for Everyone: Grounds for Debate. The oft-coveted and controversial drink -- the subject of debate on ethics, environment, economy and even virility -- has been on philosophers' minds since the first seeds were consumed for their energizing effect in Ethiopia centuries ago.

Today, the coffeehouse is an innocent commonplace establishment, but when roasting began in the 15th century, the dark brew was sinful imbibing seen as an alternative to beer, and an addictively good one. "Why this Satan's drink is so delicious," exclaimed Pope Clement VII upon his first sip. By the 17th century, public coffeehouses, or "penny universities" as they were known in Britain, became popular meeting places for activists planning the French Revolution and the Boston Tea Party -- Voltaire, Johann Sebastian Bach and Sartre, among them, says Mark Pendergrast in his essay, "Black Puddle Water or Panacea." Our days' ambitions may seem paltry in comparison but many of us won't tackle morning emails without a shot.

Filed under: Books, Coffee