If you've stayed up watching convention speeches all this week and plan to next week as well, you, my friend, are a political junkie. The fact that you're reading Slashfood probably means that you're also a foodie. You're not alone. The LA Times recently published an article on political cookbooks, and there's a long and entertaining tradition.

From the "How to eat like a Republican" to the "Watergate Cookbook", to being the White House chef, the LA Times covers it all. There are even a couple of Axis of Evil cookbooks. It seems that wherever the worlds of food and politics collide, there's never a dull moment. What is some of your favorite politically motivated foodie literature?

We're big on the taco trucks here at Slashfood. We've blogged about them again and again, so it's appalling to hear that Los Angeles lawmakers made it a misdemeanor crime to stay parked in one spot for longer than one hour. Truck owners can be punished with a $1,000 fine or up to six months in jail.

The main reason the law was passed? Local business owners were complaining that vendors - like the taco trucks - were taking away the business of the their brick-and-mortar restaurants. The restaurateurs were also peeved because they are forced to pay more bills than the vendors do, so the competition is "unfair."

The part that really kills me, though, is that the president of the local Merchant's Association was quoted as saying, "I don't want to put anybody out of business, but it's the fairness of it all...It's a big victory for the merchants, and it's going to clean up the area."

I have a cell phone that is just a phone. It makes calls. I am online eighty percent of my day. When I'm out of my house, I like to talk to live human beings.

The Los Angeles Times reports that "Wil Shipley, a Seattle software developer, uses his iPhone at the Whole Foods fish counter to check websites for updates on which seafood is the most environmentally correct to purchase. He quizzes the staff on where and how a fish was caught."

Why not trust that the guy behind the fish counter knows about the fish he sells? Do we only place our trust in Google now and not the people who work in our neighborhood shops?

Do you think it was smart for Wil to question the fish counter staff or just plain rude?

California's almond industry is suffering as a result of Colony Collapse Disorder, but the secret death of bees isn't keeping area pastry chefs from using honey: Wildflower honey, apple and goat cheese tart, Honey shortcakes with honey-pine nut gelato, and Recipe: Acacia panna cotta.

The interplay of textures between greens and beans make for a good meal: Cranberry bean, lacinato kale and pasta soup, Warm salad of black-eyed peas, wilted mustard greens and bacon, and Dandelion green and Christmas lima bean tacos.

In drinking, you can make your own version of southwestern France's ratafia brandy, use a stemless glass perfect for picnics, and sip SIV's Wine of the Week, 2005 Luigi Pira Langhe Nebbiolo 'Le Ombre.'

The LA Times ran a piece yesterday on blogs becoming a new tool in many chefs' arsenals, and how they're entering a blogosphere that used to be reserved for us commonfolk. The difference, according to the author? Primarily, style and choice of content: commonfolk tend to "natter about what they fed their boyfriends last night, and fuzzily photograph their latest batch of heart-shaped cookies" while REAL chefs tell the stories behind the food, taking more time to detail the food's inspiration and its history.

I beg to differ. I'm biased, yes, but I think our Slashfood Flickr group is a perfect example of primarily amateur photographers and chefs taking outstanding photos of food, ones just as good as any in a cookbook. And I think people read food blogs to take in the "nattering" about day-to-day life and how it fits in with what fix and eat. And chef's blogs can be personal, too - they don't all fit neatly into one (bread) box, as this author seems to imply.

The article details several chef blogs that have been making waves, and how the chefs are using their platforms to make a statement. For some chefs, like Alison Barshak, a blog is a way to show off and advertise your new restaurant under the guise of giving viewers a tutorial on opening up an eatery. For others, like Michael Laiskonis, blogs are a chance to describe eloquently, albeit verbosely, how they got the inspiration and found the ingredients for their extravagant meals.

Regina Schrambling shows us how to host a Dumpling Party, with recipes for Seafood Dumplings, Vegetable Dumplings, Pork Dumplings, Dumpling Dipping Sauce, Five-spice Snickerdoodles, Cheater's Scallion Pancakes, and a comparison of Dumpling Wrappers.

Also in the kitchen, cook with jamon iberico, add tang with tamarinds, and bake Coconut Cupcakes from Auntie Ems.

On the dining scene, SIV gives new tapas joint Bar Pintxo 1½ stars and Fraiche is doing so well in Culver City, it's already thinking of expanding to additional locations.

To drink, Prosecco gets serious and the Wine of the Week is 2006 Paolo Scavino Dolcetto d'Alba.

• Russ Parsons sees nothing but Spring coming at the Farmers market with colorful cauliflower and watermelon radishes. He also goes into the kitchen and makes Spring soups: Potato and green garlic chowder, Shrimp and artichoke soup with spring herb gnocchi, and Chilled sweet pea bisque with Dungeness crab and mint.
• One the dining scene, LA restaurants are rounding dinner bills up (or down) and returning no coins in change. SIV finds Paperfish too flimsy, and takes a first look at STK Steakhouse.
• The Wine of the Week is 2005 Coudoulet de Beaucastel Côtes-du-Rhône and there's a new, faster, bartender in town.
  

This week, the Los Angeles Times Food section touches on every corner of the world:

• Zakuski is the Russian version of tapas, made just for vodka. The recipes are Spinach Pkhali, a dip, Salad Olivier, Quick Khachapuri (Georgian cheese pie), Eggs stuffed with caviar, and Smoked salmon and shiitakes on toast.
• From Japanese cuisine, there is shiso, with recipes for Broiled citrus with shiso, Italian tuna and shiso sandwich, and Angel hair pasta with fresh shiso-herb mix.
• On the restaurant scene, SIV goes Italian and gives Melograno two stars (**), while Linda Burum adds Ecuadorean at El Caserio in Silver Lake.

• If you're in LA, you can watch the Super Bowl at a number of sports bars around town, and they aren't just doing your standard bar fare. Whiskey-marinated wings, anyone?

• In the kitchen, Amy Scattergood shows that sourdough isn't as hard as it sounds. All you need is a good starter. Russ Parsons celebrates oysters (Oysters roasted with fennel and cream, Oyster stew with leeks and prosciutto, Roasted oysters with chipotle butter) and picks kumquats and broccolini at the farmers' markets. Joan's on Third shares the recipe for its lemon bars.
• In the wine world, Slovenia is wild, and S. Irene Virbila picks 2004 San Vicente Rioja.

Naturally, every Food section around the country is covering Thanksgiving, and The Los Angeles Times is only different in the approach: looking at the Thanksgiving table as a palette of colors:

• Amy Scattergood starts off with ivory, offering recipes for Celery root gratin, Braised hearts of celery with Parmesan, Roasted baby parsnips, and Glazed cipollini with pancetta.
• Green is vibrant in Brussels sprouts with bacon and chestnuts, Mixed greens soup, Lima beans with mint, and Braised kale.
• The star of the show, turkey, goes golden brown, along with Cognac reduction sauce, Mushroom-walnut stuffing, Chanterelle-sage bread pudding, Intertwined rosemary and black pepper breads, and Pecan brown-butter bread.
• Red is, of course, cranberries, but in everything from Cranberry fig tart to Spiced cranberry syrup to Ruby Port cranberry sauce.
• My favorite, Russ Parsons, takes orange and spins out Peppery roasted squash, Sweet potato purée with hazelnut soufflé top, Bruléed pumpkin pie, Craft pumpkin tart, and finally Spiced pumpkin soup in roasted pumpkins.

This week in Food at the LA Times, Russ Parsons goes to town with Heirloom apples with a Guide to Apple Varieties and answering the age-old question, To bake or not to bake?. Recipes include Baked Apple Ice Cream, Boozie's Apple Cake, and Maple Baked Apples with Dried Fruit and Nuts.

Also in the kitchen, Rosh Hashana recipes to celebrate the Jewish New Year: Kibbeh bi'kizabrath (cilantro-tomato soup with Syrian meatballs), Rubuh' (roast veal stuffed with spiced ground meat and rice), and Ejjeh b'kerrateh (leek fritters).

In restaurants, SIV visits the newly re-opened Ca'Brea and gives it a half star, LA chefs try serving cocktails with or as the amuse bouche.

The most interesting article of the day (in my opinion, of course) is from Regina Schrambling who ponders the anonymity of restaurant reviewers from professional journalists to bloggers (and if you happen to recognize a mysterious half face on the article, yes, that is yours deliciously!)

It's an endless summer in LA:

• He's a "kid" in LA, but Matt Molina is running the kitchen at the hottest restaurant in town, Mozza.
• For Labor Day, break out the keg
• The best way to chill out if you're Korean (or not) is with an ice cold bowl of naeng-myun
• Take advantage of the height of fig season with a Fresh Fig Tart
• Speaking of tarts, SOS gets its hands on the Walnut Praline Tart with Espresso Ice Cream from Hatfield's

This week, the Los Angeles Times dedicates its entire Food section to white wines, very appropriate for summer!

• White wine isn't all about oak. For summer, the new bouquets are jasmine, peach blossoms, verbena, and thyme
• White wine works well with cheese
• As far as wine regions, the Central Coast of California uses unusual grapes and SIV praises a hot wine, Le Picpoul from the Languedoc region in France.
• You must have A/C in your house if you can stand to be in the kitchen! White wine gelees are a refreshing addition to the summer table and the Times hunts down the recipe for Grilled Cheese from restaurant Lucques.