"NY times" news and stories

Financial times are tough, but lobster is newly affordable!

If you consider lobster out of your financial reach normally, you'll be surprised and delighted to find that the financial crisis has hit shellfish. According to this article in the New York Times, lobster is as much as $4 less expensive than this time last year at markets in New York City.

Apparently, while less-well-funded fish have had problems, lobster fisheries have become quite successful and sustainable over the years, meaning that there's just as much if not more product available. People aren't willing to pay what they used to for lobster right now, and they don't have to.

Perhaps this is your chance to dive into this elite culinary world for the first time! Start here to figure out what to do with lobster (from killing to grilling), and enjoy your luxurious dinner!

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Let's hope that at whatever Super Bowl party you were yesterday, you didn't go anywhere near the salsa, guacamole, hummus, or anything that has a last name of "Dip." If you did, let's hope that the only other guests with you were your immediate family, or people with who you don't mind sharing...10,000 bacteria.

In a study done at Clemson University, research students found that "three to six double dips transferred about 10,000 bacteria from the eater's mouth to the remaining dip."

That, my Slashfoodie friends, is disgusting.

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Thanks to the huge role the media plays in our daily lives, pregnant women now have way more to worry about than even ten years ago. Getting pregnant means you are suddenly victim to tons of fear-inducing claims and studies, each new one seeming to contract the last. Exercise! Don't over-burden yourself! Eat chocolate! Go easy on the fat!

And now, claims that a little bit of caffeine probably won't hurt you are challenged by a recent study in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology that suggests that women who consume more than 200 mg of caffeine (one small cup of coffee) a day are at a greater risk for miscarrying.

In the study, documented in a NY Times article, 1,063 pregnant women were interviewed about their caffeine intake. Out of the total, 172 women had previously miscarried. The rate of miscarriages was higher in those who consumed 200 mg or more per day (24.5% out of 164) compared to those who drank no caffeine during their pregnancy (12.5% out of 264 women).

But of course, miscarriage occurs for reasons other than caffeine, some which can't be explained away through a study. But I'd love to hear from women who were once or are currently pregnant (or their significant others) to get their take on this news. Do reports like this make you nervous? Do you drink caffeine now? If so, would this study make you think twice? Or do you eschew science in place of good ol' common sense?

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The feature article is about Tex-Mex cuisine, with recipes for: Lime Soup (Sopa De Lima) and Chiles Rellenos. Other recipes this week are for Veal and Eggplant Gratinate from a cookbook by Judith Jones, Onion Pie and Creamy Pine Island Onion Soup from a story about the fertile onion fields of Orange County, and a video demo of Monkfish on Mashed Potatoes from Mark Bittman.

On the dining scene, Frank Bruni tries out Korean restaurant Moim and Turin's Eataly will open in mid-town Manhattan.

In drinks, Eric Asimov tries unpasteurized, unfiltered beer, called "cask conditioned."

This week, a slight departure from pure food and dining with a story on where animals that were once destined for the dinner plate actually go for sanctuary. Also, beef jerky becomes haute cuisine, sort of.

In the kitchen, Mark Bittman does chicken wings and blackberries come into season.

On the dining scene, Frank Bruni vists Perilla, the restaurant by Top Chef winner Harold Dieterle, gluten-free menus are becoming more popular, and the best way to eat during the summer is a series of starters.