"fake" news and stories

The St. Pete Times recently did some DNA testing on fish sold as grouper by several restaurants in the Tampa Bay area. Of the 11 restaurants sampled, six were found selling less expensive fish like tilapia, hake and catfish in their grouper sandwiches and entrees. One restaurant was passing of frozen, imported tilapia in their $23 "champagne braised black grouper." Most of the restaurateurs and fish wholesalers quoted in the article attempt to pass the buck, saying they thought the fish they were selling was, in fact, grouper. I just have to wonder how a chef could not know the difference between a piece of tilapia and a piece of grouper.

[Thanks to Laura]

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An undercover investigation revealed that some butchers in the UK were selling non-certified organic beef under an organic label. Some of the butchers were from small towns and knew their meat suppliers closely. They were willing to attest to the quality of the beef that they sold, even if they have not been willing or able to purchase organic certification for their shop. Others, however, simply claimed to use the term as "shorthand."

Because the organic label can command up to 5 times the price of conventional beef, there is a clear financial incentive for less scrupulous butchers to try and sell it as such. From the customer's perspective, it can be quite difficult, if not nearly impossible, to tell the difference between organic and non-organic beef based on physical appearance and the scientific methods are not a guarantee. Relying on certification continues to be the most trustworthy method, but is it actually doing a disservice to small businesses, like some butchers, who say they can't afford the £300-£400 to become certified?

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"Some women, it is said, like to cook. This book is not for them."

If you have any interest at all in cooking or history, you must get your hands on a copy of Peg Bracken's I Hate To Cook Book. Published in 1960, Peg Bracken was the forerunner to women like Sandra Lee, taking a semi-homemade approach to things that she felt obligated to do, like cooking for her husband. Peg's strategy was to get away from the stove and onto another cocktail as quickly as possibly. Her writing is clever and witty, downright hilarious at times. Even without considering that it is a cookbook, it makes a great read.