"goldfish" news and stories

Pepperidge Farm's savory Goldfish crackers now have a sweeter side -- Goldfish Grahams.

Over at Serious Eats, blogger Leah Douglas gave the new sweet varieties -- Vanilla, Cinnamon and S'mores Adventures -- a taste test. They also come in Chocolate and Honey.

While the Vanilla was found to be, well ... vanilla. Tasters gave the Cinnamon ones higher marks.

But it was the S'mores Adventures, made with honey and chocolate graham-fish and tiny marshmallow fish, that stole the show.

• Just a little tinkering with a free grocery store recipe results in Honey-Mustard-Glazed Grilled Salmon.
• Consumer Reports asked grocery shoppers for their most satisfying chains, and Publix and Trader Joe's soar while Wal-Mart tanks.
• AJC asks readers which perishables they trashed after city power outages.
• A brief review of Goldfish awards it only two out of five stars.
• A talk with Tim Gaddis, cheese monger for Star Provisions, about beloved cheeses and understanding customers.
• The Weekly Recipe Menu starts with SCRAM (salsa, cheese, rice and meat) and ends with Tex-Mex.

Sometimes we run across some pretty strange things, and when it comes to food and restaurant oddities all I can say is I'm glad this one is for viewing rather than eating. A restaurant in Japan apparently has goldfish living beneath their deep-fryer. The oil from the fryer naturally floats on top of the water, allowing the fish to live comfortably survive oblivious to the extreme heat just inches above them. As far as feeding the fish, they dine on the little crispy crumbs that sink to the bottom after each fry. One might wonder if that is actually good for them, but I digress.

I'm fairly certain the question here is why? Really, why would someone come up with this idea in the first place? I could almost understand it if the fryer was in view of the public, but since it isn't, the only people who can actually see the goldfish are those working in the kitchen. To each his own though, I suppose.

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Out of all the food trends we heard about back in December and January, there was one that is clearly becoming a big deal on th packaged food scene: miniature packaging, aka 100-calorie packs. "100 calories!" seems to be the hot new slogan on food products these days. The past three years have seen the market for portion-controlled packets go from 0 to more than 25 different foods. USA Today reports that 18 of the new products were introduced in 2005 alone. With more coming along this year, there is no indication that this trend is slowing.

Some of the newer products include 100-calorie sodas from brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Shasta. These sodas have a mere 8-ounces per can, fewer than the more standard 12-ounces, and are marketed as being more portable than their full-sized counterparts. Coco-Cola says that they're marketed at consumers who wish to "improve their snacking and drinking opportunities."

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