"miniature" news and stories

I snagged a bag of these Reese's Limited Edition Fudge Mini Peanut Butter Cups yesterday while I was shopping at Target. Looking at the bag, there is nothing to indicate what precisely makes them "fudge" flavored and the illustration of the candy looked identical to a regular mini cup. I hoped that they might be dark chocolate coated and bought the bag ($2, on sale).

Unfortunately, the candies are not dark chocolate coated. Instead, they appeared to be identical to regular minis, but with a smell that had a stronger chocolate scent. The taste was basically unchanged, as far as I could tell, but a few people I gave them two commented that they seemed "creamier." I attribute this to the outdoor temperatures of more than 90F, then again, I am not a peanut butter cup expert. Perhaps Cybele could find a bag of these and give them a taste, as she did with the rest of the Reese's line.

Menus already chock-full of details about the soil quality in the area the salad spinach was grown and the precise variety of vanilla in the crème brule are soon going to have another detail: the sire of the steak. Always looking to be on the cutting edge of dining trends, some chefs are getting involved in animal husbandry to custom breed specific, and often rare, varieties of meat for their restaurants. They feel that this gives them an edge over companies that contract with well-known high-end producers. Whether or not there is any truth to the belief that things which are rarer are necessarily better or higher quality, chefs like David Burke are beginning to do things like buy bulls and find farmers to raise what will be a future meal, according to an article (subscription required to read it online) in the Wall Street Journal.