"obituary" news and stories

Clamato. Photo: Bludgeoner86, Flickr

Syvlia Schur -- a recipe developer for Betty Crocker, cookbook writer for companies like Campbell's and creator of products like Clamato, Cran-Apple juice and the pre-Slim-Fast diet drink Metrecal -- has died at the age of 92.

The cause of death was respiratory failure, her daughter, Jane S. Smith, told the New York Times.

Clamato, a cocktail juice made with tomato juice, onions, celery, spices and a dash of clam juice, is known for being a key ingredient in the Michelada. It is made and distributed by Mott's.

Along with independently helping food corporations develop new products, Schur was the founder of her own restaurant and food company consulting business, Creative Food Services.

"She was a pioneer of modern food usage," her Creative Food Services coworker Heidi Kost-Gross told the Times. "Her company was at the cutting edge of how food should look and taste, and above all, how it should be used."

Sheila Lukins. Photo: Parade

Sheila Lukins, one half of the team behind the iconic 1980s "Silver Palate Cookbook," died on Sunday after a brief battle with brain cancer. For those who wish to mourn her loss through cooking, Cookstr.com has put a handful of "Silver Palate" recipes online.

The following recipes are up now: chicken Marbella, salmon mousse, chili for a crowd, phyllo triangles, shrimp and grape salad with dill, tarragon chicken salad and bouillabaisse. Cook one and remember: Great chefs live on through their dishes!

[Via Cookstr]

Sheila Lukins. Photo: Parade

Sheila Lukins, the author of the iconic 1980s cookbook "Silver Palate Cookbook" has died after a short battle with brain cancer.

Lukins wrote the cookbook in the early 1980s after running a shop called the Silver Palate on New York's Upper West Side with colleague Julee Rosso. Its recipes -- including olive-infused chicken Marbella -- became mainstays of the '80s kitchen.

Lukins had been diagnosed with brain cancer only three months ago, her daughter told the New York Times.

Death, like taxes, is inevitable, but it's always sad when you hear of the passing of an old friend. The food world has been dealt a handful of blows in recent weeks with the deaths of some folks who helped to make the nation a tastier place.

At AOL Food we wrote today of the death of Milton Parker, the owner of New York's landmark Carnegie Deli. He was not alone.

New Yorkers who make their way to the Union Square Greenmarket often saw Joe Ades peeling carrots on the northwest corner of the square with the $5 peeler he peddled for years. Ades died on Sunday at age 75. "He was very excited about carrots," a woman who works on the square told the New York Times.

In California, Ozzie Osborne was passionate about soda, shakes and sandwiches. The longtime soda jerk who ran Ozzie's Soda Fountain in Berkeley passed away on Jan. 29. "He loved to tease people in a way that made them feel good about themselves," a patron told the San Francisco Chronicle.

In Robert Kolb's case, it was the product that made you feel good. The last of four generations of a Bay City, Mich., brewing family died on Jan. 28. Though Kolb Bros. Brewing Co. closed in 1936, Kolb started a beer distributor company that was renowned for delivering Buckeye beer until Miller bought the brand in 1972, putting the Kolb company out of business.

"From then on," Kolb's son-in-law told the Bay City Times, "he was a Budweiser man."

The owner of New York's iconic Carnegie Deli has died at the age of 90.

Milton Parker, who learned the deli business at an age when many men were retiring, died Friday from a respiratory condition, his son-in-law tells Slashfood.

"He took a little local restaurant and built it into a national [one]," Sandy Levine said Wednesday.