Photo: Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com, Flickr

Of all the ink spilled about last week's notorious Beer Summit, in which President Obama, police sergeant James Crowley and Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates gathered at the White House for a brewski, none have been more hilarious than this Washington Post recap. Writer Dana Milbank not only sums up the media's "tipsy" coverage of the affair but suggests our commander in chief take a cue from American beer names to address other diplomacy issues.

To wit: Sen. John Ensign would be welcomed to the White House with a quaff of Horny Devil, a California brew, whereas "if a certain former Alaska governor tries to challenge Obama in 2012, he can pour her an Arctic Devil Barley Wine." An equal opportunity satirist, Milbank also takes down "hot-tempered chief of staff Rahm Emanuel" by suggesting he indulge in Permanently Pissed Off Pilsner.

How do you feel about President Obama's choice of Bud Light -- a brew owned by a Belgian conglomerate -- for sipping?



[Via The Washingon Post]

Less than two months into her term as first lady, Michelle Obama has emerged as an outspoken advocate for healthier eating. Last week Obama brought eight cases of fresh fruit to a D.C. soup kitchen, where she served steamed broccoli, mushroom risotto and homemade apple-carrot muffins as she talked about her desire to increase access to healthy food all over the country, reports the New York Times.

"We can provide this kind of healthy food for communities across the country, and we can do it by each of us lending a hand," Obama said.

This comes after a speech to the Department of Agriculture last month in which Obama talked up community gardens, followed a few days later by her press tour of the White House kitchen where chefs were preparing healthy items like creamed spinach sans cream. Obama has also talked to various magazines, from Vogue to Parents, about how she's struggled to get her girls to eat veggies and cut out sugary treats.

Apparently Laura Bush also served fresh, organic foods in the White House, but didn't discuss her family's eating habits with reporters. I think it's great that Obama's raising the profile of healthy food - this country could certainly use it. As the New York Times suggests, parents can always use the "But Sasha and Malia eat their veggies..." tactic!

Do you think Michelle Obama's healthy eating campagin will create permanent change in the way Americans eat?

George W. Bush. In the furor of elections, he's become back-page news. And, on January 20, he'll be out of our lives for good. Whether that prospect leaves you elated or crestfallen, you can celebrate it with the "Georgie Is Outta Here!" party in a box.

The set includes paper plates, cups, napkins, balloons, and a tablecloth decorated with our 43rd president's (rather caricatured) visage, as well as games and mock Bush "to do" lists. Suitable for both Republican and Democratic parties, though the latter might appreciate it a little more.

Did you watch the debates on Friday? The political campaigns are really heating up as we head into the final weeks before election day. Even the food blogs, normally partisan-free zones, are full of political stories.

There are a whole bunch of ways for you to cast your vote via the food you pick this year. Inventor Spot has gathered a list of seven of those opportunities. Make your preference known through Baskin-Robbins ice cream flavors, lollipops, hot sauce and beer. I especially like the coffee choices from Fresh Beanz Coffee Company.

Voting with food or beverage items may not have as much impact as the ballot you'll cast on November 4th, but it sure tastes a heck of a lot better!

So the presidential debate is on after all! And I know the number one question on your mind is not "how will McCain's fiscal policies differ from Bush's?" or "how will Obama deal with the Iran question?" but rather, "what to eat?"

Well, I've got a few suggestions for snacks, based on the candidate's own favorite foods and studies of Democratic and Republican food habits. Serve all the food on blue and red plates and make a game out of it. When one candidate makes a winning point, you eat a snack from the opposite party. When McCain corners Obama into admitting the troop surge in Iraq was successful, you eat a Democratic snack. When Obama says "McCain" and "Big Oil" in the same sentence, eat a red snack. Whichever side has more snacks left at the end wins!

1. Obama, having lived in Chicago for most of his life, enjoys the city's famous deep dish pizza. Turn pizza into a snack with this Food Network recipe for pizza bites. But keep it All-American by subbing out the mascarpone for some less-exotic mozzarella cheese. Add pineapple for a Hawaiian-childhood flair! McCain loves the Tex-Mex cuisine of his native Arizona. Serve these burriquitas (mini burritos) with a side of salsa (but not too spicy - you don't want to appear volatile).

2. According to Urbanspoon's "steak/sushi index", you can predict which cities skew more Democratic or Republican based solely on their number of sushi (Democrat) or steak (Republican) restaurants. So bust out the sushi mat and roll yourself some Obama Rolls (fried eggplant and fresh spinach). Throw some red meat to the Repubs with these steak and potato kebabs from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association.

3. McCain supporters are said to favor Hardees and family dining chains like Fuddruckers. Copious amounts of ground beef, anyone? Make your Republican burgers bite-sized, with this Emeril Lagasse recipe for sirloin sliders with bacon. Obama fans go for mall favorites like the Cheesecake Factory and Panera Bread. Try this copycat recipe of the Cheesecake Factory's famous (infamous?) fried macaroni and cheese balls.

4. Obama is known to brag about his famous chili. He's even provided America with the recipe, which you can snack-ify by serving it in mini bread cups. Cindy McCain's family recipe farfalle pasta with turkey sausage and mushrooms (Copyright the Food Network) doesn't make great finger food, so try a riff on lemon chicken (her real favorite, according to the Guardian) instead - serve cold lemon chicken salad on crackers or slices of baguette instead.

Tip: Keep some nice sorbet in the freezer to use as a palate cleanser whenever an nauseous homily about "small-town values" and "not playing politics" makes you throw up a little in your mouth. I like Bon Appetit's lemon buttermilk version.

The ever topical entrepreneurs behind Jones Soda have set up an ancillary site at campaigncola.com to tout their new line of politically-based sodas, and spill a little electoral info while they're at it. While copy touts the benefits of being able to ensure the victory of one's chosen candidate via financial support (the "winner" is the candidate whose bottles sell in greatest quantity), the site also contains a handy "Voting Vernacular" page, information about voter registration, and access to a politically-oriented section of the Jones Soda message boards.

While some might argue that save for a few cosmetic details, the "candidates" are essentially identical, or that Jones is just trying to make a buck off the partisan divide, I'm thinking that's pretty much politics as usual.

[via Campaign Cola]

Have you ever sighed silently when someone told you they were a vegetarian, assuming they were a dogmatic, tofu-eating hippie? If so, read this essay by Taylor Clark on Slate, debunking various anti-vegetarian myths. No, vegetarians are not (necessarily) dull-palated, content to eat mushy vegetables and Gardenburgers. No, most vegetarians aren't interested in lecturing you about your steak (unless they're just jerks), so feel free to invite them to your barbecue. No, they're not silently judging you.

So don't lecture them about how being a vegetarian is silly, bad for your health, or against God's will. And no, just because they're wearing leather shoes doesn't make them total hypocrites - "I'd still say that doing something beats doing nothing," he writes. "It's kind of like driving a hybrid: not a solution to the global-warming dilemma but a decent start."

Every Olympic year, the torch goes on a journey from Athens to wherever the Games will be held that year, making stops in a good number of participating countries. This time, the Olympic torch will make only one stop in the US: San Francisco. And Ben and Jerry's is headed there, too.

Ben and Jerry's is sending a caravan to that city to intercept the torch. The move is intended to bring attention to China's involvement in Sudan. The hope is that the three vehicle convoy, which each carry a replica of the Olympic torch and sport mobile billboards, will put a spotlight back on the troubled Darfur region.

The torch is scheduled to be in San Francisco on April 9th. The arrival of Ben and Jerry's caravan is slated to be the same date. The vehicles will make stops at college campus' and Ben and Jerry's stores along the way. Wow! What do you think about this one?

Every time I get on the phone with my mom these days, we find ourselves in a political conversation, weighing the pros and cons of the candidates running in the Democratic primary (I come from a long line of registered Dems). Neither of us have made up our minds, mostly because we're still mourning John Edwards' exit from the race. However, for the rest of you out there who have made up your minds, you can tell the world which candidate you're supporting with a kitchen apron. Both the Hillary and Obama aprons are available on Cafepress.

There aren't as many good aprons for the Republican candidates out there. The Kitchn (where I learned about all these cool aprons) featured one sporting Romney's (although as of yesterday, he is out of the race) face as well as one that pairs New York City Mayor Bloomberg with Ron Paul. That picture is after the jump.

A few years ago, Ben & Jerry's ice cream was sold to Unilever and the company dropped some of its social activist policies and programs. The spirit remained, but with the founders out of the game, very little non-ice cream action was undertaken. Recently, at the request of the company's new top executive, the "ageing hippie" founders have returned to work with the ice cream company and are leading a campaign that is spearheaded by their newest flavor, American Pie.

The ice cream is browns sugar and cinnamon flavored, witch chunks of apples and pie crust in it, capturing the spirit of an all-American dessert. On the carton, there are ways to get involved in the American Pie campaign, which is detailed at the Ben& Jerry's website. Their goal is to convince consumers to convince the government to change their spending priorities on issues such as education and insurance coverage.

The flavor sounds like it is one that will appeal to most ice cream (and pie) fans, but the question now is whether a love of ice cream will change anyone's political opinions - or if a difference in political opinion, or simply a desire not to have politics on ice cream packaging, will keep anyone from buying it.

During a political rally in Sullivan, Illinois in 1960, Richard Nixon ate a barbecue sandwich. He didn't quite finish it and when he went to throw it away, Steve Jenne saw his chance. He dashed in a grabbed the uneaten portion, then saved the sandwich for 46 years. He's brought it on "tours" with him across the country since that time,  carrying it in a cooler packed with dry ice. Jenne has not yet made any move to sell it on eBay, which would seem to be the most common thing to do with "trophies" of this nature.

The question remains as to why someone would take a half eaten sandwich from a presidential candidate, saving it for nearly half a century despite the fact that Nixon lost that campaign and didn't win the presidency until 1968.

[Image AP/CNN]

Richard Lochhead, a candidate in the Scottish National Party, has added a food issue to his platform that he things will help his campaign. He has promised to fight to give Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status to shortbread. PDO is a classification by the EU that aims to ensure that goods, if given a particular name, originate from a single location. This would mean that the only official shortbread could come from Scots bakers, if the biscuits were given protected status; other shortbreads would have to be described as "shortbread-like." The Walkers bakery is a local employer in the area Lochhead is campaigning in, so it seems like a good stand for him to take, even if shortbread is unlikely to receive PDO status.