Ed Levine, of Ed Levine Eats, is hosting a great contest that gives food-lovers the chance to dine with two of the most famous foodies in NYC: Ed Levine and Jeffrey Steingarten. All you have to do is write 100 words or less about who your favorite restaurant critic is and why. The contest will be judged by Steingarten, David Kamp (author of the United States of Arugula) and Ed Levine, so there is no point to picking Ruth Reichel because, for example, you think she's beautiful or charming. Flattery only works when those being flattered have a say in the results. Instead, try to consider what you find appealing about the work of the critics. Is their writing compelling? Are they trustworthy? Do they show a well-rounded appreciation of food or do they stick to fancy french restaurants for all their meals?

The contest will not be closed until there are at least 50 entries, so you have plenty of time to enter if you live in NY (or willing to travel there).

[via the food section]

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor enhancer that has been used in a wide variety of food products over the years. It is a sodium salt of glutamic acid, an amino acid. Resembling salt or sugar in appearance when it is isolated from a food, MSG does not have a distinctly recognizable taste. It triggers the taste buds newly classified as being sensitive to "umami", a savory taste and loanword borrowed from Japanese.

Chefs, even before giving a name to umami, have been using ingredients with a naturally high glutamate content to enhance the flavor of dishes. It is found in large quantities in ingredients such as tomatoes, mushrooms, corn, parmesan cheese and soy sauce, in addition to occuring in meats, like beef and chicken. It is the perception of MSG as a food additive - rather than as a naturally occurring flavoring - that has given it a bad name.

Cassoulet is my nemesis. I long to try this classicly famous slow-cooked French country dish. In the winter, nothing sounds more satisfying and delectably fattening than a cassoulet. But more than the time to cook (between three and six hours, depending on your recipe) is the list of ingredients: 1/2 pound unsmoked bacon, fresh pork rind or fatback, confit duck legs, veal demi-glace, duck and Armagnac sausages, rendered duck fat.

Most of it has to do with my general fear of duck. It was only last month - and only for the good of the slashforce - that I had the guts to roast that fearfully fatty poultry. And I never had the cojones to use the duck fat (despite your encouragement and wonderful words). It was partly Jeffrey Steingarten's fault, with his exhaustive search for the perfect interpretation of the dish. How could something accessible be such a pinnacle of one of Steingarten's epic quests?

So I'm considering staring down my demons, and attempting the fearful dish, with all its duck parts and renderings and demi-glaces before you even get started on putting the dish together. Do you have any kind words as I approach my doppelganger? Do you have any tales of facing your own culinary fears?

[Photo Butter Pig]