"wolfgang puck" news and stories

• Mama Fina finally puts the Dominican Republican on the L.A. culinary map.
• Viola's Gourmet Goodies isn't just a condiment company -- it's a Hollywood legend.
• Farmers markets can be high stakes for new merchants.
• Guess why WP24 is turning downtown L.A. into a dinner destination? (Hint: WP stands for Wolfgang Puck.)

2010 marks the 16th year that famed Austrian chef Wolfgang Puck will be creating the menu for the Governor's Ball, which takes place immediately after the Academy Awards. The gregarious gastronome spoke to Slashfood to reveal some "Puckish" tips for hosting a successful Oscar viewing party.

What is your best tip?
WP: I think you have to decorate the house a little bit, so it looks like it has something to do about movies. If you can buy some new or old movie posters and put them up, I think it's nice. Have the people who come by get dressed up a little bit, so that way they don't come like slobs like it's another party. Then it's good to serve some sparkling wine or champagne or something, which makes it festive.

What about food?
WP: The best thing is to serve a buffet -- to have some good salads, like a chopped vegetable salad, some asparagus, some cooked artichokes, and then some warm dishes, like braised short ribs, especially if you're on the East Coast, where often the beginning of March is still very cold. People love braised short ribs and the great thing is that you can make them way in advance. You can freeze them or you can keep them in the fridge for a few days beforehand and then you just reheat them slowly and serve with some polenta and Parmesan cheese. People are going to think they are in the best restaurant.

I like to make a gratin of potatoes, which is potatoes, milk, a little garlic, salt and pepper and cheese on top. People love it and it's easy to make. Plus, you can make it early on in the day. For desserts I like to have mainly smaller pieces, like cookies with maybe some ice cream; great chocolate-chip cookies, coconut cookies or lemon cookies or pecan bars. I would also have good red and white wine.

Homemade candy corn. Photo: NoshWithMe, Flickr.

A few of the best stories spied elsewhere on the Web this week:

Why buy bags of Brach's when you can make your own gorgeous Halloween candy?

A chain of Spanish-American restaurants in Brooklyn and Queens offers seafood-loaded and tequila-spiked "Viagra" soup.

A recent study published in the Journal of Neuroscience is the first to show that eating and drinking act as painkillers by way of distraction.

The new "Hell's Kitchen" Nintendo game requires players to chop food and drop it into pots, but surprisingly does not involve swearing and smoking.

Move over Starbucks, Wolfgang Puck is introducing bottled Culinary Iced Coffees made with organic ingredients.

In the latest Todd English news, his former fiancée, Erica Wang, turned herself in to the police today, after he filed assault charges against her.

'Live, Love, Eat! The Best of Wolfgang Puck'
By Wolfgang Puck
Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. -- 2002
Buy it on Amazon

With an accent thicker than anything a knife can penetrate, a bevy of successful restaurants and a line of signature canned soups and frozen pizzas, hearty Austrian celebrity chef and restaurateur Wolfgang Puck has made quite an impact on modern cooking in the U.S. Having studied cooking in France before becoming executive chef at the esteemed Los Angeles eatery Ma Maison, he's commended for the rise of California cuisine, inspired by refined French cooking techniques and flavors.

WIth a philosophy of "Live, Love, Eat!," chef Puck imparts his passion for fresh and flavorful cuisine in his recipe collection, "Live, Love Eat! The Best of Wolfgang Puck."

See what we tested and find out whether the book's worth buying after the jump.

Mario Batali, sans Doritos. Photo: Bauer-Griffin.

What do chefs eat when they need a palate cleanser after so much fancy restaurant fare? When they take off their aprons, they reach for the same indulgences we do -- perhaps just with an upgrade. Slashfood asked celebrity chefs to share their favorite cravings.

Mario Batali
When orange-clogged chef and television personality Mario Batali isn't reinventing Italian cuisine, he's still got it in the bag -- of Doritos, that is. "I love two things: good gelato and, strangely enough, Doritos and salsa. It has to be Doritos, though. I especially like the lime-flavored ones with chili."

Nigella Lawson
Which foods make domestic goddess Nigella Lawson feel sinful? None! Nigella, who is famous for her intimate, relaxed cooking style says, "I don't have any guilty food pleasures. The only thing one should ever feel guilty about is not taking pleasure."

See what snacks Bobby Flay, Tom Colicchio and other celebrity chefs sneak after the jump.