Have you ever tried a bacon candy bar? I hear that Vosges’ Mo’s Bacon Bar is the one. It may be found at Whole Foods, granted that it’s not sold out.

Wanna become a foodie. Start eating and get a copy of Sudi Pigott’s book, remarkably named “How To be a Better Foodie: the little bulging book for the truly epicurious”. She sheds light on (among other food tidbits) why or not it’s okay to eat oysters in the ‘r’ months, why goose fat is good and much more. An excerpt:

Chocolate is not all about cocoa solid percentages. More important is the ratio of cocoa solid to cocoa butter, which can render two 70 per cent bars completely different. And terroir and single origin/single plantation really matter. The Better Foodie has a rarified taste in chocolate: I’d rather have no chocolate than an inferior bar and have been known to chuck away a gift box of dubious high street truffles. I admit to a taste for Amedei’s Porcelana, with its delicate floral aromas and spicy red fruit and almond.

Discovery is half the fun. Have you ever wanted to make a pyramid truffle box? Wonder no more.

Vodka pills may not quiet your throat whilst at the opera but they’re mighty tasty. Flavor as desired. Via CP

Survival of the Fittest (M&M):

Whenever I get a package of plain M&Ms, I make it my duty to continue the strength and robustness of the candy as a species. To this end, I hold M&M duels.

Taking two candies between my thumb and forefinger, I apply pressure, squeezing them together until one of them cracks and splinters. That is the “loser,” and I eat the inferior one immediately. The winner gets to go another round.

I have found that, in general, the brown and red M&Ms are tougher, and the newer blue ones are genetically inferior. I have hypothesized that the blue M&Ms as a race cannot survive long in the intense theater of competition that is the modern candy and snack-food world.

Occasionally I will get a mutation, a candy that is misshapen, or pointier, or flatter than the rest. Almost invariably this proves to be a weakness, but on very rare occasions it gives the candy extra strength. In this way, the species continues to adapt to its environment.

When I reach the end of the pack, I am left with one M&M, the strongest of the herd. Since it would make no sense to eat this one as well, I pack it neatly in an envelope and send it to M&M Mars, A Division of Mars, Inc., Hackettstown, NJ 17840-1503 U.S.A., along with a 3×5 card reading, “Please use this M&M for breeding purposes.”

This week they wrote back to thank me, and sent me a coupon for a free 1/2 pound bag of plain M&Ms. I consider this “grant money.” I have set aside the weekend for a grand tournament. From a field of hundreds, we will discover the True Champion.

There can be only one.

Via +Kitsune Noir

We’ve been conditioned to believe that baking soda reduces and eliminates odors in the refrigerator. It doesn’t. At least not as well as activated charcoal. In addition to smelly cheese, activated charcoal purifies contaminated solutions and is administered as an antidote to certain ingested poisons. And this the same stuff used in water filters and fish aquariums. It’s safe and it works. Get it for cheap at your local fish store. Note : The best activated charcoal is made from coconut hulls though difficult to find.

Learn what kitchen myths are true and which are false. Did you know that all thickening agents are not created equal?

Advice from a less-than optimistic fortune cookie: “Your luck is just not there.”

No frothing at the mouth. Bring out the bourdeaux. It’s duck ragu risotto for dinner tonight.

Today, I went to La Farine and purchased my usual, a rustic baguette accompanied with two pads of butter and some jam. I was all set to enjoy them when Jeff, the owner, arrived. Jeff did a slight squeeze of the rustics decided that the moisture content (or something else) wasn’t exactly right and pulled all of the rustics from the shelf and discarded them. Noteworthy to all of this was the fact that my recently baked rustic was replaced with a just baked one. Wow! Jeff, kudos to you and your crew for creating great patisserie and for providing a wonderful experience. (File Under: Exceptional Customer Service)

La Farine has opened a new outpost in the Fruitvale area of Oakland, CA. It’ll be baking many more of the rustics that we love and baked goods. Unfortunately, this week (notably today) was a transition period with rustics disappearing early in the day. I was not one of the lucky few. Perhaps, tomorrow.

I have to agree. This are probably the most beautiful espresso machines I’ve ever seen too. (“I’ll take blue to match my Bugatti," he say’s wishfully.) Very CP

Shhh. Keep this a secret. The best soufflés in San Francisco are at Café Jacqueline.

Vodka snob? MythBusters supports your claims as it does a lot of testing with vodka. Comforting is the fact that cheap vodka improves with filtration, although the the top vodkas always prevail. Results from all the episodes here.

Need to chill a magnum of champagne (or beer) fast? Drop bottle into a mixture of salt, ice and water. Result. Salt lowers the freezing point thus making the water cooler (than ice water) and your bubbly chill faster. Note: Add salt before water.

“Champagne is the only wine that leaves a woman beautiful after drinking it.” — Madame de Pompadour