I purchased a pound of prosciutto today for $4. Everyday goodness.

I’ve never ran a restaurant but if I did and it wasn’t making money, I would watch at least one episode of Kitchen Nightmares on Fox to find out how (elementary rules) to make my restaurant shine. This is Restaurant 101. It’s premise is simple: to help a failing restaurant succeed. Led by Gordon Ramsay he’s his classic self. Straight-forward and abrasive yet sincere. In this particular episode, he was called in to turn-around a restaurant, the Handlebar on Long Island, New York. Good food and cleanliness are not in abundance. And a disgruntled and ambivalent owner contributes to the drama.

To bring success to the restaurant Ramsay does the simple and obvious. Clean. Give patrons the (good) unexpected – free food. Timeliness. Good, hot food. Unfortunately, fixing what’s broke is more difficult than that. It’s revealed that the head chef doesn’t want to cook and is overwhelmed by a unmanageable menu. Furthermore, she doesn’t communicate when things aren’t going well. Like so many of the previous nights, this one ends in disaster.

Next, Ramsay’s crew does a complete interior makeover of the Handlebar and christens it Long Island’s first gastropub. The employees give blank looks until the concept was explained. Good food. Reasonable prices. To reopen the Handlebar, Dee Snider from Twisted Sister is brought in to promote the restaurant. Everybody goes on a motorcycle ride and passes out flyers. For the grand reopening, a reduced and simplified menu is presented to a packed house. Experiencing a few bumps, tims goes by, and everybody’s talking and the restaurant is making money.

What did I observe? A few life lessons in action. Hire people with enthusiasm. Find people that are inspired and passionate. Realize that everyone’s working for themselves and you should appreciate them. When you’re overwhelmed ask for help. Communicate. Learn to delegate. Accept criticism and be willing to change. Listen. Above all else, especially for a restaurant, keep your work areas clean. Pigs are clean it’s just that we don’t allow them to be. Be a proud owner and you’ll attract proud employees.

Note: The producer’s have removed the desire to want to shoot the messenger.

The Beşiktaş Fish Market. Gorgeous. Urban. Iconic. Istanbul.

This is as delicious as you can get for winter soup, Sweet Potato and Butternut Squash Soup.

There are many fascinating occupations. For me one of the most interesting is that of Anthony Bourdain – author, chef, and culinary and cultural adventurer. He travels the world, meet cultures, and discovers food. Now, that’s my kind of work. If anyone considers it that.

I grew up in a grocery store with a partially balanced diet of seasonal fruits the O’s (Cherrios, Spaghetti-Os, and Oreos). I often wondered about food and less often than not the history of food. Where do things come from? How were they discovered? Why are things are considered delicacies in certain cultures and downright taboo in others. (For example, animals and organ meats.)

I discovered a online journal called the Anthropology of Food “dedicated to the social sciences of food. [It’s] an open access bilingual academic journal in French (predominantly) and English… and published by a network of European academic researchers sharing a common intellectual interest in the field of social sciences and food.” There’s much to discover as well as a chance to brush-up on your French. Here’s an excerpt from Crispy in the French breakfast.

“Breakfast as we know it has not always existed. Its history begins in the XVIIIth century when the custom of drinking coffee and coffee with milk served with toast, spread in the cities. The French term petit déjeuner was coined at the end of the nineteenth century when the current three meals pattern was set up. A campaign for the reform of breakfast was outlined to promote different types of abundant and balanced breakfasts, especially the combination of cereals and fruits.”

Turkey Help clues us in to baking the bird and the surrounding feast. It’s brought to you by the wonderful and supercilious editors of Cook’s Illustrated. No surprises. (Turkey or stuffing. I like both.)

Sit mens sana in corpore sano (a sound mind in a sound body) is a famous Latin quotation. It is often translated as “a healthy mind in a healthy body.” Healthy eating and play lead to a healthy body. Unfortunately, childhood obesity is at an all-time high in the United States. We can change this by eating right.

An organization called the National Policy & Legal Analysis Network to Prevent Childhood Obesity (NPLAN) was formed to provide “leaders in the childhood obesity prevention field with focused legal research, model policies, fact sheets, toolkits, training and technical assistance to explain legal issues related to public health. [Their] goal is to help create strong childhood obesity policy interventions that will reverse the epidemic by 2015.”

Contact NPLAN. Empowering action to make kids healthier.

The Art of Making Pâte Sucrée

I’m not sure I should tell you this, but there are many things I take for granted; at least in the pastry realm.

Indeed, I tend to think that every single person on earth knows how to make a Forêt Noire from scratch or that Ispahans are referred to as easy-peasy. It seems I’m that much into pâtisserie that I assume everyone is to and honestly, I thought it was the case.”

I realise that some pastries are time-consuming and require some advanced skills, but pâte sucrée… No way! (via Food Beam)

“The mighty American chestnut tree once was an integral part of Eastern forests, but it has been virtually wiped out by a fungus. Luckily for people in the Bay Area who’d like to enjoy chestnuts, though, a few small groves of other varieties survive locally.” Wanna pick some?

Do you have a community garden in your city? No? Be a hero and start one.

In the Bay Area, there are at least fifty-two in San Francisco. Fifty-two. And the The Inadvertent Gardener has identified and mapped the eight in Oakland.

Participating in a local community garden has many benefits. One gets great, fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables, reduced food bills, the chance to live greener, and meet your neighbors. What more could you ask for?

Ambidextrous Magazine, a non-food magazine, has dedicated Issue No. 7 to food. Features to enjoy are the branding of Vodka (PDF), and Cooking Lessons for Designers (PDF).

If bacon candy bars weren’t enough, we think you’ll enjoy sticky pig candy stripes. (Also know as making bacon into a candy bar.) For best results scatter the “sugar over the bacon, right at the beginning – not after backing it separately for a few minutes.” This is good. Really, really, really good. Via CP

Because we really need a drink and it’s Friday. Here’s how to say cheers! in more languages than I can name, even without encouragement.

I heard about Feufollet and Boudin (Cajun sausage) on NPR and wanted to know how to make it. I’m a firm believer in tasting what’s truly authentic and then making it my own.

What is Boudin? According to the Boudin Link all the folks in “South Louisiana know [that] Cajun boudin sausage is a delicious blend of rice, pork, and spices injected into a natural casing and served everywhere from the fanciest restaurants to gas stations in the country.” Additional* ingredients that may be added are shrimp, crawdads, alligator, liver, and onions. That is, add “everything except the squeak.” Note: certain ingredients may be in short supply in your area, namely alligator.

As I’m nowhere near South Louisiana I’ll have to wait until Mardi Gras, or the next time I’m down that way. Until then it’s linguiça and chorizo. Or my version of Boudin (without the squeak).

If you’re making ramen or some other noodles. Cook the noodles separate from the broth. Drain. Then add broth, and your other ingredients. You’ll be surprised how clean it tastes. (Science tells us that the starch is drained out.)

Never shall these words meet. No + Ice Cream + Tonight.