Faves No.193

Favorite finds from the front lines of food.

This brings meal planning to a whole other level! Recently visionary chef Dan Barber and his partners launched a new seed company, Row 7 Seeds.  Instead of ability to be transported, uniformity and yield, these plants are bred for flavor.  "The beginning isn't the farm," said Dan Barber. "The beginning is the seed, because that's the blueprint that sets the stage of what the farmer is able to do with good farming."  (Eater , New York Times )

Possibly the coolest thing you will see this week.....or longer! A WATER WHEEL POWERED SPIT!!!!

In other crazy news, LIDL is now selling a new product at their check out counters.....locally grown cannabis.  It's a good thing they have all kinds of deals on munchie-able snacks!  (Guardian)

Michelin Stars? James Beard? What is the difference? Well, here you go - a handy dandy guide to restaurant awards! (Eater)

Fresh? Frozen? Fresh Frozen? Most consumers don't go for items down the frozen aisle, but why? Is it time to become an arctic explorer? (NPR The Salt)

Friday Faves No. 123

our favorite finds from the front lines of food

Happy Halloween!

Decoding The Food And Drink On A Day Of The Dead Altar "This day is a joyous occasion; it's a time to gather with everyone in your family, those alive and those dead," says Hayes Lavis, cultural arts curator for the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. (NPR)

DIY destruction: Illegal foragers are stripping UK forests of fungi. “In rural areas, foraging is fine if you are picking for your own personal use. But the difference with Epping Forest is that it is on the doorstep of the millions of people in London and can even be reached by tube train. (Guardian)

How Benu’s Corey Lee Attained the ‘Unattainable’ Third Michelin Star On writing his upcoming cookbook and how that influenced him: "Writing the book and going through the process of writing that book was, I think, really important in the evolution of our restaurant. The moment you start to explain things or articulate ideas that just live in your head, you start to understand them a lot more and I think that's really focused the identity of the restaurant in the past year or two. That book was really a catalyst for the way our food has evolved and the kind of menu that we do now." (Eater)

The Digitized, Home-Delivered Future Of Our Food Supply Will going to the grocery store be history? How the online order and delivery business is reshaping our food economy. (On Point)

Shut Up and Eat : A foodie repents A thoughtful piece on the endless food chatter. "The first time I quit restaurant reviewing, in 1995, I remember thinking that the fascination with food was a bubble: we had reached Peak Food. I may never have been more wrong about anything." (New Yorker)

With candy, you know you're eating sugar. It shouldn't be sneaky. John Oliver, as usual, does a great job taking it to the sugar industry. Via Grist