Knowing the source.... of your food

This new initiative from the government is getting the buzz in food circles this week. I worked in this campaign territory way back at the turn of the century (2000). It's a trend that just keeps growing!

If you've been reading my blog posts over the past year, you'll see this is one of my favorite movements in food culture. Now, what will I buy at the Farmer's Market tomorrow morning?

Got Pie?

All my trend attenae are shouting, it's time to return to pie. This week, Time Out Chicago writes about Hoosier Mama Pie opening in West Town. The owner, a former pastry chef from some of the most well-heeled joints in Cgo, decided to go back to her Indiana roots and return to pie. Yesterday, a group of colleagues decended on the counter at Apple Pan in LA. Magnificent burgers. Amazing Pie. Chunky layers of banana and whipped-from-scratch cream! Sitting at the counter, I felt we were channeling that famous painting, Nighthawks. Even the sound of the slamming screen door at the front of the restaurant just seemed "right." There's something so comforting, so retro about pie in these times!

Side-note: both of these pie restaurants trace their food culture back to Indiana pie traditions.

Recipe Culture Goes Viral

Back in the olden days (circa 1999), I thought it would be cool to work on a branded recipe that would take food culture by storm. You know, those recipes that suddenly seem to sweep every Mother's Day or 4th of July party, like so many of those 1970 classics: Hello Dolly Bars, Seven Layer Salad, Tater Tot Casserole. Today's story from the NYTimes conjures up ginormous portions of Oscar Meyer on the outside with tons of Johnsonville on the inside. The "Bacon Explosion" recipe is reportedly taking the digital world by storm. Evidence that America's food porn passion is going digital.

These two guys from KC posted the recipe just days before Christmas-- placing it for full viral potential. Their goal was to get ad revenue to support their BBQ championship hobby, but can a stint on the FoodNetwork and a big brand sponsorship be far behind? Is this the first big viral recipe in digital history? Wonder if we'll be seeing this at my friend Ralph's SupaBowl party (he's a sucker for the odd or novel recipe).

Link to the full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/dining/28bacon.html?scp=1&sq=take%20bacon%20sausage%20blog&st=cse