Literature
A Brief History of Chewing Gum
Gum is one of those things we tend to take for granted. Whether we chew it or not, most of us deal with it on a daily basis. It's the stuff kids smack and pop in public, or the secret weapon against garlic breath we keep stashed in our purses. It's the goo that makes us grimace on sidewalks.But hav...
June 16, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
The History of Spices
I attended a Smithsonian Resident Associates lecture this week by Fred Czarra, author of the new book, "Spices: A Global History." I can't say I came away with a clear overview of the global spice trade, but I did gain a sprinkling of loosely connected facts. I'll pass them on to you, in case it co...
May 15, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
Wicked Plants (and Fungi)
How could I resist a book with the title Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln’s Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities? This small, elegant volume by Amy Stewart packs in a ton of information on plants that have been used to murder or to intoxicate, some that can inflict pain or cause hallu...
May 14, 2009 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Become a Mad Scientist
If you ever meet Theo Gray, you’ll realize that the name “mad scientist” is probably a good description. He has serious credentials (he co-founded the company that produces the ever-useful Mathematica computer program), but his Wooden Periodic Table Table (for which he won an Ig Nobel Prize in Chem...
May 04, 2009 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Poetry on the Menu
April is National Poetry Month (it's also International Cesarean Awareness Month and School Library Media Month, but I couldn't find the food angles on those), and the literary food journal Alimentum is celebrating by distributing "menupoems" to participating restaurants in New York and a smatterin...
April 24, 2009 |
By Lisa Bramen
Food Matters on Earth Day
Lately I'm reading a book called "Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating," by Mark Bittman (a.k.a. NY Times' "The Minimalist"), and Earth Day seems like the perfect time to tell you about it.Bittman's thesis is simple but sobering: What you choose to put on your plate has a direct impact on the...
April 22, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
All You Ever Wanted to Know about Chocolate, Volume One
I recently had the opportunity to speak with Howard-Yana Shapiro, the global director of plant sciences and external research for Mars, Incorporated, the world's largest chocolate company (and largest pet food company, but try not to mix the two).Shapiro co-edited a new book called "Chocolate: Hist...
April 15, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
Cooking With the Bible
If you've ever wondered, What would Jesus eat?—or Moses or Esau, for that matter—then the cookbook-cum-hermeneutical text Cooking with the Bible: Biblical Food, Feasts, and Lore will enlighten you, or at least offer an informed guess.Written by Rayner W. Hesse, Jr., an Episcopal priest, and Anthony...
April 09, 2009 |
By Lisa Bramen
Voices from Literature’s Past
The British Library’s Spoken Word albums of recordings by British and American writers shed new light on the authors' work
March 20, 2009 |
By Matthew Gurewitsch
A Jazzed-Up Langston Hughes
A long-forgotten poem about the African-American experience is given new life in a multimedia performance
March 13, 2009 |
By Laban Carrick Hill
A Feast for the Eyes, if not the Stomach
Ever order a burger or some other food that looked mouth-watering and perfect in the advertisement, only to be disappointed by the sad, disheveled pile of slop you were presented? It makes you wonder why the real thing can’t look as good as the picture.
Well, it could, if you were willing to wait ...
March 05, 2009 |
By Lisa Bramen
Where Our Food Comes From
I just finished reading a new book by the prolific Gary Paul Nabhan, whose resume astounds me: He landed a half-million-dollar MacArthur Fellowship (aka "genius grant") early in his career, and has written some 30 books since then, in addition to several teaching gigs and founding a movement or two...
March 02, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
Evolution Began With a Second Helping of Beef Collops (Maybe)
It's Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday next Thursday, and the books are streaming out of publishing houses like so many startled pigeons. Nestled in among all the Beagles, giant tortoises, finches, vegetable mould, and barnacles arrives a volume seemingly written with the Food&Thinker in mind, a ...
February 04, 2009 |
By Hugh Powell
Book Worth a Look: The Devil's Food Dictionary
Last month, I mentioned a funny post on a blog called The Ethicurean, and said I hoped to read the author's book someday soon. And voila! Within days, a copy of Barry Foy's The Devil's Food Dictionary appeared on my desk. (On the off-chance that magic trick will work again...hey, I also hope to att...
January 08, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
Food News and Trends to Expect in 2009
—More people than ever going hungry as the global food crisis continues. And on a related note, an international rush to buy farmland.—Fewer free things, like bread at restaurants. Then again, maybe that's only fair, since many patrons are tipping less during the recession.—Pricier avocados, due to...
January 02, 2009 |
By Amanda Bensen
Smithsonian Notable Books for Children 2008
Surprising, inspiring and outstanding titles for youngsters and the grownups that read to them
December 19, 2008 |
By Kathleen Burke
Gourmet Gift Idea: Red Truck Baker, Smithsonian Knew Him When
One of the joys of working here at Smithsonian magazine HQ used to be Brian Noyes's homework. Brian, the magazine's art director until the beginning of 2008, took pastry classes at night and often brought his projects into the office the next day—quiches, plum tortes, scones.Brian decided to devote...
December 12, 2008 |
By Laura Helmuth
Recipes from Rock Stars: A Top-10 Wish List
Over at Hungry Magazine there’s a fun review of Lost in the Supermarket, a valiant attempt by two writers to shed some light on the cuisine of the rock star.It's a great idea. Rock life can't run entirely on gin, cigarettes and Cheez-Its, can it? Surely, every once in a while there must be somethin...
December 11, 2008 |
By Hugh Powell
Is That a Halibut Under Your Hood?
Talk about niche publishing: Could you direct me to the “automotive cooking” section of the bookstore, please?If such a section exists, you’ll find at least one book there: “Manifold Destiny,” a humorous “Guide to Cooking On Your Car Engine” that has become something of a cult favorite since its 19...
December 02, 2008 |
By Amanda Bensen
Sarah Vowell on the Puritans' Legacy
The author and 'This American Life' correspondent talks about her book on the colonies' early religious leaders
November 04, 2008 |
By Amanda Bensen
