Sounds Good

FrankenFood, TMI among 2009 food trends
As much as I love to read and write about food, people are surprised that I don’t watch The Food Channel. That may be because I don’t have the cable to get it. But I sure like hearing what they have to say.
The Food Channel has released its Top Ten Food Trends for 2009, based on research conducted with the World Thought Bank and the International Food Futurists. Here’s what they predict:
1. Home on the Range — Downsized economy breeds new generation of home chefs, more food-savvy than their predecessors
2. Foodie 2.0 — Growth of virtual and non-virtual food communities
3. Going, Going Green — Kitchens go eco-conscious
4. Living La Vida Locavore — Eating locally and seasonally, both at home and in restaurants
5. TMI? — Is seeing the calorie count on the menu Too Much Information (TMI), or will it lead to healthier choices?
6. FrankenFood — The rise of bioengineering and genetically modified food; the next evolution of last year’s Functional Food trend
7. Food Philanthropy — Individuals and companies address world hunger
8. Food Insecurity — The call for tighter food controls, after the tomato and jalapeño scares of 2008
9. Brewing Business — Striking a balance when cost is an issue; the divide widens between the exotic and day-to-day food needs
10. Where in the World … is the next flavor trend coming from? It’s all about globalization and variety

We’re on a break
As we come down from holiday indulgence highs, I’ll give y’all a little break from the super-healthy talk, but I’ll let you know what’s coming. Be prepared for the Flat Belly Diet, which is simply a guide to healthy eating. I’m loving the oatmeal with chocolate and raspberry.

At table with the Darwins
While her husband was studying science, Mrs. Charles Darwin was keeping tabs on the house. We can barely imagine a world managing servants to stock and prepare supplies for a large estate.
Emma and Charles Darwin raised a large home at Down House, 16 miles from London, a journey that took two hours.
Buttered eggs, Scotch woodcock, fish overlay and a French ragout of mutton with turnips make up the Darwins’ fare. Veal cake is a strange-to-us meatloaf of mixed raw meat and liver.
I’d be most likely to enjoy broiled mushrooms stuffed with breadcrumbs and parsley and stewed spinach, made with cream and nutmeg.
Darwin loved sweet things, the book reports. I imagine I’d enjoy the burnt cream and burnt rice that Dusha Bateson and Weslie Janeaway feature in this book of interesting history and fetching photographs.
ddoiron@panews.com