Gary Allen's Blog

The hottest part of summer is, traditionally, an unproductive period for creative people. As a rule, we find it too easy to just kick back and doze in the season’s fragrant breezes. 

There are, as with most rules, some exceptions: performers at outdoor music venues and painters of the plein air variety (‘though high-brow galleries aren’t showing much contemporary plein air paintings these days, so their efforts might be in vain). We live almost exclusively in a modern technological world, and Nature—as a subject, alas—is not-so-much in fashion.

Soon, as Summer cools down, the harvest season will be upon us. With longer and cooler nights, even the most sluggard artists and writers will gulp a second (or third) cup of coffee, and get back to work.

Nonetheless, even in the heat of August, we’ve managed to continue publishing via Substack (speaking of “modern technology”). Since the last issue of these updates, we posted:
“What Baseball Could Have Taught Me...” on sport and pedagogy;

“Java Jump-start…” coffee and writing;

“Life Imitates Art & Vice Versa…” for the love of reading;

“Fifty-one Years Ago This Week...” another excerpt from a work-in-progress;

“Oysters and Saltpeter,” indulging an indelicate subject;

“Bulls**t,” a kind of book review;

We also added a story, “Dating/Data,“ to Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition), and wrote a smaller story, “Life is Undependable,” with no specific plans for its distribution.

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a LOT of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

Paul Erdos once wrote, “A mathematician is a device for turning coffee into theorems.” He should have proposed a more general law; one which would posit the same for all kinds of writing. It’s no accident that “coffee” appears so often, here (including in these Anglophone selections from On the Table’s culinary quote collection:

Coffee: Induces wit. Good only if it comes through Havre. After a big dinner party it is taken standing up. Take it without sugar—very swank: gives the impression you have lived in the East. King Edward VII of England

 

A PROCLAMATION FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF COFFEE HOUSES: Whereas it is most apparent that the multitude of Coffee Houses of late years set up and kept within this Kingdom... and the great resort of idle and disaffected persons to them, have produced very evil and dangerous effects; as well for that many tradesmen and others, do herein misspend much of their time, which might and probably would be employed in and about their Lawful Calling and Affairs; but also for that in such houses... divers[sic], false, malitious [sic], and scandalous reports are devised and spread abroad to the Defamation of His Majesty’s Government, and to the disturbance of the Peace and Quiet of the Realm; his Majesty hath thought it fit and necessary, that the said Coffee Houses be (for the Future) put down and suppressed... King Charles II of England

 

Moderately drunk, coffee removes vapours from the brain, occasioned by fumes of wine, or other strong liquors; eases pains in the head, prevents sour belchings, and provokes appetite. England’s Happiness Improved (1699)

 

There is no cure ‘gainst age but it. Alexander Pope (on coffee)

Gary
September 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or if you know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Deb Perelman—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list, but should you choose to be one of them, let us know, and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Citrus Varieties

(Givaudan Citrus Variety Collection at University of California at Riverside)

Espadín: The Surprisingly Short History of Mezcal’s Most Prominent Agave

(Brian Alberts’ VinePair article traces the history of one species’ success)

Everything but the Bar Mat: The Gnarly History of the Jersey Turnpike Shot

(Pete O’Connell’s account, at VinePair, of a libation that could make anyone a teetotaler)

Food and War: Recipes of Survival, Resistance, and Power

(Vanesa Miseres, at The Recipes Project)

(Pete O’Connell, at VinePair, on evolving names—and ingredient lists—for familiar libations)

Great Plant Breeders

Part 1: Ed O’Rourke, the Fig Wizard

Part 2: Allan Norden, Mr. Peanut

Part 3: Floyd Zaiger and Stone Fruits

Part 4. Harold Fogle & the Rainier Cherry

Part 5: George Waldo, the Berry Breeder

Part 6: James Moore & Better Blackberries

Part 7: W. Carroll Barnes & the Cucumber

Part 8: Maxine Thompson

Part 9: Calvin Lamborn & the Sugar Snap Pea

Part 10: George J. Raleigh, Lettuce Savant

(David Sanford Shields’ continuing exploration of the scientists who developed our crops)

Growing Buzz Around Ancestral Wines, The

(Bojan Pancevski’s article, in The Wall Street Journal, on the trend to utilize ancient wine varietals)

Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Judge a Rosé by Its Color

(Olivia White at VinePair)

How Chartreuse Finally Made It Big (Again)

(Aaron Goldfarb’s VinePair account)

How Millions of Pounds of Maine Lobster Make It From New York to China

(Sarah Laskow follows the money for Atlas Obscura)

How the Tomato Created the Potato

(Laura Baisas, in Popular Science, on cross-pollination that happened nine million years ago)

How Women Shaped Human Evolution Through Food Processing

(Karen L. Kramer’s article in Sapiens)

Indigenous Origins of the Maine Lobster Bake, The

(Ann Pollard Ranco’s steamy account in Atlas Obscura)

Roman Fish-Processing Facility at Tel Dor, Israel, A: Reinterpreting the Roman “Purple Dye Factory”

(new evidence that the site was not manufacturing Tyrian Purple, but garum; article in International Journal of Nautical Archaeology)

Science Says This Is the Best Way to Grill Steak

(as reported in Inverse)

What Was a Restorator?

(according to Jan Whitaker’s blog, Restaurant-ing Through History, it was much ado about “soup”)

When Mezcal Was Moonshine: Oaxaca’s Unofficial 1980s Prohibition

(Brian Alberts, on Mexico’s suppression of agave beverages, at VinePair)

Why this Alcohol Was So Popular During Prohibition

(the odd success of bathtub gin)

— inspirational (or useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

10 Clever Dessert Recipes from WWII Rationing

14 Old-Fashioned No-Bake Desserts People Still Love Today

14 Telltale Signs a Recipe’s a Winner

30 Vintage Photos of Fast Food Restaurants Over the Years

1000 Words of Summer
Editing Week, Part 1

Editing Week, Part 2

“A Yorkshire Pudding Like a Dishcloth”: How Did British Pub Food Get So Grim?

Actual Best Beer Cities in the United States, The

America the Tasty 2025: Comfort Food from Every State

Are Restaurant Cookbooks Back?

Being Creatively Resourced Is Like Building Up Your Food Reserves for the Future

Case for Lunch, The

Cheap Sandwiches from Around the World That Everyone Should Try

Cookbooks—A Resource to Study Food History

Dianne Jacob’s Take on Cookbooks and the Stories We Tell Through Food

Dicing an Onion the Mathematically Optimal Way

Dining with Michael Pollan

Extra Ice Please: A Cool History of the 19th Century Ice Trade

Fear of Restaurants?

Food Documentary that Would Kill on Delta, A

Glass Against the Machine, A

How an M&M Sparked the Search for the Next Perfect Peanut

If Wine Is Poetry in a Glass, Then Writing About It Must Be Poetry on the Page

Ironies of an AI Chef, The

Lobster Ice Cream

Lost Art of Taking a Long, Boozy Lunch, The

Maillard Over-Reaction, The

Morality of Restaurant Criticism, The

Nation Flags Made from that Country’s Most Iconic Cuisine

Permission Workbook, The: Why Do You Want To Write The Story?

Review: Chefs, Restaurants, and Culinary Sustainability

Re-visiting Old Cookery Manuscripts as Books for the Present. Two Approaches

Right Way to Pronounce “Gyro,” The

Seventeenth Century English Recipe Books: Cooking, Physic and Chirurgery. In Essential Works for the Study of Early Modern Englishwomen.

Should You Post about Politics or Keep Quiet?

There’s a Big Difference Between Barbecuing and Grilling Meat

Tragedy of Umami, The: When Depth Becomes Default

Trust the Reader

U.S. Drinking Rate at New Low as Alcohol Concerns Surge

Vintage Desserts People Loved In The 1970s

What’s Behind a Michelin Star?

Why Boredom Is Good (for Writers)

Why Should I Keep Doing Creative Work When It Isn't Paying the Bills?

Why You’re Probably Pronouncing Bologna Wrong

— podcasts, et cetera —

America’s Oldest Tofu Shop

An Ode to Coffee Lovers

Ark of Citrus (Classic), The

Cheese that Changed Everything, The: The Food that Built America

Cookshelf

(an app for searching in, and keeping track of, your own cookbook collection)

Jim Gaffigan: Decaf is Unamerican

Julia Child’s Key to Cooking (but Also Life)

Kolache Triangle, The

Mezcal’s Untold Past, Soaring Present, and Fragile Future: Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Modern Marvels: Cheese's Glorious, Gooey History!

Mold Behind Brie Cheese Could Face Extinction, The. Can We Save It?

Most Dangerous Fruit in America, The

Paula Whyman: In the Weeds: Writing, Identity, & Belonging

Reasons Why American Breakfasts Are the Way They Are

Why the Tudors Loved Capons (and Avoided Roosters)

— changed URL—

On Pleasure, Food, and the Moral Meaning of Flavor

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible : Cruel & Unusual Foods That Moms Used to Make and Inflicted on Young & Innocent Palates

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Three, Third Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #299 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Squash blossoms; in the Collection of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

We knew, when The Resource Guide for Food Writers was published, that parts of it would soon become obsolete, so we started issuing these free updates. This issue marks 25—TWENTY-FIVE!—years of sending them. In celebration of our Silver Anniversary, this issue’s table (of contents) is groaning under the weight of even more tasty choices than usual.

Over the past quarter century, we’ve seen the demise of bulletin boards (does anyone even remember them?), Google’s virtual replacement of all the other search engines, the addition of personal food blogs (the first one I included, here, was Julie and Julia), and—more recently—podcasts. 

The web is a vast universe of food information, and like another universe, it’s constantly expanding. We hope you’ve found some of the sites we’ve discovered to be useful. To that end, we’ve enlarged the focus of the updates. It used to be called “Food Sites for [insert month and year here],” but is now called “Food & Writing Sites for [insert month and year here]”. 

Yet another addition to the web is a resource both for readers and writers: Substack. We’ve taken to that new medium, as well, and—since the last issue of these updates—posted:

“Close Encounters of the -nth Kind,” a new entry in a book-in-progress (Meetings with Remarkable Men… and a Few Others);

“Solitude,” writing about writing in isolation;

“Entitlement,” a sort of character sketch;

“Playing the Part,” another new entry in that book-in-progress;

“Quidquid Cognoscitur,” an essay on seeing;

“Awkward First Date with a Robot,” a virtual brush with fame;

“On Editing (and a little self-editing),” someone else’s work-in-progress;

“Taking Liberties…” an ahistorical exercise;

“Intelligent Design,” another new entry in that book-in-progress;

“…But I Digress,” on one’s stream of consciousness (or lack thereof;

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a LOT of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

Summer is hot dog season (and Joey Chestnut is once again its champion), so let’s honor America’s favorite mystery meat with selections from On the Table’s culinary quote collection:

A hot dog at the ball park is better than steak at the Ritz. Humphrey Bogart

 

Although the frankfurter originated in Frankfurt, Germany, we have long since made it our own, a twin pillar of democracy along with Mom's apple pie. In fact, now that Mom's apple pie comes frozen and baked by somebody who isn't Mom, the hot dog stands alone. What it symbolizes remains pure, even if what it contains does not. William Zinsser

 

I devoured hot-dogs in Baltimore 'way back in 1886, and they were then very far from newfangled...They contained precisely the same rubber, indigestible pseudo-sausages that millions of Americans now eat, and they leaked the same flabby, puerile mustard. Their single point of difference lay in the fact that their covers were honest German Wecke made of wheat-flour baked to crispiness, and not the soggy rolls prevailing today, of ground acorns, plaster-of-Paris, flecks of bath-sponge, and atmospheric air all compact. H.L. Mencken

 

When General Lee took possession of Chambersburg on his way to Gettysburg, we happened to be a member of the Committee representing the town. Among the first things he demanded for his army was twenty-five barrels of Sauer-Kraut.
The Guardian, 1869 (who knew that Confederates were so fond of hot dogs?)

Gary
August 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Alison Pearlman—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but—should you choose to be one of them—let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

America’s Most Political Food

(a New Yorker article, from 2017, on South Carolina BBQ)

Ask a Wine Pro: What Is Black Chardonnay?

(Hannah Staab’s answer at VinePair)

Ask a Wine Pro: What Is a “PiWi” Grape?

(another answer from Hannah Staab)

Birthplaces of Every Popular Style of Beer, The

(a world map, from VinePair)

Caffeine Supports Focus, Memory, Antioxidant Activity, Athletic Performance & More

(Morgan Chamberlain’s report in mindbodygreen)

From Battlefields to Jukeboxes, the Surprising History Behind the Rum & Coke Isn’t What You Think

(who knew that Morey Amsterdam had something to do with it? Wayne Curtis, at Men’s Journal, that’s who)

Guide to the Cardamoms of the World, A

(Andrew Coletti, on several genera of the Zingiberaceae—Ginger—family, for GastroObscura)

History of… Pizza, A

(an entry from Paul Lenz’s substack page, The History of Things)

How Italians Eat: Explore the History of a Meal

(Carlotta Panza explains the historical background of the order of courses for Italy Segreta)

Inside the Surprisingly Long History of Beer and the Ancient People Who Invented It

(Austin Harvey doesn’t mess with Mesopotamia at All That’s Interesting)

Let’s Talk About Chinese Preserved Vegetables

(from Xueci Cheng’s substack site, “Chili Crisp”)

Newly Encountered Amazonian Artisan Food Products

(a report from Nicholas Gill’s Substack page)

On Alfeñique and Caring for the Dead

(Nawal Nasrallah’s article in Arablit; ameliorating mourning with sugar)

“One Day—and One Night—in the Kitchen at Les Halles”

(Anthony Bourdain’s 2000 article in The New Yorker)

Pop, Soda or Coke? The Fizzy History Behind America’s Favorite Linguistic Debate

(courtesy of The Conversation)

“Red Hot”

(more hot dog history from The New Yorker, August 3, 1928)

Spicy Southern Mustard That’s Perfect For Grilled Hot Dogs, The

(Mathieson Nishimura slathers his dogs with creole mustard at The Takeout)

Transcending Seasonality: Preserving in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Recipes

(Rachel A. Snell’s article in The Recipes Project)

Vineyards and Gardens of Ancient Pompeii

(an account—published in WANTED in ROME—of an exhibit, "De Gustibus from the Vegetable Garden to the Table,” held at several locations in Vesuvius’s ash-preserved moment-in-time)

What Does “Racy” Mean in Wine?

(an answer, from Marshall Tilden III, at Wine Enthusiast)

What Exactly Is Italian Ice—and Is It Even Italian?

(spoiler alert: according to Mental Floss, it’s no more Italian than spaghetti and meatballs)

Why All of Upstate New York Grew Up Eating the Same Barbecue Chicken

(spoiler alert: it’s because of the man who invented chicken nuggets)

Why Is It Called “Cream Soda” If There’s No Cream In It?

(Tim Brinkhof’s answer at Mental Floss; but what about egg creams?)

Why Is It Called “New York-Style” Cheesecake?

(Jake Rossen answers, at Mental Floss—with comparisons to other, less geographically-ennobled, cheesecakes)

Wonderwerk Cave

(possible site of our ancestors’ first attempts at cooking; alas, no recipes)

— inspirational (or useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

8 of the World’s Most Curious Drinking Customs and Superstitions

10 Additional Stray Copyeditorial Thoughts 

Aesthetic Politics of the Tasting Menu, The

All Hail the Slop Bowl, Lunch of Our Ancestors

Background to Food Studies, A

Brief History of Bog Butter, A

Chicken Vindaloo

Consumer Culture Matters: Insights from Contemporary Representations of Cooking

Cook Who Never Used a Cookbook Now Has Her Own, A

Cookbooks—A Resource to Study Food History

Could the Semicolon Die Out?

Culinary Heritage—Tracing, Shaping and Reshaping Food Culture from the Middle Ages to the Present

Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?

Eating this Food Before Bed Might Be Giving You Nightmares

Edible Discourse: Thinking Through Food and Its Archives

Embracing the Isolation of Social Media

Fantastic, Fading Retro Diners of Hong Kong, The

Flavors that Offend: The Aesthetic Function of Disgust

Food Manners

Food Writing and Messy Materiality

Gastronomy Foundation (The Influence of Culture on Food) Volume 11 SEP

Geography Lesson You Can Eat, The: Around The UK in 19 Local Dishes

Hidden Voices from the Culinary Past: Oral History as a Tool for Culinary Historians

Interview: Editor Sean deLone on How Modern Publishing Actually Works

Land Don’t Lie, The

Lessons from Archaeology and Anthropology Applied to New England Cookbooks

Little Rant about Using Images, A

Most Commonly Requested Meals Inmates Ask for Before Leaving this Mortal Coil, The

Old-School Desserts People Loved to Eat in the 1980s

On BBQ and the Writing of List Articles

On Pleasure, Food, and the Moral Meaning of Flavor

“Remembrance of Scents Past”

RENDERED 36: Root Beer

Romance and Cost of Great US Cheese, The

Soda Museum, The

Taste Gap, The (and Why Your Art Is Trash at First... But That’s Okay)

That’s Balsamic Vinegar? You’ve Been Conned

The Thinker vs The Machine

Traditional Food as an Archive of History and Culture

“Wait to Eat” Rule Is Awkward for Everyone, The. Here’s Why.

What Do You Want From Food Writing?

What Is a Bao Bun and How Is It So Fluffy?

What’s the Scratch in “Made from Scratch”?

Why Are Black and White Truffles the Most Expensive and Sought-After Foods?

Why Is Spam Made in That Distinct Rectangular Shape?

Wine Drinker as Flâneur, The

Wine Without Context Is Wine Half-Tasted

— podcasts, et cetera —

18 Snacks from the 1970s—We’ll NEVER Taste Again!

An Old Friend, Madonna’s Lippy, a Freshly Creosoted Fence, and a Beautifully Refreshing Lassi

Coffee Palace, The

Face It: You’re a Crazy Person

(if you think you want to be a cook—or a writer—you should listen to this)

How to Dine Like an Ancient Philosopher

How to Make Classic Tibetan Vegan Momo

Infamous Chicken Buffet in Aspic, The

Ketchup’s Sweet and Sour History

Last Limburger Plant in America

VinePair Podcast, The: Vermouth’s Great Vanishing Act

What Actually Is Yoo-hoo?

— changed URLs —

Sodamuseum.com

(the history of, and myths about, some of your favorite brands of soft drinks)

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible: Cruel & Unusual Foods That Moms Used to Make and Inflicted on Young & Innocent Palates

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Three, Third Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #298 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

A temptation of treats, seen (but not, alas, sampled)

in Whitby, North Yorkshire, England

“Sumer is icumen in,” or so the ancient song suggests. We’ve had a series of fiendishly hot days interspersed with cold, dark, and rainy ones—which means we’ve had plenty of time to post several new Substack pages when we should have been weeding the garden. The posts are destined to be part of the fourth volume of Substack Lightnin’—or, possibly, other books (but you can read them now, for free):

“One more time...,” another (historically inaccurate) story;

“Why It’s So Hard to Part with Books,” addiction and rationalization;

“An Evolutionary Tale,” speculation on the origins of poetry;

“The Poets’ Corner,” a tale of verse and amateur aeronautics;

“Illegitimi Non Carborundum,” on a less-satisfying part of the creative life;

“Eighty-one…,” a tale of two mentors who might, or might not, have met;

“Stalk Reality,” a vegetable love story; and

“ adventures in etymology.

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

Summer is the season of concupiscent curds, and On the Table’s culinary quote collection is getting first licks:

I doubt whether the world holds for anyone a more soul-stirring surprise than the first adventure with ice cream. Heywood Broun

 

Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone. Jim Fiebig

 

Ice cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn’t illegal. Voltaire

 

My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate—that’s my philosophy. Thornton Wilder

 

I don’t cry over spilt milk, but a fallen scoop of ice cream is enough to ruin my whole day. Terri Guillemets

 

Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos. Don Kardong

 

The only emperor is the emperor of ice cream. Wallace Stevens

Gary
July 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Kristin Jensen—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Bittersweet Beginnings of Vanilla Cultivation Can Be Traced Back to the Far-Flung Isle of Réunion, The

(Jay Cheshes’s article in The Smithsonian)

Cooking with Julia Child

(Calvin Tomkins’s 1974 New Yorker tribute)

Culture Shock

(a 2005 Gourmet article by Fucshia Dunlop)

Do You Even Paloma? The Many Origins and Identities of the Do-It-All Drink

(Greg Benson’s highballs of tequila and grapefruit, served at VinePair)

Ethnobotany of Foraged Food & Peculiar Produce, The

(Kevin Healey’s blog on unusual edible plants)

Fast Food Market Size, Industry Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis

(as reported by Fortune Magazine)

Food History Resources

(part of historic recipe blog: History in the Making)

(CaLea Johnson floats an answer at Mental Floss)

Library for Bartenders, A

(searchable archive of historic books on the subject)

Lost in the Sauce

(Slate Magazine navigates the aisles of grocery stores, in search of the proprietary sauces of fast food chains)

Mastermind for Food Writers

(Rebecca Blackwell’s Substack page of resources)

Ornate Ice Cream Saloons That Served Unchaperoned Women, The

(Jessica Gingrich gets the scoop at Gastro Obscura)

Pizza Brain’s Museum of Pizza Culture

(sounds like fun, but the museum closed in June 2024)

Seventeenth Century English Recipe Books: Cooking, Physic and Chirurgery. In Essential Works for the Study of Early Modern Englishwomen

(proof of the 2008 book edited by Betty S. Travitsky and Anne Lake Prescott; PDF)

Smithsonian, The: Open Access

(searchable database of their collections, with copyright-free images for any use)

Szathmary Recipe Pamphlets

(collection in the library of The University of Iowa)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

7 Miserable Old Ads From Back When Meat Was a Special Luxury

7 Wild Stories From the Prohibition Era

Art of Cooking, The: The First Modern Cookery Book

Arts of Cooking, The: Modern Times and the Dynamics of Tradition

Bottle’s the Thing, The: The Branding Evolution of Soda Pop

Curating Culinary Culture: The Rhetorical Function of Cookbooks and Their Paratexts

Dilemma of Deliciousness, The: When Taste Outruns Meaning

Five Greatest Sandwiches of All Time, The, According to David Lynch: “The Chips Are Optional”

Flint, Yeast and Butter: Chardonnayspeak, Translated

How a Hazelnut Spread Became a Sticking Point in Franco-Algerian Relations

How Did Our Taste Buds Get So Spoiled?

How to Avoid Crying While Cutting Onions, According to Physics

How to feed an Army in the 1950s

Introduction: Foreign Cookbooks

Mushrooms and Our Search for Meaning

Mystery of Munchies, The: Why Does Weed Make You Hungry?

Natural History of the Kitchen, A

Re-Thinking the Aesthetics of Food

Re-visiting Old Cookery Manuscripts as Books for the Present. Two Approaches

There’s No Right Way to Say “Taco”

Towards a Structured Approach to Reading Historic Cookbooks

What Will Happen to Our Endangered Deli Meats?

Which Country Produces the Most Lemons in the World?

Why Is Flour Sold In Paper Bags?

— podcasts, et cetera —•

At Modena’s Casa Maria Luigia, Chef and Collector Massimo Bottura Blurs Food, Art, and Philosophy

Charles Bock: Writing Success in the Age of Overload

Forgotten History (and Slippery Science) of Canola Oil, The

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Three, Third Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #297 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)

On Shakespeare’s birthday, we published the third volume of Substack Lightnin’—an historic event that pales in comparison with the printing of The First Folio. We also managed to post several new Substack pages (destined to be part of Volume Four):

“Assuming Responsibility,” like in a dream;

“View from an Eight-terraced Summit,” on possibly dashed literary hopes;

“A Literary Announcement,” tries to cash in on a mere coincidence;

“A Curmudgeon Speaks of Love,” more pontificating by Dr Sanscravat;

“Mnemosyne,” speculations on memory and poetry;

"Time is but the stream I go a'fishing in...,” thoughts on silence and solitude;

“The White Whale,” on rereading Moby Dick;

“Better Late Than Never,” more bookish true confessions;

“Coincidence?” some philosophical speculating; and

“A Writer, Before Writing Anything,” a reminiscence;

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

In recognition of the new grilling season, some excerpts from On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

If the melting pot exists, the cheeseburger may well be its most palpable product; to take a bite of it is to take a bite of history... Elizabeth Rozin

 

Although the frankfurter originated in Frankfurt, Germany, we have long since made it our own, a twin pillar of democracy along with Mom’s apple pie. In fact, now that Mom’s apple pie comes frozen and baked by somebody who isn’t Mom, the hot dog stands alone. What it symbolizes remains pure, even if what it contains does not. William Zinsser

 

My favorite animal is steak. Fran Lebowitz

 

Sacred cows make the best hamburger. Mark Twain

Gary
June 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Cynthia Bertelsen—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

17 British Sauces and Condiments You Should Know

(according to Tasting Table’s Adrienne Katz Kennedy)

Art and Science of Decanting Wine, The

(Mike Desimone and Jeff Jenssen “spoke with experts” for Robb Report)

Bitter Truth: Why Has Chocolate Become So Expensive?

(several reasons, according to Alex Kozul-Wright, in Al Jazeera)

Eight Asian Sauces to Keep in Your Pantry, The 

(the BBC’s guide to sources of umami—other than marmite)

Ethnic Food: The Other in Ourselves

(Paula Arvela’s 2013 paper in Food: Expressions and Impressions)

Expert Sets the Record Straight on Bourbon’s Biggest Myths, An

(Christopher Osburn’s 100-proof answer, in The Manual)

Food Section, The

(“intelligent food journalism that helps make sense of the South’s extraordinary and complex culinary scene”)

Gene Edited Superfruits That Last for Weeks Heading for Our Shelves

(O brave new world, that has such fruit in it—according to The London Times)

How Much Should an Oyster Cost?

(Eater’s Amy McCarthy has the answer, alas)

How to Read a German Wine Label

(Emily Saladino decodes for us at imbibe magazine)

Success the Great Point

(a tribute to Fernand Point, by Jerimiah Tower)

Trimalchio’s Dinner Party

(an excerpt from Suzette Field’s book, A Curious Invitation)

Why Chinese Food Doesn’t Care About Your Wine Rules

(according to Andrew Sun, in Vino Joy News; “pairing is harder when there are ten courses being served”—simultaneously)

Why We Love Artisanal Wines

(essay by philosopher Dwight Furrow)

Wine Animals

(wow… is this overthinking, even with the help of AI?)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

12 Incredible Images of Alcohol in American History

15 Vintage Sandwiches that Nobody Remembers Anymore

A Metabolomics Comparison of Plant-Based Meat and Grass-Fed Meat Indicates Large Nutritional Differences Despite Comparable Nutrition Facts Panels

“A Practical Art”: An Archaeological Perspective on the Use of Recipe Books

Bagels, Ranked

Book Creation Process: from Concept to Finished Book

Cool Condiments: “Little Treat Culture” Leading to Boom in Preserves and Sauces

Culinary Memories: Othering, Connecting, and the Social History of Cookbooks

Dariusz Galasiński: Is Wine Hard to Write About?

Decadence as Destiny

Food Is More than Itself

How Readers Interacted with Recipes in the 19th Century: Some Musings

How to Read a Royalty Statement

I Met a Cheese Fortune Teller and She Told Me Where I Had to Travel Next

I Went to a Tuna Cutting in Atlanta. Here’s What Happened.

In India, Music Helps Spread the Message of Millets

Is Making Your Own Century Eggs Worth It?

I’d Like to Report a Murder

Lab-Grown Meat’s Carbon Footprint Potentially Worse Than Retail Beef

Love Letter to Solitude, A

Most Consumed Meat In The World Is Unexpectedly Not Chicken, The

Number of Calories in Every Common Spirit and Cocktail Ingredient, The

Paradox of the Restaurant Cookbook, The

So, You Want to Write a Cookbook?

Some Thoughts on Recipes and Copyright

This Is the Menu?

To Err Is Human...

Untitled (or: Tony Prieto, Possibly the Most Popular Guy in Asheville)

What Should We Have for Dinner?

Where Does Inspiration Come From?

Why Food Stories are Powerful and Why We Need to Tell More of Them

— podcasts, et cetera —•

28 Slightly Rude Notes on Writing

Hot Cold Food vs. Cold Hot Food Taste Test

Ice Cream Truck Driver, An

Jaggery

Most Accurate Food Movie

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Three, Third Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #296 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Herring (Clupea harengus)

May is about to bust out all over—as it does every year—and every year its intensity comes as a surprise. We pity those who live in parts of the year that have no Winter—because, without the relentless dreariness of that season, what would make the frenzy of May so ecstatic?

While celebrating the onset of Spring (and preparing to search for the first morels), we managed to post several new Substack pages:

“Thirteen Words…” on our rights;

“Floating an Idea,” a sample of a work-in-progress;

“On Re-reading…” on a bookish romance;

“Testing… Testing…” on learning to write recipes;

“The Table Was Set, But…” on an unfinishable book project;

“All Bluebirds and Butterflies” is like living in a fairy tale;

“Smart,” an attempt to understand the nature of genius; and

“Psychedelia Redux,” a short story (entirely fictional, we assure you).

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

In May, several of our local streams are filled with spawning herring (hence this excerpt from On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

Some fishes become extinct, but Herrings go on forever. Herrings spawn at all times and places and nothing will induce them to change their ways. They have no fish control. Herrings congregate in schools, where they learn nothing at all. They move in vast numbers in May and October. Herrings subsist upon Copepods and Copepods subsist upon Diatoms and Diatoms just float around and reproduce. Young Herrings or Sperling or Whitebait are rather cute. They have serrated abdomens. The skull of the Common or Coney Island Herring is triangular, but he would be just the same anyway. (The nervous system of the Herring is fairly simple. When the Herring runs into something, the stimulus is flashed to the forebrain, with or without results). Will Cuppy

Gary
May 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Sally Ekus—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Adjust Your Disgust

(Alexandra Plakias, at Aeon, on the creepy crawlies—and other questionable items—that may be on our future plates)

Between Subjectivity and Science: Rethinking Objectivity and Wine Tasting

(another thoughtful essay from Dwight Furrow)

Historical Cooking Measures and the Metric System

(Linda Anderman on one critical aspect of recipe-writing)

Inside the Strange Origins of Graham Crackers and Why They Were Invented

(John Kuroski, at All That’s Interesting, on why they were originally boring, on purpose)

Sticky History of Baklava, The

(John Moretti, on the multiple versions of this ancient Mediterranean treat, in The Smithsonian)

The Differences Between Barrel Proof, Cask Strength, and Full Proof Whiskeys, Explained

(VinePair’s answer, provided by Pete O'Connell)

What Do the Letters in SPAM Really Stand For?

(Lindsey Reynolds avoids a direct answer, in The Takeout)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

12 Signs Your Seafood Isn't Fresh, According To An Executive Chef

Behind the Scenes: At the Dessert Table Photo Shoot

Does Guinness Beer Really Taste Better in Ireland?

Hidden Meaning Behind the Coffee Beans in an Espresso Martini, The

How Dining Out Differs Across Generations

Is British Food Still a Joke?

Machiavelli in the Kitchen

Martini Manifesto

New Era for Latino Cookbooks, A

Non-Fiction Proposal Guidelines

Notes From the Past: Modern Spirits Makers are Recreating (and Reinventing) Long-Forgotten Products

Oldest Ice Cream Shops in the US, The

On Owning Your Work

Origins of Taste, The

Reason You Never See People Drinking in Beer Commercials

Recipe and Photography, The. The Sensual Appeal of Image-Word Relations in Cookbooks

Reflections Around an Old-Fashioned

Social Climbers: Is Non-Stop Content Creation Now What It Takes for Restaurants to Survive?

The Biggest Technological Development in Human History Happened All Across the World Around the Same Time, by Groups of People With Zero Contact With One Another

“There Is No Recipe, Take It Or Leave It”

Tyranny of the Algorithmic Palate, The

We’re Living in the Age of the Culinary “-Ish”

What It Will Really Take to Feed the World

Why We Test Recipes

— podcasts, etcetera —•

Babalooda

How Crunch Took Over Our Tastebuds

Inside the Booming, Bourbon-Driven Barrel Business

Rejection; What NOT to Do When an Agent Passes on Representing You

Room for Dessert? Here’s Why Your Brain Says Yes to Sugar

Science of Delicious, The: Nik Sharma & Dan Souza Reveal the Secrets of Recipe Development

Table for One: The Joy of Solo Dining

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #295 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Our clocks have already sprung forward; Easter (and Purim & Passover) are fast upon us. We know it’s almost Passover because our grocery store shelves carry Fox’s U-bet, Jelly Rings, and Macaroons again. Already, Hamantaschen, Hot Cross Buns, and Paczki are sweetening our lives. Can chocolate bunnies, jellybeans, and marshmallow peeps be far behind?

When not frantically searching for signs of Spring (and seeing a few croci bloom in the front yard, and buds swelling on a few precocious trees), we diverted ourselves by posting several new Substack pages:

“Math Aversion” and a bit of dissembling;

“Salacious Reading” on early literacy and Worcestershire Sauce;

“Reacquaintance,” a new story about an old scoundrel;

“Eating to Live, Living to Eat,” on funeral food;

“Thanatopsis,” high school revisited;

“Thanatopsis Exhumed” on noms de plume;

“Writers Coming out of the Woodwork,” a sequel to the above;

and

“Say Whaaaaaaaa?” …yet another sequel.

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

April may seem sometimes cruel, but—hidden inside—it contains the sweet promise of first fresh finds from the garden (and yields occasional excerpts from On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

In the vegetable world, there is nothing so innocent, so confiding in its expression, as the small green face of the freshly-shelled spring pea.  William Wallace Irwin

 

A tiny radish of passionate scarlet, tipped modestly in white.  Clementine Paddleford

Gary
April 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Michael Procopio—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Chopping Block

(a tongue-in-cheek series on cookbooks that may soon be banned)

Culinary Tourism: An Exploratory Reading of Contemporary Representations of Cooking

(a paper by Douglas Brownlie, Paul Hewer & Suzanne Horne in Consumption, Markets and Culture)

Early History of the Avocado

(a paper, written in 1934 by Wilson Popenoe, on the history and etymology of the guacamole fruit)

History of Food Trucks Dates Back Farther Than You ’ d Think, The

(Carla Vaisman, in The Takeout, tracks them “way back to 1866”)

How the World Eats

(excerpt from Julian Baggini’s How the World Eats: A Global Philosophy)

Invention of Iceberg Lettuce Changed the Way Americans Ate, The

(Lindsey Reynolds on lettuce’s technological history for Takeout)

Maine Ship Captain Who Invented the Modern Donut, The

(a flash of deep-fried insight, in 1858)

RENDERED 34: Granny Smith Apples

(Lari Burgos’ substack page tells all)

Salty

(Nic Miller’s substack post on NaCl—with good links)

Scientists Finally Figured Out Why Tomatoes Don’t Kill You

(Andrew Paul reveals the facts about steroidal glycoalkaloids for Popular Science)

What Exactly Makes Wine Dry?

(the answer, at Take Out, from Dennis Lee)

When Did People Start Drinking Coffee?

(Dr. Russell Moul’s history in IFLScience)

Why Cask-Strength Spirits Require Distinct Bottle Designs

(Pete O’Connell explains that it’s not just marketing a luxury product)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

Beginner’s Guide to Making Sausage at Home, The

Care & Feeding

Dark Side of Poutine, The: Canada Taking Credit for Quebec Dish Amounts to Cultural Appropriation, Academic Says

Fresh Beds Make for Fresh Ricotta

have you given yourself permission?

How I Make Time to Write

Is There a Difference Between a Café and a Coffee Shop?

Maine Ship Captain Who Invented the Modern Donut, The

Neo-Prohibitionists Are Coming, The

Oral History of Louisiana’s Drive-thru Daiquiri Stands, An

Other People's Bookshelves Q&A with Mecca Bos

Slow Food Xingu: Indigenous Foodways as Resistance in the Brazilian Amazon

that certain je ne sais quoi

“We Still Mourn That Book”: Cookbooks, Recipes and Foodmaking Knowledge in 1950s Australia

What Does Writing Smell Like?

What It Was Like to Eat with Anthony Bourdain

When is it Time to Write Your Book Proposal?

Why Don’t More Fast Food Restaurants Serve Alcohol?

— podcasts, etcetera —•

Distribution of 19 Types of Berries Native to North America

How Phyllo Is Handmade by One of Greece’s Last Pastry Masters

On Writing Cookbooks, with author Kate Leahy

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two,  Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #294 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Greek masks, in The Getty Museum (apparently, Tragedy is the absence of wine)

March, whether in the rôle of lion or lamb, can always be trusted to provide some variety—much appreciated after the long dark months of January and February. Sometimes, the new month will deliver ridiculous amounts of snow, but there will also be days when Spring—if not on the wing—will at least be in the wings.

While doing some work on our own books-in-progress, editing and publishing a book of poetry for someone else, and writing a small essay, we distracted ourselves from the wintry messes, outside, by posting several new Substack pages:

“My Morning Commute,” which, oddly enough.is about cosmology;

“True Confessions,” on the plots of ROM-COMs;

“Back to Work (again),” a recent addition to a book-in-progress;

“In Sickness and in Health...” explores the intersection of curiosity and disgust;

“Recovering Addict,” on abandoning one addiction for another;

“How Dry I Am...” on what makes a martini a martini;
“Put it in Writing...” on penmanship, sort of; and

“Show Me The Money...” on filthy lucre, the media, and old books;

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

Since March is so apt to disappoint and lead us astray, we’ve decided to post—among other things—a bit of seventeenth-century foodwriting that was not hindered by too rigorous an adherence to the facts. (it’s an excerpt from On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

The most usual, common, and cheap sort of Food all China abounds in, and which all in that Empire eat, from the Emperor to the meanest Chinese; the Emperor and great Men as a Dainty, the common sort as necessary sustenance. It is called Teu Fu, that is Paste of Kidney Beans. I did not see how they made it. They drew the Milk out of the Kidney Beans, and turning it, make great Cakes of it like Cheeses, as big as a large Sieve, and five or six fingers thick. All the Mass is as white as the very Snow, to look to nothing can be finer... Alone, it is insipid, but very good dress’d as I say and excellent fry'd in Butter. Friar Domingo Navarrete

 

Quickly, while it’s still laughing at you. Harry Craddock, on how to drink a martini

Gary, March 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Dianne Jacob—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

6 Best Nuts to Eat, The

(“…according to nutritionists,” writes Kirsten Nunez for Martha Stewart)

18th Century Britain’s Great Culinary Breakthrough: Mushroom Ketchup

(Sarah Laskow’s Gastro Obscura article)

1920s Health Brunch: Fruit Puffs (1917) and Stewed Apricots (1900s)

(according to Sarah Wassberg Johnson—The Food Historian—our notions about nutrition have evolved with time)

8,600-year-old Bread Found in Türkiye’s Ancient Proto-city Catalhoyuk

(Abdullah Dogan’s report on an archaeological discovery, in Anadolu Agency)

Even the Great Martini Revival Can’t Save Vermouth

(more history of the classic cocktail)

Gastronativism: Us & Them

(interview, on The Common Table, with Fabio Parasecoli)

Giardino Torre: A Slice of Pizza History

(Luciana Squadrilli addresses some fakelore, for, Culinary Backstreets)

Heart of Dark Chocolate

(Rowan Jacobsen pursues the good stuff for Outside)

How an Ancient Roman Wine Survived for 2,000 Years

(more archaeology at work)

Is Black Coffee Good for You?

(Emily Caldwell has good news for us at The Manual, at least according to scientists)

Last Days of American Orange Juice, The

(Yasmin Tayag’s prognosis in The Atlantic)

On the Origin of the Pork Taboo

(Andrew Lawler reviews the evidence for Archaeology Magazine)

Pastis: The French Cocktail Born from a Banned Spirit

(what to do when you can’t get absinthe)

“Recipes Need a ‘Lightbulb Moment,’” says Emily Weinstein, Editor-in-Chief of New York Times Cooking and Food

(interview by Dianne Jacob)

So Long, Chilled Reds. The “Big Red” Renaissance Is Upon Us.

(Eliza Dumais reports on the return of tannins for Punch))

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

Ask a Somm: Is It Rude to Take a Picture of the Bottle I Ordered?

Darwin on How to Evolve Your Imagination

Expert Interview: Q&A with Dianne Jacob

Friendship Between Ketchup and Fries Goes Way Back, The

In a Post-Prohibition World, What’s the Point of “Speakeasies”?

Is It Safe to Cook with Wooden Spoons? Here’s What a Microbiologist Says

On the Hunt for the World’s Rarest Pasta

Picasso and Food in Art.

Rant about Food Writing, A

Reason Pregnancy Can Come with Pickle Cravings

Scientist Bakes “Incredible” Loaf of Bread Using 4,500-Year-Old Yeast Found in Ancient Egyptian Pottery

Stop Asking Your Sommelier for “Funky” Wine

Stop Buying Shitty Cookbooks: A Short Diatribe.

We Found Out What Actually Makes New York Bagels So Superior

Weird Rules that White House Chefs Have to Follow

What Country Drinks the Most Coffee in the World?

What Was the First Flavor of Campbell’s Soup?

What’s the Origin of Beer Cheese?

Why We Love Looking at Paintings of Food

World’s Most Expensive Cheesecake Cost More than Rent in NYC, The

— podcasts, etcetera —•

Best of Japanese Desserts, The

Craft Beer Isn’t Booming, but It Isn’t Busting, Either

“Day Without Immigrants” Protests Close Restaurants Across the Country

Eric’s Crispy Kimchi Dumplings (Napjak Mandu)

Gyoza

How the US’ Biggest Garlic Producer Survived the Fall of American Garlic

Mezcal Beyond Commerce

Quest for Sourdough goes to Greece and Türkiye: The Fermenting Power of Chickpeas.

Reimagining Classic Cocktails with Tequila

Sue’s Chile Oil Wontons

These Foods Expected to See Biggest Price Increases This Year, USDA Says

Where Did All the Good Bars Go?

Why is Chardonnay the Winemaker’s Grape & What a Family Brand Means with Chris Benziger

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #293 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

February is a generally unpleasant month (around here, anyway—folks in the tropics don’t have much to complain about, this time of year). Limiting the month to just 28 (or 29) days somewhat mitigates its nastiness, but really only shares it with its neighboring months.

It's all smoke and mirrors—just as Daylight Savings Time doesn’t actually save any time.

However, January’s been cold enough to make us stay inside… which means it’s been a productive month. We edited, designed, and published a book of poems—for someone else: (The Skewered Horse, by Philip Depinto). We also wrote a new story, and added it to an existing book of stories (Prophet Amidst Losses), and posted several new Substack pages:

“Notes from a Latter-day Scrooge,” anti-Holiday, pro-fruitcake;

“Not Only the Stockings Were Stuffed...” pasta etymology, folk and otherwise;

“Shameless in Gaza,” ain’t nature grand?

“Birthday Rites (or Rights),” on Newton and respecting the work of others;

“Bookstores (and booklife),” remembering old books and their influence;

“What’s the Good Word?” introductions, forewords, and prefaces, O my!;

“Adding On…” another short story (mentioned above);

“The Cheese Stands Alone... ” on finding a new friend;

...and a somewhat larger-than-usual edition of this newsletter. 

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

As is our wont, we include some seasonal quotations (found in On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

 

There is nothing better on a cold wintry day than a properly made pot pie. Craig Claiborne

 

It is not necessary to advertise food to hungry people, fuel to cold people, or houses to the homeless. John Kenneth Galbraith

 

Skiing consists of wearing $3,000 worth of clothes and equipment and driving 200 miles in the snow in order to stand around at a bar and drink. P.G. Wodehouse

 

Out of snow, you can’t make cheesecake. Jewish Proverb

Gary
February 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Natalie Maclean—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Aesthetics & Food

(encyclopedia entry by Krishnendu Ray)

All About Eggs

(advice from Chef John Ash)

Are Traditional Wine Pairings a Thing of the Past?

(Eric Asimov asks, and answers, at Swurl)

Debunking the Biggest Myths about Scotch Whisky

(The Manual’s Christopher Osburn clears the air)

Focaccia: A Neolithic Culinary Tradition Dating Back 9,000 Years Ago

(archaeological evidence from Late Neolithic Syria and Turkey, published by the Autonomous University of Barcelona)

History Behind Canned Deviled Ham Spread, The

(Lindsey Reynolds lifts the lid at Takeout)

Missing Piece, The: How Non-Alcoholic Brands are Trying to Capture Booze’s Most Elusive Elements

(Wayne Curtis, at VinePair, on the science behind booze-free booze)

Non-Judgmental Guide to Getting Seriously Into Tea, The

(Max Falkowitz has something brewing at Serious Eats)

Okra’s Obstreperous Origins

(Cynthia Bertelsen on Abelmoschus esculentus)

Processed Red Meat May Increase the Risk for Dementia

(Susan Fitzgerald’s article in Neurology Today)

Randall Grahm: From Rhône Ranger to Terroir Hunter

(Anthony Rose’s article in The World of Fine Wine)

Unbearable Whiteness of Milk, The: Food Oppression and the USDA

(Andrea Freeman’s article in the UC Irvine Law Review)

What Does It Mean to Let Wine “Breathe?”

(Angie Seibold’s answer, in The Takeout)

What Grapes are Actually Used to Make Champagne?

(Joe Hoeffner’s effervescent article, in The Takeout)

What’s the Difference Between an American Pale Ale and an IPA?

(Carla Vaisman, in The Takeout, serves a flight to explain)

Why Military Chocolate Was Deliberately Made to Taste Bad

(William Tecumseh Sherman said, “War is hell”—even though he never had to eat a Ration D bar)

Why the Black American Origins of Mac and Cheese Are So Hotly Debated

(Nneka M. Okona goes old school in The Guardian)

You Are What Your Ancestors Didn’t Eat

(Katharine Gammon on the long term—very long term—effects of a limited diet; in Nautilus)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

100 Most Legendary Restaurants

Aesthetics & Food

Are You What You Eat? How Food Shapes Self-Image

Brief History of Scientific Eating, A

Can Eating a Really Hot Pepper Kill You?

Chugging Away

Cook with Spice to Improve Your Health, and Discover a Whole New Bunch of Flavours

Could Old Cookbooks Be the Secret to Surviving the Cost-Of-Living Crisis?

Diet Culture History: From Ancient Greece to Ozempic

Don’t Eat Before Reading This

Ethnic Food: The Other in Ourselves

Fascinating Olive Oil Museum Designed by Philippe Starck

Feminist Story that Explains Why We Eat Cannelloni in Sant Esteve, The

Food as a Social Symbol and Exploring Its Cultural Role: View from Sociology of Food

Food: Identity of Culture and Religion

Great New York State Hot Dogs: Zweigle’s Red & Whites

Have We Officially Ruined the Martini?

How Pie and Mash Killed Itself

How Tortillas Lost Their Magic

How Will Immigration Crackdowns Affect Restaurants?

Inside the Japanese-American Farm Preserving Endangered Fruit

International Museum of Dinnerware Design, The

Is Aquaculture the New Factory Farming?

ISSUE 93, REFLECTIONS, Part 3: Lowcountry Cuisine, an Overview
Part 8: The Perfection Industrial Food

Let’s Bring Back Punch

Let’s Stop Using the Term “Food Desert”

Much of the World Considers This to Be a Rude Dining Habit. Are You Guilty?

Past Is Not Prologue, The

please give yourself permission

Taking the Scary Edge Off Sending Work to Publishers

Torpedo Juice: The Legendary, Illegal WWII Liquor Drunk in Alaska and Around the World

Touch the Cheese

Who Are the Ten Most Important People in the History of Food?

Why Ultraprocessed Foods Aren’t Always Bad

Why You Might Want to Drink More Coffee

You Might Just Have to Be Bored

You’ll Never Get Off the Dinner Treadmill

— podcasts, etcetera —

7 of the Most Faked Seafoods in the World

Dom Perignon, Grand Cru Champagnes and Marketing Myths with Chris Ruhland

Golden Age of American Bakeries Is Upon Us, The. Here’s Why.

Guacamole Is Like the Banana Bread of Avocados

How Lobsters Went from Prison Food to the Most Expensive Meal

Ina Garten and the Age of Abundance

Nutmeg: The Horrible History Behind the Popular Spice

What’s the Point of Cookbooks?

When Sugar Was Good for You

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #292 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2025 by Gary Allen.

Every year, as we replace the calendar, certain rituals are re-enacted: we’re not talking about not the New Year’s Resolution (about which the less said, the less embarrassment results from our failures to live up), nor the annual recap of the passing year’s events. We’ll also skip over the morbid lists of departed movie stars.

You’re welcome.

The format of stories that strike us, at this time of year are listicles (a delightful word that has only been around since 2007)—preferably about food and drink. You know: “top 100 snack foods,” or “10 favorite condiments you MUST have in your fridge,” or “52 essential pantry items, one for each week.” 

Never one to risk bucking tradition (at least when it’s so easy to comply), we’re including a few listicles in this New Year’s edition. As a public service, there’s also a link to one website that might be especially à propos for the first morning of January, 

Since this newsletter began, over twenty years ago, we’ve called it “food sites.” Because it was meant for food writers, we added various writing resources—because they seemed useful. So many of them have been added, especially lately, that it’s only reasonable to change the title to “food & writing sites.” 

While procrastinating (avoiding work on our own books-in-progress—and editing another for someone else), we’ve somehow been able to post several new Substack pages:

“The Golden Years”—when the spirit, but not the flesh, is willing;
“Italianate”—on being Italian, without any Italian blood;
“Holiday Angst”—an attempt to add levity to a stress-filled occasion;

“Embarrassment,” a tale of teenage wasteland (or waistline);

“Is ‘Risque’ just French for Risky Business?”—one way to find oneself married…;

“Effluent in at Least One Language,” on the unexpected connection between literary and renal production;

and

“On Unlikability,” some relief from excessive holiday bonhomie.

Candy cane season has arrived, which probably explains why we were briefly interviewed for an episode of Gastropod (on “The Curiously Strong Story of Mint”).

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

As is our wont, we include some seasonal quotations (Found in On the Table’s culinary quote collection):

Alcohol is the prince of liquids and carries the palate to its highest pitch of exaltation. Brillat-Savarin

 

All animals are strictly dry,
They sinless live and swiftly die.
But sinful, ginful, rum-soaked men
Survive three score years and ten.
And some of us—though mighty few—
Survive until we’re ninety-two. Anonymous 

Alcohol is a misunderstood vitamin. P.G. Wodehouse 

Gary
January 2025

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Cynthia D. Bertelsen—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

Do Ancient Hangover Cures Still Stand Up?

(Benjamin Taub reports, in IFLScience, on efforts by Alcohol Hangover Research Group to find answer)

Here’s What Bologna Actually Is (and Other Facts that Might Surprise You)

(Jacob Smith reveals the mystery meat in The Daily Meal)

History of Eleanor Roosevelt's Pecan Pie, A

(from Sarah Wassberg Johnson’s blog, The Food Historian)

How Fish and Chips Migrated to Great Britain

(Abbey Perreault wraps in newspaper—virtual newspaper, AKA Gastro Obscura)

In 1814, London Was Terrorized by a 320,000-Gallon Tsunami of Beer

(Rachel Funnell reports, in IFLSCIENCE, on an incident that sounds like a frat party gone amok)

Most Important People in Nightlife & Dining, The

(The Observer’s list of the most influential restaurant creators: investors, architects, and even some chefs)

Secret History of Risotto, The

(Anthony Lane’s New Yorker article warns, “culinary writing threatens to become a branch of moral philosophy, and a severe one at that…”)

Should You Avoid Alcohol If You’re Taking Antibiotics?

(according to Laura Simmons, at IFLScience, the answer is mostly “yes”)

Squashes Demystified

(everything on the genus Cucurbita, c/o The Botanist in the Kitchen)

Strange Thing That Is Lutefisk, The

(and no, it’s not a Lutheran joke)

What Are Tomatillos?

(answers from Martha Stewart)

What Sets a Farmhouse Ale Apart From Regular Beer?

(Takeout’s Carla Vaisman explains the difference… and it’s wild)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

6 Best Apps to Find Bars and Restaurants While Traveling, The

25 Most Important Recipes of the Past 100 Years

Are You a Baker or a Cook?

Baked Alaska Has New York Roots

Brief Meditation on Written Recipes, A

“First Catch Your Hare”: Part I

“Take Wyte Wyn”: Part II

“To the Queen’s Taste”: Part III

Buffet of Food-Art Stories, A

Corny Delights

Did the Real General Tso Have Anything to Do with the Beloved Chicken Dish?

Does Cheese Really Give You Bad or More Vivid Dreams?

Honey, I’m Cooking!

How Do I Become a Food Historian?

I’m a Waiter and I Say It’s Totally Fine to Order a Few Appetizers as Your Entrée

Interdisciplinary Insights into the Cultural and Chronological Context of Chili Pepper (Capsicum Annuum Var. Annuum L.) Domestication in Mexico

Is the Five-second Rule True? Don’t Push Your Luck.

ISSUE 93, REFLECTIONS,  Part 2: Taste

Part 6: Practical Thoughts upon the Revival of Landrace Grains and Heirloom Vegetables.

Joy of Old Cookbooks, The

Ladies of the Pen and the Cookpot: Isabella Beeton
Part I
Part II

Learning to Make the World’s Rarest Pasta

Measuring Cups

Michèle Roberts: The Art of Writing a Cookbook

Most Diners Want to Keep Tech Out of Restaurants, Report Finds

On Claiming My Identity as a Writer

On Turning Down the Volume to Hear Your Own Voice

Preserving and Sharing Food Stories

Safari Cooking: The Cook(I)

Today’s Poem: Recipe for a Salad

What’s Wrong With White Bread?

Why Has My Chocolate Turned White, and Is It Still OK to Eat?

World’s First Soda Brand Is Still Around Today, The

— podcasts, etcetera —•

100 Proof: Journey of the American Cocktail

Case of the Confusing Bitter Beverages, The

Six of the World’s Most Unique Restaurants

Slice of Cheese, A

Wine 101: Wine and Climate Change Part I: An Overview

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #291 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2024 by Gary Allen.

A familiar scent, more savory and welcoming than Pumpkin Spice Anything

The season we used to call Le Grand Bouffe approaches, ’though we now celebrate it with some age-based moderation. Youth and many of its more voracious appetites have gone to wherever such pleasures go. Still, we look forward to the idea of gross self-indulgence—even if we stick to just one—not heaping—plate at the holiday dinner table.

And maybe just one dessert.

By procrastinating (avoiding work on books-in-progress), we’ve been able to post several new Substack pages:

“So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish...”; a memento mori;

“To Quote Mr. Twain...” on why I’m not dead;

“Thinking, Remembering, Rethinking,” more on memory;

“Thinking About History,” a parable of political disappointment;

“Now is the Season of Our Discontent,” and comfort food;

“Snapshots,” some thoughts about photography (and imposter syndrome); and

“Tryptophanic Leftovers,” irreverent thoughts on the upcoming holiday...

You can, should you choose to, follow us on Facebook (where, among other things, we post a lot of photographs) and Twitter. Still more of our online scribbles can be found at A Quiet Little Table in the Corner and other Substack pages. There’s even an Amazon author’s page, that includes food writing and anything else we manage to get into print. 

As is our wont, we include some seasonal quotations (found in On the Table’s culinary quote collection).

Coexistence... what the farmer does with the turkey—until Thanksgiving. Mike Connolly 

Cooking Tip: Wrap turkey leftovers in aluminum foil and throw them out. Nicole Hollander 

I loved my mother very much, but she was not a good cook. Most turkeys taste better the day after; my mother’s tasted better the day before. In our house, Thanksgiving was a time for sorrow. Rita Rudner

Gary
December 2024

PS: If you encounter broken links, changed URLs—or know of wonderful sites we’ve missed—please drop us a line. It helps to keep this resource as useful as possible for all of us. To those who have pointed out corrections or tasty sites (this month we’re tipping our virtual hat to Michael Procopio

—thanks, and keep them coming!

PPS: If you wish to change the e-mail address at which you receive these newsletters, or otherwise modify the way you receive our postings or—if you’ve received this newsletter by mistake, and/or don’t wish to receive future issues—you have our sincere apology and can have your e-mail address deleted from the list immediately. We’re happy (and continuously amazed) that so few people have decided to leave the list but, should you choose to be one of them, let us know and we’ll see that your in-box is never afflicted by these updates again.

— the new sites —

All the US Presidents and Their Favorite Drinks

(Mashed’s Carlie Hoke is pouring)

Cognac Conundrum, The

(Jake Emen tells Vinepair why “the world’s most celebrated brandy is ignored in its homeland)

How the British Monarchy Made Breakfast the Most Important Meal of the Day

(Tom Parker Bowles’ LitHub “overview of Royal Culinary History”)

How to Drink a Martini Like Ernest Hemingway

(according to Mario Scinto, in The Takeout, his martinis were very dry)

Is Grass-Fed Beef Really Better for You?

(Rebecca Strong’s simple answer—at ask men—is “yes”)

None of the Liquid, All of the Flavor: The Actual Business Behind Sherry Barrel-Aging

(Evan Rail’s VinePair account of the strange legal status of barrels—without even touching that of bourbon barrels in the US)

Royal Origin Story of Cherries Jubilee Is Deliciously Fascinating, The

(Erica Martinez, in Take-out, on Escoffier and Queen Victoria)

Utah: Home of the “Dirty Soda”

(Utah’s Mormon population has made it the gastronomically weirdest—and, oddly, most American—state)

What Are Capers? This Small But Mighty Ingredient Can Transform Your Cooking

(a tart and salty answer from Martha Stewart)

White Striping Disease in Supermarket Chicken

(a report on standard factory-farmed chickens, by The Humane League)

Women’s Place: Cookbooks' Images of Technique and Technology in the British Kitchen

(Anne Murcott’s paper)

— inspirational (or otherwise useful) sites for writers/bloggers —

5 Boring Ways to Become More Creative

5 of History’s Most Delicious Natural Disasters

25 Most Influential Cookbooks from the Last 100 Years, The

An Atlas Like No Other: McAtlas

Does Food Express Emotion?

Don’t Even Think About Putting Ketchup on a Hot Dog

Easing Back into Writing: A Guide for Troubled Times

Frigidaire Key to Meal Planning, The: A New Program of Menus for Greater Convenience, Variety, Dietetic Balance, Economy. 

How to Detect AI-Generated Recipes and Images Online

ISSUE 93, REFLECTIONS, Part 1: The South and Xtreme Flavors

Many Disgusting Dishes & Culinary Horrors of Europe, The

pintsandpanels

There Is No “Essence” of an Ingredient

This Book Contains a Century of Historical Sandwiches

To Be a Historian Is to Be Ever-Curious

Turkey Tales, Turkey Tails

Who Would Want to Be a Restaurant Reviewer? Why It Is a Horrible Gig

Why Food Writing Matters

Why Soul Food Restaurants Are Disappearing and How to Save Them

You’ll Have to Take My Glass From My Cold, Wine-Stained Hand

— podcasts, etcetera —•

Real Reason Cheese Is Yellow, The

Why Didn’t Ancient Philosophers Eat Meat?

— changed URL —

Stirring the Pot

— that’s all for now —

Except, of course, for the usual legalistic mumbo-jumbo and commercial flim-flam:

As an Amazon Associate, this newsletter earns from qualifying purchases made through it. These include our own books (listed below), and occasional books mentioned in the entries above. If you order anything via those links, the price you pay is not increased by our commission.

Occasionally, URLs we provide may take you to commercial sites (that is, they’ll cost you money to take full advantage of them), or publications that have paywalls. We do not receive any compensation for listing them here and are providing them without any form of recommendation—other than the fact that they looked interesting to us.

Your privacy is important to us. We will not give, sell or share your e-mail address with anyone, for any purpose. Ever. Nonetheless, we will expose you to the following irredeemably brazen plugs for our own books:

The Resource Guide for Food Writers
(Hardcover)
(Paper)
(Kindle)
(newsletters like this merely update the contents of the book; what doesn’t appear here is already in the book)

The Herbalist in the Kitchen
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food And Drink Industries
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Human Cuisine
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Herbs: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sausage: A Global History
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Can It! The Perils and Pleasures of Preserving Foods
(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Sauces Reconsidered: Après Escoffier

(Hardcover)
(Kindle)

Terms of Vegery
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Serve Man:
On Cannibalism, Sex, Sacrifice, & the Nature of Eating
(Paper)
(Kindle)

How to Write a Great Book

(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Digressions of Dr Sanscravat: Gastronomical Ramblings & Other Diversions
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Ephemera: a short collection of short stories
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Prophet Amidst Losses
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Cenotaphs
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Future Tense: Remembrance of Things Not Yet Past
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Backstories: As retold by Gary Allen
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Tabula Rasa, Baby: (Not Written in Stone)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Unbelievable: A Modern Novella (the Extended Edition)
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Noirvella: The Extended Edition
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Inedible
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Hot Hot Hot/Risky Business
(Paper)
(Kindle)

The Long & Short of It: A Miscellany
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Beer Taste & Other Disorders
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Galloping Gourmand: A Culinary Collection
(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume One, The First Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Substack Lightnin’: Volume Two, Second Year

(Paper)
(Kindle)

Here endeth the sales pitch(es)...

...for the moment, anyway.

______________

The Resource Guide for Food Writers, Update #290 is protected by copyright and is provided at no cost, for your personal use only. It may not be copied or retransmitted unless this notice remains affixed. Any other form of republication—unless with the author’s prior written permission—is strictly prohibited.

As the author of this page—being a real living person—I have not used AI for any purpose (beyond routine spellcheck). Nor do I permit the use of any of its content for training of AI systems, or in the generation of AI content.

Copyright ©2024 by Gary Allen.