I recently started writing for Aspire NJ, a luxury real estate magazine, and when they asked me to find out what was happening in the world of kitchen design, I felt like a kid on Christmas Eve.

Kitchens excite me. Really well-designed ones titillate me. There is something luscious in the feel of a smooth counter, and a stove with 17,000 BTU burners elicits that *rowr* inside. Needless to say, this assignment was a favorite.

Not surprisingly, I found that designers and architects were wholeheartedly embracing the “green” kitchen — with lots of caveats. I also learned that people are beginning to incorporate the living space right into the kitchen, to create more of a centralized location for family activities.

Viking came up with a luxury kitchen design that suits this need perfectly, with sleek lines, stainless steel finishes…and couches. I explored their new line at an event in the Food Network studio kitchens, and fell in love with the cabinetry. I’m a sucker for good handles.

You can read the full article, The Evolution of Kitchen Design, at Aspire NJ.

First they came for the foie gras.

Now, the self-appointed police of all things have decided to attack…salt. Yes, salt. That mainstay of cooking, that critical ingredient to every baker on the planet, and flavor enhancer to every dish that comes out of a kitchen, professional or otherwise.

Brooklyn Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, potentially the most unintelligent man related to food (or government) in any form, proposes in bill A. 10129 that “No owner or operator of a restaurant in this state shall use salt in any form in the preparation of any food for consumption by customers of such restaurant, including food prepared to be consumed on the premises of such restaurant or off of such premises.”

Mr. Ortiz is single-handedly trying to destroy the restaurant industry by “acting for the public good.” I won’t even get into what he’s trying to do to our palates.

What Mr. Ortiz fails to understand is that salt is an essential component of cooking and flavor enhancement. In baking, it is a chemical necessity. But such things are irrelevant to legislators of his ilk, who are trying to save us from ourselves. Alas, this is simply the latest in the government’s attempt to tell us what we can’t do, and to regulate our health by means of being an evil Nanny.

Chefs are rightfully up in arms, but it is we, the people, who need to take action. Many will shake their heads and wonder why the government is doing such a thing, but then they’ll go back to working 60-hour weeks and forget that our lives and liberties are eroding before our very eyes, as we anxiously await the next episode of Desperate Housewives.

We have become so lazy and complacent as a culture that the government now finds it appropriate to introduce such measures, so the blame rests solidly on our shoulders. We did this. And we are the only ones who can undo it. Lest you think I’m being hyperbolic, I encourage you to brush up on American history, and pay attention to the evolution of the Nanny State.

If you are outraged by the actions of Mr. Ortiz — and I hope you are, I encourage you to start writing, start calling, and let the New York State legislature know that this bill is not only a waste of taxpayer dollars, but an infringement on our rights of the most insidious nature.

Now, some of you might say “but too much salt is unhealthy!” I have news for you: Firstly, if a chef is using that much salt, he isn’t going to be in business for long, because his guests won’t eat his food. It won’t taste good. Secondly, too much of anything is unhealthy, and that’s where we come in: We are the ones consuming, so we must pay attention to what’s going in our mouths. Eat too much salt over a lifetime and it may have adverse effects — but we are the ones holding the fork.

If the idea of the government rationing your food makes you bristle, recognize that much worse measures are not far away. Unless we act now. A coalition called My Food, My Choice has gotten together to fight such inanities — I’m signing up right this minute.

New York State Assembly (look up your assemblyman): http://assembly.state.ny.us/

Felix Ortiz
E-mail contact

District Office
404 55th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11220
718-492-6334

Albany Office
LOB 627
Albany, NY 12248
518-455-3821

Six years ago today I experienced one of those moments that will stand out as a big red dot on the timeline of my life. I had just finished my stint launching the Ecole des Chefs program for Relais & Chateaux, and found myself at an odd crossroads: How could I possibly top an international gig working with chefs like Thomas Keller, Guy Savoy and Daniel Boulud? I was actually afraid that my career had peaked early. What now?

I looked at the laptop and tray table before me, and wondered if a career in food writing was the next step. I was hesitant — I knew it wouldn’t pay very well, but I had started this thing called “blogging” a couple of weeks before to test the waters and develop my writing style. My first newsletter had 50 or so subscribers, and I knew every one of them personally. I signed up for a recreational cooking class to get my hands back to work in the kitchen, and hoped that something in the course of all this would inspire me; otherwise I’d need to look at a big career shift.

I quickly got antsy — it’s not in my nature to sit and write all the time. I knew I’d be bored out of my mind soon enough, so I had a fleeting thought: Why not turn this blog into a little food magazine? I knew that its name, Gastronomic Meditations, was a bit confusing for people (sometimes they asked if I was a doctor…sigh), but I pushed forward anyway, knowing that the people who “got it” would continue to get it, and we could explore together. I somehow convinced Kelly Cline, Alder Yarrow and Donna Desfor to play along, and we forged ahead. A few months in, I heard from Go Daddy’s marketing director, who asked if I’d like to be in one of their new customer-focused commercials, and the site got nominated for a World Food Media Award, so I thought hey, this is pretty neat. It seemed like things were off to a decent start.

Not long after, I got an e-mail from a friend of mine: There’s someone I think you should meet. His name is Mark, and he’s a chef. That someone was creating these newfangled things called podcasts. Chef Mark Tafoya is now the person with whom I’ve traveled the world, expanded the vision of what things are possible in this little space called “new media,” and founded the companies that have brought all of our ideas together in one place. In the course of that history there have been some epic arguments and differences of opinion, but when Chef Mark and I find ourselves in that place, we always come back to the root of why we created this: Together we are a powerful team of creativity and passion, and the love and respect we have for that dynamic — and for each other — is what has given us the wherewithal to stay in it and move the dream forward. I likely wouldn’t be sitting here right now if it weren’t for him.

As I sat at that tray table six years ago, I had no inclination of what was ahead. Traveling the world was a goal, being on camera was a pipe dream (and a scary one), and Twitter was something birds did to annoy me.

But here we are. There are six years of our creativity for you to explore on what started as that food blog, but is now the Culinary Media Network — a living travelogue of our adventures from farm to plate, around the globe, with articles, recipes and audio/video programming. This blog, Food Philosophy, is more of my own personal exploration of the connections between food and sensuality, but you’ll see that the posts date back to ’04, so nothing has been lost along the way. At CMN we’re also in the thick of creating how-to courses for our new online cooking academy, and there’s even a Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home cookbook for you to explore those ideas in tactile form (The Gilded Fork was our second name, pre-network). The years have gone by in a blur, and the ride has been very rocky at times, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

There have been recent, familiar moments, however, when I’ve found myself facing a question: What now? Now that I’ve flown all over the planet eating, drinking and learning, how can I possibly top it?

Only now, I have a better way to answer that question, which is in the form of a plaque my sister gave me for Christmas. Its call to action is one that will shape the next six years:

Think big. If that doesn’t work, think bigger!

Thank you for being here to be part of the journey with us, and most importantly, for your words of encouragement each time we take on a new challenge and reach a new benchmark. You are what makes the ride worthwhile.

That is not a call to action. Though I suppose it could be, as I likely wouldn’t throw you out of bed.

My friends over at Toy with Me, a delightfully sassy sex blog, asked me to come up with a menu idea for Valentine’s Day seduction. As I’m not one to say no to such an opportunity, I suggested a menu from our Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home cookbook along with some thoughts on the why behind the sexy (read: more rants on aphrodisiacs).

Since my mission encompasses doing my part to ensure the people of Earth enjoy better food and better sex, I’m delighted to be part of their efforts toward improving the better sex portion of the equation.

Read here: Food Porn – The Ultimate Foreplay

It’s been a rough day. I’ve spent months working with my team on the Sex on a Plate event concept, trying to bring it to life in a way that was compelling, satiating, and generally a blast. All the pieces seemed to fit together nicely, so I decided to try my hand in NYC first. It’s my backyard, I have dear friends at the Roger Smith Hotel, and it seemed feasible to pull this off as a launch to my series of Sex on a Plate events. Ambitiously (perhaps overly so), I thought we could offer a compelling alternative on one of the most Hallmark romantic holidays of them all.

I was mistaken. Even with a crackerjack team, a talented chef and a price of $85 for 7+ exquisite courses with wines and tequila, we couldn’t sell enough tickets, so today we had to cancel the Valentine’s Day event. Interestingly, there are, at this moment, other cities wanting Sex on a Plate, ready to put the pieces in motion.

So what went wrong in NYC? Well, I think it might have been a perfect convergence of not enough lead time to market between Christmas and Valentine’s Day, a non-existent advertising budget, not enough outreach, and too much else going on here that day. A perfect storm of fail.

I’ll consider it my tuition. The next one will be planned much more carefully, with more lead time and a lot more momentum. If you build it, they will come — but only if you build it well.

And so we will begin again. I know the concept is a worthy one, as enough of you have said so — sometimes very loudly! — that I believe you. And you believe in what I’m doing here, which is more important — and why I refuse to let this idea fizzle away. Instead it will be refined, re-mixed and relaunched.

Thank you for being a part of my rollercoaster ride. You make it worthwhile. Stay tuned.

One of my favorite things about the digital realm: It enables me to encounter like-minded people who often bring a smile to my face and ideas to my busy brain. When I get to know them offline and in person as well, there’s the added bonus of experiencing them in glorious 3D.

I told you about my darling Emily (@EmilysPearl), with whom I have a sassfully delicious NYC adventure planned next weekend (more to come on that — *rowr*), but there are also others who ring my bell, and I’ll be sharing those with you on a regular basis. First up are three lovely ladies who have shown me serious digital love in the past couple of weeks. My turn.

Sex and the 405

I love hot, smart women. You’ve seen me mention Anais before (my dearest @avflox), whose wordsmithing tends to give me a little shiver. Someone recently quipped that she is the “Shakespeare of Sex,” and I can’t really argue with that. Intelligent and brimming with sensuality, she’s a sumptuous find for your head candy. She was the first to break the news on Sex on a Plate: LA (details soon) for Sex and the 405, and ran with my holy-crap-she’s-in-garters photo. That was an interesting blog traffic day. The full version of the photo is on her blog post, and yeah, my mom is OK with it.

Kitten Lounge

Kimmie (@cocoabebe) and I have not yet met up for drinks, but that’s an evening I’m looking forward to. Her Kitten Lounge site is full of delicious treats on fashion, beauty, lifestyle and entertainment, and is well worth a read if you wish to be as fabulous as she. With a history in fashion, accessories and PR, Kimmie has her own line of designs as well as a consulting agency for fashion social media. Kitten Lounge featured my Sex on a Plate event in their 2nd Annual Love Guide, which gave me a little squee moment.

Miss Manifesto

“Miss Manifesto is every girl you’ve ever wanted to date. She is dirty sexy, wickedly smart and fantastically blunt. She’ll tell you exactly what you need to hear, whether you want to hear it or not. She’s gorgeous, but approachable, never seen without stillettos, and is always dressed to the nines. She expects — and gets — men, and women, to do her bidding, usually before she’s asked for anything. She’s every woman’s best friend and every man’s fantasy, and she’s the newest blog network for women.” I think Colleen Coplick (@ColleenCoplick) pretty much captured everything I love about her in the above — because  Miss Manifesto captures her.

If you want to indulge in some eye and mind candy, do give these ladies a gander.

We are so honored that our series CMN Travels has been nominated for a TASTY AWARD in the Best Food Travel Series: Web category. The Award itself is sponsored this year by JetBlue. The TASTY AWARDS celebrate and recognize the year’s best achievements in food and fashion programs on television, in film, and on the web.

Winners of the TASTY AWARDS will be announced and receive their honors on January 14th, 2010 at a red carpet Awards Show in San Francisco, portions of which will be filmed for broadcast on national television in February 2010 to millions of households.

We really love that people are recognizing all the hard work that we put into out travel series here on CMN, and we will continue to release feeds of each destination we explore. Coming soon we’ll have feeds from our travels to Toronto, Peru, Hawaii, and more videos from Scotland, England and Wales.

Here’s a 30 second promo they asked us to create for the awards ceremony, which will take place January 14th in San Francisco. Wish us luck!

You’ve been asking, so we thought 2010 would be a great time to open the doors of our new online school, the Culinary Media Network Academy. From cooking techniques to lifestyle tips, we’ll be adding the types of classes that will help take your kitchen and entertaining skills to the next level. If you have a restaurant or food business, we’ll also show you how to leverage social media to improve your bottom line with our Restaurant Social Media 101 course.

The walls are freshly painted, and we’ve got some initial pieces live, including some of our favorite recipe collections, sets of Chef Mark’s Cooking Tips and our Entertaining Survival Guide — the perfect companion to our Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home cookbook. We’ll soon be launching my Bachelor’s Boot Camp (the first victim student is in NYC this week), so keep an eye out for that. In the coming months we’ll be adding more classes in various formats, from text to audio and video courses.

Now here’s where you come in: We need your feedback to create our curriculum! If you have a burning desire (no pun) to learn how to purchase and cook different types of meats, or if you’ve always wanted to perfect your knife skills, we are open to your suggestions. Tell us what you want and we’ll create it. If you sign up for the Academy now, you’ll receive special pricing on new classes that come out.

Please add your feedback on the main post we’ve created on the main Culinary Media Network site, and tell us how we can help you take your cooking and entertaining skills to the next level. We’ll see you in class!

This past February, an article came out in the Village Voice about foie gras (Is Foie Gras Torture?), and whether or not ducks are being tortured to produce this delicacy. The debate has raged on for years, which sparked my initial rant in The Duck Stops Here. What I think author Sarah DiGregorio brings to light with this piece, however, is something that applies universally to food, and in my opinion, is a method we should all use: Know where your food comes from. Know how it’s produced. One of the leading doctors raging against the foie gras machine has never actually set foot on a foie gras farm; she simply perpetuates the propaganda from assumptions.

If you’ve ever watched a PETA video, of course the images are disturbing. That’s their purpose. PETA is going to sensationalize whatever they find in order to make a good video, because they have a very specific intent: They want you to stop eating animals altogether. And that is their prerogative, but when they are harassing members of the public (and their children!) they become their own terrorist force. Bricks have been thrown into restaurant windows, and patrons have been harassed on their way in the door. And you all know about the pies that get thrown. Are they following the equation that two wrongs make a right? How is that going to help, exactly?

I’ve met many artisanal farmers over the years, and to a person they care passionately about their work, their livestock, and for raising them in a humane way. In the end, it makes the food taste better. A stressed out cow or duck is going to have some very tough meat for you to chew, so it is in the farmer’s best interest to keep his livestock calm and happy.

Hudson Valley Foie Gras seems no different. I’ve talked to Marcus Henley, the farm’s manager, numerous times over the past few years, and he has invited me to come see for myself. I haven’t yet had the time to do so, but I will get there, because I want to know where all my food comes from. I’ve done the same with heirloom tomatoes, cows and pigs. I invite you to do the same.

What are your thoughts on this issue?

Photo: Kelly Cline

We don’t know about you, but we’d rather avoid the mall this time of year. It’s simply not in our natures to stand in line at 6AM (unless it’s for something fabulous at the farmer’s market).

In case you feel that way, too, we’re doing something special for this year’s “Cyber Monday” sale day in the Gilded Fork Gourmet Boutique, so we invite you to peruse our offers below. Then we can all stay at home and revel in Thanksgiving leftovers and pajamas while everyone else does that standing-in-line thing.

Besides, we have a new venture to unveil in December, so the more time we can spend at the computer in pj’s, the faster we can share it with you! Happy holidays!

Living on the Edge…of Brownies

Is there a brownie lover in your life? One who fights for the ones from the edge of the pan? Inventor Matt Griffin understands those eager souls, and specifically designed his Edge Brownie Pan to deliver an entire batch of perfectly crisp edges and gooey centers. Matt’s pan has been featured on Martha Stewart’s daytime show and in just about every major food magazine on the planet, so this is a hot little item. At a price of $35, it’s also perfect for a smaller budget.

We have a limited number of Edge Brownie Pans available, and are offering free ground shipping for orders placed by midnight EST on Monday, November 30. (Cannot be combined with other discounts.)

> Order here!

Other Gift Ideas & Tips

If you are looking to get the most out of your gift purchases this year, we also offer Tondo balsamic vinegar by the case, which gives you a total of six (6) 250ml bottles (and $36 in savings). These bottles of liquid heaven can stand on their own as a lovely gift — just wrap them wine-bottle style in some pretty paper, decorate with bows and present them to dear friends.

If you’d like to make your Tondo bottles part of a gourmet gift basket, we suggest featuring a bottle of Tondo as the “star,” then adding a few inexpensive items like cheeses and some elegant crackers. We can’t think of a palate that would be disappointed.

> Order your case of Tondo here.

Cookbooks = Perfect Gifts

We are delighted that so many of you are purchasing our cookbook in multiples. We really do think it is a great gift for the holidays or any time of year. The Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home offers 13 dinner party menus complete with beverage pairings and tons of cooking tips, which makes it useful for cooks at all skill levels.

Of course, if you’re signed up for our newsletter, you’ll receive exclusive pricing on the book, and other delicious deals between now and the end of the year. Don’t miss out!

I love that so many people are getting behind my Sex on a Plate mission! I recently sat down with my good friend C.C. Chapman, who is not only a prolific new media entrepreneur, but is also an avid cook, to talk about the link between food and sensuality. His site Digital Dads (for dads, by dads) addresses all sorts of parenting aspects, and he had some questions about how dads might keep things spicy with the wife.

He proposed an interesting theory that has turned into “C.C.’s law of the 2 Cs,” and I wholeheartedly agree. I think the ladies might, too:

I believe that if every guy could master the art of cunnilingus and cooking then they could win any woman’s heart. Because of this, I wanted to get [Jennifer's] take on the intimate qualities of food that she’s been talking about as part of her Sex on a Plate concept. What follows is a little Q&A and I did with her.

So if you’re a dad, or know a dad, please do spread the gospel — see the full Digital Dads Q&A. Remember the mission: Better food and better sex for everyone! Huzzah!

My Twitter pal Chip Griffin from Media Bullseye wrote an article today likening social media to levels of cooking appliances, with the EasyBake being the starter model. I found the idea quite humorous, and ended up getting a little quote love. :) His analogy is a good one, and worth a read if you are thinking about dipping your toe into the social media arena.

In cooking, you might think of entry-level as an Easybake Oven. These much-maligned children’s toys can be used for cooking, though I have not done so myself. My lack of experience seems irrelevant, however, since someone actually created a cookbook on the subject. I kid you not. And Jennifer Iannolo told me on Twitter this morning that she “can work an EasyBake like nobody’s bidness.

You can see the full article here: Cooking Social Media with an EasyBake Oven vs. a Viking Range

Thanks Chip!

OK, I don’t watch television (the one I have here is unplugged and in a corner), but in this case I actually have a reason to promote a television show. You see, my pal Andy Husbands, chef/owner of Tremont 647 in Boston’s South End, is making his debut this week on Hell’s Kitchen.

Andy and I became friends in Boston many moons ago, when I was cutting my teeth in the food world, and I liked him instantly because he’s full of sass, piss and vinegar. He also makes a killer Tibetan momo.

Hell’s Kitchen premiers Tuesday night, July 21, at 8PM. I guess maybe I’ll go plug in the television.

If you don’t get a chance to see Andy, and whether he wins or not, I highly recommend that you sample his goods at Tremont 647. The Taco Tuesday menus always make my mouth water. Note: These are normally Taco Wednesdays, but they are holding them on Tuesdays until Andy’s time on Hell’s Kitchen runs out. Get thee to Tremont Street!

Good luck, Andy! Break a…knife? (Or perhaps the jaw of an obnoxious chef?)

Restaurant web site: www.Tremont647.com
Andy’s blog: www.fearlesschef.com
Andy’s cookbook: The Fearless Chef: Innovative Recipes from the Edge of American Cuisine

With the release of our first cookbook, The Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home, we’ve been overwhelmed by the support from our loyal readers, listeners and viewers. Since many of you have been eager to help us spread the message about the book, we’ve created an affiliate program for that and the sumptuous products in our Gilded Fork Boutique.

Our affiliates will receive a 10% commission on all sales made from people you send through your affiliate link, on ANY products in the boutique, from the cookbook to artisanal olive oils, aged balsamic vinegars and flavored sea salts. We’re also adding some delicious new goodies in the next month or so, so if this is of interest you can simply sign up via the link below and we’ll activate your account. Each product is hand-selected by us for its quality and uniqueness, as we want nothing but the best in our store.

Affiliate Signup

(if the link doesn’t work, simply go to https://shop.gildedfork.com and navigate to the “affiliate program” signup page in the right hand column.)

You can use any of the graphics we’ve posted on Culinary Media Network (scroll down) to promote the cookbook and/or the boutique, and we’ll soon be adding more graphics for specific products.

Thanks once again for helping us bring this project to fruition. We hope to put a little extra money in your pockets — and ours! — and can’t wait to get this book out to the public!

Our Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home cookbook is almost ready to ship, but the bun is still cooking and needs a little more time to brown.

As we hope you’ve noticed, we take a great deal of care in creating our work (understatement). We didn’t want to publish the book with any errors (the horror!), so we sent back the proof for another round of corrections. Once we approve the final version, our first big order will be placed, so we expect to have books in inventory and ready to ship in early July. We are currently doing an elaborate ritual dance to keep the printing gremlins away.

If you have already ordered a book, you received a love letter from us today, and we thank you so much for being first in line. We’re sorry we can’t kiss you in person, because we love that sort of thing.

Now, for you squillions and trillions of people who will be ordering books between now and July 31st, we’d like to extend some of that love. If you purchase our cookbook before July 31st, we’ll send a free download link to the full-color digital version of the book as soon as it’s available. That way you can print out those pages and get them all messy instead of your pretty book. You can also see the recipe photos in their full glory.

In addition, we’ve created a Friends & Family discount for you “early adopters,” so after purchase you’ll receive a special code to forward to your favorite fellow food fanatics. Say that five times fast. To learn more about the book, see our full list of annoucements, including a video of the unveiling of our galley copy. Or, you can just:

Buy the book!

It’s been months in the planning, and literally years in the creating — and we’ve finally received the galley proof of our Gilded Fork Cookbook! Here’s the moment of unboxing, the first moment we’re holding the book in our eager little hands!

Now, we’ve looked it over, and found a few teeny tiny things we’d like to fix, so in order to get you all a better product, we’re going to go through one more round of small edits and fixes before we approve it for printing, so it’ll be another week for those of you who’ve already pre-ordered the book, but the wait will be worth it!

If you haven’t yet pre-ordered, now’s your chance! If you pre-order now, your book will be shipped in the first batch we order, so you’ll have it before the end of June!

For the last 4 years you’ve followed our evolution from articles to recipes, podcasts and videos. Now, at last, we are going past your computer screens and ear buds with something you can actually hold in your hands! Signed copies of our new cookbook are now available for pre-order for delivery in June 2009.

With The Gilded Fork Entertaining at Home: A Year of Dinner Parties, we invite you to throw open your doors to friends and loved ones — and offer them a seat at your table. And don’t be afraid to ask them to help — that can be half the fun!

With a baker’s dozen of dinner party menus ranging from casual summer fare to an elegant dinner for two, we’ve compiled colors, flavors and textures from our favorite recipes (along with some new ones!) to indulge your senses with the seasonal tastes that make us happy to be in the kitchen. We’ve also included beverage pairings for each menu, and lots of helpful tips to help take your cooking to the next level.

And in case you haven’t heard, our friends have gotten in on the fun, too! Our readers and listeners helped us to photograph these recipes (some are right there on the cover) and test them extensively, ensuring that our instructions are clear and the recipes as close to fool-proof as possible.

We believe entertaining should be fun and stress-free for all involved, so please feel free to invite us to dinner. We do dishes.

Hand-signed copy. Price includes shipping.

Price: $25.00

Click HERE to be taken to our secure cart for ordering.

I’ve recently connected with a lot of high school alumni on Facebook, and decided to post a link to an article I wrote back in 2004 entitled An Ode to William Yachymiak. He is an English teacher many of us have come to revere for his wisdom and talent in bringing out the best in us — a sometimes arduous process on all sides — so I was interested to get feedback from other alumni. It turns out that not only do many others share my opinion, but some have also been inspired, thanks to “Yak,” to pursue writing careers of their own. One such alum, Matt Young, is a writer for the Philadelphia Examiner, and he published a piece today about my article. Best of all, he’s discovered the fun we’re having with food over at the Culinary Media Network!

As a fine arts writer, Matt’s subject matter is more often geared toward oils that cover canvasses; but after reflecting upon the connection between food and art, he made a little discovery that brings them both together:

A well-crafted piece of art should open doors in your mind, and tap into parts of your soul that you have either forgotten about, or never knew of to begin with. And I’m here to tell you; this stuff is certainly food for thought.

Many might argue that food is not art, but if art is something that moves us, inspires us, and invites us to explore the depths of our senses and imagination (in my case, the Mental Mouth), then indeed it is. Thanks Matt!

Chef Mark was kind enough to update our progress on the meaty ol’ Gilded Fork Cookbook over at CMN:

Our Gilded Fork Cookbook project is coming along nicely, and we’re so thrilled that our recipe testers have been cooking up a storm trying out our recipes. They are an enormous help to us, holding us to task on the smallest details that could be confusing to readers, including pointing out where measurements or ingredients might be misunderstood by readers from other countries. (If you’re in the US, did you know that in Canada has 4 different types of cream? We didn’t! Here we just have heavy cream and half and half. One of our testers told us that they have 10%, Half and Half, 18% and Whipping Cream!)

This week, we thought we’d feature some pictures of various dishes as photographed by different testers.

Our Dilled Crab Salad on Artichoke Bottoms recipe was prepared by Lisa Marie Tran, whom I met last year at Podcamp NYC 2, and Lisa turned out a tempting photo:

The same recipe was tested by Chef Toni Scott, a friend of mine who’s a personal chef in Austin, TX, and owner of Dinner Made Simple. here’s one of Toni’s photos:

Café Brulot is one of the signature drinks of New Orleans, and it’s included in the Mardi Gras Menu in our cookbook. Here’s another shot done by Toni Scott:

Another talented personal chef is Robyn Barber. She’s the owner of Barber’s Bistro Personal Chef Service in Middle Tennessee. Here’s her version of Café Brulot.

We’re blessed to have a number of USPCA personal chefs helping us out with the cookbook (membership has its privileges!). One of them is Lisa Brisch of Dinner Thyme Personal Chef Service in Middletown, Delaware. Lisa tried out our recipe for Milk & Honey Lavender Sorbet:

And here’s another interpretation of the sorbet from Christina Pacella, a talented young cook and budding photographer. The Pacellas are long time friends of our very own Jennifer Iannolo.

We’ll have another roundup next week, with updates on our progress. We’ve received many dozens of photos and great feedback from our testers, and we’ll feature some more next week. If you’re one of our testers, please feel free to blog about your experience cooking our dishes. We’ll be sure to include it next week!

After four years of cooking and a few name changes, we’re proud to announce the release of our first cookbook!

We’ve taken recipes both old and new and put them into a year’s worth of easy entertaining menus, so from a casual comfort food spread to a romantic dinner for two, you will have a collection of recipes, entertaining tips and techniques at your fingertips.

The Gilded Fork: Entertaining at Home, A Year of Dinner Parties
Now more than ever, people are looking for economical ways to entertain, and we’re always up for a friendly gathering at home. We’ve been bringing you our popular Mise en Place menus for the past couple of years to help you take your hosting skills to a new level.

If you’re tactile like us, however, you know there’s nothing quite so satisfying as a tangible cookbook — one we can take with us into the kitchen instead of the printed pieces of paper that always end up crumpled and stained (hey, we like to get involved with our work).

In true CMN/social media style, we’re going it on our own to self-publish and promote the book. Here’s where the fun comes in: We are incredibly grateful for your support and encouragement — so we want you to be involved! This is not about us just putting out a book — we want your input, and for you to be a part of this important step in our evolution.

There are a number of ways for you to get involved and/or show your support:

• Recipe testing: Help us make our recipes the best they can be. We’ll credit you in the book, with links to your site/blog/social media page.
• Photos: Shoot the finished product after testing the recipe for us. Help the recipes look pretty, too, and we’ll give you photo credit(s) in the book.
• Spread the word: This is the most important one. Please tell your friends and family about us, Twitter it, Facebook it, make a video, share our blog posts and generally shout our news from the rooftops (or just whisper it quietly to your best friend in the next cubicle).
• Pre-orders: We will make the book available for pre-orders in April, with a special discount for early birds.

We’ll post updates as we progress, but you can follow along on your own by subscribing to our free RSS feed. If you’d like to participate in testing or photography, please contact us at info@culinarymedianetwork.com. See you in the kitchen!

UPDATE 2/24: Thank you! We’ve had such an amazingly overwhelming response to our call for recipe testers! We now have more than 50 people helping us with this phase, and we’re so thankful. We never imagined we’d get such a response. So we’re set for now, but rest assured we will be reaching out again soon for the next step in the process.

We attended a party hosted by publisher Phaidon at Thomas Keller’s Per Se Restaurant to honor Chef Ferran Adria on the publication of “A Day at El Bulli“, a 500 page exploration of the art of cuisine at his temple of gastronomy. The event drew a crowd of America’s culinary elite, who sipped Cava and sampled Per Se’s best hors d’oeuvres. Among the attendees were many of America’s top chefs, who were thrilled to support Chef Adria. (see if you can spot them all!)

A production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com

This is important — now more than ever. Use your voice or lose your voice!

CMN Video: Culinary Roundtable – Food Blogger Playdate at Martha Stewart’s

Jennifer and Chef Mark go on a “playdate” with a group of other food bloggers after the Martha Stewart Show Blogger day, and join the staff of Everyday Food Magazine to play in the test kitchen for the afternoon. Matt Armendariz from www.mattbites.com makes his grandmother’s albondigas soup.

A production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com

CMN Video: Fork in the Road – Martha Stewart Show

Jennifer and Chef Mark attend the special blogger episode taping of the Martha Stewart show. It was a show and audience full of bloggers, and we walked away with free wireless printers from HP!

A production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com

And here’s the first 9 minutes of Martha’s show. You can see Jennifer (in turquoise) and Chef Mark (in purple) in the audience at :47 seconds and 7:08. Don’t blink!

I’m live blogging from today’s Martha Stewart Show with Chef Mark, so follow us here for updates! We’re seated with about 200 other bloggers, so this should be groovy!!! You can also follow us on Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/foodphilosophy

http://www.twitter.com/ChefMark

10:30 AM: Just watched Matt Armandariz of www.mattbites.com create some delicious-looking dulce de leche cookies. Now I’m starving!

Who doesn’t love a good cocktail? I had the opportunity to meet Ann Rogers, founder of Tales of the Cocktail, last weekend at the NY Times Travel Show. We definitely plan to attend this event in July, as the presentation at the show was phenomenal. I also had the opportunity to get a little bit tipsy in the middle of the day, which is not always a bad thing.

There are some great activities leading up to the event, so take a peek at the film fest details below. What is a cocktail film without Marilyn Monroe?

COCKTAIL FILM FEST CELEBRATES SIPPING IN CINEMA WITH THREE SCREENINGS AT W NEW ORLEANS HOTEL

Host Cheryl Charming presents movies and themed cocktails and food March 21 – 22.

Fun Facts!

What is it?

Tales of the Cocktail and the W New Orleans invite movie buffs and libation lovers to indulge in two evenings of celebrating cocktail in film. Cheryl Charming, cocktail writer and founder of MissCharming.com, plays hostess for the screenings

Your Hostess for the Weekend
Film Fest hostess Cheryl Charming has been in the food and beverage industry since 1976, tending bar, authoring bar and cocktail related books and teaching bar tricks to Walt Disney World bartenders. Cheryl also writes cocktail related articles and frequents as a celebrity cocktail guest on various radio, television, and podcast shows. She is a member of The Bartenders Guild, FBA (Flair Bartenders Association) and The Museum of the American Cocktail. She resides in Downtown Orlando and maintains the website MissCharming.com.

The Film Fest schedule is as follows:

• Friday, March 21, 8 p.m., Casablanca
• Saturday, March 22, 5 p.m., The Seven Year Itch
• Saturday, March 22, 8 p.m., Guys and Dolls

Seating for all films are dinner party style.

Drinks and Dishes Being Served:

Friday, March 21, 8 p.m., Casablanca.
An evening filled with Moroccan food, French 75’s, Champagne Cocktails, Brandy, film-theme spirits, prizes, and fun while viewing this Academy Award winning romance film of 1942.

Saturday, March 22, 5 p.m., The Seven Year Itch
This Happy Hour is filled with prizes and all the Itch cocktails; Martinis, Tom Collins’, Scotch, Whiskey Sours, Gin and Tonics! There will be lots of snacky snacky foods and retro candy to munch on during this Summer blockbuster of 1955 too. Cameras are welcome, as you may want your photo taken with Marilyn!

Saturday, March 22, 8 p.m., Guys and Dolls
Followed after the Happy Hour film is this dinner film filled with Mojitos, Cuba Libres, Mexican beer, and Milk Punch served in coconut cups. Dinner is our twist on cuisine invented in the 1950s; The TV Dinner! Door prizes and wedding cake also accompany this Academy Award nominated of 1955.

Tickets
Tickets are $25 per film, per person, and include drinks, cocktail food and snacks. A weekend package that includes all three films is $65 per person, which saves you $10 for the weekend. For tickets, visit www.TalesoftheCocktail.com or call 504-377-7935 beginning March 1, 2008.

Parking
The W New Orleans is featuring a special parking rate of $12 for Cocktail Film Fest goers per night. *This does not apply to overnight guests.

Special Room Rates:
The W New Orleans is featuring a special rate of $129 a night for Cocktail Film Fest goers. Visit www.whotels.com/wneworleans for more information.

I received this press release this morning, and I must say that for the avid cookbook collector this could be quite an adventure:

SWANN GALLERIES APRIL 7 AUCTION OF EARLY PRINTED BOOKS/GASTRONIMIC LITERATURE FEATURES AN EMPHASIS ON 18TH AND 19TH CENTURY ENGLISH AND AMERICAN CULINARY CLASSICS.

New York—On Monday, April 7, Swann Galleries will offer a fascinating panorama of the history of cooking and dining. Provided by The Fillin & Yeh Collection of Gastronomic Literature, the auction represents the second part of the Swann Galleries sale on April 7, 2008. The collection comprises 114 lots ranging from nearly 50 pre-1800 works to inscribed first editions by M. F. K. Fisher, with an emphasis on 18th- and 19th-century English and American culinary classics.

Highlights include Patrick Lamb, Royal Cookery; or, The Complete Court-Cook, London, 1710, first edition, by the cook to 3 English monarchs ($4000/6000); Hannah Glasse, The Art of Cookery, Made Plain and Easy, one of the most popular English cookbooks of the 18th century, here in both the 1747 London first edition ($8000/12,000) and the 1805 Alexandria (Virginia) first American edition ($1000/2000); Amelia Simmons, American Cookery, Walpole, New Hampshire, 1812, later edition of the first cookbook by an American author ($2000/3000); Mary Randolph, The Virginia Housewife, Baltimore, 1836, a Southern classic and the first American regional cookbook ($400/600); Isabella Beeton, The Book of Household Management, London, 1861, first edition in book form of the bestselling English cookbook of the Victorian era ($1000/2000); Esther Levy, Jewish Cookery Book, Philadelphia, 1871, first edition of the first American Jewish cookbook; and M. F. K. Fisher, Serve It Forth, New York, 1937, first edition of Fisher’s first book, inscribed to Lucille and Walter Fillin ($600/900).

A selection of later 19th-/early 20th-century American charity cookbooks features Maria J. Moss, A Poetical Cook-Book, Philadelphia, 1864, the first American fundraising cookbook, and Hattie A. Burr, The Woman Suffrage Cook Book, Boston, 1886, apparently the earliest suffragist fundraising cookbook ($400/600 each).

The first part of the April 7 sale consists of Early Printed Books, including 16th and 17th century English books from the collection of Dr. Elmer Pfefferkorn, emeritus professor of microbiology at Dartmouth Medical School.

Among these are the complete classical translations of Philemon Holland, comprising his versions of Livy, The Romane Historie, London, 1600 ($1000/2000); Plutarch, The Philosophie, commonlie called the Morals, London 1603 ($3000/5000); Suetonius, The Historie of Twelve Caesars, London, 1606 ($1500/2500); Ammianus Marcellinus, The Roman Historie, London, 1609 ($800/1200); Xenophon, Cyrupaedia, The Institution and Life of Cyrus, London, 1632 ($1000/2000); and Pliny the Elder, The Historie of the World, London, 1601 ($1500/2500).

Also noteworthy are Thucydides, The Hystory, London, 1550, first edition in English ($2000/3000); Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, Oxford, 1624, second edition of the first psychiatric encyclopedia ($3000/5000); Giovanni Boccaccio, The Modell of Wit, Mirth, Eloquence, and Conversation, London, 1625-20, first complete English translation of the Decameron ($4000/6000); Plutarch, The Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans, London, 1579, first edition in English and an important source for Shakespeare’s Roman plays ($4000/6000); and Raphael Holinshed, Chronicles, London, 1587, second edition of an important source for Shakespeare’s English history plays ($3000/5000).

For further information, and to make advance arrangements to bid by telephone during the auction, please contact Tobias Abeloff at (212) 254-4710, extension 18, or via email at tabeloff@swanngalleries.com.

# # #

Culinary Media Network, food, food writing, cookbook, auction, food history, Culinary Podcast Network, Gilded Fork

If you listened to my Food Philosophy audio and video shows featuring the cheeky Brit Dom Lane and Wedginald, the star of CheddarVision, you know that at some point Wedginald would reach his first birthday and be retired from his starring role. Well, my friends, that time has come. Behold:

***

Last Episode Of cheddarvision.tv Is A Cheesey Christmas Special 21 Dec 07

Today, in the final chapter of perhaps one of the most surprising stories of the year, Wedginald, the 44lb star of www.cheddarvision.tv retired from the small screen and jetted off down under. After 12 months starring on possibly the most boring broadcast channel in the world, the celebrity Cheddar departed from Heathrow.

From humble beginnings a year ago, a round of handmade West Country Farmhouse Cheddar maturing live 24/7 on the internet has become a worldwide viewing phenomenon, entertaining over 1.7 million visitors across the globe from Iceland to India and New York to New Zealand.

In November the cheese was auctioned online in aid of BBC Children in Need. The sale raised three times the cheese’s market value and saw Waitrose, Branston Pickle and Pieminister bidding over the odds for the chance to give the internet star a new home. In the end the 44lb traditional Cheddar as won by a winemaker from Marlborough, New Zealand, who, ironically, grew up in Somerset.

Joining thousands of other Air New Zealand passengers flying home this Christmas, Wedginald is travelling 12,000 miles to join the team at Mud House Winery, where they plan to let the traditional Cheddar mature for a little longer before sampling the delicacy with a glass of their own new vintage next year.

Born this time last year Cheddarvision was the brainchild of co-op West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers. “We set up Cheddarvision to let the whole world appreciate just how long it takes to create a perfect-tasting West Country Farmhouse Cheddar. We never thought for a moment that the website would become this popular. The cheese has nearly 1,200 Myspace friends and time-lapse videos of Wedginald’s maturation have been viewed on YouTube 430,000 times” says cheesemaker Tom Calver.

Philip Crawford, chairman of the West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers group, explains: “We’re very proud of our cheese. The West Country Farmhouse Cheddar featured is one of just 14 UK products to carry the prestigious Protected Designation of Origin status, ranking it alongside world-famous epicurean treasures such as Champagne, Parma Ham and Cognac. It’s been great to see such an icon of British food get the attention it deserves. We hope Wedginald doesn’t have any problems getting through customs. He has been slowly maturing for 12 months and doesn’t look anything like his passport photo.”

***

food, food podcast, sensuality, Food Philosophy, Culinary Podcast Network, Culinary Media Network, Gilded Fork, Jennifer Iannolo, cheddar cheese, CheddarVision

Just got this release from the folks at Dave’s Gourmet (he’s the guy making the kooky presidential barbecue sauces). Interesting stuff:

The AP published an article today on the growing popularity of personal chefs — starring our very own Chef Mark. Congratulations!

It appears in the business section of USA Today, but you can see the AP version here:
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g4aOK0HuId1Q6oWOGzIM5h9Rtf_QD8S5SKFG1

Excerpt below:

Mark Tafoya, who owns the New York-based ReMARKable Palate personal chef service, cooks for regular weekly clients and also offers one-time meal services, such as romantic dinners for two.

Tafoya prepares the meals in the client’s home, with the dishes ranging from chicken enchiladas with a green tomatillo sauce to crab lasagna with bechamel sauce.

For regular clients, the week’s meals are discussed in advance and are created in accordance with their dietary needs and personal tastes. Organic, vegetarian and kosher options are available and nothing is repeated for six months unless requested, he said.

Tafoya said that by cooking for the same clients over a long time, he’s able to develop a kind of intimacy and customization that restaurant chefs just aren’t able to.

“I think that when I do hit it off and when they like my food and I understand them and what they like to eat, I can suggest new dishes that they might not have tried before, but I think might be right for them,” Tafoya said.

Tafoya said he was drawn to the profession after careers in acting and teaching. He saw it as a way to turn his love of food and cooking into a viable business.

Along with the ReMARKable Palate, Tafoya also is the co-owner and executive chef of The Gilded Fork, an online media company featuring recipes, podcasts and articles and blogs about food.

Tafoya said his typical weekly clients are incredibly busy, career-oriented people who don’t have time to cook, but still appreciate a quality meal.

gilded fork, food, food writing, personal chefs, Chef Mark Tafoya

Well, our pal Matt Griffin continues to sweep the media. The Baker’s Edge was featured in today’s NY Times Style section in the article “Fire, the Wheel and, of Course, Mop Slippers.”

Here is an excerpt (Matt appears on p.2):

In Carmel, Ind., an urban planner and home baker named Matthew Griffin invented a brownie pan that ingeniously makes every brownie have at least two crispy edges. “When we launched it we thought we had a niche product,” Mr. Griffin said. “We liked corner brownies and were trying to create a new market, catering to the edge lover.”

A few small blogs mentioned the pan last fall, [Ed: Um, yes, and a prominent new food site also published the story behind its development, but never mind. :)] and then Boingboing, a popular blog that often touts gadgets, ran an item last month. Traffic to the Baker’s Edge Web site, previously averaging 6,000 hits a month, became as intense as a triple chocolate brownie. “We did 1,000 hits an hour for two weeks,” Mr. Griffin said. His small company is sold out of the $34 pans for now. Next in the development pipeline: an all-edge lasagna pan.

Yes indeed. We can’t wait to get them back into the Gilded Fork Boutique. And in fact, you can hear an update about that on the next episode of Food Philosophy, which will be available this evening.

Congratulations Matt!

gilded fork, baking, Baker’s Edge, New York Times

[display_podcast}

The fascists are at it again. The attempt to ban foie gras has come to New York City, and you can be damn sure I’ve got something to say about it. It is time for people to stand up for individual rights with the kind of volume typically reserved for animal rights, and that means you. Are you comfortable with the government dictating what you can and cannot eat?

Pleasures are becoming more endangered with every day that passes here in the Nanny State, and if you don’t stand up now for your individual freedoms, don’t be surprised when the Puritans are running every last detail of your existence. If you want to voice your opinion on the matter, contact your New York City Council legislators at the following:
http://www.nyccouncil.info/constituent/

On a happier note, and in salute to the ideal of pleasure – the kind that is both sinless and guilt-free – I’m delighted to feature a chat with entrepreneur Dick Pyle about the Truffle Tree empire he has created in Gascony. Thanks to his ingenuity and passion, you can now buy your very own truffle tree in France and partake of the bountiful treasures to be found beneath the ground.

Music: Super Hot Lady Cop by Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/) and Grapes by Evan Stone (http://www.asamandrummeth.com/)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Gilded Fork (http://www.gildedfork.com/)

http://www.culinarypodcastnetwork.com/