Around the Nation
Growing Vegetables From Seeds Takes Root For Many Gardeners
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Food
This illustration from 1846 shows a starving boy and girl raking the ground for potatoes during the Irish Potato Famine, which began in the 1840s.
How Genomics Solved The Mystery Of Ireland's Great Famine
()Although scientists have known that a funguslike organism caused the potato blight that triggered the Great Famine in Ireland in the 1840s, they didn't know which strain was the culprit. But they do now, thanks to the genes in some 19th century potato samples.
The Salt
Vertical 'Pinkhouses:' The Future Of Urban Farming?()
May 21, 2013 Architects have come up with spectacular concepts for vertical farms that would grow crops in city skyscrapers. But many horticulturists think the future of vertical farming isn't in skyscrapers, but rather in large, indoor warehouses lit up magenta by superefficient LEDs.
The Salt
Washington State Butcher Spikes Pig Feed With Weed()
May 20, 2013 Despite its name, the "pot pig" experiment isn't an attempt to develop a new meaty treat for stoners. Instead, a Seattle butcher is feeding marijuana seeds, stems and root bulbs to swine as a cheeky money-saving measure.
The Salt
Sandwich Monday: The Saltwich()
May 20, 2013 For this week's Sandwich Monday, we celebrate an expert panel's recommendations about salt intake by taking in as much salt as we can, with The Saltwich.
The Salt
Can A Piece Of Hair Reveal How Much Coke Or Pepsi You Drink?()
May 20, 2013 People are notorious for under-reporting what they consume — they lie, forget or just guess wrong. For researchers who want to know how much soda we're drinking, a high-tech analysis technique could help.
The Salt
Giant Renaissance Food People Descend Upon New York()
May 19, 2013 Giuseppe Arcimboldo was a 16th-century artist who liked to play with his food, transforming it into the building blocks of many of his fantastical portraits. Artist Philip Haas has taken those portraits out of museums, reinterpreting them as colossal statues that interact with the natural environment.
The Salt
'Picture Cook': Drawings Are The Key Ingredients In These Recipes()
May 17, 2013 Designer Katie Shelly's upcoming cookbook offers 50 illustrated recipe "blueprints" for basic meals — from simple snacks to more hefty dishes like eggplant Parmesan. She hopes they'll inspire any level of cook to improvise in the kitchen.
The Salt
Flaxseed: The Next Superfood For Cattle And Beef?()
May 17, 2013 After years of research, an animal scientist looking for ways to keep inflammation down in cattle came up with a novel approach: feed them flax. The flax in their food helps keep animals healthy and has an added benefit for people who later eat their meat: omega-3 enriched beef.
The Salt
Congress: Where Food Reforms Go To Die?()
May 16, 2013 As Congress gets to work on the farm bill, two common-sense, bipartisan reform measures seem to have gotten run over somewhere along the way. The first would set minimum standards for housing egg-laying chickens. The second sought to change how the U.S. provides food aid to people in foreign nations.
The Salt
No More Smuggling: Many Cured Italian Meats Coming To America()
May 16, 2013 Culatello. Capocollo. Sopressata. It will soon be legal to import a whole new world of Italian cured pork products, thanks to the USDA's decision to end a decades-long ban. Every Italian region and province, and even many towns have their own distinctive salumi.
Parallels
Underground Tunnels Feed Gaza's Hankering For KFC()
May 16, 2013 Gaza Strip residents rely heavily on smuggling tunnels to Egypt. Among many other goods, the passageways are reportedly bringing regular deliveries of fast food.
The Salt
How Trace Amounts Of Arsenic End Up In Grocery Store Meat ()
May 16, 2013 A recently published study found slightly elevated amounts of inorganic arsenic in samples of chicken meat purchased at grocery stores. Arsenic-based drugs are no longer used in chickens — but they are still used in turkeys.
The Salt
Can Star Power Make New Orleans' Food Deserts Bloom?()
May 15, 2013 Actor Wendell Pierce, who stars in David Simon's Treme, is trying to combat New Orleans' food deserts by building convenience and grocery stores in the city's neediest areas. But a host of stumbling blocks still make it hard to get fresh, healthful foods to people living in these areas.
The Salt
Go Fish (Somewhere Else): Warming Oceans Are Altering Catches()
May 15, 2013 Fish are moving away from the equator and toward the poles to maintain their preferred water temperature. That means, for example, that fishermen are seeing swordfish normally found in the Mediterranean swimming near Denmark. But in the tropics, there are no fish to replace the ones that are leaving.
Kitchen Window
Bringing Back Butterscotch()
May 15, 2013 Butterscotch seemed to have fallen out of fashion, but food writer Rina Rapuano says she's seeing glimmers of a comeback. And we don't mean hard candies and instant pudding. The revival of this old-fashioned flavor inspires a crepe cake, a chocolate-crusted tart and more.
The Salt
Is Eating Too Little Salt Risky? New Report Raises Questions()
May 15, 2013 A low-sodium diet may cause more health problems than a medium-sodium diet, a new report found. But some health advocates say focusing on the potential risks of a low-sodium diet distracts from the more important conversation about how to get Americans to start consuming less salt.
The Salt
Chris Hadfield: Space Chef In Chief()
May 14, 2013 The Canadian astronaut didn't just tweet and sing his heart out during his five months as commander of the International Space Station. He also took time out to show the world what it's like to eat up there.
