The New Yorker 2009 Food Issue, ADHD Edition
The November 23rd, 2009 issue of the New Yorker is dedicated to all things food, and it's full of big names (Heston Blumenthal! Mimi Sheraton!), trendy food (Poutine!), and a gigantic dissection of what cookbooks mean from Adam Gopnick. Below, we let you know what is (and isn't) worth your time.
- John Colapinto takes Manhattan with a Michelin Guide inspector, making reference to the EMD Sam Sifton disguises post in the process!
- Mimi Sheraton discusses the disgustingly-named, but apparently delicious, Spit Cake. Once a regular feature of New York's Yorkville neighborhood, the towering German cake is an endangered species today. (Print only.)
- Evan Osnos on affluent Chinese who have discovered the joys of fancy wine—and are driving up the prices worldwide.
- Calvin Trillin tracks the supposedly hilarious world of poutine across Canada. We ask: what is so funny about fried potatoes, gravy and cheese?
- Jane Kramer has made Thanksgiving dinner in seven different countries, and finds that the American tradition continues to cement friendships across cultures.
- Raffi Khatchadourian has an epic feature on commercial flavor production factories.
- A series of vignettes on individual ingredients: Heston Blumenthal on duck, Anthony Lane on eggs, Jhumpa Lahiri on rice, and Judith Thurman on aspic. (Print only.)
- Finally, Adam Gopnik explains why we read cookbooks, and while he does provide the useful metaphor of the cookbook as grammar, there's an irritating amount of space dedicated to masculine cookbooks versus feminine ones.
—Paula Forbes
