Trip Tip a Day

Tip of the day:  However it presents, enjoy a macaron from La Duree After a semester abroad, my daughter brought each of us a handpicked macaron of a flavor to match our tastes from La Duree in Paris.  When it's just one macaron, handpicked, and when it's flown in from Paris, and when it's such a pretty pink, and when it tastes so delicious, smashed has no bearing on the situation!

Foodography.  I love to whip out the IPHONE for a picture of a beautifully prepared dish, to document a fun new restaurant, or the food on a trip to an exotic land.  Here is a photo I took last weekend at work.  Jessie, our superb baker and co-worker treated us to her homemade fruit tart - a feast for the eyes and so delicious.   Well, photos of the dishes from a restaurant in Germany helped nail the sprouts as the culprit in the E. coli 0104 outbreak, as they were present on the sick diner's plates.   "Today, German officials announced that they are now certain that organic bean sprouts are the source of the epidemic of enterohemorrhagic  Escherichia coli  (EHEC) in their country—and diners who took out their cameras before digging in have proven to be a big help." You can enlarge the photo and see the sprouts if you go to the link below: http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2011/06/restaurant-photos-help-nail-bean.html?ref=ra

While shopping for peanut butter at Kroger, I noticed a small jar of Nutella. Then I noticed a small jar of Kroger brand Hazelnut spread. I gave the label a look, and was shocked to find that the Kroger brand jar label said "Product of Italy." Could it be that the whole Italian chocolate hazelnut spread vs. German/Swiss/French/Canadian chocolate hazelnut spread taste issue could be resolved? Tonight? In my home? This was just too exciting. I proceeded to go home and get out two spoons each. Next, the children and I took turns closing our eyes and spooning in #1 and #2 into each other's mouths. Pausing, reflecting on the taste, and picking our favorite. Results - hard to discriminate - but the Kroger brand Italian product left a deeper hazelnut aftertaste which I really appreciated. Kroger brand also started with a strong chocolate taste. It ended up being 50-50, so we'll have to leave it to others to declare a clear winner. I'll have to see how the Kr...