The Feed: February 27, 2013

The Feed is my weekly round up of interesting food-related stories from newspapers, magazines, blogs and websites.

New York Times Magazine: “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food,” by Michael Moss. It seems so many of us have sworn off junk food. Yet many of us get the occasional urge for a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup or a Nacho Cheese Dorito (note the lack of realism in my using the singular for those cravings). Moss's article helps us understand junk food’s primal draw, touching on the food science and marketing that makes sweet and salty snacks so addictive. Equally of interest are the revelations of the industry’s growing awareness of its role in the country’s obesity problem and reluctance to address it. This fascinating excerpt whets the appetite for the longer discussions on these topics in Moss's new book, Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us.

Washington Post: “Is there a way to fight fish fraud?” by Tim Carman. With Europe’s horsemeat crisis taking over headlines, the other recent food fraud story is playing second fiddle. Carman covered the Oceana study story that broke last week, revealing that up to a third of seafood in restaurants and grocery stores is falsely labeled. This week, Carman offers a follow-up piece on how chefs and others seek to combat such fraud.

New York Times Diner's Journal: “James Beard Awards: Geography vs. Quality,” by Pete Wells. Turns out I wasn’t the only one who noted some interesting omissions in the Beard awards semifinalists list. The Times’ restaurant critic sees a big hole when it comes to New York restaurants, such as the omissions of The NoMad, Atera and Blanc, among others, on the Best New Restaurants longlist. Whether these omissions should be considered snubs is up for debate. I’d love to read a thoughtful rebuttal of this piece; it’s certainly sparked a lively discussion in the stories' comments section.

Time/CNN: “Mediterranean diet lowers risk of heart attack, stroke,” by Alice Park. A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine adds to the mounting evidence that a Mediterranean diet—one marked by fruit, vegetables, fish and lots of extra virgin olive oil—is better at warding off cardiovascular disease than a more American-style low-fat diet. It’s good news for olive oil fans, considering that it calls for having 4 tablespoons of it daily.

Cookistry: Herbivoracious-Inspired Grilled Cheese. I love a good grilled cheese sandwich, but I’ve never heard of anyone making one with cheese on the outside. Inspired by the little melty bits that sometimes escape the bread and brown on the grill, Cookistry does a version where cheese coats the outside of both slices of bread (as well as in the middle of course). It’s inspired by the cookbook Herbivoracious by Michael Natkin.