Food Notes for September 21, 2009

The television season officially started again, with the premiere of House. It was a fantastic episode to boot! Anyone else hungry for new shows? On to this week’s food notes:

• A reminder that the Great Potato Giveaway is on this Saturday, September 26 at Norbest Farms. Who wouldn’t want fifty pounds of free potatoes?
• I read about a new bakery called Old Bread Factory on Foodosophy. From the looks of the scrumptious desserts offered there, I will have to make an effort to swing by to pick up my own box of sweet goods soon.
• The Cocoa Room is open again after the summer break, although under a new name – Kerstin’s Chocolates! Kerstin’s hopes the change will result in less confusion.
• James from Transcend wrote a post last week about the surprisingly collaborative nature of the specialty coffee community. Good to know.
• DeVine’s is offering a free spirits tasting on October 2 from 4-7pm. Donations will be gratefully accepted for the Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters.
• Is a local food supply network a possibility on the horizon? I hope so.
• On that note – the USDA’s “Know Your Farmer, Know your Food” initiative sounds great, though I know sometimes these things could just be about throwing money without sense of where it is actually going.
• I have been hearing so much about Portland lately – about how they are the model city for sustainability, planning, and liveability. And just this weekend, the NYT included a feature article about their supposedly incredible food scene. Is Portland too good to be true? My scanning abilities have failed me again – I didn’t realize they were talking about Portland, Maine.
• Everything you wanted to know about burger classification and more – but be warned, don’t click on it if you’re hungry.
• I’m in the middle of Frank Bruni’s memoir Born Round, and after his umpteenth description of a ravenous Italian meal with his family, I couldn’t take it anymore and had to make the only dish I knew that could satisfy my craving for pasta to gorge over: Giada’s stuffed shells with arrabbiata sauce. Yum.

Stuffed Shells with Arrabbiata Sauce