Category: Food

Chocolate may boost brain power

Chocolate may boost brain power | Health | Reuters.co.uk
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Chocolate lovers rejoice. A new study hints that eating milk chocolate may boost brain function.

“Chocolate contains many substances that act as stimulants, such as theobromine, phenethylamine, and caffeine,” Dr. Bryan Raudenbush from Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia noted in comments to Reuters Health.

“These substances by themselves have previously been found to increase alertness and attention and what we have found is that by consuming chocolate you can get the stimulating effects, which then lead to increased mental performance.” Continue reading “Chocolate may boost brain power”

Germany’s beer lovers can already taste defeat

Germany’s beer lovers can already taste defeat – World – Times Online
The Germans are furious that Budweiser will be the official tipple for the World Cup, which starts next month. The American lager has secured a near-monopoly of beer sales inside World Cup stadiums and within a 500m radius of the grounds, supplanting more than 1,270 domestic breweries.

And what most upsets the fans is that Budweiser — advertised as the “King of Beers” in the US — fails to meet the ancient German standards for purity, which stipulate that beer can be brewed only from malt, hops and water. Budweiser uses rice in its production process and therefore does not qualify as a beer in the German sense.

Budweiser paid $40 million for the concession even before Germany had been chosen to host the tournament. ” Franz Maget, a Bavarian Social Democrat, has entered the fray, calling Budweiser “the worst beer in the world”.

2,000-year-old seed has roots in King Herod’s palace

Scripps Howard News Service

The seed from which it sprouted 14 months ago was found in archeological excavations of King Herod’s palace on Mount Masada. Lying dormant for 2,000 years, it is the oldest seed to ever produce a viable tree. And this is no ordinary date palm, but the extinct Judean form considered uniquely medicinal.

In ancient times, the value of the male trees cannot be overestimated. Loss of the male flowers would prevent pollination and cut off all fruit production. For cultures dependent on that harvest, this loss meant famine.

When conquering armies invaded date palm-dependent lands, they often cut down the male palm trees to interrupt the food supply. It was similar to the Romans sowing salt in the fields of Carthage. It took many years, if not decades, for the male palms to regrow and produce enough pollen to fertilize the existing female palms. In the interim, locals would be preoccupied with finding enough food rather than fighting their conquerors.

Click on image to see immature date clusters protected from birds and sunburn with paper(Tanx to Natalia Collier for this find.)

Grillers’ nagging dilemma: Gas or charcoal?

Grillers’ nagging dilemma: Gas or charcoal? – Today Grilling Guide 2006 – MSNBC.com
There are absolutists who believe that charcoal (if not wood itself) is the only way to go, the sole method for delivering even, stable heat, and maybe a whiff of smoke. To these proud, patient types, gas is a cheap shortcut. A smaller, but equally fervent band of absolutists will tell you charcoal is a waste of time and material, and a tank full of propane, or natural gas, and a well-designed grill will give you precision and consistency that you’d never get with a pile of burning briquettes.

Eau de Stilton Perfume

Stilton Cheese – Latest news

Nigel White, from the Stilton Cheese Makers Association, comments: “Blue Stilton cheese has a very distinctive mellow aroma and our perfumier was able to capture the key essence of that scent and recreate it in what is an unusual but highly wearable perfume that we are very proud to put our name to.”

These guys are serious! If you’ve ever smelt Stilton, well lets just say you have to love putrified mammary fluid.

The falling prices of organic food

The falling prices of organic food
For that sea of humanity known as Baby Boomers, “organic food” conjures images of hippies in painted VW buses, Earth Shoes, hemp-growers and commune dwellers.

But the Hummers and Mercedes parked at Whole Foods — not to mention the Manolo high-heels and Louis Vuitton handbags sported by shoppers inside — illustrate the seismic shift in the organic food world over the last several years. Starting this month, that world may shift again when Wal-Mart doubles its line of organic foods.