Chef Gaynol

Kellogg's Recalls Cereal

Kellogg's has made the news again. Go here for my previous post about Kellogg's.    This time the company is voluntarily recalling cereal distributed nationwide that has a weird smell and off flavor. If you live in Canada, you're off the hook, no icky cereal was distributed in your neck of the woods. Consumers in the US are reporting nausea and diarrhea.  Below is a list of the cereals that are being recalled as of this date. 

Kellogg's® Apple Jacks®

• UPC 3800039136 1: 17 ounce package with Better if Used Before Dates between APR 10 2011 and JUN 22 2011
• UPC 3800039132 3: 8.7 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between JUN 03 2011 and JUN 22 2011

Kellogg's® Corn Pops®

• UPC 3800039109 5: 12.5 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011
• UPC 3800039111 8: 17.2 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011
• UPC 3800039116 3: 9.2 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between APR 05 2011 and JUN 22 2011

Kellogg's® Froot Loops®

• UPC 3800039118 7: 12.2 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011
• UPC 3800039120 0: 17 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011
• UPC 3800039125 5: 8.7 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011

Kellogg's® Honey Smacks®

• UPC 3800039103 3: 15.3 ounce packages with Better if Used Before Dates between MAR 26 2011 and JUN 22 2011

Consumers who have concerns or would like their cereal replaced can call the Kellogg Consumer Response Center at 888-801-4163 from 8 am to 8 pm Eastern time.  Go here for the full text of the FDA recall.

Maybe it's time to switch to yogurt and fruit for breakfast.....I'm just saying......

Planet Barbecue

Puerto Rican Grilled Pork Chop, glazed with annatto oil

Last thursday we trekked to Seattle to hear Steven Raichlen and Tom Douglas talk about all things barbecue. Raichlen was in town to promote his newest book Planet Barbecue as part of the Visiting Chef Series put on by Kim Ricketts Book Events.

Steven Raichlen is my kind of food geek.  He graduated with a degree in French Literature from Reed College and in 1975 received a Watson Foundation Fellowship to study medieval cooking in Europe. This academic beginning sparked a passion for live fire cooking and Raichlen went on to bring barbecue to the masses. In 1998 he published The Barbecue Bible and 29 books later he is still going strong with two shows on PBS as well as his own line of barbecue gear and his wildly popular BBQ University. 

Raichlen doesn't know me from a jar of spice rub but he taught me how to barbecue.  Several years ago I was in the house making potato salad and staring with envy at my husband who was drinking a beer and lighting the grill out in the sunshine.  "Hey, I thought resentfully, why does he get to stand outside drinking alcohol near an open flame?"  After all didn't I go to culinary school?  Didn't I stand shoulder to shoulder (technically shoulder to elbow, I'm kind of short)   with all those wanna-be-chefs over blazing hot stoves. Why should he have all the fun?? So I went out and I bought How to Grill: The Complete Illustrated Book of Barbecue Techniques.  And since then, weather permitting my husband and I have been a grilling team. 

Raichlen and Douglas took the stage and introduced each other and then Douglas said to Raichlen, "Who the fuck made you the barbecue God?"  Most people in the audience laughed and the mood was set for the following hour of conversation.   

Lighter Lasagna

Don't you just love the colors here?  Reminds me of the Italian flag.  Which reminds me of lasagna and cold winter nights when you want to stay indoors with a glass of wine and a roaring fire.  But according to the calender summer is almost here and it is time to move on to lighter meals.  Don't try to sell that point of view to anyone in Seattle right now. We've had close to 21 inches of rain and the first day we broke 75 degrees happened last week. Nevertheless, I'm sure that some of you out there, somewhere, are enjoy balmy, warm summer temperatures and you're probably looking for some easy light meals.  

I adapted this recipe from one in the June 2010 issue of Everyday Food Magazine.  I liked the original recipe but I thought it didn't have enough vegetables and I didn't want to plate individual servings of lasagna so here's my version.

Cereal Liars

Kellogg's, Kellogg's what are we going to do with you??  The company got bitch-slapped earlier this year by the FTC for the outrageous claim that their frosted strawberry cereal (no strawberries were harmed in the making of this product) improved attentiveness by 20%. The FTC concluded that this claim was, "... false and violated federal law."  They also told the company that it could no longer make statements"...about the benefits, performance, or efficacy of such product for cognitive function, cognitive processes, or cognitive health... "  In layman speak, "Yo, Kellogg's knock that shit off and stop hollerin' about how your cereal will make younguns book smart."

    

Spice Fatigue

If you've been in a grocery store lately or read a food magazine you've probably seen or come across an ad for this product.  It's McCormick's Recipe Inspirations.

 

Now you gotta give props to McCormicks's for the sheer gall of marketing eleven grams of spice in a plastic container.  When I first saw this product I laughed out loud.  Who would buy this?  What are measuring spoons hard to find? Not enough plastic in the landfills already?  I thought this would be one of those products that made a splash and got discarded in the trash bin of bad ideas. Apparently, I had it all wrong.