The Past on the Plate: Translating Powerful Food Memories into Unforgettable Meals

by JBF Editors on September 04, 2012

 

by Jamie Feldmar

 

One transformative taste, whether it’s of a perfectly ripe summer tomato or an elaborate chef’s menu, can linger far longer in the mind than it does on the tongue. As anyone who remembers a sacred sandwich from childhood can attest, food memories rarely exist in a vacuum; they are inextricably tied to where you were when you had that unforgettable bite.

 

Those who make food their career tend to understand the importance of creating lasting food memories—most chefs hope the meals they craft will stay with their diners for years to come. They often draw inspiration from their own food memories, in ways both recognizable and unexpected.

 

Chris Hastings, 2012 JBF Best Chef: South award winner and owner of Hot & Hot Fish Club in Birmingham, Alabama, spent his childhood summers on Pawleys Island, South Carolina, where he was once charged with catching fish, crabs, oysters, clams, and shrimp for his family’s dinner.

 

“My grandma... Read more >

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Spirited Artisans

by JBF Editors on May 22, 2012

 

After states lifted Prohibition-era distilling bans a few years ago, craft spirit producers started to crop up in cities all over America. Jamie Feldmar reports on the comeback of the urban distillery.

 

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Move over inner-city farmers, rooftop beekeepers, and backyard chickens. It’s time to meet the latest urban industry: moonshine.

 

Well, not exactly; it’s legal. In recent years, a growing number of craft spirit producers have been building aboveboard distilleries in city centers, eschewing wide-open spaces in exchange for the opportunity to connect directly with their customers. Inspired by the do-it-yourself philosophy of the local-food movement, they’re injecting that same spirit into, well, spirits.

 

During Prohibition (1920–1933), moonshiners illicitly distilled corn mash into low-grade liquor with a smell and taste so strong it’s a wonder anyone wanted to smuggle it at all. After the repeal it became... Read more >

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Reflections on a Delicious Legacy: JBF Celebrates 25 years of Shining a Spotlight on Chefs

by JBF Editors on January 12, 2012

This article is excerpted and adapted from the introduction to The James Beard Foundation’s Best of the Best: A 25th Anniversary Celebration of America’s Outstanding Chefs, which is being published this spring. Preorder your copy today from our Amazon store.

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Looking back on the past 25 years, it’s hard to believe how much American food and food culture has evolved. When the James Beard Foundation was founded in November 1986 by Peter Kump, Julia Child, and other friends and colleagues of James Beard, no one could have imagined that there would one day be two 24-hour television networks devoted to food programming. It would have been

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An Autumnal Cheese Primer

by JBF Editors on September 13, 2011

Sure, fall’s harvest brings tons of great produce, but as JBF Award nominee, chef, and master cheesemonger Matt Jennings explains, it’s also the peak season for cheese.

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You can tell a lot about your cheese from how it tastes, and the flavors of true artisan American cheeses are as varied as the seasons in which they’re created.

It’s a well-known truth in the tight-knit world of professional cheesemongers that autumn in particular brings a bounty of small-production cheeses from farms and producers across the country—each with a distinct flavor profile and a story all its own.

While it can be hard to choose, here are some of our favorite cheeses to purchase and consume in the autumn months.

Vermont Shepherd // Vermont Shepherd Farm, Vermont
Vermont Shepherd, an American raw-milk classic, is created by David Major... Read more >

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