LTHForum.com

A terrific story from NPR yesterday detailing he decline and fall of a onetime culinary staple. Very interesting.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/02/ ... rd?ps=cprs

Yeah, it's like "Sleeper"
Soon we'll all be smoking cigarettes again.

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What is patriotism, but the love of good things we ate in our childhood?
-- Lin Yutang

I would use more lard if I can find more, and when it's not hydrogenated. I once bome at Butcher & Larder for deep frying and pie crusts, but it's friggin' expensive. (It's excellent lard, though; it has a nice porky taste.) I was thinking of hitting up some of the West Loop meatpacking places for cheaper lard. Interesting article on the history of lard--people are finally concluding that it's not so bad after all. Funny how people's tastes change - I tell people I make vinaigrette with left over bacon grease, and people don't think it's odd.

A lot of so-called Mexican grocery stores sell freshly rendered lard on weekends. The stuff is amazing. It has a very roasty flavor, though, that is probably not ideal for desserts.

I loved the article by the way. Lard just gets an undeserved bad reputation, and I never bought into this "fat is bad for you stuff" - all this "light" stuff the food producers pushed on you. Fortunately that stuff is peaked. Some relatives stayed with us and bought this stuff in the fridge called "Smart Choice" mystery butter with all sorts of inert ingrediants. People seem to be waking up to the fact that animal fat won't kill you, as long as you're not eating steroid-pumped up, disease-infested feedlots. I'll take it over partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

In one of my favorite editions of "The Best of Travel Writing," there is a memorable essay entitled "Lard is Good for You," by a Peace Corps volunteer in (I think) a Central American country. I'll try to find it.

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"I would gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today."

Regarding where to find lard, I recently (last week) saw it at City Fresh Market. It was definately some inhouse, homemade stuff, more than likely not hydregenated.

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