Oh so much linking!

Some posts are easier to write than others: that’s why I can post this slew of links while my Valentine’s Day commentary continues to languish in the ‘recent drafts’ section of my WordPress dashboard. Writing a post and compiling recipes and pictures requires a certain degree of focus, and I tend to be distracted rather easily by Twitter and my Google Reader. So, instead of fixing this obvious lack of focus, I decided to just share all the things that have been distracting me recently.

Because I love lists:

The Chicago Tribune made a list of Ten Underappreciated Superfoods. I was happy to see something other than the typical pomegrantes-and-kale-and-a-grain-you’ve-never-heard-of list. And, of course, garlic. But I appreciate garlic.

Domino's Chicken Carbonara Breadbowl Pasta (photo from menshealth.com)

(I used to tell Adam I’d break up with him if he didn’t have fresh garlic in his kitchen at all times.)

Liza over at (a)musing Foodie referenced this Men’s Health article about The 20 Worst Foods in America, which I thought went nicely with Ranker’s Top 10 Worst (for you) Restaurant Meals. I feel full gross just looking at the images.

A friend posted this on Facebook, and I immediately fell in love. There is an admirable amount of creativity involved in coming up with 10 foods that can be made in a coffee maker.

Because I at least try to be healthy:

Mmm... real salmon (photo from gptsc.com)

The Huffington Post shared a piece by Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food and Water Watch. In it she raises some concern over the Obama administration’s failure to focus on real food issues, like genetically engineered fish and produce.

On a similar note, Mark Bittman’s Op-Ed in the Times questions the lack of labeling on G.M.O. Foods.

The Department of Agriculture has reworked the Dietary Guidelines again, and this time there’s no pyramid (though there are plenty of pie charts and bar graphs). The New York Times shared Jane E. Brody’s take on the new guidelines. Her suggestions are pretty basic, but worth the reminder. (via @Washingtonian)

Some trends I can totally get behind:

photo from Salon.com

I should love wine: my parents were taking me to wineries when I was still in a stroller. I’m still in the ‘learning to appreciate it’ stages though, and these beer cocktails from thenibble.com sound quite tasty.

I don’t think I’ve ever tried to hide my love of terribly unhealthy junk food (aside from hiding it in my car so Adam doesn’t find it), so if this Salon-proposed Bugles-are-Cool trend actually happens I’ll be quite pleased (as long as Cheetos are cool too). (via @Washingtonian)

Things to add to my ‘Kitchen Wish List’:

Clongs- photo from thekitchn.com

I’ve started to keep a running list (scroll all the way down) of things I’d love to have in my kitchen. Apparently Adam pays attention, since he recently gave me a copy of The Wagamama Cookbook. So I’m sure I’ll have all kinds of new tools and pantry items to add to my list, since the more I cook new dishes the more I realize that I just need all kinds of new kitchen accessories. New need this week: kitchen clongs. (Emily over at Five and Spice has dubbed this phenomenon ‘the Wanting Monster.’)

Just some interesting reading:

I noticed this article on the front page of the Times Dining and Wine section and just couldn’t resist. For Actresses, Is a Big Appetite Part of the Show? focuses mainly on how interviewers write about their subjects’ eating habits, and what that says about societal perceptions.

This one I tracked down after seeing a reference/response to it (and later realized I’d also tagged it via @The Food Section). I’m sure it’s been all over the internet by now, but B.R. Myers’s tirade article in The Atlantic, The Moral Crusade Against Foodies, is definitely worth a read. One aspect I find interesting is his insistence that being a ‘foodie’ is quite expensive: my meager post-grad budget doesn’t prevent me from lusting after artisanal cheeses with the best of them.

And I think that’s it for now. Hopefully this week I will be less distracted by other people’s writing and accomplish some of my own.