It may come as a surprise to some, but buying foods labeled cage-free or grass-fed does not necessarily mean that those items are what they say they are, or what we assume they mean.  This can be really frustrating if you are trying to do your best to purchase humane and sustainable food, not to mention that foods labeled with these claims are often more expensive.  Do you pay extra for organic, or non-GMO, or hormone-free foods?  Do you know which labels are reliable?  Read on for more information and sources for identifying which labels you can trust. 

While watching the movie The Naked Gun the other night, my husband and I were distracted by the scene of Frank Drebin and a fellow cop sitting in a car eating a mountain of pistachios, their mouths smeared lipstick-red. Red pistachios! They were a staple of my childhood, but I never see them anymore. Whatever happened to them?

What do birthday cake, chocolate chip cookies, and animal crackers all have in common — besides, of course, all being desserts that we grew up loving? Answer: they each have a long and venerable history that started way before our own memories of those first sweet bites. As Jesse Oleson Moore, creator of Cake Spy and self-proclaimed dessert detective, puts it in her new book The Secret Lives of Baked Goods, "...recipes are not necessarily invented — they evolve."

For as long as I've known Faith Durand, she has been ever so slightly obsessed with no-bake — a.k.a. bakeless — desserts. There's her love of panna cotta, and her tendency to layer delicious things with whipped cream. Of course, we also have her no-bake strawberry icebox cake, which has become one of our top recipes here on The Kitchn. 

Faith has now taken those years of playing with custards, fluffs, and other sweet stovetop creations, and she's put them into her latest book: Bakeless Sweets, which is being released today! So we thought we'd do an interview with Faith and get a peek into how she got hooked on these desserts, her favorite kitchen tools, and which recipes you should try first. 

Most Americans are familiar with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall through his well-received River Cottage Meat Book, so it may come as some surprise that he has penned a 400-page vegetable-centric tome devoted to the appreciation and cooking of vegetables.  But it makes a lot of sense that this passionate, out-spoken pioneer of local food has finally turned towards vegetables. River Cottage Veg is a lovely book, a love song to the many inspiring things you can pluck from your vegetable patch and bring into the kitchen.

Do manners matter? Well, yes, of course. White gloves may not be relevant in most circles these days, but a little courtesy never hurt anyone. I'm not sure where I got "White Gloves and Party Manners," because my mother wasn't terribly concerned with rules for situations that would likely never happen. (Her advice on complicated place settings: use the silverware from the outside in and, when in doubt, do whatever the oldest lady at the table does, because manners dictate that she's always right.) I teach my own children manners, constantly and without drama, just like my mother taught me.

Even if you keep a clean kitchen, there is a good chance harmful bacteria like E. coli and salmonella may be lurking in a few easily-overlooked areas, according to new report from the public health group NSF International. But for the most part, all you need is warm, soapy water and a little elbow grease to keep these areas clean and germ-free.

If you have ever been to Seattle, then surely you went to Pike Place Market. And if you went to Pike Place Market, then surely you have stood under the awning near the fish market and waited eagerly for one orange-trousered gentlemen to yell, "HALIBUT!" and toss a ginormous glittering fish over the counter to another orange-trousered gentlemen. And if you haven't, you need to turn around and go back. My point is: this book. This book captures that experience better than a snapshot — plus you get recipes!

It sometimes seems that big name chefs like Alex Guarnaschelli spring onto our favorite food TV shows fully-formed, already successful and possessing some inherent and unwavering internal cooking compass. Not so. Alex Guarnaschelli, for instance, comes by her culinary chops through a combination of genetics (daughter of a cookbook editor) and sheer determination. Old-School Comfort Food takes a step back from the big smile we all recognize and shows us where this bright chef came from.

A farm to table dinner, when the chef works closely with the farmer to plan the menu, is the most fun way possible to explore local offerings, eat what's truly in season and get to know a few new local people who love food like you do. Normally, I think this treat — not an inexpensive one — should be reserved for appreciative adults. But recently, we had the chance to enjoy such a dinner with our teenaged son — it was a pleasure and I may have changed my tune.