Category Archives: Food Heroes

Inspired and inspiring cooks, bakers, producers and purveyors of food.

Are you baking Taylor Swift sourdough?

Posted on February 1, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

So does Taylor Swift really bake sourdough bread and is it legit? I am one of those who admires her as a role model and for her social stances without actually listening to her music, but when it comes to … Continue reading →

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Steve Barnes on attentive service in a restaurant or bar

Posted on July 30, 2024 by Burnt My Fingers

Steve Barnes is senior food writer at our local daily, the Times-Union. As a subscriber I’m supposed to be able to share a few articles each month but can’t find the referral link for this one. So I’ll cut and … Continue reading →

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Smoking ribs with Aaron Franklin

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Burnt My Fingers

UPDATE: we tried Franklin’s method with some St. Louis style ribs and were very happy with the result. Photo at the bottom of this post. Spare ribs were on sale over Father’s Day, so I decided to give them a … Continue reading →

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Allan Benton loves his ramps.

Posted on May 3, 2022 by Burnt My Fingers

We get to share 10 articles a month at no cost with our New York Times subscription, so please enjoy this one in which the “King of Appalachian Smoked Pork” takes a reporter into the back country where they forage … Continue reading →

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Chuckeye Dave breaks down a Benton ham

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Burnt My Fingers

For value and flavor, Burnt My Fingers readers would agree Benton’s Country Ham can’t be beat. The only question is which ham to buy. Whole Hickory Smoked Country Ham Deboned and Trimmed (item HSCHDT) gives you one magnificent chunk of … Continue reading →

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Vintage recipes from Milwaukee Library

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Burnt My Fingers

We stumbled on a remarkable and little-known (judging from the Google search results) resource for mid century recipes: The Historical Recipe Archive of the Milwaukee Public Library. The home page pretty much says it: “For over 20 years, from the … Continue reading →

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You’re invited: Niman Ranch Hog Farmer Appreciation Celebration

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Burnt My Fingers

In the mid-aughts we did some work on the Niman Ranch website. We were guests of famed pig farmer and natural husbandry advocate Paul Willis in Thorton, IA. We toured his grounds, ate at his favorite coffee shop, even got … Continue reading →

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Dreaming of Indi Chocolate

Posted on February 14, 2020 by Burnt My Fingers

Serendipitous discoveries are our favorite aspect of the giant Fancy Food Show. We missed a session on pairing tea and chocolate so stopped by to meet the presenters, Indi Chocolate. It turns out the tea/chocolate pairing is a sideline to … Continue reading →

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Fun with fonio

Posted on February 6, 2020 by Burnt My Fingers

Chef Pierre Thiam sent me home from the Fancy Food Show with a nice supply of fonio. His Yolélé Foods sources the grain from small farms In West Africa, where Thiam was born. Fonio is a tiny seed related to … Continue reading →

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R.I.P. to BBQ giant Vencil Mares

Posted on December 3, 2019 by Burnt My Fingers

Texas barbecue giant Vencil Mares, proprietor and pit boss at the Taylor Cafe in Taylor TX, passed away on November 24, 2019. He had just celebrated his 96th birthday. You can find several references to Vencil Mares on Burnt My … Continue reading →

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