Food Features

Untitled Document Whatever you may think of Jim Oberweis’ politics, one thing is for sure: In any taste contest against ordinary store-bought milk, Oberweis Dairy milk wins in a landslide. In 1915 Peter Oberweis began selling extra milk from his farm’s cows in Aurora. By 1927 he was in the dairy business full-time. Back then, […]

Untitled Document What’s a nice guy from Venezuela doing in Springfield? Well, among other things, he’s making arepas. Félix Cabrera moved to Springfield from Venezuela five years ago with his wife, Ana, and two sons, Santiago and Bernardo. Cabrera came here in conjunction with his family’s business, a commodity-brokerage firm. They also have offices in […]

Untitled Document I’ve just been to a Rampfest — an evening in one of Chicago’s trendiest venues, the large space filled to overflowing with people sniffing, eating, and talking about ramps. The decorations consisted of vases filled with ramps, their beautiful lily-of-the-valley-like leaves spilling from the tops and the purple stems, white bulbs, and roots […]

Untitled Document Easter was a big deal when I was growing up. There were the church services, which for a number of years included a sunrise play at Lincoln Memorial Garden, directed and produced by my mom (she also made the costumes and set, a.k.a. the tomb). It was pretty impressive to see that figure […]

Untitled Document It seems as if sushi is everywhere these days — in eclectic restaurants that offer a bewildering (and, unfortunately, sometimes badly executed) mix of cuisines, in Chinese megabuffets, and even in plastic tubs in grocery stores. Even so, many people still have mistaken ideas about sushi, and some think there’s a gross-out factor: […]

Untitled Document My husband, Peter, and I frequently bop down to St. Louis for the day to shop; listen to music; see a film, play, or exhibit; go to the Missouri Botanical Garden; or just generally mess around. No matter what else is on our St. Louis agenda, however, we always take advantage of its […]

Untitled Document I’ve had them in Paris and elsewhere in Europe. I’ve had them in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. But I’ve never, ever had better croissants than those I’ve eaten at Incredibly Delicious, right here in Springfield. As I tell my cooking students: “If you want a truly religious eating experience, go to Incredibly […]

Untitled Document “If you eat food, you need to see The Future of Food.” — Newstarget.com Have you have you ever read or seen something so powerful, so mind-boggling, so eye-opening that you had the urge to rush out and grab total strangers off the street and insist that they read or see it, too? […]

Untitled Document It really is a small world. If I hadn’t known it before, it was brought home to me three years ago in New Zealand. My younger daughter, Ashley, had enrolled at Lincoln University in Christchurch to study viticulture and oenology (grape-growing and winemaking). Down under, the school year starts in late February, equivalent […]

Untitled Document Drip, drip, drip . . . It was late February. After a long, cold winter, it was first day to hint that spring was on the way. Drip, drip, drip . . . It had been below freezing overnight, but by noon the sun was warm. Drip, drip, drip . . . I […]

Untitled Document This winter is really getting old. I’m tired of it, in spite of the fact that I like cool weather. My weather complaints are usually focused on muggy heat rather than winter chill, but the two ice storms this winter have resulted almost a week’s worth of power outages and major damage to our […]

Untitled Document It’s a wonderful and rare experience to return to a once-favorite restaurant after several years’ absence and find it as good as ever. It’s akin to running into an old friend with whom you’ve lost touch and quickly and easily slipping back into a comfortable, close relationship. It’s even more wonderful and rare […]