Yum Nyam
On St. Patrick's day, drink Poitín, the world’s strongest alcohol
You’ll often find it in a clear, unmarked glass bottle, innocently snuggled at the back of a neighbour’s fridge, but the real Poteen (pronounced 'putch-een') isn’t sold in any shop in Dublin. St. Patrick apparently brewed it, and few people in Ireland haven’t tasted this ultra-alcoholic brew, but the lethal concoction has been illegal here since 1661
yum nyam, alcohol, agriculture, dublin, england, beverages, ireland
How to make Polish potato pancakes
It’s cheap and available, warm and nourishing, omnipresent in most traditional European cuisines – but the starchy crop only hit the continent from South America as late as the 16th century
yum nyam, netherlands, italy, cooking, poland, potato, united kingdom
Once upon a pizza
On 4 February, the EU paid homage to Neapolitan pizza by designating its trademark status. Yet when we eat a margherita, does it mean we're also paying homage to the three colours of the Italian flag? Behind this round piece of bread and staple in European diets lies the story of kings, queens and Italy
Scotland: address to haggis and Europe
25 January 2010 marks the 251st birthday of Robert Burns, the most famous Scottish bard. Supermarkets all over are going haggis-crazy. Haggis is delicious, but not for the faint hearted. Recipe
Italian housewives: the vital ingredient for a good polenta
So all you need is salted water and cornmeal, right? Most certainly not! Modern instant recipes are no substitute for the real thing. It’s impossible to make good polenta without a bit of elbow grease and a lot of patience. Don’t forget the copper pot for cooking it in either
Spain, Denmark and Romania 'fat tax' for citizens
One popular New Year's resolution is to eat less unhealthy food. Although this tends to be a personal decision, at the start of 2010 the three EU countries are discussing ways to slim down their citizens - or at least swell their coffers
yum nyam, taxation, gastronomy, cooking, presse, tax, society
Soup: from Spanish gazpacho to Ukrainian borscht
If, after an orgy of fat, sugar and alcohol, you’re thinking of a detox diet, join the club! The only solution: soup
Mulled wine across Europe
Sugarloaves, Swedish punch and grog: how Europe drinks to stay warm in the chilly run up to christmas
yum nyam, gastronomy, germany, christmas, film, alcohol, history
Who gives a cabbage?
Cabbage is the prince of warming winter dishes. It's the main ingredient of choucroute, Milanese cassœula (stew), German sauerkraut and Polish bigos, chomped down with pork, sausages and/ or potatoes. Plus a cassœula recipe for six
Fish fingers are 50 years old
Captain Birdseye is still a winner with kids and in student fridges! We plead for the defence of Europe’s most square-shaped fillet of fish
yum nyam, great-britain, brand names, consumers, fish, united kingdom, fisheries
Sweden and Norway are anti-junk food leaders
Whilst the rest of Europe only catches up now. Our waist circumference is suffocating us, and the battle against obesity remains a major issue in the early 21st century. Junk food: tastes so good, but is so wrong...
Europe's breakfasts: I'll have what Obama's having
Russia: Putin feeds Obama whilst a leather boot fans the flames. Italy: whilst Obama becomes president, Berlusconi serves his escort a hot drink. Germany: Merkel cooks brekkie for hubby: a round-up of European politicians' breakfast stories in the news, plus a pancake recipe for the bimonthly gastronomy column
yum nyam, gastronomy, recipe, angela merkel, lifestyle, food, barack obama
Haggis or crepes? European politicians and their favourite food
About cabbage, Angela Merkel has said 'it's robust and easy to freeze. You can always put it away and it will still be tasty after storing it.’ On 27 September the German elections will show whether Merkel is as endurant as her favourite vegetable
Ramadan arrives in Europe
We’re hungry, and in a hurry. The evening sun is still strong enough to melt the tar between the cobbles. I’m in Bologna, Italy, and Badr is bringing me as a guest to iftar, the daily feast that breaks the ramadan fast.
yum nyam, morocco, recipe, italy, food, best of cafebabel.com, bologna
Marmite and co: disgustingly debatable foods in western Europe
Travelling around Europe, you’re never safe from a bad gastronomic surprise, be it vegetable yeast spread, bull’s tail, pig’s head paté, mushroom spread and much more ... brace your guts. Plus, a recipe for stewed oxtail
yum nyam, gastronomy, recipe, germany, tourism, poland, cuisine
EU aphrodisiacs: unleash the rhinoceros in you
Eating at home is the cheaper and more pleasant seduction option. Create the appropriate atmosphere and know how to captivate your palate. All your senses are involved in sensuality, from soft music playing in your ears, to the food in your mouth
yum nyam, gastronomy, recipe, food, sex, best of cafebabel.com
Not just meat goes on barbecues
In the communist era in central and eastern Europe people typically lit small bonfires as they didn’t have access to ‘specialist BBQ equipment’. Now the fashion is to use a 'BBQ' instead of sticking a sausage on a stick and holding it over the fire
Caviar: the most expensive food in the world
When Louis XV spat those viscous fish eggs which Peter the Great had offered him back into the face of the Russian Tsar, the French king did not know that he was turning down a delicacy which was soon to become the most expensive and coveted food in the world. Plus, recipe
yum nyam, environment, caspian sea, food, environmental protection, receta, russian federation
England: home to Europe's cheese?
Watch out for homogenisation. In order to flog their wares to Americans and their sensitive stomachs, or to get them approved by Brussels, European cheese makers are being asked to pasteurise their products. How disgraceful! Cheese and cheese-making has such a wonderful tradition...
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