Celebrate Shavuot! Make a Cheesecake!

Sundown on Wednesday, June 7, marks the beginning of the two-day Jewish holiday of Shavuot. If you’re asking yourself ”What’s Shavuot?” don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place.

Shavuot (also called Shavuos) commemorates the day God gave the Torah to the Jewish people.  This great event happened at Mount Sinai, and today you’ll find lots of Jewish preschool kids coming home with their own little Mount Sinai’s, covered in the many flowers that are believed to have bloomed there immediately preceding the giving of the Torah.  There is also a beautiful story about why Mount Sinai was chosen as the place for the Torah to be given – because even though it was not the biggest mountain, it was the most humble.

On Shavuot it is customary to eat dairy desserts, as the arrival of the Torah was the first time the Kosher dietary laws of not mixing milk and meat were introduced. Ice cream, cheesecake and cheese blintzes are all traditional favorites.

One of my favorite holiday recipes is No Bake Cheese Pie – this easy recipe is perfect to make with kids, and it is a holiday treat I look forward to every year.  The recipe is for a crust that is baked, so if you don’t want to use the oven just purchase a pre-made crust.

I also love cheese blintzes, and while I usually buy these pre-made year round, I make a special effort to make my own on Shavuot. This recipe for Cheese Blintzes is pretty easy and fail-proof.

In addition to dairy desserts and a festive meal, Shavout is also often celebrated with greenery and flowers in homes and synagogues. This custom is in remembrance of the blossoming on Mount Sinai before the presentation of the Torah. I love the idea of a Mount Sinai cake to symbolize this. A quick Google search showed many beautiful ones, but a lot are so elaborate it seems like making the cake could turn into an all night project – and it shouldn’t. If you’re up all night, it should be studying Torah – a tradition many Jewish people partake in on erev Shavuot.

Jesse James

Jesse James was one of the most famous outlaws of the American West. Young Jesse learned a lot about guerrilla activities during the U.S. Civil War, fighting and sabotaging the Union army in the cause of the Confederacy. After the war, Jesse formed a gang of outlaws, which included his brother Frank James and the brothers Cole and James Younger. In 1866 they began an on-again, off-again crime spree that lasted for 15 years. The James-Younger gang robbed banks and trains throughout the Midwest and the South, eluding law enforcement and gaining a popular following and mythic stature, although their fame soured a bit as they turned increasingly violent in later robberies. James was finally betrayed by one of his own gang, Robert Ford, who shot him to death in Missouri 1882.

James's story has been retold in many films with long names, including The True Story of Jesse James (1957, with Robert Wagner as James), The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972, with Robert Duvall as James), and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007, with Brad Pitt as James)... The 21st-century mechanic and TV star Jesse James has claimed to be a distant relative; his Discovery Channel biography reported that "his great-great-grandfather was the famous outlaw's cousin"... Another famous outlaw, Billy the Kid, was killed in 1881, the year before James.

John Wayne's Favorite Casserole Rides Again

John Wayne rides again. Last week's request for a green chile and cheese casserole, which Edith Witherspoon recalled as "Duke's Favorite," turns out to be a reputed culinary indulgence of the macho movie idol.

Dozens of readers dug into their files and sent us the recipe, which, as Doreen Malin of Ross writes, "is really delicious, but you have to think twice about whether you want to eat all that cheese!" She reports that in the '70s, she got a photocopy of the recipe, which was apparently widely circulated and appeared in the Los Angeles Times.

Carole Levenson of Oakland also attributes the recipe to John Wayne trivia, adding "the recipe was supposed to be from a chef on a location catering truck."

Margaret Elliott of Alamo lived in Southern California at the time and says the dish "was described as a favorite of the Duke, John Wayne, who lived in Corona del Mar at the time. Was it his favorite? Who knows? It is a favorite in our family."

So off we ride into the cholesterol sunset.

A brown sugar cookie with a chocolate center was the treat from the past Mary Jane Swenson wanted to recreate for her children. A Peninsula reader left a phone message saying that Gerry Stagi, the son of the people who baked this at the Pink Pastry Shoppe in Menlo Park, now operates Gerry's Cakes on Chestnut Street in Menlo Park. Maybe he could lead our reader to the not-forgotten lost cookie.

New Requests: Gail Reilly of Berkeley says that for more than 30 years, she has been buying a blueberry dessert on the main drag in Carmel. The bakery was still there when she visited recently; the blueberry goodie -- she describes it as similar to lemon bars, except made with blueberries -- was not. She asks if anyone might have a similar recipe.

Cheryl Zelaya wonders if anybody has a recipe similar to Yank Sing restaurant's dressing for its Chinese chicken salad, which she describes as tangy and lemony.

We usually abbreviate reader requests, but this one, from Dave Enas in Richmond, is so eloquently evocative of treats past, we felt moved to print most of it. He writes: "Many years ago there was an eating place in Berkeley on Shattuck and Kittredge called Edy's. Diners would sit in dark wooden booths and eat salads and sandwiches and enjoy a fine milkshake, float, soft drink or coffee. But the ultimate, the main attraction, the headliner, was their hot fudge sundae.

Celebrity Chefs to Serve Food at U.S. Open

Roger Federer, Venus Williams and Rafael Nadal won't be the only ones duking it out at this year's U.S. Open tennis tournament. Celebrity chef's will be battling it out in a cook-off in which the chef who sells the most of a dish created for the tournament will win a $5,000 donation to their charity of choice, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The chefs' creations will be sold at the Master Chef Café at the event in Flushing, Queens. The special dishes will be available throughout the competition, with chefs will also be on-hand during the cook-off competition on Sept. 4 to work the kitchen and give cooking demo, the paper reported.
Chefs on the menu include: Spiaggia's Tony Mantuano of Chicago; California and Las Vegas chef Susan Feniger; Florida's Carmen Gonzalez; New York's Jonathan Waxman; and Rick Moonen of Las Vegas -- all of whom participated in the recent season' of "Top Chef Masters" in the Champions' Round.

Yucatan pork tacos from Feniger. Gonzales will feature a lobster roll, a pulled pork sandwich, a barbeque pork quesadilla, a lobster and avocado terrine and flan. Mantuano will serve up a spinach salad and antipasti platter. Moonen will have "Moon 'N Doogie" shrimp hotdogs, and Waxman will have a panini trio.

Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto will also be serving up cuisine at the 2010 U.S. Open. He'll serve sushi at the VIP and player's lounges and luxury suites, the Journal

Joplin Missouri Tornadoes Rip Across, 89 Dead

Joplin official Mark Rohr said the storm cut a path six miles (10km) long. Homes and businesses were flattened and a damaged hospital had to be evacuated. Power lines are down and telephone connections are largely cut off. The Governor of Missouri, Jay Nixon, has declared a state of emergency and warned that more storms are on the way. Cities in three other Midwestern states have also been badly affected. At least one person was killed in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Last month, tornadoes and storms killed at least 350 people in Alabama and six other southern states. 'Nothing left'

Jeff Lehr, a reporter for the Joplin Globe newspaper, said he was upstairs in his home when the storm hit the city of about 50,000 at about 1730 (2230 GMT) on Sunday but was able to make his way to his basement. "There was a loud huffing noise, my windows started popping. I had to get downstairs, glass was flying. I opened a closet and pulled myself into it," he told the Associated Press. "Then you could hear everything go. It tore the roof off my house, everybody's house. I came outside and there was nothing left." 

Another resident, Tom Rogers, said his house had been destroyed. "It's just gone. We heard the tornado sirens for the second time. All of a sudden, everything came crashing down on us. We pulled our heads up and there was nothing. It was gone," he told the Joplin Globe. Much of the city's south side is reported to have been levelled, with churches, schools, businesses and homes reduced to rubble. Power and telephone lines across the city were also downed, and many vehicles overturned.

Nearly 100 patients at the St John Regional Medical Center in Joplin were having to be evacuated from after the hospital took a direct hit. A resident living 45 miles (70km) away said debris from the hospital had landed in his yard, including medical supplies and X-rays. At a pre-dawn news conference on Monday outside the St John Regional Medical Center, Mr Rohr announced that the number of confirmed dead was 89. He said the tornado had cut a path nearly six miles long and more than half a mile (800m) wide through the city centre, and that tornado sirens had given residents about a 20-minute warning.

Fire chief Mitch Randles said the tornado "cut the city in half" and estimated that 25 to 30% was damaged. A door-to-door search of the damaged area will begin later on Monday morning, but progress will be slow because of the danger of downed power lines and gas leaks, which caused fires around the city overnight. "We will recover and come back stronger than we are today," Mr Rohr said. Earlier, the Red Cross opened a shelter at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin for victims, spokeswoman Joanne Muir told the BBC. It had also sent an emergency response vehicle with some supplies such as blankets, cots, water and food to the area, she said.

Continued risk

US President Barack Obama - on his way to the Republic of Ireland - sent his condolences to those affected.

"Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tornadoes and severe weather that struck Joplin, Missouri, as well as communities across the Midwest today," the president said in a statement. "We commend the heroic efforts by those who have responded and who are working to help their friends and neighbours at this very difficult time."

Governor Nixon said storms had caused extensive damage across Missouri. "They continue to pose significant risk to lives and property," he said in a statement. "As a state, we are deploying every agency and resource available to keep Missouri families safe, search for the missing, provide emergency medical care, and begin to recover." he added. He warned that the storms were not finished.

Melons and Salmonella

Melons, especially those with porous skin (Cantaloupe / rock melon for instance) and some other fruits (such as Papaya) can contain salmonella on their skin. That is why they should be washed properly in soapy water before cutting not to spread it with the knife into the fruit.

Not opened melons can be kept in room temperature for couple of days but once they have been cut they should be consumed within 3 hours or refrigerated for up to 3 days to reduce the risk of salmonella poisoning.

• Finding out those facts was quite a shock to me. Since that time I don’t buy halved melons any more because I want to be sure they have been washed well before cutting.  I will also think twice before packing melon balls in my daughter’s lunchbox, in case she would not eat them within 3 hours.

Paul Simon and Ham

Although not as sweet as the ham, the new Paul Simon album, So Beautiful or So What  is nearly as tasty. Reunited with producer Phil Ramone, Simon sounds energized and tuneful as ever here, with standout cuts being “Getting Ready for Christmas Day” and “The Afterlife”.

Ham is all over the place!  For many people, a glazed ham is the centerpiece of an Easter dinner.  Consequently, when I went to the grocery on April 23rd, the meat case was piled high with hams…and they were on sale!  I don’t know why we don’t have ham more often – it is easy, it is tasty, and there’s always leftover ham for another meal.  So Saturday night, ham was on the menu!

You might think I have abandoned our primal/paleo dining principles since the title of this recipe sounds so very confectionery.  Well, glazed ham just has to have a sweet glaze…it’s a law of the universe.  I did what I could to take out processed sugars and sweetened it as naturally as possible.  Besides, the glaze is spread all over the ham, so the amount of carbs per serving isn’t as bad as eating the glaze out of the pan with a spoon (which I would NEVER do..cough, cough).  The main ingredient in the glaze, Polaner Orange All Fruit, has pieces of orange peel in it, which turn into tiny candy-like bits when cooked with the syrup and molasses.  All this caramelizes on the ham in the oven.  It was impossible for either of us to keep our hands off it – untold quantities were consumed in the short time allowed to photograph the ham.

Ingredients:

One 7 to 10 pound bone-in ham

1/2 cup apple cider (plus more for bottom of roasting pan)

1/2 cup bourbon

10 ounce jar Polaner Orange All Fruit with Fiber (sweetened only with fruit juice)

1/4 cup unsulphured molasses

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 T apple cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Boil apple cider and bourbon in a small saucepan until reduced by half.  Stir in Orange All Fruit, molasses, maple syrup, cider vinegar, cloves, and red pepper flakes.  Simmer for ~5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 325F.  Prepare a roasting pan by lining with foil, or (like we did) use a disposable aluminum roasting pan for easy clean-up.  Place a rack on the bottom of the pan.

Remove any hard rind and excess fat from ham, if present.  Score the ham all over in a crosshatch diamond pattern to create nooks for the glaze to seep in.  Place the cut side of the ham down on the roasting rack.

Roast the ham at 325 for thirty minutes.

Remove ham from oven and increase oven temperature to 400F.  Liberally brush glaze all over the ham.

Pour enough apple cider in the bottom of the pan to cover the pan – it’s okay if it touches the bottom of the ham.  This will prevent you from smelling burnt sugar for the next 45 minutes and it will help keep the ham moist.

Return the ham to the oven and bake, basting and adding more glaze every 10-15 minutes until the ham is hot throughout and caramelized on the outside (about 45 minutes to an hour).

Remove ham from oven, tent with foil, and let rest for 15 to 30 minutes.  Transfer to a cutting board and start slicing!  Enjoy!

Fudge Cake-Chicago Bulls/Michael Jordan Birthday

Tender, chocolatey, decadent, and so so easy!
Recipient: “Creative, incredible, fascinating, inventive, awesome, heartfelt”
Your Michael Jordan fan will love you!

Ingredients

• 1 box Pillsbury Moist Supreme Devil’s Food Cake
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup oil

Directions

Bake according to directions. Line the baking pans with parchment paper for a surface smoother than baby ass.

• 1 tub Pillsbury Milk Chocolate Frosting
• 1 tub Pillsbury Betty Crocker Triple Chocolate
• Fudge Chip Frosting
• 1 tub Betty Crocker Cream Cheese Frosting
• 1 2.25 oz Cake Mate Red Crystals
• 1 tube Black Icing

writing tip and pastry bag (or sandwich bag). Paper Stencil: Jersey outline, letters if you need

Spread milk chocolate frosting between layers to desired thickness. Lick the spoon and grab another. Spread top and sides of cake with triple fudge chip frosting. Fill in blanks with milk chocolate frosting.

Lay, but do not press, the jersey stencil on to the cake. Shake on the sprinkles liberally. Really liberally. If some sprinkles drift to the side of the cake, let it. Peel off stencil and refrost if necessary.

Next, pop the writer’s tip through a corner of the sandwich bag unless you have a pastry bag. Fill it up with cream cheese frosting and outline the sleeves and collar.

Write “Chicago” from armpit to armpit, or any other name. My boyfriend’s name is Cristobal, so this (despite my terrible penmanship) fit well.

Write a block-letter “23” underneath, and you got yourself an authentic Michael Jordan Rookie Jersey Birthday Cake.

Tips: If you goof up on the lettering or outlining, relax. The sprinkles provide a surface made for corrections! Just pick it up with a fork, eat it, and try again. Resprinkle if you have too, though I didn’t. I realized I was running over the edge on the “23”, so I trimmed it with said fork. Just run it along the sides, and it picks up whatever it touches.

IMF: Food Price Rises Threaten Efforts to Cut Poverty

A rise in food prices of 48 percent since end-2006 is a huge increase that may undermine gains the international community has made in reducing poverty, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn warned. He told an April 10 news conference in Washington that policy responses to higher food prices have to be tailored to meet the needs of each country.

Strauss-Kahn said the IMF could take four steps to help address higher food prices in the short term:

• Support countries in designing appropriate macroeconomic policies to deal with shocks
• Provide advice and technical assistance for countries where rising food prices are eroding terms of trade, through targeted income support for the poor—without jeopardizing hard-won gains on economic stabilization
• In countries where price shocks are affecting the balance of payments, provide assistance through IMF lending facilities
• Work, along with other agencies and donors, to help countries mitigate negative impacts.

Open trade policies

Longer-term answers to the problem of higher food prices centered on removing obstacles to increased supply, Strauss-Kahn said. The IMF cites increased trade as a policy option for mitigating the effects of higher commodity prices on national economies. IMF chief economist Simon Johnson told an April 9 World Economic Outlook briefing: "As a way to reduce global pressure on food and energy prices, more open trade policies in those products would be a good start. Less insular biofuels policy in advanced economies would help relieve some pressure. At the same time, we encourage countries to avoid raising taxes or imposing quotas on their food exports. These reduce incentives for domestic producers and also increase international prices."

Impact on inflation

IMF research shows that higher prices for food pose new challenges for African policymakers and could have particularly adverse effects on the poor. Because food represents a larger share of what poorer consumers buy, a global increase in food prices has a bigger impact on inflation in poorer countries. IMF studies show the rise in food prices reflecting a mixture of longer-term factors such as food crops being diverted to biofuel production; higher food demand from emerging economies; and higher energy and fertilizer costs. Temporary factors, such as droughts, floods, and political instability, also contributed to higher food prices.

Strauss-Kahn displayed a map at the press briefing that showed the impact of projected food price increases on global trade balances (see chart). 

New kind of imbalance

In Africa and Asia the effect of higher food prices would have to be seen not only in terms of undermining the efforts to fight against poverty but also as representing a new kind of macroeconomic imbalance, Strauss-Kahn said. For a large part of Africa, a shock could be expected that was as big as, and maybe bigger than, previous shocks.

Strauss-Kahn welcomed an initiative launched by U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown that urges the IMF, the World Bank, and the United Nations to develop a global strategy to address higher food prices. "The initiative taken by Gordon Brown is perfectly timely, We need now to consider the rise in food prices as something which is not just happening for one or two months but as probably more structural," Strauss-Kahn said. The Brown proposal would probably be on the agenda of the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings and of the ministerial meeting of the Group of Seven industrial countries, he added.

President Barack Obama's Chili Recipe

What does our new president like to eat?
Barack Obama admits in Dreams From My Father to having eaten dog, snake and grasshoppers as a boy in Indonesia.

On the campaign trail, Reggie Love, Obama's aide and “body man” said that Obama “eats pretty much anything, from chicken wings and barbecue and ribs to grilled fish and steamed broccoli.” In a small towns with limited options, a cheeseburger is always a good bet. “Cheddar is the cheese of choice,” Love said. Time magazine's Pico Iyer reported that Obama likes to put avocado on his burger.

While campaigning in North Carolina, the motorcade stopped at Ashville restaurant 12 Bones Smokehouse where Obama greeted diners and took ribs, brisket, pulled pork, corn pudding and sweet tea back to his motorcade.

“That’s a lot of food,” Obama told the restaurant staff. “That’s not all for me.”

Unlike some former presidents, he likes his vegetables, especially brocolli and spinach. Asparagus, not so much. Beets? "I always avoid eating them," Obama says.

Barack Obama has been known to brag about his chili. When asked what is his favorite dish to bring to a potluck, Obama said, “I’ve been using this chili recipe since college and would bring it to any potluck. I can’t reveal all the secrets, but if you make it right, it’s just got the right amount of bite, the right amount of oomph in it and it will clear your sinuses.”

Good Morning America (and others) have published his recipe, adapted hereBarack Obama's Chili

Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:

    * 1 large onion, chopped
    * 1 green pepper, chopped
    * Several cloves of garlic (to taste), chopped
    * 1 Tbsp olive oil
    * 1 pound ground turkey or beef
    * ¼ tsp each: ground cumin, oregano, turmeric, and basil
    * 1 tablespoon chili powder
    * 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
    * Several tomatoes (depending on size) chopped -or- a can of chopped tomatoes
    * 1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
    * 3 cups cooked white or brown rice
    * Toppings: grated sharp cheddar cheese, chopped onion, sour cream, bottled hot sauce

Method:

   1. Saute onions and green pepper in olive oil until soft, 6-7 minutes. Added the garlic and saute a minute longer.
   2. Add ground meat and brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon.
   3. Mix the spices together with the red wine vinegar in a small bowl and stir intto ground meat mixture.
   4. Add tomatoes and let simmer, until tomatoes cook down. The time will vary depending on how much juice is with the tomatoes and how soupy you like your chili.
   5. Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes, long enough to heat the beans through.
   6. Serve over rice with your choice of toppings.

Other Favorites: The Obamas are also reported to like:

    * Michelle Obama's Macaroni and Cheese
    * Shrimp with Grits
    * Fried Chicken
    * Take-out Pizza (especially from Italian Fiesta Pizzeria in Chicago who will be supplying pizza for some of the inauguration festivities)
    * Sopa Azteca (when eating at Rick Bayless' Topolobampo restaurant in Chicago): This version of tortilla soup consists of a dark broth flavored with pasilla chile, garnished with grilled chicken, avocado, Jack cheese, thick cream and tortilla strips.

Will there be chili at the formal inauguration luncheon? No, but if you're in the right place you might get some of that pizza.

Go here to see more chilis and stews, including:
    * Cowboy Chili with Steak
    * Belgian Beef Stew
    * Boeuf Bourguignon - Beef Burgundy
    * Hoppin' John Chili with Black-Eyed Peas
    * Cioppino to Die For

Prince William Favourite Foods

For the upcoming royal wedding, Princess Diana's former chef Darren McGrady predicts guests will enjoy formal English fare. But when it comes to Prince William's favorite food, one decidedly unstuffy dessert tops the list: Banana Flan. McGrady used to serve the dish (displayed above on Diana's favorite "Herend Birds" china) during private lunches he prepared for the Princess, William and Harry in the dining room at Kensington Palace. "On these occasions, William and Harry could eat what they wanted," McGrady tells PEOPLE. "Two or even three slices of banana flan were perfectly okay as long as 'my boys' are happy – that was how the boss thought." And the dessert – akin to banana cream pie – has a Royal pedigree: "Both William and Harry loved banana flan," says McGrady. "It's the ultimate in comfort food or 'nursery food' as the Queen would call it. In fact, the Queen herself used to be served it as a child, too." And you don't have to be a Windsor to eat like one. Check out the recipe for Prince William's favorite dessert below:


INGREDIENTS

Serves 6
For the pastry – enough for two tart shells:
• ¾ cup plus 1 tbsp. sugar
• 3 ½ sticks butter, in small pieces
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3 ¼ cups flour

For the filling:
• 1½ cups milk
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 5 egg yolks
• 1 egg
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter (softened)
• 3-4 ripe bananas, sliced ¼-inch thick
• ½ cup apricot jam

DIRECTIONS

1. In a food processor, combine sugar, butter, egg and vanilla. Pulse until smooth. Add the flour and pulse until combined. Turn out onto a floured surface and form into two balls. Cover each with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. (Unbaked dough may be refrigerated for up to one week or frozen up to three months.) 2. Roll out one ball to about ¼-inch thick circle and place it in a 9-in., two-piece tart pan. Refrigerate for about 45 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425º. Line tart with parchment paper and fill with baking weights. Place tart in oven. After 5 minutes lower temperature to 375º. Bake for another 10 minutes. Remove parchment and weights and bake until tart is golden brown, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. 3. In a large saucepan, bring the milk and cream to the boil. In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks, egg, vanilla, cornstarch and salt. Slowly add the hot milk and cream into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the contents of the bowl back into the saucepan. Continue whisking pastry cream over medium heat until it thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in butter. Let cool slightly, then spoon into the tart shell. 4. Arrange banana slices neatly on top of the warm filling. In a small pan, bring the apricot jam to a boil and brush over the top of the bananas. (Adapted from Chef Darren McGrady's Eating Royally)

Prince William and Kate Middleton

Prince William and Kate Middleton are getting ready for what will be one of the busiest and most exciting weeks of their lives, as they are set to finally marry at the Royal Wedding on Friday.

The Royal Wedding is a huge event that people all over the world will be celebrating. In fact, The Disney Channel has even deemed this “Royal Wedding Week” so that the kiddos can get involved on the action. My five year old son even knows about the Royal Wedding thanks to Disney!

Anytime a new couple gets married, speculation on when they will decide to start a family usually starts before the wedding reception is even over. How long will it be until the William and Kate baby buzz begins…if it hasn’t already?

The only event bigger than the Royal Wedding will be the birth of William and Kate’s first child. Do you think that they will wait a while before choosing to have children, or will Kate be pregnant within their first year of marriage, like Prince William’s mother, Princess Diana was with him?

Either way, we can’t help but be a little excited about the possibility of seeing a new Royal in the near future.

Nooks and Cranies : Our Favourite Foods

Our fascination with food with holes goes beyond the whimsical. Would English muffins be anything more than a bland, flat roll if it weren’t for all those holes waiting for sweet butter and jam? Would a focaccia bread be as crisp? A French bread as intriguing? Probably not.
“I always say that good bread should have a consistently inconsistent texture. You can see the nooks and crannies,” says Daniel Leader, cookbook author and founder of Bread Alone bakery in upstate New York. “The holes are often — not always, but often — an indication of nice slow fermentation.”
Ahhh, fermentation. Beer, bread and more would not be as interesting were it not for a chemical reaction that produces the gas (carbon dioxide) that prompts all those holes, bubbles and foams.
“Much of what we ingest is in foamy form, where the nutritious part is combined with gas, which lends no sustenance but enhances the texture, appearance and pure enjoyment of what we eat and drink,” writes Emory University physics professor Sidney Perkowitz, the author of “Universal Foam.”
Most cultures include such food and drinks in their cuisine, notes Perkowitz, from England’s Yorkshire pudding to Switzerland’s Emmenthal and Gruyere cheeses and France’s mousses, meringues and souffles.
Fermentation and its gas bubbles, crucial to the texture of many baked goods, can be prompted by yeast, baking powder or another leavening agent.
“Gas bubbles are what make leavened doughs and batters light and tender,” notes Harold McGee in “On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen.” “The more bubbles produced during the preparation of a dough or batter, the finer and tenderer the result.”
Leader is a firm believer in the offbeat holes, nooks and crannies in breads. In fact, his latest book, written with Lauren Chattman, is “Simply Great Breads: Sweet and Savory Yeasted Treats” (The Taunton Press; $22). The book’s images celebrate holes from Navajo fry bread to Middle Eastern mana’eesh.
Leader prefers slow fermentation, favoring instant active dry yeast over rapid-rise yeast. “When the fermentation is slow, you get this irregular cell structure.”
Afraid of yeast? “Whenever I teach a baking class, especially a beginning baking class, I say to people, let go of all your yeast phobia,” he says. “And second, trust your scale.”

FOCACCIA FROM GENOA
Prep: 50 minutes
Rise: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Makes: 1 focaccia, 12 servings
Adapted from “Focaccia” by Carol Field.
Sponge:
1 package (2 teaspoons) active dry yeast
2/3 cup warm water
1 cup unbleached flour
Dough:
cup water
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 cups plus 2 teaspoons flour
2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more for sprinkling

1. For the sponge, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a large bowl; stir. Set aside until creamy, 10 minutes. Stir in the flour; beat until smooth. Cover tightly with plastic wrap; let rise until puffy and bubbling, about 30 minutes.
2. For the dough, add the water, wine and 1/3 cup of the olive oil to the sponge; beat together with a mixer using the paddle attachment. Add the flour and 2 teaspoons of the salt; mix until the dough comes together. Change to the dough hook; knead at medium speed, stopping once or twice to press the dough into a ball to aid kneading, 3 minutes. Remove dough from the bowl; knead by hand, using 1 to 2 tablespoons flour as needed, 6 to 8 turns at most.
3. Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Set aside until doubled, about 1 hour. The dough should be soft, full of air bubbles and should stretch easily. Press it into a well-oiled 17-by-12-inch jelly roll pan; dimple it well with your fingertips. If the dough springs back before it is completely stretched, set it aside to relax a few minutes, then stretch again. Cover with a towel; let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
4. Heat the oven to 425 degrees with a baking stone inside on the lowest shelf. Dimple the top again; drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of the olive oil so it pools in the indentations; sprinkle with coarse salt.
5. Place the pan directly on the stone; reduce temperature to 400 degrees. Place a shallow metal container of water on the floor of the oven to make steam. Bake until the focaccia is golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool briefly on a rack.
Nutrition information: Per serving: 231 calories, 35 percent of calories from fat, 9 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 32 g carbohydrates, 5 g protein, 420 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

CONSIDER THE CRUMPET
A cousin to the English muffin, a crumpet uses yeast and baking soda to prompt fermentation, which helps create its characteristic holes. Baked on a griddle with a metal ring similar to ones used for English muffins, a crumpet is like a thick pancake. One side will have an almost-crisp crust, the second an array of craters. You need not split it to eat. Rather, slather with butter, clotted cream or jam, or drizzle with honey.
Crumpets
Prep: 20 minutes
Rest: 1 hours
Cook: 10 minutes
Makes: 24 crumpets
Adapted from “Simply Great Breads,” by Daniel Leader. Metal rings (about 4 inches across and 1 inch deep) called English muffin or crumpet rings are available at cookware stores or kingarthurflour.com. Finished crumpets may be frozen up to one month. Defrost on countertop. To serve, reheat 5 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
2 cups room temperature water (70 to 78 degrees), plus more if necessary
2 teaspoons (1 packet) instant yeast
teaspoon sugar
1 2/3 cups flour
2 cups bread flour
teaspoon cream of tartar
2 teaspoons fine sea salt or kosher salt
teaspoon baking soda
2/3 cup room-temperature milk
1. Whisk together 2 cups water, yeast and sugar in a medium bowl; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
2. Put flours, cream of tartar and salt in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Stir to combine. Pour in yeast mixture; mix on low speed to combine. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let stand at room temperature, 1 hours.
3. Dissolve baking soda in milk. Pour into bowl with the batter; stir to combine. Batter should be the consistency of pancake batter. If it’s too stiff, crumpets won’t have enough bubbles and holes. If necessary, add more water, a tablespoon at a time to reach the right consistency. (You may need as much as 1/3 to cup.)
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Grease 4-inch crumpet rings with butter; place in skillet. Pour batter into each ring to three-quarters full. Cook until holes begin to form on surface, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove rings, flip crumpets; cook until nicely toasted, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve with butter.
Nutrition information: Per serving: 78 calories, 5 percent of calories from fat, 0.4 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 15 g carbohydrates, 3 g protein, 230 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Vanilla Mousse Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 40 NILLA Wafers, crushed
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
• 4 (8 ounce) packages PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened, divided
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 4 teaspoons vanilla, divided
• 3 eggs
• 1 (8 ounce) tub COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

Directions

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Mix wafer crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.
3. Beat 3 pkg. cream cheese, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 Tbsp. vanilla with mixer until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over crust.
4. Bake 50 to 55 min. or until center is almost set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool completely in pan.
5. Beat remaining cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer in large bowl until well blended. Whisk in COOL WHIP; spread over cheesecake. Refrigerate 4 hours. Remove rim of pan before serving cheesecake.

Footnotes

• Need a sweet treat to serve a crowd? Try this rich, creamy dessert! Since it serves 16 people, it easily fits the bill.
• Vanilla Bean Mousse Cheesecake:
• Prepare recipe as directed, using a vanilla bean and reducing vanilla extract to 2 tsp. Use sharp knife to gently split 1 vanilla bean pod lengthwise in half, then scrape seeds into cheesecake batter. Add 1 tsp. vanilla extract to the batter and use remaining extract to flavor cheesecake topping as directed.
• Special Extra:
• Garnish with fresh berries just before serving.

Gabrielle Giffords cleared to attend shuttle launch

Doctors have given Rep. Gabrielle Giffords the go-ahead to travel to Cape Canaveral this week to watch husband Mark Kelly's space shuttle launch, Kelly says.

The trip will be the first for the Arizona congresswoman since she was flown from Tucson to Houston more than three months ago to recover after she was shot in the head during a shooting rampage in Tucson, Ariz.

Kelly said during an interview with CBS' Katie Couric that Giffords will witness the launch of Endeavour, which is scheduled for 3:47 p.m. Friday. Kelly is the commander of the mission.

"I've met with her doctors, her neurosurgeon and her doctors, and … they've given us permission to take her down to the launch," Kelly said in the interview in Houston. The network statement did not specify when the interview occurred.

CBS released excerpts of the interview Sunday, and it was scheduled to air Monday evening.

James Harsfield, spokesman for NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, referred all questions about Giffords to the congresswoman's office, where there was no immediate comment.

President Barack Obama and the first family also are scheduled to watch the launch, although it's unclear if they will watch it with Giffords. Families view launches at Kennedy Space Center from a restricted area, and there are no plans for Giffords to make a public appearance.

Giffords went to Kelly's last launch in 2008, when he commanded the space shuttle Discovery. The two married in 2007.

The shooting happened as Giffords was holding a community outreach event in the parking lot of a Tucson shopping center. A gunman killed six people and wounded 13 others, including Giffords.

Jared Lee Loughner, 22, has pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the attack and is in custody.

Giffords has not been seen publicly since the shooting and has spent the last three months relearning how to speak, walk and take care of herself. She has been singing — as part of musical therapy - asking for her favorite foods and visiting with family, friends, and her rabbi.

Kelly returned to training for the shuttle launch in February after taking time off to be at his wife's hospital bedside.

Autism and Jenny McCarthy

Wouldn’t you love to be a fly on the wall at Jim Carey and Jenny McCarthy’s house? I have always been a fan of both of theirs and am delighted to see that they found each other. Nothing makes me happier than seeing a celebrity take on a cause that is personal to them. Jenny McCarthy’s son has autism and she wrote a book about it. As a physician, I appreciate celebrities personalizing these causes because I can only imagine how frustrating and alone it would feel to be a mom or dad of a child with Autism.

God bless Jenny McCarthy for writing a candid book on her personal experience. Nothing warms my heart like seeing that someone with a hilarious sense of humor also has a huge heart. On top of that, she is an educated and informed parent. Jenny did not accept the doctor’s lack of answers for her son’s condition, or the medications that were not helping. She took responsibility for his health by spending hours on the internet researching her son’s condition. Now normally, this kind of parent or patient scares the heck out of most doctors. We don’t like you to know more than us.

After all her research, she then placed her son on a gluten free casein free diet. Is there a whole lot of research out there supporting this? Not really…a little bit. But who cares? It is wheat and dairy! It is not an anti-psychotic medicine that causes Tardive Dyskinesia as a side effect (given off label to boot! Meaning there is no FDA indication or research supporting its efficacy…)

So what is the harm in trying it? After a while, I think, in order to really problem solve conditions, you HAVE to think outside the box, outside the “standard of care” and go back to the basics…like that childhood game of “Hot and Cold”. Are we getting warmer or getting colder? Maybe there isn’t a name for what is wrong with you, so let’s instead play a game to find out what makes it better and what makes it worse.

Ok…then let’s avoid the things that make it worse and only do the things that make it better.

Sorry is that too simple?

Sometimes I think that a preschooler would make the best doctor. We have over-complicated medicine to the point that doctors are so stressed out that half the time they cannot even think clearly or freely. We need our palm pilots and our Merck Manuals and heaven forbid that the internet is down and I can’t look stuff up on FP consult or Google it.

 Trust me, I am not poking fun at any particular doctors as I am just as guilty of these mannerisms as the next doctor. I love my PDA and Google is my best friend. I will be the first person to ask you where your double blind randomized controlled trial is to support your treatment choice….

However, do we really need this kind of research for common sense?

If Jenny McCarthy comes in to my office and tells me that her son is better without gluten and casein, instead of acting in shock and disbelief shouldn’t I just rejoice with her that it was as simple as avoiding wheat and dairy? So we make sure her son gets enough fiber, zinc, b vitamins, and calcium somewhere else in their diet while we give it a whirl…why not?

Why must doctors always play the role of the authority figure in the situation? Listen I am happy to step down from my pedestal…I am scared of heights as it is. Why not let the parents play some of this “Hot and Cold?” game. Like the parent’s in the movie “Lorenzo’s Oil” that took curing their son’s rare condition in to their own hands.

If you or your child have a rare disease I highly recommend watching that movie with a BIG box of Kleenex. It may just be the inspiration you need to keep on going, and keep on doing what you are doing.

Now I am not saying that you should ever go against what your doctor says. I am simply suggesting thinking critically for yourself and your family. If something doesn’t feel right, if something doesn’t sound right, then question it.

Participate in your health care, ask questions, keep copies of your own labs, understand when your doctor says “I don’t know,” and allow for that to be an acceptable answer. Too many doctors think they have to be the know-it-all. Let’s all keep in mind that “I don’t know” is actually a fantastic answer!

Doctors are only human beings, they are not gods (that may be new information to some of my colleagues in Orthopedics…he he.) One of the leading causes of death in America is from “Iatrogenic causes” a fancy way of saying that some medical person seriously messed up and killed you.

Whether you grab the wheel away, or just sit shot gun, whatever you do….don’t take a backseat to your health. Pay attention, take notes, let Jenny McCarthy and her son’s “recovery from autism” remind us that all hope is not lost when the current answer is “I don’t know.”

I believe that for every problem there is a solution it simply is a matter of us taking the time to look for it. Is the treatment that helped Jenny’s son, Evan, going to help your kid? I don’t know….but there is very little harm in trying it when done properly with the guidance of a nutritionist or qualified physician.

Ham and Noodle Casserole

 Ingredients

• 6 cups water
• 4 cups uncooked egg noodles
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 2 cups diced cooked ham
• 2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup dry bread crumbs

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2-quart casserole.
2. Bring water to a full rolling boil in a pot.. Cook the egg noodles in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes; remove from heat, cover, and let stand until the noodles are tender, about 10 minutes. Drain.
3. Stir the noodles, onion, sour cream, chicken soup, ham, and Swiss cheese together in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into the prepared casserole. Sprinkle the top with bread crumbs.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is bubbling and the bread crumbs have browned, about 40 minutes.

Food in the New Orleans drama 'Treme'

In the middle of the first episode of David Simon's New Orleans drama "Treme," chef Janette DeSautel has run out of dessert. And so, three months after Hurricane Katrina, she sells a customer the packaged Hubig's pie in her purse, telling her sous chef to "dress it up baby - drizzle something on it."

It's the tastiest moment in the show - invoking a collective sigh from the New Orleans diaspora - and one of the most inaccurate. There were no fresh Hubig's pies in the city at that time. The Simon Hubig Co. Inc., which did not flood but sustained serious roof damage following Katrina, didn't reopen until the first week of January 2006.

"The fact that all she had in her diner as a dessert item was a Hubig's pie was completely accurate," Hubig's Drew Ramsey tells CNN.com, recounting a time post-Katrina when the packaged pies were one of the only treats in town. "The fact that it was a month or so early was artistic license."

Simon explained the pie in a letter to the New Orleans Times-Picayune on Sunday.

"What you fact-grounded literalists clearly fail to understand is that the pie in Janette DeSautel's purse is a Magic Hubig's," Simon writes in the Times-Picayune. "Much in the manner of certain loaves and fishes in the New Testament, or several days worth of sacramental oil in the Old, this Hubig's somehow survives months of post-Katrina tumult and remains tasty and intact for our small, winking moment of light comedy."

As he did for Baltimore in "The Wire," Simon captures the tastes of New Orleans in "Treme," treating the city more as character than backdrop for the drama. "Treme" is set during a period in real life when native New Orleanians felt outnumbered by National Guard troops and out-of-state contractors in a hometown that seemed post-apocalyptic.

New Orleans fare represents in this first episode. A battered bottle of Old New Orleans rum is cracked in the opening sequence and second line revelers sip from Styrofoam frozen daiquiri cups. Characters praise the appearance of red beans and bread pudding.

DeSautel lauds the return of oyster season and decries "f-ing frozen Chinese crawfish." Local products such as Zapp's potato chips and Tabasco sit on kitchen countertops, and Abita beer signs glow from the front of a local bar - Vaughn's.

"Did you see the Jockamo IPA neon in last night's premiere of Treme on HBO?" Abita wrote Monday on its Facebook page. "We were glad it was there...but it's [sic] shouldn't have been. Know why?"

Jockamo IPA wasn't introduced until 2007.

Regardless of post-storm time-line errors, "Treme" offers the best representation of local fare the Crescent City has ever had in fictional TV.

The last television show set in New Orleans, FOX's 2007 cop drama "K-Ville," was filled with food flubs, the biggest being a mention of throwing a "gumbo party." Taking it with good humor, locals took it upon themselves to create a gumbo party tradition - Monday night gumbo parties held during "K-Ville"'s brief run.

Natives won't have to create new food holidays with "Treme." And local food businesses may benefit from the hubbub. At Simon Hubig Co. they've already seen an uptick in interest for their pies.

No plans yet for any "Magic" varieties.

Here's a guide to the local products in episode one of "Treme":

Abita This brewery on the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain expanded post-Hurricane Katrina and raised money for the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation soon after with a special Restoration Ale.

Angelo Brocato's Italian Ice Cream Parlor Home of the lemon ice John Goodman's character Creighton Bernette doesn't want to cheat on, this Mid-City shop was flooded post-Katrina. It reopened 13 months after the hurricane and belatedly celebrated its 100th anniversary with its full lineup of gelato.

Dorignac's A Metairie, Louisiana, grocery store that was quick to reopen after Katrina.

Hubig's Pies With its chubby mascot Savory Simon, the Simon Hubig Co. Inc. serves up packaged snack-size pies in flavors such as lemon, peach, sweet potato, coconut, chocolate and pineapple. It's the magic pie featured in Janette DeSautel's restaurant. The factory reopened in January 2006.

Old New Orleans Rum This distiller had its entire first floor flooded post Katrina. Barrels of rum that survived the floods in the distillery's second floor were bottled as special 10-year blend.

Tabasco Arguably Louisiana's most popular export. This hot sauce is made 140 miles west of New Orleans on Avery Island by the McIlhenny Company with aged red pepper, vinegar and salt.

Zapp's These Gramercy, Louisiana, kettle fried potato chips are a local favorite, with flavors like Cajun Dill, Hotter ‘n Hot Jalapeno and Cajun Crawtator.

Easter Food for the holiday

 

Digital News Report – Easter is one week away, which gives us enough time to plan and prepare our feast for the holiday. There are several traditional Easter recipes and foods that you will find common. Some are ham, deviled eggs, eggs golden rod, potatoes au gratin, asparagus, and cake. Here are a few recipes for Easter.

Easter Ham

Ham has been one of the traditional meat served at Easter dinner. The other choice is often roast lamb. Depending on the ham you buy is how much you will want to add to it. Many of the hams are packaged with a glaze that comes with it. If you get a plain ham you can make your own glaze very easily with a cooked brown sugar and orange juice. Another popular combination is pineaple juice with orange juice and brown sugar. Cook the mixture until it thickens, then apply to the outside of the ham during the last half-hour of cooking. If you use the pineapple you can serve sliced pineaple rings with the ham.

Deviled Eggs with Ham

The Pennsylvania Dutch had a different way to make Deviled Eggs using butter instead of mayonnaise. However you can easily add the deviled ham that is minced up and ready to go from a can to create a delicious version of deviled eggs.

6 hard boiled eggs divided in halves and yolks separated
½ tsp. plain mustard
2 tsp. Butter softened
salt and pepper to taste
1 small can of deviled ham
paprika for garnish

To hard boil eggs, you need to boil them long enough to cook the insides. High altitudes have to boil the eggs for a longer time. Add a tablespoon of vegetable oil to the water and your eggs will peel easily. To cool run under cold water in the sink, and add ice if you are in a hurry. Then peel and rinse the eggs to remove any remaining shell pieces. Cut the white of the egg in half and then take out the yolk and put in a bowl. Place the whites on a plate.

After all the eggs have been halved and yolks separated. You can add the mustard, butter, salt and pepper and can of deviled ham and smash the yolks and combine until smooth. If you have a small melon baller use this to scoop the yolk mixture into the egg white holes. If you don’t have this use two small spoons and use one spoon to scoop and the other to scrap off of the spoon into the egg white half. Another option is to use a piping bag with a large tip and then fill the eggs whites this way. To garnish sprinkle paprika on the tops of the deviled eggs and move them to your serving tray. Add sprigs of parsley to make it look even prettier.

Asparagus or Spinach

Vegetables that are popular on Easter is asparagus and spinach. Since it is spring there is usually a good amount of these vegetables available fresh.

Spinach salads are healthy and quick. You can mix walnuts, dried sweetened cranberries, mandarin oranges, and top with a strawberry balsamic dressing for a great easy salad. If you don’t like salads, spinach can be made into a side for Easter by adding a white sauce to cooked drained spinach to cream it.

With the asparagus you can steam them to insure that the stay crisp. Make sure to peel the ends of the asparagus and trim of any tough steams before cooking the asparagus. Another way to cook asparagus in a different way is to sprinkle with olive oil and some salt and roast in the oven. Some people even love asparagus grilled.

Potato Au Gratin

2 – 3 pounds of potatoes
1.25 cup of thick white sauce or 1 (10.75 ounce) can of condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup of sour cream
2 tablespoons milk
2/3 cup of cheddar cheese shredded
3 tablespoons chives finely chopped for garnish.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13×9 in baking dish. Peel potatoes if desired and slice into thin potato slices. Mix sour cream, milk, and white sauce together. You can substitute condensed cream of mushroom soup if you don’t want to use a white sauce. Mix the potato slices with the sour cream and white sauce mixture and then place in baking pan. Cover the top with the shredded cheddar cheese. Cover with aluminum foil for the first 40 minutes to cook the potatoes and prevent browning on the cheese. Remove the aluminum foil and continue to cook the potatoes around another 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender and the cheese has browned on top. Garnish the top of the Potato au gratin with chives.

Italian Braided Easter Bread

If you love to bake bread you might want to try Italian Braided Easter Bread. You make a egg based sweet dough. Then you dye 5 eggs raw and then place them on the top of the braided bread ring for a pretty display. When you bake the bread the eggs get cooked. Also you want to bake the bread at 350 degrees so that they eggs get plenty of time to cook. There are several recipes available online for the traditional Easter egg bread.

Easter Cake

There are so many different ways to go with an Easter cake. You can have fun with a pound cake that you decorate into an Easter theme. But if you are looking for something more refined you might want to make a glazed lemon bundt cake.

By Victoria Brown

Selena Gomez: "I Don't Like Hiding My Love For Justin!"‎

 

Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber certainly aren't shy about their relationship. And the normally relationship-coy actress admits that she's feeling comfortable being open about her feelings for the teen superstar. "I don't like hiding. I do like to keep certain things to myself, but at the end of the day, I'm 18, and I'm going to fall in love," she tells Seventeen magazine. "I'm going to hang out with people, and I'm going to explore myself, and I'm OK with that."
Although it seems that Bieber's fans have chilled out recently, Beliebers had a bit of a fit when the pair first started dating. Gomez said she understands how it feels to be a fan with a crush. "Are you kidding me? I'm still thinking Zac Efron's my husband," she said. Reminded that Efron's now single, she added, "No, I wouldn't touch that. I love [his ex-girlfriend] Vanessa [Hudgens] way too much." Regarding Bieber's fans, Gomez said, "I do see the passion that a lot of these girls have, and it's beautiful. I love it. I really do. It's special."
Gomez has been very supportive of fellow Disney star Demi Lovato, who has been open about her personal issues including eating disorders and self-mutilation. "There's an amount of love that can never — no matter what — be taken away or torn apart, no matter the situation," Gomez said. "There are certain people who you will always, always love, so if anything, this just reminded me of how much I truly love her."
The former "Wizards of Waverly Place" star has always been close to many of her other Hollywood peers as well. She said she'd love to go on a "Monte Carlo"-inspired vacation with one of those A-listers in particular. "I'd love to go on vacation with Taylor [Swift]. I've been able to fly to Nashville to see her, and she'll come to L.A. a lot, but it'd be nice to get away. It would be really fun," she said. "I've known Taylor for over three years now, so we're at the point where we just get each other."
Of the relationships in her life, Gomez added, "I've gotten to the point where the label of 'best friend' is so ridiculous. If you have three people in your life that you can trust, you can consider yourself the luckiest person in the whole world. "I have a lot of wonderful people in my life — probably five, collectively — who I can tell everything to. There's Jennifer [Stone], my friend Ashley, and Taylor, and my two cousins."