New USDA guidelines lower pork cooking temperature by 15 degrees Fahrenheit, to the delight of chefs and consumers throughout America.

New cooking guidelines from the nation's food-safety agency confirm Pork Checkoff research that shows pork can be consumed safely when cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F, followed by a three-minute rest time. The guidelines were announced in May by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS).

The Culinary Institute of America launches Healthy Flavors, Healthy Kids, a national culinary leadership initiative.

A White House chef and a USDA official were among the many children’s nutrition, school foodservice and culinary leaders who presented at the CIA's Healthy Flavors, Healthy Kids National Leadership Summit at the college’s San Antonio, Texas, campus May 11-13.

Healthy Flavors, Healthy Kids, an invitation-only event held in conjunction with the National Restaurant Association, brought together 200 diverse professionals from around the country, including Sam Kass, assistant White House chef and senior policy advisor for healthy food initiatives, and Dr. Janey Thornton, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for food, nutrition and consumer services. Attendees discussed and debated a wide range of issues impacting the quality and flavor of foods for children.

By Chef Colin Roche, MBA, CEC, CCE, FMP, CHE

Plants often have beautiful colors that add interest and appeal to meals. Their pigments, however, are affected by acid and alkaline, so care should be taken to cook them properly.

Here is an experiment you can do in your culinary labs to show students the effects of acid and alkaline on vegetable pigment.

The Lesson: “Alkalis / Acid Experiment” 

Directions: Break the class into groups and have them gather the following vegetables. (Instructor should demonstrate how to prep each product.)

Disparate mindsets of post-recession consumers will shape restaurant-industry recovery and growth, reports NPD.

Consumers are of two different mindsets when it comes to spending—those who cannot spend freely and those who can—and the dichotomy between these two mindsets will shape the restaurant industry now and into the future, according to new foodservice market research by The NPD Group, a leading market-research company.

The recently-released report, entitled “The Changing Consumer Mindset: What it Means to the Restaurant Industry,” shows the broad-reaching effects the recession had on consumer behavior and thinking and the difference between consumers who are more cautious and control their spending and those who are optimistic and feel economically stable.

By John Paul Khoury, CCC, www.preferredmeats.com, www.preferredmeatsblog.com

Now at Tyler Florence’s Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco, Thiemann thrives on energy and is having fun.

From a kid playing drums in a Sacramento band to just over a decade later being Tyler Florence’s chef de cuisine at the Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco, Mike Thiemann’s journey has been a series of choices that he felt driven to make. He took time out of his schedule to explain:

What drew you to the industry and why become a chef?
Well, it was 1995 and I was a just a kid playing drums in a band when I got a job at Greta’s Café in Sacramento. What a great job, I learned so much under Greta. I started washing dishes and then ended up in the deli, then baking, making soups, etc.

This is where I learned to sweat off mirepoix, and making soup from scratch, building flavors. It was great, like school really, I mean this is how anyone really learns. I was there for five years, until 2000 when the place was sold to Chipotle’s.