Zapped oats
Dark chocolate oatmeal might seem overly adventurous, but it's quite tasty. At least the BetterOats variety. The firm's instant cereals are a snap to zap, and they come in tasty varieties such as Apples & Cinnamon, Maple Streusel and Berry Blast. They use 100 percent whole-grain oats and pieces of real fruit and chocolate. A box containing five pouches sells for about $2. Visit betteroats.com for information.
Start your grills
Entries will be accepted through May 15 for the 2010 Sur La Table Grilling Recipe Contest, and the winner will receive a $1,000 Sur La Table gift card and a session at BBQ University. Entries can be an appetizer, grilled vegetable entree, grilled meat entree or grilled dessert. Winners in each category will receive a $500 gift card. Steven Raichlen, author of the award-winning "BBQ USA" and host of "Primal Grill" on PBS, will be the final judge. To enter, visit www.surlatable.com .
Naturally Nora
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Naturally Nora sure knows her way around a dairy- and soy-free kitchen, and she's sharing her expertise through baking mixes, including Fantastic Fudgy Brownies and a frosting mix, Extraordinary Vanilla. They are available for $4 to $5 on amazon.com and at supermarkets nationwide. For information, go to naturallynora.com.
'Spoon Fed'
Kim Severson recalls being a job candidate at the San Francisco Chronicle, an enviable food-writing gig in one of the top wine regions. She didn't let on during her interview that she's an alcoholic or share her doubts, such as how can a recovering alcoholic be a serious food writer without imbibing? She even got drunk the week she was interviewed.
"Spoon Fed: How Eight Cooks Saved My Life" (Riverhead, $25.95) answers the question of how Severson, now a New York Times food writer, overcame her obstacles without the crutch of gin.
Severson writes about identity and alcohol struggles. But mostly, she writes about the eight women who inspired her: her mom, Anne Marie Severson, and food luminaries Marion Cunningham, Alice Waters, Leah Chase, Ruth Reichl, Edna Lewis, Rachael Ray and Marcella Hazan.
Author Cunningham, a recovering alcoholic, showed her that "no matter how badly you stumble, you can start over." Through slow-food pioneer Waters, she learned to persevere and work hard. Through Reichl, ex-Times restaurant critic and Gourmet editor, she learned to stop comparing herself with the most popular girl in school and be herself. Because being Kim Severson isn't bad, either.
