Citrus season is coming to a close. If you have a big ol' bag of oranges still sitting around, here is a way to use them (peels and all) to make your own orange sweetener. more ›

The Association of Writers and Writing Programs - acronymed AWP because writing is hard - is holding its annual conference in Chicago from Wednesday through Saturday. The conference, a schmoozefest for writers and representatives of writing programs, has been sold out for a month, and friends' couches all over the city are near capacity. more ›

In the coming weeks, we'll build up to Valentine's Day with true love recipes - romantic and sexy foods that you will want to make with (and for) your Valentine. First, Sparkling Vodka Cranberry Snacks. more ›

PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi argues for moderation, which is reasonable - but not all of her claims are entirely honest. more ›

Your Friday morning sugar fix - we attended the opening of Magnolia bakery and barely made it home alive. more ›

Last month, we posted a gallery of chefs' tattoos, in connection with this month's National Restaurant Association expo in Chicago. The work was gorgeous, and all of it showed off the participants' deep commitment to their craft. Apparently, people really like to show off their tattoos - after that post, we got a ton of submissions from readers and chefs. Here are our favorites, including shots from Naha, Park Grill, Feast and Mana Food Bar, as well as from a couple of our readers. These belong to chefs, pastry chefs, sommeliers and home cooks - and we want to see yours. Chefs and civilians alike, keep the submissions coming and we'll pick our favorites. Email a picture of your food-or-drink-themed tattoo to Anthony@chicagoist.com. more ›

Joanne Chang, the owner of Boston's Flour Bakery and Cafe and the author of Flour, has been writing an excellent series for the Atlantic on baking and pastry. Her theme will speak to many of the home cooks among us - don't be afraid of pastry! I need to read these articles because (gulp) I am a little bit afraid of pastry. When I'm around other home cooking geniuses, I often feel like I am at an AA meeting; "Hello, my name is Anthony, and I'm terrified of baking." I can whip up some mean Toll House cookies, and I actually make a pretty amazing shortbread. But anything beyond cookies and i start to break out in fear-induced hives. Despite my many articles on pastry cooks and my general proficiency at savory cooking, put a bag of flour in my hand and I start quaking in my boots. more ›

There's been a backlash against high fructose corn syrup in recent years as the sweetener has been linked to a litany of health problems. But when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. Or, if you're the soft drink industry, you make sodas loaded with sugar and market it as both a better-tasting product and a healthier alternative to HFCS. more ›

On a recent trip out East, a family member convinced us to reconsider the chocolate covered pretzel. We were not convinced that anyone had finally struck the fine balance between salty and sweet, crunchy and smooth. Into our mouth went a pretzel, lightly coated with milk chocolate and small red candied dots. Chew, chew, chew,…hmm, salty and sweet but with a kick. It was a Mexican hot chocolate pretzel. Who knew they came like this? Next, we tried a pretzel with Chai spice infused chocolate. Then dark chocolate with a hint of mint. These were not the heavily coated, waxy chocolate covered pretzels we’d tried before. These pretzels were crisp and the light coat of chocolate let the saltiness of the pretzel stand out. The different flavors added a great and unique component to the treat. more ›