Al Dente Investigates: Twist-Offs vs. Pry-Offs
by Spanno on August 31, 2007
I
can never remember which beer brands feature twist-off caps and which
have pry-off caps. Budweiser and Miller use twist-off, but the micro
brews, which I prefer, are hit or miss. Usually I get painful reminder
that I just need to use a bottle opener. So why the two cap
styles? Does it really make a difference?
Larger U.S. breweries tend to use twist-off caps to make it more convenient to drink in the car. Twist-off capping is more expensive but multi-billion dollar operations like Budweiser can afford it.
Smaller breweries mostly use classic pry-off caps. The process is less expensive and, according to breweries like Sierra Nevada,
they keep out the arch-enemy of beer: oxygen. Recently they switched
from twist-offs to pry-offs. According to the company, "the new pry-off
crown offers an increased oxygen barrier due to its density and oxygen
barrier properties."
For more information, Chow.com has a great "Nagging Question" about this topic.
Feel
free to send me hate mail, but I'm going to come out and say it. I
don't like zucchini. I've never known what to do with it and I think
the general rule applies--anything with zucchini in it tastes just as
good without it. Recently, I signed up for an organic produce delivery
service and I neglected to update my delivery list. Guess what? I got
zucchini. But since I can't eat raw fish or meat these days, I thought
I'd give this very simple recipe a whirl. I enjoyed the flavors, but
the fresh zucchini actually had a nice texture and absorbed them all
perfectly.
Who says that the average candy freak can’t make a difference? A recent New York Times 
Named
for the primary ingredient (vodka), and not the anti-Bolshevik group
from the Russian Civil War, this drink is tasty, refreshing, and simple
to make. I'll have one (or two) tonight while I watch 
Not to be too much of a state-specific oenophile, but there’s an 
I'll
admit it's been a struggle to find worthy beverages for happy hour
during my 9-month hiatus. While everyone else is sipping delightful
summer cocktails, I pout in the corner with my glass of iced, bubbling
water. Frustration sometimes breeds inspiration. After recently
visiting a local 
How
many times have you enjoyed a latte or cappuccino and gazed in
admiration at the beautiful designs the barista has etched into the
foamy top? As a frequent coffee drinker and fellow artist, I've taken
it upon myself to suss out exactly how these elegant patterns are
achieved. A great source for information is 
1. Steam cold milk in a cold pitcher until the milk reaches 150-160 degrees F.
There
was a time, not too long ago, when the casserole was king. And I ate a
bunch when growing up, in various flavors and sizes, at school and at
home, many with an overflowing of crazily combined ingredients. But the
best casseroles tend to keep it simple, and focus on combining only one
or two often seemingly unrelated items with a few spices. Tater-Tot
Casserole is a great example, combining two fast-food
items—cheeseburgers and tater tots—into one dish. Since becoming a
vegetarian years ago, I’ve updated many recipes from my youth like this
one to make them veggie friendly. But that doesn’t mean meat-eaters
won’t like it. It’s still darn tasty, with smells bringing out not just
hunger, but also nostalgia for cafeterias and after-school specials. 
It's
hard to know where your food comes from these days. We have such a
breadth of selection at American grocery stores. You're almost certain
to find some fruit from Chile next to your Idaho potatoes. But have you
recently thought about the fact that the Iowa pork chops you just
bought are probably sitting next to a nice juicy Iowa steak, both from
factory farms? Well, perhaps the citizens of Des Moines, IA, and
surrounding communities are aware. No amount of air freshener, incense,
or scented candles will cover up the "eau-de-hog" stench produced by
hog factory farms in their county, or their downtown rendering plant.
According to a 
As some readers might remember, 
known
that it started to have regular appearances in cookbooks in the late
1800s. There are a number of theories about where the cake came from,
including one that says Pennsylvania cooks came up
with it as way to use leftover egg whites after making noodles (it
seems Pennsylvanians are not prone to wasting anything), and one that
says that the cake started in Pennsylvania due to the large number of
cake molds Pennsylvanian cooks had. Either PA way (or another way
entirely), this descendant of silver cakes and snow drift cakes (which
were previous cakes made in closely the same manner) has had a long run
of popularity, and still is a favorite of many cake-ophiles to this
day. 
With
guests in town this weekend, I've been getting out my best entertaining
recipes. Most of these simply involve various liquors and mixers, but
for a delicious 
Pike
Place Market, often referred to as "The Soul of Seattle," was born on
August 17, 1907. On that day, eight farmers brought their wagons to the
corner of First Avenue and Pike Street. They were quickly overwhelmed
by about 10,000 eager shoppers and sold out by 11 a.m. Thousands of
shoppers went home empty-handed, but the frenzy held promise. By the
end of 1907, the first Market building opened, with every space filled.
According to anecdotal evidence in a