On tonight’s menu:

1. Ronald McDonald Retiring? (PEREZ HILTON)
2. Free Tacos for Life, in Exchange for a Tattoo (WALL STREET JOURNAL)
3. US chef Alice Waters criticized over sewage fertilizer (GUARDIAN)
4. 2010 Chef Survey (QSR)
5. Bacon Bratty – VIDEO (THE SUN)
6. The top grossing restaurants in San Francisco (SF GATE)
7. Tiger Woods — The Carnivorous Encounter (TMZ)
8. Chef Thomas Keller braves the heat at Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack (TENNESSEAN.COM)
9. Books That Encourage You to Play With Your Food (ABC NEWS)
10. Sipping These Wines Is Like Smoking and Drinking at the Same Time (WALL STREET JOURNAL)

Each Wednesday I share items appearing in the food sections of newspapers world-wide.

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS WEEK’S FOOD SECTIONS

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1. Carrots are the orange star of Easter menus (TIMES-PICAYUNE)
2. Puff Pieces: A delectable dessert for Easter (COLUMBUS DISPATCH)
3. For Easter, start fresh (WASHINGTON POST)
4. Mexican chef teaches Fresno his secrets (FRESNO BEE)
5. What Is On Sale at Your Grocery This Week? (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER)
6. Chefs in the making (CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR)

The chef recommends:

1. Hello Kitty Wine: Cat People and Alcoholics Rejoice! (SQUID INK)
2. Esslack Gold and Silver Food Paint (LUXIST)
3. McDonald’s opens Hamburger Univ. Shanghai (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
4. Charlie Vergos, Memphis Barbecue King, Dies (NY TIMES)
5. Martha Stewart Wants Her Own Cable Network (PEREZ HILTON)
6. Magazine makes cooking a tool in fight against child obesity (BOSTON GLOBE)

Each week I focus on articles and tips for Healthy Living (nutrition, fitness, weight loss, etc.)

Articles/Programs:

1. Episodes of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution now available online (HULU)
2. Unhealthiest Foods At The Mall (MEN’S HEALTH)
3. The Dish on Dairy (CULINARY.NET)
4. Shop with care for whole grain food products (REPORTER NEWS)

Tips:

1. This week I’m lovin’ El Pollo Loco’s Taco Al Carbon — part of the chain’s Lindora® Lean for Life Menu items as well as one of their new Dollar Menu offerings. The Taco Al Carbon consists of two warm corn tortillas, well-seasoned chopped boneless chicken thigh meat, diced onion, loads of cilantro and a bit of soybean oil. With only 153 calories, very little cholesterol, fat and sodium; this is satisfying fast food you can feel good about eating.
2. Soft Wraps made with Whole Grains and Extra Virgin Olive Olive — part of the Smart & Delicious line from La Tortilla Factory — have a full 52-percent of your required daily fiber (13 grams). I’ve been setting a couple wraps out for a day, then cracking the dried out wraps into chips. Eaten with hummus or any other dip, the wraps are transformed into delicious, high-fiber snack crackers.
3. We Olive’s Green Olive & Lemon Mustard with Roasted Garlic makes a fantastic low-fat sandwich spread. It is also incredible when drizzled over thin slices of pork roast or pan-roasted chicken breast. One tablespoon contains a mere 5.5 fat-free calories!
4. I discovered Smart Balance® Popcorn through David Zinczenko’s Eat This, Not That series of food guide books. Microwaved-anything is probably not the safest way to eat on a regular basis, but for the occasional trade-off against much higher fat and sodium laced products, these high-fiber, no-trans fat snacks are a god-send!

Shaken, not stirred…

1. A Plea to Keep Martinis Pure (NPR)
2. The tragic death of chef Nathan Laity (GUARDIAN)
3. MARKS & SPENCER is binning its sexy “food porn” TV ads for a more straight-laced image (THE SUN)
4. Watch Top Chef Masters Preview – VIDEO (GRUB STREET)
5. Arrest over China-Japan ‘poisoned dumplings’ row (BBC NEWS)
6. Crazyass Japanese Noodle Commercial -VIDEO (THE DAILY WHAT)
7. Brining Meats is Amazing: How Much Sodium Does it Add? (SALON)
8. The 15 Worst Fast Food FAILS (CHICAGO NOW)
9. A Cheese You Should Be Eating: Beaufort (SERIOUS EATS)
10. At last: A food Bourdain doesn’t like (grasshoppers) – VIDEO (EATER)
11. Santa Clara County to Consider Restricting Toys With Fast Food – VIDEO (NY TIMES)
12. Chefs use Copia gardens for fresh ingredients (NAPA VALLEY REGISTER)