Ah pizza – the food of the gods come down to earth for the betterment of all mankind and every sport nut in the world. Although Greek in origin the pizza we know today finds its roots in Italy and it wasn’t until 1889 that cheese was actually added into the mix.

Of course the original pizza has been bastardized over the centuries with many kids these days thinking that the epitome of pizza goodness is what ever slides out of a Pizza Pizza oven and served up as a single slice to scarf down with a cold drink while trying to be cool.

The fact is that the pizza has a really interesting epicurean history with the wide variety of baking methods and the ‘nationalization’ of the toppings that go on it but regardless of the country you live int there is nothing more comfort foodish than a night spent with friends and a freshly made steaming hot pizza made just the way you like it.

The folks over at visual.ly were good enough to put together a rather simple but fun infographic with some facts about pizza that you may not have known.

The awesome goodness of Pizza explained [Infographic] is a post from: The Inquisitr

I am pretty sure that this isn’t a question that you ever thought you would be needing to answer but it might be a wise idea if you want to keep what you already have in your stomach where it belongs; but for the more adventurous this might prove to be rather interesting.

You see artist Stefani Bardin wanted to find out just how our bodies processed food like Ramen against more natural ‘whole foods’ so  she decided to team up gastroenterologist Dr. Braden Kuo from Harvard University and with the use of two different types of pill cams document the process.

The two different pill cams had the one that measured pressure, temperature, and pH sensors to monitor the conditions in the gastrointestinal tract and then the second that recorded video footage while inside the body.

To better understand how the body processes different food one subject received gatorade, instant ramen, and gummi bears. The second subject got a healthier selection with handmade noodles, hibiscus tea and pomegranate-cherry juice gummies.

Aa the two different types of food made its way through the subject’s system it was recorded by the pill cams, and while the end product of this is suppose to be an art installation of some sort the video alone is pretty interesting as you can see how our bodies treat process and natural foods.

via Geekosystem

You ever wondered what semi-digested Ramen looks like inside your body? [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

It sounds sad, but it’s really how you discover Cheez Its crumbled into Chef Boyardee spaghetti and meatballs is kinda delicious at 2 AM.

How to Cook is a post from: The Inquisitr

One of the biggest concerns raised during, and following the BP oil spill in 2010 was what effect it, and the clean up effort, would have on marine life; especially the marine life that provides a major source of food and revenue for the people living in the area.

The final estimate from the FDA was that the seafood from the affected areas of the Gulf were safe enough to catch, eat, and sell for food. The only problem is that according to a new non-governmental study this is far from the case.

In fact the scientists involved with the study have found that the seafood, such as the shrimp, is showing carcinogenic levels of up to 10,000 times more than what is considered safe. The shrimp for instances showed that 53 percent of the Gulf shrimp had levels “above concern” of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

This leaves pregnant women, children and big seafood eaters at risk to develop issues stemming from the consumption of these chemicals. Prenatal exposure to PAHs has been shown to lower IQs and increase the risk of asthma, heart malformations and low birth weight.

via Business Insider

In addition, internal FDA emails acquired under Freedom of Information requests reveal that there has been a concerted effort to downplay any of the effects of contaminants.

I’m sorry but anybody that believed anything the FDA or BP has had to say about the spill or the effects that it is having, and continuing to have, on us and our food supply is living in a dream world.

The FDA doesn’t care if you eat food 10,000 times over contamination levels is a post from: The Inquisitr

Diabetes is very quickly becoming one of our society’s biggest health dangers with the number of deaths resulting from diabetes, and complications arising from the disease, is increasing year after year.

While eating lots of cured meats is associated with greater weight gain and a higher obesity rate it has been found that eating fish is linked to lower glucose concentrations which means a smaller risk of developing diabetes.

This was discovered as a result of the Prevention with a Mediterranean Diet (Predimed) study that was conducted by Mercedes Sotos Prieto in Spain through the University of Valencia.

The study was conducted in the Valencian Community and involved 945 people (340 men and 605 women) between the ages of 55 to 80 and had a high cardiovascular risk.

The aim was to understand the dietary patterns when it came to meat and fish as well as any correlation between the Mediterranean diet and any association with cardiovascular risk.

As with other studies in this area they found part of the reason for the improved insulin sensitivity could be a result of the increase of omega-3 in the cells of the skeletal muscles.

Prieto suggests that a good defense against diabetes would be to decrease the amount of red meat being consumed while maintaining equal levels of fish intake.

via MedicalXpress

Study finds eating fish helps to reduce diabetes risk is a post from: The Inquisitr

As a kid I grew up working on a dairy farm and even today, all these years later I still think that was one of the best times of my life. It wasn’t a big modernized farm factory but rather what is quaintly referred to today as a family farm where hard work was the norm and mechanization was carefully considered before implementing.

It definitely wasn’t what most people consider farms to be today with their massive amounts of modern technology used throughout all aspects of the farm, to the point it more closely resembles a factory than it does a farm. I have watched many documentaries that look at the so-called benefits of these huge businesses that gave up any pretense of being a family farm a long time ago and I wonder what we have lost in the process.

This is a question is one that apparently Chipotle is asking as well and in order to find out, as well as find ways to help bring the small American family farm back, they have launched a new initiative called The Chipotle Cultivate Foundation, thought its Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant chain.

In their mission statement Chipotle says it is committed to creating a more sustainable and healthful food supply as well as trying to raise awareness concerning our food supply issues. Part of that means finding ways to help support family farmers, their communities, educators, and programs that will help teach future generations about food sustainability. They are also committed to helping farmers and ranchers who want to move to a more sustainable food supply model.

To this end Chipotle has donated over $2 million to help fund initiatives that support sustainable farming, family farming, and innovations that help innovation in the food supply.

As apart of their awareness campaign Chipotle has been getting musicians to create music videos that highlight the program’s mission. The first one was released in August 2011 with Willie Nelson doing a cover of Coldplay’s “The Scientist” in an animated music video that traces the move by a farmer that goes from being a family farm to a farm factory and back to a family farm.

The newest video from the foundation has Kathy O from the band the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s doing a cover of the Willie Nelson and Waylon Jenning’s hit “Mama, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys” where the song is used as the backdrop in a video of three boys exploring an abandoned house.

The house turns out to have been that of a farmer who had his farm foreclosed on and the one boy realizes that what he finds isn’t all that different than his life could be like.

via Fast Company

Chipotle shows its support for the small American farmer with new project is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you are not part of the Starbucks pumpkin coffee cult, you can probably identify with this sentiment.

[via]

Pumpkin Spice Lattes, Pumpkin Muffins… is a post from: The Inquisitr

Fresh food is a rare commodity in some areas of American cities. Even Walmart has recognized this and is looking to open smaller stores in areas not normally use to having small supermarkets anymore and bring fresh produce to area where it is easy to get a McDonald’s hamburger than it is a head of lettuce.

Enter Stockbox Grocers.

The company is a Seattle start up that want to take old shipping containers and convert them into mini-stores selling a range of fresh food, meat and dairy products. These mini-stores are intended to be set up in parking lots around these food deserts within every major city. They have already opened up their first prototype two weeks ago in the Delridge area of Seattle and plan on two permanent sites in early 2012, and with more to follow.

Carrie Ferrence, Stockbox’s cofounder, says the response so far has been promising. “The community has been really supportive of having access to good food. There is a level of education we need to do. But in the short period we’ve been in Delridge, we’ve been blown away by the level of engagement people have around food, and this as a food option.”

Stockbox picked Delridge because car-less residents currently have a 45-minute bus ride to the nearest decent grocery store.

“It’s mostly gas stations and convenience stores. There aren’t even many restaurants. While there are stores within a couple of miles, there are no direct bus lines. It’s difficult to get out of the community, and get somewhere with greater access,” Ferrence says.

via Fast Company

The company founders are graduates of Bainbridge Graduate Institute and the Institute’s MBA program which fosters “sustainable business” entrepreneurs. Carrie Ferrence and her partner Jacqueline Gjurgevich came up with the idea during their second year and have raised $50,000, including  $20,000 via Kickstarter.

Recycled shipping containers to bring fresh food to America’s food deserts is a post from: The Inquisitr

One of the things I liked about living out west in Canada was that they have Denny’s restaurants and while I wouldn’t want to go there for anything remotely resembling fine dining it was a great place to go for coffee and a quick breakfast, although I’m not sure that I’d line up for their latest heart attack offering.

Apparently the restaurant  chain is updating their value meals menu items and in the process bringing the famous cheese laden Fried Cheese Melt. Now that might sound rather innocuous but once you start reading the ingredients you might want to make an appointment with your cardiologist.

Yes folks, you can now order a sandwich that contains four fried mozzarella sticks and melted American cheese stuffed between two slices of sourdough bread, which is then served with an order of french fries and marina sauce.

Of course we all know that no matter how good that might sound the actual sandwich will never look as good or possibly similar to the one in the image above.

via Geekosystem

Welcome to Your Walking Heart Attack, The Denny’s Fried Cheese Melt is a post from: The Inquisitr

Citizens of Fayetteville are rightfully concerned over a hepatitis scare that has broken out in the city in light of an Olive Garden employee testing positive for hepatitis recently.

The affected Olive Garden restaurant serves; or rather served some 800 meals a day but has seen its business tank following the news as people headed to the Cumberland County Health Department to get vaccinated rather than ordering food.

Due to the increased demand the health department began operating on extended hours that saw them vaccinating 500 people on Tuesday.

While some folks have said that this incident has totally ruined their opinion of the restaurant and won’t be returning to it others have been more understanding saying that something like this could happen anywhere.

Fayetteville resident Ricky Evans, 23, said he went to the restaurant for his birthday on July 28 and learned Tuesday morning about the alert.

Evans said he works at a restaurant as well, and he was sent home until he got vaccinated against hepatitis A.

He arrived at the Health Department about 1:30 p.m. and by about 4:30 was still a good distance from the head of the line and hoping he would get through before closing. If not, it could mean more missed work.

“They kind of want me to get it, especially because I work at a restaurant,” Evans said.

via FayObserver

Olive Garden possibly exposes hundreds to Hepatitis is a post from: The Inquisitr

So, Marmite. Serious business.

Talk of a Marmite ban has, according to the BBC, sparked calls for “civil disobedience” in Denmark if it goes ahead. The Danish Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries held up sales of the spread within the borders of the country for product safety concerns under regulations about vitamin-enhanced foods.

A Danish official has said that no applications have been received for the product, so the agency has neither “forbidden or accepted” Marmite as a legally-sold food. But “procedural checks” for Marmite could keep it off the market for six months. Tom Denyard, marketing manager for Marmite, commented:

“We are sad to hear reports that our devoted fans may not be able to purchase Marmite in Denmark. We’re looking into ways to ensure our Marmite lovers will not be left without their beloved spread.”

The BBC quoted British nutritionist Melanie Brown, who said that the ban on Marmite could be “counterproductive” health-wise:

“Marmite plays such a useful part in many people’s diet, and in my practice it’s incredibly useful for older people…who are short in vitamin B12.

“It’s full of folic acid, and there’s lots of evidence that many women, young women of child-bearing age are deficient in folic acid,” she said.

Marmite isn’t the only fortified product to run afoul of Denmark’s strict rules about vitamins- Ovaltine was pulled from the country, and Kellogg’s yanked some cereals after the regulations went into effect in 2004.

Apparently a big deal: Denmark bans Marmite? is a post from: The Inquisitr

Back in January, Taco Bell and a southern law firm got completely embroiled in a very public drama over the contents of Taco Bell’s beef taco filling.

The firm alleged that the stuff in Taco Bell’s tacos was composed of less than 40% stuff other than meat, with the 60+% balance coming from fillers and other non-beef items. Taco Bell fired back that their meat was actually 88% beef, thank you very much, and vowed to fight the claims casting aspersions on the quality of their Beefy Cheesy Melts.

Earlier this week, the firm Beasley Allen dropped their suit against the Bell. Given the fervor with which Taco Bell contented the claims, however, it should be not very surprising that the chain did not accept the news quietly. Instead, they took out a giant ad in the Wall Street Journal, with a giant header reading, “Would it kill you to say you’re sorry?”

Some text followed, copied below, and the firm has not answered requests from the WSJ to comment on Taco Bell’s ostensible vindication:

The law firm that brought false claims about our product quality and advertising integrity has voluntarily withdrawn their class action suit against Taco Bell…

Sure, they could have just asked us if our recipe uses real beef. Even easier, they could have gone to our Web site where the ingredients in every one of our products are listed for everyone to see. But that’s not what they chose to do.

. . .As for the lawyers who brought this suit: You got it wrong, and you’re probably feeling pretty bad right about now. But you know what alwasy helps? Saying to everyone, “I’m sorry.”

C’mon, you can do it!

Taco Bell lawsuit drops, chain taunts law firm in full page ad is a post from: The Inquisitr

A small study of nearly 50 women has suggested that addiction to food closely mimics addiction to chemical substances in the brain.

The study found that when participants mulled drinking a chocolate milkshake, those who had “higher food addiction scores” showed heightened activity in brain regions associated with reward than participants with lower scores. Ashley Gearheart of Yale University described the study’s findings in the Archives of General Psychiatry:

“Similar patterns of neural activation are implicated in addictive-like eating behavior and substance abuse and dependence,” Gearhardt and colleagues wrote.

Both food and drugs result in the release of dopamines, closely associated with reward-seeking behaviors and pleasure centers in the brain. Interestingly, though, the study showed no correlation between food addiction scores and body mass index (BMI.) The study’s findings seem to support some connection between the tendencies and overeating:

Gearhardt’s group concluded that the study “supports the theory that compulsive food consumption may be driven in part by an enhanced anticipation of the rewarding properties of food,” and that eating “may override desires to limit caloric food consumption … resulting in disinhibited food consumption.”

Larger studies including participants with more dramatic scores have been suggested to examine the potential implications of the findings.

Study: Food addiction mimics drug addiction in brain is a post from: The Inquisitr

A few days ago, stoners across the nation became collectively concerned that the ground beef served at Taco Bell locations across the United States may be comprised heavily of things other than beef.

Outcry on the internet- where 85% of heavy users regularly consume Taco Bell products as a lone or major form of sustenance- was widespread, causing many readers to lean forward slightly in their Snuggies and spit mouthfuls of Mountain Dew across monitors when learning of the lawsuit. Taco Bell predictably did not take those claims lying down, getting on its Huffy Bike and insisting that their beef is only 12% stuff other than beef, thank you very much.

In a statement on their website, Taco Bell fumes:

“The lawsuit is bogus and filled with completely inaccurate facts. Our beef is 100% USDA inspected, just like the quality beef you would buy in a supermarket and prepare in your home. It then is slow-cooked and simmered with proprietary seasonings and spices to provide Taco Bell’s signature taste and texture. Our seasoned beef recipe contains 88% quality USDA-inspected beef and 12% seasonings, spices, water and other ingredients that provide taste, texture and moisture. The lawyers got their facts wrong. We take this attack on our quality very seriously and plan to take legal action against them for making false statements about our products. There is no basis in fact or reality for this suit and we will vigorously defend the quality of our products from frivolous and misleading claims such as this.”

Comparing their product to “chili or meatballs,” the purveyor of impossibly low-cost Mexican style foods posted an ingredient list which they say proves the stuff you are putting in your mouth is, indeed, mostly meat:

Our recipe for seasoned beef includes ingredients you’d find in your home or in the supermarket aisle today:

• 88% USDA-inspected quality beef
• 3-5% water for moisture
• 3-5% spices (including salt, chili pepper, onion powder, tomato powder, sugar, garlic powder, cocoa powder and a proprietary blend of Mexican spices and natural flavors).
• 3-5% oats, starch, sugar, yeast, citric acid, and other ingredients that contribute to the quality of our product.

Whether Taco Bell will manage to counteract the effects of the story, which spoke to many peoples’ concerns about how a quality beef product can really be had for 88 cents, remains to be seen. Did news of the lawsuit put you off your Beefy Cheesy Melts?

Taco Bell huffs that their meat is actually 88% meat, vows to fight lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

Been looking for something to ferry you away from “The Border” as efficiently as possible but unable to break the late night cheap food fix at Taco Bell?

Gizmodo posted a PSA yesterday about the true contents of Taco Bell’s meat. Long derided as not really food, it turns out Taco Bell really actually doesn’t use very much beef at all in their… beef. Which is kind of a point of contention and now the basis of a lawsuit. So what are you really eating when you eat a Cheesy Beefy Wrap?

Water, isolated oat product, salt, chili pepper, onion powder, tomato powder, oats (wheat), soy lecithin, sugar, spices, maltodextrin (a polysaccharide that is absorbed as glucose), soybean oil (anti-dusting agent), garlic powder, autolyzed yeast extract, citric acid, caramel color, cocoa powder, silicon dioxide (anti-caking agent), natural flavors, yeast, modified corn starch, natural smoke flavor, salt, sodium phosphate, less than 2% of beef broth, potassium phosphate, and potassium lactate.

Next, are you going to tell me that glowing, fluorescent orange gloop isn’t actually cheese? Is nothing sacred? According to Gizmodo, USDA guidelines say meat has to be comprised of at least 40% meat- you know, animal flesh. (Which, by the way, sounds very charitable.) But the Taco Meat Filling at Taco Bell doesn’t even meet that “standard,” clocking in at an abysmal 36% dead cow.

It was always a given Taco Bell wasn’t macrobiotic, but does this information make Taco Bell any less appetizing to you?

Taco Bell beef is actually 64% other things is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ah those juicy morsels of chicken meat wrapped in a crispy cover just waiting to be dipped into a sauce of your choice.

Except, it’s not actually white meat they use in those nuggets and chicken burgers.

Take a close look at the image at the top of the post. That my good people is the result of what is euphemistically called mechanically separated chicken, and that is what actually goes into all those fast food chicken nuggets and burgers.

As Michael Kindt points out in the post to go along with that image:

Basically, the entire chicken is smashed and pressed through a sieve—bones, eyes, guts, and all. it comes out looking like this.

There’s more: because it’s crawling with bacteria, it will be washed with ammonia, soaked in it, actually. Then, because it tastes gross, it will be reflavored artificially. Then, because it is weirdly pink, it will be dyed with artificial color.

Oh yum!

That’s pink meat, not white, in your chicken nuggets is a post from: The Inquisitr

We all know Pac-Man turned 30 this year, because Google gave us free Pac-Man and nearly destroyed capitalism in the process.

A less costly way to celebrate? Canned vegetable sculptures, obviously. This tribute is on display at the South Coast Plaza Mall in Costa Mesa, California. Anyone live near there? And if so, man that middle can looks tempting, huh?

See also: Om Nom Nom Nom: 8 Brilliant Food Sculptures

[Via Kotaku]

Pac-Man anniversary celebrated through the medium of canned veg is a post from: The Inquisitr

Yes folks, that is the ultimate Grilled Cheese sandwich where you will find a side of fries served along side four fried mozzarella sticks wrapped by a typical grilled cheese sandwich.

And all for $4.00

via Neatorama

Grillin’ the cheesiest grilled cheese while watching your cholesterol leave the building is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ya, ya I know. Your mother always said not to play with your food. Something about it being impolite or some such nonsense. Well I would bet that if you showed what real playing with food looks like she might reconsider.

hat tip to Fresh Pics

Who said you shouldn’t have fun with your food? (10 Pics) is a post from: The Inquisitr

We obediently listened and learned, but those who didn’t became food sculptors. Here are eight amazing food sculptures crafted and moulded from everything from chocolate to cheese to gummi bears (yes):

Carl Warner specializes in whimsical, fantastic landscapes built entirely from food (“foodscapes” in Warner’s words) – his entire gallery is well worth checking out.

An entire room and its occupants, meticulously recreated using Cheetos. Gross. But also amazing. Sadly, I’ve no idea about who the original artist is, but my hat goes off to them.

This octopus is made exclusively from tins of food. A quite remarkable canstruction.

“Dita von Cheese” by Prudence Emma Staite. Based, of course, on popular burlesque performer Dita von Teese.

Keep it cool: this butter pig with feasting piglets was designed by Jim Victor.

A mammoth chandelier, crafted exclusively from gummi bears by artist Ya Ya Chou. Here’s a close-up.

Christel Assante sculpts empty, delicate eggshells with staggering detail.

A whole sofa sculpted from chocolate, another work by the excellent Prudence Emma Staite. Not good near fires.

Om Nom Nom Nom: 8 Brilliant Food Sculptures is a post from: The Inquisitr