Dolcetto (dole-CHET-oh)

Fruity low-acid grape (the name means “little sweet”) made into a delicious, fruity, licoricey, bitter-edged everyday wine—the quaffing wine of northern Italy’s Piedmont region, though barbera is, more and more, taking over that role.

According to Consumer Reports, which vegetable below is healthier for you when it’s cooked, rather than raw?

A. Tomatoes

B. Onion

C. Zucchini

D. Snow Peas

Speaking personally, I have always assumed that vegetables are healthier when they are eaten raw. Wrong, says Consumer Reports in their Oct 2022 issue. Among the vegetables that are healthier cooked: tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, spinach, bell peppers, and asparagus. When tomatoes are baked, fried, or pureed and cooked as a sauce, the heat increases the phytochemical lycopene which has been linked to lower rates of cancer and heart disease. The magazine cites one study where absorbable lycopene was boosted 35% after tomatoes were heated for 30 minutes at 190 degrees F. Cooking tomatoes also concentrates their flavor. CR suggests quartering tomatoes, drizzling them with olive oil, sprinkling garlic and a little salt and pepper on them, then roasting them in the oven for half an hour at 200 degrees F.

“I drink Champagne when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise, I never touch it―unless I’m thirsty.”

― Lily Bollinger, (1899-1977), Bollinger Champagne

(This quote is dedicated to every wine drinking mother in honor of Mother’s Day.)

― Lily Bollinger, (1899-1977), Bollinger Champagne

(This quote is dedicated to every wine drinking mother in honor of Mother’s Day.)

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