taste

COOKBOOK ON PAR WITH GOLFERS

Bring the PGA to the kitchen with Tiger Wood's favorite soup (Hot and Sour Shrimp Soup) and Jack Nicklaus' favorite dessert (cheesecake) and many more in "A Taste of the Tour," a collection of the recipes that nearly 200 golfers say are the best. The cookbook is a fundraiser put on by the Tour Wives Association for the benefit of children's charities. The book costs $20 and is available at the Hazeltine Club House, or by mail (call Christina Paulson at 952-934-6998 and add $5 for shipping).

-- Lee Svitak Dean

TWINKIES + HOT OIL = DELICACY

Those wacky New Yorkers. Just when you think you've heard everything, a story about deep-fried Twinkies appears. Turns out chef Christopher Sell of Brooklyn's ChipShop has reinvented the American cultural icon by dipping it in batter and plunging it into hot oil. Described as "souffle-like" by some who have tried it, the fried Twinkie "turned out to be absolutely delicious," Sell told Cox News Service. "We make our Twinkie look really fancy, so that it appears to be a dessert that might be served in a five-star restaurant."

Sell's inventive menu had already included deep-fried Mars bars (a favorite in Scotland), fried Twix, Snickers and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups -- a big seller -- along with British standards such as mushy peas and shepherd's pie. He decided to try his luck with other delectables. He fried Peppermint Patties ("a miserable failure") and M&Ms ("they kept falling through the fry basket"). But he hit pay dirt with the Twinkie.

Sell thought the humble snack tasted so good that it deserved a high-falutin' presentation. He sprinkled the fried Twinkie with powdered sugar and served it atop a four-berry coulis. The Twinkie has become so popular that he serves more than 100 a week. People across the country call to ask him to deliver fried Twinkies by express mail. (He won't.)

And yes, we've included the recipe (see T4).

OOPS

If you haven't preregistered for the baking contests at this year's Minnesota State Fair, it's too late! Due to incomplete information provided to the Star Tribune, we listed contests whose registration deadline already had passed.