Foodie is all right to describe someone who has a shallow understanding and interest in food--think of someone who is excited primarily by trends rather than the complex cultural and production implications and history of food. That said, a catch-all title is hard to nail down. I have used food scholar or food enthusiast to describe myself to others when asked. I’ve never thought of myself as a foodie.

philip seymour hoffman is a shoe in

Rice and beans is a nutritionally sound dish- a complex carbohydrate. I love Ayers Creek and Rancho Gordo dried beans! We love black-eye peas and mung beans dal. Last night I made a aromatic black-eye pea curry over basmati rice. A weekly dish in our house is from Madhur Jaffray’s World Vegetarian: Black eye peas with chard, lemon and olive oil over rice coated with the seasoned oil from browned onion, garlic and chili flakes.