The Joseph Joseph Worktop Saver, USA Gastronomy Map is “made in the United Kingdom by Joseph Joseph, masters of form and function,” according to the product description. It goes on to say that what you are seeing is a “12-inch by 16-inch worktop saver; made of toughened glass; heat resistant to 536-degree F.”

What it doesn’t say is what the heck Smettanick is.

There you see it, up at the top of Montana: Smettanick. Turns out, this caught the eye of many back in 2011.

According to a nifty little write up in the Seattle Weekly about this very design (by a British designer), Smettanick is a Russian sour-cream cake whose preferred spelling is “smetannik.” (Check out a recipe for smetannik here.) As for its popularity in Montana? Only Montanans know. However, the map is not a total loss: the inclusion of “ultimate buffets” in Nevada is not much of a head-scratcher, although it’s probably a good guess that Nevadans eat more than pine nuts and casino buffets.

The Great Twinkie Scare of 2012 was no laughing matter. Except of course, that it was. Jokes can be made about Twinkies never, ever, really going away due to their long shelf life. Or perhaps, one can chuckle at the thought of a Twinkie being grown because they are not really food. And then of course is the biggest myth of them all: that Twinkies are some sort of superfood.

In any event, just in case the iconic snack cake does ever disappear, the Hostess Twinkies Bake Set with Pastry Bag & Recipe Booklet will be there to help repopulate store shelves everywhere. Or at least eBay auctions.

Mmmm… Back to school. It sounds delicious; at least it does to parents and marketers everywhere. Hurried and harried parents not only like to see their kids off to school for some free babysitting, but they like to do so with the minimum amount of hassle. Making time-friendly recipes like the one below help:

Ingredients:

1/3 cup red or green grapes
1/2 ounce Cabot Mild Cheddar or Monterey Jack, cubed
Heaping tablespoon roasted almonds

Directions:

1. Combine in small bowl.

That would be for something called a Munch Bowl. Keep reading to see some others in the form of a press release from Cabot. (Which are juuuuust a little more involved.)

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Marketing is a strange beast. Fleischmann’s, the yeast people, are trying to get you to buy their product by turning a simple recipe into a complicated one. In all fairness, the Date, Pancetta and Camembert Flat Bread Pizza recipe that is in the press release below sounds pretty good–if you and your other care to figure out who would be “Baker A” and who would be “Baker B.”

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Everything you ever wanted to know about olive oil (according to the North American Olive Oil Association) in one handy-dandy press release (with recipes):

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There’s a good chance the following recipes work with any avocado, and not necessarily California avocados, but I wouldn’t want to risk it. Best to listen to the press release that follows when making California Avocado Guacamole Tarts and Cumin Glazed Ribs with California Avocado Pineapple Salsa.

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