Tuesday Megalinks

This week, it’s cookbooks, registry tips, and more chickens than you can shake a drumstick at. Plus, I didn't add a link (because Eater's got it covered), but New York Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni is giving up his seat come August. So, if you’re looking for a great job…

Casual Kitchen: Brand Disloyalty
Forgoing your favorite brands for equally effective, less expensive versions of the same product will save you MAD CASH over time. Possibly in the millions, if your favorite brand is Aston Martin.

Casual Kitchen: What's Your Take on Going Vegetarian? A Poll of Meat-Eating Bloggers
Dan asked five food bloggers (including yours truly) if they’d ever consider going full veggie. There’s a range of answers, but the biggest hang up (including for yours truly) seems to be that we simply like the taste of meat. What about you guys?

Culinate: Going Nuts – They’re crunchy, tasty, and good for you
I tend to eschew most nuts at CHG because they’re an easy way to drive up calorie and fat contents. But … bad me! Nuts are actually very good for you, and this post teaches you how to seek out the best ones.

Dana McCauley’s Food Blog: Food poisoning fears and the truth about mayonnaise
See? SEE? Mayonnaise is the worst thing in the world. In summer salads, it doesn’t necessarily create bacteria, but it allows for easy transportation of the germs. BOO. (Thanks to Casual Kitchen for the link.)

Eat Me Daily: Anthony Bourdain, Alice Waters, and Duff Goldman at the "Food For Thought" Forum
Leonardo DiCaprio and Duff Goldman enter a restaurant. (Not together. I wish. They’d be my all-time favorite man couple.) Who do you think gets mobbed? This tidbit and many more can be found within.

The Epi-Log: Getting Married? Here's How To Register for What You Really Need
This fantastic resource for brides-and-grooms-to-be includes a practical, step-by-step guide to determining your permanent needs versus your fleeting wants.

Get Rich Slowly: How to Save Money on Food - Great Tips from Three Years of Get Rich Slowly
JD comps his best food posts, and it’s a tremendous showing of culinary/economic advisory power. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Huffington Post: Organic Vs. Conventional - Have You Been Robbed?
Makenna Goodman raises her chickens free-range, practically to the point they're free to move out and get their own apartments. Still, because she uses a tiny percentage of non-organic grain to supplement their diets, they’re not considered organic poultry. On the flip side, Corporation X raises their chickens in a factory, feeds them only organic grains, and merits a much higher price from buyers. Crazy stuff, here.

The Kitchn: Meal Planning 101 - What Are Your Building Blocks?
In which The Kitchn breaks their weekly menu into basic units, which makes shopping, prep, and storage much easier. Solid idea.

The Kitchn: What is Your Most Dreaded Cooking Task?
Here it is: I am the world’s worst julienne-er. Straight up, I can not make vegetables into matchstick-sized pieces for the LIFE of me. Inevitably, there’s bleeding and cursing, and my zucchini ends up looking like misshapen fingers. (Or, maybe those are my fingers?) Readers, what about you?

Los Angeles Times: Selecting the Best Chicken
The Times tested 14 chickens, ranging from hippie-type free-range birds to mass-produced pale facsimiles thereof. Among the winners were three free-rangers (naturally), PLUS a Trader Joe’s dark horse. (Dark chicken?) That place is magic, I swear.

Mercury News: Dining for Women is changing the world one dinner at a time
Oh, I like this very much: “Once a month, women get together for a potluck dinner. They take the money they would have spent at a restaurant and donate it to a grassroots organization that works to empower women in developing countries through health, education or vocational programs.” Turn your Pad Thai into program funds, ladies! (Thanks to Serious Eats for the link.)

New York Times: In New York, the Taste of Victory
From guacamole to bacon to tofu, cook-offs are taking hold of the five boroughs. Hundreds line up outside each chowder, cassoulet, or ramen competition to eat, evaluate, and reward. Like Ed Koch said, I love New York!

New York Times: When “Local” Makes it Big
Large corporations like Frito-Lay and Hunts are attempting to reposition their products as part of the local movement, ostensibly to sell more. Technically, they might have a point, but this just doesn’t sit right for so many reasons. Great read.

Salon: It's cheap -- but can you swallow it?
Sarah Hepola cruises her favorite Dollar Menus to find somewhat palatable offerings. The results are pretty dang funny, and full of McDonald’s Apple Pies, which, god help me, are as delicious now as they were when I was seven. (Thanks to Consumerist for the link.)

The Simple Dollar: Some Thoughts on the Tightwad Gazette’s “Flexible Casserole Recipe”
One of Amy Dacyczyn’s greatest frugal creations was her fill-in-the-blank casserole recipe. Here, Trent explores the possibilities and comes up with a few suggestions of his own.

St. Petersburg Times: Bestselling cookbooks and award-winning cookbooks aren't the same
Last year’s big James Beard Award-winning cookbook was a gorgeous volume called Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient, and it sold 25,000 copies. Ina Garten’s 2008 cookbook, Back to Basics, won bupkis, but it sold 650,000 copies. Now, this could be because Ina is fundamentally the best. Or, maybe it’s something else, which this article explores…

(Photos courtesy of Naturez.org.)