By Maya Guimaraes Owner and self-taught baker Denise Cumming, armed with her family recipes, wanted to create delicious desserts for people with celiac disease, a digestive disorder that makes people unable to tolerate gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley—and most regular baked goods. “When my mom started to change her recipes to 
I love Italian wine, but there’s a lot about the wines from the big boot that can be a little intimidating and just plain confusing. For instance, here’s a pop quiz: When is a montepulciano not a Montepulciano? When it’s a montepulciano, not from Montepulciano. Confused? So are most people when trying to buy Italian wine. 
While many applauded Mayor Bloomberg’s implementation of the restaurant letter grading system to bring transparency to a Byzantine health inspection process, it’s never held much sway for me; everyone knows the best restaurants are the ones most likely to inspire, at best, a grudging C grade and a passing glare from daintier patrons. 
Argentinian malbecs are ready for their close-up It wasn’t all that long ago that I had to beg people to try wine from South America. I almost felt like a snake oil salesman giving them a spiel that, in the end, I always worried would overhype their expectations. But it never did, and the reason
I’ve said it once and I’ll say it a million more times: Drink what you like, no matter what the “rule” is. That being said, there are suggestions (I won’t call them rules) that are in place because, well, some things just go together better than others. And some things don’t go together at all. 
The eating competition is one of those American traditions you can’t quite explain without coming across as an apologist for obscene overconsumption. And while the Major League Eating circuit—yes, an actual organization that considers eating competitions sporting events, which has gone so far as to get airtime on one of the many ESPNs—is an easy
“You’re a writer, huh? What kind of stuff do you write?” “Oh, a little of this,” I said, staring at my shoes, knowing exactly where this conversation was headed, “A little of that.” “Like what? What’s one of the things you get paid to write about?” “Wine.” My single-word answer was followed by an unconscious 
