Much has been said in recent weeks about the ethics of food blogging, and the whole debate seems to have come to a head with Eater LA and it’s debacle in posting an anonymous tip that defamed downtown LA wine bar The Must. It starts here at Eater LA with the anonymous tip, then ends up here in a letter from the restaurant. And if that’s not enough, here’s a great story by Elina Shatkin of the LA Times that sums it up, with some commentary on the ethics of anonymous sources. So, are anonymous sources ethical?

That conversation is just one side of the multifaceted ethics debate. In another angle, people are wondering whether reviewing freebies or doing paid posts are Kosher. In this BusinessWeek story (mentioned in Shatkin’s piece), Douglas MacMillan writes that the FTC “wants bloggers to disclose when they’ve been wooed with cash or freebies from companies they cover.”

The notion of full disclosure is standard practice in journalism. And there are reasons for it. It’s the best way to combat bias, and it informs the reader of anything they may consider shady. I’m happy to see there are lines being drawn in the food blogosphere, and it will be interesting to see how it all ends up.

To help food bloggers along, there’s this fantastic code that was dreamed up by two fellow food bloggers. Then there’s the EGullet code of ethics.

Both of these codes are similar to the ethics codes of the Association of Food Journalists. This is the one I follow, but that’s not to say I don’t have a few things to learn as well.(Click on “Read the rest of this entry” for more.)

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Things have gotten busy in my corner, starting with the launch of a food blog with Orange Coast magazine (covering foodthings in Orange County!). Almost exactly on the blog’s launch date, things at my day job swelled, and I’m working longer hours to meet the writing/editing demands. It’s hairy, to say the least.

I’m not at all complaining, though. Life is full right now. But thankfully, it’s full of very, very awesome things.

All of this means I’ve been coming home later than usual. Instead of cooking, I’d much rather order pizza or some Thai, or (ideally) have someone spoon feed me soup or bread pudding for dinner. I specifically say bread pudding because it’s one of the most ultimate comfort foods, one where you don’t have to expel much effort to eat it. Bread pudding requires little chewing, if any at all. And right off of the spoon, it slithers down the back of your throat in a savory mush that warms your insides in a medicinal sort of way. (I underbake it just to experience this exact sensation every time.) Other mushy foods like mashed potatoes and guacamole tend to stick to the roof of your mouth, but bread pudding seems to know where it’s going right from the get-go.  You spoon it in,  and down it goes without any resistance at all. And it’s got chutzpah: If it could, I bet the it would make it’s own little slurping noises when you swallow it.

I bought Sunday Suppers at Lucques at the Los Angeles Times book fair a few years ago. Chef Suzanne Goin was perched in a booth signing books for a line that was at least 45 minutes long. After she signed mine, I sat on the grass and flipped through it, almost immediately landing on this recipe for caramelized bread pudding with chocolate and cinnamon. With that page alone, Goin made me a fan.

Now, if only someone would make this bread pudding for me before I summon the pizza guy. (Click on “Read the rest of this entry” for recipe)

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