The massive recall of pet foods containing wheat gluten contaminated with melamine, an industrial chemical, has focused attention on an issue most of us would rather not think about: the heightened food safety risks that come with widespread importing of foodstuffs.

As demand for its food products has exploded, China has tried to improve food safety. But it’s difficult in a land where there are so many scattered small family farms and pressure to keep up with the ever increasing demand. Drugged farmed animals, industrial pollutants, overuse of pesticides, cutting corners to save costs—all have led to food scandals in China and abroad. (In one of the more notorious cases, substandard infant formula caused malnutrition in hundreds of babies and killed at least 12.) Europe, Japan and even Hong Kong have banned some Chinese food imports.

Americans treat their pets like children, and a scandal of this magnitude will hopefully exert pressure on Chinese suppliers and the American companies that deal with them to tighten the controls.

But this may also be a good time to question why we are importing so much of our food. Does anyone else find it ironic that America, the world’s leading exporter of wheat, is importing wheat gluten from China?

I got an espresso machine for Christmas and I’ve had fun playing with it ever since.

Reading up on the art of espresso making has left me a tad dizzy, though. Espresso lovers make wine snobs look tolerant. The laws of espresso leave little room for forgiveness:

• One must have the proper amount of cream (froth, not the dairy product) atop the coffee.
• One must never drink milky espresso drinks (cappuccino and lattes) after noon. Actually, one should never drink lattes at all, since they’re a crime against the universe.
• One must produce espresso that is full-bodied but not bitter (good luck with that one).
• One must grind the coffee just right, in a grinder with burrs, not blades.
• One must use a pump-powered espresso maker, not, heaven forbid, a steam-driven machine.

I break just about all of these laws, starting with the one that forbids lattes after noon. But then I’m not an espresso purist, just someone who likes strong, flavorful coffee with a lot of sweet frothy milk.

There is a certain comfort to the ritual of making espresso. But what really attracts me to this method of coffee making is the steam. I love that high-pitched cry when the steaming wand meets the cold milk. I stare in fascination when the machine hisses and belches steam, like a classic train locomotive pulling into the station. It’s awesome.

Let the aficionados argue over the art and science of making espresso. To me, it’s just fun.

Every year I make a big batch of cookies to use for host/hostess gifts. And every year, they somehow disappear before the holidays actually arrive. I’m not sure how—I think the dogs are eating them. At any rate, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

What this means is that I’m often left short handed when party time rolls around, like the New Year’s Eve party I’ve been invited to. Fortunately I almost always have walnuts or pecans in my cupboard, and can whip up a batch of candied nuts in no time.

To be honest, people like them more than cookies. They’re not only delicious, but healthier (at least compared to cookies). The sugar and butter are balanced at least somewhat by the fiber and oils in the nuts.

This recipe is more forgiving than some candy recipes. If you cook the candy a little past the soft ball stage, it will still be fine.

Candied Walnuts or Pecans

1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups walnuts or pecan halves, toasted *

Butter a large baking sheet with sides and set aside.

Combine the sugars, butter, salt and cinnamon in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook to the soft-ball stage. (A candy thermometer registers 235 degrees F, or a small amount of the syrup dropped into cold water forms a soft, pliable ball.) Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Stir in the walnuts, making sure they are all coated with the candy.

Scrape candied nut mix onto the buttered baking sheet in a single layer. Use 2 forks to separate the candied walnuts. Let cool.

Store in an airtight tin or other container.

Makes 4 cups.

* To toast nuts, spread them out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they smell toasted. Pour into a bowl and let cool.

Earlier this month, New York City became the first—and hopefully, the last—city in the United States to ban the use of artificial trans fats in restaurant foods.

It is no secret that trans fatty acids are bad for you. They’ve been shown to lower “good” cholesterol while raising the bad stuff, making them even worse than saturated fats at raising the risk of heart disease. But educating people and businesses about the dangers of such foods, then letting them make their own choices, would seem to make more sense. It’s not as though anyone with an IQ over 50 actually believes that fried chicken and doughnuts are health food.

Those of us who have been kicking around the food beat for a while remember when the nutrition-minded folk raised a stink about using lard and beef fat in fried foods and baked goods. The food industry switched to palm oil. Oops, palm oil is highly saturated. They switched to palm-free vegetable shortening. Oops again, shortening is full of nasty trans fats. So now you can buy shortening without trans fat. It makes an OK pie crust (a little more fragile than one made with regular shortening), but I have to wonder what they’re doing now to harden vegetable oil, and whether 10 years down the road we’re going to hear that the new shortening is even worse than the old stuff. *

As Grandma said, everything in moderation. If you eat gobs of fried foods and pastries instead of your veggies, which fat they’re fried in is only one of your worries.

Tell you what, all you state-sponsored health and lifestyle nannies: If you honestly care about our health, how about giving us universal health coverage? Otherwise, shut up and let me eat my pie.

* Update, summer 2007: Sure enough, at least one study has found that the newly formulated trans fat-free shortenings might raise blood sugar and lower “good” cholesterol.

I adore pumpkin pie spice, that fragrant blend of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves or allspice. One whiff evokes the brightly colored hues of autumn, my favorite season, and the aromas of Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday.

I use it in pumpkin pie, of course, but also in cookies, bars, apple dishes—and coffee. I’m not generally a fan of flavored coffees, but Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte is very nice indeed. It also contains a goodly dose of sugar (something I have to eat and drink in moderation) and costs $4 a cup.

So I make my own version at home. It’s easy to do. Just add a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice per cup of coffee directly to the grounds before brewing. (I’m assuming you have a drip coffeemaker.) Brew as usual, and sweeten to taste with sugar or Splenda.

It’s not Starbucks, but it tastes good and smells great while it’s brewing. Pumpkin pie spice-spiked coffee is a wonderful way to wake up to a crisp fall morning.