Author: staff

In the GOP race for governor, state Sen. Darren Bailey of Downstate Xenia reported $490,700 in cash on hand on July 1, raising more than $165,000 but spending nearly $185,000. Businessman Gary Rabine of Burr Ridge listed $287,325 in available money after raising nearly $345,000 while spending nearly $295,000. Former state Sen. Paul Schimpf of Waterloo raised $83,235 in the quarter but spent almost $137,000, leaving him with $116,280 in available cash, reports showed.

Tomato ketchup is so ubiquitous that it’s easy to dismiss it as a simple sauce to be paired with french fries, meatloaf, scrambled eggs and, if you’re far away from Chicago, a hot dog. (On that, we do judge: Don’t!) But there’s a deceptive complexity to ketchup. Chef Christopher Prosperi, my longtime friend in Connecticut, always said ketchup combined all five basic tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami. The Food & Dining staff sampled 12 brands of ketchup, searching for that idyllic flavor profile. I was curious to see how all the ketchups would rate tasted side-by-side with no accompaniment. Although the brands sampled were regular tomato ketchup, there was a surprising variation in color, texture and flavor. A few tasted like cocktail sauce or canned tomato sauce. Some were sweet and some spicy. Textures ranged from a smooth paste to much more coarse. Clearly, not all ketchup is alike. This was a blind tasting, meaning tasters didn’t know which ketchup was which. Each participant in the tasting was asked to rate each brand on appearance, aroma, texture and flavor. I did not buy membership-only club brands because I wanted ketchup the general public had a reasonable chance of buying. Prices have been updated for 2021 based on listed prices at Chicago-area Jewel-Osco stores, Marianos, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods Market. (Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune; Shannon Kinsella/food styling)

Let’s get this out of the way: The lake can be cold. You snap on a pair of water shoes on a warm summer day and step gingerly into the clear Lake Superior waters of Madeline Island’s Big Bay. Edging ever deeper, though, is a process. You inhale sharply with every step, advancing to your waist, your chest, your shoulders — and finally, full submersion. But once your body adjusts to the shock, the feeling is completely invigorating. Curative. As summer vacation returns with a vengeance, the Midwest’s best beaches will provide a no-frills escape this year. These aren’t the Gulf Stream waters, and this certainly isn’t the Caribbean. But from the Great Lakes to the 10,000 Lakes, the best beaches of the “North Coast” are collectively like our Caribbean. So don’t let the coastal elites tell you that the Midwest has no beaches. They have no idea. Here, we share 12 of our favorites. By Simon Peter Groebner and Kerri Westenberg, Star Tribune Jun 28, 2021

He brought some swag to the Cubs, from the time he stood at the plate and celebrated a fly ball he thought was leaving Wrigley Field, only to watch it turn into a sacrifice fly to medium right field, to the early June night in San Francisco he first emulated Tatis by copying his patented stutter-step move at third base on a home run trot. Pederson did it again later that week in San Diego, with Tatis watching on the field.