Linnea Covington

We’re obsessed with food writer extraordinaire linnea covington —so much so that we made her a guest editor this month! Below she shares some of her favorite things.

Food writing and photography for me started in grad school under the guidance of a beloved professor and fellow foodie. It spoke to me in that food is something everyone eats, everywhere, and in many ways. We all have stories and emotional ties to dishes, places, and the people behind the meals. For the past six years, I have strived to uncover these tales of the palate by talking to acclaimed chefs and eating in their restaurants. But also, reaching out to understand how people eat and drink all over the world by spending time with a home cook in India, drinking wine with a twelfth-generation producer in France, sipping pisco with the “master” of the spirit, and eating fried grubs at a roadside stand in Ecuador. You name it, there are so many tasty things to discover, and it’s only the beginning.

On that note, here are 10 food and beverage-inspired things I can’t live without...

linea’s favorite things

1. hatch green chilies: Meaty, smoky, and spicy, no chili comes close to the glory of this New Mexican one.

2. antidote chocolate: Made with raw cacao

harvested in Balao, Ecuador by Camino Verde, and filled with organic ingredients like fennel, almonds, lavender, and cardamom, producer Red Thalhammer knows her chocolate.

3. William-Sonoma’s French whisk: Who ever

thought a whisk could be ergonomic? This one is glorious and my kitchen staple. 4. schofferhofer Grapefruit Hefeweizen: With a sweet kick and pleasing roundness, this refreshing beer is all I want on a hot day. 5. foie Gras: It’s meat butter, how can you not crave it?

6. 7. palais des Thes’ Thes de Lord: I love Earl Gray, and this version has an extra bergamot kick. Jefferson’s Bourbon: They make some of their bourbon on a shark research boat! That’s how awesome owner Trey Zoeller is.

8. 9. tacos: With carnitas, chorizo, grilled vegetables, or whatever, this dish trumps the sandwich hands down.

zojirushi thermos: Keeps your beverage hot forever, and sometimes you need that. Plus it looks f’n awesome.

10. cava: Spanish bubbles rock my world, and my brunch.