Carrots

Packaged carrots sold under the Genuine Sweet Baby Carrots brand at Ralphs, Trader Joe's and other stores have been recalled because they might be contaminated with bacteria that could cause diarrhea, fever, nausea and vomiting. The recall by City of Industry-based Los Angeles Salad Co. was announced after it was discovered that the same brand of baby carrots sold in Canada had been contaminated with the bacteria shigella, according to the U.S.

Re "Sanctions with sense," editorial, July 9 Your editorial is fundamentally correct that toughened sanctions are a more effective way to deal with Iran than military force, a policy enumerated in legislation being considered by Congress. You are also correct that the proposed bills err by mixing terrorism and the nuclear issue and by singling out Russia for punishment because of its Iran policy.

Whole-grain crackers, low-fat yogurt and fruit could become the school snacks of the future, driving out fattening fancies such as cola and fried chips. The Institute of Medicine on Wednesday recommended new standards for school snacks and foods that would sharply limit calories, fat and sugar and encourage more nutritious eating. Concerned about the rise of obesity among young people, Congress asked the institute to develop the standards.

Just in English peas: Even though so many of our traditional farmers-market signals of spring have been converted to year-round production, there's one that has resisted all attempts: the pea. Called English peas to differentiate them from snow peas or sugar snap peas, they are around only in the cool part of the spring. When the weather turns warm, they wilt away to nothing.

As if on cue, Ruby, the Los Angeles Zoo's 9,000-pound female African elephant, ambled out of her barn Monday, nudging a ball with her trunk. She made her way across a dirt yard in an off-exhibit area toward the iron-barred fence that separated her from a platoon of officials including Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who hailed her as "one of the city of Los Angeles' true greats."

WHEN Cookie Monster put down his chocolate chip cookie and fiendishly gobbled up a carrot, it was a sure sign that the times were a-changin' down on Sesame Street. Indeed, although the PBS children's show has added many new elements in its 38 years on the air, one of the biggest changes took place in 2005, when the show launched segments on the values of good nutrition, exercise and proper sleep habits.

ONE of the great kitchen mysteries is why carrots are the anti-muse for so many contemporary chefs. These are among the most versatile vegetables ever cultivated but in too many cookbooks rarely seem to inspire anything more imaginative than the odd coulis. Even turnips get more creativity lavished upon them. This time of year, the gap between Brussels sprouts and cauliflower in most recipe indexes is especially mystifying.

Dec. 19, 1913: "Old Walter Tolley, an ancient of the Lankershim hills," was killed as he heated his afternoon coffee in his cabin, The Times reported under the headline "Modern Device Kills Recluse." Tolley, "whose interests were centered in his old horse 'Abe,' " and in raising the fattest carrots in the San Fernando Valley, died alone in his cabin. He was burned to death in an explosion of a gasoline stove," the newspaper said.

The days of the birthday cupcake -- smothered in a slurry of sticky frosting and with a dash of rainbow sprinkles -- may be numbered in schoolhouses across the nation. Fears of childhood obesity have led schools to discourage and sometimes even ban what were once de rigueur grammar-school treats.

Robert Grimm, a vegetable baron who was instrumental in nurturing the phenomenal sales growth of the baby carrot by introducing innovative packaging and expanding sales beyond supermarkets in the 1990s, has died. He was 54. Grimm, who was president of Grimmway Farms, died of a heart attack March 17 at his home in Bakersfield, said Jeff Green, the company's general counsel.