Spices

Singer Melanie Brown — Scary Spice from her days with the Spice Girls — and her husband, producer Stephen Belafonte, have put their Tarzana compound on the market at $3.45 million. The country French-style house, which was recently renovated, contains a gym, five bedrooms and eight bathrooms in 8,200 square feet of living space. The chateau, a detached media recording studio, a detached movie theater and a swimming pool sit on more than half an acre. Outdoor living spaces include a dining room with chandeliers, a living room and a cabana.

Spiced apple cobbler crumble Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes Servings: 8 Note: Adapted from Susan Dumeyer and David Sundeen of Windrose Farm. Regarding the apples, Dumeyer recommends "Granny Smith or Sierra Beauty for their firm, tart flavor. Calville Blanc d'Hiver would be another good apple. " 1 1/4 cups sugar, divided 3 cups (12.75 ounces) plus 2 tablespoons flour, divided 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon fresh nutmeg 6 cups peeled, cored and cubed apple (about 2¼ pounds, or 6 apples)

It's become a tradition at the L.A. Times Food section: Every year, we run a holiday essay by a noted Southern California writer reflecting the unique nature of the way we celebrate the season. This year's is by Janet Fitch, whose novels include the best-selling "White Oleander" and "Paint It Black. " We won't be coming home for the holidays this year. My mother no longer lives in our rambling old Wilshire Park home. She moved out in July. She and my father bought the place in 1961, an old house even then, an old-fashioned place with a dining room and a library and closets you could walk into, a million hiding places, even a tiny door for my imaginary friends.

Twenty-eight sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan have been implicated in an investigation into the alleged use and distribution of the designer drug "spice," the Navy said Monday in San Diego. Any sailor found guilty of using the drug will be booted out of the Navy, officials said. Monday's news follows the Navy's announcement last month that 64 other sailors, including 49 assigned to the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, had been caught using or distributing spice.

With the continued shrinkage of audiences for local TV, some news executives seem to grasp for viewers with a single imperative: "Just try something. " Make a newscast look or feel different and maybe people won't notice what's missing, like, say, a complete team of reporters, original stories and coverage that goes more than skin deep. The people at KTTV Fox 11 in Los Angeles appear to have adopted the philosophy in abundance with their latest offering — a 5 p.m. "news and talk program" that fairly vibrates with nervous energy, social-media feeds, pop culture stories, stilted newsroom vérité and heaps and heaps of opinion-making by the anchor-reporter hosts.

In the wake of Europe's recent E. coli outbreak, in which sprouts contaminated with a particularly vicious strain killed 36 people and sickened thousands, food safety officials are asking once again what more can be done to curb the spread of food-borne illnesses. Food-borne infections in the U.S. have declined 20% over the last 10 years, thanks to tighter regulations and steps taken by the food and agricultural industries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Spice Table Rating: two stars Rating is based on food, service and ambience, with price taken into account in relation to quality. . . : Outstanding on every level. . : Excellent. . : Very good. : Good. No star: Poor to satisfactory. LOCATION 114 S. Central Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 620-1840, http://www.thespicetable.com . PRICE Snacks, $6 to $10; satays, $8 to $12; vegetables, $7 to $8; seafood, $12 to $14; meats and poultry, $13 to $16; rice and noodles, $2 to $12; desserts, $5. DETAILS Lunch, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday; dinner, 5:30 to 11 p.m. Monday to Wednesday and 5:30 p.m. to midnight Thursday to Saturday.