Whole Foods gets some competition, Rosie DiManno’s Halloween hijinks, rethinking turkey dinners

• New York challenges three chefs to create a Thanksgiving meal using such classic ingredients as turkey, brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin and oysters. It’s a bit late for the Canadian version of the holiday, but it does give us plenty of time to prepare for Christmas dinner. [New York]

• After taking her niece and nephew trick-or-treating on the Bridle Path this weekend, Rosie DiManno concludes that the residents are “pikers and meanies, folks who’d begrudge a youngster a licorice swirl.” Most homes, in fact, weren’t handing out sweets at all, and one of the children declared it the “worst Halloween ever.” [Toronto Star]

• Eataly, a new supermarket based in Italy, is poised to challenge Whole Foods for organic food superiority. The European store has its roots in the slow food movement and aims to “preserve endangered local foods” (may we suggest not eating endangered food as a method of preservation?) and “pursue social justice for growers.” The company is opening shops in Japan and Manhattan, and the founder has said Toronto would be an ideal location for another outpost. [Globe and Mail]

• A new study in the U.K. has found a link between depression and processed food. Subjects who ate mostly fast food were said to have a 58 per cent higher risk of depression than those who ate very little of it. Whether the food causes the depression or the depression causes poor eating habits has yet to be determined. [BBC]

• The owner of Flat Rock Cellars, Ed Madronich, is offering a $200 wine boot camp that shows enthusiasts what goes into making their favourite bottles. The program, called In the Winemaker’s Boots, allows guests to pick grapes, sort them, stir the wine as it ferments, and do various tastings, ending the day with a bottle for their efforts. [Toronto Star]