Book describes what was made in royal kitchen

As the world gets ready to mark the 10-year anniversary of the death of a princess, her chef is speaking up about life inside the palace walls and a decade-long friendship with Princess Diana.

In "Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances From a Palace Kitchen," Darren McGrady pays homage to the pomp and circumstance, the stately meals and even the humdrum plates of pancakes and pizza. McGrady served as chef for Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh for more than a decade before leaving Buckingham Palace for Kensington Palace; there, he served up Princess Diana's favorites until her death on Aug. 31, 1997.

The book combines recipes that will tempt your palate with tidbits to feed your curiosity about life with the royals. The book includes more than 100 recipes, among them beef Wellington and croques monsieur, brandy snaps and traditional English trifle, and dozens of delicious bites of insider info. You can see the Sonic the Hedgehog cake created for princes William and Harry, read hand-written notes from Di to her chef, and enjoy stories about her lunch with Clint Eastwood and family holidays.

Look for the book (Thomas Nelson, $24.99) at local bookstores.

Summer tour: Sustainable Table's national "Eat Well Guided Tour of America" stops in Chicago today on its 38-day cross-country quest to discover and celebrate our nation's best local and sustainable food.

The tour began Aug. 2 in West Hollywood with stops at sustainable restaurants, family farms and farmers markets as it makes its way to New York City for Farm Aid Sept. 9.

The bio-fueled bus rolls into Chicago to check out the Chicago Green City Market and the edible gardens at Lincoln Park Zoo. This evening, you can join the effort for a summer celebration at Crust, the only certified organic restaurant in Illinois. The event, which takes place from 7:30 to 10 p.m. at the restaurant, 2056 W. Division St., Chicago, will feature information from local organizations and musical entertainment.

The Sustainable Table is a New York-based nonprofit program dedicated to educating consumers about food-related issues, offering viable solutions to industrial-based agriculture. You can follow the tour online through photos and blogs at http://www.sustainabletable.org/roadtrip/home.php.

Stirrin' it up: You want to switch to natural peanut butter, but it's just so messy, that oil separating and pooling at the top of the jar. Trying to move a spoon through the muck creates a big mess, right?

Robert Witmer, the 51-year-old director of the YMCA in Orrville, Ohio, shared your frustration. So a few years ago he decided to do something about it. That something was Grandpa Witmer's Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Mixer.

This handy device, which comes in a variety of sizes to accommodate different styles of peanut butter jars, blends a jar top with a hand-cranked mixer, allowing you to mix your peanut butter with the jar closed.

Look for it online at http://witmerproducts.com for $12 to $13.50.