"Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR) recently reported an outstanding second quarter," notes growth stock expert Michael Cintolo in The Cabot Market Letter.

The advisor explains, "Initially after the earnings report, the stock fell following its report, supposedly because revenue growth was light. But we think focusing on that detail misses the big picture.

"First, revenue growth is still accelerating; the second quarter's rose 61% from a year ago, compared to 60%, 56% and 45% growth the prior three quarters.

"Few investments have a proven track record of defying a sinking economy and stock market, but General Mills (NYSE: GIS) is among them," says Martin Weiss in his Safe Money Report.

He explains, "You probably have some of General Mills' products in your pantry or freezer. The Minneapolis-based food firm makes everything from Cheerios and Chex cereals to Fruit Roll-Ups, Bisquick pancake mix, and Haagen-Dazs ice cream.

"This broad consumer product line has helped it deliver solid single-digit earnings growth not only in good times, but also the worst quarters of the recession. Now, in its fiscal fourth quarter ended May 31, General Mills knocked the cover off the ball.

This post is part of a seven article report -- Food for thought: Best bets in food & beverage stocks.

"The J.M. Smucker Company (NYSE: SJM) is 'one sweet stock'," says growth stock expert Jonas Elmerraji. Here, the editor of The Rhino Stock Report looks at the consumer foods firm.

"The peanut butter and jelly sandwich has been a staple of our diets here in the U.S. for a long time now. In fact, one survey estimated that the average American eats 1,500 PB&J sandwiches before graduating high school.

This post is part of a seven article report -- Food for thought: Best bets in food & beverage stocks.

"We think there's enormous potential for profit as Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFMI) recovers from its deeply oversold position," says Mike Cintolo. Here's the latest from The Cabot Top Ten report.

"Whole Foods is the fourth-largest grocery store operator in the U.S., a rank it's achieved, among far older competitors, by competing not on price but on quality. In particular, Whole Foods has succeeded by satisfying shoppers' demand for healthy, earth-friendly organic foods.

This post is part of a seven article report -- Food for thought: Best bets in food & beverage stocks.

"Customers are trading down to McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) from higher-end restaurants," says growth stock expert Toby Smith in his ChangeWave Investing.

The fast food operator is also a buy from Bill Martin, who adds, the company continues to serve up solid results. In his BullMarket.com advisory, he reviews the stock's recent quarter.

First, Toby Smith explains, "Given the endless parade of depressing economic news, it's no wonder that most people have lost their appetite for food -- if not altogether, then at least for the finer dining.

"Our proprietary ChangeWave Alliance survey -- ongoing pols of thousands of individuals and investors in various industries and professions -- just 5% of respondents said they would spend more at restaurants, which is unchanged from the all-time low.

This post is part of a seven article report -- Food for thought: Best bets in food & beverage stocks.

American Italian Pasta Company (NASDAQ: AIPC) has caught the attention of two leading advisors -- Dennis Slothower and Elizabeth Harrow.

Slothower, editor of Stealth Stocks has chosen the issue as his latest "stock of the month" while Harrow, an analyst with Schaeffer's Investment Research, has selected the stock as her latest "undiscovered gem".

Slothower explains, "American Italian Pasta commenced operations in 1988 and believes it is the largest producer and marketer of dry pasta in North America.

"Pasta is a great recession food. With the recession continuing to be a long and deep one, pasta is the ideal food to stretch the budget.

In a difficult economic environment, it is often wise for investors to consider stocks in more defensive and relatively recession-resistant sectors. And one such area is food and beverage stocks.

As the long-standing market maxim goes, consumers can pull back on spending for vacations, remodeling, and new cars, but they still need to eat and drink.

In that light, I turned to nine leading newsletter advisors who serve up their current favorite ideas in the food and beverage sector:

"McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) has bucked the global recession in February as both global and U.S. same *store sales rose," says Tracey Ryniec, who has chosen the fast food giant as its latest featured company in Zacks Ellite Stock of the Day.

The analyst explains, "The company, which operates more than 32,000 McDonald's restaurants in over 100 countries, reported February comparable sales results on Mar 9 that showed global sales rising 1.4% year over year even as Feb 2008 included an extra day due to leap year. Excluding the extra day, sales grew 5.4%.

"U.S. sales climbed 2.8%, or 6.8% if you exclude the extra calendar day in 2008. Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa rose 0.7%, or 4.1% if you exclude the extra calendar day. Only Europe saw a decline, losing 0.2%, but if you exclude the extra day, even Europe increased 4%.

"I remain a devoted long-term soft commodities bull; the grains and other soft agricultural commodities remain one of the most long-term compelling investment trends of our lifetime," says Eric Roseman.

In The Commodity Trend Alert, the advisor looks at the PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund (NYSE: DBA), noting "The grains and other soft agricultural commodities remain one of the most long-term compelling investment trends of our lifetime. I'm convinced that we remain in a long-term bull market for agricultural commodities.

"This historical trend began in 2006 and remains extremely powerful as population growth exceeds arable food supply combined with unpredictable weather patterns attacking supplies and causing droughts.

"PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) Pepsi is about as dependable a company as there is and the stock would be an excellent anchor for most portfolios," says value investor Nathan Slaughter.

In his Half-Priced Stocks, he says, "All told, PepsiCo has built an impressive lineup of 18 brands that each generate more than $1 billion in annual sales."

"Long ago, management realized that carbonated drink sales would fizzle out and per-capita consumption would become sluggish. In their place, bottled water and sports drinks became two of the fastest-growing categories. And Pepsi is the dominant player in both, with its Aquafina and Gatorade brands.

"Meanwhile, energy drinks have emerged as the industry's hottest segment -- with sales soaring from $1.2 billion in 2002 to more than $6.6 billion last year. Again, Pepsi is well-represented with Amp.

HJ Heinz Co. (NYSE: HNZ) recently learned inadvertently how strong its brand was with consumers.

The company had announced that it was going to change the label on its flagship brand of ketchup. It seemed entirely reasonable and appropriate to drop the pickle from the label and replace it with a tomato.

Little did the company expect to encounter outrage from consumers, who launched a "Save the Pickle" campaign, complete with a blog, and an organized letter and e-mail avalanche.

We don't expect to find investment advice from opinion columns, but New York Times columnist Frank Rich unleashed a quartet to those willing to read between the lines in his recent piece "Herbert Hoover Lives."

Here's the money quote (no pun intended) from the theater critic turned political pundit: "What are Americans still buying? Big Macs, Campbell's soup, Hershey's chocolate and Spam -- the four food groups of the apocalypse."

"Investing in food is a simple story: expanding supply and demand fueled by rising global urbanization," says Yiannis Mostrous. In Personal Finance newsletter the global advisor looks at Monsanto (NYSE: MON).

"The global population is expected to surpass 9 billion by 2050. Wages are rising in emerging economies--led by India and China--and more people are moving into cities where the consistent and better paying jobs are.

"That means greater demand for protein-rich foods, especially meat and dairy consumption. The consumption of both has a strong correlation to urbanization. The result will be a permanent increase in demand for crop grains for feeding.

This post is part of a special annual report -- Top Stock Picks '09 -- in which TheStockAdvisors.com asked 75 leading newsletter advisors to select their favorite investment for the new year.

"To paraphrase its marketing slogan: 'Nobody shouldn't like Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE),'" says Steve Ralston, consumer products sector expert at Zacks Investment Research.

"From the sales of staple products, consumer non-durable companies generate solid cash flow, with which management can enhance shareholder value through share repurchases and dividend increases.

"Recently restructured consumer non-durable companies are especially attractive, particularly if they are well-managed, trade at a single-digit P/E, and yield more than 4%.

"My favorite stock for 2009 is Sara Lee. Sara Lee announced a 5-year restructuring plan (the Transformation Plan) 3-1/2 years ago. The company has been right-sized, having divested unprofitable and low margin businesses.

It was a quiet week, but here are highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) earnings growth prospects for 2009 make the stock worth a look.
• Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) offered no 2009 guidance but may benefit from bankruptcies of other retailers.
• Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: CALM) Q2 earnings fell more than expected but revenue rose.
• Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) said it will soon post preliminary Q4 results in the face of falling oil prices.
• Piedmont Natural Gas Co. Inc. (NYSE: PNY) reported a widened Q4 loss while revenue improved.
• Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) earnings prospects may make the stock a bargain.

Also, a survey indicated that U.S. corporate profits in the fourth quarter probably fell for the sixth straight quarter. Interest cuts haven't helped bank earnings, will the Fed buying mortgage-backed securities do better? And, are food stocks still a defensive play?

Upcoming earnings releases include Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ), Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO), and Monsanto (NYSE: MON).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.