4042 How to Put On a Little Weight by Charybdis

Charybdis gave us a neatly themed puzzle with a quotation hidden in the central letter or letters of extra word in clues. The quotation was THE DISCOVERY OF A NEW DISH CONFERS ON HUMANITY MORE HAPPINESS THAN THE DISCOVERY OF A NEW STAR. This was a translation of a quote by BRILLAT SAVARIN (unclued at 16, 17). Savarin is given in Chambers as a ring-shaped cake made with yeast, scontaining nuts, fruit, etc, and often flavoured with rum. This explained the shape of the grid as well as confirming the other unclued entries, 2 nuts ( 6 ALMONDS, 20 WALNUT), 2 fruits (22 CHERRY, 47 PEACH) and 2 rums (18 TAFIA, 49 BACARDI). The first letter of GLOBAL could be added to 39 ASTRONOMY to create GASTRONOMY. The star RIGEL could be discerned diagonally passing through the G. However, more happiness could be conferred by highlighting four dishes passing through the other four letters, CHARGER, POORI, REGALE and BOWL. The title referred to the extra G as the letter can also represent a gramme.

Extra words are shown in [] with central letters in upper case.

Across
1 Basket that's mostly [raTHer] dirty holding head of kale (5)
SKULL K(ale) in SULL(y)
5 Stunted tulip's left out [rEd] honey guide (3)
TUI TULI(p) less L (left)
11 Scaremonger to provide weapons relating to the most famous [saDIst] around (8)
ALARMIST ARM in A-LIST
13 Henry's in the bank [confuSingly] for one of 39's brightest stars (5)
BRAHE H (Henry) in BRAE
14 [ReCOrd] the way ethanol evaporates oddly (3)
TAO eThAnOl less odd letters
15 [CiVil] boss may be baleful when drunk and full of beer (4)
FLUB Anagram BALEFUL less ALE
20 [vERy] weak rain gets scattered showers (9)
WATERINGS W (weak) + Anagram RAINGETS
21 Chanced upon religious instruction to head of church consisting of [joYOus] verses (6)
METRIC MET + RI + C(hurch)
24 River fish [oFf] in a merry dance (4)
REEL R (river) + EEL
25 Unfortunately [advANced] sclerosis regularly taking two out of three fatalities (6)
LOSSES Anagram ScL ErO SiS
26 Hinder one's general intelligence with lie about [homEWork] (6)
TAIGLE I + G (general intelligence) in TALE
28 Singers moving [anoDyne] number to the beginning - they make records (6)
NOTERS TENORS with NO (number) moved
31 He turns the tables on foes when renegades return [unwISely] one by one (6)
TARTAR RAT reversed twice
34 Humourless men lacking [notHing] (4)
POOR PO (humourless) + OR (men)
37 Weary consuming energy in [unbeCOming] rows (6)
TIERED E (energy) in TIRED
39 [AbaNdon] yen to follow moon and star all over the place? (9)
ASTRONOMY Anagram Y (yen) + MOON + STAR; &lit.
42 One of Elgar's variations is [maniFEstly] majestic (5)
REGAL Anagram ELGAR
44 A well-boring plant planted in error? On the contrary, sandeRSwoods coming up (7)
ARISING SIN in A RIG
45 [FaMed] pottery artist's British retrospective (4)
RAKU RA + UK (reversed)
46 Submit old [fORm] in black and white (3)
BOW O (old) in B + W
48 Sort of sea alga around Belgium cloaks [piErs] (8)
GALABEAS Anagram SEA ALGA + B (Belgium)
50 [ExcHAnge] channels running one end of ocean to the other (3)
EAS SEA with S moving
51 [ExPel] one who fails or else shortly is beaten (5)
LOSER Anagram OR ELS(e)
 
Down
1 Is Spain and Portugal [inhosPItable], a cold region? (7)
SIBERIA S (is) + IBERIA
2 Towing piano out in compensation for less than full capacity [turNout] (6)
ULLING PULLING less P
3 [DrESsy] strap-like leotard cut and tailored (6)
LORATE Anagram LEOTAR(d)
4 [CenSOred] before second oriental massage (4, two words)
AN MO AN (before) + MO (second)
5 [PloNker] cross about painting, perhaps, and poetry (8)
TRAVERSE ART reversed + VERSE
7 [AsHes] originally misidentified around the hurst - it might be a rowan (4)
MATH 1st letters (ROWAN= MOWING = MATH)
8 Wild ride around [flUMes] - they made it! ... and fall out (6)
DIFFER FF (fecerunt = they made it) in Anagram RIDE
9 Free [sANd]? It's a' grist to mill (6)
GRATIS Anagram A' GRIST
10 A load of fuel for furnace to scorch [brIck] earth (6)
CHARGE CHAR + GE (earth)
11 [ParTYing] - laking essentially is similar (4)
AKIN Hidden
12 Saharan nomad as [maraTHoner] going over and over his sand dunes (6)
TUAREG UT (thus) reversed + AREG
19 Somewhat damn treasonable [campAigns]? Macbeth's are not, from his point of view (4)
AMN’T Hidden
23 More bats over pond [ceNTre]? - that is right (7)
LOOPIER POOL reversed + IE + R
27 Nationals published answer [scHEme] (Independent first each time) (8)
IRANIANS  I (independent) + RAN (published) + I + ANS (answer)
29 Ruffian's perturbing outrage that's [deciDedly] non-U (6)
TOERAG Anagram OUTRAGE less U
30 Maybe James is over a hemp [crISis] (4)
SIDA SID (ref. English comedian SID JAMES) + A
32 One animal doctor pens [seCOnd] very large wader (6)
AVOSET A VET containing OS (very large)
33 Market-place economic forces finally indicating [eVEn] what waiters collect (6)
TRONCS TRON + (economi)C (force)S
35 [EveRYday] fillet? It's not quite normal (6)
REGULA REGULA(r)
36 [BoOzy] tourist - one seen in Soho's not special for starters (7)
TRIPPER STRIPPER less S (special)
38 All go mad about bishop's world-famous [afFAir] (6)
GLOBAL Anagram ALL GO containing B
40 Sally [fiNds] Army boys to be cool dishes (6)
SALADS SA (salvation Army) + LADS
41 Half of Sartre is [freE-Will] and very French (4)
TRÈS (sar)TRE + S (is)
43 We're criminal [mobSTers] in jug (4)
EWER Anagram WE'RE
46 Support VAT [reseARcher] (4)
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