|
|
|
Snack Time
- Bid adieu to the arduous process of preparing instant noodles! You can kiss your days of battling with those flimsy paper lids goodbye with these funny plastic figures: Cupmen by designer Akira Mabuchi. Don't worry about the steam leaving the cup, your Cupman's got it covered. Their heat-predictive little arms turn white when your noodles are good to go, so they'll never be undercooked.
- Among this week's thousands of intriguing and decadent recipes shared on the web, I give you this simple gem: candied beet chips. Spring veg is now coming into abundance (if the weather cooperates), and despite its status as a root, the beet is at its most delicious height in summer. Make some candy out of it.
- Firecracker pops for the kiddies ... painkillers for the adults? A Staten Island ice cream truck got busted this week for selling ice cream cones as a front to sling Oxycodone more discreetly, New York Times reports. Wonder how they got caught; hustling the addicts into the truck after ice cream hours to score isn't obvious or anything.
- Wired collected an amalgam of photographs of agriculture lots taken from space. Crop tactics and vegetation patterns become so interesting when they are morphed into what look like abstract art. Look at Libya! The ribbons of water in Kazakhstan and Egypt!
- On a visit to South Africa and the Seychelles, this guy ate grilled bat, and the whole process sounds pretty gnarly. The wings. Sick.
- Oh my god. Are we serious right now? That guy from Jersey Shore, "The Situation," has patented a vodka infused with Caseins for protein and body mass regulation. It is melodramatically named Devotion. So you can have abs like him while you're pumping fists in the club. Makin' millions.
- Strolling through the Spice Terminal at Reading Terminal Market the other day, we came across a loose green tea with what looked like popcorn, or popped rice in it. On my next trip, I will absolutely pick up a bag of what is called Genmaicha — the rice (yes it was popped rice!) adding a little bit of a hearty, toasty flavor to it. Serious Eats tells a pretty intriguing story about the origin of the tea — most likely a Japanese legend.
- The scent of the ferment in my beloved bottles of kombucha constantly drives those around me to remark on its unattractive, vinegar-y aroma. It's something I happen to like about it — and I guess I was right the whole time. (HA HA.) It's always been advised to consume apple cider vinegar daily for better digestion, but check this out: flavored vinegar drinks that internally balance your acids with your alkalines and regulate your appetite. You know it's going to be the next chic craze, so give it a try.
- We're not sure how, but using cannabis in beer and various desserts has been OK'd by the Board of Health in Australia. Supposedly, "industrial hemp" has low enough levels of THC to not affect consumers of such things, so it's acceptable, Slashfood reports.
- My candle smells like gardenia. Yours smells like butter cream. Let's face it, candle-buying isn't the most manly of hobbies (unless you're my old friend Andy, whose poke at Yankee Candle is so worth watching), so why not try Man Cans? Invented by a 13-year-old who made fun of his sister's girly scented wax pots, Man Cans smell like BACON. Man Cans smell like PIZZA. Man Cans.
- Last week, I thought "bacon" made from shiitake mushrooms was genius (it is), but who was I kidding? Y'all are probably more interested in the real thing. What about salami chips? YumSugar shares a little easy as pie how-to: Just bake your salami. The make an SLT. Dip them in stuff. Put 'em on a burger. Cholesterol-free, I promise.
- The Lemon Festival is held annually in Menton, France, featuring elaborate sculptures composed solely out of local citrus fruit. This year's theme had to do with the world's great civilizations; click here to peep the extremely accurate Sphinx, or Egyptian pyramid, shaped from oranges and lemons.
- Longtime toast favorite cinnamon-raisin, with its swirls of sweet cinnamon-sugary confection, is about to get a run for its money. Meet Cheddar-Sriracha bread, presented to us by Epicurious. The recipe is simple for making this simple bread at home — an easy swap of flours for the gluten-free readers — and is probably bangin' as toast, but even better with sandwich items. It's got your condiment built in there, complete with swirls.
- When I went to the Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention, I left a little bummed because I had every intention of leaving with an enormous photo collection of food tattoos to show off to Meal Ticket readers. Obviously I failed, but I did come across a Flickr group that features hundreds of food-dedicated images of body art — local or not, still extremely entertaining. So many angry tacos and cheeseburgers! My favorites are the true-to-life veggies. I want my next one to be a carrot.
- Ben & Jerry's thought they had the ideal stoner munchie (better than Phish Food? Chubby Hubby?) when they collaborated with Jimmy Fallon and released "Late Night Snack," a caramel-swirled vanilla ice cream laced with fudge-covered potato chips. But it looks like San Francisco's Humphrey Slocombe had that covered with their flavor "After Dark" — the exact same thing. Uh-oh. Eater spills the beans here.
- Bon Appetit was running this cookbook contest, asking contestants to vote on which recipe they'd most like to see be revealed on the website. I don't blame them for selecting the winning recipe — shiitake bacon, crispy and salty and spiced with a hint of Togarashi.
Photo: wenn.com, via slashfood.com
 |
| etsy.com |
- It's pretty much a no-brainer that Etsy is truly an emporium for handmade novelties. That cutting board shaped like the state of Pennsylvania is so cute! And A. Heirloom custom-carves every other state! Also, the funny high-heeled pilgrim boot that is Italy! And Long Island! Don't you want one?
 |
| buzzfeed.com |
- Buzzfeed has compiled the 30 most WTF-inducing canned food items out there. Among the many questionable items are canned PB&J sammies, cream of possum (not sure I'm buying it), whole chickens and some really gnarly-looking gray squid. - I don't really watch Paula Deen, but I do know that she's got a sweet Southern drawl and calls us nicknames like "puddin'" and "sugar." None of this really matters what does matter is that photo of her riding on the Lochness monster, or on a stick of butter, or on Harry Potter. Paula Deen riding things. Click click click click. Laughlaughlaughlaughlaugh. - Ew. I'm sorry for any of you who have eaten at Nina's Bella Pizzeria in Upper Darby, the establishment whose owner planted mice in neighboring pizza shops. With this kind of tactic, there's probably a reason why he wanted to sabotage the competition. If your pizza's not all that, people will like it more if you sneak rodents on everyone else's. It'll work. Yup. - OK, let's not talk about disgusting things anymore. Let's talk about divine, delicious, decadent things. Things like these Red Velvet Pancakes. Ugggghhhhhhh. With whipped cream cheese on top. Hello? How is this even fair? Ughhhhhhh. I will just whine at the photo until I get to eat these by the millions. - Back to disgusting topics! Or maybe not? Clearly not everyone thinks so, but I'm sure we can all agree that this is a little much, right? London's Icecreamists are churning breast milk ice cream yes, of the human variety. The descriptive term of "free range" attached to it is just hilarious. I sure hope I'm free range. The stuff's called "Baby Gaga," MSNBC reports, and translates from pounds to $23 a serving. (Apparently, it was just pulled from the store over health concerns!) Dear readers, what are your thoughts on this?
 |
| dianaeng.com |
- Remember the Jonestown Cult Massacre? Nearly, 1,000 people killed in a mass suicide via cyanide-spiked Kool-Aid for the good of some freak cult? Hacienda Mexican Restaurants in Indiana thought it'd been funny to reference the tragedy to boost cocktail sales: "We're like a cult with better Kool-Aid: To die for." How horrific.
 |
| nypl.tumblr.com |
- Our first president was also a budding brewmaster. New York's Public Library recently released George Washington's handwritten directions for making "small beer" on its Tumblr, shares Bon Appetit. The recipe requires a ton of molasses and smartly calls upon the weather to determine fermentation time.
- Whatever happened to just having a glass of water? Is the taste of nothing so repulsive that we have to flavor our water to tolerate the exhausting act of hydration? Oh, America. Kraft has released a line of liquid flavor pouches to enhance your agua with infusions such as sweet tea and strawberry watermelon, believing that "water needs a wingman." Check out the zero-calorie MiO situation at Slashfood.
- Yo, we're all about nose to tail, especially when it's applied to all foods and not just animals. I came across this recipe on Serious Eats today for Bittersweet Chocolate Orangettes -- candied orange peels, for when you're done with the pulp -- dipped in chocolate (or anything else, for that matter).
- Minnesota's state House reps just passed the "Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption" Act -- appropriately nicknamed the "Cheeseburger Bill" -- reports CBS. This will prevent those who consume only fast food and sodas from suing chains in blame of their obesity and weight gain.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Pearl Jones, Jennifer Jones. Jennifer Jones said: SNACK TIME: Fortune cookies, Advertisement insensitivity, George Washington's ...: You may or may not remember w... http://bit.ly/hWxeHb [...]
[...] SNACK TIME: Fortune cookies, Advertisement insensitivity, George … [...]
 |
| weirdasianews.com |
| Yuzu and Pepper Kit Kat |
- Baked potato Kit Kat. Salted watermelon Kit Kat. Camembert cheese Kit Kat. Ginger Ale Kit Kat. Japan always has the coolest shit. Check out WeirdAsiaNews' roundup of the Kit Kat bars we can't have.
- Cloudberries. They sound so divine. So serene and gentle. So tempting. They actually exist. Have any of you tried them? Huffington Post reports Swedish memories of these little gems, also called "Lakka" in Finnish, and a recipe to boot. Good luck finding some — let us know when you do.
- Sometimes activism takes gnarly, outrageous turns: a Miami Beach dog trainer is eating dog food every day in hopes of passing a bill that increase the penalty for animal cruelty. We don't really know what else to say.
- Did you know that White Castle ups its game for V-Day every year? Red tablecloths, table service, additional menu items, fresh red roses and candles galore. My beau and I think this is pretty dope, to skip (for once) a fixed-price menu and gorge together without any pressure. Slashfood shares a video of their romantic dining experience on Monday.
- Author, wanderlust and celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain nods his head in agreement with Marc Vetri's recent decision to axe a la carte from his menu, Delaware Online reports. He believes it's the "best case scenario," and those who feel otherwise should go to the Olive Garden.
- Musicians turn into actors. So do models. Or vice versa. Then they turn into a perfume brand. Then, the clothing line is released. Something functional and even relevant on this plane: chefs becoming shoe designers. Chris Cosentino and friends are designing footwear for Mozo: for chefs by chefs, and these are not Batali's crocs.
- Taylor Fladgate has just released "Scion," a Tawny Port that dates back to 1855 and goes for more than $3,000 a bottle. The Daily Meal tastes and tells. Is it worth it? That's up to you to decide, moneybags.
I Agree with Kibby (for once in my life). Keep up the good work!
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Davey Hill, FeedYourDogForAYear. FeedYourDogForAYear said: Yuzu and Pepper Kit Kat: Sometimes activism takes gnarly, outrageous turns: a Miami Beach dog trainer is eating ... http://bit.ly/faY6fi [...]
Just wanted to say that ever since LRP started writing the snack time posts that they have been one of my favorite MT features. Super funny and such good content!!!! I'm impressed.
Aw, kibby! Thank you so much! I'm blushing! I have a LOT of fun writing Snack Time, maybe too much!
Means so much, SMILLA! Thank you!
 |
| Photo | Dominic Episcopo |
 |
| Photo | Shaun Soole |
I'm really into this series, but all of his work is phenomenal.
Dominic Episcopo is an amazing photographer. He shot the Delilah's "pinup" campaign around ten years ago, and it was so effective Varga Bar stole the idea. And that proves Fred Allen's statement: "Imitation is the sincerest form of plagarism."
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Bill Stenson, Meal Ticket. Meal Ticket said: Check out @laurelro's SNACK TIME link roundup this week: http://ow.ly/3TvaA [...]
 |
| Michael Wertz |
 |
| Wall Street Journal |
I'm bout to make some fish cupcakes.
Cupcakes were mentioned, so I have to comment. The best cupcake I've ever had in my life was from Philadelphia: a strawberry cupcake from Brown Betty. (If there's a better cupcake to be had in Philadelphia, I need to know about it.) But this... a lasagna cupcake? Even I can't go there. What's next, a fish cupcake? Don't tell me there's such a thing as a fish cupcake... please.
I see what you're saying - that is a mouthful. Also, I think my post was unnecessarily rude. Sorry about that. I will say that as a wine snob myself, I do not understand buying an expensive/nice cab, bordeaux blend, rhone blend, etc. from a current vintage and then popping and pouring it at a BYOB. It is great to try to impress someone, but the wine will be completely closed off. You'll get that it has structure and potential but little else. You would be better off with a cheaper beaujolais or *gasp* name brand stuff like herding cats, or a European wine like rioja, which generally is reserved and therefore has some age on it. Just say no to infanticide!
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by You Post and Icing On Cake Book, Meal Ticket. Meal Ticket said: Chinese New Year, meat grown in a lab, lasagna cupcakes and Snoop's home entertaining tizips, in @laurelro's SNACK TIME: http://ow.ly/3PS4r [...]
Oh, no! Dan - sorry to have misled you, I simply mentioned Coppola based upon name recognition and nothing more, at all. I've done it before, too, this post had nothing to do with the quality or caliber of Coppola's wines. Hope this clears it up.
Sweet cupcakes are kind of played out like cassette tapes and bird tattoos. That being said, I could get down on a lasagna cupcake or an individual meatcake. How about a steak tartare cupcake?
Yes, steak tartare cupcake! Peking duck cupcake! There are endless options, Rascal.
Dan, to be fair, Laurel originally mentioned folks drinking Coppola wines based on the name recognition alone. I took it down for brevity's sake but now that I realize her point is unclear I've added it back in.
Coppola has a range of wine levels just like Mondavi or Beringer. For example, you would have a hard time beating his label Rubicon. I get your point, but if you are going to be a wine snob, it is best to know what you are talking about.
 |
| moonstruckchocolate.com |
 |
| bonappetit.com |
[...] SNACK TIME: Extinct Chocolate, Pet Salad, or… $!&@# Salad … [...]
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jaime Lopez, Meal Ticket. Meal Ticket said: SNACK TIME! @laurelro rounds up weird and wonderful food links from around the web http://ow.ly/3HqZk [...]
 |
| Luxist.com |
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Marisa McClellan. Marisa McClellan said: Aww, thanks @mealticket, for including my almond butter in your round-up this afternoon. http://bit.ly/h9JwVY @laurelro, you made my day. [...]
- barstool scientist
- Booze
- Brew Revue
- Chef Salad
- Closings
- Coffee
- Contests
- Dealage
- Dirty Dishes
- Don't Front
- Eat This Immediately
- Field Trip
- Food and Art
- Food and Holidays
- Food and Movies
- Food and Music
- Food and Politics
- Food and Sports
- Food and Web
- Food Blogs
- Food Books
- Food Events
- Food News
- Food TV
- Gifted
- Happy Hour Hopper
- How-To
- In Print
- Interview
- Meal Ticket
- Menu Time
- Not So Quickfire
- Notes from the Weekend
- On Wheels
- Openings
- Patio Drinking
- Philly Beer Week 2010
- Photos
- Private Chef POV
- Product Placement
- Recipes
- Snack Time
- Stiff Drank
- SUPPER
- Tea
- Testing
- Ticket Stubs
- Top Chef
- Vegan
- Vegetarian
- Video
- Weekly Candy
- Weird Regional Foods
- We're Here to Help
- Where'd We Eat?
- Drew Lazor's Ill-Advised Rant Factory
- Pregame
- Ill-Advised Ranting
- The Week Without Meat
- Philly Beer Week 2009
- Real Big
- Where'd I Eat Last Night?
- Top Chef Masters
- The Good Word
- Next Iron Chef
- Arterial Terrorism
- Food and Radio
