Adventures in Food

Warning: The following article contains mature subject matter, If you have a sensitive stomach, reader discretion is advised.    
     If you think you're brave when it comes to trying all kinds of different foods, take a trip to an Asian grocery store and think again. The variety of food doesn't just range from sushi to duck, there's a whole other side of sweet, delicious desserts such as red bean buns, dumplings, even purple ice cream! Lychee juice, bubble tea, sugared guava, chocolate cream cookies and mouse cake. However, like everything else in life, there's always another side to the story. Run a couple aisles down and you'll find more than just fish heads. Where we would buy our roast ham and chicken breasts, the shelves are stocked with beef tongue, chicken feet and frog legs and if you can't stomach squid or crab meat then forget about the cow brains and pig snout; enough to make anyone hurl. On our last trip, being the adventurous family that we are, we bought a case of 'Seasoned Baby Crab Snacks.' With high hopes that they would taste like regular crab. After a lunch of fried squid and Hot and Sour Soup, we made our way home where we opened our crusteaceous little snacks. "They shouldn't be bad," I said eagerly. But when the time for consumption came I found myself making sour faces, trying to get passed the eyeballs. With the camera ready and our count at three I quickly popped it in my mouth chewing rapidly. The result was a satisfied self followed by a giant glass of water to get rid of the extremely sweet, fishy taste. Now they remain on our counter by the recycle pile, their fate waiting to be decided. It's true what they say about trying new foods, but when the worst comes, everyone should know their limit.

A Matter of Addiction...A Point

Addictions can range from just about anything: alcohol, drugs, tobacco, but when a serious addiction strikes, everyone knows that the worst thing to do is surround the victim with what it is they're addicted to. Recently, I've witnessed just how bad an addiction can be and discovered that it's no laughing matter. The recovering victim was pleasantly sitting at a counter top, enthralled in a game of scrabble, but when a bag of Sun Chips was placed directly in front of her, all hope for a better future vanished. At first she restrained herself from indulgence, but within minutes, the surrounding company was shocked to find her head first in the bag, caving in to the dark side...A cat, with a serious chip addiction. The owner reported that the feline's condition had begun to improve over the last few weeks, that is, her never ending lust for human food, but once she was taunted, it meant another 21 days of serious counselling, all because of a bag of cheddar chips...A matter of addiction. 

Peanut Butter Cookies.

On the typical night after dinner, when the question of "What do you want to do?" Comes up, I find myself with a trio of one word answers. 
On dance days, or on days when I'm ready to sleep by 6:00, you can trust that I'll shout out "Moive!" On normal days, when I'm alert and in the mood, I find myself baking. Lastly, on the days when I'm somewhere in between, what's there to do other than a little of both! Sunday, I decided on option two and helped my sister by baking a giant batch of chocolate chip, peanut butter, cookies. Being an avid cookie baker, I come across several unique recipes, but there's something special about a peanut butter cookie. It's the salty aroma that fills your nostrils the minute you walk in the room and the seconds to indulgence counting down on the timer...3, 2, 1, Bing! As you open the oven door and the soft, warm, melt-in-your-mouth cookies make their way onto a rack, your face is embraced by a multitude of sweet smells. Finally it's the gooey peanut butter that touches your tongue and the melted chocolate chips that hide in the corners of your mouth as you swallow. Suddenly, the answer becomes clear, why peanut butter cookies are different than any old sugar cookie.

In case you have cravings, I've provided the recipe as a cure.  
Ingredients: 
1 cup packed brown sugar 
1/2 cup peanut butter 
1/2 cup butter (softened) 
1 egg
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1//2 cup chocolate chips or as desired. 

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.



 

A Fascination For Furry Fashions

Nala Modeling The Precious Princess Cape

Meister Showing off the
Magic Mushroom Hat.

In the interest of fashion, I took off to Pittsburgh for an interview with the next up and coming designer Emmah Farrell. (Head of Mani Fashions) Luckily for me I was able to take a sneak peak at her current work and assist in a photo shoot for PA magazine. What's unique about Farrell's spring line is not what she's designing, but who she's designing for. Pampered, is a collection created exclusively for your furry friend. consisting of skirts, shawls, sweaters, scarves and capes and ranging from petites to plus sizes. Farrell explains that, although she's a baby by fashion world standards, she looks forward to the future as she plans to move into designing for smaller animals, taking an interest especially in ferret apparel. When questioned on her first experience working with pets she states that she prefers working with them as opposed to dolls, and stuffed animals. "Although your fitting to a completely different body, it's not nearly as difficult as what I've been doing!"  When it comes to picking a model, Farrell finds it just as easy. "I love her so much!" She says, when asked about her first fitted model, a kitten. "Nala's still young, so she's very easy to work with..." But it was clear that Nala's focus was not so much on the photo shoot as it was on the ball waiting in the corner! Later in my visit I witnessed some dog models as well, and surprisingly none of them seem to mind the constant adjusting as they sat still for picture after picture. They looked pretty cute too! 

Looking perfect in the Bad Girl Sweater

Jager perfecting the Regal Crown