Doghouse Diaries has you pegged, probably from many observations of people who buy coffee at coffee shops. Whether any of this applies to homebodies with a personal pot, I don't know. The chart is certainly right about my kids. They are frappuccino fans, because they like to go to coffee shops, despite the fact that they don't like coffee. See the full-size version at the webcomic site. Link -via Laughing Squid
Mr. Bond was wrong. The bartender should not shake or stir the cocktail, but vibrate it with a tuning fork. Wayne Curtis of The Atlantic reports:
There’s a theory making the rounds—I first heard it from David Wolowidnyk, who runs the bar at West, a well-regarded Vancouver restaurant—that vibrations of the right frequency will cause the molecules in a drink to rearrange themselves in curious ways, thereby altering or enhancing the flavor. [...]
I tested the tuning fork on a variety of drinks, including Manhattans and daiquiris. Once, on my first sip, I was convinced that a properly tuned Manhattan was tastier and more luminous than a regular one, much as it had seemed in Vancouver. On the second sip, though, I couldn’t detect any difference.
I also tried a series of blind taste tests—putting out three glasses of a spirit, then leaving the room while someone applied a tuning fork to a single glass. I was able to correctly identify which drink had been “tuned” approximately one-third of the time.
(Photo: Richard Mitchell)
Nicole Williams made this cake for a biology course. Is it tasty? It is biologically accurate? I can provide a confident answer to the first question.
Link -via Kitchen Overlord
As if you weren't already motivated to eat tacos, Sandra Denneler has made them even more seductive. Her cookie versions are made with Golden Oreos, chocolate Oreos, coconut and chewy candies. You can find her full recipe at the link.
Now, wait until I tell you what's in it first! Put down the mug and let me describe Barbara Kiebel's breakfast treat. It has Maker's Mark bourbon, vanilla ice cream, scratch whipped cream made with bourbon and scratch hot fudge made with espresso and coffee liqueur. Okay, now you can drink.
Link -via Tasteologie
Sriracha is hip, hot and cool. We've seen it in everything from chocolate to lollipops to bread. But Foodbeast's Dominique Zamora calls us back to the old ways--to the trusted and true--to Tabasco sauce. Dominique calls this Southern treasure "a dapper, crotchety old gentleman" and "the Walt Kowalski of hot sauces." You can read her funny, .gif-filled argument, which includes support from the Doctor and Pinkie Pie, at the link.
Link | Photo: kenny_lex, kickthebeat
You may remember that Nick of DudeFoods used bread cheese--a Finnish cheese that physically resembles bread--to make a grilled cheese sandwich that was 100% cheese. He's continued to experiment with that product, most recently making waffles. Nick cut the cheese into squares, then baked them briefly inside his waffle iron.
Brie is a versatile cheese. It pairs well with both sweet and salty foods. That's why I like Chung-Ah's unique approach to the grilled cheese sandwich. With waffles, blueberries, lemon juice and butter, her sandwich is just right for a decadent breakfast.
Link -via Tasteologie
April is Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month, so many clever chefs are generating innovative takes on the classic comfort food. J. Kenji Lopez-Alt combined it with one of my favorite foods: cheese-stuffed jalapeño peppers. You can find the full recipe at the link.
Link | Photo: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt
Okay, you have three cake layers, two of them peanut butter flavor, and one chocolate cheesecake layer stuffed with chocolate frosting. Then the whole cake is smothered in peanut butter frosting and garnished with chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and pieces of Reese's Cups on top. All those parts except for the garnishes are made from scratch. You can make your own, because the complete recipe is it Hugs & CookiesXOXO. Link -via reddit
Need coffee but don't have any money? Some cafes have the solution: suspended coffee, a donation scheme where patrons can buy a cup of coffee for themselves and another cup for a complete stranger. The second cup is claimed at a later time by someone who cannot afford it themselves.
Caffeine fix and a good deed? It's coming soon to a Starbucks near you. The BBC's Suraj Patel explains in this video clip: Link [auto-starting video]
Miniature art in cake form! These cake pops are only 2 inches square, but you can recognize ten classic album covers in them. They were made by Miss Insomnia Tulip on commission. See all ten of them at Eat Your Heart Out. Link -via Boing Boing
Los Angeles attorney David Chan is a third-generation Chinese-American who grew up not liking Chinese food. But in 1984, one tasty lunch changed him around. He started eating in Chinese restaurants as a way to connect with his heritage. Now, at age 64, Chan has eaten at 6,297 different Chinese restaurants, all documented on a spreadsheet. He's become the go-to guy for food critics and travelers. But he's not all that picky -and he still hasn't learned to use chopsticks.
Chan had always wanted to travel to all 50 states, and Chinese food gave him an excuse. In places he would have never imagined, he found Chinese people with their own version of Chinese food.
In New England, he encountered a chow mein sandwich topped with gravy. In St. Paul, Minn., he found a burger with egg foo young for a patty. Throughout the South, he came across a sweet, stir-fry dish called Honey Chicken.
"It doesn't have to be authentic Chinese. If it's Chinese American, it's all the more interesting," Chan said.
Read about Chan's unique hobby at the Los Angeles Times. Link -via Digg
(Image credit: Rick Loomis/Los Angeles Times)
The old Snickers commercials would end with a hand closing around peanuts, then opening with a Snickers bar. When I was five years old, I saw these commercials and became convinced that this event was real. If only I could get a supply of peanuts, I could magically turn them into candy bars. So I repeatedly asked my mom to buy me peanuts in order to generate Snickers bars. I don't recall the method ever working properly.
If I get a Snickers bar, could I use the same technique to turn it into one of Elizabeth LaBau's Snickers cupcakes?
Link -via Tasteologie
Buzzfeed has a roundup called 38 Baby Shower Cakes Made Of Nightmares. Many depict the moment of childbirth and include plenty of naked female anatomy, along with blood and newborn babies made of cake. Consider the full list NSFW. But this one made me laugh out loud. It takes a perverse imagination to serve a cake to a pregnant woman featuring an alien chestburster. Some of the others are pretty funny, but may be disturbing for sensitive souls. Just remember: they're all cakes. Link
