Willy Cakes

From CakeWrecks.

Seriously, would you put one of those things in your mouth? Particularly the jaundiced ones. (Yeah yeah, DD, I know, "nom nom nom nom.")

Omnivore's Hundred

"Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers."
Bold entries are things I have eaten. I did pretty well, eating 60 of the 100 items listed, though I will admit some of those things I won't be eating again...

The VGT Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (does Alligator count?)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses (no, but I've smelled it)
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (I've smoked a fat cigar but I don't much like cognac)
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O (in other words, a Jell-o shooter)
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu (sorry, not that much of a thrill seeker)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal (I've eaten a Big Mac in my life, and McD's fries, but haven't ordered a "meal." I'm counting it anyway. It's not like it's real food.)
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (Dirty vodka martini, sure. Can't drink gin...ick.)
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (I am confused as to why this is on the list. Kaolin is a type of clay.)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare (I don't like rabbit, so I know I won't like hare.)
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

From VGT--If you want to participate:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk linking to your results

NY Gelato

Grom at 233 Bleecker and Carmine Village, is just a jog away from 6th Avenue. L'Arte del Gelato is at 75 Seventh Avenue, near Bleecker. I spotted these gelateria on a trip through the West Village last Wednesday and knew I had to find my way back to try their wares. All in the name of research, mind you.

First I hit Grom. I ate a salad for lunch and no breakfast so I was still a bit peckish at 3pm. I had no idea when I would be eating next, as I'd be taking a 6:20 PM train back home to Baltimore and wouldn't likely see food again until I got home at 9, so I justified my splurge. I tasted the apricot sorbet, hoping that the fruit had been cooked at some point since I am allergic to raw apricot. (I never claimed to be smart, especially not with ice cream staring me in the face.) It was very true to the fruit, and I opted for a small cup with both the apricot sorbet and some pistachio gelato. The pistachio was unlike any I've had in the past. Not only did it have that distinctive almondy flavor, it was full of crushed pistachios. Texture-wise it was unique, and flavor-wise was up with the best I've had.

As it was only about a block away, I skipped over to L'Arte and tried the cassata and the grapefruit-campari sorbet. The latter knocked my socks off with its sweet/bitter notes, so I had some of that with a pinch of the cassata. The cup was garnished with a sample of the mango sorbet, also very true to the fruit.

All of the flavors from both places had their merits. I especially liked Grom's pistachio and L'Arte's grapefruit. And it might have been piggish to eat four flavors of gelato in one afternoon, I realize that both servings combined don't measure up to one of Vaccaro's, size-wise, so I felt less-bad about it. Oh, who am I kidding - when do I feel bad about eating something that tastes so good?

Crush, Part Deux

Mr Minx and I grabbed some dinner at Crush again tonight and I'm happy to report that it was just as good as the first time we went. He got basically the same thing I had last time with the addition of a romaine salad with bleu cheese and bacon. I had the soup of the day, a gazpacho with avocado and zucchini, the fried oysters, and an arugula salad with bleu cheese, pecans, and poached pear. Apart from the soup needing a pinch more salt, everything was fab.

I'm already planning our next visit. :)