New Toy: The Zoku

My Aunt D. gave us two Zoku Quick Pop Makers for Christmas. You're sure to witness more of my experiments with them if you stick around on Snackreligious, but for starters I made the kiddo a quick milk popsicle. As you can see, it works just fine (though I forgot to snap on the drip guard before handing it over). I didn't taste this particular pop, though. Just for babies!

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Knock knock. Who's there? Tap Tap. Tap Tap who?

I had dinner at Tap Tap near South Beach and it was good.

Best: citronad (limeaid), natif (Haitian lime and rum alcoholic beverage), unnamed spicy slaw-type condiment, watercress sauce, fried malanga, rice and peas, the company, a taste of R's whole fish, friendly service, large group accomodation.

Fair: yucca fries (the best ones are creamy on the inside, and these were not), live music (Latin band playing Hava Nagila?), fried grouper with avocado and lime sauce (dry; couldn't taste any lime sauce), slow service and bill processing, after-dinner Chiclets.

Did not try: Pork chunks, Goat bits, tostones (mine were missing, plus I like them sweet).

Icy blast from the past

I am craving a snow cone on this Poetry Tuesday. Cherry, preferably. That might be hard to find in December in NYC. So, instead, I am having ice cream for breakfast. It's cold comfort. Tee hee.

Continuing my tradition of admitting to having written weird food-related poetry (even loosely food-related), here's a scorcher for you. I wrote this one (on Halloween, apparently) when I was 14 years old.

1. Snow cone on fire in the dead of night
Sputtering and burning with a white, unholy light
Forms a signal beckoning with language clear and bright
glow cast on my windowpane
offers sincere shelter from the rain

Fallout from the sky is snow
Night scatters ash and Dusk below
My snow cone's light is firm and slow
It preserves a steady flow
on faces wavering unsure of love
light pierces ice bright from above

I sing a silent siren song
calling your unhappy soul
dwell with me and be made whole
bring back what other men once stole

I cannot reach your wasted tears
Etch of patterns rich with fears

2passing time finds still aglow
light beacon on a bless'd tableau
Your upturned face is ringed with light
On a cold and almost sightless night
steal you up into my home
This girl and her snow cone
no longer alone.

"Adult" Snacking

I find the marketing angle for this non-dairy, non-soy wine sorbet a little off-putting (including that the above looks almost more like a flier for a "sophisticated" "adult" gentleman's [sic] club than for sorbet), but my free sample of Rosé wasn't bad. Why not try a different angle? Do we have to be sophisticated adults every time we eat wine? Just once, why can't the slogan be something like, "I Kin Taste the Alky-Hol!"?

Popsicle, popsicle, make me a batch

I inaugurated my new popsicle mold. Nothing fancy yet. Just lemonade and blueberries. The combo wasn't bad, but I admit it's a beginner's pop.

Two tips:

1. The first lick is the best. If you get carried away you really can sort of suck out the juice and end up with plain ice and blueberries. Don't do that, though.

2. Try to keep your popsicle upright. The juice melts into the base/handle problematically.

A gift from Melanie

Attention everyone I asked to pick me up a set of "Sommar" popsicle molds if you happen to find yourself at Ikea: not that I wouldn't take an extra set (and pay you back, natch), but consider my sense of urgency around this issue taken down several notches.

The new Ikea in Brooklyn doesn't even stock the things, or so Rachel was told by an employee on a recent trip. He told her that the store is too new to stock "seasonal" merchandise. Boo! But Melanie found herself at Target and noticed the lovely ice pop molds pictured above, which she generously gave to me, so I win!

I am now accepting popsicle flavor suggestions.