Anti-theft lunchbags

Thought this was pretty funny:

 Photo from thinkofthe.com

If you're unfortunate enough to work with people who actually steal other people's lunches, you can now order sandwich bags with green splotches to make your lunch look spoiled.


(Just make sure your sandwich doesn't actually spoil, because this could backfire)

Also, check out the creators' backgrounds

Cucuzza what?

I love learning about foods I never knew existed. Especially vegetables, because I feel like I have this food group fairly covered...and because I'm prone to fall in love with the new discovery. I came across this post on Serious Eats today about an Italian squash-like vegetable called the Cucuzza (ku-kooza).  You may already be familiar with this term if you're a Louis Prima fan.

The cucuzza has a rich etymology, making its classification tricky to pinpoint. The author of this post says it's technically a gourd (a member of the calabash family), but generally gets treated in the kitchen like a summer squash.  She also writes that "cucuzza" is a general term for squash in certain regions of Italy.  A couple commenters to her post say that "zucca" is actually the general term for squash and "cucuzza" a slang term used in the Southern regions (also as a joke/derogatory term to describe "a useless person"). The cucuzza also goes by different names, such as googootz, zuzza, New Guinea bean, and Tasmania bean. 

Fortunately, its appearance renders it distinct: the cucuzza has a long, thin, curved body; with a light green skin and crispy white flesh (so I've read). It grows on a vine at quite an impressive rate: The vine can grow 2 feet per day, and the squash can grow 10 inches per day. According to the kitchn, they grow up to 27 inches long and 6 inches wide!

Photo from thekitchn.com

The cucuzza originated in Italy and can live in any temperate climate.  It's also popular in East Asia, and, believe it or not, the largest cucuzza plantation in the world is located in Ruston, Louisiana


So what to do with all this cucuzza? You can treat it as you would zucchini.  The Serious Eats post has a recipe for baked cucuzza fries. Here are some basic methods for preparing it (you can also order a recipe book with 50 cucuzza recipes if you're really taken). Recipe Zaar apparently has some good ones too, though their site is temporarily down for maintenance (will update later). Enjoy!

MmmmMMm avocado fries

From the kitchn:

Pretty much anything in fried-form is delicious. And the creamy smoothness of avocados almost beckons to be coated in a crispy coating. I can't believe I've never seen/heard/tasted this marvelous invention before.

Pictures from Bastille Day

Every year NYC holds a Bastille Day celebration, or a Fête de la Fédération if you will, to honor the storming of the Bastille, France's symbolic victory against the Monarchy and the start of the French Revolution. I think it's only fitting we join in the celebration--for where would the U.S. be without France's revolutionary ideals, not to mention the wine and cheese?

The festival takes place on the Upper East Side, on 60th St. between Lexington and 5th Ave. We went on a beautiful sunny Sunday, and the streets were filled with the promise of live music (there was a stage with some equipment), a few mimes running around, raffles, face painting, crépes and pastries, and wine and cheese tastings. Some of the usual street vendors managed to sneak in (smoothie stands, NY Times stands selling crossword mugs, etc); and, save for some sausage sandwiches and "savory" crépes, there wasn't all that much in the way of food.  This seemed like a great opportunity for some French restaurants to get some exposure. Oh well, at least it gives me an opportunity to say "C'est la vie!"

And now, for some photos:

Gus didn't have a moment's hesitation to wait in line for the lamb sausage. Where did my tofurky boy go? He said the texture was a little foreign but he very much enjoyed the flavors.  They served it right off the grill in a bun with neat little lines of hot sauce and a pesto-like sauce.