#I'm also adding onions to this list

[wombywoo]

Wait, is Vincent not able to go near garlic or is this because Quinn's breath would suck? XD

Garlic is extremely repulsive to vampires; something something hypersensitivity to certain sulfurs, plus it's just funny. The scent/taste overwhelms them, causing their eyes to burn/coughing/agitation etc. so it's also an effective weapon against them.

long story short--Quinn's nasty ass garlic breath is not coming anywhere near Vincent unless he gargles with some mouthwash 🚫

[tightwadspoonies]

How to Shop at an Asian (or other ethnic) Grocery Store

Do you live in or near a city in the US?

Need to save some money on groceries?

Might I introduce you to... shopping at the local Asian grocery?

Asian grocery stores aimed at an Asian-American customer base almost always beat the prices of their western (or for-western) counterparts. Often by a significant amount, especially in categories like produce, meat, rice, and spices. Plus in addition to lower prices, you get the satisfaction of supporting a small, local business instead of a larger chain store.

(Note that a lot of this information applies to other ethnic grocery stores as well, but we're using Asian because they're common in many cities, and have particularly good prices on produce.)

But it can be a little bit of a learning curve when you first start to shop at them. This post will give you the information you need to navigate them.

So how do you find a good Asian grocery store?

First, go on google maps and search "grocery".

Note that you are NOT googling "Asian Grocery" or "Cheap Grocery". If you search "Asian Grocery" you will get results for Asian stores marketing toward a western audience, and because of this, will be neat, shiny, and very pricey. If you search "Cheap Grocery" you will get stores marketing themselves as cheap, which generally are only slightly less expensive than their "expensive" counterparts (think Aldi). Okay in a pinch, but you can do better.

Second, look at the pictures of all the stores you can easily get to.

Here's what you want: not a lot of printed ads, pictures of hand-written signs (especially in languages other than English), food in cardboard bins, and you want it to look kind of "junky". Bonus points if you can see prices listed in the pictures or the people shopping there are mostly older, ethnic women.

Third, If you couldn't find anything like this, go on your city's subreddit.

Search "cheap", "cheap grocery" and "expensive grocery". Why "expensive grocery"? Because you want to find people complaining about grocery prices, and you want to see the advice they get. Many times, that advice is Asian or ethnic grocery stores.

If you're still not getting anything, google "[city name] cheap grocery" and "[city name] expensive grocery" (see above). Scroll until you get to FORUMS discussing groceries in your city. You DO NOT want blogs or articles. Again, you're looking at the advice people are given when they complain about grocery prices.

One of the first questions people ask upon walking into an Asian grocery store of the type discussed in this post is:

"Is the food I'm getting here safe to eat?"

The answer is just as safe as anywhere else you might shop.

You're probably used to very clean, pretty, well-lit, well-organized stores. This will probably not be that, but it will be regulated by the same health department that regulates those stores. They are held to the same standards.

It's a lot of work to keep a store looking like a western consumer expects. It's a lot less work (and thus less money) to keep a store looking like an ethnic career housewife or grandmother expects. That is largely where the savings comes from.

What's a good deal at an Asian grocery?

Produce. You're probably used to things like onions and carrots being the cheapest per pound. Here it's going to be greens, apples, pears, radish, cabbage and maybe squash and sweet potatoes. Check unit prices and prepare to try some new things. Also a pound of greens is a LOT of greens. Keep that in mind. Also keep in mind that you might see a few pieces of produce that are bruised or have mold on them. That's okay. Just don't buy those pieces. The rest of the batch is probably fine. Wash produce when you get home if you're concerned, though you should be doing that anyway.

Rice and dry beans. If you like to buy in bulk, you're in luck. Don't expect to walk away with a pound or two of these. They come in 40lb packages. But if you tailor most of your meals around them, those meals will be cheap af. There are also lots of different types of specialty rice if you want to make your own sushi or mochi. Learn how to soak and sprout beans.

Tofu. Tofu is expensive when you buy it at a health food store. It is not when you buy it at an Asian grocery. It probably won't be in pretty packages, but again, cheap is not going to be super pretty.

Meat and fish. Meat is generally going to be cheaper here, though maybe not by as much as the produce is. Pork will probably be your cheapest option. You may also see cuts you don't normally see, like tongue, intestine, liver, kidneys, blood, etc... "Weird," however, does not automatically mean cheap in this context. Check unit prices and prepare to be adventurous. If you don't know what else to do with them, dried fish and animal organs make fantastic stock when boiled.

Spices. Again with the extremely large quantities here. But very inexpensive compared with their western counterparts.

Candy. This makes a great inexpensive gift if you need one, since the candy sold at these stores is fairly exotic for a western audience.

What isn't a good deal at an Asian grocery?

Dairy. This includes fresh milk, butter, cheese, etc... If they have it, it will be very expensive. Consider buying elsewhere.

Eggs. Again, this will probably be as expensive or more than the eggs you could get at a western supermarket.

Snacks. Pre-made items will be expensive in general, even though they may be tempting because they are different from what you are used to and you don't need to learn to cook a new thing. Do your best to avoid these and make your own if you can. If you can't, frozen pork or vegetable dumplings are probably your best bet for a quick meal.

Bread. It's pricey. A lot of Asian cuisines use rice, noodles, or buns for their starch instead of western-style bread. So if you can find it it will often be a novelty item.

What else do I need to know?

It's okay to be overwhelmed by new ingredients. Look up some YouTube videos on how to cook certain ingredients if you're not familiar with them.

These are not supermarkets. They sell food and sometimes the kitchenware (steamers, woks, chopsticks, etc...) needed to cook it. You will probably need to get your soap and household items somewhere else.

Pay in cash if you can. Most of these are very small businesses and paying them cash makes it so they don't need to pay credit card fees. At the very least, make the minimum purchase before paying with a card.

[copperbadge]

I have finally perfected my pickled cashews recipe. Not only did I make a perfect batch but the results are replicable.

I'm not actually pickling cashews; I've been working on a recipe where they are mixed with a dill-vinegar seasoning coating and baked to set the coating in place.

This process began last summer -- Goldfish Crackers does an Old Bay seasonal edition every year and I liked them so much I found a "copycat" recipe that uses butter, Old Bay seasoning, and plain goldfish crackers. I started adding in cashews and then decided I really liked seasoned cashews...which was when my eye fell on the bottle of dill pickle seasoning I'd bought somewhere.

The problem is that the reason butter works to stick seasoning to goldfish crackers or Chex Mix is that they're baked products that absorb butter. Cashews do not. Butter also reacts strangely with one of the seasoning ingredients (powdered vinegar).

So the problem I was running into was that if the seasoning was correct, it didn't sufficiently stick to the cashews, and if it stuck, it has no flavor. I've spent months testing various ratios and techniques. Eventually -- a lot later than it should have -- it occurred to me to check the ingredients on a box of seasoned cashews that you can buy at the grocery store. There it was, the terrible magic bullet: corn syrup.

Equal parts butter and corn syrup, boiled together and then whisked with baking soda followed by the seasonings, makes a crispy, savory-sweet crust on the cashews once you bake them.

I've already worked out the coating and an original seasoning formula; next on the list is to test substitutes for corn syrup. Then I guess if I want to get any more from scratch I'm gonna have to grow my own cashews. (I already grow the dill.) And I'm starting to experiment with making a Sichuan peppercorn version. But that's for another day.

Hey look, I wrote a recipe blog essay! How fun.

"Dill Pickled" Cashews aka Deez Nutz

Seasoning mix:

1 part each garlic powder and onion powder

2 parts vinegar powder (white or cider)

2.5 parts dried dill

You won't use all of it for the recipe but the mix I make is 5 tsp dill, 4 tsp vinegar powder, 2 tsp each garlic and onion powder (should make almost 4 tbsp of seasoning). Mix thoroughly before measuring the seasoning mix.

Recipe:

3 cups (roughly 1 pound) unsalted, unseasoned cashews; they can be roasted or unroasted

2 tbsp corn syrup

2 tbsp butter

1/8 tsp baking soda

2 tbsp seasoning mix

optional: 1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 250F. Line a baking sheet with nonstick foil or parchment paper. Measure the cashews into a largeish mixing bowl.

In a small saucepan, heat corn syrup and butter, stirring over medium heat, until they begin to boil. Remove from heat and whisk in baking soda, then sprinkle in seasoning mix and salt while whisking until it's all incorporated. Work fast because the mixture coats better when it's warmer and more liquid, but you do have some wiggle room.

Pour this "seasoning syrup" over the cashews, then stir and turn the cashews until they're all coated. Pour the seasoned cashews onto the baking sheet and place on the oven's middle rack.

Bake at 250F for an hour, stirring every 20 minutes; at the end of the hour give them one last stir -- they should be fairly crisp. Turn off the oven but put the baking sheet back into the oven and leave the cashews in the cooling oven for about an hour (longer won't hurt).

Once cooled, break up any clumps with your hands. Store in an airtight container; they'll keep a few weeks at least but I've always polished them off before they went bad.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA if I lied about having an allergy?

TW // emetophobia (I'm not sure if this is too dramatic, but just to be safe)

I have had a deep hatred of onions my whole life, and while I am not technically allergic to them, whenever I have one, it immediately causes me to gag or throw up. Unfortunately, they are a common cooking ingredient, and I usually have to request that family, friends, or restaurants make my meals without the onions.

The trouble is that my request is often ignored, and I have even had family members try to sneak onions onto my servings to see if I will notice (I always do) because they say the onions are "good for me." Most upsettingly, I have had onions added to meals like burritos that are not supposed to have onions at all according to restaurant ingredient lists. This has caused me to be suspicious of any meal given to me that I did not make, unless it is something that obviously would not have onions.

It is also quite aggravating to see the annoyance on people's faces when I have to clarify that no, I am not making a special request because I am allergic, but simply because I strongly dislike an ingredient.

I am tired of having to pick through my food to ensure that I will not suddenly become violently ill (though I usually feel better within the hour), and I have thought frequently about claiming that I am allergic, so people will take me seriously, but I am worried this will cause undue stress and extra effort to avoid cross-contamination. I also fear that this is belittling to people who do struggle with serious allergies.

WIBTA if I lied that I am allergic to avoid potentially getting sick, even if it requires extra effort from the chef?

What are these acronyms?

[sixohsixoheightfourtwo]

you being a green pepper stan...I love that. I need to get some recipes. When they come into season here my CSA will be giving my like five a week...

green peppers!!! Ok so here are some green pepper recipes I love:

Çoban salatası - "shepherd's salad" - similar to greek salad tbh - tomato onion cucumber, lemon juice & olive oil - BUT çoban salatası usually has green peppers in and doesn't typically have olives or cheese in it (tho u know it's your salad, you can add what you like). & the spice / dried herbs will not be oregano/dill/mint, it should be sumac & parsley. Here's a recipe from Vidar Begum. If you can get the smaller Persian-type cucumbers and really ripe tomatoes all the better. tbh i can eat this indefinitely

Green pepper dolma / biber dolması - recipe by Ozlem's Turkish Table. Way less laborious than u might think actually bc once the filling is in it's practically set-and-forget, just simmers for a long time while you do other stuff. Also peppers obviously easier to stuff than tomatoes or courgette bc they're empty already. Middle eastern type groceries tend to have particular cultivars of green pepper that are a bit smaller with thinner skins that are designed /bred for dolma, I think to ensure they go really soft all the way through but obviously any type of green pepper is fine. Easy to vegetarianise; just leave out the meat. And you can eat them warm or room temp.

turkish stews (guveç) tend to throw in a green pepper along with other veg. sometimes these are meant to be the long pointy slightly spicy ones called Charleston or Sivri but ofc regular green bell pepper can substitute - prawn guveç, chicken guvec, vegetable guveç, easy chicken stew / tavuk sote, beef guveç, lamb and bean guveç.

Also there are similar mixed stew-type dishes called türlü which use green peppers as a component- ozlem's chicken veg and bean turlu, baked veg & bean turlu, Moro's turlu turlu.

roasted green peppers with garlic & vinegar, a classic meze

similarly you can do the classic roast-the-pepper thing til the skin goes black/ put them in a bowl / clingfilm and leave til cool enough to handle / peel the skin and shred the meat & dress with olive oil/lemon/garlic/capers/etc. Particularly great with a skinned chopped tomato added in to make some savoury juices.

to move east of the mediterranean for a moment. Eric Kim NYT pepper steak recipe. Now personally i think you can at LEAST double the amount of green peppers in there so jot that down. But fundamentally this is a really good recipe. Green peppers make it taste super fresh and savoury, the sweetness of red or yellow peppers would just not be correct here. Relatively big square pieces of green pepper are good bc they stay crisper. Very easy very fast.

similarly, beef in black bean sauce from RecipeTinEats

finally i loveeee indianhealthyrecipes.com / Swasthi's Recipes i'm Obsessed with her. Capsicum fry, capsicum curry, aloo capsicum, kadai paneer - haven't made all of these but they are on my list. Sometimes she says you need a teaspoon each of multiple different kinds of dal to make a spice powder... i;ll be honest i frequently just use garam masala.

[foodandfolklore]

Tools and Ingredients to keep on hand; Kitchen Witchcraft Elevated Pt. 2

Alright time for Part 2, Ingredients! Again, this is my person preference, and it's like my third time trying to write this out so bear with me. These are things I tend to keep on hand, and this list is not going to just include Salt, Pepper, Garlic; You got that already. I hope. If you're looking for info on Tools, check out Part 1. Onions: I keep a bowl of onions on one of my shelves in my kitchen. I find they keep better outside of the fridge, and I can easily see when I'm running low. Onions have strong protective and good cleansing properties so I tend to add them to my pot or pan before adding any other food. I also like to let them caramelize to get that transformative element.

Lemons: Lemons are great to use in so many dishes, both sweet and savory. You can zest the peel for it's oils and fragrance. You can squeeze the lemon for it's juice and acid. They're associated with beauty, longevity, positivity, mental clarity, cleansing; ect. One of the great things about lemons is thanks to their peel, you can leave them out at room temperature for long periods of time, so long at the peel is unbroken. So if you need to make space in your fridge, pull out your lemons.

Cinnamon Sticks: Okay so every witch has ground cinnamon. It's one of the easiest and cheapest spices to get. It's in every beginner box of witchy herbs. And it that's because it's absolutely fantastic to use. The problem with cooking, however, ground cinnamon isn't always the best option. The power is very fine, but also gritty. So it can be hard to strain out if you are just wanting to infuse some cinnamon. It's why I keep sticks on hand. They're also great for seasonal garlands and bundles.

Italian Seasoning: Rosemary, Thyme, Basil and Oregano. That is what's in Italian seasoning. Do I have these seasonings separate? Yes I do. And there are other seasonings in there like Marjoram, Summer Savory, Sage, Parsley; it varies a little from brand to brand. But if I'm in a rush, I can grab that Italian seasoning to make my food tasty and include one (or all) of the spice correlation properties. Quick note; if you're buying yours, check the ingredients. It should list what spices it's using. I bought a big thing of "Italliano" once without checking and my food was just not emotionally the same. I checked the ingredients and is was mostly dried bell peppers and salt.

Cayenne: It's cheap, spicy, and banishes bad shit. That's all I ask of it.

Vinegar: This may seem odd since vinegar is largely associated with souring spells and Hexes. But it also has strong cleansing an protecting properties too. You can also use it as a preventative property to deture people from asking uncomfortable questions or bringing up touchy topics. But vinegar is also an important tool in the culinary world. A lot of the time, if you taste your food and it tastes flat or bland, even with lots of seasonings, a little acid and brighten it up. Sure you can use lemon juice, but sometime you just need a tsp, and opening a jar of vinegar is easier than juicing a lemon. Vinegar is a key component in many sauces and marinades. Not to mention being used in pickling. Then they are a lot of uses outside cooking, like help with cleaning. My MIL's favorite way to wash windows is still spray with white vinegar and wipe with newspapers.

Canned Milk: So we all keep some kind of milk in the fridge. Dairy milk, Oat milk, Almond Milk, Soy Milk, lots of wonderful kinds of milk. So why keep canned milk? Well, canned milk tends to be thicker and creamery than regular fridge milks. Yes, I can go out and get cream, but it's often cheaper and easier to just use some canned milk I have laying around. Plus, sometimes cream is too rich for what I want. The three main kinds of canned milk I keep on hand are Evaporated Milk, Sweet and Condensed Milk, and Coconut Milk. If you drink only dairy milk, I recommend keeping at lest one can of coconut milk on hand too. In case one day you find yourself cooking for someone who can't have dairy milk.

Soy Sauce: This is a great, inexpensive flavor enhancer that I add to soups, curries, and meats. I buy it in bulk, and I always get more before I run out. Because of it's dark color, and it's made from soy, it has strong protection and banishing properties for me.

Cumin: This is a weird one for me. I go through waves of using cumin and not using cumin. I'll use it for every other meal one month, then not touch it again for another month. So, to preserve it's flavor and aroma, I buy whole cumin seeds, and crush them as I need them. But I like keeping cumin on hand since many recipes online will include cumin in their spices.

And that's all I got for now. If I think of more stuff later, maybe I'll make a part 3

[najia-cooks]

Hey Najia! I love this blog so much! I have a question. I find cooking pretty difficult sometimes. I'm chronically ill and also the kitchen stresses me out a bit because I'm very scatterbrained and there's knives and fire and stuff. I also fuck things up in the kitchen pretty easy. Are there any recipes on here you find particularly easy to make? That you'd recommend for when you just cannot be arsed? Hope you're having a wonderful day, I know it's your birthday 😄🎉

Thank you!

I can understand your stress—cooking can involve things that are objectively dangerous and also time-sensitive. I'd recommend:

Try recipes where you don't have to come into direct contact with the blades you use. Some Indian dals, for example, cook lentils in a sauce made from blended onion, tomato, and garlic; you could process them using a food processor or blender. A lot of things (fresh salsa, guacamole, a duqqa of garlic, chilies, and spices that you can throw in to cook with some lentils) can be prepared in a mortar and pestle, too.

I've never used one, but a vegetable chopper might help in a similar way that a food processor would, by reducing the amount of knifework that you have to do. There are a lot of recipes where a chopped onion is the only knifework required.

Also try recipes that are cooked in the oven, and not on the stovetop. Something that gets thrown into the oven on low heat to cook (like a casserole or fukharat dish) takes longer, but is more hands-off, than something that's cooked on the stove.

Do all of your prep work first. Read through the recipe and see what chopping, blending &c. needs to be done, prep each ingredient, and put it in its own little bowl. This includes anything in the ingredients list that says "1 onion, diced" or similar: do that right off the bat. If the recipe says "meanwhile" or asks you to do prep for anything while anything else is cooking, you might choose to disregard that and do all the prep first, depending on how long the cook time is and how much attention it needs (e.g., soup on a low simmer for half an hour can pretty much be left alone; anything in a frying pan cannot). This way you won't be rushing to chop anything quickly while worrying that something else is going to overcook.

Look for vegetables, like broccoli / cauliflower / romanesco and green beans, that can be broken up with your hands rather than chopped. Rip up cilantro and parsley rather than chopping them.

Admittedly "simple" is not the guiding principle of this blog, but here are some recipes that I think could be easily adapted:

Fukharat l3des: just one onion to chop. Cooked on low heat in the oven.

Fried tofu sandwich: just mixing sauces and spices. You can skip coating the tofu in cornstarch and frying it. Instead try freezing the whole block, thawing it, cutting into two or four pieces, and then marinating it in a plastic bag with your sauce overnight. Then bake the tofu for 15-20 minutes, turning once, at 350 °F (180 °C).

Roasted celery and potato soup: requires only very rough chopping; the cooking methods are baking and simmering. The fried tempering could be skipped by just adding those ingredients into the simmer earlier.

Carrot salad or chickpea salad or tapenade: you could throw all of the ingredients in a food processor.

Moroccan lentils: just an onion and tomato to grate or process.

Kashmiri lal chaman: the only thing you need to cut is tofu; the gravy is just water and spices. You could bake the tofu instead of frying it.

Black bean burgers: no chopping or frying if you omit the onion and carrot and elect to bake the finished patties.

'Chicken' and olive tajine: the marinade is blended or pounded, and there is no other prepwork to do other than chopping one onion. Everything can be simmered on low heat until cooked, so it's pretty hands-off.

Chana pulao: mostly rice, chickpeas, and spices. Some aromatic prep, but you could crush instead of chopping those.

Romanesco quiche: no knifework at all if you omit the aromatics and break aprt the romanesco with your hands.

Spanish garlic mushrooms: just crush garlic instead of slicing and buy pre-sliced mushrooms. There is frying, though.

Eggplant cooked salad: the eggplant is broiled and then spooned out. No knifework required if you use tomato puree.

Butternut squash soup: just roasting and simmering. No knifework required if you omit the aromatics and buy pre-cubed squash.

Dishes with a base of lentils, chickpeas, beans, rice, and/or noodles are great because there's no knifework that needs to be done to prepare the beans &c. themselves.

[theleastprofessionalchef]

Good morning! Brunch today was polenta, melted apples (with caramelized onion and wilted chard), cheesy scrambled eggs, bacon, and cinnamon cranberry bread (recipe below the cut). Technically the chard was supposed to be separate but I tossed them in with the other veg to save space and give them some more flavor- I also did the polenta like it is in the apples recipe, though I used half coconut cream and half water, and added nutritional yeast instead of cheese to keep it vegan.

Y'all get to see inside my messy three year old recipe book XD there's also some alterations I've started doing that aren't listed in the recipe, I'll put those at the end. Also that I've been making a vegan version this year!

Transcription:

Cinnamon Bread, makes one loaf, takes about an hour to an hour and a half.

2 cup flour

1 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk (1 tbs [apple cider] vinegar to [1 cup] milk)

1/4 cup veg oil

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

Crumb: 2 tbs sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp butter

- oven to 350°

- mix dry in one bowl, wet in other, then combine

- pour into prepped pan, sprinkle and pat down crumb mix

- bake 50 min [or until toothpick comes out clean]

Now, my alterations! I've cut down the cinnamon to 1 tsp specifically so I could also add in 1/4 tsp each nutmeg and cardamom, and a sprinkle of allspice. I also like to sometimes mix in either chocolate chips or cranberries (this one was the latter).

To make it vegan, I switch out the buttermilk for vegan yogurt (or just oat milk if I don't have any on hand), and replace the eggs with ground flaxseed at a 1 egg to one tbs ratio, and add 3 tbs oat milk per egg (so, 2 tbs flax and 6 tbs milk)

I'm also... kinda lazy when it comes to the crumb. I've taken to just sprinkling brown sugar over the top and it comes out just fine lmao

[bruhstation]

I'm interested in what the trains in your humanization prefer to eat (What if Henry loves apple charlottes?)

yes!!! eating is one of life’s biggest joys! always love talking and learning about food and watching people cook and eat and express their happiness, so this was a fun one to answer.

thomas a. billington: thomas needs something to chew or suckle on in the break room. think of any candy that your grandma would store on her detailed glass bowl. tootsie rolls, werther’s hard caramel candy, jolly ranchers… you get it. he doesn’t have any particulars when it comes to filling dishes and most of his diet consist of snacks and candies hence his thinner and shorter build.

edward pettigrew: he loves a good hot black tea with a side of rich tea biscuits or scones. he’s the guy who knows too much about tea. stomach ache? ginger tea. sleep aid? chamomile’s the way. for the more filling dishes, edward prefers light savory dishes with feta cheese involved. he’s really fond of fërgesë from his home country, but there’s no place on sodor that could make a mean one, so he settles with making it at his own home.

henry stanier: sliced apples! when he’s in a good mood, he’d shape them into little bunnies. he likes anything savory with a strong taste too, like his mother’s curry. henry loves a full course, hearty meal that tastes and feels good, and growing up, he’s always had a large appetite (fast metabolism). henry doesn’t like anything greasy or deep fried because it’ll make his stomach acid flare up. I had to look up what apple charlottes is, and yeah, I can tell you that henry would love it.

gordon j. gresley: gordon has a sweet tooth but he’s self conscious about it and has an image to uphold so he’ll tell anyone who’s making him coffee to make it black (he adds a packet of cream and sugar when nobody’s seeing) without anything added (his friends see right through him). his favorite dessert is orange float with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. gordon also likes food that is usually eaten together with friends or family (something something lazy susan) like pork roast or kway teow or thick beef stew with mashed potatoes. big portions are necessary!

james a. hughes: sweet margarita is james’ favorite drink to have during outings with his friends. he also loves a good french onion soup, especially paired with croutons (do not make them too hard or he’ll riot!!). speaking of croutons, james loves fondue and he always fights over it with thomas. really, any food that looks good and makes him look well-off would be on his favorites list (please, james, why does most of these dishes involve alcohol in one way or another). he also likes sweet danish pastries.

percival “percy” avonside: he’s a simple man when it comes to food he likes. sandwiches are the way to go! carbohydrates, proteins, the tasty stuff — it’s all there! eggs benedict (he puts another english muffin on top so the sauce won't spill everywhere) is his most favorite since it makes him feel special and fancy. percy also loves good coffee, usually mixed with condensed milk or mocha, since he delivers the night mail train.

tobias “toby” holden: tiramisu is his favorite dessert and he prefers it made with more coffee content. he has helped out henrietta many times with making it to the point he’s has the process memorized. for savory dishes, he loves some good lasagna with extra beef content in the sauce. it’s gotta drench. really, toby loves his layered food huh

montague “duck” collett: he’s not picky when it comes to food given to him, so he just eats what any average joe would eat (eggs on toast for breakfast, sandwich for lunch, sausage with potatoes and peas for dinner). normal person food. duck makes sure he has his meal three times a day and follows the motto; “eat before you’re hungry, stop before you’re full.” also diesel made mango panna cotta once for him as a desperate token of apology and duck fell in love with it.

donald and douglas dunalastair: like thomas, they don’t really have much preference for filling meals. dessert, though? now that’s the stuff. donald loves cranachan so SO much he wishes he could eat it every day. douglas likes candies more instead of softer, silkier desserts, like black licorice or peppermint candy. they also eat only twice a day since they get full super quickly. amazing how so much strength for shoveling snow is stored behind their lanky bodies. they also drink irn bru

oliver t. swindon: oliver loves shepherd's pie because it’s practical. everything he needs is right there, fitting for someone who doesn’t like complicated things. as for the sweet stuff… even after forgetting some of his memories after his rescue, oliver remembers the feeling and taste of halo-halo on his tongue clearly, something he missed dearly.

giovanni vin diesel: diesel loves bruschetta. he puts some pepper flakes on top for that spice kick. he also loves sfincione, specifically the way his family would make it, but, like edward, nobody on sodor knows how to cook a decent one (too much sauce, too thick of a bread, or too soggy) which makes him a bit sad. diesel’s kind of picky when it comes to the meals he can consider “favorite” because he believes he’s the most qualified in the culinary field on sodor due to his upbringing.

mavis hawthorne: a slice of blackforest cake always makes her heart sing. not too heavy on the whipped cream, though, because she doesn’t like her desserts too sweet. she also likes baumkuchen. whenever toby cooks lasagna, he’d make another portion to give to mavis, which quickly became her favorite and something she looks forward to during lunch breaks.

rebecca nassif: rebecca likes snacking a lot. she finds joy in eating! she grew up surrounded by meals. like diesel, because of her upbringing, she’s always been an enthusiast of not only food, but culinary arts as a whole. she loves cold desserts that usually remind her of her old neighborhood like this pistachio kulfi that she would made when she was younger. rebecca also missed having knafeh and mafruka since moving to sodor (it’s been like... a week.)

nia e. wanjala: whenever nia feels like treating herself to something good, she’d make her own version of the gatsby sandwich at her house. she’s especially keen on the french fries and enjoys extra hot sauce with it. it’d take two meal times for her to finish it all. lately, nia’s also been enjoying pastries like chocolate muffins and bombolone (chocolate fillings are her favorite).

lady: as part of her mission to understand humanity and their intrapersonal relationships, lady developed an affinity to eating. she’d eat anything as long as it’s acceptable by human standards even though she doesn’t have to. lady wants to understand that people eat not only to survive but as a way to show their love and culture. isn’t the greatest blessing to be bestowed upon living things the ability to consume to their heart’s content? does her lack of mortal needs indicate her lack of personal desire? anyways her favorite foods are fish and chips with sweet mayonnaise on the side and soft serve vanilla ice cream.

diesel 10: his go-to is black coffee mixed with red bull (added with some other weird concoction if he feels like it). some scrambled eggs with a dash of hot sauce for breakfast. some fried bacon if he has some self respect for the day. some dried sardines if he wants to feel miserable. some baklava with extra syrup and pistachio if he wants to treat himself because the sound of the crunch eases his stress

[nanaboo-pumpkaboo]

@cryogonalsmelody asked:

I think its funny our distastes of onions are opposite... probably bc i have a sense of taste so the texture is less important in this case.

I hate raw onions and can only eat them when theyre cooked. You only like them when theyre raw. Theres something here.

... also this makes me want a mushroom swiss burger for some reason. I'm adding that to my grocery list for the week ig.

Oh yeah people got their preferences, mine just happens to be more unique cause I can't quite enjoy what others seem to like about onions

The smell is nice though.

I'll keep that in mind, though I'd certainly have to follow a recipe

[placeinthemiddleofnowhere]

Sorry, English is not my first language. I am absolutely in love with this series, especially the world building and how you portray your characters. I'm curious on how canine-like reader is. Do they have the same toxicity where they can't have chocolate, grapes, onions, and what not? Or their human side kind of compensate for it?

And you can answer this if you're comfortable. Do they have heats/ruts? If they do, do they have to be spayed/castrated? (Which is great for regular dogs, but it sounds horrible for a person).

Thank you for your time

- Anon

Your English is perfect anon, don’t worry! ☺️ I’m so happy you like the world building and my versions of 141 💕

Pup can have chocolate and grapes and things haha, they’d have a mostly human body at the end of the day so they can process things like that fine! They have the wolf tail and ears with maybe a lil bit of fur that fades out surrounding those areas and they can run and move faster, smell and hear better and have an urge to be loyal to ‘their person’ (Ghost in this case) and those are the main traits that show through. I also think they’d have kinda yellowish eyes as well, just like a wolf!

As for the heats and ruts, I’m kinda on the fence about adding that in. I’m leaning more toward a kinda general need to ‘mate’ that happens in the spring (coinciding with the animals mating season) and leaving it at that in terms of wolf like habits. Not that that means it’s the only time hybrids wanna do it of course haha

They definitely wouldn’t need castrated or spayed, those poor lil hybrids have it bad enough in the Reign universe, I’d hate to pile on to their lists of things they deserve compensation for 🥴😂

[adobe-outdesign]

chia pop chia reviews, maybe? is there even a better name for those because chia pop chia sounds unwieldy but they aren't all fruit. potato chia pop when

(Note: I already covered a bunch of Chia-specific colours in my Chia review. To avoid redundancy, I'm going to list a few secondary favorites in this colour review so the entire thing isn't a repeat. Also, I'm doing my least favorite colour instead of species for obvious reasons.)

Chia pops are basically just those cheap ice pops where they come in liquid form and you toss them into your freezer. There are a bunch of them and for the most part they're normal food items... except for a few with the handful of "magical". For reasons that have never even been remotely explained in the lore, Chias that eat magical Chia pops change into a matching fruit/veg form, most of which are unique to them specifically. These additional colours give the Chia some flavor (both literally and figuratively) and are their main gimmick.

Conversion is a weird topic for these Chias. The bulk of them got redrawn and put into standard poses for customization (which is a particularly strange choice as they can't wear clothes anyway)... except for some that just didn't, for no clear reason.

Because the conversion was so uneven there's no way to make a judgement call for all colours, but on average I'd say that they looked better pre-conversion, as they tend to just look strange in the default poses—though on the plus side, most of them lost the weird lower lip that Chias used to have. Hopefully TNT will consider doing pet styles for these colours in the future so people can pick and choose what they like best.

(Secondary) Favorite Species:

Agueena: Chias that are based on Neopets-specific fruits are always neat, and the agueena was already a good-looking item, so unsurprisingly the agueena Chia also looks pretty good. It's less fruit-like than some, but the cyan-on-blue splotches make for a good pattern that works really well with the orange hair-like "leaves". The shading on this one's also really good.

Banana: I like my fruit and veg Chias ridiculous, and this is a ridiculous colour all right. The elongated body is immediately distinct and fun, and I like how its partially unpeeled, which adds a bit more visual interest to it than it would have otherwise.

My only issue with it is that I wish the face lineart was colored so it matched the rest of the design. Also, the arms and legs don't seem to actually line up with the body quite right; I kind of feel like the legs should've been redrawn and the arms dropped entirely ala the onion Chia.

Thornberry: Another Neopets-specific fruit, this design is pretty similar to the tomato Chia, which is its only major drawback. However, I find myself liking the thornberry Chia more, as it has a bit more contrast with the dark feet and the texture at top breaks up the otherwise monocolor body.

This is absolutely a colour we could use a pet style for though, as the unconverted version was much better. Aside from having better face proportions, the variable sizes of spikes really added something to it.

Least Favorite Colour:

Gooseberry: Just kind of a strange pick of fruit to begin with (for those wondering: gooseberries are an actual thing, look it up), nothing about the gooseberry Chia has ever looked good. The colors are drab and low-contrast, the body is weirdly off-kilter and has poor shading, the face placement is odd (it used to be lower down on the pre-conversion art, which was better but not by much), and ironically the thickness of the stripes make it not look much like an actual gooseberry. Honestly, all this does is make me want a watermelon Chia.

[irusanw4]

Hiya! Call me IrusanW4 or Irusan! Mutuals can call me Iru or Bug if they'd prefer :3

I'm agender, they/it and any neopronouns, aroace, AuDHD, a theriomythic cryptidkin shapeshifter, a furry, voidpunk, and an author and artist!

OC Sideblog: @the-ouroboros-universe

Please do not send donation asks! Chain asks are fine, though

"The nefarious anglerfish" meme comp.

I take asks for my characters! Currently the list is:

Orion ("Onion") - Mewtwo OC | Pokemon [star/psych/fire/tox/it/he]

Sunlight on Glass ("Shattered Glass") - Iterator OC | Rain World [he/it/they] - also goes by SoG and Glass

Reflection of Constellations ("IHTPOTCATAOMS") - Iterator OC | Rain World [it/they/she/fae] - also goes by RoC, Star, and Potato

Eclipse in Labyrinthine Caverns ("Missing in Action") - Iterator OC | Rain World [they/them] - also goes by EiLC, Eclipse, and MiA

Void Fiend ("Vee") - Risk of Rain Character [they/them] - also goes by Viend; specifically my Hollow Shell fanfic's Void Fiend; most tentative member of this list

I will update this list as I feel like adding more characters! And feel free to send your silliest or most serious asks, I'll answer them as long as they're SFW/SFT! Answers may be in-character and/or have doodles, but I might also just give you a simple answer depending on the ask!

I'm spotty with tag usage but will try to tag common triggers for my own stuff, and I always tag stuff related to my characters! My own triggers are below the cut

I run @different-picture-daily @gimmick-sniffer @highest-bidder-au @owl-identifier and @the-before-daily and try to keep HBau and TBDaily active, though the others are based on my energy at the time. Art blog is @officially-bug-art and kin blog is @buggiest-cryptid

@therewillbenoromance is my best friend and if any of you look at it wrong I will bite you without mercy. He's awesome and does great art so you should go follow it

[gabby-i-guess]

ADHD PSA #2: The Dinner Formula

Feeding yourself is easily one of the hardest responsibility as an adult. It's even harder if you're neurodivergent - textures are ✨a lot✨, cooking takes so much energy, and actually planning meals can be almost impossible. A lot of us just end up not eating properly, because it just takes too much brain power some days.

So, let's make it simple.

dinner = a carb + a fat + a protein + a vegetable + incentive

"Okay..." You say, "but what does that mean??" Well, it can mean lots of things. I'd suggest making a personal, physical list of things you like/have. But for now, here's mine:

A carb: rice (instant packets are perfect), pasta, noodles (yep, 2 min noodles count), bread, potatoes

A fat: (that's right. A fat. That shit helps you digest all the vegetably goodness, okay? Don't go crazy, but some is necessary) butter, regular old vegetable oil, sesame oil, olive oil, cheese, cream, or whatever is already in the other ingredients (e.g. meat, nuts, avo)

A protein: chicken (pre-cooked works wonderfully), mince, tofu, egg, nuts, mushroom (gross but if you really must), salami, tuna - fuck it, even frozen chicken nuggets count

A vegetable: green is best but anything will do! Broccoli, kale (I love kale chips), spinach, red pepper, peas, beans, carrots, ANY AND ALL frozen veggies. Also - blending or finely shopping your veggies can be a lifesaver if you're not a fan of veggies

And finally, the most important bit - incentive. This is whatever will make your brain want to eat the meal. No judgement, I promise. The goal is to give your body the fuel it needs to keep chugging along - if the fuel has to be topped off with Bacon Bits and aioli, so be it. Mine are...

Incentive: seasoning like Nando's peri peri salt, chicken salt, garlic, onion, curry powder, lao gan ma. Toppings like fried onion, sesame seeds, pine nuts, cheese. Sauces like sweet chilli sauce, soy sauce, Japanese mayo, pesto, aioli. Or maybe, some random factor, like chop sticks, blue food dye (I'm a PJO fan...), a special bowl, preparing it as snack food, cutting things up into fun shapes, or buying alphabet pasta.

Finally, let's round out this post with some examples of dinners I've made recently using this formula:

Pasta + cream + chorizo + blanched and blended spinach + pesto = creamy pesto pasta

Flavoured rice pack + sesame oil + egg + broccoli + soy sauce and onion = simple fried rice

Couscous + salad sauce + Dino chicken nuggets + salad pack + the aforementioned Dino chicken nuggets = an insanely good salad (AND I took the leftovers to work)

I really hope this helped someone. I'm sending you all so much love and good vibes. This humaning shit is insanely hard and complicated, so if you're just getting through each day without adding to or subtracting from the population, you're already doing such a great job.

Be kind to yourself ❤️

[gwenchobanicooksmisspiggy]

hello my name is gwen chobani and i cannot cook. for the life of me i make the worst food ever. most things i make my brother spits out in horror. it is a painful thing, being so bad in the kitchen. no one understands me but Beyoncé. I'm also a lifelong Muppet stan.

well, lo and behold, Miss Piggy (my feminist hero) has a cookbook filled with celebrities' recipes (or moreso, their private chefs recipes probably.) it was published in 1996 and was for some charity idk. there's also a jab at Oprah and some pretty damn funny/cute little musings about dinner parties n shit.

well, I've decided to channel my inner Amy Adams and go through every recipe in this book to teach me how to cook, Julie & Julia style. Miss Piggy will teach me. she will guide me. she will save me. i would both kill and die for her.

the first recipe i decided to try was Larry King's Favorite Tuna Health Salad. i picked it as the first one because it seemed the easiest, seeing as there's no need to use the stove or oven.

i misread the ingredient list and added way too much tomato and bell pepper, tho oddly enough it could've stood to use even more celery than i ended up using even tho i used "too much."

while chopping the onion i realized "there's no fucking way i gotta put a whole onion in this thing" and well i was finally correct. it was just supposed to be 2 tablespoons lol.

anyway i made it and it was nasty imo. the white wine vinegar was too much. a 1/4 cup?? ludicrous. and not enough whipped dressing. if i make this again I'd put it way less vinegar and more dressing, and leave out the tomatoes because i find them psychologically disturbing.

my brother actually really liked it tho?? interesting. life is strange.

tune in next time for when i make something else, probably also fucking it up.

[alarrytale]

Hi Marte! This is apropos of nothing but I’ve been depressed for awhile and I’ve been pulling myself out of it for a few months and I finally have started to feel like myself again (yay!). One thing I really struggled with was finding the mental energy to cook, among other things, which is something I’ve always enjoyed. I’m trying to make a list of recipes to try to make cooking fun again and I thought maybe I’d make some things that Harry has mentioned enjoying just as a fun little motivation. Do you know any foods he has talked about enjoying? I haven’t come up with too many but I think it would be really fun to recreate some of them. Also if you have any recipes you personally like I would love to hear about them! Trying to rally myself here and I am taking suggestions from anyone who has them!!! 💗🩵

Hi, anon!

First of all, i'm so happy to hear you've managed to pull yourself out of your depression. That's so great to hear, i'm so proud of you! 💛

I'm racking my brain to try to think of things that H has mentioned in interviews over the years. It's mostly food items he loves or hates, no so much dishes he's talked about. We know he of course loves Louis' chicken wrapped in parma ham with a side of homemade mash (doing the hand movements while i type lol). He's also said he loves a Sunday roast, Taco/Fajitas and is partial to soup. We know he loves bananas, peas, brussel sprouts, mango, sweetcorn, mandarine segments, coconut shavings (or is that Louis 😉), and we also know both H and L love sea food! I think there's a lot of sea food being served in the Tomlinson-Styles household.

See, the thing is, i'm a good cook, i'm a creative cook, but i hate cooking. I prefer the food i make myself to anyone elses cooking lol. So that's a massive issue. I cook a lot with my brother when we're doing elaborate dinners, since he likes to cook. I've perfected a lasagna recipe, a couple of soup recipes, a couple of pasta dishes and some wok recipes, that i make when i have company over. I'm really good at taking what i have on hand and making something out of it. When i create something ingenious, i always write the recipe down in a google doc.

I've found that it's almost impossible to share recipes, because people like different things. Some like things salty, spicy, savory, sweet, bitter, well cooked, hardly cooked, their gravy thick or more runny etc. Some have allergies and intolerances. So you need to explore what you like and make it to your taste.

Anyway, one recipe that never fails me is vegetable soup. It's healthy, hearty and warms in winter. It's also cheap! I make it when i have low energy, when i am in need of vitamins or when i have a cold. You can put any vegetable you like in it (depending on what you have on hand), any spices you want in it, you can make it vegan/gluten free, if you want to, it's easy to not make too little or too much of it and you decide how much of each thing you put in it, depending on your preferences. You can bascially change up every ingredient without messing up.

Here is my recipe (based on one of my uni room-mates recipes, a dish that we used to make together as poor uni students):

This serves about four people i'd say.

Ingredients:

1-1,5 litres of water

3-4 chicken stock cubes

1 yellow onion

2 potatoes, regular sized

1-2 carrots

A couple of slices of swede/rutabaga

1/2 of a red bell pepper

2 tomatoes

1/2 of a leek

Fussili pasta

Garlic powder

Cayenne pepper

Herbes de Provance

How to make it:

Find a pot that fits about 5 litres. Put the water and the stock cubes in and boil it. Peel potatoes, carrots, swede/rutabega, and onion. Dice it up into decent siced pieces (or to your preference). The potatoes doesn’t need to be cut that small. Put all your vegetables in the pot to boil for about 5-7 minutes.

Meanwhile, you chop the leek and bell pepper, after the 5-7 minutes are up you put that in, and also add pasta (a handful or two, or to your preference). Then add the spices. Be careful when adding the cayenne pepper, the soup isn't supposed to taste hot/spicy (we all have different tolerance level for spice).

Let it all boil for 10-12 minutes more or until the pasta is ready and the vegetables are soft. Meanwhile chop the tomatoes, add the tomatoes when the soup is finished, they're not supposed to boil, just warm up.

Bon Appétit!