The Joy of Soup

Squash Geese

Most everyone has traditions they have developed over the years for their holiday celebrations. The Soup Lady's old friend Dave makes his now-famous Thanksgiving Geese.

This bird suffered from too long a cocktail hour. "One of the finest traditions in our family are the Thanksgiving Geese made from yellow squash and carrots that grace our table every year. The kids love to help starting with the shopping ... Our tradition concludes the day after Thanksgiving when we line the little geese up in a steamer and "boil them alive". "

Go here for the complete story, including instuctions on how to make your own. Go at your own risk, of course. The Soup Lady does not approve of the ghastly music you will be plagued with over there, but if little water fowl made out of vegetables are your sort of thing, then it is worth the pain of listening to a "Golden Slippers" played on a comb and tissue paper.

Krispie DrumSticks

The April Fool
The Soup Lady does not approve of fooling people. None but the vulgarian would seek to embarrass someone by making them look the fool. This is the very same reason that the Soup Lady does not go for magic shows, even if they feature cute white tiger cubs. However, all restrcitions on tricking people may be suspended when it comes to Food Impostors.

What happier way to celebrate a day of trickery that to create food that looks like other food! This page gives a wide variety of inspirations for April Fooling At the Dinner Table, but the overall end effect is just a wee bit uncouth, don't you agree?

No, The Soup Lady would have to recommend a more refined Food Impostor: chicken legs made from rice krispies. Thank me later.

Krispie DrumSticks
3 tablespoons margarine or butter
1 package (10 oz, about 40 marshmallows)
or 4 cups miniature marshmallows
6 cups KELLOGG'S® RICE KRISPIES® cereal
1 jar Peanut butter
1 box KELLOGG'S® COCOA KRISPIES® cereal

In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt margarine and marshmallows on HIGH for 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute. Stir mixture until smooth.

Add Kellogg's® Rice Krispies® cereal, stirring until well coated. When slightly cooled, shape cereal mixture into drumstick shapes using buttered hands. Place on waxed paper or a surface coated with cooking spray. Allow to cool.

Spread peanut butter over top of each drumstick, dip in Kellogg's® Cocoa Krispies® cereal.

The Soup Lady preferred to heat the peanut butter in the microwave to make spreading easier. Yes, it requies a bit of artfullness to shape a drumstick out of the primordial mixture, but you'd be surprised how quickly you get into it.

This recipe is straight from the official Kellogg's® Rice Krispies Treats® website. Note the suspicious lack of nutritional information such as fat and calorie content. That can't be good.

Witch's Fingers

Now that's just spooky!

Happy Halloween, dears! What a delightful holiday this is - an abundance of recipes for the "Food Impostors" section. You may remember that "Food Impostors" started out as a showcase for "food that is trying to look like other food", but too many gems were overlooked by that strict definition, so now it has broadened to "food that tries to look like something else."

Now while the Soup Lady does not approve of the vulgarities known as "Cat Litter Casserole" or the equally disgusting "Boogers on a Stick", there's no harm in having a little holiday fun with some festive seasonal concotions such as Cheese Eyeballs or Witch's Finger Cookies.

The link for the cookies came from that closet Domestic Goddess known as Michele at a small victory. Who would have guessed? These fingers are the Disney version of Halloween witch fingers.

Here is someone who forces the issue of "is it a trick or a treat?" when she offers up one of these:

The Soup Lady shamefully confesses that she has a horrible fascination with these and cannot stop admiring them. You have my permission to go here for other Halloween Food Impostors, but please, be don't let me down. Try to make your menu tasteful as well as tasty.

Irish Potato Candy

Announcing a new feature : FOOD IMPOSTERS! I have long had a fascination with foods that are meant to look like other foods. As I was mulling this over today, someone offered me a candy called an Irish Potato. This is a no-bake coconut and cream cheese confection that is rolled in cinnamon and shaped by hand. Faith and begorah if it doesn't look like a wee spud!

IRISH POTATO CANDY
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners' sugar
2 1/2 cups flaked coconut
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. 2. Add the vanilla and confectioners' sugar; beat until smooth.
3. Using your hands if necessary, mix in the coconut.
4. Roll into balls or potato shapes, and roll in the cinnamon.
5. Place onto a cookie sheet and chill to set.
6. If desired, roll potatoes in cinnamon again for darker color.

Enjoy the complexity of this experience. Once you adjust your brain to the idea that this is candy, then you begin to expect marzipan. What a surprise to find the coconutty goodness inside. And it's not overly sweet, either.

The Soup Lady regrets to announce that the panel of judges is becoming very uncooperative. Maybe I can lure them back into the test kitchens with this one. (Note: While doing research for this entry, I came across some recipes that included real mashed potatos in the ingredients, but who the hell wants to eat that? That is not the point, anyway.)