It’s a Big, Tasty World

Have I mentioned my love of food? I know I did recently, but I don’t talk about food here nearly as much as I, say, think about food. Or shop for it, prepare it, eat it, and then think about it again. Heck, I even write about it. No Kimberly Stuart book is complete without two things:

1. Narcissistic wailing and gnashing of teeth, particularly the night before it releases and I realize anew that I’m about to make an utter fool of myself on a national scale, and

2. Hearty, happy mentions of the kind of food that makes me hearty and happy.

In fact, my next book pretty much stars food as a main character. But more on that later…

Remember Tse Ling, my dear Malaysian student who agrees to hang out with our family in exchange for time away from college life? Here she is with her very sweet friend, Mokyin.

So I adore these girls. And they are very kind to me, even when I kid them mercilessly about their boyfriends, their actuarial science majors, and their abiding love for American French fries.

One of the reasons I adore them is that they let me tag along to cool places, like the new international supermarket here. Tse Ling and Mokyin ran around, happy as larks, picking up packages of things entirely foreign to me. While they squealed, so happy to be far away from dorm food, I wandered on my own. I would like to share some images from what I saw. (For our sheltered American palates, now might be a good time to put down that donut until after you’re finished reading. Just a friendly warning.)

First, the snack aisle:

(Before we get too high and mighty, I dare you to explain to an outsider how Cheetos become THAT color.)

Next, the canned goods:

On top, a few fruits I have never seen at the farmers’ market. Below, absolutely no idea. But they are on sale for $1.59.

Meat department:

Those are pig tails and whole, fully beaked duck heads. I cannot tell you the joy I was feeling as I snapped these photos. To a former globe trotter currently home-immersed with three young children, the sight of a duck head is nearly as good as getting on a plane. And for fifty cents!

Finally, for dessert, I was all over the green bean ice bar.

I had not considered making peas into a popsicle, but my children should know this option is now on my radar.

Thanks, girls, for the chance to go shopping with you. I promise I’ll still take you to the mall soon, but there is nothing at Forever 21 that is half as fun for me as crab chips.

So, dear readers, what is the most unusual thing you’ve eaten?