With Spain (and Paolo the Octupus) winning the FIFA World Cup this past weekend, soccer is at an all-time high in the United States. Whether you know it or not it is actually the #1 team sport practiced by the youth of our nation. With school out and summer in full swing (especially in the Northeast), kids of all ages will be participating in their summer soccer leagues.
I think every child has gone through the Saturday morning ritual of putting on your (locally sponsored by Jim’s Auto Repair or something of the ilk) uniform, strapping on your shin guards and lacing up your cleats prior to heading out to the neighborhood field for a day filled with kicking and screaming.
One thing I always looked forward, almost more than the games themselves, was the snacks to be had afterward. It usually rotated through the season from parent to parent. It was a good way to gauge what type of parents they were by what they brought. The hippies with the no sugar added homemade granola or the lazy overweight ones that brought the store bought Little Debbie snack cakes.
Some weekends were great and sometimes it was a huge let down. I always felt bad for the kid with the divorced parents whose dad forgot to even bring the snacks on his day and had to run down to 7-Eleven during the game. Here is our list of the Top 10 Saturday soccer morning snacks…and we want to give a big thank you to all the moms out there who treat us to these delectable treats.
10.) Ants on a Log
It was always nice to get a stick of celery smothered in peanut butter and topped with raisins. This was a rare item but always enjoyable. This was from a mom that put a little love and pride into what she brought.
9.) Kudos Bars
Probably one of the more common items, you really couldn’t go wrong with any flavor of Kudos bars. I don’t think I’ve eaten these anywhere else but on a soccer pitch. (more…)
We all like to play with our food but I doubt if any of you have gone so far as creating masterpieces like these. The time and the effort put into these wonderful creations blows my mind. It’s almost a shame that they have to be eaten…but if they’re as delicious as they look then that makes for one heck of a lunch.
Real men eat breakfast, there’s no question about it…and for some of us its the biggest meal of the day. Whether you’re eating a big ass pile of bacon….or chugging down a glass of 15W40, these breakfasts will be sure to get you started in the right way. I think Grandpa Gustafson put it best:
The good folks over at Insurance.com have come up with the 10 most dangerous foods to eat while driving. We all know that driving and eating is probably not the smartest thing, although decidedly less risky than other things…say, driving while making love (not that I’d know). In order to save time in this fast paced world we’ve all been guilty of it, the eating in the car…not the sex.
They claim the bad habit of munching while navigating traffic can lead to an average increase of 25% in your insurance costs and that most accidents associated with this behavior are rear-ending the car in front of you. In general 80% percent of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involve driver distraction…well I don’t think I needed a study to tell me that.
If all this food makes you hungry for dessert head over to TechVert to see how to make your own DIY Cotton Candy machine at home.
1. Coffee
Obviously the number one item that people will be consuming in their rides next to soda or another drink. This would pull the top spot due to the temperature and the fact that you can never seem to get that lid on their quite right and just as you’re running through a yellow light it spills all over your good khakis.
2. Hot soup
I’m not sure who is consuming “hot soup” in the cars, not to mention who eats “cold soup”, but I guess I can see why this would make the list…in the same way that maybe eating sushi with chopsticks really should have been number one.
If the old Chiquita girl wasn’t cutting it for your bananas you’re in luck. Designer, DJ Neff, has done a rebranding for the potassium rich fruit. There is a very thorough post on Design Related with the artist (with a lot more pictures). You will see them on the wonderfully yellow (and phalic) delights in your local supermarket soon. The stickers are just part of entire new campaign which includes a new website (with a few flash games, custom stickers, etc.), a Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and some new slogans:
Take a moment to read through the previous episodes, especially the first one if you haven’t already. It will give you a better understanding of the “characters” involved with the show and with the rules and procedures for the BBQ competition circuit.
This episode was the Big Pig Jig in Veinna, Georgia, Myron Mixon’s home town. He’s also won the competition 4 times and looking for his 5th. It’s a Memphis Barbecue Network event and different than the others that have been featured on the show previously. There are three categories, pork ribs, pork shoulder and whole hog.
Again, as always, there were some people that weren’t featured. This episode left out LeAnn Whippen and Harry Soo. In TLCs defense they didn’t compete in this one so it’s obvious to exclude them (although I swear I heard Harry in the crowd) but that’s not always the case.
They finally showed Jamie Geer of Jambo Pits. He’s been popular on the competition scene and he is the manufacturer of a lot of the competitors pits. He decided only to cook ribs as did Johnny Trigg so they had a small battle going on. They’ve know each other for over 20 years and they went back and forth a bit.
Tuffy Stone had never cooked whole hog so he brought in buddy Jack McDavid who is supposed to be an expert on the subject. He says that he’s got over 50 years experience doing it and he tries to impart some of that knowledge on Tuffy.
Big Pig Jig
Location: Vienna, Georgia
Date: November 6-7, 2009
Categories: Pork Ribs, Pork Shoulder & Whole Hog
Total Competitors: 120
Promoter: Memphis Barbecue Network Website – Results
Think that’s a toy…think again. This is an actual, for real, edible meal. Brought to you by the Japanese geniuses at Golden Brown in Tokyo. Inside you’ll find four small beef patties, buns, cheese, a small head of iceburg lettuce, tomatoes, ketchup and mayonnaise. All the fixings you need to have a wonderful meal. Flip over the lid and you’ll find all the handy instructions on how to cook and assemble your wonderful American delicacy.
I’m sorry, but if I had this available to me I’d be eating it for every meal. The box does contain a few warnings:
Attention! GOLDEN BROWN Burger is Yummy and so much more!
Please! Remember to clean up your drools.
DANGER: Your mouth watering may not stop.
CAUTION: We are not responsible for your drooling.
Take a moment to read through the previous episodes, especially the first one if you haven’t already. It will give you a better understanding of the “characters” involved with the show and with the rules and procedures for the BBQ competition circuit.
This episode covered the Dover Delaware BBQ Championship that took place last October 16th and 17th. There was a total of 81 competitors and $15,000 at stake. The biggest thing here was certainly the weather. They continued to mention the hardships that were brought up by trying to cook in such cold conditions. It was very difficult for a lot of the cooks to maintain the proper temperatures to cook their meats the way they would like. They attempted to insulate their barbecues with mats and blankets. That’s not to mention having to be out in the cold and rain to actually cook too.
As always there were a couple of people from the 6 featured throughout the show that didn’t make this particular episode. There was no mention of either Johnny Trigg or Paul Petersen this time. The show mainly featured the competition between Myron and Tuffy. Tuffy has beat Myron the last three years in Dover and on top of that Tuffy supplied Myron with his brisket because his was not going to arrive in time.
LeAnn was featured a lot as well. She had a lot of problems because she normally has the help from her boyfriend of three years Billy but we learn that they have split up and she is not going to have his aide. She brings along her 10-year-old daughter Sam to help. Sam is knowledgeable and is able to help LeAnn but there is a lot of things that Billy would normally do that either LeAnn has to end up doing herself or just doesn’t know how to do it.
Another fun thing in this episode was Harry Soo’s buddy Gary Notley branching off from Slap Yo’ Daddy BBQ and competing against him as Notley Que. Harry taught Gary a lot of what he knows about BBQ and it was interesting to see them compete. It’s not entirely new for them, they’ve been up against each other several times on the California BBQ competition scene.
How many times have you stepped out from Victoria’s Secret or Abercrombie and Fitch, hands loaded with bags, legs weary from walking and a stomach that’s beginning to sound like Chewbacca? Just when you’re about to give up and dive into a full-blown Kanye West tantrum you eye the oasis that is…..the Food Court. You wade through the teenie-boppers, the goths, the skaters, the soccer moms, the cougars and then you’re hit with the dilemma…where do I eat? Worry no more lone shopper, you have been saved. Follow this handy flowchart and you’ll be back out there stimulating the economy in no time. You don’t need travel brochures to find lunch!
