The Deep Fried Twinkie

It never fails me. The more I seem to care about my health and physical wellbeing, the more I fall deeper into the deep fried pit of all things greasy. It’s much like driving a car down the road and seeing a piece of debris in the road; focusing on the chunk of debris and determined not to run it over- Thud! You run smack dab right into it.

This week, the road debris I ran right into was a deep fried Twinkie. Now, as an avid reader of www.thisiswhyyourefat.com , I am no stranger to all things fatty and deep fried. For example: The DUI- French fries covered with chili cheese, carne asada and pastrami

The Royal Flush- A pile of 3 sunny side up eggs, beans, red chile sauce, cheddar cheese, 4 corn tortillas and 3 hash browned potatoes.

and of course Tempura Bacon

So while in Moab, Utah, at the Broken Oar Grill, seeing Deep Fried Twinkie on the menu just seemed the natural choice. Perhaps after looking at so much culinary porn on thisiswhyyourefat.com, my judgement for what is acceptable as a healthy part of a balanced diet has been skewed somewhat. I'm not sure. But I do know it was delicious.

I won't even try to describe what that deep fried delight was like, I'll leave that to the pros, but it was a great bump in my road of healthy eating. "Something magical occurs when the pastry hits the hot oil. The creamy white vegetable shortening filling liquefies, impregnating the sponge cake with its luscious vanilla flavor... The cake itself softens and warms, nearly melting, contrasting with the crisp, deep-fried crust in a buttery and suave way. The piece de resistance, however, is a ruby-hued berry sauce, adding a tart sophistication to all that airy sugary goodness." -"Fry That Twinkie, But Hold the Chips". The New York Times. 2002-05-15.

Sept 7th Mix Tape - Cave In

For those of you who have given up on CD's and are now buying all your music on itunes, I feel sorry for you. There is nothing more rewarding than happening upon an album that you haven't listened to in years and then rediscovering why you bought it in the first place. This is what happened to me as I moved my CD collection into a new shelf and found my Cave In LP and EP's.

I was first exposed to Cave In by music guru Brecon Powell around 2000. Brecon was my source of all things emo and indie (genres which at the time didn't carry the teen angst, hot topic, skinny jeans stigma that plague them now). He made me a copy of the new "Jupiter" album.

The two albums prior to "Jupiter" were straight up hardcore albums. However "Jupiter" showcased the band's newly found sound that Spin Magazine called "emo-metal Radiohead." The heavy influences of their hardcore past mixed with space rock makes for a unique and addicting combination.

Cave In has since released two more LP's and a slough of EP's and singles. If you are into Incubus, Sense Field, or Radiohead, chances are you'll dig Cave In. Go pick up one of their albums and hold on to it, file it in your collection, and then rediscover it!