Wednesday Food and Drink Round-Up

Chow, the former print magazine, kicks off their first web-only issue with a recipe for Chocolate Ding-a-Lings! Photo by Dwight Eschliman

DIY Snackie Cakes
“Did you hear the one about how Hostess hasn’t made any new Twinkies in 25 years? Or how Twinkies are made with embalming fluid? We’re not sure why, but the shelf life of Twinkies seems to receive a lot of attention. To set the record straight, the Hostess people say a Twinkie will stay fresh for only 25 days, though they’re awfully cagey about letting people tour the factory… we’ve been tinkering ourselves, and we’ve come up with what we think are some delicious snack cakes. Complete with cream—not creme—vanilla filling.” [Chow]

After the jump: Review of Baked in Red Hook, and Megnut talks about babies at the restaurant table…

Baked
“We tried a PB Crispy Bar (a homemade rice crispy treat with a thick layer of peanut butter and a very thin layer of chocolate) and a chocolate sandwich cookie (similar to the Bouchon TKO only bigger and fatter. Like a giant homemade Double Stuff Oreo). Both were fantastic. We could really taste the quality of the ingredients. Loved the cream filling in the cookie. It reminded me of the silky smooth buttercream you find at Two Little Red Hens or Cupcake Cafe.” [Chowhound]

Babies and the Tipping Point
“So, when the bill finally comes, our server puts it on the table and says, ‘The tip is included for parties of six or more.’ I rarely mind when the tip is included for large parties, because I know they can be difficult. But usually the service that accompanies the included tip is well earned. I’m not sure that was the case last night. On top of it, we were a party of five adults. As I don’t usually dine with infants, I’m not sure if it’s common to include them in the count. But saying we were a party of seven seems like a stretch.” [Megnut]