2014 Pumpkin Beer Masterlist

This year’s winner: Elysian’s Punkuccino. I was a little skeptical of a coffee-chocolate-pumpkin beer, but the flavors are perfectly balanced–a molasses-malt head, rich pumpkin, coffee, and stout with a little sweetness.   I got to try a lot of these at the Great Pumpkin Beer Festival–highly recommend the event. Special thanks to my family in…

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Marketing Halloween in Japan: Krispy Skremes

Today’s post is about shifts in marketing: which brands continue to produce Halloween-themed goods/advertising and which don’t. Also doughnuts. Mister Donut decided to go with fall-themed cronuts this year: crushed chestnut whip, apple-custard pie, and cherry-cream pie. Meanwhile, Krispy Kreme Japan went full-out Halloween with “Krispy Skremes,” and they are not messing around:

Marketing Halloween in Japan: Pocky

Pocky’s been doing Halloween-themed packaging for a few years but I hadn’t written about it because the product was the same. This year, Pocky has Halloween packaging for the normal chocolate and strawberry flavors:   But also a Kumamon(the mascot of Kumamoto prefecture)-themed “sweet pumpkin” flavor that I found out about via @inheritingexile’s Instagram.

Marketing Halloween in Japan 2014: KFC Halloween Bucket

It’s that time again! As I’ve written before, Halloween has exploded into the Japanese food scene. Ten years ago, there were–as to be expected–barely any Halloween specials or goods. An increasingly large cultural shift toward Halloween as popular (children’s) holiday began sometime around 2010. While some of the shift was motivated by consumer demand, the ramped up…

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Fig-Almond Muffins (Dairy-Free)

More muffins! These fig-almond muffins are perfect for autumn. If you’re looking for a break from all the cinnamon and pumpkin products, try one of these!

Bored of Sexism in Craft Beer, 2014 ed.: Pig Minds

In a case of “same problem, different brewer,” Pig Minds has released a “panty dropper” complete with a sexist label: [sarcasm] I mean, what do you expect, with a name like “Pig Minds”?!1 They’re so edgy and you just know it’s going to push the boundaries, so lighten up, ugh! [/sarcasm] Do we really have to…

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White Bread: A Social History of the Store-Bought Loaf

White Bread: A Social History of the Store-Bought Loaf Aaron Bobrow-Strain Beacon Press, Boston. 2012 I read or acquired a number of books last year on food/social history that I meant to review and didn’t because of the move. Let’s start with White Bread: A Social History of the Store-Bought Loaf, which not only does what…

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Recipe Redo: Rosemary-Orange Ricotta Muffins v2.0

Plenty of food bloggers redo their own recipes after a couple years, but has anyone redone one after two months? I was making a double-batch of Rosemary-Orange Ricotta Muffins for Saturday-morning Fannibal (rewatching with an old friend). I didn’t have my oranges yield enough juice, so I substituted soy milk for half of the orange juice;…

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Slow-Cooker Heirloom Tomato Sauce

I really missed my Crock Pot while I was in Japan. You can definitely buy a reasonably-priced slow cooker (surô kukkâ, スロークッカー) online or large homegoods stores. A rice-cooker can double as a slow cooker for many recipes, but since the purpose of the rice cooker is to get the moisture out, it may not…

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