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Cheesus Lives!

YumSugar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:28:31 -0700

Most people find Jesus at church, but Steve Cragg found Jesus in a Cheeto. While snacking down one day, the youth director at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston noticed that his Cheeto resembled Jesus.

The find, which has been dubbed "Cheesus" lives prominently on Cragg's bookcase. When asked about it, Cragg said:

If you're looking for God in different places, you can find God in different places. I don't think God makes Cheetos that look like Jesus. I'm not sure he does grilled cheese sandwiches that look like the Virgin Mary. I do know that God reveals himself to us in a lot of different ways.

So although he doesn't make them shaped like Jesus, God apparently reveals himself in Cheetos.

What I'm wondering is, if an Illinois-shaped cornflake can sell for over a thousand dollars, how much Cragg would get for his find?

To watch the video where Cragg talks about his discovery and how he first thought it looked like a dog, read more.

Blessed Be Thy Chocolate

YumSugar — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:28:31 -0700

Quick, what comes to mind when you think Easter? I bet some of you said Chocolate Bunnies and some of you probably said Jesus, but did any of you say Chocolate Jesus??

Artist Cosimo Cavallaro has created a confectionary Christ made from more than 200 pounds of chocolate (entitled "My Sweet Lord"). The folks at Esquire have even broken down the nutrition facts for the anatomically correct chocolate Jesus. The sculpture will be revealed to the public on April 1st (which, by the way, made me think it was a joke when I first read it) at the Lab gallery in the Roger Smith Hotel in New York. The creative director of the gallery, Matt Semler, says, "The sign of any great artist is how their work affects the observer."

So how are you affected by it?

Update: Due to the large number of protests, it looks like the Chocolate Jesus won't be shown afterall.

Source: Esquire

10 Things You Probably Don't Know About Thomas Keller

YumSugar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:50:09 -0700

On this Wednesday, we don't just celebrate Hump Day for the week; we also honor French Laundry chef and restaurant legend Thomas Keller, who turns 54 today. The culinary pioneer - who's been called everything from the food industry's Yoda to Father Jesus Keller - shows no signs of slowing down. He's about to open a Bouchon restaurant in LA and a new inn in Napa Valley. Although chef Keller gets plenty of press, he still manages to keep a lot of his personal life under wraps. Here, 10 things you probably would never have guessed about him.
Source: WireImage

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Holy Grilled Cheese

YumSugar — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 07:51:32 -0700

Remember when the grilled cheese with the Virgin Mary on it sold for $28,000? I was totally mystified, I couldn't believe someone would pay that much for a grilled cheese. If Mary fetched that much, imagine how much one with Jesus on it would go for. Actually, I don't know if it would go for that much, thanks to the Jesus Pan everyone can make their own Jesus grilled cheese. I think grilled cheese just got a little more heavenly...

This "As Seen On TV" gadget (although I've never seen it on TV), comes in a set of two for $29.99. And if you're not into grilled cheese (and if that's the case I'm not sure how we can remain friends), don't forget, you can always make heavenly hotcakes, or steaks instead.

Out of Hell: Sharon the Barbie Sent Home

partysugar — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 09:55:15 -0700

Sharon - who was affectionately called Barbie by her fellow Hell's Kitchen contestants - was this week's eliminated chef. It was a "first time in Hell's Kitchen history" moment when Ramsay kicked Sharon to the curb because she was not up for elimination. Two other girls - Jen and Christina - were on the chopping block, but since Gordon didn't believe in Sharon or her culinary skills, she was the lucky one sent home. To see what Sharon has to say about her time in Hell's Kitchen, read more.

PartySugar: How did it feel to be eliminated when you weren’t up for elimination? What was it like when Gordon said he didn’t believe in you?
Sharon: I was totally shocked. It felt horrible. My heart just dropped to the floor. I felt like the whole time I was there - just because I wore makeup - he didn't trust me.

PS: Is Gordon really as big of a jerk as he seems?
Sharon: In my opinion, yes. Jesus Christ, when he made that comment about my makeup while we were digging out of the trash, I didn't even have any make up on! We woke up really early in the morning and I didn't have time to put any on. After he said that about Hannibal Lector, I will never stick my tongue out again.

PS: What was it like working in the kitchen? Did you ever really feel like you were in Hell?
Sharon: Yeah, absolutely. It was like boot camp. You're not getting enough sleep, you're not eating healthy, you're working 20 hours a day. It was really hard.

PS: Who are you rooting for?
Sharon: I'm rooting for Louross. I think he's a great cook. He's the only one I would really talk to in the house. Nobody really had any relationships with any of the others. Especially the girls. In all honesty, none of us got along great, none of us liked each other.

PS: Any tips for those applying for Season 5?
Sharon: Be aware of what you are getting into. Those people who don't think we know how to cook should try out. You have to know how to cook and it's really hard. Study your risotto!

Photos courtesy of Fox.

Top Chef 3.3 - Family Favorites Recap

YumSugar — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:11:02 -0700

*Zzzzzz* Oh sorry about that. Last night's Top Chef sorta knocked me out there. Did you guys watch it? What did you think? Although Ted Allen was finally there, and the guest judge - Alfred Portale - had the potential to make it all work, I have to admit, I was utterly bored. Even the challenge - update old school American classics - seemed recycled. I know I'm being a bit hypocritical, first I complain that it's too dramatic and not focused on the food, and now I'm complaining that there's not enough drama. Can't I have my cake and eat it too? Or should that be, have my conch and eat it too? If you're still curious to see what happened, and there is actually one small off-air controversy, read more

The show begins with Padma unveiling a large tank full of shellfish. Each contestant then steps up to the tank and fills the net as full as they can. They each can only take what they get in one scoop. Hung is up first and immediately begins fishing around for the best bits. His fellow cheftestants seem a bit upset by this and Sara N. even declares, "Jesus Hung, save some for the rest of us."

Once he's done with his haul - he actually drops one and disrespectfully says he doesn't need it - the rest of the folks get theirs. Tre ends up getting a small amount, while others get things they've never worked with. In the end the bottom 3 quickfire dishes are Micah's (girl really needed some help getting the conch out of its shell), Camille's (who?) and Tre's (looks like my current fave is really slipping). The top 3 are: Howie (who's back from the chopping block), CJ (who's dish actually looked unappetizing to me) and Brian (who works with seafood on a regular basis). The overall winner is Brian who receives immunity from the elimination.

After the quickfire, the chefs now select "traditional family favorites" to update. Only there's one small catch, instead of just updating them, they have to update them into modern low cholesterol meals. Hung, who the editors have started to make out as the "bad guy" declares to the camera, "All those dishes look disgusting to me." Unfortunately for him, since he got to choose shellfish first, he had to choose his traditional dish last (fried chicken). Once dishes are selected they have $75 to shop, 30 minutes to prep and two hours to cook on location at the Miami Elk's Club Lodge.

We keep getting info about Dale's pre-cooked chicken and instant mashed potatoes, making us believe he's going to be ousted, but woah ho! That's just fancy editing! Dale actually ended up in the top 2 - that's right they only chose 2 top dishes - along with Howie. In the end Howie wins with his Fennel Crusted Pork Chops. However I think it was only because Dale's chicken & dumplings were partially store bought.

So now that you know the winners, how about the losers? Oh my there were actually quite a few disasters. In fact 5 people are called into judge's panel: Micah, CJ, Lia, Sara and Brian. Since Brian has immunity they can't kick him off, however they bring him in to yell at him for serving a high-cholesterol lobster and for playing it safe with seafood.

Once Brian leaves, the judges then start ripping into the other dishes. Sara M.'s chicken a la king was more like (as Tom said) "chicken don king" as it bore absolutely no resemblance to its dish. Lia didn't do enough cooking on her franks & beans - to which she retorted, "I guess I really didn't understand how complex franks & beans are." CJ's tuna casserole was too green, too muddy and too frightening - although they did give him props for cholesterol-reducing flax seed chips and the fact that he took a risk. However it is Micah, with a terrible meatloaf - Alfred said it was, "Bad. Really Bad." - who is asked to leave.

Now's when I'd like to mention something about Micah. When she served her dish, she made a mention of how "Us Americans" eat it with ketchup. I thought it was condescending, as did the judges. She also makes several references to her not knowing anything about American food - she did this last week too. Now, I'm not one to judge, if she says she's from South Africa, then she's from South Africa. However, there's been a few things uncovered to suggest that she's not really from South Africa after all. Either way, she sounded happy to get off of the show before things turn ugly.

Whether or not it gets uglier, I just hope it gets more interesting. Now back to that nap...

Image Source

What's Yummy This Week

YumSugar — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 00:24:53 -0700

We kicked off wedding season at the Sugar Network. First thing up is an engagement party plan. And speaking of weddings, don't miss out on our five part wedding registry guideline.
Passover begins this Monday, we've got some menu ideas and decorating tips to help you out.
Did you know that Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal were on Molto Mario?
Everyone's "favorite" sleazeball, Joe Francis of Girls Gone Wild, releases his plans to open Girls Gone Wild themed restaurants. Don't worry they're going to be "sexy but not sexual."
To help you out with all your home and centerpiece decor, we started a new series called Flowers 101. First up: Daffodils.

Easter's around the corner, so we have to ask, what do you think about Peeps? Do they remind you of Will Ferrell?!?
Speaking of Easter, everyone's been talking about the anatomically correct chocolate Jesus that was going to be part of an art exhibit.
This week I impress myself with my very own recipe for Goatbread Cookies (shortbread cookies made with goat butter).
And finally, be sure to join the Savory Sights Group and post your great food photos! We'll be giving away a little treat to our favorite image each month!