April Foods Day
We can’t believe these foods are real
I’ve always believed that the kitchen is a playground and that food is a medium we should continue to innovate with as much as possible, and I’m clearly not the only one who feels that way considering how many new food creations and combos are constantly popping up. That said, some new ideas for products, pairing and palates have caught my eye for their sheer absurdity, and in some cases – brilliance, and I could easily understand why people might look at the below list and think they belong to an elaborate April Fools Day Prank.
Here’s my list of foods I can’t believe are real:
Image: 3DFP Ventures Ltd.
Image: Kickstarter
Tomato sauce slices
That’s right, this idea made headlines a few years ago with its ambitious run and appeal for crowdfunding to get it onto shelves everywhere, something that didn’t really take off. The idea is to purchase a pack of tomato sauce slices like how you would buy a pack of cheese slices, and then use it for burgers and sandwiches etc. In theory the slices lack moisture and won’t cause your bread to go soggy or to potentially spill and make a mess. The idea apparently came about when one of the founders accidentally mixed leftover vegetables left over from a homemade BBQ sauce recipe. While the idea is innovative for sure I’m not sure how I’d feel taking the ‘sauce’ out of tomato sauce.
Insect ice-cream
That’s right, you can purchase ice-cream and other ‘dairy’ products with the milk alternative of EntoMilk™, a liquid harvested from insects. While the idea might not make your mouth water at first EntoMilk™, is a fascinating extension of Entomophagy, the practice of eating insects, and has some interesting benefits. The milk alternative contains no sugar or carbs and the insects used do not produce greenhouse gases like other agricultural animals. Insect ice-cream anyone?
Polony flavoured cheese
This interesting 2-in-1 product hit the shelves a few years ago and made quite a storm with its ambitious promise to mix the flavours of polony and cheese into one cheese slice suited for your lunchtime sandwiches. While the world was divided at the time of its launch and a few polony purists raised their eyebrows, I must give respect to this very economical idea for sandwich making.
Canned bread
This oddball pantry item has been around for a while and is still on shelves in the United States where it was popular in the early 1900s. The obvious attraction here is the extended shelf life of your ‘bread’, though you do have to work within the parameters of its very specific tin can dimensions.
While some of the above might make you raise an eyebrow, it’s worth remembering products like instant noodles, microwave popcorn and chewing gum were also once exciting new inventions before becoming commonplace snack cupboard goodies. Who is to say what the next big success story will be? April
Image: Sarah Debraski
Image: 3DFP Ventures Ltd.
3-D printed food
While it looks and sounds like something straight out of Star Trek, or an April Fools Day prank, 3D printed food is indeed a reality and might be a solution to issues facing our current food chains. 3D printing is the process of creating three-dimensional objects directly from digital files. The process for 3D printed food is largely the same and involves a printer heating up edible ingredients before ‘printing’ them, or building them, layer by layer into a tangible food product within a relatively quick period. Foods that have been successfully 3D printed include pizzas, spaghetti, meat, and chocolate.
