Friday, October 2, 2009

Bug Appetit


As the days continue to get shorter and cooler thoughts seemingly gravitate to Halloween. A season filled with haunted houses, jack-o-lanterns and chocolate – chocolate covered insects. Now, that's creepy.

When I realized that October 14th was National Chocolate Covered Insect Day I just had to get my hands on some. My search began on line. There I found a few sites that sold small individual packets to retailers by the case. Too much for the culinary curious. So, I called a few local candy stores and came up empty handed. I finally found a place that sold in small quantities. Educational Innovations (http://www.teachersource.com/) sells a package of 4 chocolate covered insects for $2.95. I placed my order and they arrived soon after. And no one, I mean no one, wanted to try them. Come on, just one. You will never know until you try.

I admit it is a little creepy looking and the thought of eating one is scary. Face your fear. So, I took a deep breath, chewed, tasted and swallowed a chocolate covered insect that tasted a little like popcorn, chocolate covered popcorn. It's a good thing I like chocolate. You never know until you try.

Fun Bug Facts

Crickets (per 100 grams) equals
13 grams of protein
5 grams of carbs
5 grams of fat

Over 1500 different species of insects have been reported as edible