From the first episode, I knew OITNB would use food creatively. They roast a whole pig on her last night before prison! I knew I was definitely not wrong when Piper got a tampon breakfast sandwich on her first day (I think??) in jail. I've been wanting to make something from the show for a while, and have a lot of options, but I'm behind and a friend of mine suggested I make Flamin' Hot Cheetos based on a story arc from the current season. You don't have to worry about spoilers because I need to catch up and only know what I've read for context that the governor sent a goodwill gift that included the spicy snack in a shipment. This is yet another experiment in making store-bought things homemade and I'm not sure if it's worth the effort, but they were tasty and the coating would definitely work as a versatile seasoning for a lot of snacks (it was originally intended for popcorn).
Read moreLet's Potato Chips [so many shows]
TV is funny because it's creating little realities that many times seem to exist in a parallel universe, one that includes food and brands that don't exist in our world. Sure, we're used to really obvious and maybe less obvious product placement at this point, but it's more fun when things are made up, or in this case, a TV industry-wide inside joke. There have been a few different stories (and even a now-defunct blog) about the famous Let's potato chips that pervade TV—spanning networks, genres and decades, and it's fun to compare how the fictional brand is used in different fictional worlds.
Read more#tbt Gavin Volure's not-potpourri veggie chips [30 Rock]
If Tina Fey is the female and comedy icon we all aspire to be, then Liz Lemon is the food icon we all recognize in ourselves. 30 Rock's episodes are dense with both jokes and food references, and the fictional food is used perfectly in the show. Liz Lemon falls at about Lorelai Gilmore levels of healthy when it comes to her diet, but that doesn't mean healthy food can't be extracted from moments in the show.
When Liz accompanies Jack to rich, house-arrested businessman Gavin Volure's fancy house, she puts on a dress in place of her usual jeans and flannel, but that doesn't give her appetite a makeover. She reaches for a bowl of dried something at the table instead of engaging Jack in conversation, but it turns out to be potpourri or "these are not chips." Here, I offer the alternative outcome.
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