MEAT CARDS: BUSINESS CARDS MADE FROM MEAT AND LASERS.

We love a direct marketing approach. "Meat Cards" -- pure beef jerky etched with your information using lasers (sorry, "a 150 WATT CO2 LASER") -- take off where the bacon explosion, flaming bacon lance of death and meat art stop.

Why should you care? Because they'll "retain value after the econopocalypse," of course: "Hoard and barter your calorie-rich, life-sustaining cards." Bust these suckers out at the next Bar Association meeting or snack on them when stuck on the subway.

Follow the meatheads' Twitter to find out when to avail yourself of these treasures.

[Via Boing Boing]

Some folks in Pittsburgh were taking a class in robot art when they were inspired them to make an all-edible robot. Thus Nano Krispies were born, a sculpted Rice Krispies treat that has a frighteningly human-like physique. They have a website with instructions on how to make your own, a list of what foods work well for robot sculpting and an instructional video (with incongruous background music) that has helpful tips like, "don't lose a finger!" This a concept that takes playing with your food to a whole new level. This food might just turn around and play back.

Photo credit
Via BoingBoing

Are you the type of person who just happens to love tea and penguins? Have I got a product for you.

It's the Penguin Teaboy, a cute little item you can put on your kitchen counter or table. You hang a teabag from the penguin's beak and set the timer and the little guy lowers the tea bag into the water until you have a perfect cup of tea. You can set it for as short a time as 1 minute (if you like it weak) or as long as 20 (which will be stronger but I assume...colder?). It doesn't look like it works with loose tea.

I don't think the penguin has a name, but if I buy one I'm going to call it "Clyde."

[via Boing Boing]

By now, everyone who knows anything about gross candies must have heard of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, the Harry Potter-inspired candy that includes such questionable flavors as earwax and vomit. But what about Harry Potter Cockroach Clusters or the dreaded Chocka-Ca-Ca.

Thanks to the kind folks over at Candy Addict, I now know more about gross candies than I ever wanted to after reading their list of the Top 10 Grossest Candies. Some of these stomach-curdling confections are bug-focused as in the Cockroach Clusters (No. 7) and White Chocolate Maggots (No. 10). And some get their grossness from bodily functions, most notably the Chocka-Ca-Ca (No. 5), Ear Wax Candy (No. 3) and Hose Nose (No. 9). In my book, Hose Nose gets a higher rating. After all, it's a nose-shaped dispenser that you strap to your face, which drips candy slime for you to catch on your tongue.

And just what candy gets the grand prize? Lick Your Wounds, a replica of an adhesive bandage. You stick it to your skin and expose the candy scab, licking whenever you get the urge. Alas, the days of ring pops are long gone.

[via Boing Boing]

Xeni Jardin over at Boing Boing recently dedicated a Web Zen post to barbecue. Biggles over at MeatHenge gets a nod, as does the table of condiments that periodically go bad. I'd never seen Barbecue'n before, and will definitely have to give it a more thorough read. I'm still not sure what to make of the meat hats. Yes, a yarmulke of brisket is impressive, but is it tasty? It would be the perfect thing to wear while eating your meat cake. Boing Boing has plenty of other links, including several about 'cue fixins.

Personally, I don't have a problem trying strange meats. I might try them only once, but if other people are willing to eat them than so am I. I do draw a firm line somewhere, but there are probably hundreds of options of edible critters without getting too specific with regard to breed. Over at Boing Boing, they captured a neat shot of a roasted, teriyaki-glazed alligator, an image you may want to avoid if you are a vegetarian. Of course, they followed up with a vegetarian version, pictured above, for non-experimental meat eaters. I've had alligator, rattlesnake and kangaroo, in addition to the much more ordinary bison and ostrich. The kangaroo reminded me of lamb and had a nice flavor with a bit of a gamey taste. The rattlesnake had a meltingly tender, flaky texture. What's the weirdest meat you've eaten?

[Image via Boing Boing]

Back in October, I posted about sculptures of Darth Vader and Yoda made from roughly half a ton of butter. Today, boingboing featured a post about food sculptor Jim Victor. I don't believe that Victor is the one responsible for the Star Wars butter sculptures, but his portfolio of sculptures made from butter, as well as cheese, chocolate and pasta, is pretty impressive.

MetaFilter also has several links to other butter sculpture sites, including some great photos of butter sculptures done by Tibetan monks (right). Butter, a noble medium indeed.

Old is new again as vintage cookbooks are rediscovered online. These books, previously relegated to the back of closets everywhere, are being dusted off, opened and enjoyed. They were even the subject of a blogging event. They range from the insightful - perhaps an old Joy of Cooking - to the bizarre, like this old copy of The Ground Meat Cookbook from the 50s found via BoingBoing.

The cookbook contains "204 intriguing ground meat recipes", but also contains general cooking tips, lovely illustrations and surprisingly appetizing photography. It is unlikely I would want to try the "Jellied Veal Loaf", but I do think I will take a look through the back of my grandparents' kitchen cupboard the next time I visit.