Vampire Cupcakes That Bleed:

Posted by Cory Doctorow, boing boing

Claire sez, "Maybe I've seen one too many horror movies already this year, but I'm totally into the idea of a Halloween cupcake that bleeds when you bite into it. Especially since they bleed cherry filling (actual blood would probably put me right off cupcakes)."

I baked my cupcakes, used the cupcake-filling technique I used on my devil's food cupcakes to fill the cakes up with pureed cherry pie filling (canned or homemade) and topped them off with white icing to best accentuate the red bite marks. I made the marks using a skewer dipped in leftover cherry filling, making sure to leave a clear impression of a fang bite, rather than just a red streak on top of the cake.

LINK

LOL CTHULHU: Elder Gods meet LOL Cats:

Posted by Cory Doctorow
boingboing




LOLCTHULHU: Like LOLCats, but with the covers from HP LOLcraft Lovecraft.

Link

Stereo 3D Retro Erotica:

LINK to a Flickr set of old photos, mostly nudes, all in stereoscopic 3D. Some appear to be very old (1900s?), others from the '50s and '60s.
(thanks, jay)

posted by Xeni Jardin | BOING BOING

Expensive Coffee From Crap:

Indonesia kopi iuwak is a rare kind of coffee that apparently goes for $30/cup in some fancy Hong Kong hotels. The secret to its reportedly fine flavor is that the beans are collected, swallowed, and crapped back out by wild civets, small, arboreal mammals that are currently endangered. Today's Los Angeles Times tells the story of the $600/pound coffee. The article quotes Canadian food scientist Massimo Marcone, author of a new book that sounds fascinating: In Bad Taste?: The Science and Adventures Behind Food Delicacies. From the Los Angeles Times:

In the animals' stomachs, enzymes in the gastric juices massage the beans, smoothing off the harsh edges that make coffee bitter and produce caffeine jitters. Humans then separate the greenish-brown beans from the rest of the dung, and once a thin outer layer is removed, they are ready for roasting....


Days before the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami struck, Marcone was in Indonesia's Sumatran rain forest, where he collected about 10 pounds of civet droppings laced with coffee beans. He now uses it as "the gold standard" to rate other kopi luwaks in his lab at the University of Guelph in Ontario.



Like a forensic scientist reading a bullet's markings, Marcone stares at kopi luwak under an electron microscope, searching for striations that tell him that a civet excreted it. His studies found that kopi luwak drinkers need to be careful to avoid being duped.



"About 42% of all the kopi luwaks that are presently on sale are either adulterated or complete fakes, unfortunately," he said.



Real kopi luwak has a top note of rich, dark chocolate, with secondary notes that are musty and earthy, the scientist said. An Indonesian coffee lover described the scent as the smell of moist earth after a rainfall, with hints of vanilla, that teases the palate for hours after the cup is empty.

Link to Los Angeles Times, Link to buy In Bad Taste (Thanks, Bob Pescovitz!)

Creepy, Interesting, & Real:

BOING BOING:

Fursuits and /b/tards clash outside furry-con at Pittsburgh hotel. "Yiff in hell," reads the protest sign. Link.

16-year-old drummer of San Francisco punk rock band (Tinkture) loses most of her hand Wednesday night after someone tosses live fireworks at her in Dolores Park. Link. Her father wants to know who is responsible for maiming his daughter, and offers a $20K reward: Link.

San Diego cops arrest guy withdrawing cash from bank because he was wearing life-sized, gun-shaped belt buckle. “They called me an idiot and said 'I can't believe you were wearing that right now.'” Link.

Rare genetic mutation causes whippet dog to resemble Schwarzenegger: Link

Steampunk Barbeque Dreadnought: 1.5HP International Harvester Steam Tractor, with built in barbeque grill (complete with rotisserie), a built in steam powered ice cream maker, and hot dog launching air cannon run off a compressor, also powered by the steam engine. eBay Link.

Accused Texas downloader lady sues RIAA and Sony BMG Music, claiming they employed unlicensed private investigators and knew they were ignoring state laws. Link.

1,000 immigrants sworn in as US Citizens in DisneyWorld on July 4: Link.

Wading pool drain sucks out 6-year-old girl's intestines. Link.

All my sweet childhood memories of Alvin and the Chipmunks destroyed by new CGI movie. Now they're rapping, photorealistic assholes: Link, Link 2, Link 3

(Thanks, Chris, Kevin Evans, Ted Nugnt, David Chasteen, Michael Hayes, Landon, Kevin, Tavie, The Wicked One, Dustin)

Skeletal Suitcase:

BOING BOING
by David Pescovitz

Fashion designer Alexander McQueen created a luggage collection for Samsonite, including this gorgeous 20" upright model. Called the Hero, it's available in black or ivory/bone for $750. From the product description:
The human form is treated just like an animal skin, with the ribcage and sternum at the front of the case, and backbone at the back. The inside is formed by the negative of the outside shape in a soft molded form providing contrast with the outer protective hard shell.

Link (Thanks, Kelly Sparks!)

Solar Beach Tote Charges Your Phone:

The Juice Bag is a beach tote with an integrated solar panel that will charge your phone, camera, laptop and MP3 player while you manufacture vitamin D.
Link
(via Gizmodo)

posted by Cory Doctorow / Boing Boing