Halloween Treats

Nothing says Halloween like waking up to a terrifying, deadly and tear-inducing bladder infection! Woohhoo! You see, when I was just a little mini-fetus in my mother's womb, I thought "Screw this, I don't want to be born a creepy Halloween baby, I'm coming out now". And so I did, on August 11th, 2 1/2 months shy of my Oct. 31st due date.

Since I can remember, Halloween has been SCREWING ME OVER as a little reminder that it was my fate to be born albino, with red eyes, zombie brains, and vampire teeth. So, thank you Halloween, for the little gift...a wonderful excuse to take painkillers and watch Dexter all day.

Keeping with the never-ending food theme of my blog, I thought I would do a little Brazil vs. USA Nancy's Favorite Candies competition.

BUTTERFINGERS VS. PAÇOCA

VS

Paçoca is what I would consider, the "Butterfinger"of Brazil. The insides of a Butterfinger are much harder than a Paçoca and less peanuty, but its the closest match I have found. Although I love me a good Paçoca anyday, I'm gonna have to go with Butterfinger on this one. There is nothing quite like that addictive flaky orange nougat!

PEANUT BRITTLE VS. PÉ DE MOLEQUE

VS.

This one is a tough one. Peanut Brittle, although not the yummiest of candies, is a very nostalgic candy for me. My mom loves it and we would always eat it together...meaning, I would buy it for her as a gift and then sneak into her room to steal peices. Pé de moleque on the other hand is an exciting new friend, with a cute name. I'm not sure the story behind the name which roughly translates to "boy's foot". Although this one is a hard choice, I think exciting new friend trumps klepto daughter's nostalgia. Pé de moleque it is!

MALTED MILK BALLS + MILKY WAY + FORTUNE COOKIE VS. SERENATA DE AMOR

VS.

So it was difficult finding a candy that we have in the US to even compare to the deliciousness of the Serenata de Amor. The best I could come up with would be a kinky hyrbid (trybrid?) between the smooth and creamy interior of a milky way, the crunch factor of a malted milk ball and the witty little surprise inside a fortune cookie. Either way, I think it is safe to say that the American Trybrid does not even come close to beating the Serenata de Amor.

The Great Debate

Before jumping right in, I feel the need to clarify something. This is not a food blog. I just love food. Simple as that, moving on.

I would group Globo Biscoitos in the same category as Farofa, Caldo de Cana, and Brazilian hotdogs. There is nothing initially appetizing about eating sand with your beans, drinking a green frothy liquid made from crushing a giant stick, or diarreah in a bun with peas and french fries on top.

But there is something magical about these unique Brazilian treats that makes me love this country even more. Hell, if you're gonna put ketchup on your hotdog, why stop there? The more the better, right?


Globo Biscoitos look like that stale donut that you found under your couch, eaten from the inside out by all the termites, roaches, ants and critters running around (i'm not much of a cleaner). They cut the roof of your mouth and make you feel like you paid R$2.50 for a bag of air. But oh that air, is so so so sweet.

Globo Biscoitos come in two varieties, doce ou salgado, sweet or salty. Personally, I am a sweet girl, all the way! But I did buy the salty globo canga because I liked the colors more (shhh don't tell!)

When I woke up yesterday to the sun shining and sweat on my upper lip, I thought 'BEACH DAY'! Then my alarm told me 'WORK DAY'! I only work half days, so I spent my 4 hours at work planning my solo beach adventure. It would be my first opportunity since returning to Brazil to sit on the beach with my stupidly cold mate com limão (meia meia) and delicious globo doce.

Too bad for me, I got bogged down with a huge project and never made it to the beach. Oh well, there will be other days.

Globo Tips:

1) Face downwind while you eat them or the spiky little crumbs will stick all over your sweaty beach body.

2) Even though you can buy them in a Zona Norte grocery store for a fraction of the price, buy them on the beach. They are better (name brand!) and you get to support someone who works hard for their money (don't even get me started on grocery store cashiers...)

Which do you all prefer DOCE or SALGADO???

Shout Out!

I just wanted to take a minute to send a shoutout to my secret lover Cajuzinho!

Ugly to look at,

Poop with a peanut inside,

My sugary bliss.

First, give me a break, it was my first haiku. I literally searched ehow to learn the syllable count, then sat here clapping out "poop-with-a-pea-nut-in-side".

If you have never eaten a cajuzinho (and you don't have a nut allergy), stop by any padaria and they should have them. They are wonderful. I think they're made with condensed milk, chocolate, peanuts and a shit ton o' sugar. What confuses me though, is if the little nut sticking out is a peanut or a cashew? I would assume cashew because of the name, but some recipes say it is a peanut. Does anybody know?