…not the kind you do, the kind you drink.

Even though I’m all grown up now, I’ll never forget my gothic roots.  Goth is a phase a great many freethinkers pass through on their way to becoming mature meat eating heathens, and it often starts with cute little ways of acting out like mixing all available soft drinks together into something we called a “suicide”.  Indeed it did look like something no one in their right mind should swallow, but it was usually actually kind of tasty.

Many, many…many years have passed since the last time I went haywire at a soda fountain, but occasionally I still ask the lady at the juice bar for the nourishing version of this drink, or make it myself at home.  Now I will share the recipe for this magical elixer that belies its morbid name.  It’s based on the real flavors that the sodas imitate.

Ingredients:

• juice of 3 tangerines or clementines
• juice of one lime
• 3 soaked prunes
• a handfull of cherries (pits removed)
• a handfull of purple or concord grapes (seeds removed)
• 1/2 teaspoon kola nut powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dry ginger
• 1 tablespoon of honey

Instructions:

Just whizz it all together in a blender or with a hand blender.  You can freeze the grapes and add ice to it if you prefer it slushy.

Welcome to the nutritious underworld!  Muuhuhuhuhahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaah! (That’s evil laughter. XD)

Want to know how to tie up your bento box?  Check out this page with photos and instructions by Yuki Sakuma on the art of furoshiki.

http://www.nanoda.com/en/japan/furoshiki-1000-ways-to-carry-your-bento.html

For those who don’t know already, bento is a Japanese style of arranging a lunch box.  You can learn more about it at Modern Traditional’s Bento pages.  There are also links there to bento bloggers and artists.

For some kids, tomato based chili is too strong tasting and somewhat unpleasant.  So they might prefer a milder tasting chili that is more like a Tex Mex flavored white bean stew.  This one is good with or without the wrapper.  For this recipe, you’ll need to know how to cook beans properly.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups cooked white beans with their surrounding broth
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 sweet green or red bell pepper (seeds removed), chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery with the leaves
• 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon animal fat, ghee, or butter
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• a pinch of black pepper
• a dash of paprika

Instructions:

1. Heat the fat on medium, and then sweat the onion, bell pepper, and celery together.
2. When the onions are clear and just about to brown, add the garlic.
3. When the garlic is hot, add the beans and the herbs and spices.
4. Bring it to a boil, and then turn the heat down to low.
5. Let this simmer covered for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Optionally at the end, you can add some shredded cheese and/or white raisins.

Serve wrapped in tortillas (preferably home made), with a heaping of lettuce, fine julienned cucumbers, tomatoes, and whatever else you usually have with burritos.