#octopus king with... carrots ;)

[amartbee]

vegeta getting tattoos

[vaaaaaiolet]

You take it upon yourself to spice up your husband's work lunches at Rebecca's encouragement, and Leon nearly dies in the process. Is Hello Kitty really a killer? Leon, for one, is convinced she's up to no good.

f / m, you're married to older leon!, crack treated seriously, fluff, slice of life, the dso is just one big happy family because i said so, bento boxes and happy ending but maybe not for chris (i still love my peanut buster king)

word count: 1.4k // read on ao3

a/n: inspired by rrcherrypie's hello kitty bento box video that i watched religiously as a kid. this entire fic is a shitpost tbh LMAO this is my government mandated apology for a story where no one goes anywhere <3 go check it out if you haven't yet!

Ever since his cop days, Leon’s learned that you can’t trust anyone whose hands aren’t in plain sight and well, Hello Kitty’s emblazoned face staring up at him from the kitchen counter doesn’t exactly have hands. Or arms.

Leon scrunches his nose at her and opts to wrap his own arms around your waist instead.

“Doll.”

“Hm?” 

Leon lines the side of your neck with kisses as carrot coins and cucumber slices fall serenely away at your knife. 

“Whatcha doin’?” he prods.

You neatly sweep the vegetables into the Hello Kitty bento box and give your attention-hungry husband a kiss to tide him over, but it’s not quite enough to satiate. Octopus sausages stare back at him with pointy sesame seed eyes, and Leon grows more unsettled by the minute.

He’s done playing nice; gives your hip a pinch. “Come on, you’re killing me here. What’s with all the arts and crafts?”

“Now, before you say anything,” your voice is soft and placating and giving him all the more reason to worry, "‘Becca came by to visit me the other day and said she really liked what I made you for lunch last week.”

“So this is for her?” Leon breathes a sigh of relief. He was starting to thin-

“No, this is for you, silly!”

And you laugh like it’s funny.

“I thought I should start putting in some more effort into your food. You’re away for work so often, and I don’t get to make you nice things as much as I want to.”

Leon chokes a little and looks back down at Hello Kitty’s gleaming metal face. “This is…what I’m taking to work?”

Your face falls. “What, you don’t like it?”

“No, doll, it looks delicious but…you really didn’t have to go all out. Your sandwiches are just fine. I don’t wanna give you the trouble, y’know?” 

“No trouble at all, baby,” you practically sing the words as you twirl to add your knife to a precarious tower of dishes in the sink, “you just say the word, and I can make you bento boxes every week.”

Every week?

You cup a soapy palm to Leon’s cheek as his gaze descends into a thousand-yard stare to rival Hello Kitty’s. “I think your friends might even be excited about your lunch now!”

Oh, absolutely. Chris was going to have a field day.

Chris completely loses his shit as predicted.

“Oh, Leon, it’s adorable,” Rebecca chimes in hopefully as Chris coughs into his fist, “you should have seen how excited she was when I gave her the box!”

The frustrated ceramic click of Leon’s teeth is somehow audible over Chris’ uncivilized howling. “So this was your idea?”

She gives him a sheepish chuckle.

“Rebecca, I thought we were friends,” he pleads as he picks up his metal fork. The team hovers over Leon’s shoulders like vultures to eye what his wife’s made him for lunch. 

To your credit, it’s a mealtime Michelangelo. There are Sanrio-themed rice balls of both the brown and white variety, vegetables neatly cut and festooned with animal picks, a beautifully folded omelet, and the ever omniscient octopus sausages. Hello Kitty’s metal face guards the entire hoard like a gargoyle. It’s enough to make Leon lose his lunch, but he’d have to have some first to cough it up.

He gives the octopus a tentative poke.

“Seriously, Leon, just man up and eat the damn thing.” Jill takes no nonsense as usual, plucking a carrot from the bed of lettuce and tossing it into her mouth. “Chris is just salty he’s having his fifth protein shake lunch of the week.”

“Am not!”

“Are too!”

It’s never quiet with those two around, but Rebecca gives him an encouraging smile as he gives the octopus a chew. It’s not bad, really. It’s just something about eating something with ey-

Rapid alarm beeps in the main compound snap the team’s attention away from the bento box affair and towards the map in the middle. Rebecca shoots off in her rolling chair to pull up what’s alerting the alarm system, and Hunnigan’s business voice projects into Leon’s earpiece.

“I hope you’ve had a satisfying lunch.” 

He wonders if Hunnigan ever eats as he shoves his bento box into the breast pocket of his leather jacket. 

She, however, is unconcerned. “You’re going to need the energy for the incident we’ve just gotten wind of downtown.”

The situation was supposed to be minor. There were rumors of King Tut’s Curse swirling amongst the museum staff after a rare shipment of Egyptian artifacts, but nobody had taken anything seriously until a janitor walked into the storage room and came back out more dead than alive. Things escalated after the infected janitor wandered into the World War II exhibit and bit the cleaning team there. The staff was horrified, the media was unhelpfully broadcasting the entire thing on live TV, and the DSO had blessedly quieted the whole thing down on that end before directing the case to Leon’s team as a classic T-virus takedown operation.

Easy as pie. Except the undead cleaning crew had gotten ahold of loaded World War II guns, you know, for historical accuracy. 

It’s a cinch for the most part to evacuate the visitors from the museum. Leon ushers terrified middle schoolers out of the exhibits as fast as he can while the rest of his team rounds up the infected, and it’s a routine sweep. He just feels bad for the kiddos.

“But what about the gift sho- AHH!! ” Leon whirls around to see an Infected point a knife bayonet into a terrified sixth-grader’s face. The zombie’s finger pulls back the trigger almost cinematically, and Leon’s not stupid. He’s going to be too late.

The gun fires.

It fires a round directly into his left shoulder as he shoves the kid to safety.

Leon collapses on the ground after shooting the zombie’s head to bits, but his shoulder aches something fierce. Oh God, not again, this time he hasn’t even got Ada to patch him up. He gingerly presses two fingers to the wound and pulls them away to inspect the warm spill of blood, but surprisingly, his fingers come away clean. 

Jill comes running up as he stumbles to his feet. The last of the Infected have been wiped out, she explains frantically, pulling out a roll of gauze, and everything’s secure, but suddenly she stops to peer at his spotless bullet wound.

So it’s not just him. There was definitely a shot, and his shoulder definitely hurts like a bitch. 

But where was the bullet?

You’re chewing your nails down to the quick when Leon walks into the living room later that evening. The quiet shuffle of his shoes falling onto the stand prompts you to smother in him a warm, bakery-scented hug and take him by surprise, but he squeezes you back as much as his shoulder allows.

You sniffle into his leather-clad chest. “I’m so sorry, baby, I just- I saw the news before they stopped the broadcast and I can’t believe they sent you to deal with the riot!”

So that’s what Hunnigan fed the press this time. Practical as always.

“I can’t believe I made you go to work with that stupid lunch,” you carry on, gasping as you spot the bandage peeking through his jacket, “you didn’t like it and you could have died, I’m never-”

“I’m alright, no biggie.” Leon kisses the top of your head, taking you by the arms and sitting you down next to him on the couch. You furiously wipe a tear off your face.

“It’s not alright, I’m never making you anything you don’t like ever again. That bento box is bad juju. I’m telling Rebecca never to buy anything from that shop from now on.”

Okay, so you finally admit the box is creepy. Leon bites back a laugh. 

“Woah, doll, not so fast. You think it’s the box’s fault I got hurt?”

“What else would it be? Today’s the first time you take it to work, and then you get shot on a regular patrol.” You frown as he pulls the Hello Kitty bento out from inside his jacket. “You brought that thing home?”

He chuckles. “Take a look at it. I’ve got you to thank for saving my life.”

You squint at the tin and realize with a startle that a bullet round is lodged smack dab in the middle of Hello Kitty’s yellow nose. Like a goddamn bullseye.

The lunchbox had taken the brunt of the hit, leaving Leon unscathed.

“Incredible.” you breathe out. 

And he’s inclined to agree.

“So, doll,” Leon grins, “got any leftovers for tomorrow? Chris is a really big fan of the octopus things.”

psst, find more of my work here!

comments and reblogs are very much appreciated <3 take care and i love you!

[imsociallyanxiousgetoverit]

List of all SDV and SDV:E (Stardew Valley: Expanded) Giftable Items

Horseradish

Daffodil

Leek

Dandelion

Parsnip

Cave Carrot

Coconut

Cactus

Banana

Sap

Large Egg

Egg

Milk

Large Milk

Green Bean

Cauliflower

Potato

Garlic

Kale

Rhubarb

Melon

Tomato

Morsel

Blueberry

Fiddlehead Fern

Hot Pepper

Wheat

Radish

Red Cabbage

Starfruit

Corn

Rice

Eggplant

Artichoke

Pumpkin

Bokchoy

Yam

Chanterelle

Cranberry

Holly

Beets

Ostrich Egg

Salmonberry

Amouranth

Pale Ale

Hops

Void Egg

Mayonnaise

Duck Mayonnaise

Void Mayonnaise

Clay

Copper Bar

Silver Bar

Gold Bar

Iridium Bar

Refined Quartz

Honey

Pickles

Jam

Beer

Wine

Juice

Clam

Poppy

Copper Ore

Silver Ore

Coal

Gold Ore

Iridium Ore

Wood

Stone

Nautilus Shell

Coral

Summer Shell

Spice Berry

Sea Urchin

Grape

Spring Onion

Strawberry

Sweet Pea

Common Mushroom

Wild Plum

Hazelnut

Blackberry

Winter Root

Crystal Fruit

Snow Yam

Sweet Gem Berry

Crocus

Red Mushroom

Sunflower

Purple Mushroom

Cheese

Goat Cheese

Cloth

Truffle

Truffle Oil

Coffee Bean

Goat Milk

Large Goat Milk

Wool

Duck Egg

Duck Feather

Caviar

Lucky Rabbit’s Foot

Aged Roe

Ancient Fruit

Mead

Tulip

Summer Spangle

Fairy Rose

Blue Jazz

Apple

Green Tea

Apricot

Orange

Peach

Pomegranate

Cherry

Bug Meat

Hardwood

Maple Syrup

Oak Resin

Pine Tar

Slime

Bat Wing

Rusty Blade

Swirl Stone

Solar Essence

Void Essence

Void Pebble

Void Shard

Void Soul

Fiber

Battery

Dinosaur Mayonnaise

Roe

Squid Ink

Tea Leaves

Ginger

Taro Root

Pineapple

Mango

Cinder Shard

Magma Cap

Bone Fragment

Radioactive Ore

Radioactive Bar

Ancient Fiber

Bearberry

Conch

Dried Sand Dollar

Ferngill Primrose

Golden Ocean Flower

Goldenrod

Green Mushroom

Four-Leaf Clover

Monster Fruit

Monster Mushroom

Mushroom Colony

Poison Mushroom

Red Baneberry

Salal Berry

Slime Berry

Rafflesia

Sports Drink

Stamina Capsule

Thistle

Void Root

Winter Star Ross

Dewdrop Berry

Aged Blue Moon Wine

Blue Moon Wine

Aegis Elixir

Armor Elixir

Barbarian Elixir

Gravity Elixir

Haste Exilir

Hero Elixir

Lightning Elixir

Pufferfish

Anchovy

Tuna

Sardine

Bream

Largemouth Bass

Smallmouth Bass

Rainbow Trout

Salmon

Walleye

Perch

Carp

Catfish

Pike

Sunfish

Red Snapper

Herring

Eel

Octopus

Red Mullet

Squid

Seaweed

Green Algae

Seacucumber

Super Seacucumber

Ghost Carp

White Algae

Stone Fish

Crimsonfish

Angler

Icepip

Lava Eel

Legend

Sandfish

Scorpion Carp

Flounder

Midnight Carp

Mutant Carp

Sturgeon

Tiger Trout

Bullhead

Tilapia

Chub

Dorado

Albacore

Shad

Lingcod

Halibut

Lobster

Crayfish

Crab

Cockle

Mussel

Shrimp

Snail

Periwinkle

Oyster

Woodskip

Glacierfish

Void Salmon

Slimejack

Midnight Squid

Spookfish

Blobfish

Stingray

Lionfish

Blue Discus

Baby Lunaloo

Bonefish

Bull Trout

Butterfish

Clownfish

Daggerfish

Dulse Seaweed

Frog

Gemfish

Goldenfish

Grass Carp

King Salmon

Kittyfish

Lunaloo

Meteor Carp

Minnow

Puppyfish

Radioactive Bass

Razor Trout

Seahorse

Sea Sponge

Shiny Lunaloo

Snatcher Worm

Starfish

Torpedo Trout

Undeadfish

Void Eel

Water Grub

Dwarf Scroll 1

Dwarf Scroll 2

Dwarf Scroll 3

Dwarf Scroll 4

Chipped Amphora

Arrowhead

Ancient Doll

Elvish Jewelry

Chewing Stick

Ornamental Fan

Dinosaur Egg

Rare Disc

Ancient Sword

Rusty Spoon

Rusty Spur

Rusty Cog

Chicken Statue

Ancient Seed

Prehistoric Tool

Dried Starfish

Anchor

Glass Shards

Bone Flute

Prehistoric Handaxe

Dwarvish Helm

Dwarf Gadget

Ancient Drum

Golden Mask

Golden Relic

Strange Doll

Strange Doll

Prehistoric Scapula

Prehistoric Tibia

Prehistoric Skull

Skeletal Hand

Prehistoric Rib

Prehistoric Vertebrae

Skeletal Tail

Nautilus Shell

Amphibian Fossil

Palm Fossil

Trilobite

Emerald

Aquamarine

Ruby

Amethyst

Topaz

Jade

Diamond

Prismatic Shard

Quartz

Fire Quartz

Frozen Tear

Earth Crystal

Alamite

Bixite

Baryite

Aerinite

Calcite

Dolomite

Esperite

Fluorapatite

Geminite

Helvite

Jamborite

Jagoite

Kyanite

Lunarite

Malachite

Nepunite

Lemon Stone

Nekoite

Orpiment

Petrified Slime

Thunder Egg

Pyrite

Ocean Stone

Ghost Crystal

Tiger’s Eye

Jasper

Opal

Fire Opal

Celestine

Marble

Sandstone

Granite

Basalt

Limestone

Soapstone

Hematite

Mudstone

Obsidian

Slate

Fairy Stone

Star Shards

Fried Egg

Omelet

Salad

Cheese Cauliflower

Baked Fish

Parsnip Soup

Vegetable Medley

Complete Breakfast

Fried Calimari

Strange Bun

Lucky Lunch

Fried Mushrooms

Pizza

Bean Hotpot

Glazed Yams

Carp Surprise

Hashbrowns

Pancakes

Salmon Dinner

Fish Taco

Crispy Bass

Pepper Poppers

Bread

Tom Kha Soup

Trout Soup

Chocolate Cake

Pink Cake

Rhubarb Pie

Cookies

Spaghetti

Spicy Eel

Sashimi

Maki Roll

Tortilla

Red Plate

Eggplant Parmesan

Rice Pudding

Ice Cream

Bluberry Tart

Autumn’s Bounty

Pumpkin Soup

Super Meal

Cranberry Sauce

Stuffing

Farmer’s Lunch

Survival Burger

Dish’O’The Sea

Miner’s Treat

Roots Platter

Triple Shot Espresso

Seafoam Pudding

Algae Soup

Pale Broth

Plum Pudding

Artichoke Dip

Stir Fry

Roasted Hazelnuts

Pumpkin Pie

Radish Salad

Fruit Salad

Blackberry Cobbler

Cranberry Candy

Bruschetta

Coleslaw

Fiddlehead Risotto

Poppyseed Muffin

Chowder

Fish Stew

Escargot

Lobster Bisque

Maple Bar

Crab Cakes

Shrimp Cocktail

Ginger Ale

Banana Pudding

Mango Sticky Rice

Poi

Tropical Curry

Squid Ink Ravioli

Mushroom Berry Rice

Big Bark Burger

Flower Cookie

Frog Legs

Glazed Butterfish

Grampleton Orange Chicken

Mixed Berry Pie

Baked Berry Oatmeal

Void Delight

Void Salmon Sushi

[eridanisanenby]

Atlantis Attacks

Ant Ant

Arkham Asylum

Agent A (Alfred)

Amity Arkham

Amadeus Arkham

All-American comics

Baxter Building

Bombastic-Bag man

robert Bruce Banner

james Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes

Black Blot/Blackagar Boltagon

elizabeth “Betsy” Braddock

Brian Braddock

william “Billy” Braddock

Billy Batson

Beast Boy

Blue Beetle

Boston Brand

BlueBird

Bouncing Boy

Carl “Crusher” Creel

Captain Carter

nathan Christopher Charles summers/Cable

Curtis "Curt" Connors

Caped Crusader

oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot

Captain Cold

Captain Carrot

Catherine Cobert

Cressida Clarke

Crocky the Crodile

Doctor Darrk

Doctor Destiny

Dorthy Duncan

Ding-Dong Daddy

yankee Doodle Dandy

Dinah Drake

Darla Dudley

Damien Darhk

(new) Fantastic Four

Four Freedoms plaza

Fin Fang Foom

Freedom Fighters

Freddy Freeman

Felix Faust

Guardian of the Galaxy

Green Goblin

Guy Gardener

Gorilla Grodd

Gotham Gazette

Gotham Globe

Gotham General

Green Guardsman

Golden Glider

Glorious Gordon Godfrey

Happy Hogan

Hank Hensley

Hank Hall (Hawk)

Henry “Hank” Henshaw

Hank Hall

Hippolyta "lyta" Hall

Hank Haywood

Jessica Jones

John Jonah Jameson

Katherine “Kate” Kane

Kristen Kringle

Kip Kettering

Lacie Lorraine

Loki Laufeyson

Lunella Lafayette

Lonnie Lincoln

Lois Lane

Lex Luther

Lighting Lad

Linda Lee

Luma Lynai

Lana Lang

Laura Lang

Louise Lincoln

dinah Laurel Lance

Linda Lang

Lena Luther

MasterMind

May Melinda

Miles Morales (og 42)

Meows Morales

Michael Morbius

Multiverse of Madness

MilkMan Man

Mateo Maximoff

Marya Maximoff

Mole Man

Mister Mxyptlk “Mxy”

M’gann M’orzz/Megan Morse/Miss Martian

Mia “Maps” Mizoguchi

Mary Marvel

Miguel Montez

Music Master

Mr. Miracle

Mirror Master

Mad Mod

Malcolm Merlyn

Maria Mercedes Mooney

Matches Malone

Monsieur Mallah

Nia Nal

Olivia Octavius (doctor Octopus/doc Ock)

Pepper Potts

Peter Parker(s)

Pabitr Prabhakav

Peni Parker

Peter Porker

Pedro Peña

Penny Plunderer

Quasar’s Quantum bands

Quentin Quale

Reed Richards

Rocket Raccoon

Richard Rider

Roberto “Robbie” Reyes (og 69)

Rachel Roth (Raven)

Ronald Raymond

SlapStick

Sun Spider

Scarlet Spider

Serpent Society

Super Skrull

Silver Sable/Silvija Sablinova

Sinister Syndicate

Sinister Six

Steven Strange (dr Strange)

Sybil Silverlock

Susan “Sue” Storm

Spider-Society

Samuel Sterns

Sebastian Shaw

Suicide Squad

Star Sapphire

Silver St. Cloud

Secret Six

Pter Ptarker (TT)

Taneleer Tivan

Tyros The Terrible (Terrax)

Teen Titans

Titans Tomorrow

Tom Turbine

Traci Thirteen

Unus the Untouchable

Vicki Vale

Valerie Vale

Web Warriors

Wade Winston Wilson

Wallace “Wally” West

Wallace “ace” West II

Wonder Woman

Warlock the Wizard

Wizards & Warlocks

Zatanna Zatara

Zachary Zatara

Zilius Zox

Duela Dent Napier Nigma

Cooper Coen/Web Weaver

Matthew Michael “Matt” Murdock/DareDevil

Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel

Otto Octavius (doctor Octopus/doc Ock)/Superior Spider-man

Victor Von doom/Doctor Doom

Warren Worthington III/ArchAngel

Cassandra “Cass” Cain/Black Bat

J’onn J’onnz/John Jones/Hank Henshaw/Martian Manhunter

Kei Kawade/Kaiju Kid(/Kid Kaiju)

Mitchell Mayo/Condiment King

Max Mercury/Windrunner Whip WhirlWind

Red Robin/Joker Junior

Cletus Cortland Kassidy (Carnage)

Clark Kent

Conner “Kon” Kent

Chemical King

Carrie Kelley

Killer Croc

Karen Crane

Seaboard City

Total alliteration: 207

[wanderingnork]

Whatcha Up To Tag Game

Tagged by @laughinglynx !

Currently Reading: On paper, Citadel of Forgotten Myths, the most recent book about my favorite depressed hero Elric of Melniboné. In audio, listening to an unabridged Fellowship of the Ring recording in the car while driving to and from work. Got Conspiracy of Kings on hold at the library.

Last Song: “Hopes and Dreams” from the Undertale soundtrack.

Last Movie: Eyes In the Dark, a fun and funky low-budget found-footage horror movie. The characters are obnoxious, the acting ranges from average to actively bad, and the plot is agonizingly predictable. BUT! The creature that has the eyes and lives in the dark is done practically, with suits and puppets, which is fun and works very well. CGI at this budget and in this style would have been…bad. With the shakycam and dim lights, the practical effects actually come off really well. They’re a neat take on a classic monster, too, so I’m very glad I stuck around for them. It’s available for free on YouTube.

Currently Working On: a round of edits for the fic I’m writing for the Dragon Age Big Bang, ongoing work on the untitled sequel to Patron Saints of Blissful Imperfection, beta reading fics for three different writer friends, and trying to make the castle magic in one of my Wizard101 houses stop breaking. The last one is the worst one. Also about to get up from social media and go make some carrot cake pancakes to freeze.

Tagging: @moth-ra, @shadowy-dumbo-octopus , @biwabiwa , @pyxyltheamoeba

[ask-unknown-octopus]

ow.

We’re here. C’mon let’s go get you a carrot or something.

[Unknown Octopus gets up and readjusts their hat.]

follow me, i know where to go!

[They grab Purple Star’s arm and lead them outside to the Carrot King diner.]

[jolteon-volt98]

Neutral milk hotel:

King of carrot flowers

For its blend of fuzz and acoustic with its production as well as quirky ear candy it uses such as feedback loops.

There album 'In an areoplane over the sea' is what I use as a reference for producer when I'm trying to get them to know what sound I'm going for. Such as the use of fuzz and high compression but a raw and acoustic sound underneath it.

Hole:

Softer, softest

I find I use a lot of lyrics from there songs, the grunge but angsty/emotional and blend of horror themes. As for my song 'Moores code' I took the line from the bridge for Softer, softest.

'Burn the witch, the witch is dead Burn the witch Just bring me back her head'

My love for horror films and themes, hearing something like this in a song I wanted to use it. I also like the angst she uses in her writing as its more mature and not to masculine like in punk music such and black flag or to immature such as in emo music.

Syd Barret:

Octopus

I like the fable like and innocents with his lyrics such as in the song 'bike' with the lyrics:

'I've got a bike, you can ride it if you like It's got a basket, a bell that rings And things to make it look good I'd give it to you if I could, but I borrowed it.'

Its very nonsensical such as how to fist and last line sort of contradict each other. This is similar with songs like lucifer sam which is just about a cat but it don't stick with this theme, he's a very fluid song writer.

I choose Octopus as its a folk song which is similar to the music I make and is one song I often listen to as to channel Syd Barret writing style as I use an improvised method of writing which makes my songs more fluid.

In conclusion:

Something that links all these song together is there use of acoustic guitar in alternative music making stay away from pop and country music. I make all my songs with acoustic and vocals before I produce them as I am a solo musican. I try to bring that more raw sound into my music on top of having a more alternative sound such as electric guitar, use of fuzz and drums to create a more band like sound, but not losing that solo raw sound.

Hole being a grunge band which is a genre that uses a lot of fuzz and Neutral Milk Hotel production being very compressed and loud giving it that studio created fuzz sound is why II choose them as I love the sound of fuzz and want to use it into a acoustic and raw setting.

All three bands are mostly supported by one person as Syd Barret is solo, Jeff Mangum wrote and played and recorded most of there work and Courtney Love has a strong presence in her work with Hole. I feel like strong connection to them because of this, especially Jeff Mangum as I feel like I work better on my own and have a specific sound I want to find with this idea of fuzz folk.

Neutral Milk Hotel (1998) In the aeroplane over the sea [CD]. Robert Schneider.

Hole (1993a) [CD], Softer, Softest. Paul Q. Kolderie, Sean Slade.

syd barrett (1969) ‘Octopus’ [CD], Octopus. Cleopatra.

Pink Floyd (1967) The piper at the gates of dawn [CD]. Norman Smith.

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1025 - Initial Thoughts

And we are back to it, completing the Popularity Poll Color Spread in the process (also this is my 250th post)

With the Yamato backstory last week we shall continue on with the battle between father and son

Spoilers for Chapter 1025, Support the Official Release

A Sidebar before we start, I've been thinking about maybe doing as well as this a 'Chapter Spoilers without Context' kinda post, if you guys would be interested in that let me know.

Our colour spread is complete with mostly marines, including Tashigi, Smoker, Aokiji, Garp and Coby, as well as the remaining Supernova, Rayleigh, Buggy, Lucci, Whitebeard, Marco, Izo, Shirahoshi, Ace, Sabo and Carrot. Also Blackbeard and Shanks in the corners

Interesting to note that Carrot was put in the same bookend position as Yamato (Garp and Oden being the farthest away), almost like Oda doesn't want to suggest that one has more candidacy by virtue of being closer in the colour spread

We also get the chapter cover of Usopp documenting his lies to some gullible birds and a business octopus who judging by the headline knows it's all false, Usopp's definitely dressing the part

Aaaaand there it is, still the mind of a child with Momo, a child scared of heights

Luffy isn't exactly being gentle about it either, which is fair given the urgency

Shinobu and the Heart Pirates' blank stares selling Oda's expectation subversion

Looks like the clash at the end of last chapter wasn't the final blow, Kaido got a little cut but Yamato shielded himself in something, maybe stone since the attack translates to 'Mirror Mountain', but that shield shatters completely

A quick bonk on the head next too, but Kaido still seems to tank it all

And here comes the Gaslighting from Kaido, telling Yamato he would never be accepted by Wano since he's his son, and that everyone who was kind to him dies - which it's implied he has a hand in though - and that they're only being kind out of fear

And despite several hits needed to faze Kaido, it takes one swing from Kaido to knock Yamato around

I wonder though, is Kaido being literal when he calls Yamato an Oni, I mean he does say 'relying on the friendship of humans is beneath you' - though it could just be scanlations

Kaido does look like an oni in that last panel though

Momo is finally taking flight though, but he's closing his eyes, meaning he's crashing through the performance floor rather than the roof

I guess a lot of Kaido's crew are colourblind or something because everyone seems to think this peach dragon is Kaido

At least now with Momo crashing through Onigashima there's visible proof that Luffy's alive

After the Performance Floor, Momo crashes through BM's fight with Kid and Law to confuse the shit outta them

Kaido hears the ruckus but thinks its BM, and now Yamato's back in his base form

Hilariously, Kaido spots Momo Dragon flailing around behind Yamato, which is distracting him enough for Yamato to prepare his attack

Momo's finally opened his eyes when Luffy tells him Kaido's there too

And Luffy's gone straight to Snake Man - likely for range

Double team attack knocks Kaido away

Precious smiles all around

But now Kaido's confronting Momo in his dragon form, surprised at both Luffy's survival and this new dragon

As Yamato connects the dots Luffy's making his statement, he won't die because he's gonna be king

And Momo finally declares his name to Kaido directly, I know he also did it at the Execution Cross but this one has more substance since he's doing it without an audience, declaring that he will be Shogun of Wano in similar Luffy fashion

Not the reaction I anticipated from Kaido seeing as this is another dragon, he kinda laughs it off

First it's 'The World doesn't need more Conquerors' now it's 'The World doesn't need another Dragon', I feel like Kaido's just a grumpy old boomer at this point

And as anticipated there's the break

So...It wasn't the blockbuster chapter I was hoping for, in fact I was actually kinda hoping Luffy wouldn't get here until much later when it was just Kaido and Big Mom left to fight; King and Queen defeated and Yamato fallen leaving it just the Alliance vs Kaido and Big Mom holding off before Luffy arrives.

But, what we did get was still good. Oda's usual expectation subversion comes into play to add more chaos into the room, now Momo Dragon has to confront Kaido directly. Whether Yamato will continue trying to fight alongside Luffy remains to be seen, kinda feel like Luffy would need to do this on his own to get the most props out of it, but maybe he will call on help given how his second 1v1 attempt failed? Hard to tell

Luffy confirming his aliveness will also further motivate the alliance, and all the holes caused by Dragon Momo can invite characters to move around more freely - good and bad. Shame the Heart Pirates and Shinobu didn't fly with Momo, could've partook in the fight, Jean Bart was implied at least to be a credible fighter, maybe they did through Caribou because he was AWOL this chapter

After the break it's interesting where we go from here, because Luffy confronting Kaido seems to be the important part, but we've still yet to finish off such elements as the Akazaya fights, Zoro/Sanji vs King/Queen, BM vs Law/Kid, Killer vs Hawkins, the shadow person that tended to the Akazaya's wounds, where Orochi is, the remaining numbers, CP0 and the fact that the castle is on fire! Lots of clusterfucking to deal with, but for now we can let Oda rest

For Now

[sidespromptblog]

The King Returns

Summary: The night that Remus and Roman cease to be, and King returns aren't exactly what one would call a messy or even a climactic one. But it is eventful.

It was midnight when he finally woke up, the aching of his bones was the first thing that greeted him upon returning to consciousness and abruptly sitting up. The second was the sound of his own gasping sputters as oxygen squeezed itself from his lungs for what felt like the first time in years, his chest and his very heart ached as he sat there for what felt like forever as the minutes ticked on by. He could see the grand soft golden walls of his bedroom, mixed with a lovely deep shade of green that looked like the finest cut emerald. Everything around him seemed so utterly familiar, and yet… like it was all from a distant dream. Many of the things in his room felt as if they belonged to him, from the scabbard that laid by his bedside table, to the corkboard that had a whole bundle of red string connecting sheets and papers. Was any of this really his, who could say?

There was one thing that he did know, however. And that was the fact that he was breathing… he was alive.

Standing took quite a lot out of him, like a newly born doe attempting to rise up on unsteady legs, he couldn’t help but giggle at the imagery of someone like him floundering around almost taking a nosedive to his lush red carpet that had quite a few mysterious stains on it. It was interesting, finding a new way to walk, even standing was its own adventure as everything around him seemed to change as soon as he stood up stumbling on his own two feet.

“Well, that was a lovely mistake!” He couldn’t help yet another laugh as he glanced around at all of the books that lined his walls, the scrolls and quills that looked to be quite old despite the closed laptop atop his desk pushed out of the way for two separate plates of food that had grown cold as untouched as they were. Was the food poisoned? Had it been tampered with when he had been unconscious? Would it make his stomach explode in continuously gruesome fashions until there was nothing more than a pile of meat and gore on the floor? Or maybe it would transform him into an animal, like a slug that would have to slowly and carefully slink his way through the thick carpet in a valiant effort to find a way to reverse the transformation. Maybe it would just straight up.. or rather gay- up make his eyeballs explode right out of his head, as odd as that would be.

Maybe it would even-

Whatever his train of thought had been about to trail down to, it stopped dead as soon as the noises of someone else outside of his room reached his ears.

Others? Others who knew him? Who knew of him?

Glancing at the clock, he found it highly doubtful that anyone other than himself would even be awake at this time. How many people would be awake at five in the morning of all times?

Regardless of the question that was soon about to be answered, he seized the golden and green cloak before fastening it to his shoulders, he had to look presentable after all as he stalked towards the door. Peering out, there was a single lit doorward in the hallway that stretched out before him, all except for one, one that had a faint light gleaming behind it. Not enough to have a major light on, but rather something like a desk lamp on or something. Regardless, he moved forward with the purpose of a thousand noble steeds, as he ventured towards the stairs that led down into the kitchen where the odd noises had originated from.

He should have brought his spear with him, that was... if he even had one, to begin with.

His hands remained curled into fists as he slunk around the wall, his back pressed firmly against it so that no demon could sneak up behind him. His footsteps were as silent as could be as he reared his body around the corner, ready to tell off whoever was there at this time of the night, just for his body to abruptly freeze as soon as his eyes landed on who was standing there next to the coffee pot waiting for it to fill up before he went back upstairs.

He felt his mouth go dry, all while a strange lump of emotions swelled in his throat.

He knew this man, he knew him well before… before… Before it had happened to him.

“Logan,” The name was like the whisper of a promise as he rushed forward not even bothering with the silence that he had been dutiful to uphold, happiness unlike anything he had ever felt before blooming like a wild rose stalk in his chest. Piercing his heart with its thorns, leaving him to bleed out for this side, and for this side alone. “Logan.”

He raised his hands as soon as Logan’s cup had come clattering down against the surface of the counter before swiftly spinning around at the sound of his own softly whispered name. His mouth opened, ready to spout off an explanation, an apology, or just an excuse as to why he was up so early. But all of that died on his lips as soon as his eyes landed on the form of the person that stood in front of him, perhaps for the first time in his life the logical side was completely and utterly speechless as his mouth remained open and gaping at the other side in front of him as his eyes burned and stung with the threat of oncoming tears. He didn’t know what to say, he didn’t even know if he could say anything. The words lingered on his tongue, waiting to escape his open mouth.

But… he couldn’t, not until the side in front of him finally touched him. Cupping the side of his face, proving to him that this wasn’t some sleepless hallucination that he was suffering from given his lack of overall rest. He had never been the best with emotions, even at the best of times, but now… now he felt as if he was completely coming apart because of them.

“King,” The hoarse whisper left his lips, that one sole word that said so much with so little as the creative side that towered over him gazed down at him so longingly as his trembling finger gently caressed the logical side’s bottom lip.

A look of agony drenched the creative side’s face as the tears escaped Logan’s eyes, drenching his cheeks, “Oh my dear,” King hurriedly but gingerly moved to wipe the tears away, his black painted nails glimmering in the light of the kitchen. “I am so so sorry,” He apologized, not even really sure for what he was apologizing for. “I left you for long and,” Memories that weren’t quite his stapled themselves over his mind’s eye, memories of harsh nicknames, a jagged weapon being thrown at Logan’s head, undoubtedly meeting its mark. King choked, “I’m so sorry,” He didn’t quite know where to put his trembling hands, but in the end, he settled for just cupping Logan’s face. His beautiful wonderful face that he had caused so much pain. “I am so sorry my dear, for everything that I did.. Everything that I said. The pain that I caused...”

A sensation similar to having his heart torn open and then stuffed with a firecracker was all that he could feel, the only sensation that he would let himself feel.

But even so, Logan’s face only reflected confusion. “King,” A humorless smile curled on Logan’s lips, it was a smile that King couldn’t help but to fear, to fear everything that it meant to him and Logan. “You usually aren’t one to tell lies.”

The creative side’s arms constricted around Logan, dropping his hands from the logical side’s face down to his side as he wrapped his arms around him. It was the kind of hug that could not be escaped from, the kind that an octopus normally wrapped its prey in, except… this was Logan, he never wanted to hurt Logan, he never wanted to see him hurt… never. But even that tight hold didn’t stop the agonized whimper from leaving his lips, a whimper that sounded all too similar to a dying animal than to anything human.

Just what had he done… no, what had happened while he had been gone to make his dear believe such things?

He pressed a sloppy tear-soaked kiss to Logan’s ear, “I promise you, Love,” He whispered, his cheek rested against the messy bird’s nest that Logan called his hair. “I am sorry for what happened in my absence, and if I have to spend the rest of my days remedying it… fixing your broken heart back together. Then I will do it, I will climb whatever mountain you wish me to, I will eat carrots, I burn for you love to give you whatever warmth you desire. Just.. just tell me, and I shall make it happen.” Every word rang with the finality of conviction and truth.

He wanted to cling to Logan, to let his fingers hold the logical side through the night. To fall asleep next to him, and to wake up seeing his beautiful face each and every morning. But… even if Logan did not want him, if he wanted the version of him that donned a red sash or even the one that wielded the morning star with a terrifying accuracy… then he would rip himself in half to ensure that it happened.  

Logan’s arms curled around his midsection and squeezed him tight.

“Just…” There was a pause, but even so, he was listening to every word that could possibly leave the other side’s mouth. He listened to the way that his breathing rose and fell, the way that he sniffled in an attempt to get every word out. And he felt the way that Logan merely just gripped him tighter, his pristine uniform wrinkling under his fingers, not that King cared one little bit. “Just don’t leave again.”

That… That King could do.  

[myshittybrainwontshutup]

I had a dream where I was wandering in the woods and I found some weird abandoned facility. The Dream Works logo was painted on the side and the door was open, so I just sauntered inside. There were tons of big, drab concrete rooms all full of toppled over desks. Giant pillars held up the ceiling and plunged down into the earth. I thought that this place would be a magnet for graffiti artists, or just delinquent teens in general, but this place looked untouched by everything except me. There wasn’t even rat poop or cockroaches to point to a sign of life. Like the dumbass I am, I started walking down the staircase that wrapped around one of the concrete pillars. On the forth or so level down it stopped being the same old rooms full of desks and started being bedrooms and showers. There were literally hundreds of bunk beds, all with the same cheap white sheets. I investigated the bathrooms and found that the showers still worked and even better, they still had hot water. I guessed this place had an independent generator and the dim ceiling lights supported my hypothesis.

I decided I needed a shower and scrubbed down, then wandered over to one of the beds for a nap. (Yeah, sleeping in your dream is kind of weird, but I do it rather routinely. I guess I’m just that tired.)

My thought process for using the beds is that they may be dusty, but I hadn’t seen any evidence of any other life, so bedbugs were unlikely.

After I woke up I pulled on my clothes, which I vividly remember being a burnt orange tank top patterned with tiny carrots, high waisted jorts and my three-sizes-too-big black jacket.

I kept going all the way down to the bottom level where I was confused to hear talking. I crept around the corner and saw this old dude in a lab coat and these two blond collage age girls drawing a circle on the ground. The amount of sigils inside the circle made me think that this couldn’t be anything good, but before I could really do anything about it one of the girls spotted me. She shouted, “Hey!” and pointed at me. I didn’t waste any time getting the hell out of dodge, and I heard the old dude yell, “Stop them! No one must know!”

The two girls started chasing me. Because I don’t ever skip leg day, not even in my dreams, I made it up the stairs before they could. I made it through the door and almost made it back to the woods, but instead of going forward and disappearing into the flora I was suddenly going up. Out of freaking no where, I was caught in a tractor beam and being towed up into a space ship. I didn’t get to see if the girls had seen me getting abducted, but my prior circumstances were quickly ripped out of my head as I was blasted with water. Even though I’d just taken a shower I guess I was too dusty for these aliens to handle. I was “disinfected” and my wet clothes were confiscated and replaced with a very unflattering blue-gray jumpsuit. These particular aliens were very octopus like, but slightly taller than humans and their version of an invasion force was capitalism.

Instead of being forced into hard labor I was forced into a job that is actually hell to me. An “internship” as they called it, where I had hours of paperwork to do. Paperwork is a punishment worse than hell to me, so I did the absolute minimum effort I could get away with. I was set up at a station with three other people. One was Merida from Brave, one was Miles from into the spider verse and one was Stanford from gravity falls. I didn’t let on that I knew them, but I did become pretty close with them. While we were just doing paperwork together time was sped up, but as soon as we were called out to test a new piece of tech that the squid aliens had invented time resumed its normal pace. We were brought out to this floating asteroid that seemed to have an atmosphere that I guess was their testing site. One squid alien on a three piece suit came along to supervise us. The thing we were supposed to test was a Portal esc wormhole gun. I had to keep from laughing my ass off for reasons that will become apparent later. The squid fired it off, setting of each side of the portal in mid air about twenty feet apart, gave Merida a rope and instructed her to walk trough it. Reluctantly she agreed and walked through. The portal didn’t immediately close or collapse as she entered and she wasn’t lost in some in-between place, so the squid was ecstatic. However, Merida and the squid pulling on the rope was apparently enough to rip a hole in space and time. The rip started to drag Merida and the squid in, but Miles, Ford and I were standing far enough away. Miles managed to pull Merida out of range of the rip’s suction, but the squid fell into the gaping black maw. It was growing larger by the second and I knew we would be consumed before long unless I did something.

One of my recurring powers in my dreams is that I can open my own portals, in addition to some others. I turned around and opened my own portal back to the woods I was wandering earlier and had everyone run through. I closed it off as soon as we were all through. We landed on a dirt road that was at least sixty percent mud. It must’ve rained since I was abducted.

Ford immediately turned to me, his eyes wide.

“How did you do that?!” He demanded. I shrugged.

“I just... can?” I said. I actually have a reason, but I didn’t feel like telling him. I opened another portal to the room where our stuff was being kept on the ship and let it just fall through into my arms. We each headed into the woods to suit up in our normal clothes, though Merida forwent a dress for jeans and a tee shirt. We started walking down the road as quite the marry band until we found a homestead. No electricity, no generator, just one small shack and the sound of a lot of voices. Out back was a pigsty and it looked like this place hadn’t been up kept in years. The others wanted to take the stealthy approach, but I just kicked in the front door. There were a bunch of middle aged men sitting around drinking, about fifteen children ages nine to four and six toddlers, all huddling together in the corner around the one teenager who seemed to be about sixteen. Most of them didn’t have clothes any more sophisticated than a potato sack, and all of them had bruises. The teenage girl had a black eye. Cold rage bubbled up within me. I have very strong opinions about how children should be treated, namely, they should be treated with dignity and respect, no matter what age they are and no one ever has the right to hurt them. Something told me that there used to be more older women, but they’d died due to either violence or childbirth.

The biggest beefiest guy stood up and demanded to know who I was and what I wanted. I could tell he wasn’t seeing me as a threat due to my appearance. I mean, I’m exactly five feet tall, very feminine and not exactly buff. I demanded to fight him for the children and he laughed. Until I summoned my weapon. In my dreams I also can summon quite the arsenal. This time, I summoned my whip made of razor wire and cracked it right across his face. He immediately grabbed a huge black iron sword off the table and rushed me. I sidestepped out of the front door and cracked my whip again. It happened extremely fast so I’m not sure on the specifics of the fight, but I do know it ended with my whip wrapping around his throat. One quick tug and his head was on the ground as his body slumped to the side. All the other men, enraged that I’d killed their buddy grabbed their own swords. My whip is an awesome weapon, but it’s only good against one opponent. I tossed it aside and it burst into glitter, just before I summoned my sword.

I really like my sword. It’s a short Damascus steel blade with a gold gilded hilt and a ruby pommel. I’ve been using it for a really long time and I’ve gotten really skilled with it.

These guys clearly didn’t expect me to hold my own against all of them, but in combination with my portal magic I’m a formidable fighter in my dreams. For some odd reason the thing that ended the fight was a misstep from one of the men that lead to me accidentally chopping off the toe of his boot and the toe of his foot. He fell to the ground crying and demanded that everything stop. They agreed to leave and wandered back down the road, carrying their now toeless friend.

I went inside and found a yellow construction paper crown sitting on the table. I picked it up, put it on my head and muttered, “I’m the king.” With a big fat smile. I was mobbed by the little boys that demanded I teach them how to sword fight, the sixteen year old thanked me for getting rid of the people who hurt her, Merida asked where I learned to fight like that. Everyone else hung on the sidelines, not exactly liking that I’d just straight up killed and maimed on a whim. Ford was mostly interested in how I could summon and dismiss weapons on a whim.

“That’s not all I can do!” I grinned and stepped back outside. I told the teenager to release the pigs into the woods and told the kids to grab any items that they would want to take with them. Then with the three other interns watching, I waved my hand and an oak tree started to grow out of the ground. It grew so big that at a glance you could think it was hundreds of years old. With a snap of my fingers a massive treehouse constructed itself in the cradle of the tree’s uppermost branches. I subconsciously made it Halloween themed because it’s my favorite holiday. There were leaf streamers and grinning jack-o’-lanterns all over the place. One more wave of my hand and it was fully stocked with food and clothes and solar panels for its own electricity. I instructed the kids to climb up. The bigger kids carried the toddlers up. After we were all on board I snapped again and the tree started moving, walking along on its roots. I headed up into the main dining room and tried to add a little more decor, but it wouldn’t work. The plate of Halloween themed sugar cookies started laughing at me.

“What the-“ Ford started.

“I’m loosing control. I’m waking up.” I interrupted.

“What? Waking up?” Ford asked. I pulled him in with an arm around the shoulders.

“Listen, I don’t have much more time, so you’re in charge. I may be the most powerful here, but you’re the smartest. Keep them safe.” I said and put my paper crown on his head.

And that’s when I woke up.

[pekingdaddy]

Sakurajima Recipes

If you’re concentrating on Sakurajima recipes, this cookbook(list) is for you. Please tell me if I missed anything. Enjoy.

1. Baked Potato

Ingredients: one Potato (Stage 1-3)

2. Grilled Pork Belly

Ingredients: one Pork Belly (Stage 1-6)

3. Cucumber Salad

Ingredients: one Cucumber (Stage 2-2)

4. Boiled Lettuce

Ingredients: one Lettuce (Stage 3-1)

5. Mushroom Yaki

Ingredients: one Mushroom (Stage 7-3), one Butter (Stage 7-8)

6. Beef Tartare

Ingredients: one Egg  (Stage 5-3), one Beef Tenderloin (Stage 5-6)

7. Tamagoyaki

Ingredients: one Carrot (Stage 3-1), one Egg (Stage 5-2), one Shiitake (Stage 6-8)

8. Omurice

Ingredients: Egg (Stage 5-2), Rice (Stage 8-2)

9. Shogayki

Ingredients: one Pork Loin(Stage 9-2), one Onion (Stage 9-5)

10. Bacon Bites

Ingredients: one Bread (Stage 4-4), one Cheese (Stage 6-2). one Bacon (Stage 10-3)

11. Cold Tofu

Ingredients: one Tofu (Stage 10-6)

12. Grilled Corn

Ingredients: one Corn(Stage 11-2), one Cream (Stage 11-7)

13. Vegetable Tempura

Ingredients: one Eggplant (Stage 2-7), one Shiitake(Stage 6-8), Flour (Stage 12-2)

14. Takoyaki

Ingredients: one Octopus (Stage 11-4), one Flour (Stage 12-2), one Cabbage (Stage 3-5)

15. Creamed Spinach

Ingredients: one Cream (Stage 11-7), one Spinach (Stage 13-6)

16. Apples and Cream

Ingredients: one Cream (Stage 11-7), one Apple (Stage 15-1)

17. Chicken Skewer

Ingredients: one Green Pepper (Stage 6-6), one Diced Chicken (Stage 16-5)

18. Fried Chicken

Ingredients: one Egg (Stage 5-2), one Flour (Stage 12-2), Whole Chicken (Stage 16-6)

19. Mango Smoothie

Ingredients: one Cream (Stage 11-7), one Mango (Stage 17-3)

20. Strawberry Smoothie

Ingredients: one Cream (Stage 11-7), one Milk (Stage 12-5), one Strawberry (Stage 18-2)

21. Peanut Butter Crisp

Ingredients: one Milk (Stage 12-5), one Flour (Stage 12-2), one Peanut (Stage 19-3)

22. Cod Fillet

Ingredients: one Butter (Stage 7-8), one Starch (Stage 13-9), one Cod (Stage 22-2)

23. Piglet Daifuku

Ingredients: one Egg (Stage 5-2), one Flour (12-2), one Red Beans (Stage 19-5)

24. Pumpkin Muffin

Ingredients: one Honey (Stage 14-6), one Red Beans (Stage 19-5), one Pumpkin (Stage 20-5)

25. Yam Dumplings

Ingredients: one Rice Flour (Stage 20-7), one Purple Yam (Stage 21-3)

26. Unagi Don

Ingredients: one Rice (Stage 8-2), one Eel(Stage 22-5)

27. Lobster Sashimi

Ingredients: one Rock Lobster (Stage 23-5)

28. Crab Sashimi

Ingredients: one King Crab (Stage 24-2)

[jeangeorgesbeverlyhills-blog]

Restaurant Escapes  |  Jean-Georges Beverly Hills

Bright colors, bold flavors. Join us this Sunday for a special Easter Brunch from 12-3pm featuring Grilled Octopus, Ora King Salmon, Citrus Glazed Carrots and other seasonal delights. View the full menu.

[044-eu]

Typical recipes of Tuscany, a land full of flavors

Tuscany can be called the most flavour-rich land. It ranges from the products of its mountains, mushrooms and chestnuts, to the cultivation of its plains, which are many, to the meat farms, to the valuable fish of its sea. Of some recipes, among the best known in the world, I have already written in the articles on the specialties of Florence and Pistoia, so if you are looking for the ribollita, the famous Florentine steak, or on the panzanella (of which there is a whole article with its variants) or lamprey and other Florentine specialties, found in other items. Here we will now put the typical recipes of other cities of Tuscany. Livorno with his cacciucco Meadow with its cantucci with almonds Arezzo with SCOTTIGLIA Siena with her panforte and tomato gruel, and many more. Let's not forget bread, which is an excellence of Tuscan cuisine, bread without salt or slob. Let's start with appetizers that in Tuscany are normally cuttings of sliced meats, cheeses and croutons. The king of croutons is the black one with livers and croutons with fresh tomatoes and basil. One of the most famous croutons cooked in Tuscany is the one that concerns the lard of Colonnata, which is cut into thin slices and put on toasted bread croutons still warm. Let's now move on to the first dishes with the specialty of Siena, the tomato gruel

Tomato jelly

Necessary for tomato gruel 400 grams of stale Tuscan bread 800 grams of ripe tomatoes 4 cloves garlic 8 basil leaves 1.5 litres of vegetable stock or water olive oil, salt, pepper, chilli, grated cheese as much as you need Preparation of tomato gruel First prepare the bread. Cut into slices and put to toast for a few minutes in the oven. Remove from the oven, rub the bread with garlic. In a clay pan with a little oil, fry the remaining garlic, combine the ripe tomatoes deprived of the skin and seeds and cut into pieces and finally the bread toasted. At this point add the vegetable stock or water and cook with the lid until the liquid is almost completely consumed. Meanwhile, every now and then with a whisk turn the bread with the tomato so that the bread is reduced to a gruel. At the end of cooking, season with the chopped basil, chilli powder and plenty of grated cheese. It serves both hot and cold.

MALFACTS

Necessary for MALFACTS 600 grams of spinach already cooked and squeezed 2 eggs 600 grams of fresh ricotta flour, salt, pepper, grated cheese, olive oil and nutmeg as much as you need Preparation of MALFACTS First, cook the spinach in a frying pan for a few minutes. Just cold chop them very finely. In a bowl put the chopped spinach, ricotta and mix the two ingredients well. Now add the 2 beaten eggs and incorporate them into the ricotta and spinach. Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. With the flour and the spinach mixture form balls, making sure that the flour adheres very well from all sides. This is to prevent MALFACTS from opening during cooking. Waiting to cook them put them in a baking pan spaced apart from each other. Just ready all, cook them in plenty of salted water for a few minutes. Season with butter and sage and grated cheese.

Pappardelle with wild boar sauce

Necessary for the preparation of pappardelle with wild boar sauce 400 grams of egg pappardelle 500 grams of ground wild boar pulp a glass of red wine 400 grams of tomato purée 1 onion 1 carrot 1 rib of celery 1 sprig of rosemary a few bay leaves salt, pepper and olive oil just enough. Preparing pappardelle with wild boar sauce In a large saucepan fry the carrot, onion and celery finely chopped in a little olive oil. Also add a couple of bay leaves and chopped rosemary leaves. Put the red wine now and let it evaporate. Add the tomato purée and cook for about 2 hours over a very low heat with the lid. At the end of cooking, adjust the salt and pepper and the wild boar sauce is ready. Cook the al dente pappardelle in plenty of salted water and season with wild boar meat sauce. Sprinkle with plenty of grated Parmesan cheese and serve warm. Now let's move on to the second with the typical recipe of Livorno, the cacciucco with Livorno.

The Cacciucco in Livorno

Necessary for the Cacciucco in Livorno 2 kilograms of mixed fish (octopus, totans, cuttlefish, redfish, mullet, eel, chickens) and anyway what you find fresh 2 cloves garlic 800 grams of chopped tomatoes 8 slices of stale homemade bread a few sage leaves 40 grams of olive oil chilli, salt and pepper just enough Preparation of the Cacciucco to the Livornese In a large terracotta pan fry 1 clove of garlic chopped in olive oil, add the chopped sage leaves and the tomato pulp. Add 2 cups of hot water and after adjusting the salt, pepper and chilli cook the sauce very slowly for about an hour, adding a little water if it tends to dry too much. At this point put the fish clean and cut into pieces in the pan and with the lid let it simmer for about 2 hours. When cooked, it is served very hot on slices of toasted bread. The bread is rubbed with garlic and a little olive oil.

The Rotisserie

The rotisserie, are called in Tuscany the pork cutlets cooked on the grill. A very tasty and appropriate dish for a dinner with friends. The ingredients are just, the rotisserie, which is cooked in a whole piece, dividing the cutlets only once cooked, pepper salt and a nice grill. The rotisserie before putting it on the grill is sprinkled with salt and pepper on both sides, massaging the meat with your hands to make it stick better. Once cooked, they are immediately eaten very hot. Of course, in a self-respecting barbecue in Tuscany there are not only pork cutlets, pork and veal steaks, sausages and skewers of both pork and veal or chicken. Consider that the cutlets are the ones that need a longer cooking, of an average of 40 minutes, so it is the first meat that is put on the grill.

The SCOTTIGLIA

ScottIGLIA is a mixture of various meats, so chicken, veal, pork, pigeon, rabbit, turkey etc. Necessary for SCOTTIGLIA 800 grams of mixed meat in small pieces 1 onion 1 carrot 1 rib of celery 1 glass of red wine 1 garlic clove 600 grams of chopped tomatoes 1 cup meat stock 1 bunch parsley 3 basil leaves 8 slices of toasted stale bread. olive oil, chilli powder, salt, pepper just enough Preparation of SCOTTIGLIA Chop the carrot, onion, celery and garlic clove very finely. In a pan, possibly of terracotta with a little olive oil, fry the smells. As soon as they are golden put the meat in pieces and brown them briefly on all sides. Put the red wine now and let it evaporate completely. Now put the peeled tomatoes into small pieces and with the lid cook for about an hour, adding a little meat broth if the sauce tends to dry out too much. Now toast the slices of bread and put two slices for each dish. Pour the hot SCOTTIGLIA into the dishes and after two or three minutes serve on the table. This time to allow the meat to soak the bread well. Let's move on to the cakes.

Meadow Cantucci

Necessary for Prato cantucci 300 grams of flour 1 teaspoon sweet ammonia 160 grams of sugar 140 grams of almonds 2 eggs the peel of a grated lemon the grated peel of an orange a pinch of salt Preparation of Prato cantucci Mix the eggs with the sugar, then add the orange peel and lemon peel. Continue by slowly incorporating the flour and ammonia for sweets and work with your hands to obtain a homogeneous dough. At this point put the whole almonds in the dough and work again to mix everything well. Divide the dough into two parts and give it the shape of a little filth. In a baking tin put the wires and in the oven already hot at 180 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cut the loaves into many slices with the maximum thickness of one and a half centimeters. Try to cut the slices diagonally. Put the biscuits back in the oven at 150 degrees for another 20 minutes, turning them halfway through cooking. Allow to cool. They stay for several days and are yummy even cold, soaked, as Tuscan tradition wants in the wine.

Siena's Panforte

A typical dessert of the Christmas period, together with the curlers also these from Siena. Necessary for the Siena panforte 150 grams of flour 350 grams of chopped candied fruit 350 grams of sugar 120 grams of honey 400 grams of unpeeled almonds 50 grams of chopped orange zest grams 7 of cinnamon powder 3 cloves a pinch of nutmeg 5 grams of pepper 40 grams of host Preparation of Siena's panforte Melt the sugar in a little water, just dissolved remove from the heat and add the candied and orange zest, stir and place on the heat to bring it to a boil, just to boil remove from the heat. At this point combine the other ingredients, namely flour, honey, almonds and spices until you get a homogeneous and firm dough. Now form a puff pastry no more than an inch and a half high. If it were too big to divide it in two and prepare two panforti. Place this pastry in a cake tin lined with baking paper and lined with hate and place in the oven at 170 degrees for about 25 minutes. Freshly cooked, dust the surface with icing sugar.

The Ricciarelli

Necessary for curlers 40 grams of flour 250 grams of sugar 350 grams of almonds 15 grams of vanilla sugar 20 grams of chopped candied orange a snow-mounted egg white syrup: 40 grams of icing sugar and water just enough for the compound 40 grams of flour 20 grams of sugar 40 grams of vanilla sugar wings (optional) icing sugar Preparation of Siena curls Finely chop the almonds and add them to the sugar, orange zest and a little flour. Apart from dissolve the sugar in a little water to turn it into a syrup. In a bowl heat the almond paste, combine the sugar syrup and flour. At this point cover the bowl with a cloth and let the mixture rest for at least 12 hours. After this time, pick up the dough and pour the snow-mounted egg white and vanilla sugar into it. With the dough form a ball and with a rolling pin roll out the dough about 1 centimeter thick. At this point to give the shape to the curler it takes a metal mold of that shape. With this mold make many curlers that should be placed in a baking tray covered with baking paper. Sprinkle with icing sugar and place in the oven already hot at 180 degrees for about 15 minutes. Serve cold. Read the full article

[ask-unknown-octopus]

[Unknown Octopus walks into Carrot King Diner, making sure not to slam the door again, and manages to normally walk up the waitress.]

excuse me, er- may i ask if you know anything about the disappearances?

All I know is that these mysterious disappearances are ruining the economy, I’m lucky I still even have a job!

oh man, that must suck bad.

oh also! do you have any tea maybe?

Nope, but I do have milk if you ever need it.

[chengrecipes]

A Good Okonomiyaki Recipe

-Ingredients list-

FOR  THE PANCAKE

100g plain flour ½ tsp baking powder 1 egg, lightly beaten 100ml [Use less if adding carrot i tried ~ 60 - 80ml] cooled fish stock, vegetable, chicken or dashi stock  (1 sachet of the Shimaya brand dashi stuff regardless of how much water you use)

Optional 1 Grated carrot 

1 baby potato, or just any small-ish potato, peeled and grated ¼ white, pointed or sweetheart Cabbage, shredded 1 spring onion, finely sliced a (large) thumb-sized piece o' ginger, grated 1 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp mirin 100g of seafood lightly cooked squid, king prawns or octopus (or some of each)vegetable oil, for frying

FOR THE SAUCE (If you don't happen to have some bulldog tonkotsu sauce)

3 tbsp ketchup 1 tbsp brown sauce 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce ½ tbsp soy sauce ½ tsp mirin 1/ tsp honey

TO GARNISH

1 tbsp mayonnaise (having it in a squeeze bottle helps with presentation) dried bonito flakes - check the asian supermarkets for this powdered seaweed or togarashi seasoning sliced spring onion

-Method-

1.       Combine the flour, baking powder (dry), egg and stock (wet). Mix until smooth, whisking out any lumps without overmixing, (I used a silicone spatula for this, no whisking). Add the potato, season with a little salt and white pepper, cover and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hrs.

2.       (Tonkotsu sauce stage) While the mix is resting, combine the ingredients for the sauce, stirring until it’s smooth. Set aside.           Shred the Cabbage (slice it as thin as you can)

3.       Remove the batter from the fridge and add the cabbage, spring onion, ginger, soy, mirin and chosen seafood (Prawns obviously). Stir to thoroughly coat the mix in the batter.

4.       Heat a thin layer of oil in a frying pan on a medium heat. Pour the mixture into the pan, keeping it as circular as possible. Fry for 3-5 mins. Use a palette knife to help you flip it over and cook for a further 3-5 mins, using a lid at intervals to trap the heat so it cooks through. Test to see if it’s ready by sticking a chopstick into the middle. If it comes out dry, it’s ready.

5.       Flip onto a board and serve with the sauce and garnishes to taste. Eat straight away, ideally, leftovers can be reheated in a pan or in the oven for 8 - 10 minutes at 180 degrees.

Adapted from:

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/japanese-okonomiyaki