Best Bites: Octopus Lunch Surprise
By Donna Erickson
Dive Into an Octopus Lunch Surprise
Turn a ho-hum Saturday meal into a memorable family activity when you dive into this “Octopus Lunch Surprise” recipe! With a few simple ingredients that kids love, your imaginations can soar when everyone creates an underwater scene right on their plates.
PHOTO CREDIT: Donna Erickson
Make a shopping list, pick up what you need together, and you'll soon be on your way to playing with your food kid-style!
Here are the ingredients you'll need for 4 servings:
4 standard-sized hot dogs
6 ounces spinach fettuccine, cooked according to package directions (substitute shell-shaped pasta, if you prefer)
4 slices of bread
4 slices of cheese or cheese spread
Cookie cutters in fish or star shapes
2 whole cloves or raisins
Several cocktail-sized sausages such as Hillshire Farm Beef Lit'l Smokies (optional)
Here's the fun: For each "octopus," slice a hot dog down the center lengthwise, leaving approximately 1 1/2 inches at one end of the hot dog intact. The uncut end will be the head of the "octopus." Hand your child a pair of clean and easy-to-handle scissors. Let them cut each of the halves in half lengthwise, then in half again. Be careful to keep the strips attached to the solid top portion of the hot dog. You will now have 8 arms. Cut a few arms in the small cocktail-sized wieners, if you wish.
An adult should place the hot dogs in a pan of boiling water. Watch how the "octopus" arms immediately curl as the hot dog heats through and the casing tightens. Carefully remove from the pan, and set each one with the head upright and legs dangling outward on top of a mound of hot, buttered spinach pasta (the seaweed). For the eyes, insert 2 whole cloves or raisins next to each other into the top portion.
Set a small sausage or two (to represent squids) along the side of the plate, chasing after the octopus.
Serve with toast that has been cut into sea-themed shapes with cookie cutters. Top with cheese spread or cheese slices cut into the same shapes.
Extra Learning Fun: Watch a short, popular video on your computer showing the discovery of octopuses manipulating discarded coconut shells and using them for protective shelter. View it and read more interesting information about octopuses with your family at NationalGeographic.com. Search the site with these keywords: "octopus" and "coconut shell."
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Donna Erickson creates relationships and community through food and fun. Find more to nourish and delight you at www.donnaerickson.com.
(c) 2024 Donna Erickson
Distributed by King Features Synd.