Imagine the most delectable sweets with an old but still shocking twist: bug parts of every kind thrown in for good measure. If this mix of sugar, spice and things not so nice appeals to you, the insect museum in New Orleans might just hit the spot.
Crickets and wax worms served on toothpicks and dipped in a
fountain of chocolate fondue, “tarsal toffee” sprinkled with bug
legs and meal worms, fudge infused with a healthy dose of
marshmallows and crickets; if you can imagine it, they’ve got it
on offer.
Located in the heart of the Big easy, the 23,000-square-foot
facility in is the largest free-standing museum in the United
States dedicated to insects. Apart from the exotic deserts to
draw curious visitors, it also houses thousands of live bugs.
“We get every range of reaction in here," Zack Lemann,
the museum's animal and visitor programs manager, told AP.
"There are people who come here knowing about Bug Appetit,
and they come to eat the bugs. We also have people who have
trepidation and anxiety. Some just won't try it."
A little known fact is that the FDA already allows for 60 or more
microscopic insect fragments for each 100 grams of chocolate.
Lemann figures it is not such a massive step to go from
mindlessly taking a bite out of an errant bit of critter to
knowingly chomping down on a whole bug with a requisite tea spoon
of sugar.
While chocolate “chirp” cookies with, you guessed it,
crickets, and a variety of other insect infused deserts are part
of the museum’s annual fare, the latest chocolate-dipped are
being seen as a special offering.
"I wish I could get her to eat vegetables like she eats
bugs," Val Russell told AP after her 8-year-old daughter,
Porter scarfed down three chocolate-dipped wax worms before
heading back for seconds.
So for those looking for a trick that could also be a treat, Bug
Appetit could be the premier Halloween stop for night crawlers of
every kind.