Tuesday, February 10, 2009

A Healthy Appetite

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

"Some fresh black pepper, sir? We find it accentuates the taste of the carrots quite nicely."

"Uh, really? Well, in that case, let 'er rip!"



Jody celebrated his "biethday" in Turkey, which explains the adorable inscription. As for the rest - I have no idea. Maybe the locals were trying to make a point about American eating habits? Is this the Turkish equivalent of those V8 commercials? Or - OR - is it possible there's some sugary Turkish treat that looks exactly like carrot sticks? (I'm holding out hope for that one.)

Ok, Patreesha, your mission is to eat some carrots with chocolate icing and tell us what it tastes like. Quicky, now! The rest of us NEED this information.
April Feagley said...

I hope those are actually orange icing squiggles. Carrots as cake sprinkles - hmmmm, I think I prefer my icing non-crunchy.

Suzy said...

OMG!

Katie said...

Maybe she had confessed her love for carrot cake...and this is how it turned out. Pretty unfortunate though.

Anonymous said...

perhaps the "carrot cake" recipe was lost in translation.

Anonymous said...

Are we sure those orange sticks aren't icing? Eeep.

Anonymous said...

so THIS is chocolate carrot cake!!!
What's with the medical instruments on the table???


WV: cusnalep
Happy Birtday Cusnalep from Ant Joe

Unknown said...

After yesterday's wreck, I wasn't sure I was going to be able to "stomach" any more wrecks for a while. *GAG*

Anonymous said...

Jody clearly likes carrot cakes. Delicious ;)

Anonymous said...

If this was from a bakery from an English-speaking country, it might be funnier. I don't really think expecting foreign cake wreckers to spell in their non-native tongue is that fair. But it is a VERY ugly cake.

Also, my family is Turkish, and so far, I haven't encountered any Turkish desserts look quite like this.

Carrie and Michael Brown said...

Now that looks appetizing!

Anonymous said...

It's a pizza! Er, isn't it?

Angie (from over at www.HalfAssedKitchen.com)

Colleen said...

Ug, cultural differences aside that cake looks terrible! No way I would eat that.

~Colleen (cyberrblue.wordpress.com)

Anonymous said...

In Turkey (and most of the Middle East) carrots in rose water are a very common treat.

feywriter said...

Are those really carrots??? And those leaves are looking quite shiny and plastic...

Love this blog! I have an Award for you!

Anonymous said...

It appears like orange-tinted white chocolate shavings. (Or at least I hope it is.) And are those lime wedges? Will probably come in handy after you take that tequila shot to help this cake go down smoothly.

whit said...

It's funny, because I have had some of the best desserts of my life in Turkey... apparently the Turks just aren't good at cake?

Doublebanker said...

Probably the only way that I'll eat carrots is with chocolate icing!

More bad driver gifs

Anonymous said...

I believe I can answer your question re: carrots & chocolate. When I was about 8, my dad got remarried. There was chocolate fondue with fruit and cake at the reception. Well, I'm a BIG chocolate fan, so I quickly decimated the dippers. But there was still a lot of fondue left. Oh, what to do, what to do? Then I spotted...the crudite tray. Carrots and chocolate aren't bad when you are 8. Not sure how I would feel about them now...

pitchersbakery said...

NASTYYYYYYY Thats so wrong in so many ways....i just cant say nasty enough... breakfast, uhhh no thanks...just one question, whats the red things around the edges? weird...

Mrs. Flax said...

Is it wrong that I don't think carrots dipped in chocolate frosting sounds that bad?

Anonymous said...

What's with the yellow rose!?!

rissykay99 said...

Yikes, on first glance I thought that was a meat loaf cake: http://www.meatloafcake.com/

But looking at it again, it's scaring me even more to realize it's a traditional cake with extremely disgusting frosting.

SpiderBrigade said...

No, see, obviously what happened is they asked him what kind of cake he liked and he said "Carrot cake"

I'm imagining them scratching their heads thinking "Uhh...carrots on a cake? That sounds really disgusting...but maybe that's what they like in America? We wouldnt want to disappoint him..."

Hilarious cultural misunderstanding!

Baking and Mistaking said...

Mmmm carrots and chocolate icing.

Oh wait, that sounds disgusting.

Kara said...

maybe they heard about the popularity of carrot cake in the U.S. and came up with this? if only the carrot-riding babies could have made an appearance!

www.cookeatreadsleep.blogspot.com

Christy Dawn Yoga said...

Yummy, carrot & pepper cake! I usually put raisins in my carrot cake, but to each their own I guess LOL

HorribleLicensePlates said...

I think just about anything with chocolate icing would be good.

Wait a second... I take that back...

Anonymous said...

What's that green stuff along the border? Is that pickle relish?

--Blue Jean

rosie said...

that cake makes me think of pimento loaf-which then makes me think of gagging!

Anonymous said...

Is that a pearl onion by the 2nd 'p' in "Happy"?

Sharon said...

Mmmm...charcoal slurry icing. Omg..that looks horrible. That's even uglier than yesterday's Dr. Pachman cake with the black edges and yellow-green airbrushing. Those really do appear to be raw carrots, unevenly sliced raw carrots, not icing. And I see seeds on it, too.. yellow-green seeds in the edging around the black, like the ones I find sometimes in trail mix, hulled pumpkin seeds.

Anonymous said...

perhaps the bottle of beer (im assuming) next to the cake could add a little bit of explanation to the mishap

Anonymous said...

Well... Maybe it's a cake made of meat?

ilovebabyquilts said...

For some reason this cake reminds me of a raccoon - like it has a bandit mask across its face. Weird.

Kristin @ Going Country said...

Okay, this is my first time on your site, and I have to say it is pretty damn funny. However, the REASON I am here is that one of my commenters suggested that a King Cake I decorated (none too professionally, I will admit) and posted about on my site today should be submitted here. Now, 1) I can't submit it because I didn't pay anyone for it, and 2) How should I feel that someone thinks my cake is that much of a wreck? I mean, it kind of is, but still.

Whatever, it still tastes good. And that's what really matters in a cake, right?

Anonymous said...

Ewwww, I thought it was a "biethday" pizza. Weird!!!!!

Anonymous said...

That looks a lot more like ground pistachio than ground pepper.

Anonymous said...

This cake is not my cup of tea, but after yesterday's footnote to cakery almost anything is an improvement, even carrots and chocolate. (Hmmm, hadn't thought of that combination. Well, maybe not this morning.)

Anonymous said...

oh dear!

Anonymous said...

this is the first time I have ever wanted to vomit after seeing a cake. Even the feet cakes didn't phase me; although I probably could never bring myself to nibble on a toe.

gryphondear said...

Aside from the spelling/syntax problem, I was sort of leaning toward the pizza explanation, too--like those fruit pizzas that were popular about 15 years ago. The cake looks like a cookie anyhow, so maybe the orange things are supposed to be simulated cheese, but then there's that chocolate swatch with the flowers. Just not quite... .

:^) Jan the Gryphon
http://gryph-wotd.blogspot.com/

the ginabean said...

I have nothing clever to say, but that doesn't mean I don't think this cake is fugly.

I'm also curious about the carrots on the cake. But not curious enough to try it. Obviously.

Anonymous said...

I know all the cakes on this site are professionally made, but I'm beginning to wonder if the definition of "professional" might be a little loose...like, for example, "this cake was made by a professional wrestler, in his spare time." It blows my mind that people actually earn a paycheck making some of these things! The misspelling is the least of this cake's problems.

Anonymous said...

I don't know about carrots and chocolate icing, but my dad seems to enjoy eating carrots and toblerone.

Anonymous said...

People already asked if those are lime wedges accompanying the carrot sticks and butter (buttercream if we're lucky) rose...but what about the maraschino cherries and pistachio (?) garnishes? This is becoming a Mediterranean trail mix cake!

Marie Cloutier said...

my birthday is tomorrow and i would cry if that was my cake!

Chris the Yardsale Queen said...

I like the way they stuck the candle in dead center of the cake - since it tells me that they are perfectionists.

Anonymous said...

I lived in Turkey for about 15 months while my husband was stationed there at Incirlik Air Base. I don't recall ever seeing any Turkish desserts looking like that. As a matter of fact, we would go eat at the local Hilton at their brunch buffet sometimes, and their desserts were absolutely beautiful! I wish I had a picture of some of them. And it was all Turkish locals that ran the hotel, not Americans.

Anonymous said...

OMG...just gross! Is it me, or are those green pepper "leaves" that accompany the yellow frosting flower? I'm gonna gag...hope it went down ok...

Unknown said...

Literally, a carrot cake, perhaps? Bierthday Happy. Cake not happy.

~Amy

alexlady said...

That yellow rosette really classes up the joint.

Wendy said...

"In Turkey (and most of the Middle East) carrots in rose water are a very common treat."

I'll have to try this! Carrots ARE very sweet. I use them in smoothies all the time instead of sugar.

The "cake" is a little sad looking, though.

Denise said...

Aren't cakes universal? Delicious in any language.

That cake is wrecktastic here, there and frankly everywhere.

Anonymous said...

What might the little red things be that are placed around the border? Grape tomatoes?

And the gritty-looking stuff sprinkled over the wording? Pepper?

Anonymous said...

I'm with Mrs. Flax. Carrots are sweet enough that carrots with chocolate could work. Can't say I've tried it though.

Sarah K said...

wait...do they not have birthday cake in Turkey?? that's it! i refuse to go there during my birthday! ridiculous!

Anonymous said...

Okay, having looked very carefully at the close-up, I am convinced that the "carrots" are something akin to chocolate shavings, the red things and the rose leaves are made of candy, and the greenish-tan stuff above and below the text field is, not mold, but a sprinkling of seeds-- not my first choice in cake topping, but possibly quite delicious.

The "pepper," on the other hand ...

wv: toyallit. "I had a bite of the pepper cake and ran for the toyallit."

Suzanne Dargie said...

Well, in the close-up I can see what appear to be pistachios, which is usually included in Baklava, and the black pepper may be some sort of ground spice.....but black pepper IS an ingredient in Masala Tea...which most people call "Chai Tea" and it's sweet. Hmmmm. I've had pickled carrots at Indian restaurants, and grated carrots with raisins do form the base of a sweet, cole-slaw type salad. Maybe the cake IS just what it appears to be. I wish we could see a photo of the inside...that might help shed some light on how it would taste.
.............maybe.

Anonymous said...

did you mean to say "quicky, now" there at the end? are you encouraging Patreesha to try carrots with chocolate icing while that is going on? i thought the post before this was the one about freaky fetishes...

Unknown said...

I ate carrots with chocolate frosting about a month ago and it was delicious. I like crunchy and chocolate together and there was nothing else to put the frosting on. Yum.

That said, the "pepper" on this cake doesn't look too appetizing.

Ana said...

Looks like curls made with orange-colored white chocolate, doesn't it?
I would not say that was carrots...

Anonymous said...

Euww, yuck. I love carrot cake, but that's too much! Lol
Anna Marie

Anonymous said...

I lived in Turkey for 3 years, and I don't think I have *ever* seen anything like that.

Anonymous said...

While this cake does look very unappetizing, I actually do have a recipe for chocolate carrot cake that is AMAZING!!!!

Aaron F Stanton said...

It's not even "Happy Biethday" - it's "Biethday Happy"!

Anonymous said...

Sorry to burst the bubble of fun, but if you look closely at the picture you'll notice a bottle of beer in the left hand corner and the "medical instruments" are what we use here in Turkey for cookouts. I suspect it was a drunken joke. That said though, there are plenty of "wrecks" here particularly for New Years (which of course is when Santa comes and puts gifts under the tree).

Anonymous said...

I've lived in Turkey. With no disrespect meant for such a wonderful people and culture, this would not surprise me at all. I've got many stories that in which the results were "lost in translation!"

cgreyd said...

Maybe they requested "Carrot cake?"

Anonymous said...

OK, so I actually lived in Turkey for many years, and I must say I'm surprised! I have seen some of the loveliest (not to mention tastiest) cakes over there.

Still, this one *is* exceptionally ugly. I never saw carrots on a cake over there, though.

Anonymous said...

On further thought, I think it might be a burfi/halva-inspired cake. Burfi and halva are dessert bars that are popular in India, Pakistan, and the Middle East. Carrot and pistachio are both common ingredients. I've seen them in indian sweet stores in chicago.

Anne said...

Biethday Happy??? Geez Louise!

Anonymous said...

Oh my that is a horrid cake for us turks. Wait, are those pistacchios? I think it would've been much better if they grinded them first. And ditched the orange.

Anonymous said...

Maybe it not chocolate icing at all.....maybe its paté with olive tapenade? Certainly it would be tastier with carrot sticks!

Margi Macdonald said...

oh pish posh
This delightful delectation is imbued with a certain rustic charm.
I want one.

EllenHoff said...

I don't think enough people have touched on the "Birthday Happy" part of this cake.

Heidi said...

Huh. After reading the comments and taking a long hard look at this cake I have to say I agree with others. I'm seeing the 'pepper' as green sugar (look closely around the candied cherries on the edges), the carrots as some sort of chocolate shaving (look at the bottom right where the "carrot slice" is completely round - that'd have to be an entire carrot half if this were in fact a pile of carrots), and while I initially thought the green seeds were pistachios as well, upon close inspection I'm seeing pine nuts. I think you've got yourself a Kwanzaa cake there that Sandra Lee would be proud of.

Anonymous said...

I teach ESL, and for my birthday last year, one of my Turkish students made me a SPINACH CAKE. I mean, the thing was green. I have to say, though, it wasn't bad. Hopefully Jody's was just as tasty.

Emily said...

I vote for the misunderstood "carrot cake" theory so many other comments have put forth.

As for pistachios, those are very common in Turkish/Mediterranean desserts - like baklava. So it's not really weird to see those.

The thing in the middle is a white candle seen from the burnt wick end, not a pearl onion, and the red things are definitely nice reasonable maraschino cherries.

The pepper, though, I'm as clueless as the rest of you. Unless they misinterpreted "carrot cake" even worse than we thought. Actually, though, black pepper with chocolate shouldn't taste too bad - much less dubious than the carrots!

Anonymous said...

If something is slightly sweet it is fair game for dessert somewhere. I was in Brunei a few years ago and was served a banana split with corn in it! And sweet potato ice cream is common in Japan. That icing may not even be chocolate. It could be like the "chocolate" cake I once bought in Singapore that turned out to iced with red bean paste.

Anonymous said...

ok, I lived in Turkey for seven months, and I never came across anything looking like that...

Anonymous said...

This reminds me of when I lived in the Philippines and ordered a pecan pie: I provided the pecans and the recipe. I got a beautifully cooked pie-- with a cup of pecans on the side. Apparently the recipe didn't actually say to put in the nuts. I agree with Katie, I'm sure she asked for carrot cake. When in Turkey, I've had chicken pudding.

Dolores Griffin said...

Whatever it looks like, I'll bet it was delicious! I had the most incredible desserts in Turkey. Mmm...just thinking about it makes me want to go back! I will grant, of course, that it looks, well, not delicious :)

Miranda said...

biethday might not be so happy if I tried to eat cake with carrots and pepper. Yargh! *runs away*

As for the previous cake feet: It made me paranoid. I ped-egged my feet thoroughly and painted my toenails. lol.

You haven't killed my fetish, though; you've just reminded me to be picky. :P

Valerie said...

That looks like a cake I made for my DOG last year (used carrot slices to make flowers, since dogs really shouldn't eat icing).

Actually it looks more like the cake after my dog dug into it.

Ew!

missamandabear said...

I've never commented before, but this post will make me do it. I just found out I'm pregnant, and I wanted to let you know that that cake right there - actually made me physically gag! Thanks for that :)!

Anonymous said...

I can't vouch for carrot and chocolate icing, but carrot sticks in chocolate fondue are actually quite nice. The same cannot be said of raw mushrooms though!

Richard Boussarath Malone said...

Maybe they ordered a carrot cake, and the Turkish bakery didn't know what that was.

Unknown said...

Maybe Jody was from Utah, and the cake makers, knowing nothing else about Utah except for their penchant to put carrots in green jello decided to put the carrots on the cake thinking maybe that carrots went into every desert in Utah. (And I live in UT, and the carrots/green jello thing...totally true)

Anonymous said...

I've lived in Turkey a long time and I've never seen a cake this bad. I think the orange things are probably carrots, the green things are pistacios, and the little red decorations on the sides are pomagranite kernels. I agree with some of the other comments that poor Jody must have requested a carrot cake and the Turks didn't know how to make one. How funny. I love this site. I can come here whenever I need a laugh.

Anonymous said...

I have been telling people for YEARS that carrots never belong in/on cakes. This is simply an extreme example of exactly why I hate carrot cake. Some things were just not made to go together.

Mollie said...

Are those chopped olives?!

Kristine said...

Isn't "Jody" the pig that haunted the little girl in that Margo Kidder movie (I didn't see the remake) The Amityville Horror?

LibraryChristi said...

I can honestly say that I've voluntarily eaten carrots dipped in chocolate frosting and they were quite tasty. A friend made some absolutely delicious frosting for some mini chocolate cupcakes. I had already had a few cupcakes, but still wanted more frosting (and felt it would be a major faux pas to stick my finger in the frosting bowl)...so I dipped in a baby carrot. And then a second...

Of course, I probably should mention that I'm pregnant :)

Anonymous said...

*eye twitch*