• The travel Web site concierge.com lists the world’s scariest foods. At first glance, we thought Jell-O reigned supreme as the scariest—at least scorpions and tarantulas are natural—but then we watched this video of a writhing plate of sannakji (live baby octopus). Imbibers have to contend with still-active tentacle suckers, which apparently present a choking hazard. [Concierge]

• New York Times writer Micheline Maynard visits Ottawa’s Cordon Bleu Culinary Institute to see if it lives up to its worldwide reputation. There, she experiences the highs and lows of professional cooking, including a successful lobster in verbena cream sauce, and a not-so-successful platter of skate. [New York Times]

• An Anglo-Indian chef has created what he calls the world’s healthiest meal. The spicy plate of chicken and blueberry curry with goji berry rice pilaf is 20 times healthier than any specially formulated meal, experts say. Each serving contains the nutritional equivalent of 49 helpings of spinach, and eating it once a week could deal a “devastating blow” to cancer and Alzheimer’s. [Telegraph]

• Deli gurus David Sax and Zane Caplansky interview each other on the Post’s Appetizer blog. Sax queries Caplansky on the growing pains of starting a delicatessen on College Street, and Caplansky delves into the evolution of Sax’s book, from its inception as Hold the Mustard to Death of the Deli to its current title, Save the Deli. [National Post]

• Farmville, a Facebook game in which users grow their own “delicious” fruits and vegetables (yes, apparently digital produce can taste good), has become the most popular application in the history of Facebook. The game appears to be just as addictive as the social networking site itself. One anonymous blogger, who said she was pregnant, had this to say of her spouse’s addiction: “I was starving…and he told me I’d have to wait a few more minutes so he could harvest his raspberries!” [New York Times]

| Further reading: books, College Street, cooking, David Sax, Health, Indian, News, Ottawa, Zane Caplansky

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