This week we saw a cookbook for dogs, vending machine pizza, and a “food insecure” Muppet: Strange occurrences, but nothing terribly out of the ordinary. No, we saved the really random stuff for the James Weird Awards, straight ahead.
• A tricky tax loophole (and a pass from the Supreme Court to appeal a case) means that national fried-chicken chain KFC owes the state of Iowa $248,000 in unpaid corporate income taxes, despite the fact that every KFC outpost in the state is an independently owned franchise. [HuffPo]
• Remember that one time when you joked about how awesome it would be if Taco Bell tucked a Taco Supreme inside a shell made out of Doritos chips? No? Well, the chain restaurant is granting your wish anyway. The Doritos Locos Taco is (so far) only available in California. [Eater NY]
• A NYC-based hacker collective created a working, sort-of-edible toy piano made out of Jell-O for the 2011 Jell-O Mold Competition. The piece was such a hit that the collective put together another model made out of fruit for the 2011 Solid Sound Music Festival. [Laughing Squid]
• Marijuana use is still only allowed medicinally in 16 states, but that’s not stopping some wine- and beer-makers from infusing liquid extracts of the stuff into their brews. There’s a lot of experimentation happening on the fringes of this new frontier, though Fork in the Road notes that without oil or butter to offset the fat-soluble THC found in cannabis, pot brownies are probably a better option. [Gourmet Live]
• Cheba Hut, a marijuana-themed sub shop chain on the West Coast, held a contest to see who could — or would — chug 32 ounces of ranch dressing for a prize of $300 and a year’s worth of free subs. Four young men accepted the challenge, and the results were predictably disgusting. [Eater NY]
