August 10, 2010
Where I come from, junk food is considered a major food group and obesity a national emergency. Italians make fun of our junk-food fetish, calling us—kind of cruel, don’t ya think?—culoni, big butts.
Italians believe they’re eating a healthy Mediterranean diet. Take a look in an Italian hypermarket, though, and you’ll see aisles brimming with made-in-Italy junk food.
But why in blazes do nearly all the packages bear American names? Can it be that Italians refuse to sully their own bella lingua by putting it on stuff that clogs arteries and fattens fannies?
These'll make you whistle Dixie
As in Yonkers, NY?
Kind of wacko, don't you think?
Named after the Fonz?
Only a hipster can appreciate a Cipster (pronounced Chipster)
I love this! They stick the Italian plural ("i") onto an English word
PS: I hope you appreciate these photos–Supermarket Security made me beg for permission from Store Manager, who looked at me like I was some sort of crazy blogger.
***
Rarely venturing into those aisles I had never noticed there names before! I like Fonzies. I’m surprised you haven’t been expelled from the country for industrial espionage!
Well, Heiko, it sure is better to grow your own food as you do than venture into those aisles!!! (I’m surprised you like Fonzies!)
On my first trip to Torino my mother in law invited me to the breakfast table. It was piled with sweet cakey junk food. Here I thought I would see a traditional Italian breakfast!
Wayne, have you heard about the traditional Sicilian summer breakfast that you will soon be eating? It’s delicious, but vaguely junkfood-esque–a big fat buttery brioche that you dip into sweet icy granita (something like a very high-class slush puppy). OR you eat a great big scoop of gelato inside that same big fat buttery brioche.
I have a big sicilian butt even when I was a toothpick, my butt was still big.