Like everyone else in Houston, we lost power and didn’t want to sit around in the dark. I had a box filled with tapered candles, but had no candlesticks. So I found a bag of dried lentils in the pantry, poured a couple of inches worth into various flower vases and other glass containers, and stuck the candles in that. Voila! Brilliant.
Late one night we had all the windows open to catch a breeze, and we were playing games by candlelight. My young daughter suddenly asked me, “What’s that funny smell?” One whiff, and I thought someone must be outside smoking marijuana! Nope, it turned out that when hot wax melts on dried lentils, it smells EXACTLY like pot. (Not that I would know how to recognize that aroma…) 
2 responses so far ↓
Ann Handley // October 15, 2008 at 9:27 am |
I don’t think I’m going to tell Evan about this…
Me [agitated]: “What’s that I smell on you?!?!!”
Him [incredulous]: “Mom! We were just melting wax on lentils!”
Uh-huh…..
she11ey // October 15, 2008 at 9:53 am |
Hadn’t thought of corrupting the youth of the world this way!
I wrote down this experience for a local restaurant magazine’s December issue. The editor was looking for “food stories” related to Hurricane Ike, and, well…