Do you like this story?
Catnip pasta: More pet-related food disasters
By Gina Spadafori
July 22, 2009
I hate being sick. I liked it much better when I was a child and my mom took care of me. And there’s the problem: I am clearly unable to take of myself.
Yesterday, the hypothetical adventures of McKenzie the Butter Retriever. (And yes, folks, I put the butter back in the ‘fridge.) Today: Catnip. And I’m not even going to pretend this happened to someone else.
Clara loves catnip, which is why I always have some in the refrigerator. (True to the average that catnip appreciation runs in about half of all cats, Ilario couldn’t care less about the stuff.)
Usually I get it in a little tub, or in a plastic bag. (The latter raised my brother’s eyebrows on one visit. A high-school teacher, he immediately thought it was marijuana! Yes, I know this is California, but I don’t smoke … anything.)
Last time I bought some catnip, I got Zanie’s Meow Magic catnip, which comes in a container that looks a lot like what Parmessan cheese comes in, complete with a cap of the same color green.
Can you see where I’m going with this?
I just boiled some pasta, planning to drizzle a little olive oil on it and toss with a little cheese. I knew I had cheese, because I glanced in the fridge, and there was a container with a green top.
So I boiled and strained the pasta, drizzled a little oil and grabbed the cheese from the fridge, shaking it all over the dish.
Except the cheese was catnip.
No, I did not eat it.
I think I’m going to order a pizza. Just because chicken soup isn’t on anyone’s menu for delivery.
Share & Enjoy
|
Facebook
|
Twitter
|
Google Buzz
|
Digg
|
|
Technorati
|
StumbleUpon
|
Delicious
|
Email
|
Home
Once when I wasn’t feeling my best, I mistook the catnip for dried thyme and added it to the tomato sauce. I did go ahead and eat it, but then - it wasn’t so much!
Comment by Eucritta — July 22, 2009 @ 1:59 pm
It’s a mint. You could still eat it. Or you could rinse the pasta and start over. No need to waste the pasta!
Comment by Lis — July 22, 2009 @ 2:07 pm
Xander is a catnip devotee, Shadow actually shows active dislike off the stuff. I have a catnip plant growing in a tub right now. Xander leaves the growing plant alone but goes bonkers for fresh, crushed leaves. I’ve also noted he often hangs out in the shrubs general vicinity….
Comment by JenniferJ — July 22, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
It happens to the best of us. I’m sure Clara would’ve loved that pasta. :)
Comment by vbgermanrottweilers — July 22, 2009 @ 3:29 pm
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Comment by Phyllis DeGioia — July 22, 2009 @ 4:00 pm
Gina Gina Gina, the dog and cat gods are trying to tell you they want bar-b-que, not pasta. :-)
Comment by JenniferJ — July 22, 2009 @ 4:01 pm
I can’t believe you didn’t eat that. How bad could catnip be? (ducking and running)
Comment by Kim Thornton — July 22, 2009 @ 5:47 pm
well, how bad COULD catnip be?
Comment by EmilyS — July 22, 2009 @ 6:06 pm
Why didn’t you eat it? Catnip is a stimulant for cats, but a sedative for people (it used to be an ingredient in Celestial Seasonings “Sleepytime Tea”) - it might have helped you sleep so you would feel better.
Mint family in pasta is not unheard of in Italy as well as the Middle East. If you’re really worried about the taste, pile on some oregano and garlic (both good herbs to zap germs) and you’ll never notice the catnip.
BTW, why are you BUYING catnip? It’s an easy herb to grow and the flowers are good for beneficial insects. It’s one of those herbs we let volunteer almost anywhere it comes up in the community garden becuase it’s so useful.
Comment by Dorene — July 22, 2009 @ 6:48 pm
I tried to grow catnip in my yard for several years, but the neighborhood cats flattened the poor plants while rolling in ecstacy. I did finally manage to get some seedlings to survive inside a stout wire enclosure. That corner of the yard later began to resemble a sort of kitty opium den, with the somewhat-stoned partakers lounging in the bushes.
Comment by Martha — July 22, 2009 @ 7:05 pm
I didn’t eat it, so I cannot report on how bad catnip could be. And I didn’t wash the noodles off. Bleh.
I called my brother and begged him to bring me food. God bless him, he did.
I will plant some catnip. I promise. But not today. Or even tomorrow.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — July 22, 2009 @ 7:07 pm
Sorry you’re under the weather! But it can happen even to the healthy. Twenty years ago I was making meatloaf for my husband, then my fiance. I used that Gravy Master stuff to color the gravy — except it was almost exactly the same size and shape as my vanilla extract. Yep, vanilla gravy. Bleah!
Comment by Susan — July 22, 2009 @ 7:57 pm
What kind of Italian eats pre-grated cheese?!
Serves you right.
Comment by H. Houlahan — July 22, 2009 @ 8:14 pm
A sick one. Have pity. Sheesh. It’s my “emergency cheese.”
Comment by Gina Spadafori — July 22, 2009 @ 8:25 pm
Oh dear. Did you see this one?
http://icanhascheezburger.file.....-fryer.jpg
Comment by The OTHER Pat — July 22, 2009 @ 9:35 pm
Well there was the time my mother mistook the jar of sugar (recycled unlabeled mayo jar) for the salt and used it in the fish and chips batter. Yech.
Comment by cheryl — July 22, 2009 @ 9:44 pm
Well there was the time my mother mistook the jar of sugar (recycled unlabeled mayo jar) for the salt and used it in the fish and chips batter. Yech.
Sorry, forgot to add great post! Can’t wait to see your next post!
Comment by cheryl — July 23, 2009 @ 1:04 am
Oh Gina…You do need Chicken soup!! lol…and of course this reminds me of when my Harry the golden was in his last weeks and days last year…I had asked for help in feeding him as he had lost his appetite and I was thinking we would be able to have him with us a little longer and feeling better if he could eat to keep his strength…so my friends at another forum gave me some great “cancer” recipes and “Turkey Meatloaf” was his favorite..It was filled with great things we all eat but I also added some of his grain-free kibble…My son had moved back in at that time and had come home late from his job..The next morning I went in to get Harry’s meatloaf for his breakfast and found most of it gone…My son told me later that day that the meatloaf was my best…Unless he reads my two posts about this …he will never know he ate kibble…(lol)
Comment by Carol V — July 23, 2009 @ 4:29 am
Wishing today you feel better, Gina.
It seems you got a nasty, weakening outbreak of something or other.
Catnip might have helped you, but now you will never know. Clara must have been sending you a mental message to give her catnip. :)
Comment by Colorado Transplant — July 23, 2009 @ 5:41 am
Who knows - maybe it would have sped your recovery! You could have made a major scientific discovery; your ticket outta here! The cure for the common cold, and it was right under our whiskers…
There’s another blog for me in the future: medical miracles that have trickled down (up?) from dogs and cats to people.
Feel better soon. If you need some doggy vitamins, I can hook you up.
Comment by Dr. Tony Johnson — July 23, 2009 @ 6:50 am
Ah Cheryl, “forgot to add great post! Can’t wait to see your next post” = SPAM LINK.
For me, single-trial learning.
Bah. Is this where the Do Not Call list has sent all the telemarketers?
Comment by H. Houlahan — July 23, 2009 @ 7:01 am
It does appear to be. We’re being flooded with the “great post” spammers. I removed Cheryl’s web link. You’ll have to find great recipes on your own.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — July 23, 2009 @ 7:09 am
No harm done here. I can make MORE catnip pasta! Will report on its healing properties.
NOT.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — July 23, 2009 @ 7:10 am
I’m sorry that you’re not feeling well. However, catnip pasta made me lmao. :) If that happenend to me, I would have to try it out of pure principle. You never know, it may be tasty (doubtful). Anyway, feel better soon.
Comment by Jason Merrihew — July 23, 2009 @ 9:23 am