Web posted on: Thursday, July 30, 1998 3:54:03 PM EDT

By CNN Interactive Writer
Jamie Allen

ATLANTA (CNN) -- Tired of those backyard barbecues that serve up yawner meals like T-bone steaks, hamburgers and hot dogs? Ever sit near the bug zapper at those barbecues and wonder what that latest "zap!" might taste like?

You are not alone. At least one other person on this planet thinks like you, and is, in fact, several steps ahead of you. His name is David George Gordon, a science writer who has just released a cookbook titled, "The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook," published by Ten Speed Press.

Yes, bugs. Eating them, not spraying them with Raid.

'Challenging people's food beliefs'

"What counts as good food in our culture is what we're raised on," says Gordan. "Some people won't touch okra. It's a subjective thing. I think part of the fun of the book is challenging people's food beliefs."

Gordon must be having some fun. His cookbook buzzes with the potential of turning the nightly dinner with the family into an unforgettable feast by offering "33 ways to cook grasshoppers, ants, waterbugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin." Insects never tasted so good.

In fact, Gordon claims his recipes make bug meat taste like lobster or crab. Ready for a taste? How about cooking up some "Sheesh! Kabob" -- a recipe for grasshopper on a stick. Or perhaps you're in the mood for Asian -- say, "Sweet and Sour Silkworm," or "Superworm Tempura?"

'Not bad'

Gordon says he enjoys getting people to try his recipes.

"I've had a lot of people say, 'Well, here goes.' It's kinda like jumping into a cold river, and after they have a bite they say, 'Not bad.'"

And yes, the most dreaded bug of all dreaded bugs, the cockroach, is offered as a tantalizing cuisine in "Eat-A-Bug." Before you squirm away from the table, did you know that jazz legend Louis Armstrong, as a child, drank a brew made from boiled cockroaches to soothe sore throats and colds? Gordon offers that tidbit of information, while selling cockroach cuisine as "nutritious, delicious and remarkably easy to obtain." OK, start squirming.

But at least consider this. Gordon does not have a beef against bugs. He has a pet tarantula that does taste-tests for him, and he has made nature writing a full-time, award-winning job. His love for bugs is merely translated into his latest project; it just so happens that the project is a cookbook.

"When I was out beating the stump for (a book on cockroaches) I was called a cockroach rights activist," says Gordon. "I like to point out that everything has a reason for being. If you tell someone that a bald eagle is wonderful -- duh, that's news. But get someone to think a cockroach is wonderful and you've really done something."

What's for breakfast?

Aside from delivering creepy-crawler recipes for unusual consumption, Gordon also educates the reader on the history of entomophagy (that's bug eating, and it's been around for a long time).

Some questions that are answered: Who eats bugs, anyway? Is it OK to eat raw bugs? And what kind of wine should be served with Cream of Katydid Soup?

The knowledge readers gain will provide answers to the questions that are sure to crawl into the conversation when dinner is served -- and dinner is Curried Termite Stew.

Only one question remains after a meal like this: What's for breakfast?

How about Aunt Jemima's Buckwheat-Bug Griddlecakes? That's a fancy way of serving up ant pancakes.

Pass the syrup.

Photos reprinted with permission from "The Eat A Bug Cookbook" by David George Gordon. (Copyright 1998, Ten Speed Press)

Other book news:

• Pull up a chair at our Reader's Cafe
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• Ten Speed Press
• Review: Cookbooks by Ten Speed Press

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