Adam had swimming lessons this afternoon.
I decided to capitalize on them and make a theme day around water.
This morning we made pancakes. Thinner batter, thicker batter…all done with water. For the record, they enjoyed the thinner batter better. (Wow, say that 10 times fast! thinner batter better, thinner batter better…oye. I digress)
We played with ice cubes. Letting them melt. Then letting them evaporate.
I also talked to them about how water makes our plants grow. So, they helped me water all the plants. (Hey, I can work these lessons to my advantage too, right?)
Time for lunch. Thought we’d have a little fun.
What you’ll need:
- hotdogs
- pot of hot water on the stove (almost boiling)
- sharp knife
- cutting board
- corn cob skewer
This is the kind of hot dog I use. Yes, it’s not exactly cheap. However, my mentality is, “if I’m going to serve my boys junk food, it might as well be high quality junk food.” So, when it comes to hot dogs, I’m a little high maintenance.
However, these are cheapest in the 4-pack at Costco. Two month ago, there was a coupon in their flier making each package 2.09. This is much cheaper than the $4.99 I’ve seen out there. Biggest benefit here: no fillers. 6 grams of protein per dog. Talk about high quality junk food!
Ok, I’m off my soap box now. 🙂
Start by filling your pot about 2/3 full of water and start heating it on the stove. That way, when you’re ready for it, it’s ready for you.
Get your cutting board and knife out.
Starting at about 1/3 of the way down, cut the dog in half.
Then turn it, and cut it in half again.
You now have four legs. An octopus has eight legs. So, each of those 4 legs needs to be cut in half again. It’s easier to do each one separately. I put the casing side down on the board and just cut along the ridge-line.
Next, your water should be simmering by now.
Place the octopus’ (octopi???) in the jacuzzi. Let them cook in there for about 5 minutes.
I used a corn cob skewer to pull them out by the “meaty” non-cut section. I tried to catch them on the side- so the two poked holes would look like little eyes.
The boiling water curled their little hot dog leggies up, and now you have two octopus to eat for lunch!
Enjoy!
Sandy's Spot: Inspiration on a Budget 
karyn said
I have a octopus maker, i bought it on line, to make these for my grandkids, we invited our family over told them we were having seafood for dinner and they asked what it was we said well…..Octopus and seasponges and octo ink to drink, we made the hotdogs and had tator tots for the seasponges and we mixed grape and green koolaid for the octo ink drink.. it was awesome. had a lot of fun too.
faythe said
I made something similar from a craft food magazine, but in the end served the hot dog octopus on a plate of green (food colored) mac’n’cheese. the kids loved it!
grkids said
Sandy, I LOVE this idea. I am going to have to try it, especially since my son is a huge lover of hot dogs anyway! Plus, he loves sharks, so maybe I can figure out something healthy to turn into a shark and have it battle the octopus on the plate. Any ideas?