Foods Blake Olmstead Has Tried

The washed and dried root of the licorice plant was once a popular natural “candy.”

When the clock strikes midnight on the third Thursday of November, fans gather to celebrate the release of this fresh, fruity wine.

Spread this fat-poached meat on a crusty French loaf.

A crossbred table grape variety that tastes an awful lot like spun sugar.

South Koreans turned this simple grain into a nutty energy drink.

These inky cloves have aged like a fine wine.

A match made in heaven (and also Kentucky).

This beef patty oozes cheese from within.

Chinese rhubarb imparts an organic smoky aroma to this Italian amaro.

A hearty Irish staple that can tell your fortune.

Artichokes form the backbone of this vegetal liqueur.

Battered and fried testicles make use of a cattle-country surplus.

The Peruvian pepper tastes like spicy citrus.

The aroma of this mulled wine has been compared to “a warmed-up bowl of Froot Loops.”

The plant's fruit, leaves, and bark offer a spice rack of flavors.

Nutty and sweet, these juicy gems were once a valued trade commodity in the northern United States.

The guinea pig is both food and pet in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador.

The South American bean that looks like cotton candy and tastes like ice cream.

A wartime rice scarcity made this versatile pancake a Japanese staple.

This butterscotch-flavored fruit has a way with desserts.

The briny “asparagus of the sea” grows along coasts around the world.

This fizzy, tropical drink has ancient roots in Mexico.

This once-ubiquitous fusion dish is fading into obscurity.

During the Great Depression, Canadian women made “unemployed-person pudding.”