Junk Food Nation, Hurricane Sandy / Superstorm Sandy / Lucky Number Slandy / Saving Private Sandy / Ocean’s Sandy / The Shawshank Re-Sandy has come and gone, and some of us are ok, and some of us aren’t.  NYC – you got rocked, and I am thinking of you.  West Virginia – snow??  Damn.  And all along the coastline, my thoughts are with you.

Last night during the worst of the wind down here in DC, I watched a boring ass Monday Night Football game…and was reminded that OH! The NBA starts TONIGHT.  What the…when did this happen?  After last year’s NBA Lockout shortened the season, the first games were on Christmas Day.  This year, it has caught me off guard that basketball would be beginning so soon after the World Series end.

Last year, my predictions were either spot on or really REALLY off. In looking at how last season shaped up, I correctly chose the Miami Heat over the OKC Thunder in the Finals.  I got 7 out of 8 Eastern playoff teams right (I was wroooong about Boston), and I got 6 out of 8 Western playoff teams correct. Of course, these predictions aren’t that impressive, considering more than half of all the teams in the NBA make the playoffs.   So what does the 2012-2013 season hold in store for us? let me look into my crystal ball…..

ATLANTIC DIVISION CHAMPS: BOSTON. Yes, I wrong last year. They were old, but resilient. Getting Jeff Green back is huge, and adding Jason Terry is a plus.  Runner Up: PHILLY.  Any team that adds Andrew Bynum and subtracts Elton Brand is improved in my book.  Losing Iguodala hurts, but Evan Turner is ready.

CENTRAL DIVISION CHAMPS: CHICAGO. I’m scared of Derrick Rose’s future, but the fact remains the Bulls are still more talented than everyone else in this division.  Runner Up: INDIANA, though what’s up Danny Granger? Hurt again?  Ugh.

SOUTHEAST DIVISION CHAMPS: MIAMI. Not much needed to be said here.  Adding Ray Allen?  Wow.  Runner Up: ATLANTA.  Year, after year, a perennial playoff team that goes nowhere.  Here’s to another season of THAT.

THE OTHER TWO RANDOM EAST PLAYOFF TEAMS: Not Orlando – losing Dwight Howard sends you to the back of the line.  John Wall being out means Washington is in line for a lottery pick (the end of the John Wall era, bring in the Bradley Beal era!).  I guess I’ll take NEW YORK, though not having Amare for 6-8 weeks is bad news, and BROOKLYN, because Russian owners are crazy.

WESTERN DIVISION CHAMPS: SAN ANTONIO. Once more unto the breach!  So old, yet still able to defy expectations.   Runner up: MEMPHIS. Just a hard grinding team.

NORTHWEST DIVISION CHAMPS: OK CITY. Losing Harden – yeah that was tough.  But adding Kevin Martin isn’t too much of a loss, and let’s not forget THEY STILL HAVE KEVIN DURANT.  Runner up: DENVER. This team surprised everyone last year, they added Iguodala and Gallinari is legit.  If I were OKC, I’d be scared of Denver. Carmelo who??

PACIFIC DIVISION CHAMPS: CLIPPERS. I’m scared of Blake Griffin, generally.  Runner up: LAKERS.  I KNOW I KNOW I just put the Lakers behind the Clippers.  I KNOW they added Dwight Howard and Steve Nash.  I dunno – something feels off….ok OK, you convinced me.  LAKERS first, CLIPPERS second. Sheesh.

RANDOM OTHER TWO WEST PLAYOFF TEAMS: I wish it were Minnesota because I love Kevin Love.  But I’m taking HOUSTON and UTAH (Enes Kanter makes a huge leap this year – mark it).

EAST CHAMPIONSHIP: MIAMI over BOSTON.  Again? Again.

WEST CHAMPIONSHIP: LAKERS over OKC. Yep OKC gets back, but if Kobe can stay healthy all season, the new firepower of LA will be too much for OKC to handle.  Which is annoying.

NBA FINALS: I’d take Nash over Chalmers. Wade and Kobe – wash. Battier and Metta – wash. Lebron over Pau.  Howard over Bosh. When I look at Miami, I think – is there enough? When I look at LA, I think – everything has to go right, or they’re screwed. I’m giving the SLIGHT edge to the LAKERS.  Sigh. (I just spent WAY longer than I needed to thinking about this matchup).

Today’s junk food: Lotus Biscoff Spread!

Lotus Biscoff Spread: The Money Shot

Oh, Biscoff.  Biscoff Biscoff Biscoff.  How I love thee, Biscoff.  I know Biscoff from flying in airplanes – if you’re lucky, the flight attendant will hand you some Biscoff cookies.  Known as “Europe’s Favorite Cookie with Coffee“, Biscoff Cookies are one part graham-cracker tasting, one part spice/gingerbread/cinnamon tasting, one part caramel-brown sugar tasting.  They are a crisp, crunchy cookie that are, frankly, AWESOME, and have been in existence since 1932.  Some call them speculoos.  I call them GIMME GIMME NOM NOM NOM.

Lotus Biscoff Spread: Cookies pureed into a spread??

So when I saw Lotus Biscoff Spread in the grocery store, I was taken aback.  They made the cookie into a spread???? Say whaaaaaaa. Looking at their website, that’s EXACTLY what they did – took the cookies, and made them into a spread in 2007.  CRAZY.  But…crazy good?  We’ll see. I like the idea of spreading cookies onto my toast, mind you.

Lotus Biscoff Spread: Hey! They reference the airline cookie!

Lotus Biscoff Spread: 89 calories a serving

Lotus Biscoff Spread has about 90 calories per serving, which puts it on par with a lot of peanut butters or hazelnut spreads.

Lotus Biscoff Spread: Smelled like brown sugar

As soon as I opened the jar of Lotus Biscoff Spread, I could smell the brown sugar/caramel.  The spread looked rather oily, however.  Did it need a mix?

Lotus Biscoff Spread: SO GOOPY!

Lotus Biscoff Spread: VERY slippery and gooey, much more than peanut butter or Nutella

Lotus Biscoff Spread, texturally, was very goopy, gooey, and other adjectives like that.  Almost sauce like (a little firmer, but still).  More unstable than peanut butter or Nutella.  That took me by surprise.

The taste, however, of this Lotus Biscoff Spread, did NOT take me by surprise. It was AWESOME.  Tasted JUST like the cookie – in spread form!  I could taste graham cracker, I could taste cinnamon, I could taste the brown sugar and caramel flavors, and it sort of reminded me of gingerbread, but not quite.  Basically, this spread will turn your toast, or bagel, into a sugar and cinnamon and caramel graham-cracker-flavored biscuit!

I was shocked that it could taste so good, but since they basically took the cookies and made them into a spread, I shouldn’t have been.  Really cook alternative to PB and Nutella if you’re looking for a sweet spread that isn’t chocolate or nut based.  This spread is VEGAN too.

Great work, Biscoff!

PURCHASED AT: Safeway

COST: $5.29 on sale for $4.49 – woooo lawdy

Thoughts? Please comment below (I always reply) or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. Also, you can always email me at junkfoodguy@junkfoodguy.com. Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy