A Movable Feast. With everything but the kitchen sink. Each theme answer ends with a food course as we begin with Soup and end with Nuts. We have all heard the expression From Soup to Nuts, which means running the gamut from beginning to end, but where did the expression come from? Apparently, formal full-course meals started with soup and ended with nuts.
16-Across. Hot mixture of elementary particles: QUARK SOUP. We will begin our meal with Soup. Apparently, Quark Soup is a thing, but it's not an edible on our meal menu.
31-Across. Colloquial name of the Christian symbol the ichthus: JESUS FISH. The formal name is Ichthys. It is an ancient symbol forming a fish profile. The symbol oiginated in the 2nd century as a secret sign of faith and identification among Christians facing persecution in the Roman Empire. Calling it a Jesus Fish seems a bit irreverent, but then so is the Darwin Fish. Fish will be our main course in this movable feast.
52-Across. Head honcho: BIG CHEESE. After our main meal, we will have some Cheese.
4-Down. Yielded results: BORE FRUIT. Our meal will continue with some Fruit.
59-Across. Fasteners in a tyre change: WHEEL NUTS. The conclusion of the meal will be Nuts.
Here's the grid so you can see the food move through the grid.
Two other consumables in the puzzle are:
41-Across. Large utility pipe: WATER MAIN.
66-Across. Soybean paste: MISO.
A special thanks to my fellow bloggers who helped me suss out today's theme.
Across:
1. Formless mass: BLOB.
5. Vegan-friendly gelatin alternative: AGAR. Technically a consumable. Agar is a jelly-like, vegetarian substance derived from red algae (seaweed), commonly used as a gelling agent in foods. When I worked in a microbiology lab in college, we used agar for growing bacteria.
9. Many emailed docs: PDFs. As in Portable Document Format. This has become a crossword staple.
13. Relaxed aesthetic: BOHO. Boho is short for Bohemian. It is a style characterized by free-spirited and artistic. It's a bit 1960s retro-style.
14. Roman forum robe: TOGA.
15. Coped (with): DEALT.
18. Maker of Playmate coolers: IGLOO. We have one of these. It comes in handy for storing things in the closet.
19. Ambulance wailer: SIREN.
20. Match or Tinder: DATING APP. Could stretch to a food because App is sometimes used as an abbreviation for Appetizer.
22. Two-point football play: SAFETY.
24. "Allow me": MAY I?
25. Outdoor gear giant: REI. As in Recreational Equipment, Inc. This company appears in the puzzles with some frequency, but I can never remember what the initials stand for.
26. Texter's hedge: OTOH. Textspeak for On The Other Hand.
28. Wee boy: LAD.
35. Tiny, in tech: NANO. I really loved my iPod Nano.
36. Not in favor of: ANTI-.
37. __ point: center of attention: FOCAL.
39. Luxury hotel chain: OMNI.
40. Dockworker's workplace: PORT.
43. 27-Down, in Spanish: ESO. // And 27-Down. Yonder thing: THAT.
44. Catch words?: HEAR. Cute clue.
46. Age group, for short: GEN. As in Generation.
47. Hair removal brand: NAIR.
 |
| And you thought it was just for women. |
49. Vanish into thin air: GO POOF.
56. One making introductions, say: EMCEE. An abbreviation for Master of Ceremonies.
58. Former U.S. president Barack: OBAMA. The 44th American President.
 |
| Barak Hussein Obama (b. Aug. 4, 1961) |
61. Artist's flat cap: BERET.
62. Sunrise direction: EAST.
63. World Cup cheers: OLÉS. Today's Spanish lesson.
64. Check-in places?: ATMs. You can put a check into your account at an ATM, but most people use the ATM to withdraw funds.
65. Outdoor storage structure: SHED.
Down:
1. Grillin' and chillin' events: BBQs.
2. Western writer L'Amour: LOUIS. Louis Dearborn L'Amour (Mar. 22, 1908 ~ June 10, 1988) was known for his Western novels, which he called his "frontier stories.
3. Catherine of "Home Alone": O'HARA. Sadly, we lost this talented comedian actress earlier this year. Catherine Anne O'Hara (Mar. 4, 1954 ~ Jan. 30, 2026) was in so many films, but my favorite film was Best in Show. She also starred in the television show Schitt's Creek.
5. @ signs: ATs.
6. Treat: GOODY.
7. __ fresca: Mexican beverage: AGUA. More of today's Spanish lesson. Fresh Water.
8. Completely engrossed: RAPT.
9. Elisabeth Moss's "Mad Men" role: PEGGY. Elizabeth Moss (b. July 24, 1982) portrayed Peggy Olsen on Mad Men. She was the Don Draper's secretary.
10. Tibetan spiritual leader: DALAI LAMA.
11. Failed film: FLOP.
12. "That's enough of that": STOP.
15. "Queen of the Blues" Washington: DINAH. Dinah Washington (b. Aug. 29, 1924 ~ Dec. 1963) was an American singer and pianist. She was one of the most popular Black female recording artists of the 1950s. In 1993, she was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Sadly, she died very young, at age 39.
17. Joints worked in lunges: KNEES.
21. "If u ask me ... ": IMO. More textspeak. This time for In My Opinion.
23. Petty disagreement: TIFF.
26. __ the Grouch: OSCAR. A reference to Sesame Street.
29. Latin years: ANNI. Today's Latin lesson.
30. "How you __?": Joey's "Friends" catchphrase: DOIN'.
31. Funny prank: JAPE.
32. Eve's grandson: ENOS. According to Genesis, Enos was the son of Seth, the third son of Adam and Eve, We don't know who Enos' mother was.
33. Boss around: STRONG ARM.
34. State with more pigs than people: IOWA. Fun facts about Pigs in Iowa.
35. Cutesy "Delicious!": NOM, NOM, NOM.
38. Toymaker that introduced Smart Bricks in 2026: LEGO.
42. Drive away: REPEL.
44. Cymbals played by foot: HI-HAT. I learned about Hi-Hats from doing the puzzles.
45. Before, in old odes: ERE.
48. Topmost points: ACMES.
49. Honking birds: GEESE. Hi, Canadian, Eh!
50. Circular windows: OCULI.
51. Lavish celebrations: FÊTES.
52. Treat consumed with a wide straw: BOBA. This is becoming a crossword staple.
53. "Yeah, right": I BET.
54. Baaing mamas: EWES.
55. Persian for "king": SHAH.
57. Gas brand in Canada: ESSO.
60. Flight takeoff hr.: ETD. As in Estimated Time of Departure.
And now it's time for me to Depart.
חתולה
March: In like a Lion, out like a Lamb.
It wasn’t too tough,
ReplyDeleteand I learned a couple of terms I didn’t know before. That’s the merit of crossword puzzles: they’re both fun and educational.
Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteMuch easier/smoother than yesterday. Six minutes, and it was time to put my Pilot down. Back in the day we'd call a car with a JESUS FISH on the back a Jesus Chrysler. DINAH Washington had some monster hits back in the '50s -- What A Difference A Day Makes and Unforgettable immediately come to mind. Thanx, Rebecca, this was a good one. And thanx, too, to Hahtoolah for another sterling expo. (My favorite cartoon was the banana -- totally relatable.)
FIR. Now this was a Tuesday puzzle, with the expected level of difficulty, unlike yesterday's effort.
ReplyDeleteI breezed through today's puzzle with very little effort. In sticky spots there were perps to assist.
My only miss was the theme. I just didn't see it and had to come here to have it explained. Honestly, I'm unimpressed by it.
But overall an enjoyable puzzle.
Probably the fastest I ever zipped through a Rebecca G construction, she can be quite devious with a late week themer, or especially a Saturday themeless. FIR in 8:36. Also sussed the theme, and APPetizer was definitely part of it. Very few names which always helps with the solve. Unknowns were QUARK SOUP, PEGGY, or that the Brits refer to ‘lug nuts’ as WHEEL NUTS. I never hear the word JAPE used. Thanks Rebecca for taking it easy on us today, and to Hahtoolah for your always entertaining write-up.
ReplyDeleteFIR, but spat->TIFF and anos->ANNI. Didn't grok the theme.
ReplyDeleteIf a Playmate cooler had big cans, it would make the centerfold of Outdoor World magazine.
When I lived in LA, folks called people with the chrome JESUS FISH on their cars "FISH people." Mildly derogatory, it implied that they drove as though they were enjoying the rapture.
Okay, why was the puzzle made better by using the British speling of "tire?"
DNK OCULI, but my sailor roots wanted "porthole." "Port" and "hole" didn't have enough letters; "porthole" had too many.
The wonderful hayseed comedy show Hee Haw bastardized "POOF" into "PFFT" in their signature song Where, Where Are You Tonight. Here's a compilation of the show's guest celebrities (I recognized Pat Boone, Johnny Bench, Loretta Lynn, and Johnny Cash among others) singing along.
Thanks to Rebecca for one of your more enjoyable puzzles. I like the ones like this that are less invidious. And thanks to Ha2la for another fine review. My favorite was the selective hearing for men illustration.
Using the British spelling of "tire" actually helped in the solving: it hinted that the answer was also going to be British. Yep--our lug nuts are their WHEELNUTS.
DeleteGuess so. I think I use the terms interchangeably.
DeleteA tougher than usual Tuesday puzzle from 'look how smart I am' Rebecca, with words like WHEEL NUTS, QUARK SOUP, JAPE, JESUS FISH, and NOM NOM NOM as the unifier for the food. Clues were like an AGAR(D) puzzle.
ReplyDeleteBOHO was a guess.
Other than a crossword puzzle, I've never seen or heard the word JAPE.
My SPAT became a TIFF.
I pulled the wide straw from the MALT, stuck it in an ICEE, and drank the BOBA.
NANOmeter = 10 Angstrom. Remember those?
I enjoyed the puzzle and loved Susan's write-up. I did not know QUARK soup but i have heard and read the word JAPE .. Happy Tuesday all.
ReplyDeleteNot too hard, but had to review what I'd done to discover the theme.
ReplyDeleteI got a IGLOO cooler like that as a gift when buying a pickup in the '90s. Truck is long gone but I still have the cooler! Following in the footsteps of my dad - I was with him when we bought a station wagon in the '60s, and remember them giving him a yardstick. I thought, "Way to go, Dad!" for driving such a hard bargain. LOL
H2H, I'm glad you figured out the theme because it wasn't obvious. My favorite cartoon was using Stonehenge to determine trash day!
In the 70's, my dad was trying to get salesman to knockoff 32 cents. Saleman finally got fed up, tossed him a key holder and said "There's you 32 cents!" I became the owner of a 1973 Dodge Darr
DeleteOnly two unknowns in this easy puzzle: QUARK SOUP and NOM et al. Perps filled them, no prob.
ReplyDeleteOTOH, (hah! I can text speak too) I was not attentive enough to get the theme. I kept waiting for a reveal.
Thank you Hahtoolah for all the funnies. I too liked the banana one.
Took 4:21 today to finish my meal.
ReplyDeleteWhat, no dessert?
I knew the Actress of the Day (the late Catherine Ohara). "Quark soup" and "jape" were the only struggles, although I would've had another one if I had bothered to look for the theme. Seemed like a fine early-in-the-week themeless puzzle to me.
Other than a crossword puzzle, I've never seen or heard the word JAPE.
DeleteMusings
ReplyDelete-BOHO – Anything seems to be fashionable if it is worn by a skinny young woman
-How do couples meet these days?
-You’d think that someone at Disney would sense that the movie FLOP John Carter was going to lose multi millions.
A Rebecca Goldstein puzzle without any annoying or totally obscure clues ??
ReplyDeleteWow
I’m glad her new meds are working.
Yes, this was easier than yesterday's puzzle.
ReplyDeleteI didn't see the easy theme. Duh!
I pondered catch words/hear. Then it dawned on me "Oh, I didn't catch your words" or Hear what you said, as I say to the heavily accented help reps on the phone.
I loved the picture of the cookie monster saying nom, nom, nom, the perfect example.
I knew that ichthyology is the study of fish. Early Christians drew many fish symbols in the Roman catacombs as a secret sign of the Christian faith during times of persecution. The letters ICHTHUS are an acrostic from the Greek letters for Jesus Christ Son of God Savior.
Jape is uncommon today but I encounter it in fiction, especially British fiction.
Pfft is an interjection used to express dismissal, disbelief, or to describe a sudden, fizzling ending. Poof means a sudden disappearance.
QU suggested quark. SOUP was already there.
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteI, too, was waiting for a unifier but the foods finally became apparent. I agree with YP that Apps is part of the theme and I also question (Water) Main, as in Main Course. That one is not quite as certain as Apps, but is possible.
I never heard of Quark Soup or Jesus Fish, but the perps were solver-friendly throughout the grid, so no complaints. For an RG puzzle, this was a pleasant, enjoyable solve, minus the usual angst. Cute theme, also.
Thanks, Rebecca, and thanks, Hahtoolah, for the many chuckles and the informative review. I, too, liked the Banana comic and also the Canadian Geese.
Have a great day.
Agree re Water Main and Dating App. Soup, App, Fish, Main, Fruit and Cheese, Nuts!
DeleteNomNomNom!!
Hola! What a nice surprise from Ms. Goldstein! Usually, I avoid her Saturday puzzles, but I sashayed through this one fairly quickly and didn't even finish one cup of coffee.
ReplyDeleteThe unknown PEGGY perped nicely as did DINAH although I vaguely recall her name. On my second trip to Washington, D.C. I believe we stayed at the OMNI Hotel. It was one month before the terrible events of 9/11.
Thanks, Yellowrocks; you beat me to ICHTHIUS and I, too, have seen JAPE in many British writings.
Thank you, Hahtoolah and MAY I say that you add so much humor to your narratives? Have a great day, everyone!
DOH! Completely missed the theme; Hahtoolah had to 'splain it.
ReplyDelete16 names, DNK 7. Do not appreciate putting two unknown names right next to each other (2D,3D; 9D,15D), and especially crossing BOHO which I also DNK, and, really, don't believe I've ever heard. What is "JAPE"? Never heard of THAT either.
REI we see in CWs so often it seems I would eventually remember it. Well, maybe eventually I will. But today needed perps...again.
Of the 16 names, DNK 7.
Clever clues: "Check in places" and "Catch words". "Catch words" I had to think about for a while after "Hear" filled via perps.
In the end, managed to FIR in 13. And had fun in spite of my nits. Thanx RG.
Thanx too to Hahtoolah, who always has an entertaining and informative write-up, and, as always, great cartoons.
Interesting and pleasant Tuesday puzzle, many thanks, Rebecca. And thanks too for your commentary and pictures, Hahtoolah--always appreciated.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if PDFs would recommend a BLOB of AGAR or some QUARK SOUP to help feed the DALAI LAMA at BBQs? Does he wear a TOGA to events like that, for SAFETY? That would be a good idea, especially if he might want to get involved in a DATING APP. Well, let's let others to take care of this interesting person, and check in on OBAMA and the EMCEES who are looking after LOUIS and PEGGY and the BIG CHEESE and also the guys from the PORT. Are they all going to wear a HI HAT or a BERET to attend some of these FETES? Well, it's a modern world, so let's just have everybody take good care of themselves, and go out and get some lunch. That's a good idea, isn't it?
Enjoy your day, everybody.
I filled out the puzzle ok, but it never occurred to me to even look for a theme...
ReplyDeleteI can't help but wonder why. Digging deeper, I can't understand why "NomNomNom" wasn't used as a reveal. It was also directly opposite (grid wise) "fruit." Surely these could have been clued towards the theme. Also, my puzzle did not highlight themers, (which is ok,) but their placement seems off. Dating App and water main locations should have been part of the theme, but only made it harder to see "any" theme..,
Also, my "goodies" are spelled differently. (& I would have clued them differently too, but that's just me...)
I wonder if this puzzle was damaged by editing? I would love to hear what the constructor originally intended.