N. and I are watching a Soviet trivia quiz from 1982. (And discovering that we both remember it from watching it back when we were 6 years old. Which is very creepy.)
“Thanks to this plant, the Soviet people can see sausage, candy, milk, and other foods in our grocery stores,” the show’s host announces. “Please name this plant.”
“Wow, I had now idea hashish was discussed so openly on Soviet television,” N. says.
He is right, the only way of seeing all of that stuff in Soviet grocery stores was by getting stoned out.
Clarissa's Blog 
Not entirely creepy; just good memories. As immigrant comedian Yakov Smirnov might say, “In Soviet Russia, grocery store food watches YOU!”
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He should have visited Soviet Ukraine to realize that, in comparison, Soviet Russia was a culinary paradise. 🙂
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Yakov Smirnovv was from Soviet Ukraine! He was born in Odessa.
No idea why he went with Russia in his routine, except maybe a guess that it would be a better hit with geographically illiterate Americans.
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Ah, I see! That must be the reason.
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Okay….. hmmmmm…. sooooo……. WHAT IS THE FREAKING PLANT?????
Wheat?
(Sugar)beets?
Potatoes?
Sorry, for yelling but I need closure on this.
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Sorry for the suspense. 🙂
It’s soy.
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I’d ask how the hell do you get candy out of soy but then I remembered some of the candy in Communist Romania (who, I think, was better food-wise than most of the Soviet Union) and…yeah. Soy it would be.
Remembering our host’s fondness for potatoes, the idea of potato sausage is hilarious.
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I actually liked the Soviet-time soy candy… and not because chocolate was not available
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You see? I said it was good. 🙂
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That soy candy was actually quite good. I don’t like candy, but I miss the soy kind. Probably because that’s all I knew as a child and got used to it. 🙂
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