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McFly and … McCricket?

Some topics we looked into while you were reading last month’s issue

No, we’re not talking about new fast-food menu items. First, there’s word that the car featured in Back to the Future and driven by Marty McFly, the DeLorean, will soon be assembled at a Texas plant. Then there’s the notion of including insects in our diets, which folks in many parts of the world do. Ever wonder what bugs taste like?

From Hill Valley to Humble

The stainless steel car that took Marty McFly back in time to 1955 in Back to the Future and forward to 2015 in Back to the Future Part II is about to transport its legions of fans to 1981, when it was first introduced.

That’s because “new” DeLoreans are about to become available for the first time in 35 years. Humble-based DeLorean Motor Company, which bought up all the parts from the original automaker, announced that it will begin assembling the iconic DCM-12 starting next year.

The company expects to produce about 300 of the stout, gull-wing coupes, selling them for about $100,000 each. They also get a handsome power boost, as the original cars’ lackadaisical 130-horsepower engine gets replaced with one that produces more than 300 hp. That should make reaching 88 mph no problem.

Other Texas Oddities

Hall Cycle Manufacturing Company Cyclecar, a 1914 car made in Waco that could be converted into a truck

Southern Aircraft Roadable, a 1946 prototype “flying car,” built in Garland

Vanguard Motors Vetta Ventura, a mid-’60s sports car, made in Dallas

Aphid Reflux

Waiter, there’s a fly in my soup! 

That old gag just might lose its punch if entomophagists can persuade Americans to change their diets. Entomophagists participate in and encourage the consumption of insects. They eat bugs and think you should, too.

The U.S. might be missing out. 

Some 1,900 insect species are consumed by 2 billion or so people in more than 80 countries. 

Honey, I Shrunk the Livestock profiles Texas entrepreneurs who raise butterflies for celebratory releases and crickets to use in cooking. Crickets are processed into flour used to make all sorts of conventional products and snacks with clever names like Crickers and Chirps. Crickets, say those who know, have a savory, nutty flavor.

Here are taste comparisons for other insects.

ANTS sweet, nutty

STINKBUGS apples

RED AGAVE ANTS spicy 

TREE WORMS pork rinds

BEE EGGS peanuts or almonds

WASPS pine nuts 

TERMITES nuts

SUN-DRIED EMPEROR MOTH CATERPILLARS tea

APHIDS slightly bitter to sweet, depending on their diet

Great Place To Make a Living (but you knew that)

Texas is the best state for making a living, Moneyrates.com shows in its ranking of 10 best and worst states to make a living in 2015.

An average income of $45,330, which is above the national average, lower-than-average cost of living and no income tax help account for Texas’ ranking. The Lone Star State also had few workplace safety incidents and a low unemployment rate of 4.2 percent.

Hawaii ranked last with an inflated cost of living, driven mainly by higher-than-average housing expenses.