Sampler Platter: Hot dogs, cupcakes, tacos & Padma

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Cheap hot dogs, giant cupcakes, Padma Lakshmi as a sitcom star? A cupcake that weighs more than you do? Wienermobile gone out of control? All this and more in today’s food news roundup.

• The newly revamped Wienermobile crashes into a Wisconsin house.
• Long Island man claims he’s reverse-engineered KFC’s secret fried chicken recipe. New York Post
• California’s new law that requires chain restaurants with more than 20 outlets to post the calorie count of menu items is already causing some menu changes. Sacramento Bee
• An interview with Doug Quint, proprietor of the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck. Gothamist
• Lobster: cheaper than hot dogs? Money
• I Was a Baby Bulimic: A terrific story from NYT’s former restaurant critic Frank Bruni about his somewhat tormented relationship with food.
• Padma Lakshmi signed a development deal for a half-hour sitcom in which she’ll star as a woman working in the culinary world. Variety
• Earlier today, @BorderGrill’s 1,000th follower won 20 free tacos from the new taco truck.
• ‘World’s Largest Cupcake’ award goes to a 151-pound cupcake. World Record Academy

--Elina Shatkin