Hot Food

Hot Food

WEDNESDAY PUZZLE — Interesting-looking grid, isn’t it? Erik Agard’s puzzle is a bit larger than usual (this one is 15x16) and, by using mirror symmetry, he has made a grid that looks — to me at least — like it’s grinning and reaching out for a hug. Of course, I might just be imagining things, but the theme of Mr. Agard’s puzzle indicates that I could be on to something. But it’s about food, Deb, you say. It’s not about grinning and hugging. That’s just what Mr. Agard and the puzzle editors want you to think, I say. Never ASSUME. Remember that it’s Wednesday, and this is when we start to move away from the straightforward clues and themes. This puzzle is flirting with us. Let’s take a closer look. Today’s Theme The four theme entries all share the same clue: “Hot food?” That question mark is not there to pay tribute to Dickens’s wide-eyed orphan Oliver Twist (“Mo-o-o-re?”), but to signal to us that maybe this is not specifically about food. This is about flirtatious pet names. CUTIE PIE, BEEF CAKE, that sort of thing. I’ve given you two, now you see if you can get Mr. Agard to call you the others. I like the four debuts Mr. Agard introduces in his puzzle. BOUGIE and GAYMER are fresh, but NO CASH and PORGIE work well, too. In particular, I like the attention paid to the cluing. Some of it has really been updated. For example, EARP at 37A could have been clued as the outlaw Wyatt, but in this puzzle, it’s clued as his great-great-granddaughter Wynonna, the protagonist of the dark and supernatural “Wynonna Earp” television series. The fans of this show call themselves Earpers, and have a great camaraderie going, not unlike the readers of a certain crossword column. Tricky Clues 6A. I have been trained to be suspicious of everything in this job, so I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what kind of “stick” goes in the oven. It turns out that this is a verb clue, with a verb answer: If you stick something in the oven, you are HEATing it up. 21A. If you aren’t sure what the singer Ella MAI’s beautiful song, “Boo’d Up” is about, the short story is that Ms. MAI finds her bae while playing miniature golf and, when they agree to see each other exclusively, they are officially boo’d up. 1D. When a close-up magician palms something, they are holding it just out of sight. That’s why the apt surname for a close-up magician would be PALMER. 6D. This is another nice entry. To HATE ON something is slang for hating, sometimes verbally. 10D. The ending of four of our state capitals is the word CITY, and the clue asks you if you can name them. If you’re not sure, they are: What, you didn't think I would just spoil it, did you? Jefferson City, Mo., Carson City, Nev. Oklahoma City, Okla. Salt Lake City, Utah 14D. Well, it had to happen eventually. In the nine years I have been writing this column, I have linked to this video from television’s “The Odd Couple” every time I used the word ASSUME. It was a little joke to myself, and it entertained me. But it was never clued that way. Finally, someone noticed, and in this puzzle we get “Make an ass out of u and me, as they say.” 34D. “What MoMA knows best?” is a fun pun on “Mama knows best.” MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art, knows ART best, of course. 44D. Mr. Agard brings the word FELLOWS back to the New York Times Crossword after nearly 60 years. 46D. This is the second time that the gender-neutral term LATINX has appeared in the New York Times Crossword, and Mr. Agard was the constructor who debuted it. 51D. A portmanteau is a new word coined by combining two other words, and GAYMER is a portmanteau of GAY and GAMER. Constructor Notes Periodic reminder: The Crossword Puzzle Collaboration Directory is a resource for puzzle makers from underrepresented groups. If you’re interested in writing crosswords (or other puzzles) and would like some tips on getting started, someone to critique your work, or someone to collaborate with, give it a look. The Tipping Point Almost finished solving but need a bit more help? We’ve got you covered. Warning: There be spoilers ahead, but subscribers can take a peek at the answer key. Trying to get back to the puzzle page? Right here. Your thoughts?