Lake forest health and fitness

Co-Workers Try Each Others' Favorite Brunch Spots

“Brunch is literally my favorite thing in life.”

BuzzFeed Video / Via youtu.be

Taco Bell Plans More Boozy Restaurants

Yaaas. Maybe.

Taco Bell is expanding its flirtation with alcoholic beverages.

After announcing its first boozy restaurants in Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood and San Francisco, the chain is now looking into opening others in Boston, New York, and Columbus, Ohio, reported Bloomberg News.

The Wicker Park location will serve Dos Equis and New Belgium Brewing's Fat Tire beer, sangria, Don Julio tequila, and Ketel One vodka, according to Bloomberg's report.

The reasoning behind the experiment is very straightforward. "A lot of people like to have a beer with their taco," Taco Bell CEO Brian Niccol told Fortune in late June.

Taco Bell has been revamping elements of its menu as it prepares to add 2,000 U.S. locations by 2022 and 1,300 international restaurants by by 2023. In May, it announced plans to remove artificial coloring and high-fructose corn syrup from most if its ingredients by the end of the year. It continues to develop its breakfast business as a competitor to McDonald's. And it was one of the early fast food chains to offer mobile ordering.

Taco Bell already serves beer and mimosas at its experimental upscale spinoff, U.S. Taco Co., which has just one location in Huntington Beach, California. That restaurant also serves tacos stuffed with lobster and smoked brisket, which could also serve as inspiration at the original chain.

26 Ridiculously Easy Life Changes You Can Make Today

Super-simple things you can do right now to improve your overall quality of life. Inspired by this Quora thread.

Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Assume you're good enough. Always.

Whenever you're in a situation where you're feeling a little vulnerable (like a job interview or a first date), always go into it with the mentality that you're good enough and that the judging party would be lucky to have you. Even if you don't get the job or get asked on a second date, it's better to go into the situation with confidence rather than wasting your time worrying about what they will or won't like about you.

NBC / Via mystical-capricorn.tumblr.com

Learn to read nutrition labels.

It's important for your health that you understand what you're putting into your body on a regular basis. And being able to read these is a lot more complicated than just knowing how many calories are in a serving size. Here's a helpful guide from the FDA that can help you figure out what you're looking at here.

Spend more time walking.

Walking at least 30 minutes a day can reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and some cancers, according to the American Heart Association. Plus it can improve your mood and make you feel like a functioning human. So go for walks — even if it's just for 10 minutes at a time.

Meet "HefeWheaties," The New Wheaties Beer That Contains Zero Wheaties

Go home, Wheaties, you’re drunk.

Wheaties' announcement today that it is launching a new beer may sound like the prompt to a joke — beer is the new breakfast of champions! — but it is, in fact, profoundly real.

The fact that the brew, a limited-edition Hefeweizen made by the Minneapolis craft brewery Fulton, is called "HefeWheaties" only amplifies the hilarity of a big cereal brand testing its marketability in the booze market.

But there's one, very important caveat for anyone curious if Wheaties can make a decent Hefeweizen.

"Wheaties is not actually in the beer," maker General Mills revealed on its blog. Rather, the link between Wheaties and beer, however loose, is the wheat. "That connection helped both brands try something interesting," according to General Mills.

And there's the fact that Fulton and General Mills are both based in Minneapolis, so, you know, why not? It will be available Aug. 26 in the Twin Cities market only.

The product makes no sense, on many levels, but Wheaties could use a boost in brand awareness, even if it's from slapping its name on beer cans. Sales of the cereal have been declining for more than a decade, reported the Washington Post. The cereal industry overall has been struggling, and General Mills recently decided to reformulate its products to have no artificial colors or flavors to meet changing consumer preference for natural foods. Another route, apparently, is to test their viability in beer form.

Considering there's zero Wheaties in the beer, HefeWheaties appears to be more branding exercise than product innovation. Perhaps the Wheaties brand will help Fulton sell some more beer. Perhaps craft beer will help General Mills get the Wheaties name in front of more millennials. After all, Wheaties cereal can fuel you up before a game, and HefeWheaties can help you kick back after, said General Mills spokesman Mike Siemienas.

Tucker Gerrick, Fulton's director of marketing, told BuzzFeed News that this is not a licensing deal and not a cent was exchanged between the two companies. "We're growing already" without Wheaties, he said. General Mills, in fact, had "asked us specifically" to team up on the product. Fulton's co-founder is a former General Mills employee and the brewery remains connected with current and former employees of the cereal company.

The partnership also seems to highlight a softening divide between small, independent craft companies and large manufacturers, who are often vying for the same customers. Fortunately for this partnership, Wheaties and beer have had very little in common, until now.

This S'mores Pizza Is The Dessert You Need

No campfire needed for this delicious dessert!

BuzzFeed Video / Via youtu.be

25 Cheesy Spreads You'll Want To Put On Basically Everything

Cheese is always the answer.

Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

This spicy pepper jack chicken combo:

Appetizer, schmappetizer. Make this for dinner. Here's the recipe.

chef-in-training.com

This bacon, onion, and Gruyere beauty:

Also wine. (But only 1 tablespoon, so you can drink the rest of the bottle while you inhale this). Here's the recipe.

shewearsmanyhats.com

Thursday, 13 August 2015

How Desperate Are You For $20?

Would you drink liquid hotdogs for cash?

There's A Secret Way Of Eating Curry That You Need To Know About

You’re all making a big mistake. Trust me.

Hey there. You know what a curry looks like. You've had a fair few curries in your time. You enjoy curries on a regular basis.

Tiramisu Art Studio / Getty Images

And you know that there's nothing better than going out for a curry with your mates and catching up over a beer and a masala.

Alleko / Getty Images

Except maybe ordering takeout curry and eating it in your pants with the telly on.

Sometimes that's just what you need to do.

Cathy Yeulet / Getty Images

But, guys: You're eating it wrong. It's all well and good shaking things up by ordering a naan instead of rice from time to time.

For All The Australians Out There Who Actually Hate Vegemite

You’re not alone.

Vegemite: it's an Aussie staple.

Flickr: Martin Jambon / Via Flickr: mjambon

wikipedia.org / Creative Commons

Kraft

We Turned A Bunch Of Vegetables Into Ice Cream

With the help of professionals of course, we’re not insane.

BuzzFeed Blue / Via youtu.be

LINK: Here's a little more background on the ice creams...and a picture of me in a hairnet.

The Ultimate Pop-Tarts Taste Test

Tastes like the ’90s!

BuzzFeed Video / Via youtu.be

This Guy Used Science To Figure Out How To Get An 86% Bigger Burrito At Chipotle

Dylan Grosz, an intern at Apartment List, loves Chipotle more than most things. So he decided to do an experiment to try to figure out how to get the most food from one order without raising the price.

"It’s basically a universal truth that the only thing better than Chipotle is…more Chipotle," he wrote. "I’m no religious scholar, but I’m pretty sure heaven is just one big Chipotle restaurant where the guac and chips are ALWAYS free and hell is just some Taco Bell."

Chipotle hacks have been documented before, but Grosz's hack uses ~science~.

The Pittsburgh resident wrote that he took his "geeky love of data and my black hole of a belly to Chipotle for several days," where he ordered 5 burritos each day for a total of 35. He then separated and weighed the ingredients (he had to leave out some of the most delicious ingredients, sour cream and guac, so it wouldn't be a ridiculous mess to measure.)

To get the results, he combined all the best methods for the best way to get the most monstrous burrito.

Grosz told BuzzFeed he was shocked by the result: "When I tested all the methods at once, it far surpassed our most optimistic expectations! I thought I might get a 50% improvement, but 86% is just crazy," he said.

Here's the best method: First, get a burrito bowl instead of just a burrito, which will snag you 15% more food.

Then, you can order a tortilla on the side FO' FREE (and sometimes two).

Grosz writes, "Ask for the tortillas at the end, when the staff just wants you to go away."

You can then use the tortilla to wrap up the burrito yourself (it may seem daunting, but you can do it!).

Asking for both kinds of rice gets your 93% more rice. Mmmm, rice.

Asking for both beans also gets you 92% more beans.

Then, ask for half of one meat and half of another. On average you'll get 54% more meat.

Note: You'll be charged for the more expensive of the two.

Don't forget the oft-overlooked corn and fajita veggies!

"Doing all the tricks together (you’ll have to double-wrap the burrito yourself) gets you a giant burrito that weighs almost 32 ounces, at no additional cost," Grosz wrote.

Here's how each ingredient changes the weight.

The final burrito weighed 86% more (!) than the control burrito.

But after all of that deliciousness, Grosz said he needed a little bit of a burrito break.

"I didn’t eat many of the 35 experimental burritos (those went to the office), but seeing them everyday and dissecting their innards kind of turned me off from eating Chipotle for a few days," he said.

Burritos for daaaays.

Cartoon Network

H/T Apartment List

37 Dessert Recipes Even Grandma Would Approve Of

Grandma knows best.

Banana Snickerdoodles

Cinnamon + banana = heaven. Recipe here.

Emma Delaney / Via georgetown.spoonuniversity.com

Pumpkin Pie with Sugar Cookie Crust

Literally screams g-ma's house. Learn how here.

Erica Coulter / Via iu.spoonuniversity.com

Maple Browned Butter Bacon Cupcakes

Hell yes. Here's how.

Kelda Baljon / Via nu.spoonuniversity.com

Frozen Chocolate Chip Cookies

Paper thin and melt in your mouth? Sign me up. Learn how here.

Livia Greene / Via duke.spoonuniversity.com

Wednesday, 12 August 2015

Here's How To Toast Beer With Your Favorite Friends All Around The World

Raise a glass, errrh… Sometimes!

So, you've been in a foreign country before and didn't know how to raise your glass properly... well, the folks at Let's Grab A Beer put together this video to hopefully show you for next time.

Let's Grab A Beer / Via youtube.com

In Germany, eye contact is KEY.

Let's Grab A Beer / Via youtube.com

While in China, the height of the clink is what matters most.

Let's Grab A Beer / Via youtube.com

And in Japan, don't pour your own, but it's def okay to pour your neighbor's glass!

Let's Grab A Beer / Via youtube.com

21 Struggles Of Having A Significant Other Who’s A Picky Eater

“Is there coconut in this?”

You’re constantly surprised by the foods they're currently taking issue with.

Seriously. Who doesn't like Nutella?

Robert W. Howington / Via Flickr: whitetrashtexas

Which "Great British Bake Off 2015" Contestant Are You?

We’re just into the new series and it can be hard to work out who to support. So this should make it much easier, or harder, for you.

Which Taco Bell Menu Item Are You?

¡Yo quiero Taco Bell!

Diet Pepsi Is Now Sweetened With Sucralose. But What Is Sucralose?

It was discovered while researching insecticides — you probably know it as Splenda — and it’s already in a lot of other foods.

PepsiCo / Via PRNewsFoto

There's a reformulated Diet Pepsi in stores now that contains a new artificial sweetener: a blend of sucralose and acesulfame K.

Sales of Diet Pepsi, traditionally sweetened with aspartame, have fallen by roughly 35% over the past decade, the Washington Post reported. The problem, PepsiCo believes, was the aspartame.

Approved by the FDA in 1981 and widely regarded as safe by food safety agencies, aspartame has been stigmatized since a 1996 report linked it to an increased rate of brain tumors in the 1980s. Companies have been searching for a new zero-calorie sugar alternative as consumers have been avoiding aspartame in larger numbers.

"Diet cola drinkers in the U.S. told us they wanted aspartame-free Diet Pepsi," said Seth Kaufman, senior vice president of Pepsi and Flavors Portfolio, PepsiCo North America Beverages, in a press release. The brand hopes switching to sucralose will help win back customers, many of whom are already familiar with sucralose via Splenda, a well-known artificial sweetener.

Old Diet Pepsi also contained the artificial sweetener acesulfame K (Ace-K). As consumer concerns mainly surrounded aspartame, the new formulation will continue to use Ace-K.

So what do we know about Pepsi's new artificial sweetener?

Meet the sucralose molecule.

Molekuul / Getty Images

You can call it C₁₂H₁₉Cl₃O₈. It is not found in nature, and must be synthetically produced. It is extremely sweet (about 600 times as sweet as sugar) so only small amounts are required, and since the body cannot digest sucralose, it does not contribute calories to the diet.

Because of its extreme taste, it's known as a "high-intensity sweetener," a category that also includes saccharin, aspartame, Ace-K, neotame, and advantame.