The Cook Hook is a little gadget that lets you hang your towel anywhere you could put a portable hook. The hook works with magnets - simply stick the towel between the two magnets and then pull it out when you need it.
I keep my towel draped over the stove bar. The hook in this picture is really cute, but I do have to wonder why they don't just throw the towel right over the bar directly.
On the Fusion Brands site (where they sell the Cook Hook), there is also a picture of a guy with the hook in his belt loop. It might be convenient to have a towel right on me while cooking.
Anheuser-Busch would like me to believe I am reading too much into it, but around the time of the InBev buyout, Budweiser commercials began elevating the patriotism pushing "The Great American Lager" slogan like a comforting pat on the shoulder to say, "Everything will be alright." Maybe its just a coincidence: A-B reminds me the slogan was launched before InBev's bid was finalized. Or maybe marketing knew something I didn't. Either way, hammering home the "King of Beers" at this point might just come a little too close to reminding us of our new European overlords.
Unfortunately, however, slogans require an extra step of association, so for their latest offering, Bud is simply throwing the word "American" right into the product name. A-B chose to debut spots for their forthcoming Budweiser American Ale during the Olympics. (I caught one during a massive 8 hour Olympic-watching marathon -- a near Phelpsian feat, if I do say so myself.) And though Olympic coverage represents an ideal opportunity to court a massive audience, it certainly doesn't hurt that it's served with a side of patriotic pride.
Budweiser American Ale also had been in the works well before the InBev buyout: It's intention is to edge in on the growing craft beer market, hopefully grabbing Anheuser-Busch a piece of the action while wooing some attention back to their flagship. Reasserting Budweiser as the "Great American Lager" is definitely a nice segue into introducing the next great "American Ale." But A-B marketing has got to at least be thinking, Don't you love it when a plan comes together! Naive isn't a word that comes to mind when I think of the big boys down at Bud, so I bet the more this whole InBev/patriotism thing feels like a coincidence, the better job they're doing.
Asian cuisine has been pretty popular here in the U.S. for sometime. It seems to me that many Americans have become fairly agile with a pair of chopsticks. However, I know that not everyone is comfortable using two sticks to transport food from plate to mouth.
If you're one of the number who still struggle with the sticks, there's a new tool that can help you eat your Asian food without all the fuss. The Tukaani chopsticks were created by Finnish designer, Lincoln Kayiwa, and were modeled after the beak of a Toucan. The stainless steel utensil has the two 'sticks' connected by a ring twisted at one end.
The Tukaani chopsticks may be great for beginners, but I still think they're no substitute for learning how to use chopsticks properly. It may take some practice, but using chopsticks isn't so difficult to master that you'd need to use the Tukaani forever. What's your take on the Tukaani chopsticks?
Going nationwide last July, Miller Chill quickly became ubiquitous at stores. This summer, Anheuser-Busch tried targeting the flourishing lime-flavored beer market as well, launching Bud Light Lime in April with $35 million in advertising. Since then, the macro-brew's been bragging about its success crediting the roll-out for an increase in 2nd quarter profits and summer market share.
Enough jabber-jargon... Do I want to drink it??
Personally, my taste buds sour at the mere thought of giving a Bud Light spin-off the full taster's treatment, but just for kicks, let's do BLL proper!
BLL's packaging alerts me it's a "premium light beer with 100% natural lime flavor." Also prominently displayed: "contains alcohol." Sold. After cleansing my palate of a Fudgsicle (hey, it's hot out!), I pour a small amount of BLL into a taster glass. The nose is very typical of Bud Light (subtle malt, ricey) and shows distinct notes of -- ta da! -- lime.
The flavor does not offend as much as I had expected.
Alton Brown, one of my absolute favorite culinary personalities, is helping GE to help make your life easier. He's worked with the company to develop a line of Trivection ovens, which combine microwave, convection, and thermal heating methods.
According to Cnet's Kitchen and Appliances blog, Alton worked with the engineers who designed the line of ovens to help them figure out how to create a better oven. He even taught them how to cook so they'd understand better what was needed.
He must have done a good job, because the trivection oven line looks great with cool features, like a glass cook top on the ranges and several different cooking modes (including "proof" and "Sabbath" modes). I guess most of the features are pretty standard on high end ovens at this point. Check out Alton's demo video for more, and pretty entertaining, information.
Yes, proceeds from the sales of Nutrish will indeed go toward funding no-kill shelters and awareness campaigns, and it's not as if she's the first media-centric chef to go to the dogs -- or cats (remember Rocco DiSpirito's Fancy Feast Elegant Medleys?). Still, I'm continually shocked by the branding stretches some of these folks are making.
(Aaaannnd I've just run across Paula Deen's Butt Massage. I know it's likely a handy and delicious mix of herbs, spices and faerie dust, but still. Ew.)
These days in the cereal world, it's quite popular to take old favorites and spin them just a little bit, whether that means adding a variety of fruit or some extra flavor combinations. I've tried a number of these new variations, but they always left something to be desired. They were good, but they never reinvigorated my childhood cereal love ... until now.
I must have been living under a rock, because it took me over a year to spot Vanilla Flavour Rice Krispies, which debuted just over a year ago in Canada. They're just like the old classic with an extra hint of vanilla -- familiarity with a slight flair. I can't get enough of these damned things, and have gone through a box in a week. I don't know if they're available in the States yet (all my searches lead back to Canadian sites), but do keep an eye out. If you like the Snap, Crackle, and Pop, you'll probably dig these.
I came across this cool set of chopping boards over at InventorSpot recently and thought they were worth sharing.
The set of cutting boards is designed to like like tabs in a file folder, and they're color coded to indicate what should be cut on each: red for meat, white for poultry and pork, blue for fish, and green for vegetables and fruits. They are also a good size at 8" by 12". I also love that the chopping boards are in a container, so they look neat and tidy on your counter.
You can find the Index Chopping Boards at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) online store. Be aware, though, that you're paying for design. At $85 for the set, this is some pricey kitchen ware. If you have the money to spend, this could be a nice addition to you kitchen. For me, though, I'll just stick with my inexpensive, yet reliable, cutting boards from Target. What's your take on the Index Cutting Boards?
I whip up a homemade pizza pretty much all the time. With so much practice, I've gotten pretty decent at rolling my pizza slicer through thick piles of toppings and coming out with a nicely cut piece every time. However, if making pizzas and then trying to cut them is a big thorn in your side, you might want to check out the new pizza scissors, also called The Pizza Pro, over at Skymall. Just open the scissors up, slide it under the pizza pie, and cut. Pretty simple, eh? I just wonder how it deals with thicker toppings.
We got this tip from OhGizmo! and, if you happen to have a similar problem with ruining pans when you try to cut through a pizza without shnazzy scissors, just slip the pizza onto a surface you can cut on and roll or slice away!.
Some associate San Francisco with Rice-A-Roni, cable cars, and the gay lib movement. I, however, take the shallow route and associate it with fine American chocolate. Between The San Francisco Chocolate Factory and Ghirardelli, San Fran is just about the only city in the contiguous United States that produces decent corporate chocolate. [Note that I said corporate; there are plenty of lovely indie chocolate shops around.]
To wit: Upon her return from the golden state, a colleague presented me with The San Francisco Chocolate Factory's new "Book Lover's Chocolate". The bookshelf-ready packaging evokes an old leather-bound novel (albeit a tiny one, at only 5 inches), and contains rounds of milk chocolate (also available in dark and dark espresso). The schpeel: "Chocolate has been proven to boost brain power, so let our luscious bite sized discs help you devour your new book while pleasing your palate." Uh, okay, whatever you say, Book Chocolate.
But lo, this book chocolate is divine! The disc shape is perfectly contoured for mindless tongue-palate melting (no impatient biting here!), and the flavor is so creamy and rich, they're like little poppable drinking chocolates. I also test-drove the chocolate's promise of enhancing any reading experience, and while they didn't make the oeuvre of Ann Coulter any more digestible, they sure make it more palatable.
I remember once, while I was around 7 years old and playing at a friend's house, my mom stopped by with lunch for me (they were doing her a favor by watching me and she didn't want to impose on them to feed me as well). It consisted of a napkin-wrapped hot dog that she pulled out of her purse. I remember looking at with distaste, as the hot dog was wrinkled and grey, and the bun was also a sad affair. It was edible, but certainly not exciting. That experience colored my perception of hot dogs and it was years before I ate them with gusto.
Fast forward to the present day and I am singing a very different hot dog song. This conversion is in large part due to gourmet meat producer D'Artagnan's new line of exotic (and very tasty) hot dogs. They come in four varities - pork, beef, buffalo and duck and they are made from meat that was never treated with antibiotics or growth hormones. They are uncured, which means that they are nitrate-free. For all the fancy varieties of meat, they do still taste much like your classic hot dog. Larger than the traditional frank, they are filling, which means that while the pack only comes with four dogs, you'll only need to eat one to be satisfied, so there's plenty to go around.
I recommend eating them with potato salad and some good, whole grain mustard. Very tasty!
The Fancy Food Show is starting to become a distant memory, as the demands of regular old work and life push their back into the forefront of my mind. However, there are a few products that continue to stick with me and continue to marvel me with their absolute deliciousness.
One such product is Cocio. It doesn't look like much, in fact it's nothing more than chocolate milk in a bottle. However, it is the best chocolate milk I've ever tasted. It is sweet, but not cloying, thick without being sludgy and every so chocolate-y. It is a Danish product that has been around since 1951 and in that country, is often consumed as street food, in conjunction with sausages (at least according to Wikipedia). It is also all natural, made of nothing more than chocolate, sugar (no high fructose corn syrup here) and milk. If you think of yourself as a chocolate milk connoisseur, this is a product to seek out.
In his forty-plus year career, Elton John has had no lack of awards: in addition to an Oscar for his work on The Lion King, he can boast five Grammys, a place in the Songwriter's Hall of Fame, a spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a CBE and a Knighthood, as well as hundreds of other honors, great and small.
However, in some ways, none of these honors is as sweet as the one recently bestowed on the famed singer/songwriter. This week, Ben and Jerry's will launch Goodbye, Yellow Brickle Road, an Elton John-themed flavor that it will sell in its scoop shops from July 18th to July 25th. Named after his seminal 1973 breakthrough album and unveiled in honor of his first-ever concert in the Green Mountain State, all proceeds from the sale of the ice cream will go to the Elton John AIDS Fund.
A chocolate ice cream base with peanut butter cookie dough, butter brickle, and white chocolate chunks, one wonders if "Goodbye Yellow Brickle Road" might spawn sequels. After all, is it hard to imagine a market for "Rocky Road Man," "Can You Feel the Carbs Tonight" or "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blueberry Bonanza"?
There are few corporations as polarizing as Starbucks. Even on this blog, it is the rare Slashbucks post that doesn't incite a ruthless comments war. Yet there is no denying that Starbucks is a fast food force and their products deserve coverage like everybody else, so simmer.
Today Starbucks is introducing yet another beverage to their liquid arsenal. Though frozen and blended, the new Vivanno isn't another tired variation on the -ccino theme. Nope, this is Starbucks' answer to Jamba Juice: A protein-packed smoothie.
Here's the scoop:
One whole - real! - banana (seriously! it will be peeled and pulsed before your very eyes!)
Whey protein (16 grams) and fiber powder (5 grams)
Choice of milk (default is 2%)
Ice
Secret Starbucks-Proprietary Orange-Mango Naked Juice
Portion controlled (default is Grande, and always has less than 270 calories)
Although I believe it is rather naive of the financially-woed coffee conglomerate to try and break into the oversaturated smoothie market with a mere four options, I decided to give 'em a go.
Remember Hydrox? AKA "kosher Oreos?" Well, after a long hiatus, these chocolate sandwich cookies are back for a limited time in honor of their 100th anniversary. The Kellogg Company, which produces Hydrox, have launched an "America's biggest Hydrox fans" essay contest, with a grand prize of a trip to New York and a six-month supply of cookies. The contest ends July 14; see Hydroxcookies.com for details.
Personally, I'm thrilled. Growing up in a Jewish, though non-kosher, house, there was always a jar of Hydrox in the pantry. My mother, a native New Yorker, simply preferred the soft, appealingly grainy creme and firmer cookie of her own childhood snacktimes to the slightly larger Oreo. Eventually I too came on board. Now, with Hydrox gone, I sometimes try to substitute various "organic" sandwich cookies and Trader Joe's Joe Joe's. But they're never the same!
Anheuser-Busch would like me to believe I am reading too much into it, but around the time of the InBev buyout, Budweiser commercials began elevating the patriotism pushing "The Great American Lager" slogan like a comforting pat on the shoulder to say, "Everything will be alright." Maybe its just a coincidence: A-B reminds me the slogan was launched before InBev's bid was finalized. Or maybe marketing knew something I didn't. Either way, hammering home the "King of Beers" at this point might just come a little too close to reminding us of our new European overlords.
Asian cuisine has been pretty popular here in the U.S. for sometime. It seems to me that many Americans have become fairly agile with a pair of chopsticks. However, I know that not everyone is comfortable using two sticks to transport food from plate to mouth. 
Going nationwide last July, Miller Chill quickly became ubiquitous at stores. This summer, Anheuser-Busch tried targeting the flourishing lime-flavored beer market as well, launching Bud Light Lime in April with $35 million in advertising. Since then, the macro-brew's been bragging about its success crediting the roll-out for an increase in 2nd quarter profits and summer market share.
Alton Brown, one of my absolute favorite culinary personalities, is helping GE to help make your life easier. He's worked with the company to develop a line of Trivection ovens, which combine microwave, convection, and thermal heating methods.
In response to the unleashing of 
These days in the cereal world, it's quite popular to take old favorites and spin them just a little bit, whether that means adding a variety of fruit or some extra flavor combinations. I've tried a number of these new variations, but they always left something to be desired. They were good, but they never reinvigorated my childhood cereal love ... until now.
Remember Hydrox? AKA "kosher Oreos?" Well, after a long hiatus, these chocolate sandwich cookies are back for a limited time in honor of their 100th anniversary. The Kellogg Company, which produces Hydrox, have launched an "America's biggest Hydrox fans" essay contest, with a grand prize of a trip to New York and a six-month supply of cookies. The contest ends July 14; see Hydroxcookies.com for details.
Chocolate-stuffed bananas on the grill
Tyler Florence welcomes new daughter
Beware kids' menus!
