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thursday things

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I just want to let you know that I wrote you a long, beautiful Thursday Things post today… and then my computer bugged out and ate it. I would try to re-create it but now I’m just sad and tired and defeated, which is how I’m sure a lot of us are feeling one whole week into our New Year’s resolutions. 😉 So, I put a picture of an adorable owl at the top of this post to cheer myself up. Isn’t he the cutest?

If one of your resolutions is to be more healthy, close your eyes for a second because this butter mill will blow your mind (and likely increase your butter consumption exponentially).

You may, however, want to add avocados to your grocery list, as a new study just showed that eating an avocado a day can decrease your bad cholesterol by up to 14% in just five weeks.

We happen to be participating in another Whole30 this January, and we aren’t the only ones.

You could also try juicing (or smoothie-ing)… though I can’t imagine living on only juice, adding one or two to your daily routine can definitely up your nutrients.

If you’re trying to cut your grocery budget, Food52 can help you spend less money on your favorite ingredients. With kitchen hacks for everything from buttermilk to self-rising flour.

Want to master your homemaking skills? Find out the correct way to load your dishwasher and how to clean 10 important household items.

If you just want to have more fun this year – you’re in luck because the games from your childhood (or, mine at least) are now online… for free! I’m going to ford so many rivers….

Or just watch this video of lions playing with Christmas trees… apparently pine trees are the lion equivalent of catnip. (Who knew?)

thursday things – the chestnut praline latte and other things

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chestnut praline latte

THE CHESTNUT PRALINE LATTE HAS ARRIVED. I tried it this morning just for you all… and the verdict? Actually pretty good. I’ve never had a chestnut but I assume that is what they taste like. It was nutty with a slight hint of cinnamon and all in all, I would say it was pretty good. I would definitely order it again.

In other news… 

If you’ve ever wondered what it was like to be 2 years old, this Instagram account will remind you.

And if you thought plant-sitting was a boring job, you have clearly been doing it wrong.

If you had a bad day yesterday, remember it could always be worse…

Just seeing this picture of a life-sized Katniss cake makes me tired. You don’t even get to eat it! WHAT’S THE POINT?

Not a baker? No problem. Bon Appetit has you covered with storebought pies you don’t have to be ashamed to take to your gathering.

For some reason, Pepsi thinks that Dorito-flavored soda is necessary.

For a much more obvious reasons, Oreo churros are (going to be) a thing.

Phoenix has some serious brag-worthy restaurants and I have only been to two of them… Clearly I need to work on that.

Hosting Thanksgiving at your place? Just taking along a side or dessert? This Thanksgiving Food Planning Calculator will help you figure out how much you need to make!

Oh, and Mr. Eats sent me this today because “It reminded him of me”… Thanks, Mr. Eats.

KZNujES - Imgur

 

thursday things

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rain phoenix

GAH AUGUST IS ALMOST OVER I CAN’T BELIEVE IT! The weather is drying up and in just two short weeks FH and I will be en route to Cali to become MR. & MRS. EATS! So, I guess he will just be “H” then, huh? Or maybe Mr. Eats. I don’t know, we will have to discuss whether or not he is taking my blog-name after the wedding…

All that being said, we’ve been super busy planning and organizing and even though it’s a CRAZY SMALL wedding it is still amazingly time-consuming and stressful, so, not much going on around here outside of that whole ordeal.

We did find the biggest tomato ever. I’m pretty sure its mom cheated on its dad with a pumpkin and thus, he was born. Isn’t he beautiful?

tomato

Unfortunately I murdered him by cutting him into a bunch of tiny pieces and tossing him with some cucumber, shallot, salt, garlic, and a splash of vinegar. At least he was delicious.

I also finally tried two of the four Lay’s “limited edition” flavors (I put “limited edition” in quotes because the last 3 “limited edition” flavors are still out…. sooooo…)

chips

I will preface this by saying that I had EXTREMELY low expectations for these… and on that note, I didn’t hate them! I will say the bacon mac and cheese was underwhelming, but not disgusting. It didn’t really taste like mac or cheese but had a hint-o-bacon flavor. They probably could have just called it “bacon” flavor and been done with it.

The wasabi ginger though, brace yourself for this one, tasted like… WASABI AND GINGER. It kinda blew my mind. It wasn’t super spicy, I think I felt the spice starting to build up about halfway through the bag (this is why I only get the small bags for these things) and I definitely almost finished the bag in one sitting. OK, I did that thing where I left like three chips in the bottom to pretend like I didn’t eat the whole bag in one sitting… I wouldn’t say I loved the flavor or feel the need to buy it again but I was just so shocked that they were really able to nail the wasabi-ginger flavor.

Now I need someone in Canada to send me the Canadian flavors (cough-cough-nudge-nudge – I will totally pay you!) 🙂

Speaking of Canada – have you read Movita’s latest post? Because you really must. Not only did she make an amazing cake but you get to watch someone fall off of a stage.

I really hope you haven’t stopped reading after she cut back on her baking posts because if you have, my friends, you have been missing out on some real gems.

In other news…

Science proves that mozzarella is indeed the best cheese for your pizza.

Our local New Times gives us tips for keeping our bundts in one piece.

McDonald’s is testing ‘flavor your own’ McNuggets – if I was like 7 years old I would be totally pumped.

This is the coolest notebook ever (and I totally told FH about this idea in the form of having a notepad on the refrigerator that would sync with my Evernote app on my phone – HELLO GROCERY LISTS!) Looks like I missed out on hitting it big again! Dammit!

Here are the best things I ate in August…

Unfortunately we really didn’t go out much so this list is pretty short…

The Original Chopped Salad from The Gladly in Phoenix – this salad is so popular it has its own Facebook page.

It’s basically arugula, israeli couscous, smoked salmon, freeze dried corn, and their own trail mix. You can actually get the recipe here!

gladly salad

Next up was the seasonal corn dish (basically fancy creamed corn) from Cafe Bink in Carefree, AZ.

Consists of corn, peppers, butter, cheese, and croutons (for some reason?) – Who cares, it was delicious.

bink corn

And now a tiny pig running through grass because, why not?

EEEE look at his little legs go! It almost makes me feel bad about eating bacon….

Almost.

thursday things

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Happy Thursday!

Things have been pretty calm around here lately, the most exciting thing to happen to me is this lamp.

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I got it this past weekend at Ikea for like $10. Isn’t it amazing? I love it. Because, well, OWLS! They had a super adorable throw pillow too, but it cost the same amount (actually, I think it cost more than) the lamp so I figured I would go with the more practical choice.

Yep. Practicality.

We also stopped by Ted’s Hot Dogs in Tempe and had some delicious hot dogs, fries, and onion rings. Ted’s is a New York-based hot dog restaurant that happens to have opened a location in Tempe and cooks its dogs (and sausages and burgers)  over a charcoal grill which makes it taste basically like it is made out of unicorn tears.

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If you need a hot dog and are in the greater Phoenix area (or close to one of their NY locations) I insist you stop by there. The line is usually at least to, if not out, the door but it moves pretty quickly and is definitely worth it. Their toppings are (mostly) complimentary, and I like to get them all on the side and have a BYO-hotdog party at the table.

Totally normal for a grown up to do.

So, I’m finally thinking of wedding-related things, and I don’t know a better way to commemorate our special day than having pizza portraits made, can you? I’m pretty sure FH would dig it.

When my bestie came out to visit in December, I introduced her to the glory that is In-N-Out. If you’ve never had In-N-Out, you HAVE to try it whenever you are in the vicinity of one of its many locations. Mike from Pickled Comics does a pretty good job of describing the impact In-N-Out will have on your life in his comic, The Double Double Ruined My Life.

Awhile back I saw this sad TV chef on The Soup or Tosh or whatever it was we happened to be watching at the time. Then, I promptly forgot all about him until just the other day when my friend stumbled across him for the first time. You can see one of his kitchen masterpieces in the video below, which I’m sure will lead to searching for more.

There’s even one where he shows us how to make Rice-A-Roni (true story).

I’ve also decided to switch to Gold’s Gym so that I can work out with Arnold.

And that I’m moving to Germany when I get old so that I can go to this retirement home.  

Why?  Because they recreated scenes from movies for their calendar.

Sold.

In kitchen-related things, do you ever get confused on which knife to use?  Never be confused again thanks to this handy infographic.

I learned that my childhood was a lie and apparently all Froot Loops are actually the same flavor.  Excuse me while I sob uncontrollably in the corner.  What’s next?

Apparently Oreo released Limited Edition Cookie Dough Oreos (which are available nowhere near me or anyone I know) but if you happen to spot them, please send them directly to me and I will reward you handsomely.

Also, a new Marshmallow Crispy flavor exists, too. WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET SOME OF THESE? I tried tweeting at Oreo but they wanted nothing to do with me. /pout.

In healthier news, CHOW gives us tips for what to do with our leftover pulp from juicing so we don’t feel bad about throwing it into the garbage.

And back to the unhealthy stuff, I’m pretty sure I’m adding these brownies from Bakers Royale to my weekend baking list.

And I’m DEFINITELY adding this granola from Sally’s Baking Addiction.