1. A look at the dynamic duo behind BaubleBar // Elle
2. Why heirloom tomatoes are real tomatoes // Huffington Post
3. Tory Burch for Fitbit? Yes please! // Fitbit
4. “First thing’s first, I’m the realest, realest, drop this and let the whole world feel it.” – Iggy Azalea // Passive Juice Motel
5. An online store dedicated to chic packaging for the hostess with the mostess // Garnish
Have a great weekend!
1. Photos of Meg Ryan’s dreamy San Francisco home, on the market for a cool $8.9M // Popsugar
2. Cheers! Happy hour cocktail: Melon Mule – vodka, ginger beer, cantaloupe, lime juice // Style Me Pretty Living
3. What is gremolata? // Yahoo
4. Nice alternative to the Birkenstock trend // Sam Edelman
5. The awesomeness of shopping in a French grocery store // Condé Nast Traveler
Have a great weekend!
Have you ever taken the Myers-Briggs personality test? I’ve had to do it for work before. It’s fun and usually so accurate it’s frightening. Here’s an abridged version of the test, if you’d like to give it a shot. Myers-Briggs aside, I have to share a much more important personality analysis…ice cream. After a heated debate the other night with my better half over best-ever ice cream flavors, I figured somewhere out there someone surely must have decoded what your favorite flavor says about you. Turns out, Baskin Robbins has the inside scoop!
Baskin-Robbins teamed up with Dr. Alan Hirsh, founder of Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, to understand what the most popular ice cream flavors say about someone’s personality.
Here are the results:
Vanilla // You’re more likely to be impulsive, easily suggestible and an idealist.
Chocolate // You’re more likely to be dramatic, lively, charming, flirtatious, seductive and gullible.
Very Berry Strawberry // You’re more likely to be a tolerant, devoted and an introvert.
Mint Chocolate Chip // You’re more likely to be argumentative, frugal and cautious.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough // You’re more likely to be ambitious, competitive and a visionary.
Pralines ‘n Cream // You’re more likely to be loving, supportive and prefer to avoid the spotlight.
Jamoca // You’re more likely to be scrupulous, conscientious and a moral perfectionist.
Chocolate Chip // You’re more likely to be generous, competent and a go getter.
Rainbow Sherbet // You’re more likely to be analytic, decisive and pessimistic.
Rocky Road // You’re more likely to be aggressive, engaging and a good listener.
Personally, I’m a Pralines ‘n Cream kind of gal, but I’m much more of an extrovert than described above. What’s your favorite flavor? Does the description of your personality ring true?
1. The results are in, the best way to reheat leftover pizza // Huffington Post
2. Ina always advises adding espresso to chocolate when baking to enrich the flavor. With this neat-o product, now its’ super easy // King Arthur Flour
3. The Citra Sipper, launched at the 1933 Worlds Fair by the current owner’s grandfather. Love this. // KIOSK
4. Where was this ultra-genius, super helpful service when I got married? Dubbed, “snail mail made easy”, they help you gather mailing addresses with a free and private URL, allowing friends and family to fill out/update their address – and will even help you address and send out your invitations, cards, etc. Awesome. // Postable
5. Make better homemade lemonade with this simple trick // The Kitchn
Have a great weekend!
1. Two awesome new Ben & Jerry’s flavors inspired by SNL skits // Delish
2. Repel unwanted dinner guests with these non-toxic, delightfully citrus sticks // Terrain
3. Major travel envy: Machu Picchu named “world’s top landmark” // CNN Travel
4. Super cute, majorly affordable jewels // SoCal Gems
5. Alton’s scientific mango-peeling technique unveiled // Eater
Have a great weekend!
Have you heard about this yet? Maple water. Because apparently coconut water is so last year! Maple water may soon be the new kid in town. I welcome the new addition to the plant-based-water market. Personally I can’t stand coconut water. I want to like it, but the flavor is just a little too funky for my palate.
Newly available in the US, maple water is essentially maple sap. Pure maple sap, which is water from the ground that has been filtered as it travels up the tree trunk and gets infused with sugar, calcium, potassium, magnesium and manganese along the way. It’s important to remember the difference between maple sap and thick, sticky, sugary maple syrup. Maple syrup is maple sap that’s been boiled down and super concentrated. [Side note: it takes 20 to 50 liters of sap to boil down into 1 liter of syrup…so obviously you can image the difference between the two.]
Drinking maple sap isn’t new, ancient cultures have been drinking this stuff for a long time, promoting it’s many health benefits. It’s filled with electrolytes and is great for hydration. It’s high in manganese, and a good source of calcium and iron. The taste (so I’m told) is just slightly sweet and has very little sugar and is low in calories.
These are the 3 brands I’ve seen penetrate the US market: Vertical Water, Drink Maple and Happy Tree. It’s only a matter of time until we see this trend pop up in recipes and beverages everywhere. Maple water popsicles, cocktails and smoothies….oh my!
Have you tried maple water? What do you think?
My name is Emily and I’m a fast eater. Phew! It feels good to come to terms with this. My husband often jokes that I could give Kobayashi a run for his money some days. Ugh. It’s a problem I’ve been trying to overcome for years. I just read an article in which a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating slower leads to lesser calorie consumption. It went on to say that, “if you rush through each meal, you could end up eating more calories than you need to sustain energy, and over time, these larger portions could lead to weight gain.” Turns out, in the movie Clueless, Cher was actually onto something when she told Dionne “you lose weight by doing it like this, cutting it really small.”
Here are 4 things I learned on how to slow down while eating:
1. Stop multitasking while eating. By focusing on your food and observing your portion size, you’ll force yourself to be more present while eating.
2. Drink more. By sipping your beverage in-between bites, you slow down your pace of eating.
3. Savor the flavor. Taking the time to experience your food makes it an experience you’ll want to savor and make last longer.
4. Put down the fork. The physical act of putting down and picking up your fork will slow your pace, according to a study published in Appetite. In fact, those who put their fork down in between each mouthful consumed 10 percent fewer calories than faster eaters.
Bon appétit!
BITES & PIECES 