#it's super salty and sweet but it's got. the perfect tang.

[failfemme]

i made the most perfect teriyaki sauce last night while high out of my mind, and i'm never gonna be able to recreate it just right. so i have to savor every bite of my leftovers bc once it's gone, it's gone.

[creatiview]

[ad_1] When you’re craving fries, nothing else will do. And thankfully, these loaded sweet potato fries can pass as a semi-healthy weeknight meal or Super Bowl party-friendly snack. They’re easy to make for any occasion and a little too easy to devour. But who am I to judge—I’d absolutely eat these for every meal if I didn’t juuust slightly fear turning orange. Urban legend aside, these loaded fries are that delicious and just the no-recipe recipe you’ve been searching for to make hosting a breeze. Let’s break it down. I can confidently say that I’ve never met a disappointing potato, and the crowd-pleasing vegetable has the perfect energy for a dinner party. All you have to do is grab a bag of your favorite frozen sweet potato fries, load them up with your go-to simple toppings, and enjoy as a party of one or set out for your guests to savor in a BYO format. You can assemble the entire spread in under 30 minutes, and you don’t have to use any extra elbow grease to make your guests’ plates shine. No matter what kind of party you’ve got in the books, I guarantee these fries will be a hit. Feature image by Michelle Nash. 1 of 8 How to Make Loaded Sweet Potato Fries Loaded sweet potato fries really couldn’t be easier to make. With just a handful of ready-made ingredients, you’re laying the groundwork for a whole that’s much greater than the sum of its parts. Plus, the build-your-own experience encourages guests to let loose and get creative. It’s a dinner party hack that makes your job as hostess easier while keeping the vibes laid-back and interactive—total win-win. Here’s how to make it happen: Pick your favorite brand of frozen sweet potato fries (we used Alexia) and prepare according to the package. While they’re baking, set up a topping bar with your favorite add-ins and a bunch of setups. (Pro tip: our Casa Zuma Wood Salad Bowls are perfect for loaded sweet potato fries.) When the fries are ready, plop the sheet pan right on the counter at the beginning of the assembly line. Let guests top their own and you’ve got an instant convo-starter that everyone can join in on. 2 of 8 3 of 8 Tips for Maximizing Flavor and Streamlining Prep There are a few expert tips that maximize the thriving potential of loaded sweet potato fries. First, you can prepare any toppings the night before to make day-of prep even easier. If you’re using kalamata olives and tomatoes, for example, you can chop those up in advance and store in the fridge overnight. That way, when the time comes to build your assembly line, you don’t have to worry about cutting. Another important thing to keep in mind is that—unlike most of our recipes—these might not make the best leftovers. But don’t fret! The fries will literally disappear before your eyes and you can use leftover toppings throughout the week in any of these stellar recipes below. 4 of 8 What goes with sweet potato fries? You can take your loaded sweet potato fries in two delicious directions: Mediterranean-inspired or Mexican-inspired. To recreate Mediterranean vibes, we basically took our favorite elements from a Mediterranean salad and swapped the spring mix for sweet potato fries (talk about an upgrade!). Think creamy chickpeas, salty feta, tzatziki for a little tang, and kalamata olives for a taste of brine that kicks these up a notch. For Mexican vibes, we swapped in creamy guacamole, hearty black beans, crisp iceberg lettuce, and a dollop of sour cream to take you to taco-adjacent heaven. You can’t go wrong with either, and you can make both if that’s your vibe! 5 of 8 6 of 8 More Healthy Sweet Potato Recipes If you like this recipe, then you’ll love our other favorite sweet potato recipes. It truly is the root veggie of our dreams. 7 of 8 Be sure to rate and leave a comment, and tag us on Instagram so we can see how you top your loaded sweet potato fries! !function(e,t,n,c,o,a,f)e.fbq(window,document,"script"),fbq("init","350624676535659"),fbq("track","PageView");

[ayellowtide-blog]

What I’m Prepping This Week: April 1-5

damn these weeks really fly by huh.... I’m already on my third week of sharing what I prep for the week wow! I hope you all enjoy these recipes, they’re all super easy this week!

#1: Brown Sugar Green Beans (can be made vegan)

Had some frozen green beans in the freezer and I’ve been dying for a veggie I haven’t made in a while, so I went with green beans because they are one of me and my dad’s favorite vegetables. This is a super simple recipe, but I don’t believe this is vegan because it has Worcestershire sauce in it, which I can’t remember if that’s vegan or not, but you can skip it or swap it if you like this recipe. You just cook the onions and garlic in a pan, make the sauce, and then add the green beans and cover for a few minutes.

Ingredients: 2 cups frozen cut green beans, 1/4 cup chopped onion, 1 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, salt to taste (I used 3 pinches) and pepper to taste

Nutrition Per Serving (Makes 6 Servings, about 1/3 cup each): Calories: 43 Total Fat: 2g / Saturated Fat: 0g / Trans Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 0mg / Sodium: 71mg / Potassium: 65mg Total Carbohydrate: 6g / Dietary Fiber: 1g / Sugars: 4g / Protein: 1g

#2: Smokey Roasted Potatoes (vegan)

 (Haven’t made potatoes in a hot minute and I fucking love them, so I tried this recipe using smoked paprika to give it a bit of a smokey flavor and kick of flavor all around. I cooked them at 425 for about 25 minutes or until tender. I put them under the broiler for like 5 minutes but they didn’t really get crispy :( They still taste DELICIOUS though! I tossed them with some Italian seasoning and dried parsley afterwards because I like the color.

Ingredients: 6 medium Russet potatoes (or any potato of your choice), 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp salt (use more if using coarse salt), and 1/4 tsp black pepper (or to taste)

Nutrition Per Serving (Makes 6 Servings, around 1 cup each depending on potato size): Calories: 156 Total Fat: 5g / Saturated Fat: 1g / Trans Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 0mg / Sodium: 209mg / Potassium: 636mg Total Carbohydrate: 27g / Dietary Fiber: 2g / Sugars: 2g / Protein: 3g

#3: Chocolate Banana Bread (can be made vegan)

I made this in the first post of meal prepping which, in the effort of not repeating myself, can be found here! All details on how to make this bread and the nutritional info can be found there :) It’s absolutely delicious and a new favorite. It can be high in sugar, so you can adjust for your needs but it has a rich dark chocolate flavor and a beautiful texture. I didn’t have as much cocoa powder this time, so I adjusted the ratios. If you want more of a dark cocoa flavor, use the amount in the recipe, if you want a stronger banana flavor, use only about 1/3 cup of cocoa powder! That way, it’s still chocolatey, just with a much more present banana flavor.

#4: Honey Dijon Vinaigrette (can be made vegan)

My fave vinaigrette because it’s so tangy and sweet and the perfect balance of flavors. If you are vegan, you can sub the honey for maple syrup or agave (I think that’s vegan!) and I’m sure it’ll turn out the same! This is an amazing vinaigrette for using fruit in salad, it just pairs super well and balance the sweet in the salad because it’s got tang from the vinegar and spice from the mustard. I also doubled this recipe when I made it.

Ingredients: 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 tbsp honey, 1 tsp red wine vinegar, salt to taste (occasionally I also put a few shakes of Italian herb seasoning in it but never salt! The mustard is plenty salty)

Nutrition Per Serving (Makes 2 Servings, roughly 1 1/4 tablespoon each): Calories: 110 Total Fat: 11g / Saturated Fat: 2g / Trans Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 0mg / Sodium: 90mg / Potassium: 4mg Total Carbohydrate: 4g / Dietary Fiber: 0g / Sugars: 4 g  / Protein: 0g

What I Have On Hand This Week

Bought This Week: Archer Farms Dried Cranberry & Pecan Salad Topper - I love pecans, but nuts are expensive. When I saw this for $1.99, I was intrigued and picked it up to add to my salads this week. MorningStar Farms Meal Starters Chick’n Strips - I’m not vegan, but I really want to try some vegan stuff, so I picked up these chicken-less chicken strips at Target. I was surprised that they were cheaper than pretty much all the real frozen chicken products! Bird’s Eye Zucchini Lentil Pasta - While I like to prep my own stuff usually, I decided to try a frozen side dish of pasta made from zucchini and lentils in a marinara sauce. I love pasta and hopefully this can be a more nutritious way of eating it (not that I think pasta is bad, I just love cool ways to get your veggies) Simply Balanced Low Sodium Cannellini Beans - These are a smidge more expensive than other brands -- for example, the SB ones were around $1.30, while the Bush’s ones are usually $0.99 -- but in this case it’s worth it. The serving in the SB beans have around HALF of the sodium in the so-called “reduced sodium” beans that Bush’s sells. Totally worth it, imo. Bananas - For banana toast with homemade nut butter!!

Leftover From Last Week: ½ loaf Pepperidge Farm 15 Whole Grain Bread (froze last week) Homemade Mixed Nut Butter Sargento Ultra Thin Swiss Cheese Slices Hillshire Farms Deli Turkey Slices Green Apples

[malodorousmalcontent]

Sixteen92 Review

Hi everybody, welcome to my Sixteen92 review, where I feel unnecessarily self-conscious about how many times I describe scents as 'perfumey'.

I've been sitting on these for a good couple... Weeks? Months? I don't know, but a fateful weekend came where I took a look at my exceptionally busy Notes file, and felt very sad, so I figured i'd knock a couple reviews off my list. Work through all this shit I still needed to review. And that brings us here! Hooray.

I'll be reviewing Kuro Lolita, You Who Swallowed a Falling Star, New Radio, Hydromancy, Telepathy, Mellifera, Vlad Dracul, Paper Moon, and An Excellent Day for an Exorcism.

Hold onto yer butts, folks, this one gets pretty long, here we go

KURO LOLITA (PERFUME OIL) || Black sandalwood, burning resins, straw, porcelain, delicate lace, wet stone, fog, wind-blown leaves.

This smells like a cold rainy fall day in a small southern gothic town, encompassed by farmland, with cobblestone streets and dotted with tiny run-down churches. Bales of hay are speckled around the area: leftover decorations from autumn festivities that happened a week or so ago.

...Just had to get that outta my system, onto the stuff that matters!

The first thing I get, punching me in the nose as soon as I put it on, is sandalwood and damp hay. It's a very warm, woody, dusty scent, with just a little bit of sweet acridness that makes me think there's a dry/decaying leaf note in this (I haven't double-checked the notes yet, so I only remember some of them), and enough petrichor to put the 'damp' in there. The burning resin note comes out after about 10 minutes of wear, and, boy, it's unmistakable: Sweet, with a kick, and a good amount of burniness to it. It smells dark. Like you just walked into one'a those imaginary churches and they were performing a sordid ritual in there, the chapel overrun with incense and candles.

Another 15 minutes, and the sandalwood fades, the resins mellow out some, and i'm mostly left with the hay and that gentle sweet smell of decay. The final note I smell on the drydown: leaves and cold, wet atmosphere. Really interesting atmospheric, evokes a lot of mental imagery.

tl;dr: Sandalwood at first, followed by burning, incensey, sweet resin that mellows out to hay and a decaying leaves note that is present throughout the whole wear. Dries down to leaves and cold, wet atmosphere.

RATING: 3.5/5. Nice, a very good atmospheric, but I feel like it's bordering overly complex, with some of the notes getting lost in the mix and my nose feeling a bit confused. I also don't know how much i'll want to really wear it.

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YOU WHO SWALLOWED A FALLING STAR (PERFUME OIL) || Dark stone fruits, glowing embers, night rose, sweet sandalwood, plum blossom.

Oh, smells like rock candy.

So this is sitting on a weird edge for me. See, "stone fruit" (peach) notes tend to not work on me more often than not: they go acrid in this terrible, burning bodily fluid kinda way, and this... This is sitting juuuust on the edge of that. It's sharp and tart and kinda heady, rounded out by that rock-candy sweetness (which i'm 90% certain is frankincense. Source: I have a bag of pure frankincense), and just like... It's thinking about being a burny bile scent. But not quite. Nooot quite. There's a smooth, perfumey floral undercurrent to this, too. Lots of smells goin' on at once.

The drydown is basically lush, smooth, perfumey, rich-as-hell flowers, with a slight sourness to 'em. It's actually very pretty, that rose is killin' it. I don't get the threat of burning bile anymore, or the rock candy. It's a little humid-smelling, too - a great summer night scent.

tl;dr: Bright stone fruit and powdery, rock-candy-like incense which fades to lush, smooth florals.

RATING: 3/5. Well made, but i'm not big on how the top notes play out at all.

--

NEW RADIO (PERFUME OIL) || Vanilla milkshake accord, maraschino cherry, pink lemonade, grass clippings, waffle cone.

So, full disclosure, I had no interest in this scent. I saw it and went, woof, that sounds way too bright and sweet and youthful for me, and passed it over time and time again. I ended up getting it as a free sample when I ordered some of those Sea Salt Hair Sprays, and... Wow. I like it way, way more than I thought I would.

In the bottle, it's... Perfect. It's everything. Rich, foody, smooth vanilla; SUPER bright, almost candied, nice n' tart maraschino cherry (this is the note I was most worried about, too, as I don't like cherries - but this note is perfect). The gentlest edge of sour pink lemonade. A perfect, toasty waffle cone, which is honestly one of my favorite scents... I don't get much grass, but I don't need it. In the bottle, it's the perfect summer scent.

You'll notice I keep saying 'in the bottle'.

It touches down on my skin, and lives in that perfect blissful state for about two seconds, and then, boom. My skin absolutely gobbles up most of those wonderful notes. That bright maraschino cherry? Gone. Pink lemonade? Barely there, just giving a bit of a sour zing. All i'm really left with is vanilla and the faintest hints of that waffle cone note. It's absolutely heartbreaking. Like, it still smells good... But, god, not as good as it could. I might get a scent locket for this, though.

Virtually no sillage, but I can smell that vague warm sweetness on my wrist for a pretty good handful of hours.

tl;dr: A delicious, foody, bright, sweet and warm and toasty summer scent that's a dead-ringer for its notes... That my skin devours instantly, leaving only vanilla, a touch of lemonade, and faint breadiness.

RATING: 3/5. This would be a 5/5 if my skin didn't DEVOUR half of it. RIP, beautiful scent.

--

HYDROMANCY (PERFUME OIL) || Fog, cold violet, lichen, ambroxan, mineral accord, petrichor, glass.

This was recommended to me when I went out and asked people for a scent that makes me smell like a ghost, and honestly, this fits the bill pretty well. It's a pretty specific type of ghost, though: the ghost of a waifish maiden who went down with a sinking ship, who you find, suspended frozen above the water, in the air pocket of an underwater cave that she managed to swim to but ultimately starved to death within.

...ANYWAYS

This smells empty, silky, ethereal, dark in a spooky way, and most importantly, pretty darn oceanic and green. The first thing I smell upon putting it on is the lichen and ambroxan, the former being green, sort of dry-smelling (like lichen that's growing just a foot or so above the water, hasn't touched it in a while, y'know), with that weird tang that lichen can have, and the latter giving a very oceanic sweet-saltiness. The mineral accord and petrichor blend really well with the ambroxan note and it genuinely just ends up smelling like very realistic dank cave ocean water.

And then there's the fog and the glass. The Weird Notes.

The fog is less a scent and more a feeling - it makes the entire scent sort of... Soft and fuzzy. It's what's giving it that silky quality. The glass, you can actually smell, and it... Smells like glass, y'all. Cold and clear and giving off a faint sterile scent, but, it's there. Notably, I can only really detect it if I huff so hard that I become anosmic to the ambroxan and lichen, and it comes out more on the dry-down, but. ...Yeah, it's there. Combined with the fog, it's like... The scent equivalent of looking through a window that's become clouded with condensation. If that makes sense.

This doesn't have a ton of sillage - I can just barely detect it from 3 inches away - but wears very strongly on my wrist.

tl;dr: A realistic ocean water scent made fuzzy and silky by a fog note, with a fascinating, realistic glass note that peeks out on the dry-down.

RATING: 4/5. Too oceanic for me, but well made, and that glass note is WILD.

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TELEPATHY (PERFUME OIL) || Winter narcissus, tonka bean, immortelle flower, sleet, ozone, white amber.

When I first got this, it was basically just straight sleet for the entire wear, and I wasn't wild about it. It was a very realistic sleet note, mind you, but that's not necessarily a good thing: the scent basically smelled cold, bitter, and a little dirty, which is not at all what I had been expecting from the notes.

The good news is, after considerable rest, it's verrrry different.

I put it on, and for the first minute, it's still that dirty sleet note, but then it softens up and out comes the florals - Light and lush and just a little stereotypically perfumey-smelling. It's still a little dirty, which gives the scent some complexity, and there's a gentle undercurrent of something sugary-sweet underneath the florals. This is more... Elegant smelling than I think I expected it to be. I expected it to be light and femme and kinda... Younger-smelling, but the actual scent smells like something a very refined woman in her 40's or 50's might wear.

Looking at the notes, yeah, basically what i'm smelling. Florals from the narcissus and immortelle, sweetness from the tonka bean and probably the white amber, and atmospheric, colder, dirtier notes from the sleet and ozone.

It's very, very light on me - if I huff it too much I quickly become anosmic, and while I was getting a little bit of sillage while it was wet, I have to have my nose pressed to my wrist on the dry-down.

tl;dr: A delicate, perfumey floral with undertones of cold, wet, dirty atmosphere and gentle sugary sweetness.

RATING: 4.5/5. I like this quite a bit. Has depth, but isn't overly complex, and the florals and sweeter notes are so pretty. I'd wear this to something very professional. Docked half a point for being so light, though.

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MELLIFERA (PERFUME OIL) || Wildflower Honey Accord (not vegan), Violet, Jasmine Sambac, Vanilla Infused Sugar, Sandalwood.

So, i'm not big on honey scents. Unless the honey is very subtle, it can quickly go super overwhelming and cloying to me. Hex's Papa Legba was downright unbearable with how strong and sweet it was.

Mellifera, though, is not!

I mean, it's very honey forward, don't get me wrong, the honey's basically the star of the show, but it's a different kind of honey. It smells... Clearer. Rather than being overwhelmingly sugary-sweet, it's far more floral, with little pinpricks of something kinda sharp and tart and tingly. It's bordering on being kinda cleaning-supply-ish, but it's not quite there. There might be a citrus note in this? That's what i'm basically getting: Clear, gentle honey with a floral edge, and maybe citrus.

Let's CHECK! THOSE! NOTES

Not a LICK of citrus! Go me. The wildflower honey accord explains the quality of the honey, though, and I bet that sharpness that's a little cleaning-supply-ish is the jasmine. The violets are in there, but they're so well-blended with the other floral notes that I wouldn't be able to identify their trademark Purple Burp smell on a blind sniff. I can recognize them now that I know, but seriously, the other florals balance them out so well.

The wildflower and jasmine pinpricks eventually mellow out to a smooth, bright sweetness - a combination of the vanilla and honey, I imagine. I... Still don't get any sandalwood, which makes me sad, 'cause I love sandalwood. :( My wood-gobbling skin strikes again, I guess.

Virtually no sillage - it wears kinda light on my wrist, and I can only smell it from about an inch away.

tl;dr: A clear, floral honey with pinpricks of sharp jasmine that loses its floral edge on the drydown and simply becomes bright-yet-smooth honey and vanilla.

RATING: 3.7/5. Not bad, but the jasmine is just too sharp for me, and I can't see myself wearing it much.

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VLAD DRACUL (PERFUME OIL) || Carpathian fir needle, red cedar, black amber, black patchouli, scorched earth, opium, blood musk.

This smells like a cologne for someone who dresses in refined clothes but also feasts upon the entrails of freshly-killed deer, so, I guess the name is apt. It's dirty as hell, but in a kind of bright way: like walking around on a very dry fall day through a forest that's all reds and yellows and dry cracked earth with sparse yellow grass. I get a cool airiness from it, and piney freshness, and d i r t. That scorched earth note ain't playin' around. I'm pretty sure that man-stank smell is the blood musk, which is this sorta... Feral, almost pheromonally sweet smell? But it's not bad or actually stinky, just kinda hanging out under the atmospherics.

On the drydown I get a resinous, very light sweetness, I assume that's the opium and/or the black amber, and the atmospheric notes are still there, most notably that scorched earth, but way subtler. It's warm and smooth and just... Prettier than I expected it to be, given the way it started.

tl;dr: A fall atmospheric that's distinguished by its scorched earth note and a sort of pheromonal, feral musk. Dries down to light resinous sweetness and that scorched earth note.

RATING: 4/5.

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PAPER MOON (PERFUME OIL) || Soft vanilla musk, benzoin, oakmoss, trailing ivy, peach blossom, rose.

Mmmm, this is delicious. It's so sweet and mellow with the prettiest, smoothest florals. The vanilla musk is the strongest thing in this, humid and sweet, with a super well-blended floral edge. The florals are kinda perfumey-smelling, but the rose doesn't go overly chemical, is just lush and smooth, and the peach blossom is soft and delicate. I've never encountered benzoin before, so i'm not entirely sure what it smells like, but The Internet says it's a warm and sweet note - I bet it's part of what i'm reading as the vanilla musk. I keep sniffing this looking for the ivy or oakmoss, but honestly, i'm not smelling anything that hits me as particularly green.

The most morphing it does on the dry-down is that the florals mellow out some, but otherwise, it stays largely the same. It wears close to the skin, but is strong on my wrist.

tl;dr: A warm, humid vanillic sweetness with a floral edge that's lush and perfumey from the rose and soft and delicate from the peach blossom.

RATING: 4.7/5. An EENSY bit too perfumey for me, but that's about it.

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AN EXCELLENT DAY FOR AN EXORCISM (PERFUME OIL) || Cathedral incense, black clove, burned parchment, tarnished silver, sacred woods.

Woods. Strong, evergreen woods, with a surprisingly light airiness to them - a real nice cold air note, i'm assuming. Genuinely makes the scent smell cool. The woods are strong and perfumey, which puts them a hair off realistic, but I also get that fresh, sap-sticky (I love that term pardon me for using it across reviews), slightly bitter mintiness that smells very much like the real thing.

I have, literally, NO idea what the notes in this are at the time that i'm writing this, apart from a tarnished silver note - which I think might be part of the cool airiness of the scent, i'm not sure. If I had to take a wild guess, i'd say that there's... Woods, resins, maybe a floral giving that perfumey nature, and some kinda cold air/ozonic note.

Here we go, let's take a peek at zee notes

...Wow, I was way off. At least I got the woods and the cathedral incense must be what i'm reading as resins, and is probably the source of the perfumey-ness, and, by process of elimination, the silver note must be what's making it so cold. The burnt parchment and black clove come out a couple hours into the drydown, giving this a tingly, burning quality, and a good bit of sharpness. The sweetness of the incense rounds it out nicely.

Doesn't have a lot of sillage, but says strong on my wrist.

tl;dr: Perfumey incense, fresh woods, and a cold and clear silver note that dries down to a burning, sharp smell that's still accompanied by the sweetness of the incense.

RATING: 3.5/5. Not bad, I love that silver note, but gets too sharp on the dry-down.

[florahecate]

Read More The 15 Weirdest Ice Cream Toppings That Actually Taste Delicious

The following post The 15 Weirdest Ice Cream Toppings That Actually Taste Delicious is republished from Eat This Not That by Hedy Phillips

If you’re tired of putting the requisite hot fudge and whipped cream on your ice cream, have we got some tips for you. Next time you indulge in a few scoops of frozen goodness, try one of these 15 weirdly wonderful ice cream toppings! There’s salty, there’s sweet, and then there’s wasabi. Yes, wasabi! Don’t write any of these options off as too out there for you before you try them. You might just be surprised at how much you like black licorice on your ice cream.

1

French Fries

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If you haven’t eaten French fries with your ice cream, then you truly have not lived. Who hasn’t dunked their fries into their Wendy’s Frosty before? It’s the salt that blends oh so well with the creaminess of the ice cream that’s the real kicker for that ultimate salty and sweet combination. Also, the warmth of the fries melts the ice cream ever so slightly so you’ll want to eat it quickly, though, or your fries will get cold and soggy and your ice cream will melt!

2

Balsamic and Strawberries

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One Reddit user suggested aged balsamic vinegar and strawberries as a topping for vanilla ice cream. They claim that if a balsamic vinegar is older, it has a sweeter taste to it, and blending it with strawberries sounds like a seriously sweet, tart treat to us!

3

Bacon

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Bacon is just one of those things that’s good on everything. Doughnuts? Perfect. Sandwiches? Awesome. Ice cream? Yes, please. The saltiness of the bacon goes really well with the sweetness of ice cream. Adding some candied nuts with the bacon will make this savory and sweet treat extra decadent and tasty!

4

Coffee Grounds

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This one will probably be super strong in flavor, but stir it into your ice cream to mellow it out. Naturally, it’s going to taste like a creamy coffee treat, so if you’re a coffee fan, this is definitely one you should try out.

5

Caramel Corn

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With caramel corn on your ice cream, you get a little bit of everything. You’ve got the creamy sweetness in your ice cream, the saltiness from the popcorn, and the crunch (and more sweetness!) from the caramel coating. Drizzle some hot fudge on it, and your tastebuds will really thank you.

6

Basil and Olive Oil

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One Quora reader mentioned trying olive oil on top of basil ice cream. If you can’t find basil ice cream, we think adding fresh basil and olive oil on top of vanilla ice cream would work just as well. “The Basil gave it a herby freshness and the EVOO added a rich aftertaste,” they wrote. We’re sold!

7

Ritz Crackers

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Similarly to French fries, Ritz crackers will also add a pop of salt to your dessert. By crumbling these buttery crackers onto your ice cream, you’re also adding a nice crunch—something another Quora user pointed out as being his favorite.

8

Wasabi Peas

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Hear us out on this one. Yes, wasabi peas have a very strong kick to them, but by putting them on your ice cream, you’re diluting a little bit of that punch, thanks to the sugar and cream. You’ll still get that spicy kick, though!

9

Cereal

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It makes sense that cereal pairs well with ice cream—you do eat cereal with milk, after all. Whatever flavor cereal is your favorite will work just fine with your ice cream. Some options to add some sugary goodness when you’re scooping out some ice cream are Fruity Pebbles, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Reese’s Puffs.

RELATED: The easy way to make healthier comfort foods.

10

Powdered Drink Mix

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Anything from powdered iced tea to Kool-Aid can work as an ice cream topping. One Reddit user suggested the iced tea mix as a surprisingly amazing ice cream topping. Because these powders are super concentrated, be careful how much you’re using, but go wild with your flavors! Grape Kool-Aid on vanilla ice cream? Why not?

11

Pickles

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This may usually be pegged as a treat for moms-to-be, but ice cream topped with pickles actually isn’t too bad. Many love the tang that dill pickles provide in conjunction with the creaminess of ice cream, and who can resist that little bit of crunch?

12

Chocolate Sauce and Chili Powder

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Chocolate and chilis are a popular flavor combination because the spice of the chili brings out the richness of the chocolate. Try throwing this combination on your ice cream! The chili will enhance the chocolate and the ice cream will cool off all the spiciness, leaving you with a rich and creamy snack.

13

Black Licorice

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Black licorice can be a polarizing flavor because it’s so, so strong. However, we find that putting it on ice cream makes the flavor more palatable. The vanilla in the ice cream sweetens the bitterness of the licorice and makes for a fun combination!

14

Beer

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Have you had a beer float? Not a root beer float, but an actual beer float. If you haven’t, it’s time to try! We like a darker beer like a Guinness to pair with ice cream, and the sweet cream in the ice cream blends deliciously with the hops in the beer. You can do as little or as much beer as your taste buds like.

15

Barbecue Potato Chips

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Potato products, in general, are just a great topping for ice cream. What makes barbecue potato chips stand out though is the sweet, smoky flavor of the barbecue. The salt cuts right through the creaminess of the ice cream and makes for a mouthwatering treat. Now, it’s time to break out the ice cream and get to scooping!

The post The 15 Weirdest Ice Cream Toppings That Actually Taste Delicious appeared first on Eat This Not That.

[healthyeating43-blog]

Veg Out! 10 More Flavorful Recipes That Aren’t Salads

New Post has been published on https://dietguideto.com/awesome/veg-out-10-more-flavorful-recipes-that-arent-salads/

Veg Out! 10 More Flavorful Recipes That Aren’t Salads

You’re always asking us how to run more veggies into your diet without having to eat endless heads of lettuce. We hear you. As delicious as some salads can be, eating them for lunch and dinner, day in and out, can get tiresome. That’s why we created this roundup of incredibly delicious veggie dishesthat serve as the perfect nutrient-packed side to your main meal. Want even more flavorful recipes that aren’t salads? No problem.

Here are 10 more flavorful recipes to pump veggies into your day: 1. Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Mustard Glaze >~ ATAGEND

This may become your new favorite of our flavorful recipes and your go-to way to eat Brussels buds: The touch of sweetness in the balsamic and bite of the mustard make an amazing glaze for these earthy veggies. All you have to do is saute the buds in margarine until the edges become golden brown, then add the vinegar and mustard and toss. A pinch of black pepper finishes the delicious dish.

2. Simple Pumpkin Soup >~ ATAGEND

It’s as easy to make as the name implies: Bring broth, pumpkin puree, ginger, curry and other tasty flavourings to a simmer, simmer, stir in milk, simmer a little longer and done. You’ll enjoy the rich flavor of pumpkin in each creamy spoonful. Build a bunch and freeze the extra so you cozy up to a warm bowl when the weather gets cold. On the Nutrisystem program, this soup counts as one SmartCarb and one Extra.

The Super Spiralizer: 6 Veggie Noodle Recipes You Require to Try

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3. Zucchini Fritter with Soy Dipping Sauce >~ ATAGEND

These little pleasures pack salty and sweet in each crispy bite. The fritters are made from grated zucchini, scallions and sesame seeds and crisped to a golden brown. The sauce combinings soy, honey, rice vinegar, sesame petroleum and chili garlic paste. And together the flavor is fantastic. Dip two fritters into a tablespoon of sauce for just 133 delicious calories.

4. Broccoli Slaw with Cranberries and Lime >~ ATAGEND

This is a far cry from your standard slaw: Broccoli and jicama make up the veg, cranberry and honey add in sweetness, and lime and cilantro bring some tang to this nutritious side dish that’s pleasing to every palate! On Nutrisystem, one serve counts as one SmartCarb and one Vegetable.

11 Instant Pot Recipes You Need to Try This Instant

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5. Sesame Soy Cucumber ” Pasta ” Salad >~ ATAGEND

Whip out your spiralizer to transform beautiful cucumbers into “noodles” for this super fresh “pasta” salad. Add in colorful bell peppers and green onions, toss with a decadent homemade dres of sesame petroleum, rice vinegar, soy sauce and chili snowflakes, and top with sesame seeds. It’s simple to make and refreshing to feed. It’s packed with vitamins and perfect as a side or main meal. And it’s only 40 calories per serving.

6. Zesty Tomato Soup >~ ATAGEND

Simmer together a can of diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, onion and garlic to create this classic veggie soup. To thicken it up, add a little almond milk. To enhance the flavor, toss in a bay foliage. And to make it fairly, top it with chopped basil. The attempt is minimal, and the savor is awesome.

Veg Out! 6 Simple Ways to Sneak in More Veggies

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7. Crispy Carrot Fries >~ ATAGEND

Carrots are good for your eyes, got a lot of filling fiber and make a great healthy stand-in for fast food fries. Just cut the carrots into fry-like strips, coat them in heart healthy olive oil, sprinkle them with some salt, pepper and savory rosemary, and cook until crispy. One cup counts as one Vegetable and two Extras on your Nutrisystem meal plan. If you love your fries with ketchup, feel free to dunk: One tablespoon counts as one Extra.

8. Easy Instant Pot Herb Roasted Potatoes >~ ATAGEND

This is one of our flavorful recipes classics, and if you don’t have an Instant Pot, this recipe may convince you to get one. That’s because this amazing kitchen tool allows you to construct perfectly roasted, soft and delicious potatoes in only seven short minutes. Just toss in some colorful fingerlings or baby potatoes, olive oil and Italian spices, and let the pot work its magical. Serve these tasty spuds with your favorite chicken dish, or enjoy them as a snack. Each serving is only 99 calories.

6 Veggies That Make Ridiculously Good Chips

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9. Spicy Sriracha Slaw >~ ATAGEND

Instead of using fatty mayo to coat the shredded green and red cabbage, these powerhouse veggies are mixed in a dressing made from nonfat plain greek yogurt, lemon juice and sriracha or hot sauce. The kick is surprising, so is the cilantro, which adds another layer of flavor. Take this dish to your next potluck BBQ for a guaranteed invite back.

10. Creamy Butternut Squash Soup >~ ATAGEND

With its smooth texture and rich, sweet flavor of butternut squash, you’ll be sampling this soup before it induces it to your bowl. Carrots and onions add flavor and non-fat milk constructs it creamy, without added calories or fat. Doubled this healthy recipe–you’ll want leftovers. On Nutrisystem, one serve counts as one SmartCarb, half of a Vegetable and one Extra.

The post Veg Out! 10 More Flavorful Recipes That Aren’t Salads seemed first on The Leaf.

Read more: leaf.nutrisystem.com

[twoguystrybbq-blog]

Plowboys Barbecue

Ben:

The night we went to Plowboys we had a plan. And, if I can pat myself on the back a bit, everything went according to that plan. On Friday after work, we were going to meet at my apartment and enjoy a handful of craft beers while we designed and ordered business cards for the blog. Yes… business cards. (How we’re going to turn this thing into a “business” is something we can figure out down the road, right?). From there, we’d head out to Plowboys -- a short drive from my apartment -- and from Plowboys we’d hit the town (i.e. our favorite Westport watering hole).

Leo arrived to my place after work, greeted Gracie, we designed and ordered business cards (which turned out well!), guzzled a couple beers, walked Gracie, and just like that we were set to embark on yet another barbecue feast.

Plowboys is not a little roadside shack. It doesn’t have the feel of a backyard barbecue. Instead, Plowboys is smack in the middle of the Power and Light District in downtown Kansas City on the first floor of an office building. In that sense, Plowboys is an atypical barbecue joint. But while it may be atypical, it highlights something I’ve written several times on this barbecue journey: Kansas City barbecue comes in all different shapes, sizes, locations, buildings and atmospheres. It would be foolish to dismiss Plowboys just because it has a clean cut, modern look to it.

Inside, Plowboys has a clean and efficient feel to it -- the type of place I imagine moves tons of meat over a busy lunch hour. It’s counter service, and it’s the kind where you watch your order be assembled in front of you -- always a plus for me.

As Leo ordered, I noticed Plowboys rather large trophy cabinet; Plowboys appears to compete regularly in barbecue competitions, and certainly takes home the hardware. And later, while we were eating, I spotted a wall of ribbons and awards Plowboys had won. We haven’t yet dipped our toes into the competition barbecue scene, but I can only assume there’s no way Plowboys is producing mediocre barbecue with such an extensive competition track record.

I ordered burnt ends and sausage -- two meats I’m starting to realize are likely my favorite picks at barbecue joints. For my sides, I settled on baked beans (they call them “pit beans,” here) and, at the urging of the woman behind the counter, cheesy potatoes.

My order came neatly presented on a square tray -- the burnt ends and sausage orderly packed on top of a slice of Texas toast, the sides in individual bowls on the side. The presentation falls in line with Plowboys’ neat and clean aesthetic; this isn’t he huge pile of meat and sides on top of a styrofoam plate you’ll get elsewhere.

Before I dug in, I took the time to each of Plowboys’ four sauces: original, sweet, hot, and extra hot. Leo and I decided that each sauce seemed to build on the other. The original is on the thin side and extra tangy, the sweet a bit thicker, the hot a bit hotter (duh), and for my money the extra hot was the best sauce of the four. It wasn’t overpowering spicy in any sense. Rather, it was just as much sweet as it was spicy, and certainly one of my favorite sauces I’ve tried so far. The combination of sweet and spicy, all with tang of the original sauce was a perfect complement for the meat.

And let’s get to those meats. The burnt ends were the star. I think what makes a truly perfect burnt end is that mixture of extra smokey char and extra tender fat put together into one bite. Plowboys’ burnt ends nailed this mixture: each perfectly portioned burnt end had a full edge of char along with a healthy serving of fat. There’s a real attention to detail at Plowboys, and it showed through on their burnt ends, which were by far the best thing I ate all week.

The sausage was a classic-style sausage, with a finely ground filling bursting with flavor. Like any good sausage, it doesn’t need any barbecue sauce, but I found it paired exceptionally well with Plowboys’ extra hot sauce.

The “pit beans” were not on the thick side, but still packed with chunks of meat. And the cheesy potatoes were a wise choice; I’m glad I followed the employee’s advice. Cheesy potatoes are something I wouldn’t mind seeing at more barbecue joints. I mean… you have your cheese, you have your potatoes… what’s the hold up? It’s an ideal side for a barbecue feast. In any event, Plowboys nailed them.

As we wrapped up our meal, Leo and I had the same conversation I feel like we have every week: “I’m surprised by how good this place is.” Plowboys is almost hidden in plain sight. It’s in one of the busiest parts of the city, but because it’s not a typical roadside shack, it’s easy to overlook it. But I’m telling you now: don’t make that mistake. Plowboys must not be slept on.

From Plowboys, our plan continued on with great success. We drank well into the night (ok, until about 11:00, I think), successfully sated with a layer of exceptional barbecue lining our stomachs.

Leo:

Get the pulled pork!

I think my favorite time to eat barbeque is after a long day at work.  And don’t Fridays just tend to drag on with all of the anticipation for the weekend?  This Friday was no exception and I also had evening barbeque to look forward to, so this Friday went particularly slow.  But, as all things, work came to an end and I headed over to Ben’s apartment.

We had been talking about designing business cards for a hot minute.  We had gotten to the point where we had several posts on the blog and we felt that it would be a good time to start being a bit more proactive in letting people know what we were doing.  And it is always super fun to design business cards!

A shout out to Office Depot because it has a ton of business card options and you can get fifty business cards for $10.  It took us about an hour, but we both now have business cards, making Two Guys Try BBQ an official thing (but you already knew that!).  So, if you see us, ask us for a business card, they are super snazzy.  With the residual excitement from designing business cards and the upcoming expectation of great barbeque, we headed to downtown Kansas City to try out Plowboys.  

I didn’t know what to expect from a barbeque restaurant in downtown Kansas City.  I expected new and shiny, but is that really good for a barbeque restaurant?  I mean how can you build up years of flavor in a smoker if you are a new and shiny barbeque restaurant?  Also, downtown tends to be much more expensive than the rest of the city, so I was a little worried about how much this was going to cost me.  As it turns out, I had nothing to worry about!

I don’t like parking.  I am an absolute horrendous parallel parker (I had about 10 feet to parallel park my little Kia Rio (her name is Isabella) at Ben’s apartment and I was all up on the curb).  And downtown parking garages tend to be a tad expensive, especially on Friday night.  There was a parking garage next to Plowboys that was reasonably priced for the weekend ($4 if we were out within an hour).  But the first four floors were all reserved for other businesses!  I’ll admit, the parking spot I ended up taking on the fifth floor was reserved as well, but I was over looking for a spot and it was about 7pm on a weekend; I didn’t think anyone would mind.

We went down to ground level and crossed over to Plowboys, which wasn’t too busy.  As we walked in, the restaurant was shiny and new, but the smell was aged and flavorful!  We walked up to the counter (you get to watch them make your food) and decided what to order.  I went with the Royal Crown Combo because I’m fancy like that:  four ribs, pork, brisket, and two sides (beans and cheesy potatoes).  The woman plating our food did such a wonderful job cutting up our food and organizing it on the tray (the OCD part of me, really enjoyed that organization!).  And for all that food, it turned out to not be too terribly expensive; both Ben and I got out of there for under $20.  

The first thing that I’ve taken to doing now if I don’t get fries, is to dip the bread that invariably comes with the meal in the sauces to see which one(s) I like the best.  Plowboys has four different sauces:  KC Crossroads, Sweet 180, Spicy, and En Fuego Spicy.  Ben and I talked and it seems like Plowboys made KC Crossroads first (it is vinegary and less sweet) and then they made the Sweet 180 that was a sweet version of the KC Crossroads.  Then, the Spicy (a spicy version of the KC Crossroads) and En Fuego Spicy, which was a spicy version of the Sweet 180.  I liked them all, but my favorite were the KC Crossroads and the Spicy.  Ben liked the sweeter sauces.  

So, I put a generous helping of KC Crossroads and the Spicy sauce on my tray and began to eat.  The ribs and the brisket were of excellent quality and I highly recommend them.  But the pulled pork…that was my jam.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it is the best pulled pork that I have ever had.  Unlike a lot of “pulled” meats that I’ve had before, it was still very moist.  It also had a ton of taste: kind of a saltiness mixed with a smokiness.  Because it was so moist, it was good with or without sauce, but I thought the KC Crossroads and the Spicy sauces really complimented the pulled pork well.  

I gave Ben some of the pulled pork and he agreed with my assessment of its greatness.  He let me have a burnt end and it was flavor packed.  Both the burnt end I tried and the ribs had a nice crust over tender meat that just absorbed the smoke and the flavor from the smoker.  This is starting to be a common theme among the great barbeque that we’ve had and it makes sense why burnt ends have become such a sensation in Kansas City.

As we finished a truly delightful meal, we admired all of the ribbons that Plowboys had one in various barbeque competitions.  With such great barbeque, I could understand why!  So, if you are in downtown Kansas City for business or pleasure, I highly recommend stopping by Plowboys.  In fact, you should figure out a reason to go downtown so that you can eat at Plowboys!  One quick word of caution:  Plowboys does have some odd hours, so I’d double-check before you head out to make sure that it will be open when you get there.  

Another fantastic barbeque experience in Kansas City!  I hope that you are hungry and I hope that you are encouraged to get out there and try some new barbeque!!!

[jbnatz]

Kuala Lumpur Night Food Adventure (part 1)

Food is the one thing that unites us all. We all have to eat, it's a basic necessity of life. Because of this, every culture has used food to express itself, and every culture, country and region has a dish that it's known for. If I say New Orleans, what's the first food that comes to your mind? Beignets? How about German food? Bratwurst & sauerkraut? Japan? Sushi? We can't help it. We are hard wired to think about food. And so, what better way to learn about a country and its culture than through food. 

If we are going on a food tour, it's got to be a good one. Criteria: 

1) Diverse offering of foods to try

2) Adventure aspect

3) Knowledgeable tour guide

4) Small group

5) Real local food, not tourist traps

We nailed it when we booked our 'Cooler Lumpur by Night Vespa Tour' through Vespalicious Tours. Yup, you guessed it, Dyann and I cruised through the busy night streets of Kuala Lumpur on the back of Vespas. And not just any Vespa, but classic fully restored Super Vespas. 

I wasn't sure what to expect when I booked the tour. For one, I wasn't sure if Dyann would be up for weaving through the busy streets and back alley ways of KL at night. As I started to book the tour, I tentatively asked Dyann if she would be up for it. What I got back was a resounding 'YES', and a 'why would you think that I wouldn't want to do that?' I had of course, once again, underestimated Dyann's adventurous side (I guess that means I can take it up another notch on the next trip). 

The tour description promised a night of culinary delight as we visit where 'the locals eat'. Kuala Lumpur is a food town. There are food stalls, carts, tents, garages, restaurants and sidewalk vendors everywhere. You can't turn a corner without being besieged by the smells of fresh food being cooked all around you. As a chef and devote foodie, it truly is paradise. One stop that I felt I had to see was Jalan Alor at night. Every blog I read said that this was one stop not to miss, especially at night. So I traded a couple of emails back and forth with our guide and he assured me that we would be able to go to Jalan Alor, but to my surprise it wasn't part of the original itinerary. It being such as 'must see' I couldn't quite understand why, but as faith wold have it, I would find out later.

 After several hours of traveling back from Tioman Island to KL, a quick walk about town, a glass of wine, or two later, Dyann and I were ready for our night adventure. Our guides, Kingston and Vincent,  came to the hotel to pick us up, right on time. These guys are awesome! They know their stuff and they did their homework. Kingston had found our blog and was all caught up on our travels to date. Fast friends were made. We get our safety briefing (have to wear helmets!), I get my bandana, so as to not get helmet head, we meet our two amazing Vespa drives, Shukri, or Sun, and Din. It is time to go!

We speed off into the night streets bobbing and weaving through traffic. It's awesome! Cars, horns, motorcycles, pedestrians, cats. It's craziness. And of course, the wafts of food being cooked everywhere. Pandemonium is the best way to describe it. Scooters and motorcycles own the streets of KL. It's the primary mode of transportation as it's the easiest way to get around. At times you could see any entire family of four on a scooter scurrying about town.  (Check out more pictures and videos of our adventures on Instagram)

Our first stop, Kampung Baru.  The last village settlement left within the city limits of KL, Kampung Baru is roughly 4 square kilometers of traditional stilt houses  and food markets in the heart of the city. Much like New York's Central Park, Baru is surrounded by skyscrapers and is some of the most valuable land in KL, but the village elders maintain that it is not for sale, wanting to preserve the ethnic Malay lifestyle.

We pull our Vespas over and stop at Kak Som, a traditional Kelantanese restaurant. Kelantanese food originates from the eastern province of Malaysia and is known for a sweeter style of cooking. Walking into the open air restaurant was like walking into another world. The bustle of people moving between the tables, the chatter of conversations in Malay and the clinking of plates and silverware was the harmony of pure joy. People eating and enjoying the warm humid night as they begin what is known in Malaysia, as supper (not to be confused with dinner, which is eaten earlier in the evening. Supper is like the 6th meal of the day, starting with breakfast, then morning snack, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and finally supper). The perfect environment for someone like me who enjoys eating all day. 

As you walk into Kak Som, the first thing you see is a 10 foot long table filled with hotel pans of a rainbow of foods. 

  Not knowing what to try, and wanting to eat it all, Kingston sets us down at a table and does the ordering for us. As we start to talk about the Malaysian culture our food begins to arrive being dropped off by a young Malay boy who scurries from to table to table delivering food and drinks. First comes the Nasi Dagang, semi-glutinous rice indigenous to the Kelantanese region studded with spices and paired with a tuna curry. The Tongol Tuna is found off the eastern coast of Malaysia. This neurotic species of tuna favors near shore waters and is hand and line caught by small boats right off the shoreline. This species only does well with long, slow braising, such as this curry dish. 

  If you haven't figured it out, I love rice, and I love curry, and this dish did not disappoint. The rice's flavor was clean and fresh with the spices just adding a hint of additional flavor. The tuna curry was earthy and mildly spicy with the tuna fat rounding out the flavor. Just devine.

Our next dish was Nasi Kerabu, a traditional blue rice dish with with crisp pickled vegetables, fish cake cracker and braised mutton. The rice is blue because it is cooked with the butterfly pea flower, giving it the bold, cerillion blue color. The uncommon flavors to my western palette were a little difficult to describe at first, but after a few bites I was starting to get it. The rice was mildly sweet with every grain separate like small ball bearings. The fish cake cracker tasted of the salty sea and sweet baby fish, the pickled vegetables cool and crisp with a hint of acidic tang. And finally the braised mutton. A true dichotomy in and of itself. It was tough at first bite but quickly softened as chewed with a deep gamey flavor and back notes of cardamon and cinnamon. A truly unique and satisfying dish. 

  The food just kept coming... 

Noodles! Dyann's favorite. She was looking forward to all the noodle dishes we were going to get to try while on the trip, and tonight was not going to disappoint. 

Laksam. The traditional noodle dish of the Kelantan, this is a wide, flat rice noodle that is wrapped tight like a pig tail, simmered in a rich, full bodied fish and coconut broth, topped with crisp, quick pickled cabbage and bean sprouts. What a beautiful bowl of noodles. A sublime balance of simple rice noodles and bold, uncutuous fish broth with the crispy sweet cabbage. We could have eaten 3 more bowls, if it hadn't been that we knew we had hours more of eating to go. 

  OMG! Dessert. You have to be kidding. Will they ever stop bringing food. It's only 8:30 and we still have at least 3 more stops to go. And Kingston said something about beers? Oh geez. 

  As you can see, we didn't leave much behind. As we part company with Kak Som, we mount our trusty transportation and begin weaving through the even more busy streets on our way to the next stop, the Wet Market...

[ds4design]

17 Awesome, Easy Appetizers for Super Bowl Sunday — Kitchn

We don't know a ton about sports here (we at least know that they're called uniforms and not outfits!), but we know plenty about food. And that includes appetizers. When it comes to a great party for the big game, a table filled with mouth-watering apps that are easy to snack on between drives is your best play. Take a quick timeout to scroll through these winning 17 recipes that'll be VIP in your Super Bowl game-day spread.

Say Cheesy!

Chorizo Nachos with White Queso Sauce: These highbrow nachos are a serious upgrade from your traditional bar snack fare. They are easy to make in big batches and can serve as a party snack or a perfect snow day treat.

Beer & Cheddar Dip: This recipe came to life as a riff on beer cheese soup, stovetop mac and cheese, and nacho sauce. It's a perfect storm of cheddar goodness, and will be a staple of your Super Bowl parties for years to come.

Loaded Baked Potato Dip with Homemade Chips: This is no dainty recipe. It has all the comfort food staples rolled into one: sour cream, cream cheese, bacon, cheddar cheese, and ranch. The question is not whether it will be devoured, but how quickly it will vanish.

How To Make Pull-Apart Cheese Bread: This looker of an appetizer was just meant for big groups. Place it in the center of your spread and watch while your friends get the biggest kick out of ripping away at the loaf to reveal individual bites of cheesy goodness.

Tomato and Mozzarella Skewers with Basil Oil: Admittedly, you might expect to find these at an al fresco dinner party, not a game-day celebration, but having a caprese skewer on the buffet is the perfect balance to all the other rich foods. It's still indulgent, but the fresh tang from the tomatoes will be a welcome flavor.

Meat Your Maker

Spicy Meat-Filled Phyllo Cigars: It may take a bit of time to perfect your rolling skills, but these chorizo- and parsley-filled phyllo rolls are destined to be a hit with your guests. Plus, you can make any filling combination you choose.

How To Make Buffalo Chicken Wings in the Oven: Sure, making Buffalo wings in the oven is healthier than frying them, but the real reason this method wins is that you can make a big batch all at once without a giant mess. Serve them with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks and everybody's happy.

Beef Tenderloin Sliders with Horseradish Sauce: If you really want to treat your guests to a stellar spread, beef tenderloin sliders are the way to go. Make the tenderloin in advance so you can slice and assemble on Super Bowl Sunday. We promise yours will be the party everyone is still talking about come Monday.

Baked Bacon & Cheddar Jalapeño Poppers: Jalapeño poppers are pretty much a given at any sport-centric party, and the Super Bowl is no exception. But deep-frying them can be messy and intimidating, which is why this baked version is a no-brainer. Also, they're wrapped in bacon, so there's that.

Bacon-Wrapped Potato Bites with Spicy Sour Cream Dipping Sauce: Isn't everything better when wrapped in bacon? These potato bites are a bit like inside-out potato skins, and they will be a surefire hit at any party.

Italian Sub Dip with Homemade Focaccia: While you could invest in one of those six-foot subs for your party, this dip is a whole lot more unique, and maybe even more fun. Inspired by a classic Italian sub, it's a mix of capicola, Genoa salami, pepperoni, provolone, lettuce, and tomato that's tossed with a vinaigrette and best served scooped onto toasted bread.

Cheesy Chicken & Mozzarella Meatball Sliders: What puts these sliders over the top is the little surprise they hold inside. Nestled in the middle is a cube of mozzarella cheese that melts when the meatballs are cooked. Take that first bite and you're greeted by gooey, melty, slightly messy cheese — can it get much better?

Got the Munchies?

How To Make Soft Pretzels: Soft pretzels are another Super Bowl staple, but we guarantee homemade will trump stadium or bar snacks when it comes to this recipe. If you're intimidated by the twisting, consider making pretzel bites instead.

How To Make Pizza Poppers: It wouldn't be a Super Bowl party without pizza bites, now would it? Once you learn just how easy it is to make these treats, you'll never opt for the ones from the freezer case again.

Beer-Battered Onion Rings: Onion rings may seem complicated, but they're actually simple to make. These extra-light, extra-crispy ones are best served with ranch dressing for dipping and dunking.

Kitchen Sink Super Bowl Bars: We couldn't end this list without a few desserts. After all, that's one of the best parts about any party. And these kitchen sink bars are the perfect treat. Not only do they help clear out your pantry, but they will also satisfy every sweet-salty craving you could possibly have.

Churro Balls with Warm Chocolate Dipping Sauce: Finally, homemade churros — because if there was ever a reason to deep-fry your dessert, the Super Bowl is it. Tossed in cinnamon-sugar and served with dark chocolate dipping sauce, these treats are sure to leave a lasting impression, regardless of who wins or loses.

[cutiecrates]

Cutie Reviews: Tokyo Treat Sept 18

Hi everyone, this review is a bit later than I had hoped it would be. I wanted to get it done days ago/last week, but it was a fairly rough week after Easter passed...

Anyway, here I am now! Let’s not linger on things like that x3

We hope you all have had a great summer and made great memories that will last for a lifetime. Speaking of great summer memories, one common activity that people of all ages enjoy doing in the summer is going out to an evening movie! We know we love strolling around in the summer night and ending up seeing an awesome flick at the local theater. We took inspiration from this idea to curate a box that would be great to snack on while watching your favorite Drama, Film, or Animation! So, get ready to chow down on some awesome movie-perfect bite-sized snacks, candies, and other savory sweets found inside September’s Movie Night box!

The booklet for this month features a cute Kimono template to color, a variety of Splatoon and Pokemon-themed contest and Lucky Treat items, an article of Japanese tea and honorifics when addressing others, and an article about 2 good television programs on Netflix to practice Japanese with: Terrace House, and Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories.

This is September’s DIY and like usual, I will be covering this in a separate review/post.

On a side note... I’m not really sure how this relates to the movie theme. It would be kind of distracting trying to make these- but it’s not nearly as complex as most of them are so on the other hand, it kind of makes sense.

Mango Pokemon Soda

The drink for this month is this adorable themed mango soda, available in 4 different designs to feature each of the Eeveelutions (Vaporean, Jolteon, and Flareon on yellow, this one, Eevee and Sylveon on pink (I really wanted this one), and Glaceon and Leafeon on green). Besides the design on the bottle, there is also a small picture of all the Eeveelutions, and a profile on the featured ones.

I love all of them so I would have been happy getting any of them :3 but I really loved Umbreon and Espeon first in comparison to the previous forms, so in a way I’m pretty happy with this one. It kind of gave me a nostalgic feeling.

Each bottle is 34kcal, and the drink is by Ito En. I do recall seeing this brand logo before on a drink, but I don’t remember which one.

Rating: ♥ ♥

I really like these types of bottle lids. It opens very smooth and easily and doesn’t seem to fizz very much. At first scent it was light and sweet, but the more I smelled, the more typical mango it got; but it never smelled like feet.

The taste is very refreshing and light, but it actually doesn’t taste like mango to me. I get a faint mango after-taste, but I taste coconut pudding over it. It’s not bad, but sadly it doesn’t appeal to me either...

Pretty Cure Popcorn

We’ve been over this before, but I love Pretty Cure! So I always get really excited whenever they include products from the series in these boxes. Which oddly enough, they have been doing. Not very often, but sometimes.

Anyway this is by Tohato, and if I remember right for a long time now, each time there’s a new pretty cure season/series, they come out with new “waves” of these. Each include a sticker, and as much as I liked all of the Hug Precure, I really liked the three on mine so I was very happy~

Each bag consists of popcorn mixed with these cute, pink heart strawberry puffs. Each bag is 68 kcal.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

This is the perfect snack you’d want in a movie-themed box :D the popcorn is basic salted popcorn, while the heart puffs are sweet and crispy. Together they make the perfect combination~

Kinako no Yama Chocolate Banana & Hokkaido Matcha Milk Candy

Figured I’d get the 2 items I was the least-excited to see out of the way now; if you’re new to this blog, I say this because I hate green tea, and bananas. 

First up we’ll start with the Kinako no Yama snack by Meiji. If I recall right, I believe we were supposed to have these in a prior box, but due to some issue they were unable to provide it. I really like how they decided to bring it back when they could to make it up to anyone who might have been disappointed by that.

Kinoko no Yama are small biscuits topped with chocolate to give them the appearance of a mushroom/Kinoko. These ones are specifically topped in chocolate, half of which is banana flavored.

Each box is 378 kcal.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥

I usually like Kinoko no yama, but I detest artificial banana and these smell overwhelmingly like it. However, I was pleasantly surprise because the flavor, while there, only lasts a short while and kind of fades into the biscuit and chocolate. In my case that’s a huge relief!

Also, the booklet points out that these were included to remind one of the chocolate bananas one can often find during summer festivals. Cute concept but isn’t this box movie themed...?

The next item, I was dreading even more but gets back into the movie theme; apparently some people like eating hard candy for movies. Anyway, these are made from milk straight from Hokkaido and combine it with matcha to create a sweetened, creamy hard candy. 

Each bag is 330 kcal. 

Rating: ♥ ♥

It’s creamy in taste, I’ll give it that. But I didn’t actually think it was very sweet, nor did it surprise me, I knew I’d hate it and I couldn’t even finish the piece I tried. But if you do like green tea I think you would really like it; my mom loves green tea so she enjoyed them. I’ll probably give them to her or set them out in a dish for others to have.

Marshmallow Twist & Stretchy Grape Gummies

Our next two items are these fun, pinkish-themed sweets :D If you’ve been a long-time reader then the marshmallow probably looks very familiar. We’ve gotten these, I think two other times prior to this, and each time I think I had a different color. But don’t quote me on that.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

I don’t have much to say, it’s you’re average marshmallow. I’m not crazy over the fact we got a repeat a handful of times now, but I’m super-obsessed with marshmallows and they do spread them out in the very least.

The other item I have seen before but never tried, so I was pretty curious. This is the Kinosei snack for this month, which features Faecalis to refresh the body. Each gummy (or maybe the whole bag but doubtful) is 18 kcal. They are individually wrapped as you can see above, and each wrapper features a drawing or cute little ideas you can try to do with these.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

What makes them so much fun is that the candy is completely lined, which means you can peel it! The texture is a bit different than most gummies, but I really like them- the grape flavor is also very delicious :P I’m not very sure if they make me feel refreshed eating them, but I don’t feel bad.

Okinawa Pineapple Hi-Chew

Our next item is the very popular Hi-Chew by Morinaga. Hi-Chew is a very chewy candy that comes in a large variety of fruity and drink inspired flavors. This one takes a spin at Pineapple from Okinawa; perfect for summer!

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

I love Hi-Chew, and I also really like pineapple. Together they taste pretty good, you could definitely guess this was pineapple if you tried to eat it without looking at it and the packaging. The taste lingers for a few minutes after eating it too.

I can’t say it’s my most favorite Hi-Chew though, that would have to be the cola and strawberry ones. But if you never tried these I would highly recommend it. They can be found online at several locations, and they even sell mixed bags outside of Japan. If you have a Walmart, check the foreign/Asian food isle.

Brown Sugar Traditional Wheat Puff & Kinako Crackers

These items are perfect for that Crispy snap you might need in between all the chewy sweetness (or if you want to wake up your movie buddy ;3). The first is a very traditional wheat puff that is coated in brown sugar. As expected, it has a lot of calories; a total of 380 kcal.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ 

It’s very sweet and tastes like brown sugar (or you could even say maple), and it has a soft-crisp texture and dissolves in the mouth. It tastes good, but the texture is kinda strange; and that’s coming from me, who likes different textures.  

The next item is a large bag of rice crackers coated in kinako (roasted soybean) powder. Each one is 17 kcal, and the whole bag is 506 kcal.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

I’ve had these before or snacks a lot like them in both this flavoring, or savory. I really like rice-based snacks, but you actually don’t taste anything besides the soybean powder coating. They’re lightly crisp and the powder dissolves in the mouth.

Also, side-note, but if you read the blog then you might recall my mentioning how some squishy smell like soybeans to me. It was snacks like these that inspired that notion, and every time I smell squishies with this scent I think about them.

Kishu Plum Chips & Anpanman Fluffy Corn Puffs

You know, a few of these items didn’t really scream movie to me, but I feel like the further I get into this the more I start seeing it.

First up are these uniquely flavored chips by Calbee. They combine the saltiness of a potato chip with Kishu plums to create a chip with a sour tang.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

If you like the taste of pickled plum, unique chips, or sourness you will enjoy these :3 not only are the chips decently sized and looking delicious, but they also taste really good. The flavor is strong, but not on like a... salt and vinegar level, so it’s not overwhelming.

Our other item are these simple, cute Anpanman corn puffs by Tohato. This was the share snack (which for once I think is worth including because if you watch a movie with multiple people then this would be a good thing to have), so we get 4 bags of these. Each bag features Anpanman on the front, and a cute little puzzle on the back.

These are described as being a slightly sweet, light corn puff.

Each bag is 40.7 kcal.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

They are extremely light and airy and provide a soft crisp, but I actually get no sweetness at all. It has a flavor, but it’s not a corn either, nor does it remind me of cereal. I’m not actually sure what it is, but I do like it.  

Shrimp Mayonnaise Umaibo & Spicy Pepper Pea Corn Puff Rings

These are our final snacks for this month, our monthly Umaibo in Shrimp Mayonnaise flavor, and look- it’s actually whole this time :D lately they keep winding up crushed into a million pieces for me.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

I love Umaibo x3 I don’t really have much to say on them because we get them all the time, and I’ve had this flavor a couple of times. But it’s one of my favorites~ it reminds me of sushi.

Our final item is this small bag of spicy pepper pea corn puffs. We’ve had this brands snacks before, but I can’t remember if I tried these before. I feel like I have because the taste is very familiar to me...

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 

Whatever it is, this tastes very good to me. There is some spice there and it lingers on the tongue for a short bit after eating them, but it’s fairly light so if you’re not big on spicy things it isn’t painful or anything.

♥ Cutie Ranking ♥

Content - 4 out of 5. I really liked mostly everything, but there was 1 item I was disappointed in,1 that delightfully surprised me, and 1 that I hated- but compared to other ratio of previous boxes I’m pretty happy with this one.

Theme - 4 out of 5. For most part I felt like these were pretty good choices for movie snacks. They reminded me of things I would see at the theater or drive-in, and ironically enough I ended up watching the lifetime movie channel while I was eating these and working on this review.

Total Rank: 9 out of 10 Cuties! In my opinion this would have been a great box to start the subscription with. There was a little bit of everything in it and a lot of yummy tastes~ I admit, there are a couple of things that some people might not like, but I think it would be a fun experience to try anyway. I really enjoyed this one.

♥ Cutie’s Scale of Yummy ♥

1. Grape Gummies - I love the flavor and texture, it’s as fun to play with as it is to eat~

2. Spicy Pepper Pea Corn Puff Rings - I’m not sure what it is about these but I really, really like these!

3. Kinako Crackers - I think I prefer the savory ones to these sweet ones, but they are still delicious!

4. Shrimp Mayonnaise Umaibo - I really, REALLY like this but I’ve had it before so it’s nothing new to me.

5. Pretty Cure Popcorn - This was very cute and I love the packaging and included sticker, and the cute pink heart puffs~

6. Kishu Plum Chips - I’m pretty sure I’ve had these before, now that I think about it. But anyway, they’re really good :3 so I’m not complaining.  

7. Anpanman Corn Puff Rings - The flavoring is light but it’s there, and the simple, colorful packaging is adorable. A cute little snack for any Anpanman fans~

8. Pineapple Hi-Chew - As much as I like pineapple, I’m not very big on pineapple candy. I’m not sure why. It was pretty goo though. 

9. Brown Sugar Wheat Puff - it was sweet and unique, but not my favorite.

10. Marshmallow Twist - As much as I love marshmallows, there’s nothing special about it. It was just an average marshmallow.

11. Mango Soda - It wasn’t what I had hoped it would be...

12. Banana Chocolate Kinoko - I didn’t hate them, but they aren’t my favorite things either.

13. Matcha Milk Candy - I mean... it’s pretty obvious right? I thought the bag design was cute though.

[malodorousmalcontent]

Sucreabeille Review Part 3

Hey y'all, guess who's back on their bullshit! Yeah, that's right, it's me. A lil' backstory: once upon a time, the owner of Suc offered me a coupon to explore her scent catalogue, and through various circumstances, I ended up coming into ownership of, at this point, thirty-fricken-four different scents of theirs. And i'm gonna review all of 'em, dang it.

PART 1 PART 2

So, with that out of the way, today i'll be going over Liquid Gold, Belladonna, Big Damn Heroes, Cersei, Stay Sexy, Shiny, Margaery Tyrell, and The Mountain.

LIQUID GOLD (PERFUME OIL) || Zanzibar spice, lavender fields, bergamot black tea.

IN THE BOTTLE: Smells like a smooth, elegant base with some tang to it and a bit of a floral buzz.

ON THE SKIN: This is lovely - definitely evokes the color gold when I give it a sniff. It’s an elegant, warm, grown-up scent: smooth, a touch tangy, and strangely... Wheaty? Yeasty? ...Earthy? It's hard to describe. On top of that is a beautiful hint of floral that smells almost fizzy. If I close my eyes and sniff it, I feel like i'm standing on rolling hills of golden grain with flowers in the distance. It reminds me of Alkemia's Silken Tent in how mature and stately it smells, despite not actually smelling like it.

Going over the notes, i'm certain that the zanzibar spice is responsible for that earthy quality, and the gentle, smooth, elegant, slightly tangy sweetness is from the bergamot tea - it's the exact same note from You're in a Cult, which I could pick out of a lineup if I had to. The lavender - that gentle floral sparkle - is detectable, but far from overwhelming, like it's just a scent being carried on a warm breeze. The phrasing 'lavender fields' is apt.

On the dry down, the 'tea' part of the bergamot tea comes out more and gives the scent a faint bitterness, and it stays like that until it fades to nearly-nothing around the 4 hour mark. It also wears fairly close to the skin.

RATING: 4.7/5. This is in my top three Suc scents, but i'm docking it a teensy bit for fading kinda fast.

--

BELLADONNA (PERFUME OIL) || A freshly picked red rose, old leather, white musk.

IN THE BOTTLE: Cold, black, kinda wet leather. Very chlorine-smelling.

ON THE SKIN: This is all leather and musk to me. It's a deep, cold, black leather smell - the kind that I frequently think of as smelling like inky-black rain. It's a strange, empty scent, that's pretty reminiscent of chlorine, as mentioned before. In my notes I described it as 'a haunting scent for the dead'. If you've smelled Alkemia's The Raven - it's very reminiscent of that. (I've said the same thing in my review of Suc's Let's Be Bad Guys - if they don't share the same leather note, they're certainly very similar!)

Combined with the musk note, this scent ends up smelling like old books: musty, dusty, hardback leather book covers. At no point do I smell anything remotely rose-like - though I do get the teensiest bit of stemmy green-ness.

Dries down to... Well, basically the same scent, honestly. I was hoping the rose would come out more, but it's still inky leather and musk. It had some okay sillage when wet, and five and a half hours later + one scrubbing with dish soap, I can still clearly detect it on my wrist.

RATING: 3/5. I wish I picked up on the rose more, and i'm not wild about the musk, but I've got a soft spot for that inky black leather smell.

--

BIG DAMN HEROES (PERFUME OIL) || Rain, salt spray, green fig, warm meadow sun.

IN THE BOTTLE: Fresh-scented soap, with a little green-ness.

ON THE SKIN: This smells kinda like a beachy-scented suave brand conditioner. Mellow, pretty, refreshing-smelling soap. The thing at the forefront is definitely a mixture of the rain and the salty spray, which ends up just smelling like, well, saltwater - but not necessarily oceanic saltwater, so much as tap water mixed with salt. There's a touch of green-ness, but it less stands out as its own note and more just blends in with everything else.

After about three hours, it fades enough that I have a hard time telling the difference between my skin and the scent. It did have a lot of sillage, though, and it smelled really nice from a distance - refreshing, and I could detect some sweetness from the fig.

In my notes, I originally described it as smelling like this image looks, and... Yeah, basically.

RATING: 2.5/5. Nothing particularly special to me.

--

CERSEI (PERFUME OIL) || White thyme, freshly ground black pepper, black jasmine, amber.

IN THE BOTTLE: Hardcore dry herbs with a little bit of floral underneath it, barely detectable.

ON THE SKIN: First time I tried this, my immediate thought was, holy crap, why does this smell exactly like oregano of all things? Dried oregano, specifically. I'm now fairly certain it's the thyme + black pepper combination, as I have another scent with those same notes (Shiny, but we'll get to that), that starts off almost the same. I don't detect anything that reads jasmine-y, or even floral, to me, and after about ten minutes of wear, I get an extremely subtle sweetness from the amber.

On the drydown, I start getting a hint of something that smells kinda... Minty? All notes are present as it wears on, though the thyme definitely mellows out some.

Has a whole lotta sillage, and it wears strongly on my wrist for a pretty dang long time.

RATING: 2/5. I don't particularly care for the thyme + black pepper combination, and I wish the other notes came through more.

--

STAY SEXY (PERFUME OIL) || Tahitian vanilla, rich honey, fresh grapefruit.

IN THE BOTTLE: Zingy, poppy grapefruit. Makes me think of neon yellows, pinks and purples. I like!

ON THE SKIN: I had a weird experience with this. The first time I ever wore it, it smelled almost exactly like Hexennacht's Daemon on me - like super sweet bubblegum. (Daemon does not normally go bubblegummy, but it sure as heck did on me - you can read more about that here.) This is not, logically, an issue, since Stay Sexy is kind of... A bubblegummy scent. Has some very sweet, tangy notes. The problem is, since it smelled so similar to a scent that I had not liked, because Daemon was not supposed to smell like that... I, by association, didn't like this.

The good news is, after a super long period of rest, it's gotten better.

It starts out bubblygummy still, but the grapefruit quickly comes out more and gives the scent a lovely bright and sour edge. The vanilla and honey still make it sweet and foody, but not cloyingly so, and the honey isn't overwhelming, which i'm so so thankful for - strong honey scents are, mm, unpleasant to me. Here, it just blends with the vanilla really well.

On the drydown, it becomes a smooth, creamy vanilla scent that I actually really like. It's sort of simple, but this would probably be nice to layer with things. Decent sillage - I could detect it faintly from a distance when it's wet. Disappears around the 4 hour mark.

RATING: 3.5/5. Objectively not bad smelling - in fact, i'd even say I like it - but it's simple in a way that doesn't quite interest me.

--

SHINY (PERFUME OIL) || Grapefruit, bergamot, white thyme, dalmation sage, black pepper.

IN THE BOTTLE: Kinda subdued herbs and something that smells dirty/earthy.

ON THE SKIN: He-eey, white thyme and black pepper, guess what this smells liiike :^)

Forreal though, when I first tried this, it had the same Oregano™ smell as Cersei, but after a good long while of rest, that's calmed down a little, though it still smells like some extremely buzzy herbs. There's also an undercurrent of citrus to it that I managed to pick up on a blind sniff, though I did have to be really concentrating to notice it.

On the drydown, hey, there's that subtle minty smell again! 90% sure it's the thyme after getting it in two different scents. Aaaand... Yep, stays that way for the next three hours, at which point it disappears. Basically? Cersei, but with some very faint citrus, and slightly less oregano-y. Maybe I just amp herbaceous smells real hard. Wears pretty close to the skin.

RATING: 2.5/5. Not wild about this one, but it gets half a point for having detectable citrus.

--

MARGAERY TYRELL (PERFUME OIL) || A freshly popped bottle of champagne; ripe, juicy peach; crisp cotton sheets; an English rose garden; moonlight pomegranate; herbaceous sage; neroli.

IN THE BOTTLE: Mmmm not good. Something very... It's weird, it's like acrid and chemical-y. Makes me think of the smell of bile, but cleaner.

ON THE SKIN: This was pretty when I first tried it. Sparkly champagne, a little soapy from the cotton sheets, a little peachy, ever-so-faintly floral... Bright, fizzy with a smooth undercurrent, and femme. I liked it a lot.

And then resting happened, and, what the hell?

I put it on, and it quickly went very, very bad on me. Like. I hate to use words like this to describe a scent, but it was acrid in a way that brings 'burning garbage' or 'vomit' to mind. I'm fairly certain it's a combination of the champagne, the sage, and maybe the peach - I've noticed some peach notes tend to go this kind of acrid on me in other scents, but it's more subtle than this. This is like... A perfect storm of bad. Which is unfortunate.

After five minutes, the sage note dries down, so it's better, but not great. In my notes, I called it 'slightly rancid champagne; champagne and piss'. After 30 minutes, it finally becomes something wearable: champagne and very faint peach, with a bit of laundry detergent... But it's also extremely light. I can barely smell it.

RATING: 1/5. The dry-down is okay, if not nearly nonexistent, but boy. Boy those first 30 minutes are hellish.

--

THE MOUNTAIN (EAU DE PARFUM) || Amber, a pint of oatmeal stout, pure golden honey.

IN THE BOTTLE: Hard to place. Almost smells like gingerbread - warm, sweet, and a little spicy, but it's kinda faint.

ON THE SKIN: I knew I would love this, and hey! What a surprise, I do. More than I even expected to, actually. The oatmeal stout note is killer: genuinely smells like warm, comforting, buttery oatmeal with brown sugar, cinnamon, and a little splash of booze. The honey's super subtle--hooray--but detectable, complimenting the oatmeal stout beautifully, giving it that honey tang.

And then it starts to dry down, and, oo la la, that amber. Resinously sweet, a little earthy, a little spicy. Gives this scent some complexity without losing the comforting foody notes from earlier.

This scent is rich, warm, a little creamy, and just... Tasty. I really, really like it. It wears strong on my wrist, but doesn't have a ton of sillage, and was still faintly detectable the morning after I put it on, so. Good longevity.

RATING: 5/5. The good stuff. Another top 3 scent from Suc.

--

And thats, woof, another part down. Next part should be the final one (unless I like, decide to divide it in half or something idk), and will feature: Nightshade; Sansa; Three-Eyed Raven; Papa's Waffles; Embalming Fluid; Bohemian; Briar Rose; Firefly; Troll Food; and Strawberry Milkshake.

...maybe I should divide that in half. Hm. We'll see.

[malodorousmalcontent]

Sucreabeille Review: Part 1

So, sometime near the beginning of February, Andrea of Sucreabeille read one of my reviews and liked it enough to approach me about reviewing some of her scents, offering a coupon to do just that! And, truth be told, i'd already been looking at the house - I had learned about it from Hexennacht - and had been wanting to place an order anyways. So, y'know, not gonna pass that bad boy up.

Through various circumstances, I ended up placing three different orders and coming into ownership of 22 different perfumes and one body oil. (And, since writing this, have placed ANOTHER order for 10 more samples. wooh!) Since that's, uhh, a lot, i'm gonna be dividing up the reviews into, mm, somewhere between three and five different parts. This is part one, where i'll be covering Cream Tea; Life Spark; Frozen Moon; Sea Glass; We Aim To Misbehave; Khal Drogo; Tyrion; and Brienne the Beauty.

FIRST, thoughts on actually ordering from Sucreabeille: Andrea is an absolutely delightful person. She was super gracious and very openly communicative - when there was a delay in the order due to Snowmageddon, I received an email explaining exactly when my order would go out and offering compensation for the delay... Which I honestly didn't think was even necessary, on account of how my order was ready to ship well before the TAT estimate on their website. Even with the delay, I believe my perfumes were all delivered basically right on time. She also threw in a bottle of her hair and body oil for free! (Which I fell head over heels in love with - we'll get into that later.) Really just a super pleasant experience.

The only complaint I have is, uh, the state it showed up in.

Upon opening the packages, I was immediately hit with a wave of Sweet Bubblygummy/Rubbery Scent and went, oh, gosh. Something leaked. I carefully started opening stuff up, and found everything but the samples wrapped in this damp, thin, gummy substance - undoubtedly something to KEEP stuff from leaking. I've since found out that it was partially melted parafilm, and, boy, it did not agree with my drams. And it smelled. Like... Filled the room, smelled. Could still smell it hours after I threw it all away... Smelled. I'm just glad it wasn't an actual perfume leak, because it was not a good smell, either.

...But, on that note, several of my sample vials did leak - at least five of them.

The next issue was the labels, which is really just parafilm issues part 2. The drams were a mess - the parafilm left them really slippery and absolutely destroyed the ink on the labels. I had to very, very carefully unwrap them, and very carefully put tape over the label, and very carefully wipe them clean. Not a single label came out unharmed - and one of the drams now has a blank label with the name written on it in gel pen. I'll also add that if any of the perfume oil gets on the labels, boom, that ink comes right up - my sample vials are pretty spotty, too, due to the leaks they had.

(A VERY IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: Andrea is well-aware of the leak issue and, at the time of me writing this, has already fixed it - the drams have new lids and the samples come in the fricken' cutest bottles imaginable. I wouldn't let this complaint deter anybody from ordering.

Also, when I mentioned in the Suc FB group having tested out all the scents I ordered, Andrea was really proactive in asking about the state my order had arrived in and was happy to replace the leaky samples. A+ customer service.

I'm... So absurdly excited to get those itty bitty bottles in my next order.)

And now on to the scents.

--

CREAM TEA (PERFUME OIL) | Hot chai tea, burnt sugar, white musk, warm milk, scones slathered with raspberry jam and honey.

(If y'all notice a discrepancy in the notes - these are the notes from the scent description, not the 'scent notes' part. I chose to use this since it was a bit more in-depth.)

IN THE BOTTLE: I get like... The tiniest hint of burnt sugar, but there's this cool sweetness underneath it that almost smells medicinal. Maybe that's the tea? Weird.

ON THE SKIN: I've had a hard time describing this one. I wrote my initial notes - and then ended up not going off them at all while writing the actual review. And after I wrote the review, I wasn't happy with it, so I re-wrote it. And now i'm rewriting it again. So... Let's see if I can get it this time.

The first note I get is, most definitely, the burnt sugar. It was the first note I got when I tried it on straight out of the mail, too - and, at the time, it was so overpowering I could hardly smell anything else. Was downright acrid. After over a week of rest, it's mellowed some, but is still largely at the forefront, nutty and charred and a little bitter. Underneath it, I get a general kind of foody sugary sweetness, where it's harder to say what it is - the scones? The honey? The chai tea? - but I DEFINITELY can detect the raspberry jam. Saying it like that makes it sound like it's a Big Note--the jam isn't overwhelming, it just gives the scent a kind of fruity, bright, slightly tart edge.

After about 10 minutes, I can smell the musk: humid and slightly sharp, as white musk tends to be on me. There's a creaminess to the whole scent from the milk note, and I definitely get some foody spices... But I couldn't pick out anything that particularly reads 'tea' to me, y'know. Dries down to, basically, softly-sweet scone and a hint of that nutty burnt sugar.

This has some good sillage when wet - could smell it from at least a foot away - but wears closer to the skin on the drydown.

RATING: 3/5. It's not bad, but even after mellowing out that burnt sugar still makes it sorta acrid and gives me a headache.

--

LIFE SPARK (PERFUME OIL) | An enormous blizzard on a cold winter’s night, a fireworks explosion.

IN THE BOTTLE: A cool, fresh, slightly floral scent. Honestly? Think air freshener.

ON THE SKIN: So, I tried this one on early-on, and that's when the notes were truest. The 'fireworks explosion' honestly reminded me of the smell of a burning sparkler: fuzzy, maybe a little sulfuric, has a metallic tang to it. The 'enormous blizzard'... Well, truth be told, I didn't really get much cold atmosphere from this. Mostly those notes were just kinda perfumey. But! Burning sparkler. Good stuff.

After resting, it's actually lost that metallic tang, and from the get-go, just sorta smells like a nice, smooth, slightly floral conditioner with a soft, wet sweetness. That's basically the long and short of it: nice soap.

Smells pretty strong and clear on my wrist, with a sillage of at least a couple inches.

RATING: 3/5. I don't care for soapy scents, but as far as they go, this is at least a pretty one.

--

FROZEN MOON (PERFUME OIL) | Crisp winter evening air, frost, sweet sugar plum, delicious marshmallow.

IN THE BOTTLE: Bubblegum.

ON THE SKIN: Hey guess what! It smells like bubblegum!

In all seriousness, though: this started off bubblegummy and ended bubblegummy. The plum and marshmallow just combine to make the perfect pink bubblegum, with the plum maybe lending it the teensiest bit of tartness. The cold air/frost notes didn't feel particularly cold for the first hour of wear, and then, finally, a tiny bit of refreshing coolness begins to peek through.

On the drydown, the scent goes from a fuzzy bubblegum to a strong, crystal clear, juicy bubblegum. But, y'know. Still bubblegum. It's evidently got some strong sillage - my roommate could smell it from feet away, and said that it smelled like 'a baby. Like how a baby always smells sweet, because they're covered in sweet'. Their words, not mine.

RATING: 2.5/5. Too youthful for me, but someone, somewhere, wants to smell like a baby, covered in sweet.

--

SEA GLASS (PERFUME OIL) | Juicy mango, ripe yuzu, whipped coconut cream, sea moss, pure honey from the comb, Tahitian vanilla, salty spray.

IN THE BOTTLE: Fruuuuity. Definitely getting that mango and the coconut cream.

ON THE SKIN: So. Starts out with smooth mango and sharp pinpricks of the yuzu's tartness at the very top, making it a real tropical-smelling scent, with a bed of the coconut cream underneath it, lending it a very tasty, slightly rich sweetness. The sea moss and salt are ever-present, giving the scent a tinge of ocean-smell. After about an hour and a half of wear, the fruit and coconut cream fades and the vanilla comes out, and it's a bright and perky vanilla, not the smooth n mellow vanilla. While I can't say i'm getting anything that makes me go, 'oh, that's honey', it's probably amping up the vanilla. Salt's still there, too - makes my mouth water and my nose tingle, gives the scent a sparkle. I would say the whole scent's kinda stylized - this is another scent that reminds me of shampoo or conditioner without necessarily smelling soapy, like a tropical themed shampoo.

Wears close the skin, and by the time the vanilla (and honey?) comes out, it's sorta faint. Honestly, I tried this one on 3-4 times since I got it - including while writing this review - and each time it's been hard for me to pick up. I get particularly nose-blind to this bad boy.

RATING: 3.7/5. It's pretty and refreshing. Just wish it didn't fade so fast.

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WE AIM TO MISBEHAVE (PERFUME OIL) | Rosemary, Vanilla, Amber, Honey.

IN THE BOTTLE: A lot of surprisingly medicinal yet smooth herbiness.

ON THE SKIN: Starts out smelling like Weird Rosemary - i'm almost certain that's due to the rosemary and the amber note combining, and i'm pretty sure it's a dry amber, not a sweet one. The Weird Rosemary smell is strong, smooth, a little earthy, with a tingle of herbaceous green-ness, and... I mean, it's weird. It smells like a rosemary doppelganger that can't quite get the features right - and I love the smell of Real Rosemary, I cook with it all the time, so I sure as heckie know what it smells like. Also, like... For notes of vanilla and honey, this scent starts out with virtually no detectable sweetness.

As it dries down, it gets better. The rosemary becomes more realistic, but also gets more subtle, and the vanilla comes pouring out, smooth and mellow and not particularly foody. The scent takes on a fuzzy, soft sweetness. It's actually really pretty. Usually vanilla like this--the kinda smoother, waxier, less foody vanilla--makes me feel a bit sick, but combined with the rosemary, it's pretty nice - the herby edge helps balance it a lot. The honey finally comes out far into the drydown, and it's not particularly strong, just gives a small brightness to the scent.

This wears pretty dang close to my skin, and within an hour, it's very light, bordering on 'have-to-really-search-for-it'.

RATING: 4/5. Not wild about how it starts, but it dries down so prettily. Once again, if only it weren't so dang light on me. :T

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KHAL DROGO (HAIR & BODY OIL) | Supple leather, smoky sandalwood.

IN THE BOTTLE: Light, new leather and very subtle sandalwood.

ON THE SKIN: Boy this takes on a whole new life once I rub it in. I never would've ordered it based on the notes alone (I like both sandalwood and leather, but was worried it'd be too masculine for me), but i'm so so glad it got thrown in.

The leather smells like that light brown, velvety, super soft, super worn, kinda unfinished leather, sitting on top of dry, dusty sandalwood - in the best way. I slather this all over my hands, cup said hands over my mouth, close my eyes, and just breathe in - and suddenly i'm in one of those shops where they sell handcrafted leatherworks and handcarved wooden figurines. You know the ones - the ones with two employees total and it's a guy in his 60's-70's and his wife. Got dreamcatchers and nature paintings everywhere. It's intensely nostalgic, and so spot-on, and... Wow. A+. So cozy and comforting, and those notes ring so true and clear. Amazing scent.

As for the actual hair and body oil - it's very light, which i'm appreciative of, though it does take a LOT of it to get my thirsty thirsty hands to feel moisturized. Doesn't feel greasy and sinks in very quickly, so no sensory issues. I have hair that even the slightest amount of oil leaves lookin Nasty, but if I put some on before bed and wash it out the next day, it leaves my ends feelin' nice and soft - and the scent in it is pretty strong. Lasted through the night, still faintly detectable on my hands when I woke up the next morning, could smell a cloud of it waft up when I got in the shower.

RATING: 6/5. Maybe i'm biased due to Nostalgia, but dang, what a beautiful scent. Changed my mind about simple blends.

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TYRION (PERFUME OIL) | Tahitian vanilla, juicy fig, freshly tanned leather.

IN THE BOTTLE: Suuuuper duper green fig, and that's basically it.

ON THE SKIN: This was the first scent that I got from Suc that I took a whiff of and audibly went 'ooooh!' because I liked it so much - I don't own anything else that smells like this. (That's probably because this is my first fig perfume, but I digress.)

The fig is really, really green - wet, juicy, humid green-ness. If someone made me sniff it and asked me what it was blind, i'd probably guess some super heady freshly-cut grass. The leather is just behind it, and is absolutely delectable: it smells like if you walked into a barn and stuck your face against a horse and just breeeeathed it in. They aren't kidding when they call that leather 'fresh'.

The scent reminds me of something that I had a little bit of trouble placing, but: you ever been on those tours of like, settlements from the 1600's? Historic cabins where you could see how people in The Colonies lived? This smells like those tours, if that makes sense. Like the inside of those cabins. Rustic, animalic, outdoorsy. It's great.

It dries down to the vanilla that, genuinely, smells like soft vanilla bean ice cream. The green of the fig is still there, but it's cool and refreshing and goes so well with the vanilla. Absolutely lovely.

RATING: 5/5.

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BRIENNE THE BEAUTY (PERFUME OIL) | Newly cut grass on a hot summer day; smoky white musk; sweet Meyer lemon; real ginger; white tea; a fresh-picked Valencia orange.

IN THE BOTTLE: Smells like fresh, faint lemonade with a hint of ginger.

ON THE SKIN: I put this on and the first thing I smell is ginger, for like, a heartbeat. Like I just sniffed the ginger on a plate of sushi, ginger, and then from there: lemon. Honestly, I think I amp lemon. I've never worn a scent with a lemon note where it hasn't taken over, and this one's no different.

The lemon mellows out after a bit, and the scent basically becomes citrusy tea - more orange than lemon, but the lemon's sour flavor is definitely there. And... That's it. I don't pick up the musk, and not once in the three times i've tried this on have I smelled the grass, and the ginger was there for all of .5 seconds. It's nice, but doesn't really get the fire goin' in me.

RATING: 3/5. Doesn't smell bad, but i'm not interested in smellin like an orange-lemon, n' I wish the other notes showed up more.

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Stay tuned for when I post up part 2 in the next week or two, featuring Arsenic; Longest Night; Death Unicorn; Banshee; You're in a Cult, Call Your Dad; Let's Be Bad Guys; Arya; and Here's the Thing: Fuck Everyone.