Guiness Beer May Not Be Vegan

All you vegans out there, beware:

Guiness says that “minute quantities” of an animal product called isinglass could be in its beer.

Isinglass, a gelatine-like substance made from the air-bladders or sounds of fish like the sturgeon is added to cask beers like Guinness to help any remaining yeast and solid particles settle out of the final product.As the finings pass through the beer, they attract themselves to particles in the fermented beer that create an unwanted “haziness” in the final product and form into a jelly-like mass that settles to the bottom of the cask. While beer left untouched will clear on it’s own, isinglass speeds up the process and doesn’t affect the final flavor of the beer once removed.

[Happy St. Patrick's Day! ]

 

Eating is a Waste of Time

I’ve met a few people like this, and I feel equal parts sorry for them, disbelieving, and puzzled.

You know what’s an irreversible waste of time, money and effort? Eating food you take pleasure in eating. I mean, wouldn’t you rather just ingest a tasteless form of sustenance for the rest of your life and never have to go through that tedious rigmarole of opening and eating a pre-made sandwich or enjoying a huge hungover fry-up ever again? Rob Rhinehart – a 24-year-old software engineer from Atlanta and, presumably, an impossibly busy man – thinks so.

Babybel Cheese People

Materials needed: Babybel cheese, razor blade, sesame seeds, imagination

Spoon Says Oil is Ready

Pizza Hut Cologne

…why does this exist? Is McDonald’s going to come out with a cologne too, for those who want to smell like chemical-infused bread and mystery meat, but without having to actually eat it?

eau de grease

Rainbow Pasta

Please refrain from eating electrical wires in lieu of rainbow pasta.

This is super easy to make and doesn’t require much more time than it would to make regular, one-color pasta. Click on the picture and scroll to the bottom of the page to see more giddy, rainbow-colored food recipes.

Gluten-Free Brownies

I recently had the pleasure of sampling the best brownie I’ve ever had. And, surprisingly enough, it was also gluten-free. O.O Anyone who’s experimented with gluten-free baking knows how difficult a challenge it is to make something that doesn’t simply fall apart in a sad, bland tasting pile of crumbles. So to try something that not only holds together like it’s supposed to, but actually tastes amazing, was particularly astounding. It went something like this: a slow bite, where teeth are met with a delicate, perfectly thin top layer of crispness, making my mouth salivate. The bite continues onto a meaty, soft inside that has the wonderful texture brownies are known for. The taste is rich and wonderful.

My mouth waters, recalling that absolutely decadent, joyous experience of sensations on my teeth, tongue. Mmm.

After that first experience, I immediately contacted the folks at Le Wooden Spoon to praise them for being able to make this magical thing happen. I’m informed that they had to go through a lot of trial and error to get the texture just right – an effort that truly paid off. There is no sacrifice in flavor, in order for this brownie to keep its structural integrity. It is just a damn good brownie.

I shared this brownie goodness with a friend of mine [who is on a gluten-free diet, but still has a ravenous sweet tooth that he isn't able to satiate nearly as often as he'd like], and he became an immediate fan as well. It got me thinking this would probably make a really, really good gift for my gluten-free friends.

ANYWAY,  since the holidays [I can haz decadent comfort foodz?] are coming up, I thought this would be a good time to plug the site making these wonderful creations. You can order them here.

*I’ve been told to warn readers with allergies to also include this information:

Allergy Information: While peanuts or other tree nuts may not be a key ingredient in every one of our baked goods, all our bakery and pastry items are produced in the same area where products containing various nut items are created. Though best practices are used in the manufacturing of our baked goods, inadvertent cross-contamination may occur.