Valentines Day is quickly approaching. Stressed about what to get?! An easy out is always baking. Its thoughtful and everyone wins with this present! From cupcakes to breakfast in bed, the possibilities are endless. To make these delicious treats you will need to get the proper tools! Such as heart cake molds, and cupcake papers! Happy Valentines Day!

While we all might get sick of the family time and constant money spending that the holidays bring, we will never get sick of the parties thrown. Holiday parties are always fun! There are always holiday themed drinks, great decorations and plenty of people to talk to. The bar at holiday parties are also always stocked. Therefore, in order to thank your host there are some great holiday themed bar gifts you could get or just nice bar gifts in general to get. Because, really, who doesn’t love a new bar treat in their home?!

We love ThisNexters especially our mavens. Mavens are those trendspotters you see all over our site, they’re on top of the trends and are always on the look out for the Next New Thing. And so I’d like to feature a few of them and their Holiday lists here.

What are your favorite scents, sounds, and flavors of the season? Here’s a look at what Hanahula considers to be the Holiday Season Sensory experience! And if you’re interested in being a maven, check here to see what it’s all about!

Now you’re stuffed, and the turkey was delicious… but you’re kitchen is FULL of leftovers. What to do with that extra turkey and stuffing and cranberry sauce? Why there’s lots to do with it, but I will leave the recipes up to you (I like me some slow cooked turkey soup or pumpkin bread)… here’s a list of kitchen musts to help you take care of that food bonanza.

Holiday seasons often means a lot of cooking as well as a lot of shopping. We all know Thanksgiving and Christmas provide some of the best meals EVER. To thank whoever made that meal for you here is a list of some hot new cooking and kitchen appliances you can get! If it is YOU making the meal, then this list will also help you cook an unforgettable meal! Happy eating and Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is ON THURSDAY! And I know you’re super excited about the chow down, but do you ever think of how it all gets to your table? And the hours of work that go into each dish? Or perhaps you’re doing some of the slaving and understand the effort.

Whether or not you’re the one over the hot stove or the one kicking up your feet (you’ll be in the hot seat sometime!) check out these gadgets for cooking… Making life easier isn’t that what technology is for? And until I can invent a Thanksgiving Robot, these devices will have to do. Enjoy your Turkey or Ham or Tofurkey or FauxHam…

ThisNext is launching our FABULOUS Myspace application today! So now you can Wish List all that you want for the Christmakwanzichah holidays… (I’m sorry “world peace” is too much of a Beauty Contestant wish, so save that for your “Q&A” section of the pageant) Browse the TN world o’ goodies, WISH LIST what you want, share it with your family and friends and all your Myspace Entourage. While you’re looking for yourself, go ahead, take notes those hot items as ideas for what to get your Friend’s Mother’s New Husband’s Podiatrist’s Dog as well.

If all you want for Christmas is your two front teeth… then go see a dentist, but if you’re looking for some fabulous gifts this holiday season all you have to do is Wish List it!



Go ahead… install it… be the first on your block to have your very own Wish List… you know you want to!

I love when it is November 1st because that means it is the month that we get to celebrate Thanksgiving. While I’m not a fan of turkey and pumpkin pie, I love everything else about Thanksgiving! I love eating dinner earlier than normal and then watching TV all night with my family. I also LOVE eating the leftovers the next day. I also love all the TV specials that are on like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. So, while I realize the holiday is about 3 weeks away, it is never too early to start preparing! ThisNext made a list of all things Thanksgiving! This includes movies, cooking utensils and decorations.

What makes every Halloween complete? Why of course! A Halloween cocktail! Who doesn’t love pumpkin flavored alcohol and goblin punch. Well, in case you are in a panic and can’t think of the perfect Halloween drink, ThisNext has provided two of our favorites! Witches Brew and Vampire’s Kiss. All the key ingredients are on this list and both drinks guarantee you a great time! Don’t forget dry ice, because every Halloween party needs absurd amounts of dry ice (for spooky effect of course). Also make sure to serve it in great Halloween fashion, perhaps in a cauldron or inflatable grave!

Just because summer is over doesn’t mean we have to stop having fun! Lucky for us, Germany created Oktoberfest, a 16-day festival to commemorate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. Thanks to them, we get to indulge ourselves fine German beers (drunken out of a boot) and large portions of meat. For those celebrating this fun festival in the greater Los Angeles area, there’s a village that simulates what Oktoberfest would be like in Germany. Alpine Village in Torrance, California is perhaps one of the more authentic places to participate in Oktoberfest festivies. So, if you have nothing else to do this weekend, partake in your local Oktoberfest!

Finally, it’s the day ThisNext has been waiting for! Pinkberry has opened a delightful location right below the ThisNext office! Pinkberry serves three delicious flavors- coffee, green tea and my personal favorite, the original. On top of your “yogurt”, you can add a variety of toppings such as fruit, cookies, cereal, etc. It’s the perfect morning/afternoon/evening snack! Make your own delicious dessert at Pinkberry. Trust me, it’s yummy!

Everyone attends a few birthday or celebratory parties each year. You know the routine - banners, presents, the occasional clown, cake with candles, off-key singing, etc. Typically, these events go off without a hitch, but every now and then, you get a botched cake. Courtesy of the Cake Wrecks blog, here are a few:

 

We didn’t wanna believe it, but it’s been confirmed…this is indeed a real product. Microwavable macaroni and cheese with chilli sauce and beef bits served push-pop style. Other pasta dishes and even eggs are also available. This is part of an effort by parent company Breakstone Foods to dumb down dinners into a convenient and utensil-less, albeit offensive, meal.

As the world watched Michael Phelps break Olympic record and win 8 gold medals this summer, we couldn’t help but wonder…WHAT DOES HE EAT?? Try around 12,000 calories of food per day. How is that even possible? Well, to give you one example this is what he eats for breakfast alone: three fried egg sandwiches with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions, and mayo, one five-egg omelet, a bowl of grits, three slices of French toast with powdered sugar, three chocolate chip pancakes and two cups of coffee. What is even more fascinating is he has been quoted saying that he has trouble gaining weight. He seems too look JUST FINE to me.

Phelps continues to shock the world with his ability to come back from behind and steal races at the last minute, and for his pure determination to win. With that, we are all thankful that we get to watch him swim amazing races instead of watching him eat his three daily meals.

I secretly want to be Alice In Wonderland… and have tea with the Mad Hatter and the Queen of Hearts and all that. But actually I just love tea - especially British tea. Okay, I’m a bit of a snob and I will turn my nose up at Lipton. And some of the most fun of tea parties are the tea pots and dainty cups and the scones and cream and - well, everything is fun.  So put on your kid gloves, cut up some cucumber sandwiches, try out your British Accent (we shan’t make fun) and have a spot o’ tea with me!

Californians, say goodbye to trans fats. The state with a long-standing commitment to consumer advocacy enacted legislation to phase out the use of these partially hydrogenated oils in restaurants. The law mandates that trans fats be removed from restaurant products by 2010 and from all retail baked goods by the following year. Similar bans have been adopted in New York City and Philadelphia, but adopting the measure in the most populous state is a clear victory for health and wellness proponents.

Trans fats are mainly the result of an industrial process called partial hydrogenation that modifies oils to extend their shelf-life. They raise levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and lower good cholesterol (HDL) levels increasing one’s risk of heart disease. In fact, Harvard nutritionists estimate that trans fats contribute to 30,000 premature coronary deaths per year. To truly understand the threat of trans fats, one statistic ties a 2% increase in their consumption over time with a staggering 25% jump in the likelihood of developing coronary heart disease.

There are trace amounts of naturally occurring trans fats in foods like cabbage, pomegranates, and milk, but consumption of such small quantities is not believed to have a deleterious effect.

Opponents to the ban argue that alternative oils are more expensive, a cost which will ultimately be passed on to the consumer, but many will counter that the premium is well worth the effects on our health. Further, a healthier population will ease health care demands and perhaps help to adjust prices downward over time.

I don’t know about you, but a refreshing margarita is my idea of a perfect way to start my weekend. Or my Tuesday night (kidding). But why go out to get a delicious margarita when you can make one at home? After years of making margaritas, I know exactly what you need to make a kick-ar*se drink for you and your friends to enjoy. Or just you, if you prefer.

Here’s the recipe for the Perfect Marg:

1 shot of tequila (1.5 oz to be exact)
1 oz of lime juice
1/2 oz of Cointreau
* add 1 tablespoon of Pomegranate juice for a summery Pomegranate Margarita!

- Shake in cocktail shaker, rim your margarita glass with kosher salt, pour into glass, serve, & ENJOY!
- For added tropical effect, include some Jimmy Buffet music playing softly in the background.

The legend has yet again resurfaced, making an appearance in the Google cafeteria in New York. Whisperings of this barely edible abomination had emerged years back, but like the Loch Ness monster, there were few credible sightings. What is it? Clearly the world’s unhealthiest burger and the bane of any human’s cardiovascular system. It’s a bacon cheeseburger sandwiched between a sliced glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut. Though it might tickle your taste buds, there’s no escape from any nutritional no-no’s here; the dish exceeds 1000 calories, has 45 grams of fat and is also high in carbs and cholesterol. If you’re up to the challenge, you can also find it being served just outside of St. Louis at a Gateway Grizzlies minor league baseball game. You can dump this one in the same category as all of those taboo carnival treats like deep-fried Snickers bars that were thought of by some evil genius.

Dress it up however you want, but it still is what it is.

I really like cookies, no wait, I freaking love cookies. I love cookies so much that I put myself on a one-year ban from them. Yes, I banned myself from cookies. The next cookie I have will be April 11, 2009 (yeah, I know the date). Anyways … just because I can’t eat cookies doesn’t mean I can’t share my cookie secrets with you.

I bake. Well I “fake-bake”. I always use the Betty Crocker’s cookie mix that comes in a bag. Slice and bake cookies taste like they came out of plastic tube. Those plastic tubes are great for eating cookie dough raw (yeah, I do that too) but for tricking people into thinking you spent hours in the kitchen — not so much.

A favorite of mine is Betty Crocker’s sugar cookie mix because you can turn them into pretty much any kind of cookie. I like to crush up pistachios and add dried cherries to the mix when I make cookies, which equals deliciousness! Betty Crocker had a baking mix contest earlier this year and the contestants came up with some delicious recipes … not that I tried them but the do look delicious. Check them out here>>