Author: Ashley Bischoff

Raspberry-Walnut Shortbread Bars

Ashley BischoffLeave a comment

I subscribe to the newsletter for BackOfTheBox.com. As the name implies, the site features recipes found on the back of boxes and cartons.

And, today’s recipe was for raspberry-walnut shortbread bars. The original “box” was apparently Diamond Walnuts, as they’re listed by name as one of the ingredients.

I like both raspberry and shortbread, so that combination sounded pretty tasty from the start. And, walnuts would only tend to improve upon that ;). I was optimistic about my chances of ever being able to complete the recipe as its ingredients were fairly ordinary (walnuts, flour, sugar, butter, jam…).

However, looking more closely, it looks like it could take a while to bake (bake walnuts 8-10 minutes … bake crust for 25 mintutes … let cool for 5 minutes … bake completed-bars for 25 minutes).

So maybe it’s a bit much effort for an everyday cooking jaunt. But, they could work well for a holiday or other special occasion.

How Much Inside?

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David Brake, also known as “the guy that owns blog.org” passes along How Much Inside?, the site that measures how much stuff is inside various things (go figure).

For instance, they answer the burning questions, “How much Oreo Goo is inside a pack of Oreos?” and “How many square inches of Magic Shell are in a bottle?”.

Simply put, magic shell is awesome. It is ACTION FOOD! It forms a hard shell when put on top of ice cream, which protects it from burrowing insects and mites. It is the perfect way to make ice cream more fun & your classmates jealous.

Developed in the 1960s through a collaborative effort between the U.S. Army and Industrial Light and Magic, magic shell was designed to be a bulletproof camouflage coating for armored vehicles. […]

10,000 Fake Band Names

Ashley Bischoff4 Comments

When Brian Whitman was working on a paper on the human evaluation of artist similarity, he needed a way to eliminate bad results — “robots, users just clicking randomly, and people that didn't know the bands presented”.

So, he wrote up a quick script to generate band names for him. Ten thousand names later, they’re now listed on his webpage. Some of my favorites:

  • Track Botanical
  • Toad Shin
  • Roulette Defenestration [you knew I would include that one ;)]

Non-free Pizza Delivery?!

Ashley Bischoff2 Comments

From this Chicago-Tribune story, some pizza outlets are now charging delivery fees. And, it’s not just the fly-by-night pizza places, but even the big guys like Pizza Hut, Papa John’s and Domino’s. Luckily, it’s only in a few markets at the moment (including LA and San Diego), but I hope that it doesn’t come to Dallas.

To offset slowing revenue growth and soaring labor, utility and other operating costs, Pizza Hut, Papa John’s International Inc. and even Domino’s Pizza Inc., the pioneer of free delivery, are increasingly tacking on delivery fees of up to $1.50 in selected markets, including Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange counties. Some experts think that it will soon be standard practice nationwide.

The companies say consumer opposition has been limited. But drivers complain they receive only a portion of the so-called delivery fees and that their tips have plummeted since their introduction. They argue that it would be far more honest to simply raise prices across the board so customers wouldn't mistakenly believe drivers are profiting from new charges. […]

(Link from ObscureStore)