Foodie News

Classy and Stylish Luli Bebe’ Monaco Snack Bags: Perfect for Going Back to School in Style

August 6, 2021 By Joi Sigers

Image Credit: Luli Bebe’

A few days ago I began working on a “roundup” style post of stylish, very attractive lunch bags for the series of back to school posts. That very day, I got an e-mail about Luli Bebe’s Monaco Snack/Lunch Bags and couldn’t help but be struck by the lovely irony.

I left the windows I had open and honed all of my attention in on the Luli Bebe’ Monaco Snack Bags (Amazon link).

These bags are so exceptionally well-made and so ridiculously beautiful that any student (middle school, high-school, college..) OR any worker (office, factory, grocery store, hospital, coffee shop, restaurant…) would be honored to carry one.

They’re available in many gorgeous colors and, as you can see on the right, give ample room for a great meal and/or multiple snacks.

Designed in Los Angeles, the Monaco Snack Bag is crafted with Luli Bebe’s signature premium vegan leather, featuring a distinctive quilted texture front pouch and classic gold enameling.
Lightweight, fits in travel bags, and easy to carry one-handed. Removable and Adjustable Clip-on Shoulder Strap for over-the-shoulder or crossbody carry.
Made with the finest luxury materials, hardware, and premium YKK zippers. Lined with luxurious and wipeable insulated interior.
The large center space is ideal for packing larger snack items, while an additional pocket expands to fit excess snack items. Front & back exterior pockets feature a magnetic clasp.
The Monaco boasts a padded insulated interior that will keep all snacks and perishables fresh and cool! 100% stain resistant exterior and smooth wipeable interior.

When I was in high school/college, I would have LOVED a great looking bag like this. Feeling kind of salty about the basic little bag I I had to resort to!

I’ll be honest, I’m so excited about and impressed by this particular bag, I’m giving it its own separate post, away from the roundup that’ll be published in a day or two.

Learn more about Luli Bebe’! (They make equally gorgeous diaper bags.)

Frank’s RedHot Introduces Wingman Saucy Support Line AND a Chance to Win a Decked-Out Tailgate Truck!

September 3, 2019 By Joi Sigers

Are you as excited for the return of football as I am?! Autumn, crock-pot meals, chili, soup, Chai Tea Lattes… this is my time of year!

In celebration of the start of football season, Frank’s RedHot is kicking off #WingmanSweepstakes on Twitter. Now through September 27^th, Frank’s is YOUR Wingman! They’ll be responding to fans’ questions about tailgating (and the football and cooking life, in general, I’d imagine). When you use the hastag, you’ll be automatically entered for a chance to win a brand new truck. Not just any truck, mind you. This truck comes with football tickets, a hot sauce fountain, a ridiculously-over-the-top blow up bottle for Frank’s RedHot, a grill, essentials for Buffalo wings (obviously), cornhole and more.
Frank’s isn’t just putting the SASS in chicken wings, they’re putting the FUN in autumn!

Best of luck… I hope one of you win this outstanding prize!

(Continued below the video….)

Press Release

Frank’s RedHot celebrated the start of football and tailgating season by kicking off the #WingmanSweepstakes on Twitter. Through September 27th, the Frank’s Wingman will be responding to fans’ burning questions about tailgating (and life) from what the brand has dubbed their “saucy support line,” while also entering them for chances to win one of four weekly prize drawings and the grand prize – a Frank’s Wingman Tailgate Truck.

This is no fantasy, it’s the real deal! As the saying goes, Frank’s RedHot urges fans to, “Put that S#!t on everything!” This time, that means a truck that comes decked out with Frank’s RedHot tailgating essentials like football tickets, a hot sauce fountain, a grill, essentials for Buffalo wings (obviously), cornhole and more – showing that Frank’s is the wingman that has your back in the most brag-worthy way.

“Frank’s RedHot is everyone’s game-day wingman, and – like a hilariously good friend – sometimes gives you bold advice,” says Alia Kemet, Creative & Digital Strategic Director with Frank’s brand. “For instance, Wingman could tell you something simple like how much Frank’s to put on your wings, or whether to bring a date that you just met to the game. The Frank’s Wingman is there by your side to support all of your saucy tailgating adventures.”

To enter, Twitter users are encouraged to tweet a question at @FranksRedHot, with the hashtag #WingmanSweepstakes, for an assist. By doing so, they will automatically be entered into the sweepstakes for a chance to win the Frank’s RedHot Wingman Tailgate Truck. Fans who are participating will also have the weekly chance to win mini tailgate Wingman kits equipped with a bottle of Frank’s RedHot. All entries must be sent from the account owner, and received no later than September 27, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Use of any automated method to send Entry Tweets is prohibited and will result in disqualification. No purchase necessary to participate. For full terms and conditions of the sweepstakes, visit FranksRedHot.com/sweepstakes.

As the go-to hot sauce of any game-watching event, Frank’s RedHot is the franchise player of your favorite tailgating recipes – Buffalo wings, Buffalo chicken dip, RedHot chili and more. Recipes are available at franksredhot.com/recipes.

About Frank’s: It all started back in 1920 when the first bottle of Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce was introduced. Made with a premium blend of aged cayenne peppers, Frank’s RedHot adds the perfect blend of flavor and heat to your favorite foods. Frank’s Cayenne Pepper Sauce was used as the secret ingredient in the original Buffalo wings created in Buffalo, NY in 1964. Try our family of products including the Original sauce, Buffalo Wings sauce, Queso Dip seasoning mix, Buffalo Ranch seasoning, Frozen Buffalo Wings and more. Visit www.Franksredhot.com for more information and recipes.

Frank’s is one of McCormick & Company’s brands. As a global leader in flavor, McCormick has built a portfolio of leading flavor brands that enhance people’s enjoyment of food all around the world. Every day, no matter where or what you eat, you can enjoy food flavored by McCormick. McCormick Brings the Joy of Flavor to Life™.

Be sure to follow Frank’s on Twitter!

Sparkling Ice Mystery Flavor Contest 2019

June 14, 2019 By Joi Sigers

A while back, in an effort to eat/drink healthier, I completely gave up soft drinks. It was a HUGE step for me. I had been hooked on Diet Dr. Pepper and Dr. Pepper since childhood and I had perfected my game over the years.

Sparkling ice and raspberry tea are, literally, two of the reasons I was able to say good-bye to the Dr. and never look back. Sparkling Ice drinks are particularly fun because there are so many different flavors. I’ve made my way through all of them and consistently buy my favorites: Black Raspberry and Cherry Limeade.

Sparkling Ice actually has an especially fun contest going on right now with a new limited-edition Mystery Flavor. The What the Flavor sweepstakes gives fans the chance to win a Holland America Line Caribbean cruise for two with roundtrip airfare, in addition to 500 other pool-themed prizes!

The new flavor (which takes its cue from flavors of an exotic tropical vacation) is delicious. Absolutely delicious! As soon as you open the top, you’re hit with an exotic scent – your nose knows before your taste buds that it’s going to be special.

See Sparkling Ice’s Facebook Page for all the information you need or visit their website to enter the contest. Good luck… I hope you’ll soon be Cruisin’!

Find Sparkling Ice on Amazon!

America’s Favorite Jelly Bean Flavors, By State

March 7, 2018 By Joi Sigers

What’s your favorite flavor of jelly bean? Mine are grape, cherry and strawberry – pretty crazy about each, but if I had to pick one, it’d be grape. I was really shocked by the results of the favorite jelly bean flavors around the country (see the interactive map below). Licorice?! Seriously?? That’s undoubtedly my LEAST favorite, and here it is a favorite with a lot of people. In fact, it’s the favorite in my own state (Kentucky).

People, what are you thinking?! Grape’s where it’s at. Or cherry or strawberry…. watermelon or green apple, even.

I’m giving myself a craving for jelly beans now. I’ll leave you with the map and see if I can find some in our Easter candy dish. Some grape ones, that is.

Source: 10+ years online candy sales data from CandyStore.com.

Interactive Map Credit: Candy Store

What Is the Ketogenic Diet and How Do You Get Started On It?

July 31, 2017 By Joi Sigers

This is a guest post by Louise Hendon, co-host of The Keto Summit and author of The Essential Keto Cookbook

The Ketogenic diet has been making waves lately.

In fact, you’ve probably seen the name being mentioned by various health-and-wellness bloggers on the internet. But what is it, exactly? And how is it different from all the other diets out there?

We’ll run through what the ketogenic diet is, what foods you can eat on the keto diet, how the diet benefits your health and some beginner’s tips for getting started.

What Is the Ketogenic Diet?

It’s a diet that changes your body’s metabolic state – instead of mainly burning glucose, you’ll be mainly burning fat instead.

That’s because the ketogenic diet limits your carbohydrate intake which means there’s simply less glucose available for your cells to use as fuel. And as a result, your body is forced to start burning up your stored fat.

This metabolic state is called nutritional ketosis and it has all sorts of health benefits (more on those later).

Keto Diet foods: What can you eat?

You’ll be eating a moderate amount of protein, lots of fats, and very few carbohydrates.

Healthy foods to eat include:

Non-starchy vegetables (so leafy greens like spinach and kale)
Meats, organ meats, fish and shellfish
Nuts and seeds (in moderate amounts)
Healthy fats like ghee, coconut oil and olive oil
Herbs and spices, like cinnamon or paprika: Joi has a great article on their health benefits

And the foods to avoid are:

Starchy vegetables like potatoes and squashes
All legumes, aka lentils, beans, and soy
All grains, such as wheat, oats and rice
Vegetable and seed oils
Processed foods, meaning chips, crackers, cookies etc.

If you’d like a more extensive list of what foods you should be eating and avoiding, feel free to check out our list of Keto diet friendly foods.

How does Keto benefit your health?

There are many health benefits to the keto diet, and we’ve rounded up just a few below:

It stabilizes your energy levels by balancing out your blood sugar levels. When you’re not consuming carbs, your energy no longer spikes and dips – you feel more alert and don’t have to deal with brain fog or the dreaded “mid-afternoon slump.”
It can help you beat your sugar addiction because you’ll be going cold turkey on all the sweet treats you’re addicted to. Plus, another benefit of having stabilized your blood sugar levels is you avoid the blood sugar crashes that trigger cravings in the first place.
It decreases your hunger levels naturally and researchers have shown that a low-carb diet leads to lowered food intake because it influences the hormones which control hunger. This then helps with weight loss and combating overeating.
It’s great for weight loss, and just by scanning through some of the many success stories on the web you’ll be able to see how effective the keto diet is for losing weight!
It could be used as a therapeutic treatment for a wide range of diseases. It’s already being used to treat epilepsy, and research is being done to see if it can help reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, PCOS, and cancer.

How does Keto benefit your health?

There are many health benefits to the keto diet, and we’ve rounded up just a few below:

It stabilizes your energy levels by balancing out your blood sugar levels. When you’re not consuming carbs, your energy no longer spikes and dips – you feel more alert and don’t have to deal with brain fog or the dreaded “mid-afternoon slump.”
It can help you beat your sugar addiction because you’ll be going cold turkey on all the sweet treats you’re addicted to. Plus, another benefit of having stabilised your blood sugar levels is you avoid the blood sugar crashes that trigger cravings in the first place.
It decreases your hunger levels naturally and researchers have shown that a low-carb diet leads to lowered food intake because it influences the hormones which control hunger. This then helps with weight loss and combating overeating.
It’s great for weight loss, and just by scanning through some of the many success stories on the web you’ll be able to see how effective the keto diet is for losing weight!
It could be used as a therapeutic treatment for a wide range of diseases. It’s already being used to treat epilepsy, and research is being done to see if it can help reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, PCOS, and cancer.

Tips for getting started on Keto

It’s tough getting started on any diet – here’s our advice for keto:

In the beginning, just focus on reducing your carbohydrate intake. Make sure you focus on eating less than 25g of carbohydrates per day and then, once you’ve adjusted to that, take a look at your protein/fat intake. Especially if you’re used to consuming a Standard American Diet, reducing carb intake will a big enough change in the beginning.
Choose one meal in each day to skip because it will make starting a keto diet much easier if you only have to think about/plan for two meals each day instead of three. Some folks like to skip breakfast and some folks like to skip dinner, so experiment a little to see what works for you. If you have circadian rhythm issues, then skip dinner (or lunch) instead of breakfast.
Find a buddy (friend/husband/wife) as it’ll help you stick to the diet if you’ve got someone else to keep you accountable. And if you can’t find a buddy, then at least share your goals with your friends/family or on social media – it’s been proven to increase your chances of success.
Choose the right week to start by making sure you pick a week when you’re not overloaded with work and don’t have too many social plans. It can be a little tough adjusting to keto in the beginning, so you’ll be much more likely to succeed if you pick a good week to start. Don’t wait forever though!
Plan your meals and re-stock your kitchen to make sure you’re prepped ahead of time…and aren’t stuck in the supermarket wondering what you can/can’t buy and what you should make for dinner. A little bit of planning will go a long way towards making your keto diet journey a stress-free one.

Would you like some simple keto recipes to get you started? Check out my cookbooks here.

Classy and Stylish Luli Bebe’ Monaco Snack Bags: Perfect for Going Back to School in Style