NEW YORK (WABC) -- On Oct. 31, 1984, the NYPD was ready to take on Halloween hooligans using helicopters with floodlights and cops on the beat.
WABC reporter Will Spens talked to Assistant Chief Robert Colangelo in Brooklyn, who told him that the cops were ready for shaving-cream-spreading teen gangs, cemetery-vandalizing ghouls and other mischievous characters who go bump in the Gotham night.
Explained Colangelo: "What we do is we increase the number of uniform people we have particularly around houses of workshops, cemeteries, parks. Also, we have decoys from the street crime unit who work in religious areas to combat any people that want to prey on those people."
However, that wasn't enough to stop "a roaming gang of Brooklyn shaving cream spreaders," as Spens brilliantly put it.
A group of kids spent their Halloween spraying shaving cream on each other. They proudly showed off the extra-large eggs they couldn't wait to toss.
Spens asked the kids: "Eggs! What are you going to do with eggs?"
"We are going to throw it at people," one of the kids said matter of factly.
It wasn't long until their items were confiscated, but these kids had some nerve. Watch as one of the teens begs a cop to let him keep his shaving-cream can.
Little T’s Peanut Barker frozen yogurt for dogs will make its debut Saturday, Nov. 2, at Tucker’s Super Creamed Ice Cream in Alameda.
You are about to be so envious of your dog.
Tucker’s Super Creamed Ice Cream, which has been scooping up favorites to Bay Area humans since 1941, is introducing a new frozen yogurt that’s just for dogs.
“Little T’s Peanut Barker” frozen yogurt debuts with fanfare at a special event this weekend — from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 2 — at the shop’s longtime location, 1349 Park St., Alameda.
Little T’s is a handcrafted blend of banana and peanut butter frozen Greek yogurt, developed for dogs. It will join human favorites on the menu, including Lemon Custard, Maple Bacon and Salted Butter Caramel.
Tucker’s had to apply for a “Products Resembling Milk Product” license from the Department of Food and Agriculture to produce the dog treat, and the new flavor meets governmental regulations and likely will meet your dog’s requirements, too.
The yogurt isn’t just a treat for your dog; it’s helping to support pets at the Alameda Animal Shelter. Naming rights for the frozen dogurt were auctioned off at the Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter’s annual ball last year. A bidding war broke out, and officials decided to award the rights to two bidders, each of whom pledged $5,000.
One bidder, who donated the money, hasn’t acted on the naming award yet, so Tucker’s is considering adding a second flavor.
In addition to the $10,000 raised for the shelter, Tucker’s will donate 50 cents to the shelter from every frozen dogurt sold.
Erika Zimmerman, managing member of Tucker’s Ice Cream, said the idea for the dogurt was sparked when a customer bought a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a dog that was going through radiation treatments.
“It was so sweet to see how much the dog enjoyed their treat, and their human enjoyed giving it to them,” Zimmerman said. “That is when we knew we wanted to make a treat specifically for our four-legged friends that would be safe for them to eat.”
Humphry Slocombe had dropped a limited-edition CBD-infused ice cream
Humphry Slocombe has announced a new flavor called “Trick or Treat” that’s infused with CBD from Vertosa. The company describes it as “peppermint patty ice cream with chocolate chips and marshmallow fluff,” and a SF Gate reviewer says it left him feeling lightheaded and turned his teeth gray. If that doesn’t scare you off, you can score it until November 3 at any of Humphry Slocombe’s five Bay Area locations.
A San Francisco bar owner says it’s not tech bros or millennials that are killing his business, it’s City Hall
Tonic Nightlife Group has closed a couple of its bars in recent months, including Bullitt and Nokturnal. In a KQED op-ed, Ben Bleiman, a Tonic partner, says that San Francisco legislators create more problems than solutions for local businesses, including “fees or taxes that force our prices endlessly up.” SFist notes that this isn’t the first time publicans have made this argument, citing the harsh words the owner of Mr. Smith’s had when his venue closed last month.
Tonight’s the last night to go to Kennedy’s Pub & Curry House
Kennedy’s has stood at 1040 Columbus Avenue for decades, where it’s been known as “the city’s premier combination Irish pub/Indian restaurant/bike rental/pool hall and souvenir T-shirt shop,” the Chron writes. That all ends this evening, as — via Facebook — its owners say the place is serving its last craft beers and pakoras tonight. Owner Brahmabuta Swami has not commented on any reasons behind the closure.
The Gold Dust Lounge has been closed “indefinitely”
The longstanding SF bar was evicted from its Powell Street location in 2012, and reopened at 165 Jefferson Street the year after. Hoodline reports that the bar has been “closed until further notice” following a flood in its building. The news gets worse from there, as an employee says “the odds of this place getting fixed aren’t good,” and that the place might not ever reopen.
SoMa construction has killed Bluxome Street Winery’s tasting room
Matt Reidy, the founder of Bluxome Street Winery, tells the Chron that the massive amount of construction near its 53 Bluxome Street location will make it tough for sippers to enjoy themselves in the winery’s 3,000-square-foot tasting room. The room will close at the end of 2019, but the winery, itself, will continue to produce, at a reduced pace of about 1,000 cases per year.
Pharmacist Thomas Spell Jr., 52, of Ridgeland, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison for his role in a $400 million pain cream fraud.
"I've been in jail for a really long time already," Spell said before he was sentenced. "I get to relive this every day. I think about every decision I made and what I could have done differently.
"Every second of my life is all about this case."
Spell pleaded guilty to filing $243,550,503 in false claims with TRICARE, the health benefits program for the military.
U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett ordered Spell to pay the entire amount in restitution to TRICARE. He was not ordered to pay any fines since the amount of restitution was so high, Starrett said.
He told Spell he could have received a much longer prison sentence — up to 30 years, and encouraged Spell to take advantage of the programs that will be offered to him while in federal custody.
"You will have opportunities in jail to help other people and help yourself," Starrett said. "It's not an end to life. It's a new beginning."
Story continues below photo.
Client was 'looking for something to be true'
Spell's attorney Matt Tyrone said his client approached him and wanted to plead guilty, without any prompting or plea agreements from the government.
His client wanted to make things right, to hold himself accountable for his actions, Tyrone said.
In the beginning: Details emerge in alleged compounding pharmacy scheme
Before his involvement in the fraud, Spell in 2012 found himself divorced, living in an extended-stay hotel and feeling like an outcast from his community.
"I think he started looking for something to be true," Tyrone said.
Spell came into the fraud in 2014, at first working part time in a warehouse filling orders for Medworx, but within three months it has grown to having dozens of employees working full time.
"It proved too good to be true," Tyrone said. "There should have been a stop (to the fraud). It should have been stopped, but it wasn't."
Key players: What happened to the 12 respected professionals accused in $400M compound pharmacy scheme?
Cost to fill each prescription exceeded $10,000
The claims filed by Spell and others involved prescriptions for costly pain creams and vitamin pills with price tags of more than $10,000 and some nearly $15,000 apiece.
Compounded medicines are supposed to be tailored to individual needs, but these were prescribed on preprinted prescription pads for numerous patients.
Many of the patients did not need the cream nor had ever seen the prescribing doctor, even though the pain creams contained a controlled substance.
Nearly $30 million of the fraudulently obtained money went directly to Spell. More than $26 million in assets held by Spell will be returned to the government through forfeiture.
Spell had remained free on a $100,000 unsecured bond since he was indicted in August 2018.
He was taken into custody following the hearing.
Spell is one of 13-and-counting involved in the fraud
Spell’s case is part of the largest health care fraud scheme ever investigated and prosecuted in Mississippi, U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst said in an earlier story.
In addition to Spell, 11 people pleaded guilty and one was convicted at trial for their roles in the pain cream scheme.
Several were scheduled for sentencing this week, but their hearings have been continued. New dates have not been set.
More are being charged as the investigation continues, including Hattiesburg businessman Wade Walters, the believed mastermind, who is charged with more than $510 million in fraud.
Pain cream fraud grows: Tangled web unravels more with indictment of Wade Walters
Another pain cream scheme: Nurse pleads guilty to role in $7.2 million fraud
A bigger picture:Court papers show businessman's ties to pharmaceuticals lab
Contact Lici Beveridge at 601-584-3104 or lbeveridge@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @licibev.
DipDipDip Ice Cream just opened in Austin and its cones are two desserts in one.
All of the ice creams are inspired by Japanese flavors like matcha, ube, and yuzu.
You can find the shop at 7301 Burnet Rd #101 in Austin, Texas.
The following is a transcript
Sydney Kramer: This new ice cream shop just opened in Austin from one of the city's most beloved chefs. And people can't get enough of its one-of-a-kind cones, which feature ever-changing, Japanese-inspired flavors.
Customer: Oh, my God, whoa.
Sydney: It's been raining on and off all day, and we have a shoot at an ice cream shop today, so I'm not going to let that stop us. I love ice cream. Let's go to DipDipDip ice cream and eat some ice cream and forget that it's raining and my hair is frizzy. [sighs] I need some ice cream. DipDipDip ice cream is the latest concept from the Tatsu-ya group, who are behind multiple restaurants in Austin and have won prestigious awards from Bon Appétit, James Beard, Eater, and more.
Liana Sinclair: Our ice creams in general are very different than anything in Austin because they're essentially plated desserts in cups and cones. You're eating it twice, essentially. You eat all the toppings off the top of it with the ice cream, and then after you've kind of pushed your ice cream down into the cone, it eats very differently. We actually use a very high fat content. We try and use local dairy for all of our items. And then our overrun, I guess is what they call it, the amount of air that's whipped into our ice cream is actually a lot lower than what you'd find at, like, your grocery store. Sydney: The most interesting element to DipDipDip's cones is the toppings. You can get anything from whipped crème fraîche to teriyaki marshmallows.
Customer: That is really good. It, like, melts in your mouth.
Customer: I mean, wow. There's a lot happening in my mouth right now. It is pretty delicious, I have to say. I like it. I'd say people are gonna probably lose their minds over this a little bit, for sure. Sydney: One of the most popular flavors is the bright-purple ube ice cream. That cone gets topped with cream-cheese sauce, blueberry gel, fresh blueberries, and candied blueberry-flavored cereal. Oh, my God. That's crazy.
Chris Ostlund: We just started pouring things into a machine and saying, like, this sounds like a cool flavor combination, it uses the Japanese ingredients, let's see what it tastes like. We're a company of experimenters, for sure.
Sydney: The shop uses mochiko, a type of rice flour, to make its cones. This results in a crunchier, crispier cone with a slightly sweeter flavor than a more standard option. For me, when I eat ice cream, texture is really important. Like, usually, if I'm at the grocery store, I go for Americone Dream. Sorry. So, having, like, a crunch and the sauce and the cone and, like, the creamy, soft ice cream is heavenly. And the killer part of this is that, look, I've had a lot of ube ice cream. I don't think anybody actually uses, like, fresh ube. I think they probably get something in a can, maybe there's some kind of paste or purée you can buy. We saw them making this ube ice cream with real potato; it was so cool. We got it right out of the machine. You can taste the texture of potato, and having that body really makes a big difference. It reminds you what flavor you're looking for, which is really cool. Other flavors include matcha, yuzu, and even miso PB&J. The flavors rotate often, so there's always something new. Customer: Tastes like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but a really good one, not like a basic one. Sydney: The yuzu cone is paired with meringue kisses, strawberry preserves, and shiso leaf. And maybe even a teriyaki marshmallow skewer, if you ask. Customer: I like that it's on the thicker side, so you can definitely tell that they have a lot more flavor and it's not just a lot of air.
Sydney: The matcha is topped with red bean sauce, crème fraîche, and black beans. It's not sweet. It's like a delightful cloud of deliciousness. Woah. It almost tastes like a really good matcha latte. It's awesome. Mm. That's genius.
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If one of your pastimes is baking, you've more than likely come across at least one type of cream in various recipes. While heavy cream, whipping cream, and whipped cream may all appear to be the same thing, there are subtle differences in each. In fact, the two that look most alike are the least related and another cream is used to make the other. We know it can get confusing.
Basically, each cream plays a different role in baking and even cooking, too. To help distinguish between each cream, Kimberly Bugler, executive pastry chef at Scala's Bistro in San Francisco, explains which dishes call for heavy cream, whipping cream, and whipped cream. And for more about popular, beloved foods, be sure to check out The Most Iconic Food in Every State.
What is heavy cream?
"Heavy cream is just what it sounds like—[it's] the cream layer that normally floats to the surface of fresh milk," says Bugler. "It has no stabilizers in it, just the fat content that is naturally in it—36 percent or above."
She says it lends a silky texture to desserts, sauces, and even savory applications such as fillings for quiches.
"In my kitchen, I only use heavy cream. If I want to make something that requires [a lower] fat content such as ice cream or a crème brûlée, I adapt by adding whole milk to it [instead]," she says. "I prefer to use heavy cream in all of our desserts at Scala's since it is a more natural product and gives a more luxurious texture. It is more expensive, but for an ingredient that is essential to great desserts, it is worth it."
What is whipping cream?
"Whipping cream has a lower fat content—less than 36 percent—and is stabilized by other thickening and emulsifying agents so that its water content can still hold air and won't deflate as quickly," says Bugler.
Whipping cream can be used as a swap for heavy cream in just about any dish including soups, sauces, and as a garnish on desserts. It's simply a lighter version of heavy cream.
So believe it or not, there are actually different kinds of whipped cream depending on what you intend on using it for. Bugler compares the process of making whipped cream to blowing up tiny balloons, with the walls of the balloons being made of cream.
"A denser liquid such as heavy cream will give you stronger balloon walls that are less likely to deflate," says Bugler. "If you take out the fat from this cream, as you would for whipping cream, you must add thickeners so that [it is] able to hold air bubbles."
Whipped cream can be incorporated into a variety of desserts. For example, if the pastry chef is using whipped cream to make something light and fluffy such as a mousse, she won't add any stabilizers to it. However, if she is making a dessert topping out of it and wants to serve it right away, she will only add powdered sugar. This will allow it to stay inflated—like a balloon that was just blown up—for a short amount of time, which is perfect if it's going to be consumed shortly after it's prepped.
"If I need it to hold its shape on a dessert that I will serve later, such as taking a pie to a friend's house, or giving my cooks a pastry bag full of whipped cream that needs to last a few hours through lunch service, I will either stabilize it with gelatin, or a bit of mascarpone," she says.
Whipped cream is more commonly made from heavy cream than whipping cream. Who knew?!
You may not think of Palo Alto as the epicenter of ice cream in the Bay Area, but that’s what it’s become — and we’re not talking the standard Baskin Robbins kind of ice cream. With a population of 67,000 people within a 24-square-mile radius, Palo Alto is not a big city. But despite that, this town has seven artisanal ice cream shops, five of which are within a three-block radius of each other.
To imply superior quality, shops describe their dairylicious offerings as “gourmet,” “microcreamery,” “artisan,” “handmade,” “handcrafted,” “small batch,” “nitrogen-frozen,” “locally sourced,” and “all natural.” These ice creameries make their own products with premium ingredients, usually in smaller batches, for better quality control and freshness. Some also use unconventional methods and ingredients to differentiate themselves from the rest.
Ice cream is America’s favorite dessert — sorry, apple pie — but it seems excessive for one small city to have this many places that serve a gourmet version of it. So why is Palo Alto such a hot spot for ice cream?
Tin Pot Creamery started its business in Palo Alto before it became a brick-and-mortar shop. The owners of Morsey’s Creamery are loyal residents of the area. Scoop Microcreamery’s current owners bought the business over a year ago because of their love of ice cream. Gelato Classico and Rick’s Rather Rich Ice Cream have been around since before the neighborhood became hip. And it made perfect business sense for Salt & Straw to want in on such a popular, educated, affluent area like Palo Alto’s University Avenue.
With an estimated 40,000 new jobs expected to be created in this part of the peninsula in the next few years, that may be reason enough to justify multiple gourmet ice cream shops.
There may not be a consensus for why Palo Alto has become a mecca for ice cream. However, for a potential small business, it has a lot going for it.
The mid-peninsula is considered by many as the new hub of Silicon Valley, and Palo Alto sits right in the middle of the action. Google and LinkedIn are to the south in neighboring Mountain View, and Facebook is to the north in Menlo Park. Companies such as Tesla, VMware, and Hewlett-Packard are also within the city limits. With an estimated 40,000 new jobs expected to be created in this part of the peninsula during the next few years, that may be reason enough to justify multiple gourmet ice cream shops.
“A group of six people could come in, and three will get ice cream from the business down the street, while three will want something from us.”
All that tech business aside, at its heart, Palo Alto is still a college town. Stanford University’s student body makes up about a quarter of the town’s total population. And 24% of those students are international. That’s a lot of diversity to add to the community. With so many different cultures and tastes, more variety can be justified—these young adults are more apt to try new things, food included. Nitrogen-frozen artisanal thai-iced-tea-flavored gelato, anyone?
Thai Iced Tea ice cream and a chocolate dipped waffle cone from Scoop Microcreamery. Photo: Elaine Wu
Palo Alto is also home to some of the highest real estate prices in the country. Plenty of affluent families have put down roots here, resulting in a close-knit community. At Rick’s Rather Rich Ice Cream in Palo Alto, current owner Akansha (Kiki) Khosla knows the value of a loyal customer base; many of her customers have been coming to Rick’s since it opened in the 1960s.
“You’d be surprised,” she said. “When I first bought the place nine years ago, I thought people would want something super-modern and techy. It’s not like that. I feel like a lot of customers love this place because it hasn’t changed much. They crave things that are new, but also old-fashioned things.”
Em Wu, the co-owner of Scoop Microcreamery, believes that the constant flow of people plays a large part. “There may be a lot of competition, but everybody likes something different,” she told us. “A group of six people could come in, and three will get ice cream from the business down the street, while three will want something from us.”
It’s a tough job, but I decided to visit the seven artisanal Palo Alto ice cream shops to delve further into how shops here differentiate themselves from the competition. I didn’t include any places that specialize in a variation of an ice cream or gelato dessert, such as ice cream sandwiches or Thai-rolled ice cream. That would would just be overkill.
Gelataio
Started by Chris Mares five years ago, Gelataio recently added another location in San Carlos. The Palo Alto location is the original. It’s half store, half production facility, where Mares and her staff make all the gelatos and chocolate-dipped gelato popsicles. They use local, organic ingredients when possible and stay away from using anything artificial. Gelataio’s aesthetic is clean and minimalist, making it feel more like a sophisticated cafe than an ice cream shop. Mares refers to her shops as “studios.” Flavor combinations include pear Riesling and hibiscus pineapple.
This tiny shop is one of a few Bay Area locations that sells Gelato Classico, a local brand of gelatos and sorbettos manufactured in Concord. The brand has been around since 1976, and it isn’t in the business of reinventing the gelato wheel, so it sticks with classic flavors. It’s the kind of place where you’d come in for an espresso, then opt for a scoop of gelato as well.
As the new kid on the block, Morsey’s offers an unusual ingredient: water buffalo milk sourced from its own farm in Sacramento. The buffalo milk makes Morsey’s gelato creamier and richer than ice cream made with cow’s milk; there’s also more than double the calcium, more protein, and less cholesterol. Not only do owners Yulia and Kal Morsey operate their restaurant and creamery in Palo Alto, but also they live in the peninsula, so they’re personally invested in the area. “We’ve lived the good life here in the community for years,” Yulia says. “I love seeing the reaction on the faces of the people that we share our gelato with. It’s such a joy.”
This Palo Alto institution has seen five different owners since Rick Payne opened the shop nearly 60 years ago, yet it has stayed unchanged throughout the years. Rick’s nails the classic ice cream parlor feel, complete with bright-yellow walls and cow-themed tchotchkes with quaint sayings like “Life’s uncertain… Eat ice cream first!” But don’t let that fool you.
Using Rick’s original recipes, owner Kiki and the staff make each of the 48 flavors in small batches and are constantly adding more. Customer suggestions have resulted in unusual flavors such as kulfi (a common Indian dessert), Blue Moon (a Midwest cult classic that tastes like Fruit Loops), saffron pistachio, and six different varieties of chocolate on any given day.
Rick’s is now a community fixture. “People have stories of when they came here when they were kids and how they bring their grandchildren now,” Kiki says. “That’s what I really love about this place.”
If you’re an adventurous eater, this is the place for you. In just eight years, this Portland, Oregon, original has expanded into an ice cream empire, with 19 stores along the West Coast. When Salt &Straw opens a new store, it insists on using locally available premium ingredients. For its Bay Area locations, the company works with Dandelion Chocolate, Cowgirl Creamery, and Sightglass Coffee, all based in San Francisco. Salt & Straw is known for its weird and wacky flavor combinations, which change frequently. On my last visit to the Palo Alto location, I spotted such flavors as Freckled Chocolate Zucchini Bread, Caramel Corn on the Cob, and Tomato Strawberry sorbet.
“I admit it — I’m an ice cream snob,” says Em Wu, who co-owns Scoop Microcreamery with her dad, Robert Lee. With his previous culinary experience in Asia, Robert is the one who works behind the counter, making their small-batch ice creams. The creamery uses liquid nitrogen to quickly freeze the ice cream base and create less ice in the final product. Aside from being a dramatic way to make ice cream, the process results in a product that is richer, creamier, and denser than your average store-bought version.
Em and Robert also don’t use fillers and stabilizers, such as guar gum, a common additive used to help ice cream thicken and hold its shape. “We’re honest about what we use to make our ice cream,” Em says, “and I think our customers can taste the difference.” Popular flavors include Thai Iced Tea and Speculicious, a rich cream-flavored base with crunchy gingerbread-cookie bits.
Although the shop is only five years old, Em believes that community involvement is key to their staying power. “The locals know us. We participate in fundraisers and local events,” she explains. “We’re part of the community, and we want to be. We know there’s a lot of competition, but it makes us try harder. We don’t cut corners; we just try to do our best.”
In 2012, Becky Sunseri, a former pastry chef for Facebook, and an anonymous business partner started their company as a mail-order ice cream service in Palo Alto. Today, this location remains the original brick-and-mortar store, but Sunseri and her partner have now expanded to five locations, with the latest at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
Using organic and local ingredients, Tin Pot Creamery makes French-style ice creams, using egg yolks to impart a custard-like taste and texture. It also uses a machine that incorporates more air into the final product, which makes it creamier and denser. My favorites are the Blue Jasmine (a rich yet light floral tea flavor) and Pink Dragon Pineapple Sherbet (bold yet refreshing).
Quitting smoking is hard. Over the years, ex-smokers have sworn by a myriad of methods: pills, patches, cold turkey. The list goes on.
But one cheap and easy quit-smoking-fast tactic making the rounds on Facebook sounds too easy to be true.
And that’s because it is.
According to a viral Facebook post that’s been shared over 300,000 times since Oct. 14, simply mixing cream of tartar powder with orange juice will "flush the nicotine out of your system."
The post features a picture of cream of tartar with a lengthy caption that says:
"Go to your favorite grocery store and buy Cream of Tartar Seasoning and a gallon of Orange Juice. Mix 1 teaspoon in a glass and drink once a day. I recommend when you get up and another glass halfway through your day. I know this sounds too simple, but it really works! The Cream of Tartar flushes the nicotine out of your system and blocks it from receiving it again! After about two days, smoking tastes like s***, you're blocked from the nicotine rush and the desire is gone!"
The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
There is no scientific evidence to support the claim that drinking cream of tartar and orange juice rids the body of nicotine and thus helps people quit smoking.
The basis behind the claim is problematic because it relies on unsupported theories about detoxifying the body through various diets or cleanses.
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, an office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, says that a variety of detoxification diets, regimens and therapies "have been suggested as ways to remove toxins from your body, lose weight, or promote health."
However, the center warns that some of these programs can be unsafe and falsely advertised, and said a 2015 review concluded "there was no compelling research to support the use of "detox" diets for weight management or eliminating toxins from the body."
The Shareably article alleges that the way cream of tartar helps "flush" nicotine out of the body is by getting "your adrenal glands working in conjunction with the rest of your body... Then your body naturally decides which toxins to eliminate through bowel movements, urine, and sweat."
But it is unclear how that could even work.
While potassium-rich cream of tartar has a diuretic effect, meaning it increases urine production, this doesn’t explain how it would somehow impact metabolism.
"I know of no biological mechanism by which cream of tartar would get the adrenal glands working," Neal Benowitz, professor emeritus at the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, told PolitiFact in an email.
"The vast majority of nicotine is eliminated by liver metabolism, and only a small fraction excreted unchanged in the urine."
Benowitz said he knows no "biologically plausible argument" for why this drink mixture should work.
Our ruling
A viral Facebook post says people can easily quit smoking by mixing cream of tartar and orange juice because it helps remove nicotine from the body.
This claim relies on unsubstantiated pseudoscience. No credible evidence supports it.
I know the days are getting darker, the weather's getting colder and you might not necessarily be thinking about indulging in a tub of ice cream, but hear me out! Asda's offering sounds pretty fun and you might just find yourself going and getting it. Asda is selling tubs of Elf Really Creamy Ice Cream for just £2! Described as having a "fabulously festive swirl of green raspberry and white candy floss flavours" and "scattered with candy cane sugar sprinkles", this simply sounds AND looks adorable.
This would make the perfect dessert this Christmas if you don't fancy having anything too heavy after scoffing all of those pigs in blankets.
Not in the market for a plain bowl of ice cream? How about pimping it up? You could wedge some between two of your FAVE biscuits and make your very own ice cream sandwich (just in case you didn't know how to make them already). Or maybe an ice cream sundae is more your kinda thing. You could even take things to the next level by putting a big scoop in our AH-MAZING brownie ice cream cups. Er yum!
But if you really really don't fancy tucking into some cold ice cream, what about Asda's new gin range? Yep, I'm talking gingerbread, mince pie AND toasted marshmallow gins...
Asda has also released a number of other food products as part of its 2019 Christmas range, including Champagne Truffles, Mini Posh Hot Dogs and Pip the Penguin Cake.
Humphry Slocombe's limited edition Trick or Treat CBD ice cream.
Humphry Slocombe's limited edition Trick or Treat CBD ice cream.
Photo: Dan Gentile
Photo: Dan Gentile
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Humphry Slocombe's limited edition Trick or Treat CBD ice cream.
Humphry Slocombe's limited edition Trick or Treat CBD ice cream.
Photo: Dan Gentile
We ate Humphry Slocombe’s Trick or Treat CBD ice cream and it was kind of scary
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These days CBD is so ubiquitous that Halloween baskets are some of the only places where you won’t find cannabinoid oil, but local ice cream makers Humphry Slocombe have given adult dessert lovers a special Halloween treat – a mildly sedative, limited edition CBD flavor that will turn your teeth a very scary color.
Available through the end of the month to customers aged 18 and up, the peppermint patty ice cream with chocolate chips and marshmallows features 10mg of CBD from Oakland-based infuser Vertosa. It’s available in a cone, or a sundae with hot fudge and candy corn.
I biked down to the Humphrey Slocombe location in the Ferry Building and ordered two massive scoops in a waffle cone (due to a lifelong aversion to candy corn, and love of waffle cones). While braving the condescending stares of a couple sipping Blue Bottle, I took a requisite Insta-photo of the ice cream cone, carefully cropping out my unsightly fingernails. Black melty ice cream dribbled down my hand, and I took a bite.
My first sensation was a refreshing burst of creamy peppermint. Then I felt like I’d bit into a razorblade hiding in a fun-sized Kit Kat.
I couldn’t quite tell if they were thick chocolate chips or peppermint chunks, but whatever studded the scoops gave a jarring hard contrast to the soft texture of the ice cream. The squishy marshmallows were the opposite, an uncanny blob amidst otherwise excellent ice cream. I wasn’t happy with the textures, but that didn’t stop me from eating what felt like a half pound of dessert.
Say what you will about the CBD trend, but as I stood up to walk to my bike, I realized this was no ordinary ice cream. Sure, any afternoon cone will brighten your day, but I must admit that the shot of CBD made the sunlight feel just a bit warmer and my head a little lighter.
Also, it turned my teeth significantly grayer and left my incisors tingling for hours afterwards.
So for those looking for a sweet and sedative dessert, Humphry Slocombe’s Trick or Treat flavor delivers. But if you’ve got sensitive teeth and don’t have a toothbrush handy, maybe just add a few drops of CBD oil to your Secret Breakfast.
Dan Gentile is a digital editor at SFGate. Email: Dan.Gentile@sfgate.com | Twitter: @Dannosphere
Lineup Decision of the Week: Jason Swinford's The Great Marpet Capers has no fear in putting Drew Brees back into the starting lineup.
I probably would have chosen Christopher's sneaky signing and start of Pittsburgh if I hadn't already written about it above. I understand that it is not exactly a sign of genius to start Drew Brees over Jacoby Brissett in a fantasy football league. One could argue that Brissett has been pretty good, however, and a more cautious owner might have waited a week to see if Brees really could throw the ball well with his barely recovered thumb. Isn't there a parallel universe in which Brees tries it out, finds his grip fading early in the game and the Saints turn back to Teddy Bridgewater for the rest of this game and maybe another week or two? It's not like they were struggling with Bridgewater.
Brees scored 24.92 points in his return, in an easy win over the Cardinals. McCaffrey started slow against the 49ers great defense but still finished with 28.50. Chark put up another 19.90. Most of this was unnecessary as the Matt Gay 4 Trey team didn't have a single human put up more than 11.90 points (the 49ers defense got 17.00). Jamison Crowder disappeared – or has maybe never appeared in the first place – and the FLEX position got 4.70 points from a certain B. Johnson. That is apparently Minnesota Vikings' wide receiver Bisi Johnson. I'm not going to lie: I've never heard of Bisi Johnson and I had to look that one up.
Anyway, I'm not really trying to convince you that starting Drew Brees was a stunning move. I picked it more because I wanted to point out how loaded Jason's lineup looks with the return of his top quarterback. Jason has the one player most likely to score big points every week in Christian McCaffrey, and Josh Jacobs isn't a bad RB caddy to go with CMC. David Montgomery, who broke out big this week, and Devin Singletary are on the bench for us in a pinch or in the flex, and Melvin Gordon is there too, waiting to hit his stride. In-season addition D.J. Chark is the real deal. Tyler Lockett is now Russell Wilson's 1A and is producing very consistently. And guess who I haven't mentioned yet: the Patriots' defense. No fantasy team defense should be an every-week difference maker. The Patriots are and it's very, very irritating.
It took a lot of good moves to get a roster this stacked. Too bad Jason also gave a game away by not starting a kicker one week.
Lineup Blunder of the Week: Justin Beetz and The Revolution choosing Robert Woods and Marques Valdez-Scantling as two of its three receivers over Emmanuel Sanders and Auden Tate.
Tyreek Hill was the obvious play in one WR spot and he got a respectable 14.10 points. Justin then selected two more wideouts, putting one in the FLEX. Faced with the choices of Woods vs. Cincinnati, MVS vs. Kansas City, Sanders vs. Carolina and Tate vs. the L.A. Rams, I can't say I would have done differently. Still, there had to at least have been some thought to seeing if Sanders would show up big in his first game for the Niners.
If Justin had started either Sanders (12.50) or Tate (11.50) over either Woods (6.20) or Valdes-Scantling (1.40), he would have beaten the mighty Water Walkers. Not both moves…just one. That's gotta hurt just a little.
Best Game of the Week: Water Walkers 124.56, The Revolution 120.18
This could be the game of the year so far, and I've already covered it at length above. Every other game was essentially a blowout, with an average margin of victory of about 42 points.
Standings Update: Yes, I probably overplayed the idea that the top four teams have taken control, particularly since six teams make the playoffs and then anything can happen. My team, for instance, has to play the Water Walkers next week with a M.A.S.H. unit at running back, so I may not be enjoying that top-four perch for long.
As noted above, there are five 5-3 teams chasing the Water Walkers. Just on the outside looking in is Nick Russin's Kung Suh Panda team, at 4-4. That team has the league's lowest scoring output, however, so it doesn't seem like a huge threat at the moment. Campbell Sears' Minshew Magic needs to conjure up a bit of a winning streak to get back into it from its 3-5 spot, but actually has a better point total than the teams in fifth and sixth place.
And, Ladies and Gentleman, Ladies and Edelman is out of last place! That now belongs to Deckerhoff the Halls, which won in Week One and has yet to taste victory again.
Additional Week Seven Results: I've already covered the wins by Ladies and Edelman, Water Walkers and The Great Marpet Capers. Here's the rest of the action:
A matchup of two Pros, and it wasn't particularly close. Conner's 24.00 points on Monday night were totally unnecessary, but nice for my total points bottom line in the standings. Aaron Rodgers stayed hot (27.10) and when he made that ridiculous back-corner lob to Jamaal Williams I doubled up because I had Williams (18.60) in the starting lineup, too. That was a nice moment. George Kittle finally did something (14.60) and D.K. Metcalf hardly needed any actual receiving yards to put up 16.30. The Jaguars play against the Jets paid off well, too (15.00). Also fortuned for P&L: I faced Carmen with Lamar Jackson on a bye week. Actually, Jameis Winston scored quite well in his stead (23.34) and Michael Thomas enjoyed Brees's return (27.30). But Mohamed Sanu was not a sudden revelation in Foxboro and the Texans defense lost J.J. Watt and didn't even muster up a single point.
- Kung Suh Panda (Nick Russin) 110.16, Brate Scott (89.78)
Nick's team would have lost against eight other opponents but managed to draw Casey's team, which has dropped three straight after looking as if it was finally figuring things out. Julio Jones (25.20) and JuJu Smith-Schuster (21.30) carried the day and made up for a bad debut in the lineup by recent pickup Ty Johnson (4.80). Ty McLaurin and Gerald Everett didn't do much, either, but Josh Allen got 19.26 and Devonta Freeman scored 18.20. Nobody got more than 17.70 for Casey, although that total belonged to Joe Mixon, which is a good sign for what has proved to be one of the most disappointing picks of the first two rounds. Brandin Cooks got hurt and didn't score at all.
The injury to Alvin Kamara has been an absolute boon for Chris, who owns Latavius Murray. Murray got 36.70 this week to complement the gigantic 220-yard, 35.00-point outing for Cooper Kupp. Oh, and Aaron Jones put up a modest 41.60 points in that wonderful Packers-Chiefs shootout. That was more than enough to make up for the awful performance of the Cardinals duo of QB Kyler Murray and RB Chase Edmonds (14.40 points combined). The Minshew crew was top heavy, getting 25.96 from the man himself plus 20.60 from Leonard Fournette and 28.30 from Saquon Barkley. But the supporting case was bad, particularly T.Y. Hilton, Eric Ebron and the Bears defense.
Tales from the Message Board: Some of this week's discussions within the Buccaneers FANtasy Challenge league:
Becky says: Whoop whoop 2na win!!
Editor's note: Uh, what's that again. Tuna win?
Becky says: Whoop whoop second win of the year!
Editor's note: That's better.
Campbell_ says:_ Why is your name not "The Beckyneers"
Editor's note: That's a solid suggestion, Becky. However, might be best not to change anything now that you're rolling.
Nick_ says:_ I need 0.92 points from Juju to beat Casey...I can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m actually a little nervous.
Editor's note: That's ONE catch, Nick. One. I mean, Mason Rudolph is going to put at least one football within a few feet of JJSS.
Jason_ says:_ Back to back high scoring bench trophy??? I'm thinking maybe
Christopher Hatton_ says:_ Hold my beer...
Editor's note: Not actually, Christopher. But he did have to hold my beer, and the other Christopher's beer.
The Rock, a man who travels with 40,000 pounds of workout equipment when filming, has managed to surprise us yet again with his commitment to cheat days. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson shared his #cheatmealsunday breakfast (dinner?) with fans Monday, and it was as elaborate as you might expect.
"#sundaycheatmeal keeps rollin' on as I bring new meaning to the word, gluttony one bite at a time," he wrote on Instagram, along with a photo of three pints of Salt and Straw ice cream and a plate full of pancakes.
"Not one, not two, but three pints of my fav ice cream @saltandstraw," he wrote. Two pints were Chocolate Gooey Brownie—chocolate ice cream filled with brownie pieces baked with marshmallows—while the third was Chocolate Chip (the full name is hidden by the first pint he was working on, lol). According to MyFitnessPal data, a pint has upwards of 1,000 calories in it, meaning he's looking at roughly 3,000 calories in ice cream alone.
In between all that dairy, there were at least three pancakes "smothered with peanut butter and syrup," as one who is not at all concerned with calories does.
It's nice to see The Rock is somewhat mortal, as evidenced by his watching-Netflix-while-eating-dinner situation. "Entertainment for the night is, DOLEMITE. Highly recommend. Good to see Eddie the 🐐back in the game."
In case you don't follow The Rock and are new to this wildly caloric Sunday ritual, note that the man drinks four gallons of water per day, snacks on full packs of hot dogs at one time, and most assuredly works out more than you and I....just take a look at the Instagram post before his cheat day meal for confirmation. Anyone else suddenly feel like hiring a trainer?!
Madison FlagerLifestyle EditorMadison Flager is the Lifestyle Editor at Delish.com; she covers food news and trends, travel-worthy food experiences, and the products you need in your kitchen right now.
Too heavy and they run the risk of clogging pores, potentially causing milia and puffiness, or making your concealer slip and slide around. Too light and they might not be as effective at hydrating and protecting under-eye skin, which is thinner and more sensitive than other areas.
