Spring is finally here and fans of Rita’s Italian Ice can get a free treat to mark the first day of spring (also known as spring equinox).

For the past 17 years, Rita’s has been giving away a free, regular size Italian Ice to each and every guest to mark the first day of spring, according to their web site.  This is a sweet date for Italian Ice lovers, as each year, hundreds of thousands of guests visit Rita’s in search of the first taste of spring.

The giveaway is available on Saturday, March 20, 2010, from noon until 10 p.m. at participating stores. To find a store near you, click here.

St. Patrick’s Day is on March 17, 2010. It is a day that celebrates the life of St. Patrick of Ireland, and although a religious holiday, has in recent times come to be more of a celebration involving parades, and copious amounts of food and drinks.

Here are a few ways to celebrate the day and get the most out of all the fun. Firstly, you must wear green. It’s not compulsory but it would not be St. Patrick’s day without a splash of the Irish color. Another thing that is obligatory is feasting on Irish recipes such as corned beef and cabbage, or Irish stew and of course not forgetting one food that everyone associates with Ireland is the humble potato.

Whatever you do, it’s a good idea to celebrate by sharing a drink or two with your friends, whether it is the Irish Stout beer, or whatever else takes your fancy. Alcohol is certainly not obligatory, however, it’s only enjoyable.

Lastly, of course are the parades, with a five day special in Dublin, Ireland. If you can’t get to the land of blarney, then join in the festivities locally. Many large cities in the U.S. have enormous parades to celebrate, such as New York, Chicago, Boston, and St. Louis. There are also huge parades in London, England and Sydney, Australia. For more information on St. Patrick’s Day parades and festivities, visit gather.com

Did you know Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent, is also called Paczki Day in parts of the U.S. and world?

Paczki Day

A Paczki (pronounced poonch-key, and often mis-spelled as “punchki”) is a donut-like pastry filled with custard or jelly (in fruit flavors such as prune, apple, strawberry, lemon, raspberry, and more).  The round ball of dough is also coated in a sugary icing.

Paczkis are a Polish treat, in which Polish immigrants brought the recipe and tradition to the U.S.   Most notably, the city of Hamtramck, Mich., which has a large population of Polish immigrants and their descendants.

Depending on the recipe, most Paczkis contain about 25 grams of fat and 500 calories.  Good thing these tasty treats only come around once a year.

Do you eat Paczkis or another special treat on Fat Tuesday, before Lent begins?  Share your treats and recommendations for others below.

Buffalo Chicken Dip recipe and appetizers for Super Bowl are delicious. Buffalo Chicken dip recipe are various, and the sauce you choose depends on the types of flavors that you like.  For some people, Buffalo chicken tastes great with simple ranch dressing.  Others desire delicious receipes, such as the ones that follow:

Ingredients

2 cans chunk chicken, drained

2 packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup Ranch dressing

1/2 cup pepper sauce (such as Frank’s Red Hot®)

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.

You can serve this Buffalo chicken dip recipe with crackers, chicken tenders, or vegetable sticks.

Don’t have  a slow cooker? Try this variation:

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup Louisiana-style hot sauce
• 1 cup ranch salad dressing
• 3 cans (4-1/2 ounces each) chunk white chicken, drained and shredded
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
• Corn or tortilla chips

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, hot pepper sauce and salad dressing. Stir in chicken.
• Spread into an ungreased 11-in. x 7-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 20-22 minutes or until heated through. Serve with chips. Yield: 5 cups.

No matter what, your Buffalo chicken dip recipes will be a Super Bowl hit.  Got a great tip for your particular Buffalo chicken dip reciepe?  Leave it below in the comments section.

Krispy Kreme challenge is a big breakfast run.  The Krispy Kreme challenge isn’t for the faint at heart.  The charity event requires runners to run 2 miles in North Carolina to a Krispy Kreme store, eat a dozen donuts, then run back 2 miles.

So, the challenge requires running 4 miles and eating a dozen donuts.

After reading the requirements, I can see a day in bed after competing in the challenge.  I can only imagine how sick to my stomach I would be after eating one dozen donuts and running two miles.

Still yet, the day is a lot of fun.  Today is the day of the Krispy Kreme Challenge and those who are wanting to participate will be disappointed to find out that it’s too late.

However, you can sign up next year if this sounds like something that you would really like to do.

For those that think this is a great idea, you aren’t alone! 6,000 runners competed in this years event.  This means that 6,000 dozen donuts were consumed (give or take – I would probably peter out after about three donuts).

The Krispy Kreme challenge took place in Raleigh, North Carolina and will benefit a children’s hospital.  While you might think people are a little crazy for competing in something like this, they are doing it for a good cause.

Valentine’s Day is a special day for romantic couples.  It is a perfect time to show their love for each other by way of giving gifts. However, some men may never think beyond cards, chocolates, or even flowers. If  they are a little extra creative, add some jewelery or lingerie to the list. That’s totally alright for them.

On the other hand, women are more thoughtful in their ways of making their men happy. Sometimes it’s fun to think outside of the box and see the man grin from ear to ear.

Here are a few trendy gift ideas to add to the list for this year’s Valentine’s Day and make it special for both of you.

For more gift ideas, check this out Special Valentine Day’s Gift Idea for Men

Let him know he’s a warrior.

The ZIRH Warrior Shower Gel collection inspired by ancient warriors is available in 5 scents – Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, Ulysses, Alexander the Great, and Cyrus. Interestingly enough, there’s some history lesson on the back of each bottle. Buy your man the one that suits his warrior personality! The cost is $22.50. ZIRH is available in all leading stores such as Macy’s, Sephora, ULTA.

A sweet taste.

Arrange for a private tasting at one of the nearest local wineries.

Plop, Plop, Fizz, Fizz

No, I am not talking about any candies or sodas here. Leave those aside for kids. I am talking about these super sized candy lookalikes that are real bath fizzies from Bathgasm, a Moore Company. They come in sensual aromas like pina colada, summer night, ginger lime, pink sugar, orange vanilla. There is also a collection of Jojoba and Grapeseed oils that leave a light fragrance to your skin. They cost around $15 for a pack of five and are available online at bathgasm.com.

Baby food recall at Nurture, Inc:  Nurture Inc is issuing a baby food recall.  This is a voluntary recall related to the packaging of the product, as the pouches can swell and even leak the contents.

There haven’t been any illnesses attributed to this baby food recall, but Nature, Inc isn’t taking any chances.  After all, babies are precious and you wouldn’t want your baby suffering from contaminated food.

The recalled products are HAPPYTOT Stage 4 food meals and HAPPYBABY Stage 1 and Stage 2 pouch meals.  These products come in a 4.22 oz pouch with plastic caps.  Expiration dates are listed between November of 2010 and January of 2011.

If you have any of these products and don’t want to mess with the recall, you can simply throw the products away.  Otherwise, gather unused products and take them back to the store for a full refund.

Concerned parents who realize that their children have consumed the product should contact their doctor.  The leaking containers can lead to bacterial contamination, and a doctor can reassure worried parents or treat an illness before it becomes serious.

You can contact Nurture, Inc.  at  212-374-2779.

Rachael Ray’s FHM spread and photo shoot, which was made in 2003, is still popular six years later.  Rachael Ray is best known for her cooking capabilities, but her spread shows that she can heat up much more than the kitchen!

Some celebrities regret when they are involved in racy photo shoots such as the Rachael Ray FHM spread. However, it doesn’t appear as the 30 minute meal guru has any regrets. 

The FHM spread is gaining popularity, as the celebrity chef is going to be seen on ABC’s ‘Nightline’, which airs Monday.  It is said that she made the following account of the racy photos:

Christmas dinner ideas are highly sought after.  For some, there’s a very short period of time between figuring out what dishes to serve and actually making sure they have the ingredients.  Here are some of the best Christmas dinner ideas for procrastinators (like me).

Glazed Honey Ham

If you don’t have the equipment to make a turkey and you need meat that’s easy to prepare purchase a pre-baked ham.  These will typically come with glazing packets and instructions on how to cook the ham. At Wal-Mart, a 5-10 pound ham will cost something between $16 and $25.  For sides, those with small families can purchase pre-made sides that can be warmed over in the microwave.

Chicken

Chicken is a very simple meat to work with. Purchase frozen chicken breasts in the freezer section of your grocer.  Thaw them, and then bake in a glass pie pan filled with Italian dressing.  This is a healthy option for a Christmas dish. Make noodles or rice to serve with the chicken.

Prime Rib

Prime rib is a holiday favorite.  If you don’t know what you are doing, your best bet is to have this dish catered for you.  If you want to try to make this yourself, purchase a prime rib at the butcher shop.  Cook at 325 degrees celcius until your meat has reached it’s desired temperature. Rare meat is 120 degrees and well done is 160 degrees.  Purchase a high quality instant read meat thermometer to monitor the temperature of your meat.

Boston Market printable coupons are sought after, as the Boston Market printable coupon $1 dinner deal has been announced. Those who crave Boston Market can have a feast for $1, with the help of a Boston Market printable coupon.

 What kind of meal can you get for $1? You can get either a quarter white or 3 piece dark meat meal with mashed potatoes and gravy.  A cornbread muffin is also included.

 This Boston Market printable coupon is good only until November 1.  The Boston Market printable coupon is Boston Market’s answer to KFC’s “UNFry Day”, which was October 26. 

 Although the Boston Market printable coupon deal is only good for a couple more days, you can go ahead and head on out with your family and have a meal out.  Eating one of these meal deals will save you a significant amount of money, and you will have a delicious meal as well.

 You can visit BostonMarket.com to find a Boston Market location near you.  CLICK HERE to print the Boston Market printable coupon.

 The Boston Market $1 meal printable coupon is only good for one person per visit.  Print off a couple of them if you plan to take the family to take full advantage of this wonderful deal.