Tag Archives: hot dogs

Win This Big ‘Ole Applegate Weinervention Sweepstakes to Save Your Hot Dog Lovin’ Soul

This sweepstakes is done in partnership with Applegate, but is not sponsored. We were provided complimentary product for review, but were not obligated to enjoy the ever loving heck out of it. Since we did, they said we could share the love with you.

Hot dogs. Bare feet. Summertime. It’s a perfect recipe for the best three months of the year.

Unfortunately, the recipe in most hot dogs looks more like the seedy bowels of a dark, cold winter. Who knows what is actually in those things?!

But the folks at Applegate get it right. Super right. It’s like they invented the hot dog. Sadly, they did not. They did, however, make them so much better. Like way better, better enough that you won’t cringe watching your kids bite in to them.

“Looking more like strawberry frosting than blended meat and bone bits…” writes Treehugger about what’s actually inside the standard hot dog, “the country’s most beloved tube of meat.” There’s mechanically separated meat (or pink slime) from a few animals that could include cow, pig, chicken, or turkey. Don’t forget the corn syrup, flavor additives, tons of sodium, and a whole host of other preservatives and the like. Yuck.

Applegate Naturals Beef Hot Dogs are “cleaner weiners.” They have a super simple list of uncured beef, water, and six seasonings. That’s it! Even my four-year-old can digest this list (and so can her tummy!). They’re tasty and juicy, the way a hot dog should be. They also don’t have that typical gnarly hot dog smell, phew! We felt better eating these since they weren’t stocked with nasty junk. (more…)

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Health Buzz

The 11 Most Criminal Examples of Food Gone Too Far

Have you ever seen a picture or video of food that made you sick just from looking at it? That’s what happened when we saw a video from the Travel Channel’s popular show Man v. Food. The dish was so piled with meats, cheeses, sauces, and who knows what else, it could no longer be identified as food.

We know that food challenges aren’t the only culprit when it comes to shameful servings, so we decided to come up with a rap sheet for the worst food felons. Here’s our Most Wanted list of top culinary criminals starting with the simply overindulgent and ending with the disgustingly gluttonous.

Wanted for: Imitating a Healthy Beverage – Green Tea Latte
Starting off our list is the deceptive Green Tea Latte from Starbucks. Getting a venti (20 oz.) of this beverage with whole milk will cost you 500 calories and 71 grams of sugar. So much for the idea of green tea always being a healthy choice.

Wanted for: Ridiculous Use of Sugar – Ice Cream Sandwiches
Disney, it’s a happy, magical place. It’s also a place where you can get ice cream sandwiches as big as your face. The two homemade chocolate chip cookies and three heaping scoops of ice cream are delicious, but I speak from experience when I say you’ll have sugar shakes and nausea for hours after eating.

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Posted on January 24, 2024 by Elizabeth

Calories in the Most Popular Grilled Meats with 14 Healthy Recipe Alternatives

Grills across the country will fire up this weekend for the unofficial start of summer. Memorial Day is the the most popular day for beef consumption in the U.S., followed by Fourth of July and Labor Day (according to Purdue). No real surprise there, but did you know it’s also one of the highest-calorie meats we grill?

We’re not telling anyone how they should eat this weekend. After all, Memorial Day is a celebration. We are making a few suggestions, though, for enjoying this food-focused weekend without having to beat the bloat come Tuesday morning. (more…)

Posted on May 24, 2023 by Health Buzz

6 Common Food Preservatives and Their Nasty Side Effects

Unless you follow a very strict natural diet, chances are, you ingest dozens of food preservatives every day. While the FDA must approve a food additive before it is available to consumers, that does not mean it’s beneficial or even harmless to consume. It’s highly important to avoid the ingestion of these potentially harmful preservative which are found in many foods. Healthy preservative free meals are greatly advised such as our expert recommended protein shakes. The highest rated protein shake was found to be 18Shake, and you can find its review HERE.

Here are some of the worst preservatives that should be avoided as much as possible:

1. Brominated Vegetable Oil

Find it in: Flame Retardants and Citrus Soda Pop

Food Products it’s in: Mountain Dew, Squirt, Fanta Orange, Fresca Original Citrus, Gatorade Thirst Quencher Orange, and other citrus-flavored soft drinks and sports drinks

What it is: This ingredient, made from soybeans or corn, is used as a flame retardant by chemical companies, but its purpose in soft drinks is to stabilize the citrus oils from floating to the surface, giving the drink a cloudy appearance.

How it can make you sick: Brominated vegetable oil is banned for use in food in Europe and Japan. The problem is that it builds up in the body and can cause neurological and reproductive problems and skin lesions. Cases of bromine intoxication in humans have caused headaches, fatigue, memory loss, ulcers, and a loss of muscle coordination. These patients ingested much greater than average amounts of soda, but with the popularity of soft drinks like Mountain Dew among many teenagers and video gamers, illnesses are a plausible risk. (more…)

Posted on November 6, 2023 by SarahS

Frankly You Can Celebrate National Hot Dog Month in a Healthy Way

by Rachel Larkey from Around the Plate

The hot dog we all know and love has been around for a long time. In fact, some records indicate hot dog-like foods going as far back as the 9th century B.C. And although they are one of the most popular processed foods around, the health concerns associated with eating them has caused many individuals to rethink their hot dog consumption.

In honor of National Hot Dog Month, here are a few ways to ensure that you can still enjoy one of America’s favorite summer foods without sacrificing your health.

Find Your Healthy Hot Dog

Many of the concerns surrounding hot dogs have to do with their long list of ingredients. This list can often include many harmful or just plain icky substances such as nitrites, fillers, and meat “trimmings” (the leftover parts of animals). While none of this sounds appetizing, there is a surefire way to avoid these unsavory and worrisome ingredients: read the label! (more…)

Posted on July 19, 2023 by Around The Plate

Joey Chestnut Starves Himself Prior to Winning Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest

July 4th means fireworks, cookouts, and for some the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. Every year on July 4th, Coney Island holds Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest where participants eat as many hot dogs as possible in 10 minutes. On Wednesday, Joey Chestnut won the hot dog eating contest for the sixth consecutive year. The man ate 68 hot dogs… sounds appetizing right?

I could barely finish the five BBQ chicken wings I had last night at our family’s Fourth of July cookout. I can only imagine where this man puts his food!

Well, fortunately this morning on the TODAY show Joey offered his secrets to scarfing down 68 hotdogs and buns. Joey’s girlfriend makes him 70 hotdogs and he tries to eat as much as he can within 10 minutes. And he tries to eat a little more each day than his previous attempt. Three days before the big hot dog eating contest Joey does not eat anything to prepare himself for all the hot dogs he will devour. (more…)

Posted on July 5, 2023 by Samantha

Simple Summer Burger Guide for Healthier Cookouts

We’re still a full month away from the first day of summer, but the season unofficially starts this weekend with Memorial Day. Gas and charcoal grills the nation over are primed and ready to fire up the best warm-weather eats. But are you ready for what’s about to be dished out?

The grill can be a friend and a foe. Rather than deep- or pan-frying, you can grill for better flavor and far less calories and fat. However, depending on the cut of meat, how you dress it after, and even how you prepare it to cook can turn perfectly healthy foods in to calorie bombs. Follow our simple guide for healthier cookouts and you won’t have anything to regret by summer’s end.

Grill a Better Burger.

If you can’t bare to part with beef then select the leanest cut you can find. A 93/7 ground beef is pretty widely available and will still hold up on the grill. If you’re buying local meat, be sure to specifically request lean cuts. (more…)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by Natalie K

Hot Dog Stuffed Pizza Takes Grotesque Restaurant Food Too Far

Restaurant industry, we have had enough! Are you deliberately trying to gross us out? Do you get a kick out of making grotesque concoctions in your test kitchens and then send them out to mass market as a punch line?

This Hot Dog Stuffed Crust pizza from Pizza Hut is about the nastiest thing we’ve seen come from a restaurant in quite a while. While we’re glad it’s not available in the U.S. (at least for now, just give it time), we feel for the residents of the United Kingdom being subjected to this culinary nonsense.

Jillian Michaels coined the term best when she started describing this over-processed junk “Frankenfoods,” meaning they resemble food but calling it that would be a disservice to all of the things that are actually food.

Dressed like any other pizza with cheese, pepperoni, peppers, and onions, the Hot Dog Stuffed Crust pizza has the slimy little sausage tucked inside the crust and comes with a free mustard drizzle. The chest pains for dessert and gastric bloat are also free. (more…)

Posted on April 11, 2024 by Natalie K

Are Hot Dogs as Dangerous as Cigarettes?

It’s no surprise why there are warning labels on cigarettes and other tobacco products. The research shows that they cause cancer. No one contests that point. But what about other products? When there is research pointing out a true risk, should there be a warning on those items too? The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine thinks so and you may be surprised what product they’re currently comparing to cigarettes: hot dogs.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a Washington, D.C. group that promotes preventive medicine and a vegan diet, has recently launched an ad campaign likening hot dogs to cigarettes. The group’s intention is to make consumers aware of a link between colorectal cancer and hot dogs. Based off research, the committee believes that hot dogs and other processed meats should come with a warning label, just like cigarettes.

The medical committee has done their research and has very valid points for their arguments. Studies from the World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research have made a clear connection between processed meats and colorectal cancer. The research shows that a single 50-gram serving of processed meat a day increases the risk of colorectal cancer, on average, by 21 percent. A typical hot dog contains 50 grams of processed meat. Other meats that are highly processed are deli meats, ham, sausage, bacon and pepperoni.

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Posted on August 9, 2023 by Lacy

Five Healthy Franks for National Hot Dog Day

Hot dogs might not measure up to most gourmet fare, but they are a big part of some of America’s favorite pastimes. National Hot Dog Day falls on July 23, which is conveniently right in the middle of baseball and summer grilling season.

While you often hear that hot dogs are nutritionally unsavory, there are a lot of lighter options out there for anyone who wants keep things on the healthier side.

Whether you’re buying beef, pork, turkey, chicken or veggie hot dogs, you should always pay attention to whether or not the hot dog has added nitrites or nitrates. Once digested, nitrites and nitrates can form compounds that have been known to cause cancer. To make your hot dog meal healthier, you can serve it topped with fiber-rich sauerkraut, in a whole-wheat bun or alongside a full plate of brightly-colored fruits and vegetables.

However, if you want to avoid the nutritional trap of hot dogs entirely, you can look to five of our favorite healthier hot dogs to satisfy your cravings without an added helping of guilt.

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Posted on July 22, 2023 by Maris

Healthy and Fresh Appetizers for Outdoor Parties

Appetizers and finger foods can be the most exciting part of a meal – sometimes they even steal the show from the main dish itself. In the summertime, chips and dips might be convenient but they aren’t always the healthiest pair.

Next time you need a healthier appetizer or hors d’oeuvre, ditch the bag of chips and store-bought salsa and make slimmer versions of your favorite meal starters.

Instead of Ranch or Onion Dip…
Blue Cheese Dip. Most prepackaged dips and mixes have a lot of calories, fat, sodium and even sugar. Making your own, especially one perfect for the Atkins Diet, is a healthier alternative to your store-bought standby.

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Posted on July 18, 2023 by Maris

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