The Hunger Games

If you haven't already watched it, you know what you're doing this weekend!

•Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 85%

"Thrilling and superbly acted. The Hunger Games captures the dramatic violence, raw emotion, and ambitious scope of its source novel."

•IMDb Rating: 7.9

Love,

ALPHA

Zara Lookbook: March

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Creative Examples of Facebook Timeline Designs

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Wedding Dresses

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Happy St. Patricks Day!

March 17th 2012 | Happy St. Patrick's Day

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25 Ways to Wear a Scarf

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Some ASOS

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Wanelo - Find Unique Products

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A Cake for St. Patricks Day!

Ingredients:

Cheesecake

1. Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese
2. 2/3 cup granulated white sugar
3. pinch of salt
4. 2 large eggs
5. 1/3 cup sour cream
6. 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
7. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8. a few drops of green food coloring

Green Velvet Cake

1. 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2. 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
3. 1/2 teaspoon salt
4. 1 1/2 cups canola or vegetable oil
5. 1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
6. 2 large eggs
7. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8. 1 teaspoon white vinegar
9. 1 teaspoon baking soda
10. 1 cup buttermilk
11. 2 tablespoons (1-ounce bottle) green food coloring

Frosting

1. Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
2. 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3. One 7-ounce jar marshmallow creme
4. 1 cup powdered sugar
5. a few drops of green food coloring

Instructions:

Cheesecake:

1. Preheat the oven to 325dgF. Place a large roasting pan on the lower rack of the oven. Place a kettle of water on the stove to boil. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Wrap a double layer of heavy duty foil around the bottom and up the sides of the pan
2. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to blend the cream cheese until it is smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. 
3. Mix in the sugar and salt and blend for 2 minutes.
4.  Add the eggs, one at a time, blending after each addition. 
5. Mix in the sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla and green food color until smooth. 
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Set the pan into the roasting pan in the pre-heated oven. Carefully pour the hot water from your kettle into the roasting pan. Pour enough water so that there is about an inch of water coming up the foil along the sides of the cheesecake pan.
7. Bake the cheesecake for 45 minutes. It should be set to the touch and not jiggly. Remove the cheesecake from the roasting pan and let it cool on a wire rack for at least an hour. When it has cooled, place the pan into the freezer and let the cheesecake freeze completely (4 to 5 hours or overnight).

Prepare the cake layers 

1. Preheat the oven to 350dgF. Spray two 9-inch round pans with nonstick spray and line each pan with a round of parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder and salt.
3. In a large bowl, combine the oil and sugar together and beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla, and beat for an additional 2 minutes.
4. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and baking soda and stir to dissolve. Add the vinegar to the bowl, along with the buttermilk and food coloring. Beat on medium-low speed for 1 minute, until blended. 
5. Add the dry ingredients and increase speed to medium-high, scraping down the sides of the bowl while mixing, for 2 additional minutes. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cakes cool for 20 minutes. Run a knife along the edge of the pans, then invert the cakes onto a rack to cool completely.

Prepare the frosting 

1. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, combine the cream cheese and butter and beat until creamy and smooth. 
2. Add the marshmallow creme and mix until smooth. 
3. Add in the powdered sugar and food color and continue to beat, scraping down the sides of the bowl, until all of the ingredients are mixed in and the frosting is smooth and spreadable.

Assemble the cake

1. Place one cake layer into the center of a cake plate or platter. Remove the cheesecake from the freezer, take off the sides of the pan, and slide a knife under the parchment to remove the cheesecake from the pan. Peel off the parchment. 
2. Trim the cheesecake, as needed to match the size of your cake layers. Place the cheesecake layer on top of the first cake layer. Place the second cake layer on top of the cheesecake.

Frost the cake 

1. Apply a crumb coat layer of frosting to the cake and refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes
2. Apply the second layer of frosting. Add a large scoop of frosting onto the top of the cake. 
3. Use a long, thin spatula or knife to spread the frosting evenly across the top and then spread it down the sides of the cake too. 

Love,

ALPHA

Lower Stomach Exercises

For Ladies the lower stomach is probably the area we want to fix the most, 

and yet it's probably the area that's hardest to fix.

Here are some exercises that focus specifically in that area. 

Try them out! 

Love,

ALPHA

Seven Surprising Uses for Baking Soda

Let us be clear: Baking soda is not going to permanently cure your acne or turn back the cruel hand of time. But if you’re looking to detoxify your body and your household, this multitasking ingredient will make your life easier (and more beautiful) without denting your coffers. Mom may have taught you that baking soda will make your bread rise and your fridge smell better, but did you know of its many cosmetic applications?

Even the ancient Egyptians—and what beauty post would be complete without them?—used a compound similar to baking soda as soap. The stuff is antiseptic, antifungal, and lightly exfoliating. It will take the stains off your coffee mug and your not-so-pearly whites, and can be consumed internally to ease your tummy ache. And fridge odors aren’t the only smells it absorbs so don’t turn your nose up, and bring on the baking soda!

Brush Your Teeth With It Most conventional toothpastes use sodium lauryl sulfate as their primary ingredient. You may remember this verboten surfactant from previous posts explaining its harsh effects and possible contamination with a carcinogen called 1,4-dioxane. If you don’t want peroxide in your mouth, whitening strips are out too. Go natural instead with some bad-breath-killing-tooth-whitening baking soda on your brush (tastes like the ocean, salty but bearable), or add it to your SLS-free Tom’s for extra-whitening powers.

Wash Your Face With It As a rule, we think that harsh scrubs and exfoliants do not belong on your face—not least of all because you need that top layer of skin to keep bad stuff out and moisture in. Most exfoliating scrubs also contain other sketchy ingredients—like plastic balls. If you’re hellbent on scrubbring, though, at least switch to baking soda. It works great on elbows and feet too, and combined with some raw honey, this DIY face wash is refreshing and soothing—and anti-acne, too.

Create a DIY Deodorant This recipe makes for a pretty effective homemade deodorant. Here’s what we suggest: Mix four tablespoons of baking soda with about ten drops of your favorite essential oil and apply to underarms. Guys, this sounds girly, but there are plenty masculine smells too—like Texas cedar wood. Ladies looking to reapply throughout the day can carry it in their purses: Just fill an empty mineral makeup container with it and use one of those stubby Kabuki brushes for no-mess application.

Spot-Treat Acne Our favorite natural acne remedy is clay, like this green tea one we swear by. But in a bind, making a little paste from baking soda and water and applying it to an unwelcomed visitor will help dry it out. We don't recommend this for deep cysts, but for more surface afflictions, it works like a charm.

Cleanse Your Hair If you’re looking to join the ranks of non-shampooers, to reduce how often shampoo, or simply to get rid of some product build-up on your roots, look no further than baking soda. Just fill a glass with warm water and dissolve about a tablespoon of baking soda into it. Take that to the shower, and after wetting your hair pour the mixture through. Comb it well before rinsing—your hair will feel a little coated and slippery until it’s fully rinsed out.

Soothe Your Stomach Acid stomach, heartburn, gas, and other tummy issues are quickly relieved by baking soda because its slight alkalinity can neutralize the acid causing the problem. Just mix a teaspoon into a glass of warm water and drink it down. We swear by this trick.

Soak Your Skin That's right, dissolve some into your bath for a soothing and skin-softening experience. The added bonus? You won't need soap—and sometimes that's a good thing.

Love, 

ALPHA

Provided by Good Lifestyle.