In today's edition of Gareth's Tips, Tools, and Shop Tales, our pal Gareth Branwyn reminds us of The Practical Engineer's classic "Hands-Free Oreo Dispenser" project. My chin would be sore from overuse. From the project description:

The idea started as a joke where I thought it would be funny if you could eat Oreos while working with dirty hands.

I started sketching and tried a couple of different ways and figured that it would be the nicest result if you could use your chin to dispense the Oreos. The shape of the oreo, actually most round cookies, makes it quite easy to stack them and push one out at a time.

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As if the Disney Dole Whip and Churro recipes weren't enough to plump us up in quarantine, now Hilton has offered up their recipe for DoubleTree Inn's famous chocolate chip cookies:

For the first time ever, DoubleTree by Hilton is sharing the official bake-at-home recipe for the brand’s beloved and delicious chocolate chip cookie, so at-home bakers can create the warm and comforting treat in their own kitchens.

The warm chocolate chip cookie welcome is synonymous with DoubleTree hotels worldwide, and travelers look forward to receiving one, fresh from the oven, upon their arrival.

Watch and learn:

Full recipe here.

photo by L.A. Foodie/Flickr Read the rest

Last month, the first cookies baked in space returned to Earth. This test of a new oven designed for microgravity aboard the International Space Station was not only a delightful experiment but also an important one. After all, this was the first time astronauts cooked raw ingredients in space. And yes, the ISS did smell of fresh-baked cookies. From Space.com's interview with NASA astronaut Mike Massimino who consulted on the experiment back on Earth:

Further investigation and analysis of the experiment's results will also continue to answer questions, such as why the cookies took much longer to bake in space and why they weren't "poofy...."

"This is a big step in that direction for the future of exploration where we're gonna be off the planet for longer periods of time," Massimino said. He continued, adding that within the very near future we may be starting to build settlements on off-Earth location like the moon, and we will need to use specialized tech to ensure that the humans living off-Earth have access to good, nutritious (and delicious) food.

As far as what might be next for baking or cooking in space, Massimino had a couple of suggestions.

So what does Massimino want to see next? "The next thing would definitely be a pizza of some sort," he said. "Bagel bites or hot pockets of some sort." He added that it would also be nice for astronauts to have something they could "bite into … something big like a big cheeseburger or a big sandwich."

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SPOILER: Nobody got baked. Not that kind of space cookies. Sorry.

“How do they taste? No one knows.” Read the rest

The next version of Chrome will patch a bug that lets websites detect users who are in incognito mode by by probing the Filesystem API; they've also pledged to seek out and block any other vulnerabilities that will let servers detect users in incognito mode. Read the rest

"Aw yeah it's time for cookies," writes AI ringmaster Janelle Shane (previously at BB).

One neural network I use, called textgenrnn, tries its best to imitate any kind of text you give it. I’ve given them paint colors, band names, and even guinea pig names and in each case their results are somewhat… mixed. (Paint colors called Stanky Bean, Stargoon, and Turdly, for example) The problem is that it doesn’t know what any of these words mean - it’s just picking letter combinations that seem likely to it.

This is what happened when I gave it all the cookies from a list of American recipes. This is what human cookies sound like to a neural network.

Previously, previously. Read the rest

Here's a turntable that no one asked for: the Oreo Music Box ($20 but includes cookies). To get it to work, just place a cookie on it, put the arm on the cookie, and then press the black "play" button. No, there's no actual music embedded in the Oreos. What you'll hear is one of four prerecorded songs they've installed in the player. And, if you take a bite out of the cookie and place it back on the box, it will play a different song.

If you want to see how it works, watch this: Read the rest

I am super happy with these low-carb but high-fat Butter Pecan Cookies. Read the rest

Care about your data privacy? Here's a good reason to stop using the Google Chrome browser, and use Firefox or Safari instead on your desktop, laptop, and mobile devices. Read the rest

Do you live in New York City? Do you like cookies? Are you into cookies so hard that you carry cash with you, just in case the opportunity to buy cookies arises while you're going about your day?

If you answered yes to any or all of these questions, read on.

The girls of Girl Scout troop 6,000 all have one thing in common: They all live in homeless shelters in New York City. Troop 6,000 came into being back in March of 2017 thanks to a partnership between the Girl Scouts of Greater New York and New York City's Department of Homeless Services. Currently, troop 6,000's membership includes kids from 15 different homeless shelters in the NYC area. This year, the girls of the troop are selling Girl Guide cookies for the first time:

From Eyewitness News 7 NY:

"The biggest impact that we see and when you talk to the girls you'll hear them say, is that they belong to something, they have a sisterhood within the other Girl Scouts," said Meredith Maskara of the Girl Scouts of Greater New York. "They talk to other girls who may be in their same situation who feel alone, and they feel like they have a stronger sense of community and belonging overall."

Buying any Girl Scout cookies, which are the crack cocaine of sugary treats, is a win. Buying them from troop 6,000? That's way more cool: not only will doing so help to grow the bonds of friendship and belonging in a group of disenfranchised children, the cash you fork over will also help those kids to take part in amazing experiences that may have been all but unattainable to them, otherwise. Read the rest

Nadia Ka of My Little Bakery decorates cookies to look like gorgeous old-fashioned embroidered designs. In addition to posting photos of her final designs, Nadia also shares really fascinating behind-the-scenes videos of her process on her Instagram:

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Just some of my favorite flowers 💜 #cookies #paintedcookies #lilaccookies #decoratedcookies #cookiedecorating #cookieart #springtime #instagood #instacute #video #instavideo #onestroke

A post shared by 𝓝𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓪🌹𝓜𝔂 𝓛𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓑𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓻𝔂🌹 (@my_little_bakery2016) on Feb 22, 2018 at 9:19pm PST

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Step by step tutorial on my YouTube (link in bio)🌷 . #cookies #cookiart #mylittlebakery #video #videotutorial #decoratedcookies #cookiedecorating #eastercookies #cookiecard #instavideo #instacute #instagood #icingcookies #easter #cookielove #cookiegifts

A post shared by 𝓝𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓪🌹𝓜𝔂 𝓛𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓑𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓻𝔂🌹 (@my_little_bakery2016) on Feb 21, 2018 at 11:37am PST

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Step by step tutorial how to decorate Cross Stitch Rose Cookie on my YouTube (link in bio).❤️ Subscribe to see more videos❤️ . #cookiedecorating #mylittlebakery #cookieart #decoratedcookies #cookies #crossstitch #roses #icingcookies #cookielove #lacecookies #crossstichroses #video #videotutorial #instavideo #tutorial

A post shared by 𝓝𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓪🌹𝓜𝔂 𝓛𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓑𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓻𝔂🌹 (@my_little_bakery2016) on Feb 11, 2018 at 1:43pm PST

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New full video on my YouTube (link in bio)🌷 Полностью видео на моем Ютюб канале (ссылка в профайле) #video #videotutorial #mylittlebakery #instavideo #instagood #instacute #cookies #cookiart #cookiedecorating #decoratedcookies #icingcookies #cookielove #cookiegifts #flowerbouquetcookies #tulipcookies

A post shared by 𝓝𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓪🌹𝓜𝔂 𝓛𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓑𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓻𝔂🌹 (@my_little_bakery2016) on Feb 7, 2018 at 2:03pm PST

You can also see Nadia’s work in action on her YouTube channel or purchase some of the supplies she uses on her Etsy shop. Read the rest

(via @Pickover) Read the rest

Los Angeles-based graphic designer Holly Fox combines her love of baking and design with these amazing iced sugar cookies.

You can see more of her designs on Instagram and even order some cookies for yourself on Etsy—although, unfortunately, Fox is already sold out through 2016. Here are some of my favorite designs:

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mini monday

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Dec 12, 2016 at 5:46pm PST

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ringPOP

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Dec 10, 2016 at 5:07pm PST

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pastel ponies {🦄}

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 30, 2016 at 5:50pm PST

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cone collection

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 26, 2016 at 4:17pm PST

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🍪

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 22, 2016 at 5:43pm PST

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holiday ready

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 23, 2016 at 6:33pm PST

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{feather flashback}

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 18, 2016 at 5:28pm PST

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purple pattern

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 12, 2016 at 5:18pm PST

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🍋💛✨

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Nov 1, 2016 at 5:47pm PDT

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juicy

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Sep 25, 2016 at 5:43pm PDT

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[color closeup]

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Aug 10, 2016 at 5:50pm PDT

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pink lagoon

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on Jul 12, 2016 at 5:46pm PDT

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paint party

A post shared by HOLLY FOX (@hol_fox) on May 3, 2016 at 5:35pm PDT

[via Bored Panda] Read the rest

You might not know this, but the editors of Wikipedia maintain an automated list of all the world's cookies. The have everything from Germany's Aachener Printen to Neutrassian Zalgowafers, but somehow missed Mealy Grahams from good old England. [via] Read the rest

Princeton computer science researchers Steven Englehardt and Arvind Narayanan (previously) have just published a new paper, Online tracking: A 1-million-site measurement and analysis, which documents the state of online tracking beyond mere cookies -- sneaky and often illegal techniques used to "fingerprint" your browsers and devices as you move from site to site, tracking you even when you explicitly demand not to be track and take countermeasures to prevent this. Read the rest

Francesca4me has created arguably the best Poop Emoji Cookie Cutters on the market, and they come in four different sizes. They include depressions for the eyes and mouth that can be filled with white icing, and the thin lines they cut halfway into the cookie give them the most accurate-looking result. Read the rest

I lost about 40 pounds on a keto diet, that being the near-total abnegation of carbs. It worked, for me, but the strict mandate means my foodlife is mostly salads, nuts and meat. Tough going! The popularity of the diet, and others similar to it (paleo, Atkins, etc), has created a market for carbless snacks that nonetheless resemble carbtastic snacks. Such as "keto cookies," a new product from ketokookies.com that they're kickstarting. Read the rest