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Amex US Hilton Cards: New Offers for Up to 175,000 Points!

TRAVEL

PrinceOfTravel

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March 1, 2025

Amex US Hilton Cards: New Offers for Up to 175,000 Points!

Each of the four Hilton Honors co-branded credit cards issued by American Express US have great limited-time welcome offers, which are available until April 29, 2025.

The Hilton Honors family of credit cards offered by American Express in the United States represent one of the best ways to diversify your hotel rewards game. With these juicy offers, you can unlock nights at some of the chain’s best properties at a very steep discount.

Hilton Honors American Express Card: 70,000 Points + Free Night Reward!

The Hilton Honors American Express Card is an entry-level product with no annual fee.

As part of the limited-time offer, you can earn 70,000 Hilton Honors points and a Free Night Reward upon spending $2,000 (all figures in USD) in the first six months. Offer ends April 29, 2025.

As a reminder, Free Night Rewards can be used for standard night redemptions worth up to 150,000 Hilton Honors points, including stays at Small Luxury Hotels of the World properties and high-end brands across the world.

This is in line with some of the best offers that we’ve seen on the card, so be sure to consider it if you’re eligible to apply.

The Hilton Honors American Express Card represents one of the best choices for your first credit card. Thanks to its $0 annual fee, you can easily hold onto it year after year and boost your credit history in the long run.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card: 130,000 Points + Free Night Reward!

The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card is the mid-tier personal card in the Hilton lineup, and commands an annual fee of $150.

As part of the limited-time offer, you can earn 130,000 Hilton Honors points and a Free Night Reward upon spending $3,000 in the first six months. Offer ends April 29, 2025.

This offer is also on par with some of the best-ever offers we’ve seen.

In terms of ongoing value in exchange for the $150 annual fee, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card gives you instant Hilton Gold status for as long as you hold the card, a total of up to $200 in statement credits for Hilton stays each year ($50 every four months), as well as a Free Night Reward upon spending $15,000 each calendar year.

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card: 175,000 Points!

The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is the top-tier personal card in the Hilton line-up, and commands an annual fee of $550.

As part of the limited-time offer, you can earn 175,000 Hilton Honors points upon spending $6,000 in the first six months.†

This offer is higher than the card’s standard welcome offer of 150,000 Hilton Honors points. However, it’s worth noting that we’ve also seen other, even more lucrative welcome offers last year that came with Free Night Rewards attached.

That said, the current welcome offer is indeed quite generous, and is most certainly worth the annual fee. We value Hilton Honors points at 0.5 cents per point, and using that metric, we’d peg a value of $875 on the welcome offer alone.

In terms of ongoing value in exchange for the $550 annual fee, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card gives you instant top-tier Hilton Diamond status for as long as you hold the card, plus a total of up to $600 in statement credits each year.

You can also earn up to three Free Night Rewards each year: one on your cardholder anniversary, one upon spending $30,000 in a calendar year, and one upon spending $60,000 in a calendar year.

Each Free Night Reward is good for a stay worth up to 150,000 points, which can be used at some of the chain’s most prestigious properties that typically run hundreds of dollars per night or more.

This offer is available until April 29, 2025, so be sure to sign up before then if you’re eligible.

Hilton Honors Business Card: 175,000 Points!

As for the Hilton Honors Business Card, the card’s offering an elevated welcome offer that’s substantially higher than its baseline offer.

The welcome offer is for 175,000 Hilton Honors points upon spending $8,000 in the first six months, with an annual fee of $195.

As with the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, you’ll also have Hilton Gold status for as long as you hold the card.

Plus, you can earn a $60 statement credit for stays at eligible Hilton properties worldwide each quarter, for up to $240 in credits each year.

As a reminder, this card recently had an overhaul, and many of its benefits changed.

This offer on this card also expires on April 29, 2025.

Strategies for the Hilton Honors American Express Credit Cards

Let’s go over a few key points on the best strategy for maximizing these offers.

To begin, which of the three personal Hilton Honors credit cards should you apply for?

As mentioned above, if you’re just starting out on your travel rewards credit card journey, it may make sense to begin with the no-fee Hilton Honors American Express Card – which also happens to have the lowest minimum spending requirement.

However, it’s worth noting that the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card could be the right choice too.

That’s because you always have the option of downgrading the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card to the no-fee Hilton Card after 12 months if you don’t see the value in holding the card year after year. By approaching your strategy this way, you’d still keep your oldest account open to bolster your US credit history.

Overall, a newcomer to the Hilton Honors family of credit cards would do well to begin with either the Hilton Honors American Express Card or the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card.

If you’re in the market for a business card, then the natural choice is to go with the Hilton Honors Business Card.

Keep in mind that it doesn’t count towards the Chase 5/24 rule, which is something to consider if you have your eyes on any of Chase’s cards in the near future.

However, there’s always a strong argument to be made for the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, which can easily be a keeper card if you stay at Hilton properties with any frequency.

Despite the $550 annual fee, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is one of the strongest rewards cards in all of North America once you factor in the ongoing benefits:

An automatic Free Night Reward every year
Instant Hilton Diamond status
$200 airline incidental fee credits ($50 each quarter)
$400 Hilton resort credits ($200 every six months)
14x points at Hilton hotels

Hilton’s best luxury properties generally cost 120,000 Hilton Honors points per night at most, with two properties – the Waldorf Astorias in Los Cabos and the Maldives – exceeding the cap at 150,000 Hilton Honors points per night.

If you can snag one or two of these limited-time bonuses, and earn Free Night Rewards through spending or by simply holding the Aspire card each year, you’ll have enough points for a couple of nights at some of Hilton’s best hotels, or even more nights if you book some of the more modest hotels in Hilton’s portfolio.

Waldorf Astoria Dubai International Financial Centre

As it stands, there aren’t any “family language” restrictions on the Hilton Honors family of co-branded credit cards. That means that you’re still eligible for the welcome offer on any card that you haven’t held before.

However, American Express has been adding family language restrictions to most of the other families of cards in its lineup, and this could change at any time for the Hilton Honors family.

Therefore, the most prudent approach would be to work your way up the Hilton Honors lineup over time – starting with the Hilton Honors American Express Card, followed by the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, and finally with the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card – to ensure you don’t miss out on any welcome offers should American Express add family language restrictions.

Conclusion

Once again, we’re seeing great welcome offers on the range of Hilton Honors cards.

The top-tier Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, which commands an annual fee of $550, offers 175,000 Hilton Honors points.†

Meanwhile, the Hilton Honors American Express Card and the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card are offering 70,000 and 130,000 Hilton Honors points, respectively, plus a Free Night Reward. The lowest-tier Hilton Honors American Express Card comes with no annual fee year after year, while the mid-tier Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card comes with an annual fee of $150.

As a reminder, the elevated offers for the personal cards and the business card are available through both public and refer-a-friend channels until April 29, 2025.

This story originally appeared on princeoftravel

Citigroup Credited a Customer $81 Trillion Instead of $280

BUSINESS

Entrepreneur

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March 1, 2025

0

Citigroup Credited a Customer Trillion Instead of 0

Citigroup made the mistake of crediting $81 trillion to a customer’s account instead of $280, according to a Friday report from the Financial Times.

The multi-trillion-dollar error occurred in April 2024 and was overlooked by both a payments employee and a second employee assigned to check the transaction before it was approved to be processed. A third employee caught the mistake 90 minutes after the payment was posted, leading Citigroup to reverse the transaction several hours after it had been submitted, per the outlet.

The value of the transaction far exceeds the gross domestic product of every country in the world, including the $29.72 trillion GDP of the U.S. It also surpasses Citigroup’s own $147 billion market capitalization.

No funds left the bank. Citigroup disclosed the “near miss,” or the term for a bank processing a wrong amount but recovering the funds, to the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

A Citigroup spokesperson told Business Insider that the incident was an “inputting error” and that there was “no impact to the bank or our client.” They also stated that the transaction was so large it could not have been processed.

“Despite the fact that a payment of this size could not actually have been executed, our detective controls promptly identified the inputting error between two Citi ledger accounts and we reversed the entry,” a Citigroup spokesperson told BI.

The bank also told the FT that it would push to eliminate manual entry and work on automating the inputting process.

^{Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser. Photographer: Paul Yeung/Bloomberg via Getty Images}

This isn’t the first time Citigroup has made a massive inputting error. FT reported that 10 near misses of $1 billion or more occurred at Citigroup last year, down from 13 cases in 2023.

In August 2020, Citigroup accidentally sent $900 million to the creditors of cosmetics company Revlon instead of a $7.8 million interest payment. It took the bank two years of legal action to recover most of the money. The episode led to the early retirement of then-CEO Michael Corbat and a fine of $400 million from U.S. regulators over “unsafe and unsound banking practices.”

Citigroup’s current CEO, Jane Fraser, stated when she was named to the CEO role in September 2020 that she would work to ensure that employees “operate in a safe and sound manner” by investing in infrastructure, risk management, and controls.

Two years later, a Citigroup employee accidentally added an extra zero to a trade, sparking a stock selloff that wiped out about 300 billion euros, or $322 billion, from European stocks. British regulators fined Citigroup about 62 million pounds, or around $78 million, over the issue last year.

U.S. regulators also fined Citigroup $136 million last year for not correcting gaps in operations.

Citigroup isn’t the only major bank that has incurred fines over operations. JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the U.S. with $3.9 trillion in assets, was fined nearly $350 million in March 2024 by U.S. regulators for operating trades “without adequate oversight.”

This story originally appeared on Entrepreneur

Bill Ackman says Berkshire will run better after Warren Buffett

BUSINESS

NYPost

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March 1, 2025

0

Bill Ackman says Berkshire will run better after Warren Buffett

Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman took a shot at Warren Buffett’s investment strategy, calling it too conservative, and claimed Berkshire Hathaway’s businesses would likely run better under the next chief executive.

The 94-year-old Buffett has been regarded as one of the world’s most successful investors, earning the nickname the “Oracle of Omaha.”

But Ackman, who runs Pershing Square Capital Management, argued during a recent podcast appearance that Buffett’s investment strategy has grown too cautious.

He believes Greg Abel, Buffett’s planned successor, will do a better job running the holding company’s businesses.

“Now you’re going to have more of an operator in charge of Berkshire and I think there’s a lot of value that can be created at Berkshire with better operations,” he told “The World According to Boyar” on Thursday.

Ackman used the Burlington Northern Railroad, which is owned by Berkshire, as an example.

While it may be the largest railroad, “it’s probably the least efficiently operated of all the railroads years ago,” Ackman claimed.

When Abel takes the helm at Berkshire, he’ll likely use a hands-on approach to improve the firm’s businesses, Ackman said.

“I think the next generation of leadership will be a little more disciplined about making sure the right people run the companies,” he added.

Ackman, a former investor in Berkshire, also took aim at Buffett’s investment strategy, revealing that he tried in vain to get him to make a handful of lucrative investments in the past.

Ackman – who made billions on hedges predicting the COVID-induced market crash – said he called Buffett in February 2020 to warn him about the pandemic.

“He dismissed my concerns and when the proverbial sh-t hit the fan, I thought Buffett would be taking advantage of this amazing opportunity to buy stocks, and he was frozen,” Ackman said.

Ackman also claimed he tried to broker a sale of Hilton Hotels to Berkshire, but Buffet passed.

Investment firm Blackstone ended up buying the hotel chain in an all-cash leveraged buyout worth $26 billion in 2007.

“It would have been an incredible home run for Berkshire,” Ackman said.

He blamed the missed opportunities on Buffett’s refusal to switch up his investment strategy.

“Warren sort of has this price discipline where if it trades for more than 10 times operating income, no matter how good the business, he won’t buy it, and that’s worked really well for him for 60, 70 years, [so] why should he change?” he said.

“But we’re in a world where there’s some amazing businesses that have very long-term growth trajectories, where you have to pay more than 10 times operating income to succeed in buying a stock or buying a business, and I think the market has gotten overpriced relative to what he’s prepared to pay,” he added.

Despite the harsh comments, Ackman made it clear he still admires the iconic investor and hopes to exceed his success.

“My long-term ambition has always been to have a better record than Buffett,” he said.

He added that he wants to create a “modern day version” of Berkshire Hathaway with real estate company Howard Hughes as the base.

This story originally appeared on NYPost

Socialism is popular, despite its failures — blame TikTok

OPINION

NYPost

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March 1, 2025

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Socialism is popular!

A Pew study reports that more than a third of American adults view it positively.

How is this possible?

Little has brought more misery — first in the Soviet Union, then in China, Cuba, Nicaragua, now Venezuela.

One reason young people support socialism is because their social media feeds show videos made by popular but economically illiterate people.

TikTok star Madeline Pendleton has 1.6 million subscribers. She tells them: “Socialism is working better than capitalism 93% of the time!”

Where does she get 93%?

From a study published in 1986 by self-described Marxists in the Journal of Health Services.

The authors conveniently ignore the United States and other wealthy countries and compare socialist economies to “capitalist” countries like Uganda, Rwanda and Somalia, some of which were at war.

It’s so stupid. But based on that, Pendleton tells her followers, “We have all the data showing that socialism does work.”

She also celebrates communism because of its “increased life expectancy.”

That’s nonsense, too. People live longest in capitalist countries like Japan (85 years) and South Korea (84 years).

Even in the United States (79 years), where more of us die young because we drive more (car accidents), eat more, shoot each other more often and try more dangerous drugs, we still live longer than people in China (78 years).

Socialism is also superior, says Pendleton, because of “the 90% to 100% home-ownership rates.”

“One hundred percent,” of course, is just dumb, but China (if you believe the party’s statistics) does have 90% homeownership.

But not under socialism! They achieved that only after privatizing urban housing.

Before 1998, when Chinese housing was still socialist, just 20% of Chinese people owned homes.

Several social media stars rave about China.

“Socialism worked in China!” says TikToker Dante Munoz. “They lifted over 800 million people from poverty.”

Again, it’s true that in the last 50 years, China’s GDP went from $156 per capita to more than $12,000.

But that only happened after China gave up on real socialism and started embracing markets. Hong Kong, which adopted actual capitalism, raised per capita GDP to $50,000.

Before China reformed, millions of people died of starvation.

Another silly social media star, JT Chapman, tells his almost 2 million YouTube subscribers: “The central idea that unites all socialists is maximizing freedom . . . democratization of power.”

Democratization? In most socialist countries, there’s only one political party.

A popular TikToker calling himself Rathbone tells his 100,000 subscribers: “Capitalism . . . prioritizes profits over people . . . (but) socialism . . . prioritizes people over profits.”

Likewise, Chapman says socialism offers the “guaranteed right to . . . health care, food and shelter.”

Well, of course socialism promises those things and claims to prioritize people over profits, but what people actually get is different.

As Cuban doctors put it in a video, “The Cuban health care system is destroyed . . . People are dying in the hallways.”

Yet Chapman claims, “Innovation can flourish even when people are not motivated by profit. The USSR gave the world the anthrax vaccine, artificial satellites and one of the earliest mobile phones.”

That is true. But no one uses those phones today.

Capitalism just creates much more.

Finally, Chapman says, “Ownership should be collective.”

Collective ownership does feel good. “We’ll share everything!”

But every attempt at collective ownership has failed.

One famous American example: 200 years ago, New Harmony, Ind., abolished private property, promising a “community of equality.”

The result was famine.

When people realized they could receive just as much barely working as they could working hard, many, naturally, worked less.

Within a year, the commune experiment failed and the property was returned to private hands.

What do these popular social-media stars say when I confront them with these inconvenient truths?

Sadly, I don’t know. Not one would agree to debate me.

The bottom line: Incentives matter. No one washes a rental car.

Few people care much about what belongs to everyone. It’s just human nature.

Capitalism isn’t perfect, but if we want a better future, and freedom, capitalism is the only thing that works.

John Stossel is the author of “Give Me a Break: How I Exposed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media.”

This story originally appeared on NYPost

Here’s how Warren Buffett’s 2024 letter to shareholders can teach us to be better investors

STOCK MARKET

Motley Fool

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March 1, 2025

0

Here’s how Warren Buffett’s 2024 letter to shareholders can teach us to be better investors

Image source: Getty Images

Warren Buffett‘s annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.B) shareholders has become the stuff of legend. And I think we can learn more key lessons from him than from any other individual.

Who can ever forget “It’s far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price“. That was from the 1989 letter. And it bears on one of the themes from the latest for 2024, a year that saw record operating earnings of $47.4bn.

The market value of Berkshire Hathaway soared 5,502,284% from 1964 to 2024, while the S&P 500 gained 39,054%.

There’s no rush

Berkshire Hathway has amassed an eye-watering sum of $334bn in cash. Topped up from sales of Apple and Bank of America, it’s been hitting the financial headlines all year. So what did the great man say about it?

He said: “Despite what some commentators currently view as an extraordinary cash position at Berkshire, the great majority of your money remains in equities. That preference won’t change.“

So no, he hasn’t changed his mind that the stock market is the best possible long-term investment there is. But remember that thing about wonderful companies at fair prices? It seems straightforward to me — if you’re not seeing them now, don’t buy now.

There’s nothing wrong with holding cash when stocks look too high, and keeping it until there are better opportunities. One thing I’m sure all of us know from experience is that we’ll see stock market falls in the future.

“Mistakes – yes, we make them at Berkshire”

Buffett told us: “During the 2019-23 period, I have used the words ‘mistake’ or ‘error’ 16 times in my letters to you. Many other huge companies have never used either word over that span.“

He pointed out that Amazon “made some brutally candid observations” in 2021. But other than that, corporate feedback to shareholders “has generally been happy talk and pictures“.

He was kind enough to spell out the key lesson here for investors: “The cardinal sin is delaying the correction of mistakes or what Charlie Munger called ‘thumb-sucking.’ Problems, he would tell me, cannot be wished away. They require action, however uncomfortable that may be.”

Reinvest, reinvest

“In a very minor way, Berkshire shareholders have participated in the American miracle by foregoing dividends, thereby electing to reinvest rather than consume. Originally, this reinvestment was tiny, almost meaningless, but over time, it mushroomed, reflecting the mixture of a sustained culture of savings, combined with the magic of long-term compounding.“

Does the lesson from that really need any futher explanation? If we keep ploughing our dividends into new shares for long enough, the annual profits we earn from the reinvested cash can come to exceed our returns from the initial investment itself.

And finally, sadly, I’m reminded how good things come to an end: “At 94, it won’t be long before Greg Abel replaces me as CEO and will be writing the annual letters“. But if Warren Buffett reckons Abel is the right man for the job, I’ll still be reading those letters.

This story originally appeared on Motley Fool

Mavs may be motivated to smear new Laker Luka Doncic with beer, hookah jabs

SPORTS

LATimes

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March 1, 2025

0

Mavs may be motivated to smear new Laker Luka Doncic with beer, hookah jabs

Lakers fans see supremely talented newcomer Luka Doncic making breathtaking no-look passes. They see him swishing shots from astonishing distance. They see him rebounding with the frequency and ferocity of a 7-foot center. They see him meshing with LeBron James as if they’d played together for years.

They conjure visions of an NBA championship — this season.

What fans hear, however, is that Doncic’s previous employer — the Dallas Mavericks — considered him fat. And lazy.

A fat, lazy beer drinker.

A fat, lazy, beer-drinking hookah smoker.

What’s next, Doncic was a fat, lazy, beer-drinking, hookah smoker feasting on a 77-ounce New York strip steak with a side of the Slovenian specialty of sliced potatoes layered with cheese and heavy cream?

(OK, he did inspire a 77-ounce New York strip steak called “The Luka” at Nick and Sam’s Steakhouse in Dallas. And Doncic has professed his love of his grandmother’s potato moussaka.)

The Mavericks might be motivated to smear Doncic because the trade — with Lakers center Anthony Davis the primary piece moving to Dallas — has been roundly panned. And seriously, many, many professional athletes drink and occasionally partake of tobacco.

Dallas seemed especially heavy-handed about it. There was the odd episode last season of Mavericks executive Michael Finley taking a beer from Doncic’s hand after the guard had just led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals by scoring 36 points. Was Finley worried Doncic might be hungover when the Mavericks opened the finals against the Boston Celtics seven days later?

Doncic seemed stunned when Finley grabbed the can, refraining from parroting the description of the only official NBA-approved beer that Billy Bob Thornton’s Tommy Norris character told a bartender in “Landman.”

“It’s Michelob Ultra. There’s more alcohol in orange juice,” Norris said. The bartender reminds him that drinking is drinking, and Norris replies, “I’ll tell you what, bud. You watch me drink six of these sons of b—es and I’ll come back in here tomorrow and drink six whiskeys and you tell me if you notice the f—ing difference.”

Instead, Doncic, who turns 26 on Friday, hasn’t said anything publicly about the whispers out of Dallas, some of which forecast an apocalyptic expiry. Reputable NBA writer Sam Amick of the Athletic wrote that “people who witnessed Doncic’s last days in Dallas … predict his basketball demise, highlighting a health history that, as some see it, will likely lead to catastrophe in the next five years or so.”

Amick also mentioned the beer and hookah hoo-ha, which triggered a flood of headlines. A hookah, of course, is a water pipe for smoking tobacco that in addition to addictive nicotine can include exposure to tar, carbon monoxide, heavy metals and carcinogens.

None of that sat well with Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, a no-nonsense former Nike executive who makes no secret of his focus on nutrition and healthy living. Doncic’s alleged off-court behavior was off-putting to Harrison, who became increasingly uncomfortable with the prospect of paying the superstar a five-year, $345-million max contract this summer.

Uncomfortable enough to convince new Mavericks owners Patrick Dumont and Miriam Adelson that the prudent move was to trade him.

Doncic expressed shock at the trade and might well be thinking hard about lightening up rather than lighting up. The dangers of tobacco and excessive drinking are well established.

Undoubtedly, folks will be looking for signs. Moments after a win in 2022, an interviewer informed Doncic that he’d become the first player to record a 60-point, 20-rebound triple-double. Doncic laughed and said, “I need a recovery beer.”

That admission prompted at least one reporter to chronicle what he consumed when he retired to the locker room, a “60 burger with some water, a protein shake, a beer.”

Was the news the beer or associating his 60-point performance with his burger? Lakers fans likely would take the points and allow him a beer.

This story originally appeared on LA Times

Mardi Gras Menu Plan | The Recipe Critic

FOOD

TheRecipeCritic

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March 1, 2025

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Mardi Gras Menu Plan | The Recipe Critic

This website may contain affiliate links and advertising so that we can provide recipes to you. Read my disclosure policy.

Mardi Gras is honestly the best! It’s all about good vibes, great food, and fun times. You’ve got music, costumes, and of course, mouthwatering dishes like jambalaya and King Cake. And to make it even easier, I’ve got a Mardi Gras menu plan with a shopping list ready, so you can focus on the fun and skip the stress!

Less Stress, More Fun: Trust me, having a Mardi Gras menu plan means you can forget about stressing over what to cook and just enjoy the party with your friends!
GOOD FOOD: Mardi Gras food is packed with some of the best flavors you’ll find all year! This menu plan has the best of the best.
Easy Peasy Shopping: The best part? It comes with a shopping list, so you can grab everything in one trip and avoid the chaos of last-minute runs!

Mardi Gras Party Planning MADE EASY

Mardi Gras is a fun celebration with parades, costumes, music, and yummy food! It’s the perfect chance to enjoy spicy dishes, sweet treats like King Cake, and have a great time with friends. A Mardi Gras menu made for you means no stress over what to cook—just more time to enjoy the party! Plus, it’s all laid out with a handy shopping list to make your life as easy as possible.

How Many Does this Feed?

I have included 6 different menu items for your Mardi Gras party! If you make all of them, you should be about to feed at least 6-8 adults! Stick to the shopping list that I have provided and you don’t even need to figure anything out. It’s so easy!

Slow Cooker Jambalaya

Slow Cooker Jambalaya with andouille sausage, chicken and shrimp cooked low and slow with bold spices and vegetables with just 10 minutes of prep.

View Recipe

Boudin Balls

Crispy on the outside and perfectly tender inside, Boudin Balls are a Cajun classic! A seasoned mixture of sausage, veggies, and rice is formed into balls, then breaded and fried until deliciously crisp and golden.

View Recipe

Dirty Rice

Dirty rice is packed with Cajun flavor and the texture is to die for! It has the most amazing blend of delicious spices, meats, and rice that will definitely be something that your family will go crazy for!

View Recipe

Southern Hush Puppies

Southern Hush Puppies are golf ball sized, light and flakey cornmeal dough that is fried golden brown on the outside and soft on the inside served as a side dish to any southern meal. These hush puppies are ready in minutes!

View Recipe

King Cake

King cake is a colorful and festive dessert for Mardi Gras celebrations! With its gorgeous swirl of purple, green and gold icing, this sweet and soft cake is a treat for both the eyes and the taste buds. Whether you’re a seasoned king cake aficionado or a newcomer to this sugary delight, there’s no denying its irresistible charm!

View Recipe

Best Beignets Recipe

Best Beignets Recipe is a light, fluffy French doughnut that are cut into squares and puffed up when fried in oil then sprinkled with powdered sugar or dipped in chocolate syrup. The Best breakfast to wake up to!

View Recipe

Mardi Gras is SUCH a fun holiday to celebrate! But save yourself some time by using this meal plan and FREE shopping list! I’ve included everything that you need!

Meal Planning with Leftovers

You might have extras from this Mardi Gras menu plan because it’s a lot of food! But leftovers are the best! If you do have leftovers, make sure to store them properly in an airtight container in your fridge.

More Yummy Mardi Gras Ideas

This story originally appeared on TheRecipeCritic

Are Tesco shares the ultimate FTSE ‘Steady Eddie’?

STOCK MARKET

Motley Fool

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February 28, 2025

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Are Tesco shares the ultimate FTSE ‘Steady Eddie’?

Image source: Getty Images

I’ve just been running my eye over Tesco (LSE: TSCO) shares and found it a soothing experience.

I needed that, because my own portfolio has been wracked by volatility lately. The FTSE 100 maybe be near all-time highs but my stock picks are darting every which way.

My big February winner was Rolls-Royce holdings, up 25%. My stake in Lloyds Banking Group is up 17% over the month.

Sadly, I also hold Glencore and Diageo, which fell 12% and 14% respectively in February. Some days I don’t know whether I’m winning or losing.

Can this FTSE stock keep winning?

I don’t hold Tesco, but wish I did. Watching its steady, solid progress is like being given a cosy back rub after a stressful day.

The Tesco share price climbed 4.3% in February. Over 12 months, it’s up 36%. It’s up 50% over two years and 65% over five years. Nice.

There have been ups and downs along the way, but overall its trajectory is soothingly upwards. So should I add this Steady Eddie to my portfolio of volatile boy racers?

Today, Tesco trades on a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.3. That’s pretty steady. Just a tad above fair value.

The trailing yield is a little low at 3.2%. That’s below the FTSE 100 average of 3.5%. It’s guess that’s what happens when a stock climbs steadily upwards.

The yield is smoothly climbing upwards too. It’s forecast to hit 3.51% in 2025 then 3.86% in 2026. It’s covered exactly twice. Bliss. My back muscles are relaxing just to think of it.

Stock markets have been bouncing around lately, as Donald Trump threatens trade wars. Does Tesco care? Nope. It doesn’t sell anything to the US. The group pulled out of the US back in 2013, after its Fresh & Easy convenience chain flopped. It’s not taken that kind of risk since.

However, that is a reminder of the dark days, and Philip Clarke. But he left in September 2014. Since then, there’s been a distinct lack of drama.

The dividend is perfectly covered

There are risks. To a degree, its calmness is an illusion, because Tesco operates in an intensively competitive sector. Aldi and Lidl continue to give it a run for its money.

Tesco’s market share is back up to 28.5%, according to Kantar. That followed 19 successive periods of gains. It remains leagues ahead of second-placed Sainsbury’s at 15.9%. However, it may struggle to push on from here.

Inflation is proving sticky, which will push up costs. There’s still a risk the UK could fall into recession. Labour’s national insurance hikes are a real bother. As a huge employer, initial reports suggested this could cost Tesco £1bn. In January, CEO Ken Murphy put it at a more modest £250m.

Margins remain perenially tight at 4.1%. They’re expected to ease up to 4.4% this year.

I’m not naive. No stock can stay this calm forever. After its solid run, it could easily slow from here. There will be storms, one day. I still think Tesco shares are well worth considering for long-term income and growth.

This story originally appeared on Motley Fool

Tate McRae Rocks adidas Sportswear’s Lightblaze Sneaker

FASHION

FashionGoneRogue

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February 28, 2025

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Tate McRae Rocks adidas Sportswear’s Lightblaze Sneaker

Tate McRae poses in adidas Sportswear’s Lightblaze campaign. Photo: adidas

adidas Sportswear has officially entered its Lightblaze era, unveiling a new sneaker campaign starring Tate McRae. The images showcase her effortless movement and a streetwear aesthetic, making Lightblaze a must-have for everyday wear.

Designed with a monochromatic color-blocked aesthetic, the sneaker features bold three-stripe branding along the outer foot for a standout look. The upper combines suede, leather, and mesh overlays, adding texture and dimension to its sharp, minimalist design.

adidas Sportswear Lightblaze Campaign

Tate McRae gets moving in adidas Sportswear's Lightblaze collection. — Tate McRae gets moving in adidas Sportswear’s Lightblaze collection. Photo: adidas

The Lightstrike midsole, borrowed from adidas’ high-performance running line, ensures lightweight comfort and responsive cushioning, making it perfect for all-day wear. A full-length rubber outsole provides traction and durability for movement in any setting.

adidas Sportswear highlights its Lightblaze sneaker collection. Photo: adidas

In the campaign, Tate McRae showcases the energy of Lightblaze, pairing the sneaker with a cropped tank, oversized cargo pants, and a belly chain, proving its versatility in streetwear styling.

Singer Tate McRae poses behind the scenes on adidas Sportswear photoshoot. Photo: adidas

“From tour rehearsals to meeting friends for dinner, I need a shoe that can take me from day to night and promise me ultimate comfort, which is why I am a huge fan of adidas Sportswear’s new Lightblaze model,” Tate shares.

The first Lightblaze model is now available in stores, on the adidas website, and via the adidas app, with fresh colorways arriving later this year.

This story originally appeared on FashionGoneRogue

Why fast-learning robots are wearing Meta glasses – Computerworld

TECHNOLOGY

Computerworld

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February 28, 2025

0

Why fast-learning robots are wearing Meta glasses – Computerworld

Meta announced Project Aria in September 2020 as a research initiative to develop advanced AR glasses. The glasses have five cameras (including monochrome, RGB, and eye-tracking), Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs), microphones, and environmental sensors. The project also has privacy safeguards such as anonymization algorithms, a recording indicator LED, and a physical privacy switch, according to Meta.

The purpose of Aria is to enable applications in robotics, accessibility, and 3D scene reconstruction. Meta rolled out the Aria Research Kit (ARK) on Oct. 9.

By using Project Aria glasses to record first-person video of humans performing tasks like shirt folding or packing groceries, Georgia Tech researchers built a dataset that’s more than 40 times more “demonstration-rich” than equivalent robot-collected data.

This story originally appeared on Computerworld

Hilton Honors American Express Card: 70,000 Points + Free Night Reward!

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Conclusion

There’s no rush

“Mistakes – yes, we make them at Berkshire”

Reinvest, reinvest

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Can this FTSE stock keep winning?

The dividend is perfectly covered

adidas Sportswear Lightblaze Campaign

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