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It's going to take more than a little antifreeze scandal to stop this drink

Drinkers the world over let out a collective gasp this week when Fireball Cinnamon Whisky was recalled in some European countries for containing what regulators deemed an unsafe level of propylene glycol—a chemical found in antifreeze. Was that the burn felt by college students and weekend warriors when they took shots of the liquor whose slogan promises that it “tastes like heaven, burns like hell”?

As it turns out, propylene glycol is approved for use in food processing by the FDA, which says that it “can be ingested over long periods of time and in substantial quantities (up to 5 percent of the total food intake) without causing frank toxic effects.” Europe accepts a lower level of the chemical, and certain countries balked at bottles containing more than one gram per kilogram by volume.

Nevertheless, the spicy whiskey—whose flavor has been compared to Big Red chewing gum—is unlikely to take a tumble in the U.S. based on this news. In a few short years, it has become a mainstay in the stable of shots, offering the kick of a liquor much stronger than it is (33%), with no unpleasant aftertaste. Between 2011 and 2013, Bloomberg reports, its sales at U.S. gas stations, convenience stores and supermarkets rose from $1.9 million to $61 million. Momentum like that will need more than a little antifreeze scandal to slow it down.

Big, bold flavor is not a trend that’s going away anytime soon—according to Ian Reusch, general manager at the popular D.C. beer bar ChurchKey, we’ve seen the same level of hype around similar products like Goldschlager and Jägermeister. He thinks a scary ingredient linked to antifreeze might be enough to burst the cinnamon-flavored bubble.

Yael Vengroff, Fireball aficionado and bar manager at Harvard & Stone in Los Angeles, begs to differ. She says the kind of folks who appreciate Fireball may not be the same kind of people who are easily spooked by scandal. “I feel that Fireball won’t suffer from the current recall,” she says, “because I don’t feel like its market and drinkers are in the business of playing it safe, if you will.”

For those who do fear for their innards but still crave the fiery liquor, bartenders around the country offer artisanal versions whose ingredients are less likely to offend. The drink has become a kind of ironic favorite among the kind of mixologists who would bristle at the term “mixologist,” folks who still appreciate that the experience of going to a bar should be about having a good time, not a white-glove affair.

At ChurchKey, Reusch and his staff recently began offering their own “Grandpapa Reusch Ol’ Time Fireball Style Whiskey,” made with cinnamon sticks and chili oil. The Penrose in New York City offers the “Red Hot Shot,” bourbon infused with cinnamon and jalapeño. And Vengroff makes her own barrel-aged version with Ferrand cognac at Harvard & Stone called “Firebarrel.”

Still, Vengroff says, bars that do make their own version should not get too haughty about it. Her own appreciation of the spirit “started off as a f–k you to that really precious speakeasy experience.” When those same bars make their own versions but frown on the real brand, that is not in the Fireball spirit, she says. “For so long, it was like, ‘We’re not gonna give the people what they want. We’re not gonna carry vodka or cranberry juice.’” At the end of the day, bars are still supposed to be about hospitality, and if people want to coat their esophagus in cinnamon whiskey, then bottom’s up.

If you’re still too nervous about putting propylene glycol in your body, there are plenty of easy at-home recipes for Fireball knockoffs. Try infusing a bottle of cheap whiskey with a handful of cinnamon sticks and two shots of simple syrup for a few days, adding a few dried red chili peppers then steeping for a few days more before straining. Alternatively, just add cinnamon and jalapeno syrups to your whiskey of choice. Whatever you do, take a hint from the guests at this wedding and be sure to share the drink far and wide—you’ll be everyone’s favorite party guest.

Josh Sundquist's costume is a must see

Yup, this a former N.W.A member hanging out with Elmo

In what was probably the least gangster rap thing he’s ever done, rapper-turned-actor Ice Cube stopped by Sesame Street this week to kick it with Elmo.

He starts off with a quick vocabulary lesson (he teaches Elmo the meaning of the word “astounding”) and then performs a series of magic tricks. He runs through the usual suspects: making a large coin disappear, making something jump out of a top hat and so on. But the pièce de résistance comes at the end when he turns himself into an ACTUAL ICE CUBE. Get it?

For whatever reason, Mr. Cube did not use this appearance as an opportunity to promote his new album, Everythang’s Corrupt.

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The cause of the explosion is still unknown

Yes, a sassy feline once sat inside the magazine's red border

Today is National Cat Day — even though it kind of feels like every day is National Cat Day on the Internet. To celebrate this momentous occasion, we decided to take a look back at a key moment in TIME’s history: that time in 1981 when cats were the most important news of the week.

It’s true. On Dec. 7, 1981, TIME’s cover featured a green-eyed feline model paired with the cover line “CATS: Love ‘em! Hate ‘em!” The corresponding story, called “Crazy Over Cats,” declared the animals a “national mania.” Fun fact: Maureen Dowd, then a young TIME correspondent, was a reporter and researcher on the story, which outlined humans’ complex relationship with felines. As J.D. Reed wrote:

From deification to demonization, and every stage in between, attitudes toward cats have been confused, variable, peculiar, consuming, jittery and, ultimately, baffling. Those sinuous forms represented in Egyptian art, valued as rodent-chasers by farmers, or draped luxuriously over an apartment radiator have elicited the best and worst from mankind in the 5,000 years since their domestication. The dog may be man’s best friend, but the cat is his most perplexing one, if, indeed, he is one at all.

Though this cover was obviously a very silly one, it should be noted that plenty of other TIME covers have been just as ridiculous — especially in 1981, for some reason. (See: this one about ice cream, and this one about fitness.) Few, however, have been quite so prescient. More than three decades ago, TIME knew that cats were nothing to LOL about.

The Dec. 7, 1981, cover story is now available free of charge in TIME’s archives. Click here to read it in its entirety: Crazy Over Cats

The spoof recipe book promises “No meth-in around”

Action figures may be off the table for your favorite Breaking Bad fan this holiday season, but thankfully, something even better is hitting the market: a Breaking Bad cookbook, titled — what else? — Baking Bad. (This project is so ripe for puns, it’s a wonder it’s taken this long for someone to cash in.) For starters, there’s the mysterious bestselling author’s pen name, Walter Wheat. Then there are the recipes within, from Ricin Crispie Treats to Fring Pops.

The publisher promises that the recipes are “98% pure but 100% edible,” no Hazmat gear required — a regular old apron should do the trick. Some of the concoctions, like Mr. White’s Tighty Whitey Bite gingerbread cookies, sound appealing. Others, like the Tortuga Tart — which features a slab of ham perched atop a turtle-shaped pastry — appear better suited for presentation than for gastronomic pleasure.

The book goes on sale on Nov. 6, but until then, you can get cooking with a handful of recipes on BuzzFeed UK. It’s probably prudent not to send your kid to school with Meth Crunchie cupcakes, but you can certainly enjoy them at home — with the promise of nothing more than a sugar high.

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