Help The Trail, Dive Into Dessert

Want to indulge in a sinful double chocolate cake with whipped cream and have an excuse to feel good about it?

The Sawtooth Grill, which opened in River Park Square earlier this month, is contributing $1 to Friends of the Centennial Trail for every Sawtooth Centennial Fudge Cake it sells.

The deal runs through the end of September, and restaurant officials say they will donate a minimum of $5,000 to the trail. In addition, restaurant employees will adopt a mile-long stretch of the trail, pledging to keep it free of litter.

Company officials say their support of the Centennial Trail stems from a shared interest in energetic lifestyles and outdoor activities.

Now, if only we could get out of our seats and engage in some energetic outdoor activity after indulging in a rich, fattening chocolate cake …

Love those lentils

The Palouse will be hopping this weekend as the community comes together in Pullman for the 2000 Lentil Festival. Palouse farmers produce nearly all of the world’s commercially grown lentils - 135 million pounds a year.

Events kick off Friday night with a lentil chili dinner and concert. The festival continues Saturday and Sunday with a variety of activities ranging from the annual parade and a kids fishing derby to a lentil cook-off and a skateboard competition.

For more information, call (800) ENJOY IT or log on to www.lentilfest.com.

No time for breakfast

A survey commissioned by Nutella, makers of a chocolate hazelnut spread, found that 45 percent of school-age kids in the United States are so rushed in the mornings they don’t have time to eat breakfast.

Forty-two percent said they have less than 10 minutes to eat before leaving for school. A whopping 94 percent of those who do eat breakfast say they make their own decisions about what to eat, and more than half (53 percent) say they prepare it themselves.

These statistics come from a random sampling of 1,000 kids ages 9 to 13.

By the way, Nutella is using the survey to promote its product (more popular than peanut butter in Europe) as an alternate breakfast food for American kids.

Cola wars

Really, we’re neutral in the Pepsi-Coke cola war. To prove it, here’s some Coke news to counter last week’s Fresh Sheet item about the Pepsi Challenge at Spokane Valley Mall.

Coca-Cola has launched a new online store where visitors can purchase Coke merchandise. As part of the grand opening of the Web site, the beverage giant will award one person a five-year supply of Coke. To enter, you must register as a member of the online store before Oct. 17. To get there, go to www.coca-colastore.com.