Tuesday, October 29, 2013

I'm so excited!! (GREAT FOOD BLOGGER COOKIE SWAP)

I just signed up for the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap.

The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2013

This is the first time I'm participating and signup is only through Monday 11/4 (can you believe Friday is NOVEMBER already?)

Here's a little info:

The GREAT FOOD BLOGGER COOKIE SWAP brings together food bloggers from around the world in celebration of all things scrumptious. The premise is this: sign up. Receive the addresses of three other food bloggers. Send each of them one dozen delicious homemade cookies. Receive three different boxes of scrumptious cookies from other bloggers. Eat them all yourself (or, you know, share. If you want. No judgement either way.) Post your cookie recipe on your blog. See everyone else’s cookie recipes. Salivate. Get lots of great ideas for next year’s cookie swap. Rinse and repeat.
This year we are again excited to be partnering with COOKIES FOR KIDS’ CANCER, a national non-profit organization committed to funding new therapies used in the fight against pediatric cancer, which claims the lives of more children in the US than any other disease. By participating in this cookie swap you are not only contributing to the food blogger community, but also supporting a great cause.


Monday, October 14, 2013

CocoZia coconut water

I was given the opportunity to try a case of CocoZia from the manufacturer, Epicurex and jumped on it.  The Kid Loves Coconut water and I've never tried it myself.  I figured I'd give it a go, why not?

I ordered the case from Amazon and in two days it was at my door.  I had gotten the package on one of those hot days and I had walked two miles home from the train station, so I was T H I R S T Y!!  I couldn't wait to get home and pour one over a glass of ice and finally sit down and relax for a few before making dinner.

I grabbed the box off my porch and first thing off the bat there was a problem.  Not from the coconut water, but Amazon, they had obviously not taken any care in managing their packaging details because there was a huge gash in the original CocoZia package and one of the cartons was completely empty.  



The amazon box itself was in perfect condition, 

but after sending my feedback to amazon along with pictures I never received a response, so I will think twice before ordering any liquid or food items from them again

I  filled a glass with ice for myself and poured my cocozia in and took my first sip.  I was apprehensive.  I'd read many mixed reviews and the one that stuck in my head was “it tastes kinda like dirt” It didn’t.  It tasted like... well, nothing really.  It has a slight coconutty flavor, very mild but very thirst quenching.

After opening the rest of the package I set one aside for myself and put the rest of the coconut water in the fridge it let it hang out while I went about my business and made dinner.  When the kid came home he opened the fridge and said to me “You didn't tell me you were getting a whole case! Awesome!!” Grabbed two and drank it down in what seemed one big gulp.  Okay, good to know he’s happy, he loves the stuff.


I don't “Love”it, it’s good, it’s good for you and it did a great job at quenching my thirst and the kid really enjoys it so I'll definitely get it again if I see it.

Disclosure
*I was not financially compensated for this post. I received a sample for review purposes. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.*

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Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Grated apple pie.. the absolute best apple pie I have ever had in my life.

Around Thanksgiving last year my Honey and I were browsing through Cooks Illustrated Magazine on the iPad and came across this pie that looked like nothing we'd seen before.  Right then and there that pie was placed as the first item on the Thanksgiving Day menu.

Thanksgiving rolled around and after dinner was done I went about making this pie and made a Big mistake... being short on white sugar I added some brown sugar and the pie never set.  It was a soupy mess.  It was delicious, but a mess nonetheless.

After we went apple picking last weekend I set my sights on making this pie again and armed myself properly with this recipe at hand:

Grated Apple Pie

Ingredients

1 1/4 C Sugar
1/2 C (1 stick) Unsalted butter
3 Tbs Flour
2 tsp Vanilla (I make my own, use the real stuff)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
3 medium apples, Peeled and coarsely grated
1 unbaked deep dish pie shell

Directions
Preheat oven to 400°

Peel your apples and set them in a bowl of water with a little squeeze of lemon juice to keep them from browning.

In a large bowl beat together the first seven ingredients (you can use a mixer for this, but I did it by hand since My Honey doesn't have a mixer and it came out perfect every time).  Set aside.

In another bowl carefully grate your apples on the largest part of your cheese grater (I did this at home using my food processor on a smaller grater and although the pie came out good, it wasn't as good as when I did it with the good old fashioned cheese grater).

Fold the apples into the batter and carefully pour the mixture into your unbaked pie shell. (I put the pie on a pan to catch any drippings to avoid any potential spills)

Bake the pie in the center of the oven for 10 minutes and then lower the temp to 350° for 40-50 Min until golden brown on top.

Let cool completely before serving.


 We clearly didn't let it cool completely before serving... but it was still delicious :)