WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN

SALTINE CRACKER CANDY~ FOR YOUR VALENTINE

2011-12-30T15:17:00.000-08:00

Before Christmas I searched for many hours for recipes

to give as gifts for my family and friends. I stumbled upon

this recipe for Saltine Cracker candy on one of my favorite Mom

blogs Mommy's Kitchen. Would be a perfect gift also to give to your valentine for Valentines day.

From what I can tell this recipe is popping up all over. I couldn't believe all the buzz about it. So I decided to try it out for myself. I have to tell you if you make this candy you will be addicted. It was so good. I just couldn't believe what the ingredients were. Saltines, chocolate chips, pecan pieces brown sugar, and butter This candy if you have your eyes closedwill remind you of Almond Roca candy which I love. I posted a pic of this candy on Facebook today and had many comments. So I am posting the recipe for my readers. Enjoy!

These are the ingredients for the recipe. You will need Original Premium Saltines, Nestle Chocolate Chips, Pecans, butter and brown sugar. Sound simple? Yes it is.

Place brown sugar and butter in a sauce pan over

medium heat. Stir constantly to prevent burning.

Once you bring to a boil set your timer for 3 minutes.

Prepare a large cookie sheet by lining it with foil. i used a throw away foil cookie sheet but you can use either one.
Pour brown sugar mixture over saltine crackers. Place in a 400
degree oven for 5 minutes. Sprinkle 12oz package of chocolate chips on top. Spread chocolate when melted over crackers until
all saltines are covered. Sprinkle with pecans.I used
the cookie pecan bits for this recipe. You can also use almonds . It's really up to you. Just make sure they are in small pieces.

Refrigerate candy for 2 hours. Break into pieces and watch
it disappear. I know you are gonna love it.

The Recipe
1 1/2 packages Saltine Crackers

1 1/4 - cups butter, not margarine

1 1/4 - cup light brown sugar
1 - 12 oz package chocolate chips or

1 - 8 oz package milk chocolate toffee bits
1 - cup chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts or almonds)

Recipe adapted from Mommy's Kitchen.

SANTA BARBARA BAY~ SOCKEYE SALMON DIP REVIEW

2011-12-24T10:06:00.000-08:00

What is on your party tray this Christmas Eve?

I don't know about you but I love making party

trays during the holiday season. I remember

my mom making some pretty darn great

party trays for Christmas Eve when we

were kids. We would have dips, chips and
all kinds of goodies.

Several months back I had the pleasure of
reviewing for Santa Barbara Bay. They
sent me a variety of dips to try. I was very
impressed with the quality and taste of
Santa Barbara Bay Dips.

Recently they sent me the Sockeye Salmon Dip
to review. I don't know about you but I love salmon
but I have never tried a dip made with it. So I was
not sure how I would like it. Well all I can say is
I loved it, literally, bottom line. It had a delicious
smoked salmon flavor and would be awesome to serve
on a holiday tray with crackers . If you are not a salmon
fan Santa Barbara Bay has a delicious variety of
dips to try. It's not to late to include Santa Barbara
Bay delicious dips and spreads on your Christmas Eve Party Tray.
For more information about Santa Barbara Bay Dips
and spreads click here

FLAVORS INCLUDE:
Caramelized Onion & Roasted Garlic DipChili Con Queso Dip Chunky Artichoke Dip Crab Salad
Cream Cheese Seafood SpreadGarden Dill Dip King Crab & Cheddar Spread
NEW! All Natural Spinach Parmesan DipNEW! Artichoke Jalapeno Dip NEW! Buffalo Blue Cheese Dip
Roasted Garlic Ranch DipSeafood Salad Spinach Dip Sweet & Spicy Three Pepper Dip

CLUB FLAVORS INCLUDE:
All Natural Seafood SaladAll Natural Spinach Parmesan Dip Seafood Spread Spinach Dip
Wild Smoked Sockeye Salmon Spread

PARTY TRAY FLAVORS INCLUDE:
Spinach Dip and Chunky Artichoke DipRoasted Garlic Ranch Dip and Garden Dill Dip
Caramelized Onion and Roasted Garlic Dip and Spinach DipRoasted Garlic Ranch Dip and Spinach Dip

Disclosure: For this review I received free of charge
two Santa Barbara Bay Sockeye Salmon Dips to review.
I would like to thank Santa Barbara Bay for making this
review possible.

MARZETTI SALAD DRESSING REVIEW

2011-12-08T14:59:00.000-08:00

I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Simply Dressed review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.

My Thoughts

I am very picky about salad dressing.I

have never liked Thousand Island, Blue
Cheese or French. I just have never
found any of these salad dressings appealing.
When I go to the grocery store I always
pick up a bottle of Ranch Salad Dressing. I
love it. I buy Italian, Caesar and Balsamic sometimes but I have to say that Ranch is my favorite. I not only use
it on my salad but on my baked potato instead
of sour cream and when I make french fries I use
it instead of Ketchup. I think my son inherited this
from me because when we have french fries at home
he always ask for Ranch to dip his fries in.

I am also very picky about the brand of salad
dressing that I purchase. When I was asked
to review a bottle of Marzetti Simply Dressed Salad Dressing
I was excited to try this brand. Actually I have
never tried or heard of it. A friend of mine
at work told me that she buys Marzetti Simply
Dressed Salad Dressing and I could find it in the refrigerated section of our local grocery store by the salad. She said
she loved it and buys it all the time. So, when I went
to the store to pick up the dressing I read the packaging
to find out more about the product.

I learned that Marzetti Simply Dressed Salad Dressing
is preservative free, contains no MSG, trans fat, high fructose corn syrup or artificial flavors. Wow, this was very
good news to me because I knew that it would probably
taste pretty good. Of course you know I immediately
wanted to try the Simply Dressed Ranch but it took me a while
to decide because the Pomegranate , Balsamic and Caesar dressing also caught my eye. I finally decided to try the
Ranch Dressing and used it on my salad that night.
You can also purchase the Simply Dressed Light
Salad Dressing which contains less calories and fat
than regular dressings and available in five varieties.

Simply Dressed Light Ranch
Simply Dressed Light Blue Cheese
Simply Dressed Light Caesar
Simply Dressed Raspberry Acai
Simply Dressed Light Celery Seed Slaw

I visited the Marzetti website and learned that some of
the dressings are gluten free which is great for people
with an allergy to gluten. I found many great recipes
and a lot of product information.

THE TASTE TEST

From the first taste, I was in heaven! I can
really tell the difference between the
shelf stable brands and Marzetti. It was so good.
I will never go back to using another brand again
and that says a lot for me because I have been using
the same brand of Ranch Dressing for years. This dressing was so creamy and had a delicious fresh taste. Made with buttermilk
canola oil and extra virgin olive oil. I can't wait to venture
out and try some of the other flavors like

Simply Dressed Champagne Salad Dressing
Simply Dressed Greek Feta Salad Dressing
Simply Dressed Strawberry Poppyseed Dressing
Simply Dressed Pomegranate Dressing
Simply Dressed Coleslaw Salad Dressing
Simply Dressed Balsamic Dressing

If you have not tried Marzetti Simply Dressed Salad Dressing

I would definitely recommend you try it. I will give this

product a very positive review because I loved the taste of it.

I can't wait to try the recipe on the Marzetti website

for the Stuffed Mushrooms which incorporates the Simply

Dressed Ranch Dressing in the recipe. I love stuffed mushrooms and this recipe sounds really good. I love making quick appetizers during the holidays to serve on a party tray.

I would like to thank Clever Girls Collective and the

T. Marzetti company for making this review possible.

GORTON'S SEAFOOD REVIEW SWEEPSTAKES & GIVEAWAY

2011-12-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

I was recently selected to review for Gorton's Seafood.

Surprisingly I have never tried these products before.

I received in the mail three coupons to try the Gorton's

Seafood Products. I selected the Beer Battered Fish,

Lemon Peppered Fish and Battered Fish to review.

I love the beer battered fish and lemon peppered
fish. This is a quick easy meal the whole family
will enjoy. I was pressed for time one day so I baked
a variety of Gorton's Fish to try.
My son and I enjoyed it with a side of Mac &Cheese.They
came out perfect from the oven. Crispy on the
outside and tender on the inside. I am not a big
fan of fish from a box but I loved the
Gorton's brand and will be purchasing this
on my next grocery trip.

SWEEPSTAKES & GIVEAWAY

Check out the Gorton's Seafood
Any Way You Want It Sweepstakes on
Facebook and tell how you get seafood on
your plate twice a week,for a chance to win
5,000 dollars to spend any way you want it!
Hurry over this ends at midnight tonight!
I would like to thank Gorton's Seafood for
providing the products for this review
and giveaway.

12/2 -12/6
THE GIVEAWAY

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Gorton's Seafood is giving one lucky reader of Welcome To
My Kitchen, one product coupon for a free Gorton's product and a Gorton's custom dinner plate.
Simply leave a comment below this post stating your favorite
Gorton's recipe. Visit to view the Gorton's recipes here

Please leave a separate comment for each entry with a valid email address. Winner will be chosen using random.org and will be given
48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.
BONUS ENTRIES(one each)

1. Go to http://www.gortons.com and sign up for our fun e-newsletter!

2 “Like,” tweet or share a Gorton’s recipe.

3. "Like" Gorton's on Facebook!

4. "Follow" Gorton's Seafood on Twitter and tweet about the Gorton’s Any Way You Want It Sweepstakes! http://twitter.com/gortons seafood [Sample tweet: Get Gorton’s Seafood on your plate Any Way You Want It & enter for a chance to win $5,000! #eatseafoodtwiceaweek http://bit.ly/pzAt2M]

Disclosure:

I received free of charge three coupons for a free boxes

of Gorton's Seafood to review. All thoughts and opinions

of this product are my own and not influenced by the company

or products I received for this review.

TEXAS FOOD~ REVIEW & KATY'S SWEET PECAN CRUNCH GIVEAWAY

2011-11-19T16:29:00.000-08:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I had the pleasure of reviewing for Texas Food
several weeks ago. They sent me Pecan
Pralines and Pecan Crunch to review. I stumbled
across the Texas Food website while browsing
the Internet and was amazed at all the wonderful
gift baskets, pantry and spices, bakery items, jams,
snacks, and appetizers. All authentic Texas foods
from the good ole state of Texas.

Since I live in Texas I will tell you that
we have some pretty darn good food here.
Known for our barbecue, pecans, chili and
Tex Mex. So when I found the Texas Food website
I was excited about trying the products.

I received to review the Katy Sweet Pecan Crunch
and a variety of pecan pralines. I love pecans
so I was excited about trying the pecan crunch first. This
comes in a lovely red tin. The taste was heavenly, so
buttery and delicious. Would make a great gift for
Christmas or just to serve on your holiday table.

I received Chewy Coconut Pecan, Creamy Fudge Pecan,
No Sugar Added Pecan and Creamy Original Pecan pralines
to review. I tried the coconut pecan first and I loved the taste of
it. I am a big coconut fan. My favorite of the pralines
that I received are the Original Pecan and the Sugar Free.
I was very impressed with the sugar free pralines. I actually
could not tell that it was sugar free.

I am a chocoholic and of course fell in love with the Creamy Fudge Pecan pralines.Overall I was very impressed with Texas Food products that I was sent to review. I recommend you try them for yourself. I would like to thank Texas Food for sponsoring this review and giveaway!

THE GIVEAWAY
The generous folks at Texas Food are giving away a tin of
Katy's Sweet Pecan Crunch to one lucky reader of
Welcome To My Kitchen. Just in time for the holiday season. Trust me you are going to love this pecan crunch. Simply leave a comment at the end of this post stating what products you like from the Texas Food website. Click here to visit. Be sure to leave a valid email address where I can easily contact you. Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

Bonus entries(one each)

Subscribe by email
Blog about this giveaway
post this giveaway on Facebook
Grab my button and place on your sidebar

GOOSEBERRY PATCH & NEW ENGLAND COFFEE GIVEAWAY WINNERS

2011-11-12T07:23:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Trista Anderson comment

22 on the Gooseberry Patch 101 Hearty

Recipes Giveaway. You are the winner!I hope you enjoy

your cookbook.

Congratulations to Diana comment
7 on the New England Coffee Giveaway.
Hope you enjoy your coffee this holiday
season.

APPLE WALNUT GALETTE RECIPE

2011-11-10T07:19:00.000-08:00

I am so glad the holidays are approaching. I love this time of year when I can start baking. I now have a new favorite dessert, Apple Walnut Galette.This recipe is so easy.Wait until you see how pretty and yummy it looks. Your guest will think you spent all day in the kitchen. I love the way it smells when

baking. Fills the entire house with a yummy

apple cinnamon aroma.

I used Pillsbury Pie Crust for this recipe I love this pie

crust because it is delicious and taste

as close to home made as you can get in

my opinion. I like using it to because

it is so convenient and easy.

If you are pressed for time and want a quick

delicious dessert, this is it. In about 30 minutes you can have a delicous dessert made with apples, cinnamon,

sugar and walnuts. Great with a scoop of vanilla ice
cream on top.

Instructions

Peel core and chop apples and place in mixing bowl. Add

cinnamon, brown sugar and walnuts. Toss to coat.

Unroll pie crust and place apple mixture in the middle.

Simply fold up pie crust and tuck under. Sprinkle with

granulated sugar on top of crust if desired. Place 2 to 3 pats of

butter on top of apple mixture before baking. Bake at 400

for 30 to 45 minutes until apples are tender and

crust is golden brown. Serve at your next holiday table. Your

guest will be very impressed.

NEW ENGLAND COFFEE ~ PUMPKIN SPICE & EGG NOG REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-11-06T20:30:00.000-08:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Recently I was sent two flavors of New England

Coffee to review, Pumpkin Spice and

Egg Nog.I am not a pumpkin fan at all.

Yes, I know that sounds crazy but I just

do not like the taste of pumpkin I can
tolerate pumpkin if it is incorporated in a muffin
or cake but I have never liked

pumpkin pie . So I was very skeptical

about pumpkin spice flavored coffee.

I reviewed for New England Coffee before

and I fell in love with the blueberry coffee

that they sent me to review. I told my mom

I was going to come for a visit and bring

the coffee with me to share. She was excited

because she love pumpkin and was anxious

to try it. She also enjoyed the blueberry coffee

that we shared the last time .

I also prepared a delicious Caramel Apple
upside down cake to go with our coffee. I will be
sharing the recipe for this delicious cake
later this week.

THE REVIEW

First I prepared the pumpkin spice coffee. When
it was brewing it smelled so good and amazingly
I loved it! So much, that I had to get a second
cup. Can you believe it? I know I couldn't.
I have been a pumpkin hater all my life. This coffee has
a sweet pumpkin flavor enhanced with spices.. great for the holidays.

I like my coffee with
Splenda and a little cream. We drank
the first pot and then it was time to prepare the egg
nog flavor. This coffee has a strong aroma. I did
not like the taste of it. I am not a big fan of
eggnog but I have tried it once or twice at Christmas time. For
this reason I didn't like the taste of this coffee.

I am planning on serving these coffees on the upcoming
Thanksgiving holiday.I would recommend you try the seasonal
flavors of New England Coffee. You are sure to find a flavor you will love.

THE GIVEAWAY

11/6-11/11
The generous folks at
New England Coffee are going to give one of my lucky
readers a bag of Pumpkin Spice coffee to try. Simply leave a
comment telling me your favorite way to drink a cup of
coffee. Please leave a valid email address where I can
easily contact you. Winner will be given 48 hours to respond
or another winner will be chosen. Winner will be chosen
using Random.Org

Disclosure: I received free of charge New England
Pumpkin Spice and Egg Nog flavored coffees to
review. All thoughts and opinions of this product
are my own and not influenced by the company or products I
received for this review.

GOOSEBERRY PATCH~ 101 HEARTY RECIPES REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-11-05T10:44:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I was so excited when I was asked to

review Gooseberry Patch 101 Hearty

Recipes. A newly released spiral bound

cookbook with 101 recipes that will

knock your socks off! This is my first

review for Gooseberry Patch.

It was so hard trying to decide what

recipes to try because each recipe

has a mouthwatering photo and all

of them looked so good. I planned

a family gathering and finally decided

to prepare three recipes from the cookbook and
an additional recipe the next day.

101 Hearty Recipes has 4 yummy chapters.

Fun & Filling
Speedy & Satisfying
Casual & Comforting
Baked & Buttery

With the holidays coming up I want
to try several recipes like the Texas
Hominy on page 60, Farmhouse Chicken
Bake on page 47 and the Dark Chocolate
Pecan Pie on page 101.

One of the things I really liked about this
cookbook is how easy and quick the recipes
are. I love quick and easy recipes. Most
of these recipes contain ingredients
already in your pantry and can be
prepared in 30 minutes or less. Whether
you are a seasoned cook or a beginner you will
be able to create a delicious home cooked meal
in no time.

The first recipe I tried was the Quick & Creamy

Vegetable Soup. This soup is perfect for
a cold day and so very easy to prepare. I used frozen
mixed vegetables and the only thing I did different
was use a bit more chicken broth to thin the soup
down a bit. This soup is a tasty comfort food
your family will love.

The next recipe I prepared was the Pull-Apart Bacon

Bread. Oh my goodness, this bread was to die for!

Everyone loved it and my moms neighbor stopped

by to try a piece and was begging me for the recipe.

You will have to try this recipe, it is awesome.The
recipe calls for green pepper but I used a combination of
red, yellow and green peppers because this is all I had on hand
at the time.I buy the diced peppers at my local grocery that are already diced and ready to go. This bread was delicious fresh
out of the oven and a nice compliment to the
soup.

For dessert I prepared the Crunchy Oat &Fruit Crisp.
This was delicious. Made with sliced apples, blueberries
and cherries and a nice crunchy topping. It was so good.
My sister loved this recipe. She went home and made
it the next day.I could not find fresh cherries at the store
so I used the dried cherries instead.

I absolutely fell in love with 101 Hearty Recipes from
Gooseberry Patch and will definitely give this cookbook a thumbs up review. Thank you Gooseberry Patch for providing this yummy cookbook for me to review.

Disclosure: I received free copies of 101
Hearty Recipes for this review. All thoughts
and opinions of this product are my own
and not influenced by the product i received for
this review.

11/5-11/10

THE GIVEAWAY
Want to win a copy of 101 Hearty Recipes to try for yourself?
Simply leave a blog post comment stating your favorite
quick and easy recipe. Please leave a valid email
where I can easily contact you, per comment.

Bonus Entries(one each)
Follow Gooseberry Patch on Facebook

Subscribe by email(Welcome To My Kitchen)
Follow Me On Networked Blogs
Blog about this giveaway
Grab my button and post on your blog

Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Winner
will be chosen by Random.Org.

CAULDRON OF CASH HALLOWEEN GIVEAWAY

2011-10-24T18:35:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED
Oct 25 to 30

Hello and welcome to the Cauldron Of Cash Halloween

Giveaway.Welcome To My Kitchen and 7 other blogs
have teamed up to bring you a spooktacular giveaway this
Halloween! 80 dollars in cash to one lucky winner!
Everyone needs a little extra cash right? To enter our giveaway
please complete all mandatory tasks as asked on the Rafflecopter
widget. Bonus entries will be given. Good luck and have a Happy Halloween!All entries will be verified. This giveaway was brought to you by

WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN
BARBARA'S BEAT
DEBRA'S DOLLARS
FRUGAL EXPERIMENTS
MARY'S CUP OF TEA
MIKIS HOPE
MOM OF 3 BOYS
ONE BUSY MAMA

CAULDRON OF CASH HALLOWEEN GIVEAWAY SIGN UP

2011-10-19T16:25:00.000-07:00

From Millan.Net

Hello I am writing today to tell you about a

great group giveaway I am planning for Halloween.

My Food Frenzy Mega Blog Giveaway was

a huge success with over 6,000 entries. This

time we are giving away cash! Yes a cash giveaway!

This hop will build GFC, Twitter, Facebook and

email subscribers. If you are a blogger and would

like to participate in this great Social Media Hop

just fill out the form below to sign up. This

will be a rafflecopter giveaway. Please make sure

you have a Paypal account because we will use

Paypal for this giveaway. Everyone needs some extra

cash right? This hop will began Oct 28 so hurry and sign up!
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CANDY CORN FUDGE

2011-10-08T13:45:00.000-07:00

I love the Halloween season. I love to bake and make

all kinds of Halloween treats. I found a video

while searching for some fun easy recipes today

on You Tube and thought I would share it with

you. This recipe would be great for a Halloween

party, a perfect kid friendly recipe. Don't you

just love recipes like that? This recipe is

for Candy Corn Fudge. So simple to make.Only

a few ingredients needed. Check it out.

TAMMY'S SALSA REVIEW

2011-10-02T18:28:00.000-07:00

It's no secret, I love salsa and I have reviewed

several salsas lately. My friend Tammy makes

homemade salsa to die for. I recently was

given two jars to review, mild and hot

salsa. I love her homemade salsa. It is

thick and chunky just the way I like it and
has a fresh tomato taste. I loved this salsa
on scrambled eggs it was delicious.

I liked the mild salsa but loved

the hot. I couldn't stop eating it.

I have tried many brands of salsa. But

I think homemade is definitely the best.

Tammy sells her hot sauce for five dollars

a jar. You can find out more about

her salsa on her blog The Hobbs

Painted Farm.

About Tammy

Tammy barrel races full time and works full time which I think

is very interesting. She has a love for horses

and a talent for barrel racing like no one I

have ever seen. She won world champion

in 2010. You can visit The Hobbs

Painted Farm or find her on Facebook.

She is currently seeking sponsors and

followers on her blog. If you are interested

in her salsa, send her a message on

Facebook.

Disclosure: I received free of charge 2 jars of Tammy's

Salsa to review. Thank you Tammy!

TROPICAL TRADITIONS BROWN RICE SYRUP GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-09-28T04:05:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Lynn Matthews. You

are the winner of the Tropical Traditions

Brown Rice Syrup Giveaway. Please

contact me within 48 hours to claim

your prize.

TROPICAL TRADITIONS BROWN RICE SYRUP REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-09-24T16:50:00.000-07:00

Tropical Traditions has been a company

I have been very pleased with. I have

reviewed several products and find

them to be very high quality.

Recently I received the Tropical Traditions

Brown Rice Syrup to review. To be honest

I have never heard of this syrup before. So

I had to do some research before I prepared

a recipe with it.

Brown Rice Syrup

"Tropical Traditions Certified Organic Brown Rice Syrup is a natural sweetener produced by steeping whole brown rice with a special enzyme preparation derived from “koji.” This process transforms the steamed grain into a smooth flavored, pleasantly sweet syrup. It is made without the use of any cane or beet sugars (no cane juice crystals), corn syrups, or other refined sweeteners of any kind. Organic Brown Rice Syrup is an excellent sweetener for all baked goods, in the preparation of sauces or marinades, and for general cooking purposes."

Gluten Free
Certified Organic
Ideal sweetener for hypoallergenic diets
Easy to digest
Great source of sustainable energy
Non-distinct flavor
Complements a wide variety of foods

THE RECIPE

After spending some time online I came upon a recipe

for Coconut Granola. I just love granola. The recipe

calls for brown rice syrup so I decided to try it.

Before making the granola I tasted the brown rice

syrup out of curiosity. This syrup is slightly sweet

with a very non distinct flavor. But would it work

to sweeten the granola to my liking? I was very

skeptical. I didn't want to ruin this recipe

and was tempted to add some honey but decided not

to, being that I wanted to truly test this syrup.

First I added 15 cups of rolled oats to a large mixing bowl. Then

I added walnuts, shredded coconut and cinnamon. Then stirred to combine. I mixed the brown rice syrup with the coconut

oil and heated on the stove slightly to thin out the mixture.

The recipe does not call for this . This was something I decided

to do . Next I added the syrup mixture to the dry ingredients
and mixed well. I spread the granola in a large pan and baked
at 400 degrees for 7 minutes. Then I removed the granola from the oven to stir once more. After this step I returned the granola to the oven to cook for an additional 7 minutes until golden brown.

THE REVIEW

I couldn't wait to taste this granola. I let it sit to cool down
and finally took my first taste. This granola was delicious!
Slightly sweet and crunchy and delicious. I was pleasantly
surprised with the brown rice syrup. It worked wonders
in this recipe and I would most definitely recommend you
try it for yourself. You can also add dried fruit to the granola if
you prefer. Raisins or dried apples would be awesome. Thank
you Tropical Traditions for another great product!

Disclosure: I received free of charge Tropical Traditions
Brown Rice Syrup to review. No monetary compensation
was received.

THE GIVEAWAY

Win a 16oz jar of Tropical Traditions Brown Rice Syrup to

try in your favorite recipe.

MITCH'S PEANUT BRITTLE

2011-09-21T03:44:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I love peanut

brittle. But I never attempted to make it myself.

I was talking with my sister today and she was

telling me that her boyfriend Mitch was making

homemade peanut brittle. I am not sure

where this recipe came from but she

says it is awesome and very easy. You can

also add a little jalapeno pepper to make the

brittle spicy. I have tried spicy chocolate

but never spicy peanut brittle so this

intrigued me. I am going to share this recipe

with you and if you make it before I get the chance

let me know how you liked it. This brittle would make

a perfect gift for the upcoming holiday season or a gift

for a teacher.

Mitch's Peanut Brittle

2 cups raw peanuts
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup white Karo syrup

Butter a cookie sheet and set aside. Mix water, sugar, peanuts, and syrup in a 2 quart sauce pan. Bring to a boil.Cook until candy thermometer reaches hard crack stage (310°F). Remove from heat.

Quickly stir in baking soda and butter. Will harden rapidly.
Pour quickly onto a buttered cookie sheet and let stand for about an hour to cool. Break up into pieces.

KOOL AID PIE

2011-09-20T04:20:00.000-07:00

Recently we had a dinner at work and I needed a quick

easy dessert to take with me. I didn't have a whole

lot of time to make something but wanted a dessert that

was a breeze to make and delicious. Well, while visiting Mommy's Kitchen, I picked up a quick easy Kool Aid Pie recipe that would be the perfect dessert for the occasion, so I decided to make it.

I chose the lemonade Kool Aid and strawberry to make two pies

to take to work. I couldn't believe how easy these pies were

to make. And let me tell you the lemonade pie was gone by early afternoon. I had a little of the strawberry

left over so I brought it home to enjoy myself.

Thank you Tina, for this great yummy Kool Aid pie recipe.

These are the ingredients you will need. Graham Cracker Pie Crust, 8oz Cool Whip, 1 package Kool Aid(your choice.) 1 can Eagle Brand condensed milk. I used a 16 oz container of Cool Whip because I was making two pies. I also used a fresh lemon, Reddi Whip and fresh strawberries for garnish.

First step is to mix Cool Whip, Kool Aid, and Eagle
Brand Milk together. Poor into graham cracker crust. Garnish
with Reddi Whip and fresh fruit. So easy and so yummy.

I did the same thing with the strawberry flavored Kool
Aid. But I think I like the lemonade better.

Kool Aid Pie
Cool Whip 8 oz container
1 package Kool Aid(any flavor)
1 can Eagle Brand Milk
1 Graham Cracker Pie Crust

I garnished my pies with Reddi Whip and fresh fruit.
Recipe adapted from Mommy's Kitchen.

TRULY TEXAS SALSA REVIEW

2011-09-19T03:28:00.000-07:00

I would first like to thank Truly Texas for being

a sponsor in my Food Frenzy Mega Blog

Giveaway. I received 4 jars of Truly Texas

Salsa to review prior to my Food Frenzy Giveaway.

I was so excited to find a food sponsor from

the good ole state of Texas where I am from. I received

Texas Fiesta Black Bean &Corn Salsa, Truly Texas

Salsa Medium, Fire Roasted Salsa and Green Chile Salsa

to review.

I tried the Texas Fiesta Black Bean & Corn salsa first.
Immediately I was in heaven. It was so good. I couldn't
stop eating it. It is made with black beans, corn and
tomatoes. I'm telling you it didn't last long and I didn't
share..ha ha. I forgot to take a pic of this salsa.The jar was gone
before I realized it. But I guess you can tell this was most
definite my favorite of the Truly Texas Salsas that I reviewed.

Next I tried the Green Chile Salsa.I loved this salsa. It
is chunky and thick just the way I love it. Delicious
in my opinion.

Fire Roasted Salsa

I loved the fire roasted salsa.
This salsa was also delicious. It is made with slow roasted
tomatoes then combined with zesty vegetables and a special
blend of spices.

Salsa Medium
Not to hot, also thick and chunky just the way I like it.
Made with tomatoes, onions, and jalapeno peppers. Adds
a little gusto to any meal.

I would recommend you pick up some jars to try
for yourself. Truly Texas salsa is truly one of
the best salsas I have tasted to date. Just my personal
opinion, this product is amazing.

Disclosure: For this review I received free of charge 4 jars
of Truly Texas Salsa to review. No monetary compensation
was received.

MRS RENFRO'S SALSA & TROPICAL TRADITIONS COCONUT REVIEWS

2011-09-18T11:57:00.000-07:00

Mrs Renfro's Salsa and Tropical Traditions Coconut

were two of the food prizes given away in my

Food Frenzy Mega Blog Giveaway. Having tried

the products recently this is my review of each.

Mrs Renfro's Salsa Review

I received 4 jars of Mrs Renfro's Salsa to review prior

to the Food Frenzy Mega Blog Giveaway.I received

hot, medium, mild and garlic salsa.

I have always loved salsa so I am up to trying different

brands and flavors of it. I had never heard of this particular

brand so I was anxious to give it a try.

Mild

This salsa is made with Tomatoes. Water, Onions.
Green Chile Peppers, Sweet Green Peppers
Distilled Vinegar, Corn Starch, Salt, Jalapeno
Peppers, Garlic, Spices, and Cilantro.

I like the fact that Mrs. Renfro's Salsa
is all natural . The mild was my favorite
of the 4 flavors I was sent to review. I
do prefer a chunkier salsa though. This
salsa was more saucier than I prefer
but it has a good taste.

Hot
Made with Tomatoes, Jalapeno Peppers,Onions,
Green Chile Peppers. Distilled Vinegar, Corn
Starch, Salt, Garlic, Spices and Cilantro.

I like my salsa hot but not to hot. This
salsa is hot, a little to much for my taste but it has
great flavor. I would recommend
you try it for yourself. Definitely
a must try if you like hot salsa.

Medium
Made with Tomatoes, Onions, Green Chile Peppers,
Sweet Green Peppers, Distilled Vinegar, Jalapeno Peppers,
Corn Starch, Salt, Garlic, Spices and Cilantro.
Perfect if you like just a hint of heat. Has
a fresh taste and is very good in my opinion. I tried this
one with a Triscuit cracker and it was yummy.

Garlic
Made with Tomatoes, Water, Onions, Green Chile Peppers,
Garlic, Distilled Vinegar, Sweet Green Peppers. Jalapeno Peppers, Corn Starch, Salt, Roasted Garlic and Spices.

I did not like this salsa. I like garlic in my salsa but I just didn't
like the taste of this one. But if you are a garlic
lover you might want to try it. This salsa
is gluten free and contains no preservatives.

I think this company has high
quality products and would recommend you try it
for yourself. You can find out more about Mrs Renfro's
Gourmet Salsas or purchase the product here.

Tropical Traditions Coconut Review

I received a 56 oz container of coconut from Tropical
Traditions to review. I have reviewed several products from this company and have been very impressed with them
in the past. So I was anxious to try the coconut. I love
coconut but I am used to buying it sweetened in the stores. I like Tropical Traditions so much better because it is 100%
organic and grown without fertilizers or pesticides . Contains
no additives or preservatives and is not sweetened.

I decided to try it with a recipe that I just made up last
week. To my surprise it turned out really well. You know
one of those recipes you throw in a little of this and a little of that and hope for the best? Well, this is one of those recipes. I will call it
Chocolate Coconut Bars.
.

First I added sugar and cocoa then stirred to combine
Next I added a surprise ingredient, Coffee House Inspirations white chocolate mocha coffee creamer from International Delight.

Just enough to wet the dry ingredients .

Then I cooked this on low
until melted and smooth. I added the coconut and about a teaspoon of vanilla. I also added some Davinci Hazelnut Syrup about a teaspoon.

I spread this in a dish and let it set. To my surprise these coconut bars were awesome! You will have to try Tropical Traditions Coconut.Very good product in my opinion. You can purchase or find out more about the company here.

I would like to thank Mrs Renfro's Salsa and Tropical Traditions
for providing prizes for my Food Frenzy Mega Blog Giveaway
and making these reviews possible.

Mrs Renfro's Salsa

Disclosure: I received 4 jars of Mrs Renfro's Salsa to review free of charge.No monetary compensation was received.

Tropical Traditions Coconut

Disclosure:I received a 56 oz container of Tropcial Traditions Coconut free of charge to review. No monetary compensation was received.

FOOD FRENZY MEGA BLOG GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-09-11T04:23:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Terri S. Crum, entry 4527.You

are the winner of the Food Frenzy Mega Blog

Giveaway. Please contact me within 48

hours to claim your prizes.

FOOD FRENZY MEGA BLOG GIVEAWAY

2011-09-05T17:58:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to the Food Frenzy Mega

Blog Giveaway Event. This is a GFC, Facebook,

Twitter, RSS and Email Hop. Bonus entries will be given
for following each blog by email if this option is available.To enter our giveaway you must complete each mandatory task listed below.One very lucky winner will be randomly chosen using rafflecopter and random.org for all the prizes listed below!Check out our great prizes! 27 prizes approximately 300 dollars in value!

Blogs Participating

Welcome To My Kitchen

Planet Weidknecht

Stacy Uncorked

Miki's Hope

Home Style Tips

Jewelry 4 Change

Frugal Experiments

Mom Of 3 Boys

Kortney's Krazy Life

Giveaway Blogdom
Free Social 2011

Broken Teepee
Barbara's Beat
Yankee Texan Mom

Special thanks to all participating blogs and
their sponsors for making this great giveaway possible.

~ SHEILA~
WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN

FOOD FRENZY GIVEAWAY~ COMING SOON

2011-09-03T14:41:00.000-07:00

On Sept 6-11 I wanted to remind everyone

to come join us for the Food Frenzy Mega

Blog Giveaway Event. There are some really great

prizes to be won. One lucky winner will receive

all the prizes from the mega giveaway. 27 prizes approximately
300 dollars in value! I also want to thank all the participants of this giveaway and their sponsors.

BANANA BREAD~ SIMPLY RECIPES

2011-08-20T11:48:00.000-07:00

Today is another scorcher here in Texas.I will

be so glad when the cooler weather is here.

My son wanted me to make Banana Bread yesterday.

I just bought some bananas at the store when I went

shopping and had that in mind, but heating

up the oven is really hard when it is this hot.

So I decided to mix up my banana bread in the

afternoon and bake it later that night.

That way the house doesn't get so hot.

A few weeks back I made a delicious
Banana Coconut Chocolate Chip Bread. I was delicious.
I just love banana bread any time of the year.I grew up on homemade banana bread. My mom and grandma made banana bread all the time. I loved it for breakfast or a snack. It is one of my favorite quick bread recipes.

My grandma would serve banana bread fresh out of the oven with just a pat of butter. I used to love eating it warm with

the butter melting on the top. Just talking about

it makes my mouth water.

I will be using King Arthur whole wheat flour. This

flour is the only flour I buy now when I bake. I'm

trying out a recipe for banana bread I found on

Simply Recipes. Instead of 2 eggs it calls for one.

I'm using coconut oil in place of the melted butter. Everything

else is the same in the recipe. The recipe says you can mash the bananas and no mixer is needed.But I rather use my kitchen aid mixer to blend up the bananas, just a personal preference.It was indeed delicious and this is how I made it.

Mash 3 bananas by hand or use a mixer to break them up. After this step I added the vanilla.Add 1/2 coconut oil or 1/2 cup melted butter,one egg and 3/4 to one cup of granulated sugar. Blend well.Add dry mixture to banana mixture and stir by hand or mixer to combine. Pour into prepared loaf or bundt pan.

Bake at 350 for one hour.

SIMPLY RECIPES ~ BANANA BREAD

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar (can easily reduce to 3/4 cup)
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

TROPICAL TRADITIONS RAW HONEY GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-08-15T03:43:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Mary with comment 39. You are

the winner of the Tropical Traditions Raw Honey

giveaway. Please contact me within 48 hours

to claim your prize.

NATURE'S PRIDE BREAD GIVEAWAY WINNERS!

2011-08-13T08:08:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the two winners of the

Nature's Pride Giveaway. Nlvaughn 36

with comment 18 and Bee W Bedard with

comment 6. You are the winners of the

Nature's Pride Bread Giveaway. Please

contact me within 48 hours to claim your

prize.

TROPICAL TRADITIONS RAW HONEY RECIPE, REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-08-10T14:46:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I love honey. I use it sometimes in various recipes
and a sugar substitute in hot tea. But I have never tried raw honey before, so I was excited to review Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey.Totally pure, unheated, unprocessed, raw honey.

ABOUT THE PRODUCT

A Raw Product from the Wilderness

Tropical Traditions Organic Raw Honey comes from the frontier areas of Canada, and is only harvested during a 6-week period in the summer. Tropical Traditions is the exclusive source of this premium organic honey in the U.S. Most commercial honeys available on the market today come from bee farms, where the bees are controlled within a certain area and get their pollen from usually only one kind of flower. Many of the plants that produce these flowers (clover, orange blossom, etc.) are grown with pesticides and fertilizers as well. In addition, almost all honeys on the market are pasteurized in high heat and filtered, removing many of the beneficial nutrients and enzymes.

Tropical Traditions Organic Raw Honey has not been subjected to the heat of processing, only warmed enough to flow (same temperatures the honey would see inside the hive). We select only premium honey that is pure, smooth and creamy, with the consistency of soft margarine at harvest. It contains live yeast and enzymes, because it has not been processed. It also contains pollen because it has not been filtered—merely screened.

Fine textured crystals are characteristic of totally pure, unheated, unprocessed, raw honey. Properly crystallized honey has a fine, smooth texture. Crystallized honey preserves natural goodness and doesn’t drip. The more rapidly honey crystallizes the finer the texture will be. It will also turn harder over time as it crystallizes. Truly raw honeys do not deteriorate with age, but like fine wines, continue to age and develop into more complex tastes.

Certified Organic Raw Honey from Canada

In order for honey to be certified organic, the beehives must be placed in isolated areas miles from the dense population, industry, traffic congestion, and farm fields treated with chemicals and landfills. Second, a bee’s flying range is determined by their natural instinct which tells them to stay within their natural four mile range from the hive location. Finding area which can be certified organic is extremely difficult, which is why there are so few certified organic honeys on the market. Tropical Traditions sources its honey from hives in the wild frontier areas of Canada.

These regions are a rich source of wild vegetation that produce some of the finest honey in the world. The USDA and Canadian Organic Certification implies a rigorous set of standards and conditions that must be adhered to by both the producer (beekeeper) and the packager. All aspects of the honey production including the source of the nectar, forage area of the bees, management of the bees, extracting process, transportation, “lot” management, processing temperature, integrity (no co-mingling with non-organic honey), screening, and, packaging materials, are taken into account in the certification process.Try some, and we think you’ll agree that there is no finer honey in North America! Raw, organic, Canadian honey, available exclusively in the US through Tropical Traditions.

THE RECIPE, REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

For this review, I decided to make cookies and

incorporate the honey into the recipe instead of sugar.

Honey is a great substitute for sugar in a lot of recipes.

so I mixed together an easy one bowl recipe that uses whole wheat flour, honey,coconut, coconut oil, vanilla extract,chocolate chips, oatmeal, salt and baking soda.

Add whole wheat flour, oatmeal, baking soda and salt to a large bowl. Stir to combine. Stir in shredded coconut and chocolate chips.Make a well in the bottom of the bowl and add honey, coconut oil and vanilla extract.Mix all ingredients together. Roll cookies into small balls and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

I would recommend you bake all the cookies right away because the cookie dough tends to harden in the refrigerator rather quickly.

These cookies turned out delicious. The honey sweetened them perfectly. They remind me of cowboy cookies which I love.

Tropical Traditions Raw Honey is amazing.. It has a sweet creamy taste. So much better than the other processed honeys I have tried. Truly no comparison in my opinion. I would recommend this product to my readers. I have included the recipe below so you can try these yummy cookies for yourself.

Honey Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3 1/2 cups oatmeal

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup shredded coconut

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey

1 cup Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

THE GIVEAWAY

Win a jar of Tropical Traditions Raw Honey

To Enter

Leave a comment telling me your favorite way to use honey.

Bonus Entries:(one each)

subscribe by email

grab my button and place on your blog

blog about this giveaway

post this giveaway on Facebook

8/10-8/14.

Please leave a valid email address where you can be easily contacted. Winner will be chosen using random.org and will be given 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

Disclosure

For this review I received a jar of Tropical Traditions Canadian Raw Honey free of charge. All thoughts and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or the product I received to review.

NEW ENGLAND COFFEE GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-08-09T03:37:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Donna, comment 7

on the New England Coffee Giveaway.

You are the winner! Please contact

me within 48 hours. Enjoy your coffee!

SERENGETI TEA GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-08-06T11:13:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Clenna with comment

10 on the Serengeti Tea giveaway. You

are the winner! Please contact me within

48 hours to claim your prize. Enjoy your

tea!

AMALIA'S COCINA REVIEW & RECIPE

2011-08-05T21:07:00.000-07:00

Do you like good homemade beef enchiladas? I know I do any time of year. I have been having a craving for some good enchiladas lately.But with the scorching heat of the summer with temps well above 100 degrees heating up the house with the oven was not an option. Well today I couldn't resist my craving and decided to make a quick and easy enchilada recipe that I love.

Recently I received Amalia's Cocina Enchilada, Tamale and Chili Colorado Sauces to review.

ABOUT THE COMPANY

Amalia's Cocina is a family owned business. The sauces

are made from the finest ingredient and inspired by the idea that easy home-style meals brings people together. All of the sauces are made from 100 year old authentic family recipes. I just love those kind of recipes that are handed down from generation to generation.

"Amalia’s Cocina, Inc. was founded in 2005 by five Mexican American women. The owners represent three generations of Amalia Portillo’s family; Amalia herself, her daughters, Ida Norwood, Brenda Noel and Stephanie Jourdan and her granddaughter, Jamie Norwood. For over 50 years, Amalia’s family has enjoyed her savory dishes and learned the secrets to her exceptional cooking."

THE RECIPE & REVIEW

When I make enchiladas or Mexican casseroles I usually always

use the canned enchilada sauce. I have never really found one

that was to my liking. I don't make enchiladas that often for that reason. So today I was excited about trying out this sauce to see if it could satisfy my picky palate. I wanted a quick and easy recipe. So I chose a recipe I have had for quite some time. An enchilada recipe that is quick, easy and delicious.

First I browned one pound of ground meat with one large chopped onion. I added a package of taco seasoning mix with one cup of water. I added one can of Bush's Chili Beans and let this cook until the sauce is thick.This is the filling for the enchiladas and yes very quick and easy. I used flour tortillas for this recipe but if you prefer corn that will work well also. Just spoon filling inside the tortilla being careful
not to overfill it so you can roll it up.

I rolled up the enchiladas and put some enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan then placed the rolled enchiladas on top. I poured the sauce on top and added Mexican cheese. This only takes about 20 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees and your done. You can serve this with Spanish rice if you like.

Here they are straight out of the oven and ready to taste. Don't
they look delicious? I couldn't wait to taste them!

And yes, Amalia's Cocina Enchilada Sauce was incredible!
I now have a new favorite sauce for my quick easy enchilada
recipe. This sauce has a deep rich flavor with just the right amount of spices. I will never used the canned sauce again. Thank you Amalia's Cocina for sponsoring this review. I love your enchilada sauce and I plan on trying the Tamale and Chili Colorado Sauce in the near future.

EASY ENCHILADAS

1 pound lean ground beef

1 large chopped onion

1 package taco seasoning mix

1 cup water

1 can Bush's Chili Beans

Flour or Corn Tortillas

Mexican Cheese Blend(Kraft)

Amalia's Cocina Enchilada Sauce

Disclosure: I received six jars of Amalia's Cocina Sauces free of charge to review. No monetary compensation was received. All thoughts and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or the products
I received for this review.

NEW ENGLAND COFFEE~ REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-08-04T14:06:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

This is one of the hottest summers I can remember. Heating

the kitchen up with an oven is not an option especially today.

But one thing I cannot do without is my coffee. Yes, it's hot

but I love coffee and have to have it to make it through the day. I was excited when I found out I was going to get to review

for the NEW ENGLAND COFFEE COMPANY.

I have always loved flavored coffees. The generous folks at New England Coffee Company sent me three bags of coffee to review. New England Eye Opener Blend, Peach Cobbler and Blueberry Cobbler.

I love blueberry and peach cobbler but wasn't sure
what these flavors would taste like in a coffee. My mom
loves blueberry flavored anything but also was skeptical
when I told her about this coffee but she agreed to try
it out.

NEW ENGLAND COFFEE COMPANY is a family owned
company dedicated to the art of roasting coffee.

"It's been that way since 1916 when we imported and roasted
coffee exclusively for the finest eateries and coffee houses in the Northeast. Now we offer our fine coffees for you to enjoy at home. We're a group of passionate coffee lovers who consider coffee one of life's daily indulgences, not merely a staple. Our methods are not cutting edge. In fact they're antiquated by most people's standards. And we wouldn't change a thing, because there are no shortcuts to greatness. We start with the finest Arabica beans. Then our master roasters apply their palates and instincts in a time-honored process that has been honed for over four generations. It's the only way we know how to make sure that you'll enjoy a consistently great cup of coffee."

THE REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

The first coffee we tried was the Peach Cobbler. I wanted to try
this coffee hot . I have to use cream and sugar in my coffee,. I have never been of fan of it black. But this coffee I wanted to taste without cream and sugar because I was curious of the flavor. The instructions said to use one rounded tablespoon of ground coffee per 6 ounces of water. I prefer stronger coffee so I found this was not enough for my taste so I added more coffee.To me, this coffee had a great flavor but not a flavor of peaches in my opinion. This flavor was not my favorite of the coffees I received.

Next we tried the Blueberry Cobbler. This coffee we decided
to try it iced. We brewed the coffee, let it get cold and added evaporated milk to a blender, coffee, ice and sweetened it with
stevia. Wow, this was so awesome. We loved the taste of this
coffee. It is excellent. Has a great blueberry flavor and is perfect
on ice. I think the blueberry cobbler flavor is my favorite of
the coffees I received. My mom loved this coffee and insisted I shared this coffee with her.

Next we brewed the Eye Opener Blend. This coffee is also
excellent and is made with a rich Colombian and Central American beans with zesty French Roast. I would definitely encourage you to try this coffee for yourself.

I would definitely recommend you try NEW ENGLAND COFFEE. My overall opinion of this company is excellent and I enjoyed the coffees I received to review.

THE GIVEAWAY
Win a 11oz bag of Blueberry Cobbler coffee to try for yourself. Simply leave a comment stating your favorite flavor coffee.Please leave a valid email address where I can easily contact you. Winner will be chosen using random.org. Winner will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. 8/4-8/8

To Enter:
Subscribe to my blog by email and leave a comment stating
your favorite coffee flavor.

Bonus Entries(one each)
subscribe to my blog by email

Follow me on Facebook
Blog about this giveaway.

Disclosure: I received three bags of New England coffees to review free of charge. No monetary compensation was received.All thoughts and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or products I
received for this review.

SERENGETI TEA COMPANY REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

2011-08-01T19:33:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

One thing for sure I am a big tea drinker. I don't

drink much sodas but tea I got to have. Whether it's hot or cold

I love tea. Recently I was sent a variety of different teas

and a box of coffee from the friendly folks at Serengeti Tea Company to review.The ticolino tea and coffee sticks are individually wrapped and provide an easy way to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee.I loved the convenience of them. I also used the tea sticks to prepare ice tea. I like this so much better than the tea bags I have always used. This method to me has always been so messy.

About Serengeti Tea:
Works as its own stir stick, no spoon or wringing required.
Is manufactured in North America under a clean room environment for enhanced sanitary conditions.Is nitrogen flushed and wrapped in aroma barrier film for maximum freshness.Contains no dust like many traditional tea bags or filters.All natural ingredients and flavors..Is composed of advanced food-safe materials, exceeding FDA’s

guidelines.

THE REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY
Of the many flavors of Serengeti Teas I received
I wanted to try the Ruby Raspberry and the Peach
Green Tea first. I also received a box of Jamaica
Blue Mountain Coffee Blend.

The Ruby Raspberry was my favorite so far. It has a sweet
and tangy taste. It is made with real raspberry
fruit pieces and hibiscus. I enjoyed a cup of hot tea
before bed and I have also enjoyed this tea iced. It
is excellent in my opinion. This tea has a strong body, medium aroma and no caffeine.

The Peach Green Tea has a light taste of peaches, made with real fruit light body, strong aroma and light tannins.This tea is also loaded with antioxidants according to the packaging. I like a stronger tea flavor. So I used 2 sticks when i tried the peach.

The Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Blend was excellent. I loved the convenience of the coffee sticks. It is made with 100% Arabica Beans that are freeze dried and fresh ground.Grown on the Blue Mountain range on the eastern end of the island of Jamaica. I am a big coffee drinker and I was very impressed with the quality of this coffee.

The Pomegranate White Tea was also delicious. I love Pomegranate so I was excited to see this flavor. It has a sweet tart taste. Made with real fruit and anti-oxidant rich. Very good in my opinion. I think Serengeti Tea has excellent tea and coffee products and I would encourage you to try them for yourself.

THE GIVEAWAY

Win a box of SERENGETI TEA to try for yourself.

Simply leave a comment stating your favorite tea flavor.

Bonus Entry:
Like Serengeti Teas on Facebook.
8/1-8/5
Winner will be chosen using random.org and will be given 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Please leave a valid email address where I can easily contact you.

Disclosure:
For this review I received 12 boxes of Serengeti Teas
and one coffee to review free of charge. All thoughts
and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or the products I received for this review.

NATURE'S PRIDE BREAD REVIEW RECIPE & GIVEAWAY

2011-07-30T07:29:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Like my site and my giveaways? Click here
to vote for me!

I have to admit, I am a big fan of bread. So when I received

Nature's Pride Bread to review I was anxious to try it out.

I do not buy this brand of bread so this was all new to me. I love my toast in the morning with peanut butter or a little jam. My favorite bread is Mutli Grain so this was the first bread I tried from Nature's Pride. It's made with a blend of cracked wheat and oaks,containing 16 grams of whole grains per slice. I received for

this review:

100% Whole Wheat bread
Healthy Multi-Grain
Premium Harvest 100%Whole Wheat buns
Hearty Wheat with Flax bread

Facts about Nature's Pride:

Nature's Pride bread is baked the natural way.

With 100% natural whole grain goodness and all

natural ingredients. Containing no artificial colors,

flavors, trans fats or high fructose corn syrup.

Since launching in 2009 many of there bread varieties have been honored with recognition for great taste and nourishing ingredients.Named the best sliced bread in 2009 by Fitness Magazine and named the "Best Sliced Bread" in 2009 and in March 2010 Consumer Reports rated Nature's Pride Healthy Multi Grain bread as "excellent and tasty enough to eat plain."In September 2010, Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine chose Nature's Pride Country White Bread as the best tasting white bread. Nature's Pride Premium Harvest 100% Whole Wheat buns were the top pick of Martha Stewart's editors of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food Magazine.

THE REVIEW,RECIPES & GIVEAWAY

This morning I decided to make a Grilled Peanut Butter Banana Sandwich for breakfast. I usually like to toast some bread with a little butter and spread jam or peanut butter on the bread for a quick breakfast. I had a ripe banana left over from a previous recipe so I decided to use it in a yummy peanut butter grilled sandwich. I used the 100% whole wheat bread for this recipe.This was so tasty and with the Nature's Pride bread even better.

Take one banana and mash.Add 2 tablespoons honey
and mix together.Add 2 or 3 tablespoons
of peanut butter. Mix all ingredients well. Spread on
bread. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in skillet and grill sandwich
until golden brown. Enjoy!

For lunch yesterday I made a simple tuna salad, toasted my bread and added 2 slices of pepper jack cheese. I love this sandwich .It was excellent with the Nature's Pride Multi

Grain Bread.

Simply add 2 cans of chunk light tuna drained,
3 boiled eggs finely chopped, 2 tablespoons
mayo and salt and pepper. Mix together and spread
on toasted bread. Top with pepper jack cheese. You can
add pickles and onion to your tuna salad if you like. I was
pressed for time so I skipped that step but this way is simple
and just as good.

I would highly recommend Nature's Pride
Breads to my readers.

THE GIVEAWAY:
WIN A COUPON FOR ONE FREE NATURE'S PRIDE PRODUCT. Two winners will be chosen for this giveaway.

To Enter
Leave a comment stating your favorite sandwich.

Bonus entries(one each)
Follow Nature's Pride on Facebook
Follow Nature's Pride on Twitter
Winners will be chosen using random.org and will have 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.Please leave a valid email address where you can be easily contacted. Ends 8/9

Disclosure:
For this review I received free of charge Nature' Pride Bread Products and coupons. All thoughts and opinion of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or products received for this review. No monetary compensation was
received.

FOOD FRENZY MEGA BLOG GIVEAWAY EVENT

2011-07-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

The Food frenzy event is open to any blogger who is interested in joining! The event is set to start on September 6th 2011 and run until September 11th 2011. Our plan is to get as many bloggers as we can together for this; it will be an event to gain followers for your GFC, Twitter and Facebook.

This event will be similar to a paid hop but instead of paying cash to be given as a prize for following each blogger will find a sponsor for a $10 (minimum) kitchen or food related prize of some kind and we will combined all of the prizes into a giant gift basket for one very lucky reader!

There is no size requirement for your blog to participate and you can sponsor the prize yourself if you would like! If you are interested in joining in all of the fun please leave a comment letting us know and we will e-mail you closer to the start of the hop with the details.

Also, this will be a Rafflecopter giveaway, so we will all host the same widget code for the event and it will list everyone in order of sign up date and have an entry for each of your (up to) 3 choice ways to be followed. Feel free to grab this button and place it in your sidebar to let your followers and fellow bloggers know about this event. Remember the more people who you tell about this, the more prizes we will have and the more entries (and thus followers) we will get!

Contact me (Sheila)
@http://welcometomykitchen.net If you would
like to participate in this event.

TROPICAL TRADITIONS COCONUT OIL~ GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-07-27T12:48:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Paula comment

8 on the Tropical Traditions Coconut

Oil Giveaway. You are the winner! Please contact me within

48 hours to claim your prize. Hope you

enjoy the coconut oil as much as I have!

BREAKFAST IS LATE & SKILLET BACON JAM REVIEW

2011-07-27T10:52:00.000-07:00

Today is officially my first day off from work.Breakfast

is a little late this morning due to me being so

tired and sleeping in. But that is ok because

I love breakfast food any time of day. This

morning I fried an egg and made some toast.

And of course I had to have my coffee which

I cannot do without.

I decided this would be the perfect time to use a new

product that I received to review.. Skillet Bacon Jam.

I have never heard of this product before so the name

it intrigued me. Doing a little research this is what

I found out about Skillet Bacon Jam.

It's made from good quality bacon which is rendered

down and slowed cooked for hours with onions,spices

and balsamic vinegar added. Then slightly pureed

and flashed chilled.

This honestly did not seem very appetizing to me at all.

I actually was quite skeptical. I love bacon on anything

but the thought of it with balsamic vinegar was not

very pleasing. So off to the kitchen I went to prepare

my fried egg and toast. Anxiously awaiting to top

my egg with Skillet Bacon Jam and try it for

the first time.

THE TASTE TEST

I spooned a generous amount of bacon jam on my fried

egg and when the toast was done it was time to eat.

To my surprise I loved the bacon jam. I couldn't believe

it myself. The taste was slightly sweet with a smoky bacon

flavor with just the right amount of balsamic vinegar and spices.

I would love to try this on a burger, grilled cheese or anything

I would use bacon on. I would recommend you try it for yourself. You might also be pleasantly surprised.

To learn about Skillet Bacon Jam

visit skilletstreetfood.com
photo credit:skilletstreetfood.com

Disclosure:

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

TROPICAL TRADITIONS COCONUT OIL REVIEW RECIPE & GIVEAWAY

2011-07-22T20:22:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I like to bake.When I do, I usually use canola

oil in my recipes. I recently agreed to review

Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil. I have

never heard of this product or ever used

coconut oil in a recipe before so I had

to do a little research first.

Some facts about Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil:

Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil is USDA CERTIFIED ORGANIC.
Almost all other coconut oils on the market are massed produced by machine and not made by hand like Tropical Traditions. Made by small scale family producers and farmers, coconuts are harvested and processed within 24 hours of being cut off the trees using a wet-milling process. To learn more about Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil watch the video below.

THE REVIEW AND RECIPE

I received for this review a 32oz jar of coconut oil. I had

to do some research to find the right recipe since I am

new to using it. Of course the first thing that came

to mind was to bake some yummy treat and incorporate

the oil. I know it is so hot right now and heating

up the kitchen was a dreaded adventure but I decided I

would venture out a try an irresistible recipe.

Banana Coconut Chocolate Chip Bread

I found this recipe on About.com and it calls

coconut oil and I new it would be perfect. I love

banana bread but I have never tried it with coconut oil,

coconut and chocolate chips so I was excited to see how

this recipe would turn out. Now on to the recipe.

These are the ingredients you will need for the recipe:whole

wheat flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon,bananas,

coconut oil, shredded coconut ,chocolate chips and vanilla. The recipe did not call for salt but I always use just a pinch when I make my banana bread so if you want to leave it out that is fine.

Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

With an electric mixer combine bananas, coconut oil,

sugar, vanilla and one egg until well blended. Add flour mixture

to wet ingredients and blend together.

Stir in coconut and chocolate chips. Pour into a greased bundt

or tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes.

My Thoughts:

This banana bread turned out so moist I was amazed. The

combination of the coconut oil, shredded coconut and chocolate

chips gave this banana bread a yummy twist. I would highly

recommend Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil

to my readers.

Banana Coconut Chocolate Chip Bread

3-4 very ripe bananas

1/3 cup virgin coconut oil

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1-3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1-1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 cup flaked coconut

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

THE GIVEAWAY:

Win a 32 oz jar of Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil

To Enter:

Leave a comment and tell me your favorite coconut recipe. Click here for free coconut recipes.

Bonus Entries:(one each)

Follow Welcome To My Kitchen by email

Post my button on your blog.

Like Tropical Traditions on Facebook(no comment please)

Follow Tropical Traditions on Twitter

Subscribe to Tropical Traditions newsletter.

7/22-7/26.

Giveaway open to US and Canada. Winner will be chosen using Random.org and given 48 hours to respond or another winner

will be chosen.

Disclosure: For this review I received free of charge Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil to review. All thoughts and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced by the company or product I received for this review.Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider.

DAVINCI GOURMET SYRUPS~ WINNER

2011-07-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Wendy who left comment

49 on the Davinci Gourmet Syrups Giveaway:

" I do love a good margarita." You are

the winner of the Davinci Syrups. Please contact

me within 48 hours to claim your prize. Thank

you for entering and I hope you enjoy them.

DAVINCI GOURMET SYRUPS~ REVIEW, RECIPES & GIVEAWAY

2011-07-15T23:29:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Like this giveaway? Vote for me on Top Mommy
Blogs and Picket Fence Blogs on the sidebars by clicking
the banners. Thanks!

Davinci Gourmet Syrups are new to me. I have

never tried them before. I received the package

from UPS a few days ago. I began planning

what recipes I would incorporate the syrups into.
I was very excited about reviewing this product because
I love iced coffees, lattes, frappuccino, italian sodas,milk shakes and smoothies.Being able to make them at home will also save me a little cash because I visit my local Starbucks quite often.

I received the following Davinci 12.7 fl oz Syrups for this review:

Davinci Gourmet Raspberry Syrup

Davinci Gourmet Vanilla Syrup

Davinci Gourmet Kahlua Coffee Liqueur Flavored Syrup

Davinci Gourmet Hazelnut Syrup

We have been having many days with triple digit

temperatures here in Texas.So I decided to cool
off today with two new summer recipes,

Strawberry Raspberry Spritzer

using Davinci Gourmet Raspberry Sugar Free Syrup.
& a
Chocolate Hazelnut Shake
using Davinci Gourmet Hazelnut and Vanilla Syrup
garnished with raspberries.

These are the ingredients you will need for the
Strawberry Raspberry Spritzer recipe:

Fresh raspberries, Davinci Raspberry Sugar Free

Syrup, Clear American Strawberry Sparkling Water

and fresh mint. I chose the Clear American

because I love the taste of it and it is sugar free

with no calories. You can find it at your local

Walmart.

Fill a large glass or mug with sparkling water.

Add 2 tablespoons raspberry syrup and stir.

Add ice cubes, fresh raspberries and mint. I have

to tell you I now have a new favorite summer drink

thanks to Davinci Raspberry Syrup.

These are the ingredients you will need for the

Chocolate Hazelnut Shake recipe:

Breyers Vanilla Fudge Twirl Ice Cream,Davinci

Hazelnut Syrup, Davinci Vanilla Syrup, fresh raspberries for garnish, milk and Reddi Whip(chocolate or regular.)

Scoop desired amount of ice cream into blender.I put

about 2 cups. Add one tablespoon of Davinci Hazelnut Syrup

and one tablespoon of Davinci Vanilla Syrup. Add 4 tablespoons

milk and desired amount of ice. Blend on high to

crush ice. Pour into parfait glasses and top with

whip cream. Garnish with raspberries, so yummy!

I want to thank Davinci for sponsoring this

review and giveaway. I highly recommend

this product to my readers.

US RESIDENTS

THE GIVEAWAY:

WIN 4 Davinci 12.7oz Gourmet Syrups

TO ENTER:

Leave a comment telling me your favorite summer drink or dessert.

Bonus Entries:(one each)

Grab my button and place on your blog

Follow on Networked Blogs

Follow by RSS

Follow by email

7/16-7/20

Please leave a valid email where you can easily be contacted.

Disclosure: I received free of charge 4 bottles of Davinci Syrups to review. That being said all thoughts and opinions of this product are my own and not influenced in any way by the company or the products I received.

BLOGELINA & HOME-MADE BURRITOS(GUEST POST)

2011-07-12T20:29:00.000-07:00

Well, the work week is done and now i am just

relaxing after a twelve hour day. I just returned

to work on Sunday after a two week vacation

and oh it was so nice. A little over a week ago

I found a great community called Blogelina.If

you are a blog owner you really need to join. I love

it. I have met some really nice ladies there and the

support is great.Click here to join Blogelina.

GUEST POST

For my very first guest post I will be featuring

Ashley from And The Little Ones Too .Thank
you Ashley for sharing this yummy recipe with us.

Ashley T owns the blog: And The Little Ones Too. She writes reviews and blogs about life but in between that and working she takes care of her 2 sons: Hayden (4) and Noah (8 months) who she writes about constantly. If you like her writing, check out her blog or follow her on twitter: @ashleythinks2.

ABOUT THE RECIPE:

"When I was younger, my step-father used to make us all different kinds of foods that we weren’t used to. Most of them I liked but there were some I wished he would never make them again. But the first time he made home-made burritos, I fell in love. I never got the recipe from him so I basically played around with it until I found something me and my family love."

]

Beef & Bean Burritos

1 lb hamburger

1 can (16 oz) refried bean

Shredded cheddar cheese (approx 1 cup)

Your favorite salsa

6-8 large four tortillas

Cook the hamburger until brown; drain.

In a medium pot, combine he hamburger, refried beans, about a half of cup of cheese, and about a half a container of salsa (it depends on how much cheese and salsa you want). Mix occasionally until warm.

Warm tortillas in the microwave before filling. Add 2-3 spoonfuls of the mix until a tortilla. Fold the tortilla and place fold side down into a pan. Do the same with the remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone. Place a spoonful of salsa on top of the burrito, then add cheese.

Pre-heat the oven to 350. Bake for about 10 mins or until the cheese is melted. You can bake longer if you like crispier burritos.

Photo Credit: Ashley from http://andthelittleonestoo.com

SOUPER SATURDAY BLOG HOP~ LINK UP!

2011-07-09T09:18:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! It's been a while since I have

had a blog hop. So today I am posting my

Souper Saturday Blog Hop. Link up!! I am

currently seeking 3 mom bloggers or family

friendly blogs with a good page rank to co

host Souper Saturday with me. If you

are interested please contact me with

the contact button at the top

of my site.Leave your link and follow
WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN(HOST)
Kindly try to follow as many links on
the list as you can. Happy hopping!!

CHICKEN BROCCOLI ALFREDO~ QUICK 30 MINUTE MEAL

2011-07-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

My son loves chicken broccoli alfredo.So last night

I prepared a quick 30 minute meal Chicken Broccoli Alfredo.

I found this recipe on Campbell's Kitchen.com so I

thought I would give it a try.

I love those quick go to pasta dishes.I think next time

I will use more cheese and cream instead

of milk. I modified the recipe a bit and used chicken breast tenderloins and whole wheat linguine for this recipe.

I found this recipe on Campbell's Kitchen.com.

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

1/2 of a 1-pound package linguine

1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli florets

2 tablespoons butter

1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular, 98% Fat Free or Healthy Request®)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Prepare the linguine according to the package directions in a 3-quart saucepan. Add the broccoli during the last 4 minutes of the cooking time. Drain the linguine mixture well in a colander.Heat the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until well browned and cooked through, stirring often.Stir the soup, milk, cheese, black pepper and linguine mixture in the skillet and cook until the mixture is hot and bubbling, stirring occasionally. Serve with additional Parmesan cheese.
Recipe adapted from campbell'skitchen.com

HAPPY 4TH & BERRY BANANA PARFAITS

2011-07-05T00:21:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone had a happy 4th of July. I had

a nice big T- bone steak, baked potato and

salad for dinner. It was so good. For dessert

I made a delicious Berry Banana Parfait.

This parfait was so easy to make.I used fresh
sliced strawberries, blueberries, Yoplait Original
Strawberry Banana Yogurt, Philadelphia Strawberry Cream
Cheese, Kraft Marshmallow Cream, Reddi Whip and Sweet Home Farm Granola for this recipe. You can use any flavor yogurt you
want but I prefer strawberry banana.

Step 1

Slice strawberries and bananas. Add

blueberries. I sprinkled one packet

of Splenda on the fruit.

Step 2:
With an electric mixer combine 1 container
of Yoplait yogurt, 4 large tablespoons strawberry
cream cheese and 3 tablespoons of marshmallow
cream. Blend until smooth. Chill.

To assemble:
Layer yogurt cream cheese mixture, fruit and whip cream. Ending with whip cream Top with granola. So yummy!

SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE RECIPE`~ TATES BAKE SHOP

2011-07-02T15:37:00.000-07:00

I'm back with a yummy recipe I promised to post, the Tate's

Bake Shop Sour Cream Coffee Cake. I'm sure
your going to agree that this is a yummy coffee cake.

A few weeks back my friend Christa and I decided to try
a recipe from my new cookbook, TATES'S BAKE SHOP Cookbook. I have always loved to bake so I immediately fell in love with this cookbook. So many yummy recipes fills the pages. Pound cakes, cookies, pies , cobblers, muffins and scones. Each recipe built from scratch from the kitchen of Kathleen King, the Hamptons most beloved baker.

Thanks again Kathleen for a wonderful cookbook! Now on to
the recipe:

Sour Cream Coffee Cake
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups pecans, chopped
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 cup salted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 cups sour cream
1 tablespoon banilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
.

In a small bowl combine 1/2 cup sugar, pecans, and cinnamon. Set aside.

Cream the butter and 1/1/2 cups of sugar till they are light and fluffy.Add eggs mixing well. Add the sour cream and vanilla.

Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a small bowl.

Fold the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan.

Pour half of the cake mixture into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the batter with half of the pecan mixture. Add the remaining cake batter and spread it evenly over the top of the pecan mixture. Sprinkle the remaining pecan mixture evenly over the top of the cake.Back for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick in the
center comes out clean. Enjoy with a cup of coffee.

Recipe adapted from TATE'S BAKE SHOP COOKBOOK.

GUYLIAN CHOCOLATE REVIEW

2011-06-27T19:04:00.000-07:00

I'm sure it's no secret, I absolutely love chocolate.

So when I had the chance to review for Guylian

Chocolates I was excited. I received the package

by UPS and couldn't wait to tear it open. Anticipating

the package to arrive, I couldn't wait to get my hands on that chocolate, lol. The package arrived fairly early in the morning but that didn't stop me from tearing open the box and indulging almost immediately.This is what I received:

Luxuriously Rich & Creamy Belgian Chocolate Truffles,Extra Dark Belgian Chocolates and Belgian Chocolate Bars with no sugar added.

The first thing that caught my eye was the

8.82 oz box of Artisanal Belgian Chocolate Truffles. Handcrafted and almost to pretty to eat. Seahorse and seashell shaped chocolate truffles filled this box. With a mixture of white and dark chocolate marbled together. Very elegant indeed. But what about the taste? Heavenly, is all I can say. This chocolate truffle melts in your mouth with a very creamy texture. Excellent in my opinion.

Extra dark chocolate is my favorite of the
Guylian chocolates. I have always preferred
dark over milk or white chocolate anyway. Made with
74% cocoa and filled with an exquisite dark hazelnut praline. Very elegant and delicious.

Sugar Free:
Guylian also makes a pretty tasty sugar free
bar in milk and dark chocolate.I didn't think
I would like the sugar free bar but it was
excellent. I would recommend this product and all of the Guylian products to my readers. If you are a lover of fine
chocolates then you will be thrilled with the quality
of Guylian Belgian Chocolates.

Disclosure:
For review I received a variety of Guylian
Belgian Chocolates free of charge. All
thoughts and opinions of this product
are my own and not influenced by the
company or products received for this review.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY & JELLO STRAWBERRY PIE

2011-06-19T03:58:00.000-07:00

You know when you have that craving you just

can't stop thinking about? Well I am having mine.

All week I have thought about making a

strawberry pie. I have seen several recipes

online and oh they look so good. I have never

prepared a strawberry pie before, so I wasn't sure at
first what recipe I was going to use.

I love fresh strawberries

during the summer time. So when I saw this recipe
I knew I had to try it.This pie is so quick and
easy.I love those kind of recipes, don't you?

I went to visit my dad for Father's Day On Saturday.
I knew this would be the perfect time to try out
a yummy recipe for Jello Strawberry Pie I found on Cooks.com.

What is on your Father's Day menu?
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

Jello Strawberry Pie

1 baked pie shell
1 to 2 pounds fresh strawberries
1 box strawberry Jello
1 c. sugar
2 tbsp. cornstarch
2 c. boiling water

Bring water to boil, add Jello, sugar and cornstarch. Cook until thick, let cool. Fold in clean berries (optional). Let jell. Top with whipped cream. Best served cold.

CHEX MIX MUDDY BUDDY GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-06-15T19:04:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Lindsay, comment 12. You are the

winner of the Chex Mix Prize Pack Giveaway.

Please contact me within 48 hours .

CHEX MIX MUDDY BUDDIE REVIEW & PRIZE PACK GIVEAWAY

2011-06-11T11:22:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

My first taste of Chex Mix Muddy Buddies was when the package arrived in the mail from My Blog Spark with a prize pack containing a bag of Chex Mix Muddy Buddies, an airtight sealed container, a snacking bowl, and a magnetic clip.

I have always loved to snack on Chex Mix. It is so addicting. So I pretty much knew that Chex Mix Muddy Buddies were probably pretty darn good. Boy, was I right. This is the kind of snack you just can't put down. With 50% less fat than regular potato chips, you can enjoy the taste without the guilt.I loved the crunch of the Chex Mix and the chocolaty peanut butter center.I will definitely be purchasing this product in the future.

THE GIVEAWAY:

One lucky reader will receive the Chex Mix Prize Pack courtesy of My Blog Spark. Which includes Chex Mix Muddy Buddies, snacking bowl, an airtight sealed container and magnetic clip.

To Enter:

Tell me what your favorite Chex Mix snack or cereal is. Please leave a valid email where I can easily contact you. Winner will be chosen using Random.Org. Winner will be given 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

6/11- 6/15

Bonus Entries:(one each)

Subscribe to WELCOME TO MY KITCHEN by RSS

Subscribe by email

Blog about this giveaway

Tweet this giveaway

Post this giveaway on Facebook

Disclosure: I received the Chex Mix Prize Pack free of

charge for this review from Chex Mix through

My Blog Spark.

PROMAX ENERGY BARS REVIEW & I AM THE NEXT DOER CONTEST

2011-06-10T14:28:00.000-07:00

I have never bought or tried energy bars.So when I received the package with 8 Promax LS Energy Bars inside to try I wasn't sure I would like them. I received Chocolate Fudge, and Peanut Butter Chocolate to review.

The Chocolate Fudge bar I did not like but the Peanut Butter Fudge bar was better tasting. I love peanut butter so I chose this bar to eat for breakfast on the days I work. I have to say I did notice a little more energy than normal .I want to try the other flavors because I think this energy bar would be better for me than high calorie snacks made with sugar. I also like the fact that it is made with Stevia a natural sweetener. .My mom uses Stevia and likes it a lot.

Some facts about Promax:

NEW ALL NATURAL PROMAX LS LOWER SUGAR ENERGY BARS

Promax packs its lower sugar energy bars with 18 grams of replenishing protein, all natural ingredients, 14 grams of fiber, and great tasting flavors. Promax LS contains 40% less sugar than leading regular energy bars. That’s 9 grams sugar versus 15-21 grams in leading regular energy bars. Promax LS is also the first leading protein bar naturally sweetened with stevia, a plant with leaves that are up to 45 times sweeter than sugar and zero calories.

No artificial sweeteners, preservatives, high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, maltitol, or gelatin. Gluten-free, kosher, and vegetarian. Since 1996 Promax is the fuel for doing.

Only 9 grams of Sugar
14 grams of Fiber
18 grams of Muscle Building Protein
Promax Protein Blend
All Natural Ingredients
18 Vitamins, Minerals, &Antioxidants
Certified kosher
Gluten free

What makes Promax LS bars unique?

Unlike some other lower sugar protein bars that use maltitol (a sugar alcohol that can upset your stomach), artificial sweeteners (like sucralose), and incomplete proteins from animal bi-products (like gelatin), Promax LS provides an all natural lower sugar protein bar.

PromaxLS has 18 grams of complete, high quality protein, only 9 grams of sugar, is an excellent source of fiber, and contains stevia, an all natural non-nutritive sweetener. Promax LS is also gluten free, vegetarian, and contains no artificial sweeteners or animal bi-products.

What is stevia?

Stevia is a plant (specifically, a member of the chrysanthemum family) native to portions of northeastern Paraguay. Its leaves contain glycosides which account for its incredible sweetness, and have been used to sweeten foods and beverages for more than 200 years.Stevia is used in PromaxLS as an all natural non-nutritive sweetener to make the bar taste great while containing only 9 grams of sugar. It is a natural alternative to artificial sweeteners like sucralose, saccharin, and aspartame.

What is soluble corn fiber?

The soluble corn fiber used in Promax LS is a natural fiber that is well tolerated, has a low glycemic response, and is used to replace sweeteners such as corn syrup or sugar, with only half of the calories.Soluble corn fiber is also an excellent source of dietary fiber and offers the health benefit of being prebiotic. A prebiotic feeds and stimulates the growth and metabolism of good bacteria aiding digestion and supporting the body’s immune system.

Why do the ingredients matter?

PromaxLS (lower sugar bar) ingredients were selected to work in conjunction with one another. While together they elicit a low glycemic response, there are sufficient carbohydrates to help transport the proteins into the body’s cells.

The fiber complements the reduced sugar and a significant amount of protein to help produce lasting satiety. Soluble corn fiber has been shown to be well tolerated, helping to prevent gastric distress.

THE CONTEST:

I AM THE NEXT DOER: The Promax Build Your Own Ad Contest 2011

TIMING

Submission period to run May 2 – June 30, 2011 and the top 20 will be selected and a community voting period will take place from July 11 – 25, 2011. The winner will be announced in August 2011.

HOW TO ENTER

Go to www.facebook.com/promaxnutrition and Promax fans can build their own ad on “THE NEXT DOer” tab. Entries will post on the Promax website where the users are able to comment and share links with friends through Facebook/Twitter. The entries are available for public viewing here www.promaxnutrition.com/iamthenextdoer.

After June 30, 2011, Promax will have an expert panel of judges select the top 20 entries. The DOer Contest winner will be selected by an online poll that lives on the Promax website and features the top 20 entries. Voting will take place July 11-25, 2011.

APP DETAILS

To submit an ad, users must upload an action photo of them and fill in the blanks (in a mad-lib format) for their “run-on” sentence to be populated into an ad.

PRIZES

The winner will be featured in the 2012 “DOer” campaign and will win a 6-day action pack adventure weekend for two to Kauai, Hawaii. The winner will also receive a year’s supply of Promax bars.

Disclosure: All opinions and thoughts of this product

are my own and not influenced in any way by the company, products or compensation I received for this review. I received Promax Energy Bars free of charge for this review and compensation.

Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider

TATE'S BAKE SHOP GIVEAWAY WINNER

2011-06-09T15:23:00.000-07:00

Congratulations goes to Project Hope7, comment
27. The winner of the Tate's Bake Shop Giveaway!

SANTA BARBARA BAY DIPS REVIEW

2011-06-06T20:06:00.000-07:00

I recently received from the Santa Barbara Bay company ten

all natural Greek Yogurt Dips to review. I have never tried these dips before so I was curious about them.

I received Spinach, Cucumber Dill,Roasted Red Pepper & Asiago Cheese, and Zesty Ranch to review. I wanted to try the Spinach first because Spinach is my favorite kind of dip.This dip was very creamy and had a crunch to it which I enjoyed. Made with water chestnuts, spinach and of course Greek yogurt. Very good in my opinion.

Next I tried the Roasted Red Pepper & Asiago Cheese. This dip is made with a blend of Greek yogurt roasted red peppers and asiago cheese. I loved the taste of it.My son prefers the Zesty Ranch. He eats ranch on everything though. I eat yogurt all the time but I have not tried Greek yogurt and wasn't sure if I would like dip made with it. But I was pleasantly surprised and liked these dips very much except for the Cucumber Dill. Don't get me wrong, I love cucumbers but I am not to crazy about dill.

About Santa Barbara Bay® All Natural Greek Yogurt Dips:

"Santa Barbara Bay® All Natural Greek Yogurt Dips are made with real Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt offers unique health benefits such as containing twice the protein and calcium of traditional yogurt, and pro biotic cultures that promote digestive and immune health. Our Greek Yogurt Dips contain ½ the fat of traditional Sour Cream based dips."

Flavors Include:

Spinach

Spinach Feta

Roasted Red Pepper Asiago Cheese

Cucumber Dill

Zesty Ranch

Garden Vegetable

French Onion

Santa Barbara Bay dips are also good in recipes. This recipe for

Greek Cobb Salad is great for summer.Check out the recipe below:

Greek Cobb Salad

To make the dressing add 3/4 cup red wine vinegar, 12 ounces of Santa Barbara Bay Greek Yogurt Dip, Zesty Ranch and 1/4 cup olive oil.

·
Ingredients for salad:

1 cup tomatoes diced

1 cup pitted premium olives

1 cup lettuce

1 large avocado diced

1 cup bacon crumbled

1 cup feta cheese crumbled

1 cup chick peas

4 boiled eggs chopped

1 cup shredded carrots

Directions for dressing:

In a blender or with an immersion stick blender, mix ranch dip with vinegar and oil to create Greek Ranch vinaigrette.

Directions for salad:

Assemble chopped ingredients in rows across dinner plates and serve with 2 ounces of homemade vinaigrette.

Serves 4 for dinner or 6 for lunch.

To learn more about Santa Barbara Bay Dips visit them

on Facebook and enter the Spread The Love For Dad

contest. Tell why your DAD is the best in 25 words or less for

the chance to win a $50 Party Prize Package including flavorful

dips, spreads and a tailgating setup from Santa Barbara Bay.Winners announced each Friday during June!

Disclosure:
For the review I received free of charge
Santa Barbara Bay Dips. All thoughts
and opinions of this product are strictly
my own and not influenced by the products
I received.

TATE'S BAKE SHOP~ REVIEW, GIVEAWAY & SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE

2011-06-04T15:37:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I have heard Tate's Bake Shop had awesome cookies, cakes

pies and muffins but of course I had to see for myself.

The first cookie I tried was the chocolate chip, and oh was I in cookie heaven. Crispy on the outside and buttery on the

inside. Chocolate Chip is my favorite cookie. Oatmeal Raisin is

second. I also liked the Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies.All of the Tate's Bake Shop goodies I received were to die for, honestly.

I also received Kathleen King's Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook. Filled with yummy recipes for muffins, scones,cakes, cookies, pies and even a section with healthy alternative recipes. I immediately saw a recipe on page 128 of the cookbook I knew I had to try, the Sour Cream Coffee Cake. I will be posting this recipe soon on Welcome To My Kitchen.

My friend Christa helped me bake this yummy coffee cake on Friday. We baked two. One for me to take home and

one for her to keep. This coffee cake recipe from the Tate's

Bake Shop Cookbook is one of the best coffee cakes

I have ever eaten. Served warm with a cup of coffee

is the only way to go. The batter is layered with pecans and a cinnamon sugar mixture before baking. This cake turned

out very moist on the inside. Of course my son loved it to.

We all had a piece served warm right out of the oven.

THE GIVEAWAY

Want to win an assortment of Tate's Bake Shop cookies

and there wonderful cookbook?Simply leave a comment at

the end of this post stating your favorite cookie. One lucky

Welcome To My Kitchen reader will receive Chocolate Chip,White Chocolate Macadamia Nut and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, along with the Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook, good luck everyone!!

Starts 6/4 Ends 6/8.Winner will be chosen using Random.Org. Winner will be given 48 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. Please leave a separate comment for each entry along with a valid email where I can contact you.

Bonus Entries( one each)

Follow Tate's Bake Shop On Facebook

Tweet this giveaway

Blog about this giveaway

Disclosure: For the review I received three boxes of Tate's

Bake Shop cookies and a copy of the Tate's Bake Shop

Cookbook free of charge. All thoughts and opinions

of this product are strictly my own and not influenced

by the products I received.

CHUAO CHOCOLATIER~ REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

2011-06-01T10:02:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Last year I got to review Cowgirl Chocolates which I found were very good. I guess you can tell how much I love chocolate. It is so hard to resist.A major weakness of mine. But oh well, some things you just can't give up no matter what, and chocolate is just one of those things for me.

I love a good quality chocolate. So when I had the chance to review for Chuao Chocolatier, pronounced (chew Wow). I was very happy. I received the package by UPS. I right away tore open the box. Inside were three large 2.8 oz chocolate bars wrapped in pretty foil packaging. Spicy Maya, Firecracker and Panko. I also received several chocopods of the three flavors. Watch the video below and find out more about Chuao Chocolatier.

THE REVIEW

The Spicy Maya is dark chocolate infused with pasilla chile, cayenne pepper and cinnamon. I tasted this bar first because of my curiosity on how chocolate, cayenne pepper and cinnamon would taste. I was a bit skeptical but found this chocolate bar was amazing.The Venezuelan cacao used to make this unique chocolate bar is high quality and I found it to be my second favorite of the Chuao chocolate bars I received.

Next I tried the Firecracker. Made with dark chocolate, chipolte, salt and popping candy. This one was also very good.Loved it mainly because of the popping candy affect.

My very favorite was the Panko chocolate bar made with dark chocolate toasted panko breadcrumbs and sea salt. This bar is amazing. The breadcrumbs giving it just the right amount of crunch.

THE GIVEAWAY

Win an assortment of Chuao Chocolate Bars to try

for yourself. Simply subscribe to Welcome To

My Kitchen by email and come back and leave a comment
at the end of this post. Please leave a valid email
where you can be contacted.
6/1-6/5. US RESIDENTS ONLY.

Bonus Entries:
Follow Chuao Chocolatier On Facebook

Disclosure: For this review I received Chuao chocolate
bars free of charge to review.All thoughts and opinions of this product are strictly my own and are not influenced by the product I received to review.

Spike Seasonings Review

2011-05-29T04:05:00.000-07:00

Making its way back into the marketplace is Spike Seasonings.
I had never heard of this brand so I was anxious to use it while cooking to see how I would like it.

Last month I received 10 bottles of Spike Seasonings

to review. Over the past several weeks I have used many of the seasonings while cooking .This product is new to me so I did a little research and this is what I found:

Spike Seasonings are pure and natural without additives, preservatives or fillers. Many of the seasonings are gluten

free which is a plus for those who are gluten sensitive.

Available in ten varieties including:

SPIKE ® HOT 'N SPICY MAGIC
SPIKE® VEGE-SAL MAGIC
SPIKE® VEGIT MAGIC
SPIKE ®SALT FREE MAGIC

SPIKE ®LEMON PEPPER MAGIC

SPIKE® ORIGINAL MAGIC

SPIKE ® GARLIC MAGIC

SPIKE® 5 HERB MAGIC

SPIKE® ONION MAGIC

SPIKE ®TENDERIZER MAGIC

I used the garlic seasoning for my spaghetti sauce last
night. I also really like the lemon pepper seasoning. I use
this one almost every day. I baked Tilapia fillets last
week and sprinkled the lemon pepper on them.The lemon
pepper is also great on salads. Last week I prepared
turkey patties with brown gravy and added the onion
seasoning. I also have tried the Spike ® Original Magic which is made with 39 different herbs, spices and vegetables with just the right amount of salt. I have really enjoyed all the Spike Seasonings
so far and will definitely give this product a positive
review. Hope you will try Spike® in your next recipe.

Disclosure: I received 10 bottles of Spike ® Seasonings
at no charge for this review.

Kitchen Carvings Etsy~ Giveaway Winner

2011-05-18T19:24:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Mary, comment 55. You

are the winner of the Kitchen Carvings Etsy

giveaway. Please contact me within 48 hours

Kitchen Carvings Etsy~Review and Giveaway

2011-05-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I am back with yet another great Etsy giveaway! First

I would like to thank all of my Etsy sponsors that

have provided there wonderful handmade items

for reviews and giveaways on Welcome To My Kitchen.

A few months back I featured Robert Kidd from the Kitchen

Carvings Etsy Shop. He provided some beautiful handmade

coffee scoops for a giveaway.This time I received a beautiful

handmade stirring and tasting spoon made from Wild American
Black Cherry Wood to review. Thank you Robert!

THE REVIEW

I have to tell you I absolutely without a doubt loved that
spoon. I cannot wait to use it in my kitchen. It is almost to
pretty to use. The grain is raised multiple times during the finishing process so it will stay smooth.It is finished by soaking in hot mineral oil and beeswax for three hours. It measures 16 1/2 inches long with a stirring bowl that is 2 3/4 inches wide and a tasting end that is 1 3/8 inches wide.I
think this would be a great gift for that special mom that
spends a lot of time in the kitchen cooking. I will be preparing a
special recipe courtesy of Kitchen Carvings to try out my spoon next week,Excellent Green Chili.

THE GIVEAWAY
Win a beautiful handmade Spatula from Kitchen Carvings Etsy

and a 4 oz jar of spoon finish oil. Measuring 12 1/2 inches long and a blade that is 2 1/2 inches wide. The handle has a bend to aid in using it in a frying pan. The front edge tapers to a sharp end so you can use it for cutting cake or corn bread as well as serving.

TO ENTER:
Visit Kitchen Carvings and come back and tell me your favorite item. Giveaway starts 5/14 ends 5/18.

Bonus Entries:
(one entry per task completed)
Subscribe To Welcome To My Kitchen by email.
Following on Networked Blogs
Posting this giveaway on your blog.
Posting this giveaway on Facebook

Please leave a valid email address with your
comment so I can easily contact you.

Disclosure: I received a stirring and tasting spoon from
Kitchen Carvings to review at no charge. All thoughts
and opinions are honest and strictly my own.

Jewel Of The Lion Etsy~ Julie's Fudge Giveaway Winner

2011-05-08T18:57:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to chief, comment 36. You are the

winner of the Jewel Of The Lion Etsy Fudge Giveaway

Please contact me within 48 hours to claim your prize.

Jewel Of The Lion Etsy~ Julie's Fudge Review And Giveaway

2011-05-05T14:06:00.000-07:00

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

I have always loved fudge. I remember my mom making it on special occasions when I was growing up. She would give homemade gifts away at Christmas time. I have always had a weakness for homemade fudge. While browsing Etsy I came across the Jewel Of The Lion Etsy Shop. You should see all the yummy treats. Julie the shop owner has a variety of homemade fudge, cookies, scones and much more. I contacted Julie and she sent me a one pound sampler to review and is providing the same for a giveaway to a very lucky reader. Thank you Julie for sponsoring this giveaway! For the review I received the following samples of fudge and this is my opinion of each:

Rocky Road

The Rocky Road fudge is the first one I tried. I love chocolate and I just had to try this one first. I have to tell you the taste was amazing. The chocolate is good quality and it is filled with nuts and marshmallows. My absolute favorite of Julie's fudge.

Orange Creamsicle
Like the taste of Dreamsicles? I love the orange flavor. Well this fudge reminds me of an orange dreamscile. I love the orange flavor and vanilla. This fudge has a creamy taste, very good in my opinion.

Cotton Candy

The kids will probably enjoy this fudge. Made with white chocolate and cotton candy flavoring. I liked the taste but prefer the other flavors the best.

Strawberry Cheesecake

Omg, this fudge was awesome. My second favorite of Julie's fudge. What can be better than strawberry cheesecake? My only answer would be chocolate. But I have to say this fudge is as close to cheesecake heaven as you can get. Made with a graham cracker crust and so yummy, What a unique idea!If you love cheesecake you will have to try this one.

THE GIVEAWAY:

Win one pound of Julie's fudge to try for yourself. Visit Jewel Of The Lion on Etsy and come back and tell me what you would like to try. Giveaway starts 5/5 Ends 5/9. Winner will be chosen using Random.Org. Please leave a valid email address where I can contact you.

Bonus Entries:
Make a purchase from Jewel Of The Lion Etsy and receive 5 bonus entries for this giveaway! Just let me know what you purchased and leave 5 comments.

One entry for each:
Posting This Giveaway On Facebook
Tweeting This Giveaway
Blogging This Giveaway
Following This Blog
Following Me On Networked Blogs

Photo Credit: Jewel Of The Lion Etsy

Disclosure: I received a one pound sampler of Julie's fudge to
review. Thank you Julie, again it was delicious!

Visit Jewel Of The Lion:

Facebook
Twitter
Julie's Blog