September FOODIE PENPAL REVEAL!

My rockin penpal, Jenny from The Spicy Simmer  sent me the best package! Jenny has some great posts on CSA's and what to do with all of those goodies. Now, on to the package...

Blueberry Jam

Plaid Cat Pancake Mix

Toasted Sesame Ginger Quinoa

Jane's Seasoning

CHOCOLATE!

Such a fun box! The Simple Pleasures chocolates are DIVINE!

The Blueberry Jam is locally made and so good that I wanted to eat it with a spoon straight from the jar!

 I used the Gluten Free Pancake Mix and the Blueberry Jam to make dinner last night for the kiddos. Because of the jam, we didn't need any syrup. I was a little nervous to use a gluten free mix, but you would have never know the difference! Check out their whole line of items here: http://plaidcatbaking.com/index.php

August Foodie Penpal REVEAL!!

Stephanie sent me my Foodie Penpal package for August...and she rocked that box! First, how pretty is this card? I love it! The design and the colors are just too fabulous :)

And now, on to the food...Stephanie sent me an awesome array of goodies! The sun dried tomatoes have already found themselves in a sauce with whole wheat ziti pasta.

The muesli mix is going to go great in my overnight crock pot recipe. It looks like there are raisins and nuts in the mix :)  Almond butter is always a favorite of mine, so these little packets are going to work with me for some afternoon snacks. The naked peak trail mix...sadly to say, I have already demolished this bag. Gone.

The mushroom risotto looks like it's gonna be rich and awesome. And if you have read my Black Bean Brownie post, you know that black beans make me nervous...I'm never sure if I will like the dish that they are in. These black bean chips? Wonderful! They would make a great taco salad chip. Thanks Stephanie!

I sent my package to Jillian over at Good Morning Sweetums.
She has recipes AND crafty stuff :) Check it out!

Are you interested in getting a cool foodie package? Check out The Lean Green Bean to sign up!

July Foodie Penpal REVEAL!

My Foodie Penpal package for July came from Julie. 

There were so many cool things that were out of my comfort zone....and I loved it!

The Hot Curry Sauce from The Brooklyn Salsa Company was perfect on (of all things) Turkey Burgers! I tasted one that was grilled and it just needed a little kick. This sauce was perfect! I can't wait to see what else I can add it to.

The Champagne Jelly was very nice. It was light, a tad refreshing and just overall wonderful on a toasted biscuit with a hot cup of tea.

The Ginger Honey Crystals look great as a hot beverage. But since I got three packets, I might try some in lemonade.

I haven't opened the Mango Pepper Sauce but I am envisioning it going over a marinated, grilled chicken breast or filet of fish.

The Honey Peanut Butter is new to me...I usually get Justin's Hazelnut Chocolate goodness.

And the POM...mixed with Sprite or with Vodka (hee hee), it is always a good, healthy choice.

Does this look like fun? Who wouldn't want to get cool new foods in the mail to try? Well then, head on over to The Lean Green Bean and tell Lindsey..."I'm in! Make me a Foodie PenPal!"

June Foodie Penpals

It's Foodie Penpal time again!!! Katie from Creature of Habit sent me my package for June. Check out her blog and be as jealous of her fabulous California Dreamin' life :)

My box showed up at just the right time. Our kitchen caught on fire the week before, our house is in total chaos and I didn't have any sweet, chocolate snacks in the house at all. The Fudge Mints TOTALLY hit the spot!

I haven't had the soy nuts separately before. Most of my trail mixes have them mixed in but I hardly notice them with all the other goodies. I love how crunchy they are all alone!

The Crispy Rice Bars are a great snack, or even a breakfast. The berries are just sweet enough :)

This GOLEAN bar is going to be great before one of my runs!

Want to join in the awesome monthly fun? Check out The Lean Green Bean's Foodie Penpal page to sign up: http://www.theleangreenbean.com/foodie-penpals/

May Foodie Penpals

Oh how I LOVE getting Foodie PenPal packages!! 

Amber from www.ifitbakesyouhappy.com was my May Foodie PenPal.

These items were so good! The Very Berry Crunch was like strawberry rice krispies only crunchier. I have been adding this to my yogurt everyday to kick it up. The cookie - vegan and fabulous - was wonderful...even the kids chomped on it. 

Now for the tea bags - I am a fan of tea, green tea mostly. Amber included a recipe that I had to try...I warmed up some Vanilla Almond Milk and steeped my new Aged Earl Grey tea bag in it. Creamy and wonderful as a bedtime beverage!

Want to join in the monthly foodie fun? 

Check it out here: http://www.theleangreenbean.com/foodie-penpals/

Foodie Penpals: April

I was so excited to get this package, you would have thought it was my birthday! My foodie penpal, Carly, writes a blog Change for Good and packed some awesome vegan goodies for me. As a dietitian, I counsel vegans so I know a bit about what is involved but mostly just on paper. Getting an all vegan package was a very cool adventure...thanks Carly!

Now, I need to set the stage for this post...dinner is in the oven, I just got home from work and in front of my lies this foodie package. So I read each individual item: dark chocolate, seasnax, vegan jerky, green tea, Justin's almond and peanut butter. And then, in a 10 minute time span, I take a bite out of just about everything. AND THEN, I call everyone over and THEY take a bite out of everything. It was all so amazingly good that we snacked for dinner instead of having what I cooked! Again...thanks Carly! :)

 These Seasnax are full of crunch, crunch, crunch. If you like potato chips, these are a really cool snack and they come in really great flavors: Chipotle, Wasabi, Sea Salt,

 I am a cookie freak! I can bake 'em and eat 'em every night if someone continues to keep me supplied with ingredients. These little homemade nuggets with carob chips were very good! Would be great with a cup of coffee :)

I'm not a jerky fan, so I was totally pleased that this was vegan jerky...well, pleased that it wasn't real jerky. I read over the ingredients...none were alarming. I smelled it...very "Thai Peanuty". Tasted a little bite...not bad. Tasted another bite...still good. Ate the whole thing! This is a non-meat stick of goodness!!

And what would a snacking for dinner-dinner be without having some chocolate...dark chocolate (filled with those awesome antioxidants)! The Justin's almond butter goes great on this chocolate too.

Carly, you did an amazing job sharing your vegan snacks with a meat eater! I have really found some items that I will be adding to my weekly grocery list - mission accomplished! And if you want to join in this fabulous foodie penpal fun, check out The Lean Green Bean for details.