Pillsbury Sweet Moments Winner! and CSN Stores review

And.... Random.org declard my Pillsbury Sweet Moments Giveaway winner to be... #22... or Mo' Betta!  Congratulations!  And thank you to everyone else for entering this giveaway!  FYI: This prize pack, in addition to the product, prize pack, and information I received were all given to me from Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark.

Now for the CSN Stores review!  CSN Stores generously provided me with a $40 giftcard to use in their stores.  They have SO much, but the two things I ended up purchasing were a Victorinox Swiss Army Fibrox 8" Chef's Knife and an Emerilware by All Clad Cast Iron 10" Skillet.  I am super happy with both items!  They were shipped fast and were packaged well - so no bumps, dings, or scratches :-).

Isn't this knife gorgeous!  It sliced through a couple large raw sweet potatoes like a dream.  I was afraid it was going to cut right through the cutting board (it didn't!).  I was even a bit afraid to use it since I've never had a knife so large and sharp.  I'm very pleased with it though.  Now I think I need a knife block.  It just seems wrong to just put this knife in a drawer with my other cheap knives :-(.

I've been wanting a cast iron skillet since forever, but have gotten by without.  Now I have one (boy, is it heavy!), and the its features are wonderful:

•10" cast iron made for high heating cooking
•Excellent heat retention - keeps food warm at table

•Perfect for browning, searing, frying, and sauteing

•Heats evenly and consistently

•No warping or chipping

•Becomes virtually non-stick with seasoning and use

•Pre-seasoned pan surfaces and oven safe up to 600F

•Heirloom quality with signature thumb rest

•Large, extra-long handle and easy-to-grip side "helper" handles

•Lifetime warranty
 
So, do any of my readers own a chef's knife and/or a cast iron skillet?  If so, what are your favorite uses for each?  I could especially use ideas for the cast iron skillet :-).
 
And my goal is to post at least twice a week, but, alas, life has been so busy!  Maybe shorter posts?
 
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CHOtastic Chobani review

I received an awesome complimentary assortment of Chobani Greek Yogurt to review awhile back :-).  Here are some of the flavors:




Raspberry: 10 of 10!  It was everything I hoped for!  I LOVE raspberries and the raspberry flavor of this yogurt was quite prominent.  It was great with walnuts mixed in too :-).




Pineapple: 9.5 of 10.  I enjoyed the pieces of pineapple.  They weren’t soft and mushy, but rather substantial.  I’ll admit I was hesitant though because I’ve been scarred by the canned pineapple served with my school lunches in grade school :-(.



Pomegranate: 10 of 10.  The pomegranate seeds added a great crunch and burst of flavor.  Loved how thick an creamy the yogurt was – so delicious!



Blueberry: 10 of 10.  A very strong and fresh flavor.  0% fat and oh, so good!



Strawberry Banana: 10 of 10.  I’m not normally a fan of strawberry banana flavors, but somehow Chobani pulled it off for me.  Maybe the 2% yogurt base made it more rich?  The strawberry pieces were great too!



Vanilla: 9 of 10.  A deep, hearty vanilla flavor, but it seemed kind of weird to me.  Maybe it was too tart.  It was still good, but not as amazing as the other flavors.



0% plain: 9.5 of 10.  Tart, thick, and smooth.  Very substantial and a lot of protein for only 100 calories.  Nuts are a great topper too :-).



2% plain: 10 of 10.  Less tart and richer than the 0%.  It was almost like sour cream in that is was sooo creamy.  Perfect in my cantaloupe bowl :-).

I’ve still got a few more to review, but so far my impression is very positive.  The high scores are my honest opinion.  I couldn’t find much to complain about.  Chobani makes quality Greek yogurt!  I guess my one suggestion would be for them to add more calcium and Vitamin D to their yogurt. 

Don’t forget to enter my Pillsbury Sweet Moments giveaway here!

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Pillsbury Sweet Moments Review and Giveaway!

Another giveaway for you all!  Aren't you excited?!  I knew you would be :-).

I joined MyBlogSpark a while back, and they just sent me an amazing "Sweet Moments" prize pack.  A big thank you to Pillsbury for providing the free product, information, and prize pack through MyBlogSpark.

The prize pack included a VIP coupon for the new Pillsbury Sweet Moments and a chocolate spa kit. The spa kit included a loofah, mint chocolate foot scrub, milk chocolate body lotion, cocoa chocolate shower gel, and cocoa chocolate bath salts.  It is luxurious :-).

Pillsbury recently came out with Sweet Moments Bite-Size and Molten Lava Brownies.  They are available in the refrigerated baked goods section of your local grocery store. 

Now, this product isn't something I would normally eat (very processed!), and in fact, I really have no desire to.  I therefore decided to see if my Mom would like to try them... she is conveniently visiting me right now :-).   Below is what I purchased with my VIP coupon:

Mom: 8 of 10.  Tasty and not bad considering they're made with artificial flavors, colors, etc.

Now for the giveaway sponsored by Pillsbury through MyBlogSpark!  One (1) reader will win a Sweet Moments prize pack (just like I got). Open to U.S. Residents. Giveaway will end on September 18, 2010. Winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning email to claim their prize or another winner will be drawn, ensure you leave a valid email address.  Prize pack pictured below:

Mandatory Entry: Leave me a comment telling me your favorite way to pamper yourself?  Please include your e-mail address too.

Extra Entries (leave 1 comment for each): Blog about this giveaway on your blog and leave a link.

Follow my blog.

Follow me on twitter and tweet: "Pillsbury Sweet Moments,vip coupon and chocolate spa prize pack giveaway! http://bit.ly/c3EWVI @cygirl88 Ends 9/18 #mbsspark."  Leave a link too please.

Add Food, Fotos, and Fun! to your blogroll.

That should be plenty of entries!  Best of luck to you all!

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The Veg-Feasting Cookbook from Book Publishing Company

I received another complimentary cookbook to review from the Book Publishing Company!  The Veg-Feasting Cookbook is full of fabulous vegetarian recipes from “Local Restaurants and Leading Chefs in the Pacific Northwest.”  As you can see, I’ve already got some recipes bookmarked, including the one that I’m going to share with you in just a moment.




Front and back covers are shown above.

The recipe I'm sharing is Lentil Pottage.  Here’s the recipe:



I chose this recipe because it looked SUPER easy and my life’s been kind of hectic lately…  The recipe turned out quite well, though it was lacking a bit in flavor.  I’m thinking I might use vegetable broth instead of water next time.  I adorned my bowl with carrots :-).



This cookbook also has some great articles in addition to the recipes, including a brief history of the Vegetarian Scene in the Pacific Northwest and an extensive list of foods that deserve a place in a healthy kitchen.  This cookbook definitely deserves a 10 of 10!

In other news, I went for 2 1-mi. runs in my Vibram FiveFingers this weekend.  The first run went wonderfully, but my calves hurt quite a bit during the second run.  I wonder if that is normal when you’re starting out or if I’m running with them wrong? 

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Yurbuds Review

It’s going to be a 3-day weekend!  Now I can finally get all caught up on my class work ;-).  And… hopefully get in some good posts and reviews.

I was recently sent a complimentary pair of yurbuds to review, and they were just what I needed for running with my iPod.  Here’s a pic of my pair: 



They’re blue :-).  I give them a 9.5 of 10.  They definitely help my iPod earphones stay in place when running!  They’re also very comfortable and light, which actually made me afraid they might fall out, but nope – they didn’t budge.  Now I just need some noise canceling earphones, but it’s probably safer if I can hear background noise even if it is annoying traffic sounds :-(.

Guess what else I have to share?!  I’m using Windows Live Writer.  I’ve had some issues uploading pictures to Blogger, so I wanted an alternative way to make my posts.  So far I really like it.  Does anyone else use this?  I know I’m a little slow in figuring out all the new technologies out there :-).

And now for some more Champaign-Urbana pictures since I’m obsessed with I enjoy photography.







Next up will be another cookbook review…
 
Have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend!  Any fun plans?  I’m hoping to get in my first run with my Vibrams :-).

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My Vibram FiveFingers!!

I've got a pair of Vibram FiveFingers!! I've wanted a pair since this past spring, and I was finally able to find a store with them in stock so I could get sized and determine which style I'd like.  I chose the TrekSport that you can see below:

Aren't they gorgeous?!  So far I've only worn them walking, but I'm looking forward to running in them too :-). 

How about some more pictures of Champaign, IL.  Here we go:

Brick streets: beautiful, but not all that fun to bike or drive on.

Some plant pictures :-).

More reviews and recipes to come, but alas, the life of a grad student is crazy!

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Pictures and Food as promised!

Why, hello everyone!  My first (extremely crazy and busy) week of classes is over :-).  Now for a recap:

At the farmers' market a couple weeks ago I bought a beautiful basil plant:

I am in love with it... but I fear it is dying (it no longer looks like it does above) in my tiny apartment with windows only facing one direction :-(.

I used some of my basil when making a bean soup in my mini crock pot.  It turned out all right, but I think it needed more flavor.  I followed a recipe, but my kitchen is still lacking in a number of spices (that I therefore excluded thinking it wouldn't matter too much).  Alas, I have more shopping to do...

Anyway, here is the soup:

I also bought a couple pluots from the grocery store a few days ago because they were on sale for $.99 per pound (should've gotten more!).  I LOVED them!  Here is one I had for breakfast with oatgurt and chia seeds:

Now for some Illinois scenery :-).

These are some pics from the UIUC campus - lots of people!

Some pics from Champaign neighborhoods I've wandered around on foot and bike:

I was astonished to see that people decorate their yards with lights - my fellow Iowans and I tend to use lights exclusively for Christmas.

I hope this post was worth the wait ;-).  I had fun taking the pictures... and I have more to show you at a later date...

Have a fabulous weekend!

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Why so few posts??

Well, let's see... I've been super busy with work, orientation, getting adjusted to my new apartment, and transfering files from my old (very slow!) laptop to my new one.  Oh, and my graduate classes started today!  I miss blogging and taking pictures - I really do!!  So here's my to-do list for the week:

• Take pictures of campus and/or the city and its parks, quaint houses, etc.
• Take pictures of more food!
• Do MORE real cooking instead of sandwiches, salads, and easy stuff like omelets.
• Have some fun at various Welcome Week festivities.
• And then blog about some of those things by the end of the week!

I also hope to finally have internet access in my apartment by the end of this week.  I realized I simply couldn't live without it - for personal and academic reasons ;-).  Yep, I caved, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

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PVC update, kale chips, and sardines

First, I want to let you all know that I'll be doing another CSN review soon!  CSN has sooo many items at great prices.  I especially love their cookware - you can get a fantastic Dutch oven among many other items.  It's hard not to get carried away ;-).

Next I want to better inform you all about PVC.  After reading this article, I was concerned.  Now, I'm not so worried because I have additional facts, including a letter from Izola.  I was told they are in the process of converting all of their shower curtains to PEVA, a recyclable plasitc, but that is not because PVC is unsafe.  Here is an excerpt from their letter:

"It (PVC) is actually only toxic upon incineration.  There's very little conclusive evidence about the effects of the fumes from vinyl.  It's definitely not pleasant but there's still debate about it's actual measured toxicity.   It's more for the fact that it's not recyclable and biodegradable that we feel the creates a significant environmental impact. It takes over 100 times more energy and resources to create PEVA so while PEVA is a better alternative, it's not the perfect solution."

I was additionally left a comment on my last post by Jessvet that is informative.  Here it is:

"Beautiful shower curtain! Regarding your concerns about PVC in shower curtains, I would not panic. The scientific validity of the study disseminated by the Center for Health, Environment and Justice is very questionable (the study referenced in the article). Even the highly respected U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has criticized this study/report which is the basis for most of the 'scare-mongering' regarding PVC's and consumer exposure. I think a more realistic concern with PVC is for workers in the actual prodution plants and populations that live near such plants that may be releasing toxic by-products into the air. There is a much higher probability of inhaling toxin concentrations of PVC and associated chemicals in these situations. I would not panic about the small amounts of vinyl chemicals released into the air in a home unless one in the habit of deliberately 'huffing' plastic fumes continually in enclosed areas. While it is always important to follow-up on safety concerns related to consumer products, one must do so using scientific method. Controlled unbiased studies showing statistically valid results are essential before the public is scared into abandoning one product for another that might be even less closely scrutinized or lead to other health concerns, like mildew and mold development with hemp or cloth shower curtain use. Further research is definitely needed, but it must be done correctly without bias. Please know I have no vested interest in the plastic industry. I just hate to see organizations that often have ulterior motives spread fear through 'studies' that fail the test of scientific validity. Take care and just enjoy your beautiful shower curtain!


Here's a web site that references some of the concerns with the PVC scare."
 
So the moral of the story is to do your research if you're concerned about something.  Therefore, I'll be keeping my beautful shower curtain :-).
 

Now for the kale chips I made!

 

I lined a baking pan with parchment paper, tore up some kale, sprinkled it with some salt and garlic powder, and then put on the sheet and in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15-20 min.  I think I needed to toss the kale during the baking process though because the inner pieces were still soft while the outer pieces were burnt :-(.  I enjoyed the pieces that were baked to perfection, but there weren't many like that - perhaps I just need more practice.  Also, this was the first thing I made in my new oven - how exciting!!

Guess what I had with my kale chips???  I'll show you:

Yes, those are canned sardines!  I've been wanting to try them for awhile since seeing them on a few blogs.  The first bite wasn't too bad, but then the fishy smell, slimy texture, etc. got to me.  I added ketchup and mustard and was able to finish it all, but I don't think I'll be purchasing them again... even if they are quite healthy, as explained here.

I can't wait to go the farmers' market again this Saturday!

And then classes begin on Monday!  Anyone else starting classes or getting their children ready for school?  How's it going?

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Izola Shower Curtain Review

You all know I'm in my new apartment, which means some decorating of course ;-).  I'm grateful to have gotten one of my "decorations" for free from Izola.  I was sent one of their beautiful shower curtains to review.  They have a stylish collection with popular themes like world destinations, subway maps and eco-friendly shower curtains. I chose to review the Foliage Shower Curtain.  Here it is in my bathroom:

10 of 10!  That was my initial review anyways...  I LOVE the design, the size, and the quality, BUT I am afraid to have discovered that PVC shower curtains are potentially toxic, as referenced in this article.  This particular shower curtain is 100% PVC with nickel plated grommets :-(.  Izola does offer eco-friendly shower curtains that are 100% PEVA, and now I'm wishing I got one of those instead... since I fear I may have to get rid of this one because of health concerns.  I will sorely miss it even though I've only had it for about a week.  I'll contact Izola and let you know what they have to say.

Stay tuned for my kale chip experience and another new food I recently tried!

P.S. Yesterday was my first run in Champaign and I loved it!  The streets are so beautiful - some are even brick!

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