Complete Randomness and Food Item #5

I’ve got a few things bumping around in my mind that I want to “put to paper” in this post.  Now that I’m blogging less (which is working out well) I’ve been keeping a little checklist of things to post about and the past few days it’s gotten a wee bit long!
Melissa tagged for a survey!  Basically 8 questions are asked by a blogger to seven other bloggers, who then ask 8 different/new questions to seven new bloggers!    Here we go!
1. What celebrity chef do you want to meet in person?  And what do you want them to make for you?
I have to go with Rachael Ray.  I’d love her to made a stoup for me!!
2. Favourite drink of choice? 
If we’re talking booze I like cranberry, vodka and club soda.  If not, then plain old water!  ;)
3. What meal would you never eat ever again?
Stew made with moose.  *SHIVER*
4. Baking or cooking?
I’d have to go with cooking here.
5. There’s a fire in your kitchen, what would you grab first?
Sadly, my first instinct would be to smack at it with a tea towel!
6. You’re cooking dinner for Barak Obama; What would you make him?
I honestly have no idea….
7. I’m coming to your house to run a race.and you have to feed me.  What is one thing from your city/town I must try?
Would ice cream work?  Because we have a great ice cream shop here!
8. How do you take your ice cream?
In a waffle bowl.  With lots of caramel an nuts on top!!!
So my 8 Questions are;

1. What is your favourite food starting with the letter “S”?
2. Are you an allergy sufferer?
3. What is your all time favourite make up product?
4. Best childhood memory?
5. If you could play one sport professionally, what would it be?
6. What is your number one grocery shopping tip?
7. Who would you be most nervous to cook dinner for?
8. Is there a food that you hated as a child, but LOVE now?

And I tag:

• Cassie from A Pinch of This A Dash of That
• Erica from Itzy’s Kitchen
• Coco from Balance, Joy, Delicias
• Marianne from French Fries to Flax Seeds
• Faith From An Edible Mosaic
• Mary from Bites & Bliss
• Erica from Fashion Meets Food

Have fun ladies!!!
A friend of mine, who also happens to be our hair stylist, sent a surprise home with my hubby last night!
Isn’t she a doll?  Chamomile has always been my go-to tea.  Especially if I’m feeling under the weather.  My Mom always made this for us when we had belly aches.  She even gave it to us in our bottles when we were babies to help us sleep. 
What is Chamomile? Chamomile is an herb that comes from a flowering plant from the daisy family. Both the fresh and dried flowers of chamomile have been used to create teas for centuries to cure a number of health problems. The active ingredient in chamomile essential oil is known as bisabolol, which has a number of anti-irritant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-microbial properties.
(Source)
What are the Benefits of Chamomile? Chamomile can be used topically or orally to treat a number of everyday ailments, such as:
-Insomnia and other sleep disorders
-Panic Attacks
-Muscle twitches
-Wounds, burns, and scrapes
-Skin conditions such as psoriasis, eczema, chickenpox, and diaper rash
-Stomach problems such as menstrual cramps, stomach flu, and ulcers
(Source)
I enjoyed a cup today while at work.  Do you like chamomile?
I made some potato leek soup the other day. This soup is so easy to make that I don’t know why I don’t make it more often.  Simply sauté 4 sliced, cleaned leeks with a clove of minced garlic in 2 tbsp of of oil (I used avocado oil) for about 8 minutes then add 3-4 chopped potatoes and 4 cups of water or stock.  Cover, bring to a boil, then simmer for 20-25 minutes.  Take off heat and puree, add back to heat and stir in 1 can of evaporated milk.  Voila!  As you can see, I served ours with bacon bits on top.  YUM!  It made a great lunch the day after along with a toasted bagel thin and cassata cheese: Other food!! There have been other bowls of oats, of course, but it’s just too dark in the mornings to get a decent photo.  I made a crock pot of steel cut oats Friday night so this is what you’re seeing in these pics here. On to this weeks food item for the Thanks & Giving food drive: Two jars of baby food!!    We can’t forget about our little people, right?  Remember to check out the Thanks & Giving tab at the top of the blog for info on week’s 1-4!  Also, don’t to forget to enter my giveaway for a $65.00 gift certificate to CSN Stores!!!
Bye for now!!

Shake N Bake-Crispy Buffalo

Recently I was contacted by Allison from Shake n Bake to see if the Krista’s Kravings household would be interested in trying their newest flavour, Crispy Buffalo.  The whole kit included the crispy buffalo, football/hockey themes party plates, a tip sheet on how to throw a party and a gift cert for supplies.  Very generous, IMO.  Seeing as we are not a football family and even though we are definitely a hockey family it is for that reason that we were (regrettably) too busy to throw a party.  Allison agreed to send just the coating mix for us to try. YES!!
I love the new look of their packaging!  Very streamlined and to the point. (*note: even though I have bought Shake N Bake products many times before, this was sent to me at no charge)  
I decided to make this last weekend when DD was off at her Hallowe’en party.  She’s not a fan of Shake n Bake (I know!!) so I knew she wouldn’t miss it.  I had chicken breasts on hand and also used some of the coating on potatoes.  Here are the potatoes getting a shake!
 
Then my camera died and I had to charge it while everything baked so I would have some dinner photos!  DOH!  Here were are hot out of the oven! The piece you see in the back with very little coating was DS’s.  I figured it would be a bit spicy for him so only used a bit.  I served it with a side of peas and corn, cuz that’s how we roll!  :)
I took notes as we ate so these are our thoughts:

• DS-tastes like bacon (??), a bit too spicy BUT still super good!
• Hubby-nice bite, great crispy coating, works awesome on the boneless chicken, not sure if I would like it as much with chicken “on the bone”
• Me-same tangy smell as restaurant wings, good dose of heat, kept the chicken extremely moist

The consensus is that we all really enjoyed the Crispy Buffalo flavour!  I would definitely buy this product and at an approximate price of $2.39/box for two pouches, how can you go wrong???
Here’s a bit more information about Shake n Bake:

• other flavours include extra crispy, original, parmesan (Mmm…), ranch & herb, herb & garlic, Italian, hot & spicy, BBQ glaze and original pork.  Something for everyone, if you ask me!
• All varieties can be found in the pantry section of grocery stores nationwide
• visit Shake & Bake to download discounts and find easy to prepare meals or snacks that the whole family will love

Some final thoughts:

• You could most definitely use this on something other than chicken.  I was thinking that it would really jazz up some jumbo shrimp! 
• This worked well on the potatoes, too.  Sweet potatoes would also be awesome
• Takes no extra time or involvement to prepare.  Simply shake and bake!! :)

Have you ever used any brand of Shake & Bake?  If so, which one and what type of meat (or other food) did you use it one?  Would you try the new Crispy Buffalo flavour?  Did you find this review helpful?
Bye for now!!

Movember and a CSN Store Giveaway

I had to scrape the windows of the Jeep this morning!!!  With my library card no less!
Just thought I’d get that out there.  :)
How is everybody??  I’ve been pretty fantastic!  We had a smoking busy weekend at the Krista’s Kravings house.  Three hockey games (2 out of town) on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, a 1 hour soccer practice on Sunday, trick or treating Sunday night, Pilates last night.  Tonight was another hockey practice .  Tomorrow is FREE and Mom, DD and I are doing something fun on Friday night.  More deets on that later.  ;)
I actually took a half day vacation on Monday because the kids had a PD Day so weren’t at school.  DS was in a hockey camp all day and I didn’t want DD home by herself, for the first time, for a full day.  She asked if we could do lunch and I happily obliged.  We decided on William’s Pub because it’s been a long time since we ate there and we really do enjoy it.  I went with the half salad, half sandwich deal; Greek with the dressing on the side and a chicken pesto panini:
Our lunches came with a choice of chips, a cookie or an apple.  We went with cookies, obviously!  DD chose a PB one and I went with white chocolate macadamia nut.
I also enjoyed a pumpkin spice latte to go:
Love.
After a quick tour of the mall it was time to go back home and get a pasta dish in the oven so that I could get a decent meal into DS before we left for his game.  I found this “Take 5” recipe in my Rachael Ray magazine that I knew would be perfect.
It called for ravioli, sausage meat, a jar of tomato sauce, a head of escarole and mozzarella cheese.  I used tortellini because that’s what I had on hand and went with this Mexican Yves veggie ground round in place of the sausages:
My hubby totally thought he was eating taco seasoned beef!  Here’s the dish after layer #1:
The boys loved this (DD was at Mom’s for dinner because she had dance and wasn’t going out of town with us) although DS picked all the escarole out.  I knew that would happen, but he did give it a try.
Have you seen any men lately sporting some funny looking facial hair? Has anybody heard of Movember?  If not, the month of November is prostate cancer awareness month and men around the nation are growing funky moustaches to raise money for prostate cancer research.  My hubby included.  The deal is that they have to shave for the last time on Oct 31 and can’t shave the stash again until December 1.  They can grow a beard or goatee as well which can be shaved off at any time, but the moustache stays.  So here is my hubby Sunday night after a shave.  
I’ll post another photo of him mid month and again on Nov 30.  He plans on sporting a full goatee.  We shall see.  If you wish to make a donation to this worthy cause, go ahead and click here.
FOOD!!! 
The above is breakfast polenta.  I mixed 1 cup of unsweetened Almond Breeze with a 1/4 cup of polenta.  Right at the end I stirred in some sliced strawberries and dotted it with hazelnut mocha sprinkles.  YUM!  
Tonight’s meal ^^ was a quesadilla of sorts.  I sautéed red onion, red pepper, mushrooms and turkey breast with various spices and a wee bit of chicken stock.  This was placed on a tortilla that had been prepped with some mashed Romano beans then I topped it with a slice of cassata cheese.  Into the oven for 10 minutes at 350* and dinner was served….in the dark!  Haha!
Before I book outta here, I did a little shopping today…
Would YOU like $65.00 to shop here, too?  It could be yours!  CSN Stores has a huge range of great products to pick from.  There’s something for everyone for sure.  This is what you need to do to get your grimy little paws on this $65.00 gift certificate! (Canadian & US residents only, please)
1)  Browse around the CSN Stores site and leave me a comment letting me know what you would want most.
2)  “Like” me on Facebook.  Just click on my little FB Badge on the right of the blog.  Easy peasy and it gets you another entry.  Just remember to leave another comment telling me you did so.
3)  Check out the Thanks & Giving tab at the top of the blog and leave me a comment there letting me know what you think of my food drive.  Come back to this post and let me know you did that.
So there you have it; THREE chances to win!  I’ll pick a winner using the random number generator on November 17 and post the winner that same day.  Hey lurkers!  Now’s your chance to come out and say “hey”!  You don’t have to have a blog to enter so really, there’s no losing here.  :)  Have fun!
Bye for now!!