September 2013 Naturebox

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I decided to cancel my Naturebox subscription.  This September box will be my last one.  While D and I do like the snacks, it just seemed like it was time to let this box go and possibly subscribe to something more unique that catches my eye.  

That being said, I was super excited for all the snacks in this month's box.  Theme is "fall treats" but these are definitely snacks I would enjoy year round.  

The first snack is "Chia Seed Crackers."  This is the snack I was least excited about.  I've only recently discovered chia seeds as part of my diet and not something that you try to grow on a small terra cotta animal.  The info card suggested trying these with some hummus and that sounds promising.

Next is some "Salted Caramel Pretzel Pops."  D will tell you I got very excited when I took this out of the box.  Salted?  Good.  Caramel?  Great!  Pretzel?  Yes!  Pops?!?!?!?   Mind Blown!!!!!!  These are delicious.  I wish I knew where I could buy these on a regular basis.

The next pack was another exciting one - "Smokey BBQ Peas."  I love BBQ and peas are my favorite vegetable.  These are also quite good - not to salty and with good flavor and crunch.

Our fourth snack is "Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper Sunflower Seeds."  These are interesting.  They are in little granola like clusters and the pepper flavor comes out after a few seconds.  I'm still debating if I like them or not.  It will probably take eating the whole pack to decide.

Last but not least is the "Cranberry Macaroon Granola."  Wow.  This might be the best granola I've ever had.  It's sweet but not too sweet.  I enjoyed some with some chocolate almond milk this morning. Delicious!

I will give Naturebox credit for going out on a high note.  These snacks will definitely be enjoyed and I'm happy I gave it a try.  Who knows - maybe I'll end up resubscribing one day?   Does anyone else subscribe to Naturebox?  What was your favorite snack this month?

Wedding Day Survival Kit

This is a special post about a goodie bag of items I put together myself.

This weekend, I'm going to be a bridesmaid for the first time!  Obviously I was very excited for my own wedding a few months ago which was the best day of my life, but I'm SUPER excited to be a bridesmaid for one of my closest friends because I will get to be there to support her on such an amazing day AND I'll get to fully enjoy the party.  ;-)

When planning my own wedding, I noticed there were often little kits for sale for bridesmaids to carry on the wedding day.  Most seemed to be lacking some things I would consider important, but on my wedding day my bridesmaids, mother, and mother in-law made sure everyone had any essential item they could want.  There was also a bit of a break before our ceremony and reception and plenty of stores around in case any day-of shopping was needed, but we had it all covered.

This weekend the ceremony and reception will be in one location without a break, so I decided to make my own survival kit for the weekend.  And of course, hopefully knowing that I have all these things means that no one will need any of them.  (Like carrying an umbrella to prevent it from actually raining.  Haha)

Here is my kit.

Band-aids
Dental Floss
Anti-friction stick for shoes
Double sided tape
Oil blotting papers
Bobby pins
Hair spray
Stain remover stick
Feminine hygiene items
Excedrin and Advil
Q-tips
Mini sewing kit (safety pins, various colored threads, small scissors, buttons, etc)
Chewing gum/mints (not shown here)

It fits nicely into this organza bag I have.  This will make it easier to find things as they are needed.  :-)

There are still 5 days until the wedding.  Any other suggestions of what to add?

Weekend update and August Fancy Box

Happy Sunday again blog world!

It's hard to believe another week has passed so quickly.  We had another great week of Plated before spending a nice relaxing weekend at the beach.  It was a solid week but none of the dishes are any we will ever consider making again.  Here are our finished products:

Apricot Chicken - Score 7/10

Beef Kabobs and Brown Rice - Score 7/10

Grilled chicken and Peach Salad - Score 7/10

We definitely love Plated but decided to take a break and return to Blue Apron for some vegetarian goodness next week.  It's nice being able to decide between two great services and have even more variety in deciding what our meals will be.

Also this weekend my final Fancy box was delivered.  This is the box that delivers an array of items from the website fancy.com.  Sometimes I love all the items but it seems most of the time the contents end up being given away.  This month was actually pretty good, but I think I'd rather use the money for a different box.   Anyway, here are the items from the Fancy Box.

"In Snap Issue #9" (retail $20)  This is a magazine that shoes off-duty models, magazine editors, and celebrities during Fashion week.  It's kind of fun to flip through but will probably just end up sitting on our coffee table for a long time.

"Jellyfish Combo Pack" (retail $28)  Here we have a tripod, mount, and sun shield for an iphone.  It seems cool and maybe we'll use it?  Guess we'll have to try it out next tie we go to the beach. 

"LAEX Card Holder" (retail $27)  I actually really like this!  I needed something to hold my business cards and this is so bright, I definitely won't loose it in my bag.

"Tovolo Ice Balls" (retail $10)  This mold allows you to make two enormous (2.5 inch diameter)  ice spheres.  We will use these.

"Young and Wild Tee" (retail $20)  Clearly this T-shirt was printed just for me (haha).  D's favorite items in my closet are always items that come from a box (haha again). 

I've enjoyed giving Fancy Box a try for a few months, but I won't be too sad to move on.  Any suggestions for a box I should try next?

Weekend update and August 2013 Barkbox

Hello Blog world!

It's a relaxing lazy Sunday here after a fun night of celebrating the wedding of some of our friends up in the Berkshires.  September is going to be a busy month as we celebrate three more sets of friends joining our state of marital happiness, but through it all I will make sure to blog on.  :-)

Our second two plated meals of last week were stuffed peppers and grilled chicken with eggplant couscous.  Both were just ok, but required large amount of preparation (especially the peppers).  D and I both agreed on them both being a 5/10, but one thing we do definitely appreciate is how much better we feel after eating a meal of "whole foods" instead of ordering in or going out.  

The variety of recipes weekly is also a huge perk of the boxed meal delivery.  We're looking forward to some tasty dishes this week ahead.  Tonight we are actually going make a pasta dish inspired by our favorite squash pasta we discovered from Blue Apron a few months ago.  I definitely think we're becoming better chefs after being exposed to new dishes as well.  

Our chihuahua Elvis had his 6th birthday this week and his gift is a re-subscription to BarkBox (Fancy Box will be canceled after this month and I think this is more fun (and less expensive) subsitution)).  What's Barkbox?  It's another subscription box that delivers 4-6 "innovative toys, treats, gadgets, and goodies" for your dog.  They customize the box based on the size of your dog, which is definitely needed so we don't get sent items that weigh as much as Elvis (he's 5 lbs).  The cost of the box decreases with your length of your subscription but always has free shipping.  Elvis' 6 month subscription makes the boxes $19/box.  Another great thing is 10% of Barkbox profits go towards local pet shelters.

Elvis was very excited to check out the contents of his box this month!  

Elvis was super excited to start playing with his latest toy.  This "Hear Doggy" blue whale (Retail $6.39) makes a squeeky noise that only dogs can hear.  When we squeeze it, it sounds like an air blowing sound but Elvis gets super excited by it.  :-)

Next we got a nice variety of treats to try out.  The food items Barkbox sends are always of the healthy variety (usually all natural).  Of course Elvis doesn't get to sample everything at once, but here are the items he will be testing out this month.  It's great to have full sized items to try to see if Elvis truly likes them once the first time novelty has worn off.

Barkworthies hickory meat soft treats (retail $6.30)

Barkworthies Bully flake dinner sprinkles (retail $5.25)

Honest Kitchen Ice-pups (retail $0.99)

Primal Pet liver munchies (these can be enjoyed by dogs AND cats!) (Retail $6.99)

The total value of our box is $25.92.  Elvis is definitely set with treats for the next month for sure and now he has a new whale friend.  

Anyone else ever tried BarkBox or any of these treats?  What do you think?

Rocksbox #4

Finally a Rocksbox in which I LOVE all the items!

This box will definitely stay around long than the previous ones (Rocksbox gives you 2 months to wear everything).  Unlike the others, the three pieces of jewelry really compliment each other and two are also in green which is one of my favorite colors.  :-)

The first item is the "Taner Ball Small Necklace by Gorjana" (Retail - $60, Member's Price - $48).  I'd seen this item on a few other blogs, but I can say it is much prettier in person.  Earlier I mentioned that I don't wear much gold jewelry, but this necklace is definitely something I plan on wearing.  It's unique but not too loud of a piece.

My next piece is the "Teardrop Ring in Fern by Liz Palacios" (Retail $38.00, Member's Price - $30.40).  This ring is very cute and a nice deep shade of green.  I can't wear rings at work, but this will be a fun weekend piece. 

Last but certainly not least are the "Emerald Cascade Enamel Earrings by Isharya" (Retail price $118, Member's price - $94.40).  These earrings are gorgeous.  The green color isn't too bright and the size is just right.  These will be difficult to part with when my rental period is up.

I'm so excited to incorporate all these pieces into my wardrobe soon!  Has anyone tried Rocksbox?  If so, what do you think?

August 2013 Birchbox

Birchbox time!  The theme for August is "finishing school" and the box included some coupons for Ann Taylor.  At first glance, it looks like many of the items this month are quite promising.

First up is the "gentle neroli shampoo by (Malin and Goetz)" (sample value: $0.85, full size: $20).  I actually enjoy sampling shampoos, but I do admit that the ketchup packet method of delivery is not my favorite.  It makes multiple uses more challenging.  :-( 

Next we have "Oil-free moisturizer by Juice Beauty" (sample value: $7, full size $28).  I've gotten samples from this company before and generally enjoyed them, but I am definitely confused as to why anyone uses a daytime moisturizer without SPF. 

Third is the "Stay all Day Liquid Lipstick by Stila" (sample value: $6.60, full size $22).  This is one of my favorite make up brands so I was very excited when I first saw it in the box.  I'm also trying to incorporate lip color more frequently into my routine.  This might be a bit much though.  Just tried it on and while it does go on easily and has staying power, this color is too bright for me.  D agrees.  Too bad my box didn't have a lighter shade.  Maybe I'll find an occasion to wear this, most likely will be Halloween. 

My next item is "Exfoliating Body Wash by Whish" (sample value: $2.75, full size $22).  This smells like an amazing coconut drink you would have at the beach.  It's perfect for summer and I can't wait to use it.  I also love that is a sugar scrub.

Finally I have a "hair inhibiting deodorant swipe by Whish" (sample value $0.53, pack of 30 $16).  This will be perfect to bring to the gym when I have someplace to be before coming home.  I'm going to put it in my gym bag to have it handy when I need it.

Overall the variety this month is pretty good, I'm just pretty disappointed with the lipstick color.  This is especially since the formula definitely does seem long lasting and it would have been perfect in a lighter shade.  The overall value of my box was $17.73 - a nice value for $10 considering the variety of products.

Anyone have tips for rocking super bright, red lipstick?

Plated is Quite Delicious

We are becoming quite the pair of chefs as we continue with our Plated meals.   Last weekend we finished up our week with some Asian marinated steak tacos and last night we had an amazing Monday night dinner of chicken piccata.  

Here are our delicious finished products!

The tacos were light made for a perfect weekend lunch.  There was enough for 6 tacos.   We especially enjoyed how tender the steak was.  I liked the cabbage slaw but D didn't particularly care for it. 

Score: D - 6/10, K - 7/10

The chicken piccata was a definite wow dish.  Everything on the plate was incredibly flavorful.  At first we thought we didn't have enough pasta but once plated (haha), we realized this is what a normal pasta serving size looks like.  

Score: D - 8/10, K - 9/10

I decided to limit the prep photos on here and instead focus on the finished results.  Of course, if there is fan outrage of this change I will reconsider.  ;-)  

Pork Chops with Cherry Salsa and Couscous

D had our second Plated meal almost done when I came home from dinner last night!  We don't usually eat pork chops but this dish with the cherries and couscous was amazing.

One thing we should have considered was butterflying the pork fillets before cooking since they were so thick.  We ended up doing it midway though cooking and they still turned out quite tender. 

The cherry salsa was divine.  I loved the spicy/sweet combo.

The couscous were tasty and very easy to prepare. 

Overall another successful dish!  We are definitely liking Plated!

Score: D - 7/10, K - 8/10

Plated - Summer Vegetable Carbonara with Grilled Chicken

After months of creating a variety of vegetarian meals, we decided to take a break to try a different meal delivery service recommended by my friend Debbie.  :-)

Plated is a similar service to Blue Apron but the great part is how you can choose from 2-4 meals per week.  Even better, you can choose what dishes you get each week from the 5 they offer.  We were excited to give some meat dishes a try and also liked the ability to choose our menu each week.  Best of all, the cost is the same as Blue Apron ($60) so it seems like an even substitution.  

Without further ado, here it is!  Our first Plated box.

The first recipe we prepared was the "Summer vegetable Carbonara with Grilled Chicken."  

Just like Blue Apron, the ingredients were top notch.  The instructions were easy to follow and there was even a video of how to prep the dish on their website.

This recipe was a definite success.  The pasta cream sauce wasn't too heavy and the peas added great color and taste.  While the grilled chicken was tasty, the pasta would have been able to stand on its own.  

Another real positive of this recipe was that all the ingredients would be easy to purchase at any grocery store should we want to make it again.  

D and I were both very happy with our Tuesday night dinner.  Thanks Debbie!

Score: 8/10 (Same score from both of us! :-)

Has anyone else been doing Plated?  What do you think?  

Fresh Pea & Ricotta Ravioli

I love ravioli and I love peas.  This recipe seemed like an instant winner.  While it actually ended up being quite tasty, it mainly served as a lesson as to why most people don't make their own ravioli.

Fresh Pea & Ricotta Ravioli with Lemon Brown Butter

Making ravioli is hard!  It was very messy and I had about half the filling left over after my 18 ravioli were made.  I guess they should have been filled more but then I don't know how I would have closed them.  The whole time I was doing these, I was convinced they would all come open in the boiling water and we would be ordering pizza for dinner.

Amazingly, they turned out much better than expected.  More sauce would have been nice and also just a little more filling.

Due to the difficulty, time, and mess factor I think I'll be letting a professional make my homemade ravioli for now on.

D's score: 5/10
K's score: 4/10 (6/10 for taste, 2/10 for difficult prep)

Has anyone else ever made their own ravioli?  Any tips?