Small Bella Bowls for Cats

The small bowls I have probably fit about a cup of food so they’re perfect for my kitties. The cats themselves really don’t care either way but, for some reason, they all use the same water dish and ignore water in any other bowls. Because the bottom of the Bells Bowls is so flat, it makes it a little more ideal for food than water, in my opinion.

I’m really excited about an upcoming opportunity, however. I will be able to review a pan from the Rachael Ray Cookware at Cookware.com. I chose a perfect sized “brownie pan” because I don’t have one. I’ve been using a larger cake pan for years and they always turn out too thin. So, I’ll be able to have good brownies. Not quite home made, though. I still use a mix. ;)

It tastes similar to the Apple Jacks I used to love, except that it’s definitely less sugar saturated. This isn’t a bad thing. It’s still flavourful but it literally tastes more refreshing. Despite the lack of sugar, it seems that Apple Cinnamon Cheerios has more fat, cholesterol and carbs, though not by much (only a few percentage points). Apple Cinnamon Cheerios does have more minerals and higher amounts of several vitamins/minerals than Apple Jacks.

In the long run, though, Apple Cinnamon Cheerios tastes good whereas Apple Jacks now taste like crap. I think you can guess which gets my vote. I just wish it came in a larger box like regular Cheerios.

Sam’s Choice is, as you likely know, a Walmart/Sam’s Club house brand named after Sam Walton. We bought some of their basic Angus Beef patties a while back but I wasn’t impressed. I don’t know if I made the connection that it was the same brand of beef patties when I first picked up the Cheddar & Bacon. I was thinking “flavoured burgers? Cool!” and if you’re not a fan, they also have garlic seasoned ones and maybe another flavour, too. I was doubly impressed to find out that these are not simply flavoured or seasoned but have small chunks of cheese and bacon right in. So, frying or grilling up a burger melts the cheese and cooks the bacon and the taste is sort of infused without needing as much cheese as bacon as you would on top. Of course, burgers aren’t really the most health thing anyway but this is just a slightly better alternative.

Sam’s Choice: Bacon & Aged Cheddar Beef Patties are tasty indeed. They’re also fast and easy. For me, the box – which has 6 1/3lb patties (and they recently made the bag inside zippered) – lasts quite a while. For a group, you might want to pick up a couple boxes and don’t forget the buns and veggies, if you want them. They’ll go fast.

I am usually not a big coconut fan but Ferrero Garden candies are delicious and offer the same decadence as regular Ferrero Rochers. There’s layer after layer of ingredients which melt in your mouth and taste delightful on your tongue. The Ferrero Garden is a perfect blend of tastes. This is not something which is easily mimicked and I’ve always loved the Rochers for seeming just so, well, classy!

It’s not that the dark chocolate Ferrero candies are bad, quite the opposite. I just don’t think it help up quite as well as I would expect from the company and the cocoa butter center might be just a bit too much. I like the nuts, they add a little je ne sais quois. I also find that the crumb coating is very messy and little chocolate balls seem to get all over the place.

However, it’s a great package overall with half of the candies being Rocher. It would be a great Christmas gift or sometihng to set out at a party of to snack on over coffee. Ferrero candies usually come in clear plastic trays which exhibit their lovely foil packaging so the Ferrero Collection could easily be a centerpiece, if you wanted it to be.

Helpful Hint: Ferrero candies should never be eaten quickly, but savoured and nibbledd.

We chose the Christmas tree design and the cookies (well, the batch I didn’t burn) turned out perfectly soft, sweet and delicious. The tree design turned out well and the colours within the cookie were pretty vibrant. It almost looked like the designs were done in chocolate or something, but they were the same – as far as I know. These cookies are so moist, they’re almost cake-like.

These cookies would do in a pinch or if you just want something a little different. I think they would go well with milk or hot chocolate and could be frosted or topped with a dollop of Cool Whip to make them a bit more exciting. They’re a quality product overall.

PS, sorry for the lack of image. These are just a seasonal take off of Pillsbury’s Ready to Bake Sugar cookies and I forgot to snap a picture before tossing the package.

But what would you make for a Christma meal for 2 people?

Now, the Warm Delights are available in two sizes: regular and mini. The mini boasts that it’s only 150 Calories and that’s likely due to that fact that it is tiny. I guess that’s good because it forces you to stop eating. On the other hand, it’s not exactly filling and for the price (about $2.50 per 2 pack) you might as well buy a whole dessert mix to get your money’s worth.

Size and price aside (because this was free and that is much better than none at all!), the Molten Chocolate Cake flavour was delicious. This treat comes with a small plastic ‘bowl,’ cake mix and fudge. Add 1 tablespoon water to the cake mix, stir, top with fudge and microwave 30 seconds. What could be easier? Actually, the instructions are mistyped and say something like “Add 1 Tbsp and 1tbsp Water” which I found confusing. Was I supposed to add butter or milk or is it just water?

Regardless, the Cake turned out pretty well. I didn’t let it cool off the suggested 2 minutes, though. I burned my mouth and tongue so I would advise against making the same mistake I did.

The chocolate smell has infiltrated my entire home and it is yummy. The cake is moist but light and fluffy. The fudge is a nice touch. Although I thought I stirred pretty well, I did bite into 2 chunks of uncooked batter. It’s hard to be thorough with such small portions.

Overall, this is a tastey treat. It would more than due in a fix but your wallet may be better off if you bake your dessert from scratch or even from a box.

I tend to make a lot of meals which are heavy in sauces and gravy and the Garlic Chicken skillet meal seemed to have a lighter garlic butter sauce, if not a light flavour. In this meal are chicken, pasta and vegetables including carrots and broccoli.

This skillet meal is so easy to make. You cook covered for 8 minutes, then cook another 8 minutes uncovered. Fortunately, it’s also very forgiving. As this cooked in my skillet, it smelled delicious.

The final product certainly passed the test. There was a perfect proportion of tender bites of chicken, delicious noodles and vegetables. I must admit I’m a picky eater so the broccoli was segregated to the side of my plate but I loved everything else. The garlic butter sauce was flavourful without being too heavy and this meal really could have passed for restaurant quality.

Stouffer’s Garlic Chicken Skillets meal meal is delicious!

I threw the box in the freezer when we got home but this might have been a mistake. The box claims it will cook in 20 minutes, add 10 if frozen. That was probably right on the money and, if I purchase this again, I will make sure it’s thawed. Because it was frozen, the meat was less like individual pieces and more one giant brick of chicken. As it cooked, I had to tear it apart with a fork.

Nevertheless, it was a lot of chicken and it smelled great when it cooked: like garlic and herbs. I was really surprised as I tossed it in a pan with some oil. While most meal kits tend to come with very little meat and more less filling starches, the opposite was true here. In fact, I think there was too much meat and too few potato wedges because when I added them to the skillet (after about 20 minutes) it seemed like a very meager amount for 2 actual people.

The kit came with a “Balsamic Glaze Sauce Base” which you add after the potatoes and bring to a boil to finish the meal and I think this was the major downfall of the meal. I have never had a balsamic glaze before but I don’t think they did it right. Perhaps it was the freezing process but instead of a garlic and rosemary chicken and Parmesan potatoe, I wound up with a meal that was completely covered in a salty sauce. Now, I love everything salty. I am a big butter fan. However, this was just too much. It completely overpowered any flavour the potatoes had and you could not even taste the garlic in the chicken which has smelled so great as it cooked. I really wish I had not even added the sauce.

The super salty sauce, combined with a lack of potatoes, makes the Roasted Garlic and Rosemary Chicken meal kit by Sam’s Choice “just okay” rather than great. I think they’re on the right track and the chicken itself was good. The sauce and potatoes just need to be on par with the meat. Despite the fact that it was easy to make, even if it took longer because I had not thawed it, I will likely not buy this again unless they change the recipe.