Big S Salsa Giveaway!!!!

You all have watched me thoroughly enjoy my jar of FIRE in several different ways.  I am definitely planning on digging into ALL the flavors you all saw yesterday with FULL reviews.  In the meantime, I am sure you all WANT to try some Big S Salsa!!!  The fantastic folks at Big S are allowing my to host this super cool giveaway with FOUR WINNERS!!!!

ONE WINNER WILL WIN THE GRAND PRIZE OF ALL 3 FLAVORS OF SALSA PLUS ALL 3 HOT SAUCES PICTURED BELOW!

* Smoke on The Mountain – Medium Salsa

* Fire on The Mountain – Hot Salsa

* Fire on The Mountain – Extra Hot Salsa

* Tennessee Lightning Hot Sauce

* Tennessee Mountain Green Hot Sauce

* Tennessee Thunder Hot Sauce

PLUS RECIPESS!!!

THREE RUNNER-UPS WILL RECEIVE THEIR CHOICE OF ONE SALSA OR HOT SAUCE!

   

TO ENTER:

1.  Go to the Big S Farms website and leave your FIRST COMMENT telling me which product you want to try most.

2.  Post a link back to this contest on our blog and leave a SECOND COMMENT with your link letting me know you did.

3.  Tweet this contest and leave a THIRD COMMENT letting me know you did.

4.  Subscribe to my blog and leave a FOURTH COMMENT letting me know you did.  If you already subscribe or have me in your reader, then, leave a comment letting me know that.

That’s all - 4 PRIZES TO WIN WITH 4 CHANCES TO WIN!  Good luck everyone! 

This contest will end Monday, June 29, 2009 at Midnight (PST).  The winners will be randomly selected and announced on Tuesday, June 30, 2009.

Quick and Easy Peanut Vinaigrette

Quick and Easy Peanut Vinaigrette
Guest Writer: Alice from Savory Sweet Life

When Danica from Danica’s Daily asked me to guest post on her blog while she was on vacation, I thought “Why not?” I like Danica a lot and she has been a loyal and supportive follower of Savory Sweet Life. Reading her adventures of healthy eating is inspiring not only to me, but I’m sure to everyone else who reads her blog. My only dilemma was trying to figure out what type of recipe to post about. Even though she did give me an “out” by saying I could write about anything, I really wanted to come up with something that wouldn’t make anyone fall off the bandwagon. Lets just say I am no stranger to sugar, white flour, butter, and heavy cream. So instead I created a really wonderful salad Thai inspired vinaigrette.

I tried very hard to make it healthy. I’m not sure how many Weight Watchers points the vinaigrette is, but my gut instinct still screams “it’s healthy!” So I’m going to just trust Danica to answer any questions about the nutritional break down.

I love Thai peanut sauce. In fact I have an awesome recipe for coconut peanut sauce on Savory Sweet Life but it wouldn’t work very well for salad. Not only that, I wanted to create a vinaigrette with ingredients easily found in a supermarket. What I present to you is a peanut vinaigrette worthy of any salad. This dressing is not only quick and easy, it is incredibly delicious. Enjoy!

*By using a hand blender (or blender) it can be made within a few minutes. If you don’t have a blender, don’t panic. You can just whisk everything together and microwave the peanut butter for 30 seconds to soften it up. But I will say, a hand blender is a cook’s best friend.

Quick and Easy Peanut Vinaigrette Recipe
Makes 1 cup

Ingredients:
¼ cup water
¼ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup of canola oil
2 Tbl. of sugar or splenda equivalent
4 Tbl. of creamy peanut butter
1 Tbl. of soy sauce (I used low-sodium)
1 tsp. Sesame oil
¼ tsp. Ground cumin
Pinch of red pepper flakes
*For more heat, add ¼ tsp. Red pepper flakes
*If you are a cilantro lover, add 3 Tbls. Of cilantro leaves

Directions:
Add all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Using a hand blender, mix everything until well incorporated (approx. 30 seconds). If mixing by hand, whisk everything until fully incorporated. See notation above regarding microwaving peanut butter.

Toss with your favorite salad. Enjoy!

More fun Salsa Mail……..

I received another COOL or should I say HOT package this afternoon from Big S Farms! Since my first taste of this awesome salsa, I have been wanting to try more. The fabulous Peeps at Big hooked me up with some HOT Stuff.

3 types of salsa:

* Smoke on the Mountain ~ Medium

* Fire on the Mountain ~ Hot

* Fire on the Mountain ~ Extra HOT!

Plus some fantastic sounding HOT SAUCES:

All together with MORE Recipes ~ woohoo!

I cannot WAIT to try this all out. I LOVED the original Fire on the Mountain that I had. You can Click HERE to check out some of the ways I’ve used it so far.

I WISH I had not eaten my lunch/dinner before this arrived. But, that’s ok, it was still cheesy good. I think I eat like a little kid when I am sick. Today I was craving a cheesy quesadilla so that is what I had.

CHEESE!!!!!

2 Mission Life Balance Whole Wheat Tortillas

3 lowfat Sargento Cheese Slices

Cooked in nonstick spray over medium heat until both sides were browned – YUM! This definitely hit the spot along with the Orange Juice The Husband brought home for me.

I did end up snack on a few FoodShouldTasteGood Multi-Grain Chips while this cooked. I LOVE these crunchy, nutty chips with the perfect balance of salt! The BEST part was I could finally almost taste it all.

I still have to pack but that should go pretty quick. When we headed out to the bank The Husband made a special stop for me to get a low fat ice cream cone ~ ahhhh, it’s the little things that make you happy. I realize my nutrition may not be at it’s highest today, but, I think it’s ok to give yourself a break when you don’t feel good. I’ll have to make up for it with a Jamba Juice tomorrow :D

I am off to pack, relax and get to bed early for our trip to VEGAS tomorrow! The Guest Posts I have for you all begin tomorrow – yeah!!! So exciting!!!

TWO GIVEAWAYS TO CHECK OUT:

* Erica is having a fantastic Naturally More & Peeled Fruit Giveaway - Click HERE to check it out.

* Amanda is having a Amazing Super Foods Giveaway, click HERE to check it out.

PLUS STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT TOMORROW AT NOON!

Have a fantastic night all ~ I am not sure when I’ll check back in, but, I plan on popping in to say hi here and there! Enjoy all the fun posts I have set up for you and be sure to leave everyone LOTS of comments :)

Sick Eats…..

After I finished up work, picked up my car I came home to a quick dinner a la The Husband. He put together the perfect “sicky” meal for me with what we had in the house. I think that is one way you know you are sick – when soup sounds good and it’s 90+ degrees outside! He gets total brownie points for not only making dinner but taking pictures too - LOVE him!

Progresso Hearty Chicken with Rotini Pasta – I ate the WHOLE can which is rare. I am not a big canned soup fan, but, suddenly I was starved when I sat down.

With some Bunny LOVE for crunch – Annie’s Organic Buttery Bunnies (think like Ritz crackers but in a cuter shape with good ingredients and fun to eat!)

With 100% Vitamin C Apple Juice to help fight my cold!

After this, I went to bed and slept and slept and slept. I think my body really needed that much sleep to break my 101 degree fever. I hate fevers because they leave you so achy and just plain ugh!

After 16 hours of sleep, I woke up starving and craving carbs. I started off with my Neti Pot. At first my nose refused to cooperate, but, it worked eventually and I really think it is helping to clear my sinuses. I fueled my body with what it was craving.

Cream of Wheat with a little whipped butter and brown sugar.

A piece of The Husband’s Whole Grain White Bread with whipped butter because I was too lazy to go to the other freezer in the garage to get my bread.

With some cold fighting Emergen-C (LOVE this stuff!), Organic Echinacea Tea plus a multi-vitamin.

And lots of fluids.

Yes I used a bottle of water because I don’t want to contaminate my Nathan or SIGG bottles with my sick germs. One time is, ok, right?!

Believe it or not, this actually took all my energy to make. Now I am off to sleep more because I HAVE to pack tonight for our trip tomorrow. Cold, cold, please go away and don’t come again any other day!

Catch you all later ~ not sure If I’ll start my vacation posts next or what not. I have some great guest posters lined up for you all starting tomorrow along with a few posts by me. I hope to pop in here and there to share some of our vegas stuff, but, if not, I’ll give you a full recap when we get back.

Happy Hump Day!

Question of the day: What do you crave most when you are sick?

I can’t believe I slept 16 hours….

For anyone who knows me, they know I am a stander 6-8 person. My body doesn’t let me sleep much past 8 hours, in fact, 8 hours is sleeping in usually. I am always jealous of those who say they can sleep for hours at any time of day. So, let me go back to the rest of yesterday to get caught up.

I tried to keep it healthy for my mid morning snack with a Low-Fat Sargento Colby Cheese Square (1 WWP) and a nectarine that was crunchy and sweet – my favorite way. I don’t like mushy fruit.

Then, it was off to sushi! I have been looking forward to sushi ALL month long and was pretty bummed that I probably wouldn’t be able to taste it.I did have high hopes that the spice (hello Wasabi & Sriyachi Sauce) would help clear my nose. We went to the usual place, Sushi Mambo!

I started off with a nice, hot bowl of miso soup. I LOVE miso – it really does have the best flavor even when you can’t taste it :D

Then, came the 3 rolls from their “Feeling Special Menu” that we all shared. The best way to have sushi, I think, is to go with alot of people because then you can sample several rolls ~ YUM!

From left to right – we started with the High Roller - Tempura Shrimp and Cucumber, topped with slices of Tuna and Salmon, Zesty Sauce, and sprinkled with Crab. Did you know this is the only way I can eat crab?!

Then came the Supercalifragilistic - Crab and Tempura Shrimp Roll topped with Salmon, Maguro, with sweet Sesame Sauce and Wake Me. Check out that delish raw ahi!

And we finished with the Diablo - Spicy Tuna, Salmon, and Hamachi Roasted with a Zesty Sauce plus AVOCADO to cool this hot & spicy roll! It’s loaded with Sriyachi Sauce.

We usually mix up our rolls that we order (sort of LOL) but The Volcano is ALWAYS something we get and share. My co-worker asked for it extra spicy today (and I think she was trying to torture my nose better – it was soooo hot!)

So here is how everything tasted to me – spicy, salty, cool, sweet, crunchy and HOT! That’s about it. Sadly even with wasabi added it did NOTHING for my nose. It was such a bummer to have such fantastic sushi and NOT be able to taste it! I had 2 pieces of each roll and 1/4 of the Volcano before I gave up. I just imagined in my head how good it really was LOL.

My afternoon snack was more get better NOW stuff. The Emergen-C from my co-worker and some Organic Echinacea Tea.

But wait – it gets better!!! I brought my new jar of PB Loco Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Peanut Butter with me to work with promises to share a little with my friends. I squealed like a school girl (in my head of course so my co-workers wouldn’t think I was crazy) when I opened the jar.

How good does this look?! (yes, I licked the lid too! I can’t waste!)

Slightly mixed up and with a BIG spoonful to show you the “CHUNKS: of cookie dough + chocolate + peanutty goodness!

NO I didn’t eat that HUGE spoonful (although I really wanted too!). I slowly set the spoon back down and spooned out the proper amount to eat straight from the jar :D

OMG ~ Absolutely AMAZING!! Seriously, words cannot describe how good this peanut butter is. It’s super decadent, rich, creamy, chocolately and it tastes just like dessert in a jar. My co-worker put hers on apple slices and I stole one. Awesome – I forgot to take a picture in my excited….we all sort of agreed that this might just be “orgasmically” good. Um, can I say that on my blog?! Seriously…..this stuff might just be the best PB I’ve ever had.

Now here is the cool part. We all liked it so much that we decided to go in together and take advantage of the FREE JAR deal that PB Loco is offering my readers. All you have to do is buy 5 jars and you get the 6th jar FREE. Now for one person that seems like alot, but, do, what we did. There are 3 of us so we each picked 2 jars each and will share the cost of only 5 jars – not a bad deal, right?! Just go to pbloco.com and order 6 ore more jars and use this code “BLOG709” when checking out. Offer is good until July 10, 2009!

I will be sure to provide more reviews when our jars come in – I am thinking I may just need to bake using some of this – how amazing would that be?! Or maybe just make something like banana bread and top it with THIS PB! Their site has some fantastic recipes as well – so be sure to check them out.

I better not be getting sick w/2 days to go!

I KNOW I am not getting a cold right BEFORE vacation?! I woke up this morning completely congested, achy and with a totally swollen face. I know my allergies are the reason for my face being swollen since I am allergic to grass, cats and dogs all of which were part of my mowing adventure last night. *sigh*

This morning was all about trying to “beat” my cold before I get one. I started off with my Neti Pot. My awesome friend Kirwin and her hubby swear by this and talked me into getting one last year. I had to admit – it does an amazing job at helping to relieve sinus pressure and clearing your sinuses.

On my way to drop off my car for serving, I stopped at Jamba Juice to get a Cold Buster Smoothie with Immunity boost, Anti-Oxidant Boost and Vita Boost! Yes, this is ONE time I can totally justify having Orange Sherbert in the morning!

My co-workers are sweet! They stalked me up with Ricola, Dayquil and something new I haven’t tried yet ~ Emergen-C.

Now all I need is a little Echinacea Tea and I should be prepared to battle this cold BEFORE vacation!

Today is going to be a super busy work day, but, also a fun day ~ We are going to Sushi for lunch!!!! I hope my nose clears up so I can actually TASTE IT. If not, then, I’ll be having that fantastic soup I had before.

Quick recap for yesterday:

Calories burned: 2,870

Steps taken: 12,012

Happy Tuesday all! Tonight, I hope to have time to work on all the fun stuff I have planned for you all while I am on vacation. The excitement is driving me crazy – I want to share it ALL now, but, I have to wait so you have something to do while we are living it up in Vegas!

Catch you all later!

Mow, mow, mow your lawn…….

I came home to some of THE COOLEST Mail! I don’t know about you all but I LOVE seeing things popping out of my mailbox or boxes on the porch.  The first package was from Thorlo!  Do you all remember when I won Erica’s Thorlo-Experia Socks Giveaway?  I am soooo excited to try these socks out.  I am a BIG fan of Bolga running socks so I cannot wait to see how these compare.

The second package you all will not believe!  Are you sitting down and ready for this?!  It sounds ALMOST too good to be true.  The fantastic people at PB Loco sent me the most AMAZING sounding jar of Adult peanut butter ~ Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough!!!

You can actually SEE ALL the chocolate chunks all over the jar ~ check out the bottom (P.S. This is the best type of plastic #1 to have too!)

I LOVE that they use non-hydrogenated oils ~ no transfats!

Plus, they included 2 RECIPES to try and 5 little Fun Fact Cards.  Can you believe that American eat over 800 lbs of peanut butter a year?! Or my favorite one ~ it takes approximately 850 peanuts to make a 18 oz jar of PB ~ that’s ALOT of peanuts!

I have to admit I was highly tempted to dive right in ~ I mean, chocolate chip cookies with peanut butter – YUM!  However, I resisted because I have more than met my allotment of healthy fats for the day (I KNOW you will be seeing this in the morning – so stay tuned for REVIEWS!!!)

After opening my “fun mail” I decided to burn some more calories while helping The Husband out (NO, not like that!!)  I mowed our front and back weeds lawns plus our neighbors and then for fun, my Mother In Laws!  I was trying to help support The Husband’s cause to fill up our Green Waste bin each trash day – he’s funny like that.  I am so paying for it now though with my allergies kicking in ALL night, but, it was worth it to make him happy and make his day easier.

When I came back in, I was starving, but, I needed a shower before I could even think of doing anything.  I decided to snack on a few FoodShouldTasteGood Chips.  A couple multi-grain, 1 Buffalo and 1 Jalepeno.

I LOVE how BIG these tortilla chips are, not to mention that they have a TON of flavor too!  Dinner tonight was a FAST and EASY favorite that I tried during my Vegan Adventures.  It is from Vegetarian Times Mag and it only takes like 10-15 minutes from start to finish – I LOVE recipes like that.  You can click HERE for the recipe.

Vegetable Gyoza w/Edamame SoyCatash 

I use 4 TJ’s Thai Vegetable Gyoza instead of per serving.

I know I am a bit behind on your comments and blogs. I will catch up on your comments tomorrow for sure and hopefully your blogs too!  It all depends on how the day goes.  I have to take my car to get my a/c fixed (it stopped working now that it’s going to be 100+ degrees!) plus it’s a busy day….only 2 more days – woot, woot!

Have a good night all ~ see ya in the morning!

Some days you are just hungry ALL day…..

Or at least that is how I am today – I seem to be hungry almost immediately AFTER I eat *sigh* On a brighter note though, today flew by which is a good thing since I am counting down the days to Vegas!  My breakfast surprisingly didn’t hold me over too well. I was hungry within an hour but I held out until snack time.  I decided to break out the Whole Wheat Naan bread that I picked up.

And two of my favorite new Peanut Butters from Peanut Butter & Co.

1/3 of my Whole Wheat Naan (2 Weight Watcher Points) toasted and split in 1/2.  The first 1/2 was topped with ~ 1/2 Tbsp Cinnamon Raisin Swirl.

I topped the other 1/2 Tbsp with Dark Chocolate Dreams!

This fantastic snack did an excellent job at fueling my workout.  I decided to do the Elliptical today for 40 minutes with the June Edition of Vegetarian Times.  I used my music to pace my workout and went as fast as I could during the chorus.  It was a great work and I was surprised to see that the machine and my Body Bugg were within 12 calories burned of each other ~ 347 Calories burned per my BB.  The machine said 359.

I came back to a quick lunch that I put together last night.  Leftover salad with AVOCADO, Bennisimo Blueberry Balsamic Vinegar and a splash of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Plus a 3 Weight Watcher Point Trader Joe’s Chile Lime Chicken Burger ~ I LOVE These!

Don’t worry, I didn’t eat it NAKED!  I topped it with some Annie’s Organic Ketchup and Dijon Mustard.

For “dessert”, I had 5 chocolate covered gummy bears that my co-worker picked up for me.  She was shocked I had never tried them so she bought some over the weekend.  OMG ~ I LOVED these – highly addicting though.  This is why I took 5 and gave her to bag back!

And for no other reason than it was sitting on my desk, I had a tiny spoonful of the Dark Chocolate Dreams PB.  I LOVE how it is swirled together so you can still SEE the PB.

I do not know what it is about today, but, I am HUNGRY ALL DAY!  I was still hungry after my lunch but I decided to drink a whole 32 oz container of fizzy water.  I forgot about my hunger, but, when, snack time I hit I decided to add more protein and fat to my snack than originally planned to see if it would have some staying power.

 

It did the trick ~ Not bad for 160 calories & 3 Weight Watcher points! 

Coming up next, my fun mail, going on a mowing roll AND I brought back a FAVORITE Vegetarian Recipe!