Coming Back With Some Food Reviews

Hi everyone! It's so good to be home, although jet lag is a beast! Who would have thought that three measly hours could cause so much damage. Hopefully we'll be back to a more normal schedule soon, but in the meantime, we're enjoying a little vacation after our vacation.


Over the last few months I've been able to sample a few more new products sent to me by Foodbuzz. These are way overdue, but hopefully still useful. The first one was Mushroom Ravioli from Buitoni. I didn't do a whole lot with this ravioli except drizzle a bit of olive oil and Pecorino Romano so that I could really focus on the pasta.

It. Was. So. Good.

My husband and I enjoyed this together, and there was absolutely no dialogue between us because we were too busy stuffing our faces. If you need a quick, inexpensive, and delicious dinner, I highly recommend this stuff. It looks like Buitoni has quite a few types and flavors of pasta that look just as delicious.



The second product I was able to sample were these Eggo Fruit Pizzas. I have to say, I loved the idea. A whole wheat waffle, topped with yogurt, granola and berries, a delicious combination. However, I wasn't crazy about the actual product. The waffle was a bit chewy, the yogurt flavorless, and the berries few and warped by the effects of the microwave. I would love to recreate it, but unfortunately, I don't see myself purchasing it again.

I hope you've all enjoyed your summers so far. I'm going to do my best to catch up with you all in the next few days, I'm excited to see what you've been up to! I've got a nice and healthy line up planned since I've got a few ~ahem~ vacation pounds to get rid of. Can't wait to see how it goes. Enjoy your week everyone, I'll be chatting with you soon!

Quinoa Salad with Mandarine Oranges and Capers

I feel like I've learned so much through the food blog world. I've learned about ingredients and techniques that I didn't even know existed until now. Quinoa is one of those things. When I first heard about it, I didn't even know how to say it, I thought it was pronounced Ki-no-ah. Yeah...no. Turns out you pronounce it keen-wah. Well, however you want to say it, you should definitely try it. It's made of small grains that you boil and turn into just about whatever you want. They are small, soft and remind me of a cross between tapioca and wheat grains. It's also crazy healthy for you, and fun to eat!

I made this salad simply by pulling ingredients out of the frigde that I thought would be good together. It turned out to be so good, and I was also able to use my Newman's Own Balsamic Dressing that I got a few months ago. This salad was so clean tasting and refreshing with a lot of great flavors. I especially loved the contrast of the salty capers with the sweet mandarine oranges. This would be great for a BBQ or any get-together.

Quinoa Salad with Mandarine Oranges and Capers

Ingredients

2 cups of prepared quinoa (use directions on the box)
1 medium can of Mandarine Oranges
2 tablespoons capers
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
3 tablespoons red onion, or shallot, chopped
1/4 cup Monterey Jack or Feta cheese, chopped into small pieces
2-3 teaspoons Newman's Own Balsamic Dressing, enough to moisten entire salad.

Directions

Toss all ingredients in a large bowl. Keep chilled.

I served this alongside a BLT, one of my favorites! To kick it up a knotch, try this spread out...


It's a sandwich spread that is full of peppercorns, dijon and lots of fantastic flavor. You could use it on sandwiches, burgers, breakfast sammies, you name it. I'm not being endorsed in any way to promote this stuff, I just really happen to like it!

Bertolli-Fest!

Being a Foodbuzz Publisher definitely comes with it's perks. Like when you get to sample sauces like these.

I was given the Four Cheese Rosa sauce and Arrabbiata sauce to do whatever I wanted with. The possibilities are endless, and the sauce was delicious.

The Arrabbiata sauce is probably my very favorite jarred spaghetti sauce I've tried thus far. It's got a very subtle and pleasant heat to it, and is packed with a strong, chunky tomato flavor, which I love. It was put to wonderful use in this cheesy lasagna.


Delicious! I mean, come on, who doesn't love lasagna?

The Four Cheese Rosa sauce was another fun one. I browned four chicken breasts in olive oil, put them in a dish with artichoke hearts and capers and poured the Rosa sauce over all of it. After baking, it was accompanied by a bed of fettuccine and adored by the whole family. The sauce by itself is very good, I love the hint of tomato flavoring in the creamy white sauce, but I loved it even better after being baked in the briny capers and artichoke hearts. The saltiness marinated throughout the whole dish and gave it it's own unique flavor. I highly recommend both dishes, as well as these great Bertolli products!



Creamy Chicken with Capers and Artichoke Hearts

Ingredients

4 medium sized chicken breasts
1 jar Bertolli Four Cheese Rosa sauce
3-4 tablespoons capers
1 jar quartered artichoke hearts, drained
Parmesan cheese, if desired
2 cups cooked fettuccine noodles

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Salt and pepper both sides of chicken breasts. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Brown each side of chicken breast, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Place chicken in an 8x8 baking dish.

2. Arrange capers and artichoke hearts evenly over chicken. Pour sauce over dish and spread evenly over all ingredients. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

3. Serve over fettuccine noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

"Chicken" Southwestern Salad and Pierogies Alfredo

Ah, it's Monday once again and the month is already halfway over! I'm not going to lie, it's nice to have these winter months go fast. We've managed to keep ourselves busy, but I need some sun! I hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day. We ended up having a great roast dinner with the family. Nothing outrageously romantic, but I definitely got to spend my day with the people I love!

Do you remember this little box of goodies I got last month?

Well since then I put the Alfredo sauce and salsa to good use. Here are some of the ways I've used them.

The alfredo sauce was probably the hardest for me. I'm normally not crazy about Alfredo. I always find it a bit bland, thick and well, fattening! So I actually made these Pierogies for my kids, who happily chomped them down. I just cooked some store-bought pierogie in a large skillet, and then tossed them with the Alfredo sauce until warm and slightly bubbly. The sauce is actually not bad, it has a lot of flavor and I believe would make any alredo lover happy.

My second review is the salsa. I LOVE salsa. It's one of my favorite condimints and great for parties. My favorite kind of salsa is fresh, nice and salty with a lot of fresh cilantro and just a bit of heat. The Newman's Own salsa was delicious, but a different tasting salsa than I usually seek out. It was more of a smoky-sweet flavor, but it had great chunky tomatoes in there and a nice freshness to it. I have mostly been dipping into this with tortilla chips (the multigrain ones are my favorite), but I also used it for this salad.

Have you ever mixed Ranch dressing with salsa? It's actually very delicious, and cuts the fat in half. That's exactly what I did with the dressing for this salad, I also added a squeeze of lime and some chopped cilantro. The Newman's Own salsa was perfect for the dressing and made every bite of my lunch delicious (along with my Diet Coke of course). For the salad itself, I used a spring mix, black beans, chopped cilantro and scallion, tomatoes and shredded cheddar. Corn and olives would also be wonderful, but I didn't have either this time. But my favorite part of the salad was the "chicken"...

And I wasn't even asked to review this product, but seriously, this stuff is fantastic! It's a meatless chicken patty, which normally don't leave me very impressed, but if you were to just serve this to me on a sandwich, without saying anything, I would eat every bite thinking it was chicken. It's so tasty, and has a fraction of the fat of a normal breaded chicken patty. And since I have to have some sort of meat on my salads, I am in love with these things!

And there is my review! So far I've been very happy with the Newman's Own product. Stay tuned for more reviews and have a very happy Monday!

Honey Mustard Pork Loin with Bacon

About two months ago the good people at Newman's Own contacted me asking if I would be interested in trying their products and reviewing them. Heck yes I would! So when I got back from my vacation, I was greeted with a big old box filled with these goodies...Merry Christmas to me, again!

The first thing I decided to work with was the Honey Mustard dressing, one of my favorites. The first thing I wanted to do with it was make this salad again. But I thought I'd try something different instead, and this pork loin was born.


I realize it's not the prettiest thing to look at, but it sure was tasty! I combined the honey mustard with garlic and rosemary, brushed it all over the surface of the pork loin, covered it in bacon and roasted it slow and low until the pork was tender and juicy and the bacon was crisp. It turned out to be a very delicious dinner, however I think next time I'm going to try marinating the pork loin in the honey mustard for a few hours to let the flavors penetrate a bit more. Of course that was a problem easily solved by just pouring a little extra dressing right onto my cut after it was cooked! I thought the honey mustard was perfect for this pork loin, definitely try it!

Honey Mustard Pork Loin with Bacon

Ingredients

3/4 cup Newman's Own Light Honey Mustard Dressing
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried rosemary (fresh would be even better if you have it)
1 (3 1/2lb) center cut pork loin
5-8 slices of bacon, enough to cover your pork loin

Directions

Place oven rack on bottom third of oven. Preheat to 350.

Combine dressing, garlic and rosemary. Dress pork loin generously with dressing in a casserole pan or roasting pan. Layer bacon over pork loin, covering the entire roast. Secure with either toothpicks or kitchen string. Roast for 1 hour, cover with foil and roast for another 10-20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow pork to rest for 20 minutes, keeping it covered in foil. Slice and enjoy!

Here's a much prettier, and healthier looking shot for you.

Stay tuned for more Newman's Own reviews and don't forget to enter in my giveaway for a silpat, just below!