A Few of My Favorite Things

Normally, when I go shopping--especially when I go grocery shopping--I'm all about looking for the best price. How much does each item cost per ounce? Of course, I know better than to just buy the cheapest white bread or spaghetti sauce I can find (plus, I find myself making my own more often than not!). But there are times when you really do have to pull out a few extra pennies to get the higher quality items. Here are a few of my more recent favorites:

Raw and Unfiltered Honey

You can find this at Walmart or even on Amazon. Now, I am not a huge health nut, but I also don't like that honey is marketed as "good for you", but then we are sold a version of it that has many of the benefits removed. Moreover, I truly think that the taste is far better. It is nowhere near as cheap as the generic brands; however, at least this way you are actually getting what you payed for.

Cottage Cheese with Sea Salt

This stuff is AMAZING. I only let myself buy it every other trip to the grocery store because I am afraid that I will become addicted to it. If you don't have AE in your area, I am most sympathetic to your plight. Now, just so you don't think I'm biased, I used to buy the generic kinds and found that I liked our local grocery store's version. I also tried the Simply Kraft cottage cheese, and I thought it was just terrible. I may have been justified, since over a million containers were recently recalled. Not only does my pick taste better, but it has fewer ingredients. Oh, and the best part? "Each 1/2 c. serving is packed with 12 grams of protein, low in fat, calories and carbohydrates and gluten-free."

Mom's Best Natural Cereals

I know people who say that cereal is bad and overprocessed and over-sugared and have completely cut it out of their diets. And, while there are some that are more like milk-drenched candy (sorry, Reese's Puffs), I have completely fallen in love with this brand ever since I found their oatmeal flavors back when I would work early mornings (They have an oatmeal raisin cookie, people!). I only wish that my grocery store sold even more of their varieties--the blueberry pomegranate is my absolute favorite, and it has been sold out the last three times I have gone. Le sigh. They really are an amazing company. "Free of artificial flavors or preservatives. No hydrogenated oils. No high fructose corn syrup." Plus, they are very environmentally conscious and super affordable (Who can afford name-brand Cheerios these days?).

Pure Cane Sugar (minimally processed)

It seems like right now so many people I know are cutting out sugar from their diets and replacing it with sweeteners such as pure maple syrup, honey, and agave nectar. I was really excited when I stumbled upon Zulka Morena pure cane sugar--and super excited to find that it is only fractionally more expensive than most refined sugars. For me, this is a happy medium, as this is not an issue in our household, but, as with the honey, I would like the product to be closer to how it was meant to be.

All of this talk probably makes us sound like a super "crunchy" family--far from it! I am, however, trying to be smarter in my choices and find us products that help our family to eat delicious foods and provide the fuel our bodies need. 

Do you have any favorite finds you've stumbled upon recently?

Product Review: Butter Boats!

It's time for another product review!

This is one of those things which, once you have it, you cannot live without.

The first time I had ever seen anything like this was when my friend, Janelle, received something similar from her husband when he proposed to her. He gave her a ring, as well, but the ring was inside a "butter bell". When she told me about it, I had no idea what one was--but it's ingenious (and, apparently, leads to happy marriages)! Here's how it works:

Source

Butter bells, or crocks, are a little harder to find than your average butter dish, but they surprisingly come in quite a few varieties. When looking for one myself at a local kitchen store, I stumbled upon this little number:

"All aboard the Butter Express!"

Lo, and behold, there are butter boats, too! I read about how they work, and it's the same basic principle. You don't have to smush your butter into the lid; you just place the whole stick into the butter dish. You fill the outer dish with water to the fill line, then place one into the other, top with the lid, and "Voila!" you have softened butter whenever you like. "The porcelain keeps the water cool, and the water in turn keeps the butter cool. This results in soft, spreadable butter without allowing it to spoil. The butter boat can be kept on a kitchen table or countertop indefinitely. Changing the water in a butter boat every few weeks is recommended."

I have always been a margarine girl--mostly because that's what we grew up on--because I like having something that is spreadable. Now, my dilemma is solved and I can put something more natural in my body. The best news for those of you who do not frequent kitchen stores? They also sell them at local stores; although, you will not find as much variety.

Product Review: Better Than Bouillon

That's right. It's time for another review! Recipe and product reviews are always my favorites; however, product reviews can be extremely frustrating. The other day, our vacuum cleaner (that Jordan bought for $60 or so four years ago for his "bachelor pad") breathed its last breath. Actually, it refused to breathe at all, which led to its promptly being thrown in the dumpster. Or promptly sitting out on the porch for a couple of days before we decided that no one was fooled--we were not going to vacuum the porch.

While looking at vacuum cleaners online and scanning through hundreds of reviews, I became somewhat agitated as I discovered the dark side of consumer reviews. It loosely relates to Newton's Third Law of Physics:  to every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, for every positive, glowing review of a product there is always an equal and completely opposite and degrading review. For instance, the vacuum cleaner you just read about has industrial-strength suction...but is also so extremely wimpy that you might as well just buy a broom for all the good this product will do for you.

Now, on to my product review: Superior Touch's "Better Than Bouillon." 

Better than Bouillon Concentrated Stocks are made from meat (or vegetables). This gives them a richer, more robust flavor than ordinary bouillons or soup bases. Our Chicken tastes like Chicken because it IS Chicken; our beef tastes like beef because it IS beef. No Fat, Lower Sodium: Better Than Bouillon Concentrated Stocks are fat free and have 1/3 less salt than ordinary bouillons.

Superior Touch's repertoire includes their premium bases, such as chicken, beef, lobster, vegetable, or chili; organic bases; vegetarian bases, such as No Beef Base and No Chicken Base; all-natural, reduced sodium bases; and kosher bases.

I first heard of this option for stock or broth from the infamous blog, The Julie/Julia Project. We don't always have the time or initiative to make our own stock, and sometimes you just leave it off of your grocery list. Better Than Bouillon has the look and consistency of baby food and can easily be used by adding one teaspoon to eight ounces of boiling water. Or, if you are making something in the crock pot, just throw some in there with some water. :) I only have the chicken and the beef base, but I truly think that it does work wonders. My dishes have yet to come out salty, and I always have some on hand for impromptu recipes (Jordan has taken to making a lot of noodle soups). At grocery stores I have only seen the chicken, beef, and vegetable bases, but would be very interested in trying their chili or mushroom bases. Perhaps I'll find them at the new Trader Joe's that opened up in West Des Moines?

Album Review: "Until The Whole World Hears"--Casting Crowns

I wish I could just gush about this album. Jordan's sister gave it to him as a gift for Christmas, and I fell in love with it! I have always enjoyed Casting Crowns' music--it is hard-hitting and truthful, with amazing instrumentals and vocals. And while I don't often listen to their first album (their six-year-old debut), I find that I can never really tire of their songs because they never stop being true and I always need to hear what they have to say.

The title of Crowns' fourth studio album, Until The Whole World Hears, comes from lead singer and songwriter Mark Hall's mentor, who would always end his e-mails with the phrase. This is the rocky single many people have heard on the radio calling listeners to "ready yourselves"--you know, the one with all the "Whoa-oa-oas" and some excellent electric guitar riffs. :) The second track on the album "If We've Ever Needed You" is a song about crying out to God in desperate need. This song is followed by "Always Enough," a sweet, piano-led melody inspired by a student in Hall's youth group who lost his father in Afghanistan. The line "In a dry and weary land, Lord, You are the rain" ends the song and, I think, sums up its message. 

"Joyful, Joyful" is a fun, rockier version of the 1907 hymn set to Beethoven's classic "Hymn to Joy." You can't help but love the violin on this one, as well as the way the group breaks out during the chorus. And the tracks "At Your Feet" and "Blessed Redeemer," my two favorite songs on Until The Whole World Hears, are filled with striking harmonies that I can never get enough of. I just can't help it--I'm a sucker for good harmony, and violinist Melodee DeVevo does it oh, so well. In fact, my friend, Jenny, and I are going to sing the latter at church on the 17th, which is why this is at the forefront of my mind once again. Not only do I love the story of this 21st century rendition of the 1920's hymn, but I am enamored by the sound, as well.

The song "Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)" amazingly describes the gospel in the chorus:

Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He’s coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day

Based on Psalm 63, "Holy One" is another e-guitar-led tune calling everyone to praise the Holy One--a call Casting Crowns makes difficult to ignore. "To Know You" and "Mercy" are songs that speak of brokenness and finding rest in the One who is enough. You'll find that "Jesus Hold Me Now" is a song based off of the story in Luke 15 about the prodigal son. Mark Hall describes it this way:  "The Prodigal Son is a big story for me. I always thought it was amazing how they never mention his name. That’s because I think he has a lot of names and one of them is Mark." Lastly, you may stumble upon the "secret" song, "Shadow of Your Wings," which is a precursor to Holy One that originated with the youth group band and was one of the first "up-beat rocker songs" Mark had ever written.

Okay, so I know that my reviews are totally prejudiced (I'll admit it, Ryan) nor are they very technical, but I will honestly share whether or not I like something and why. And, honestly, I find it difficult not to like anything on this album. Normally, you have that one song that you always skip, but not on this one (except maybe the secret song, but that doesn't count, does it?). Until The Whole World Hears is an encouraging, convicting collection of songs with just the right variety of slower and up-tempo songs. I love that, in one song, I can feel the electric guitar leading the way, in another the piano, while in another it's the violin--and all of the combinations in between. This is definitely a must-try. Hop on Pandora or Grooveshark and see what I mean!

Movie Review: Despicable Me

"That universe is people who are blogging not to reach a large audience, necessarily [or] to supplement their income. They're doing it to express themselves, to find out what it's like to write in public and to tell something of their own lives and experiences."

I recently read an article entitled  "The Evolution of Blogging"; in it, they discussed, well, the evolution of blogging and how it is becoming more relevant and an almost all-encompassing word. This made me think about my blog, and how it should always be evolving. Neither the writer nor the reader should get bored with the predictability of it. Yet, I feel as though I need some structure, too. I have a lot of interests I would like to explore without specifically turning this into a food blog, a photography blog, or the like.

So, in my attempt at structure, every other Tuesday-ish I want to write a review blog. I love reading reviews and so it only makes sense that I should contribute some, too--recipes, movies, books, music, and more. Since I also enjoy pictures and non-text posts, every other Friday-ish I will post a picture that captures a moment in the last couple of weeks. This way, once a week (on a Tuesday or Friday, accordingly), I will post a journaling-style post. Of course, I don't want any of this to become a chore, so all rules are flexible. :)

Movie Review:  Despicable Me

In a happy suburban neighborhood surrounded by white picket fences and flowering rose bushes sits a black house with a dead lawn. Unbeknownst to the neighbors, hidden deep beneath this home is a vast secret hideout. Surrounded by an army of mischievous little minions, we discover Gru (Steve Carell) planning the biggest heist in the history of the world. He is going to steal the moon (Yes, the moon!). Gru delights in all things wicked. Armed with his arsenal of shrink rays, freeze rays and battle-ready vehicles for land and air, he vanquishes all who stand in his way. That is, until the day he encounters the immense will of three little orphaned girls who look at him and see something that no one else has ever seen: a potential Dad.

Three things made this movie:  the main character, Gru; Gru's minions; and the three orphans, Margo, Edith, and Agnes. Gru is a villain with an indiscernible accent who discovers that he has been out-played by a younger, up-and-coming villain--Vector--and is starting to become obsolete. In his quest to best Vector, he encounters Margo and her sisters, weaving them into his plan for the ultimate heist--stealing the moon and holding it for ransom.

Like any efficient super villain, Gru employs somewhat of a mad scientist, along with an army of minions. These small, yellow, capsule-shaped minions speak a form of gibberish that only they understand, and their antics keep the laughs going throughout the movie. On the other hand, Margo, Edith, and Agnes bring out the sentimental side in this movie--and in Gru. Unlike, "Up" (a recent animated feature that people seemed to either love or hate), "Despicable Me" balances laughter and heartwarming moments with ease. By the movie's end, I felt as though I were a part of this unconventional family.

My recommendation:  see this movie with people who love to laugh! Below, is an excerpt from the movie--one of my favorite scenes, in which Margo, Edith, and Agnes coax Gru into taking them to an amusement park. Enjoy!