Holiday Meals Made Simple

Yes, indeed!

Good folks at F&E contacted me to do a taste test of their "Holiday Meals Made Simple", heat-and-eat holiday meals for 8 people in one box.

How could anyone say no to THAT?

Besides, I was just thinking about ordering a holiday meal this year (*gasp!*) because my friends from Thailand will be staying with us through Christmas. To maximize time spent with friends, I chose to make it easy on myself with someone else's cooking this year.

I requested the Beef Rib Roast dinner which came with a pint of beef gravy, and one "potato" and two vegetable sides.  My choices were potato gratin, petite carrots with honey butter, and cornbread and sausage stuffing.

Then I called up my girlfriends for our little holiday gathering.  Amanda, Lee, and Aurora had participated in the past Twitter wine tastings, and Lupe attended one of the F&E event with me.  So, they are all veteran F&E tasters and loyal customers.




When I picked up the box of goodies, I also picked up our favorite F&E bubbly Montcadi Cava Rose and an F&E pecan pie I haven't tried before.

The best thing about this whole Meal Made Simple is that everything reheats at 375.  First in was the roast as it needs an hour.  Then the stuffing and the gratin for 25 minutes.  I did the carrots in the microwave for 7 minutes.

While everything was heating up, we sipped the Cava.  We had Gnarly Head Zinfandel with the meal.

The roast was pure perfection--perfectly medium rare, juicy, tender, and flavorful.  The pan juice was perfect as a sauce we didn't really miss the gravy I left behind. (Whoops.)  That was easily our favorite part of the meal.  We have the seal of approval from Lupe, the best cook in our group, on this one.

Coming in second was the carrots.  Just sweet enough and not overly buttery and perfectly cooked. I couldn't have done better myself!

A split decision on the potato gratin.  It was super cheesy and delicious fresh out of the oven, but once cold, it felt heavy and too rich. We did a reheat test...aka sticking our second servings in the microwave.  Lee liked it still, while it lost me.  Amanda also found a few bites that were slightly undercooked.  

Another split decision, leaning toward dislike, was the cornbread and sausage stuffing. Amanda found the cornbread "spongy and not in a good way".  Lee liked that there was sausage in it.  I thought the gravy I left behind would've saved this a little bit as I found the stuffing a little dry.  Perhaps I should've reheated it in the microwave, or add a few glugs of chicken stock before putting in the oven.  Oh well, next time.

Overall: Heavenly

And yes, it really did feed 8 people. 5 hungry girls plus one token male were happily and well fed and we had plenty leftover to feed two more people easily.

Sure, you can totally made a better holiday meal than this. But for being a heat-and-eat feast from a grocery store chain and you only spend an hour sticking things into the oven, the Meal Made Easy is a total dream.

And yes, I just placed my order online for a Hickory Smoked Spiral Sliced Ham feast for Christmas Eve. It couldn't have been easier!

You have until December 18 to place your order to have it in time for Christmas. So, get on it!

P.S. Pecan pie was Earthbound. Tasty but not craveable or mind blowing.

Dinner Possible: 4 Ingredients or Less

We're back to almost vegetarian in my household and Sunday nights are either gourmet or leftovers. We're out of leftovers.

Tonight's dinner is Portobello mushrooms with a side of summer squash and baked potatoes. It took about 20 minutes - less if your grill doesn't run out of gas!

Portobello Mushrooms with Summer Squash

Recipe by Annette Holland

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients

• 4 portobello mushrooms
• 1/2 cup Fresh & Easy Classic Balsamic Vinaigrette
• 1/2 cup Fresh & Easy Burgundy Wine Simmer Sauce
• 1 package summer squash
• 4 Yukon Gold potatoes

Cooking Directions
Grilled portobello mushrooms are delicious, but our grill was out of gas and it was too hot to broil. I made due with the griddle.

1. Lightly oil with olive oil, then spoon either the balsamic vinaigrette or burgundy wine simmer sauce over the mushrooms until soft, turning at least once. If grilling, marinate the mushrooms for a few minutes.
2. Saute the summer squash to desired tenderness.
3. Serve with a baked potato.

The Intrepid Princess still prefers steak to mushrooms, but The Teen and The Hunk both loved it.

Summer Squash

Dinner Possible - Lamb Loin Chops

Last night I was at a loss as to what to prepare for dinner.  We had these tasty lamb loin chops from F&E that I was saving for Easter dinner, but two people I cook for don't like mint jelly. What's up with that???? Also my daughter was going to be at her Dad's for Easter, and since lamb is a family tradition I opted to make it early.

I present herb-roasted lamb loin chops.  Sides were F&E brand three cheese risotto and steamed broccoli.



I apologize, I only had my phone on hand when I took the picture.

Herb-Roasted Lamb loin Chops with three-cheese risotto and broccoli

I did something you are supposed to do, but I was multi-tasking and needed to save time. I baked/roasted from frozen. The loins still came out tender enough to cut with a plastic knife.

Ingredients
4-6 large garlic cloves, pressed (or garlic slices if you're like me)
2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 1-1/4-inch-thick lamb loin chops

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Mix spices and 2 tablespoon olive oil in baking dish. Add lamb; turn to coat.
Set a timer for 25 minutes.
Bake for 20-25 minutes as you cook the three-cheese risotto. Follow directions on box.
Steam the broccoli the last 10 minutes of cooking.

Transfer lamb to platter, cover, and let rest 5 minutes.

Undoubtedly this tasted wonderful and would taste even better with fresh herbs, but hey, I got dinner on the table in 30 minutes.

Put the Lime in the Coconut

Yesterday's lunch was the Coconut & Lime Whitefish ($3.99) from the expanded eat well line.

This is the first eatwell meal that I haven't had to add any salt to. The rice noodles were perfect. I typically buy my lunches for the week, freeze them, and nuke them at work. Frozen then nuked noodles don't always come out right. The fish was so yummy, I was wishing for a bigger portion, but in the end I was satisfied.

The only thing missing was a dark chocolate pudding for dessert.

Verdict: Heavenly

6 Girls. 3 Wines.

F&E was at it again with twitter tasting. And of course, I said yes.

Last time, we had 4 girls to attack 3 bottles of wine. Those who caught wind of the last gathering wanted in this time around. So, here we were on a Wednesday night with 6 girls to split 3 bottles of wines sent to me from F&E.

The lovely wine-drenched evening was held at Ana's (@anaperiodista) place.

Sister Annette (@dananner) and I (@oakmonster) carpooled, picked up yummy barbecued stuff from Beachwood Barbecue in Seal Beach, and headed to Ana's. We arrived at 6:30 and set up for the shindig.

7 p.m. rolled around, it was just the three of us still. So we got started anyway. Vickie (@torie007) arrived next, followed by Vanessa (@vbesack) and Tina (@sendchocolate)

Ana let me commandeered her boyfriend's laptop. Unfortunately, it was on mobile modem and the connection wasn't all that great. Annette and I took turn tweeting through TasteLive and my account. At some point, Annette managed to get me thrown into TasteLive jail-- "You've tweeted too many times. Please wait."

Also, how many girls do you need to open a bottle of wine with a corkscrew? Two. Me for knowing roughly how it works and Annette for Amazonian strength. Well, we wouldn't need the strength if we knew what we were doing! Hahaha! Let it be noted that next time we go to Ana for wine tasting, we need to bring her a modern wine opener as a hostess gift. Or make sure her boyfriend was home.

We had so much fun with the wine and the talking that at some point we almost forgot we were doing a tasting! But then again, our group is no Jim Cahill of Fresh & Easy Wine Reviews! No connoisseurs over here, just 5 moms and a married woman who had had a long day and looking forward to some wine, conversation, and manic tweeting. ;-)

Here you go with our nonsensical review! (As always, we'll add commentary from Sister Annette herself later.)

Napa Family Vineyards Chardonnay 2008
Sister Annette's Chug-ability rating: "I need a refill!" - Heavenly

First wine for everyone after a long day may have something to do with why we enjoyed this wine quite a bit as a starter. Sister Annette mentioned that it would go well with a salad and promptly asked for another pour. I'm not a white wine drinker but I found myself enjoying a cold and crisp but full body in that warm evening. The other ladies agreed with this assessment. It also went swimmingly with the wild mushroom stew and blue cheese grits I was having for day-after-orthodontist dinner. Retails at under $12, this is a great buy.

Re del Castello Chianti Classico 2007
Oakley's Chug-ability rating: "If I have nothing else to drink, this will do." - Earthbound

We were all taken aback at first taste. Everyone thought it was sour/tart to start. After a few minutes to breath, it bloomed a bit and it was drinkable again. The peppery loveliness mingled with the smoky barbecued meats. Vanessa, a fellow red lover, didn't think much of this wine either, but since it's opened, we'd drink it. This one retails under $10.

The Vine Yard Late Harvest Riesling 2008
Ana's Chug-ability rating: "I don't even like wine and I LOVE this!" - Nirvana

*DINGDINGDINGDING* We have a winner! The riesling went over extremely well especially as a "dessert" for the evening. Sweet and fruity without being all syrupy about it. To quote Annette's tweet, Ana's expression said it all. Our "I don't like wine" hostess' face lit up "like Mikey in Life commercial." The wine also went well with Tina's brie and lingonberry jam.

What makes it taste even better is that $1 for every bottle sold is donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Oh, and it retails under $8. WIN!

At the end of the evening, we were all eager to polish off both of the whites. I did try to go back to the Chianti but my palates were shot by the point. Feh...

You can read the Twitter thread for the evening here and see what everyone else thought of these wines. Because, you know, when you mix 6 girls with plenty of wine, we can't really be trusted. ;-)

Summer Tasting

A big box of F&E goodies arrived a few weeks ago. My apology for not getting too it sooner!

The thing is, before I even get to take a picture of the loot, SOMEBODY started in on the Cranberry Oaktmeal Cookies with Walnut ...and I haven't seen the rest of the tub since. *sigh* Verdict: Nirvana ...judging by the fact that it has disappeared in a few days after arrival.

Then there were the condiments: Organic Ketchup, Yellow Mustard, and Barbecue Sauce. Haven't tried any of them yet but their mere presence led me to find out that the ketchup and yellow mustard I have in the fridge expired in 2008. Whoops.

The Il Fornaio Gourmet Wheat Hamburger Buns arrived just in time for my LOST finale dinner! The original idea was to get a bucket of fried chicken and pretend they were from Hurley's Mr. Cluck. But now that I had the buns, we switched up the menu to a pineapple-ginger-soy glazed sirloin burger (flavored with pressed garlic, a squirt of Sriracha, and salt and pepper) with butter and rum caramelized onion instead.

The soft, tasty buns grilled up beautifully nutty. No structural integrity failure here when you take a bite (yes, we used that term for our food stuff in this geeky household). Verdict: Heavenly.

Now, I'm not a huge white wine drinker, so I past along the Vine Yard Pinot Gris to Sister Amanda (from Four Girls Three Wines episode) after said LOST finale dinner. She said she enjoyed it very much and it went very well with her mango chicken salad a few days later. Verdict: Heavenly.

Malt Vinegar & Sea Salt Kettle Chips is waiting to be tested. My boss is a big salty snack fan so I'll let her review that one. :)

The Box O' Joy also came with an apron, the crowd-favorite $5 of $20 purchase coupon, and a gift card.

Also in the box was a list of their grill events with award winning grill expert Neil Strawder (aka Bigmista) with special grilling tips. The first 100 people will receive a free reusable bag.

• Friday, June 4: 5 p.m. at Eagle Rock location on, well, Eagle Rock.
• Friday, July 30: 5 p.m. at Norwalk location on Rosecrans.
• Saturday, August 21: 4 p.m. at Alhambra location on Main.
• Saturday, August 28: 4 p.m. at Northridge location on Nordhoff.

The irony in this is that I just went to F&E to restock a couple of days before the box arrived. While there, I did go a little crazy as I always do after a few weeks of not haven't been to F&E. Ah...the binge cycle! I came out with a few new items I haven't tried before.

Barbecue Pasta Salad was a surprise. I bought that to eat with the veggie dogs I picked up for my meatless Tuesday and found myself serving it again with the LOST Burger and it was divine. Pasta, corn, black beans, and red bell peppers tossed in mayo-based barbecue dressing that is just sweet enough with a subtle kick of poblano chilli. It doesn't taste like a pasta salad mixed with barbecue sauce, if you're thinking that's what it is. It's more of a sweeter and smokier pasta salad than your plain ol' stuff.

Your meal having barbecue sauce already on it or not, this pasta salad will still kick your traditional pasta salad's ass. Verdict: Nirvana.

Organic Chocolate Soy Milk was new to me. Sister Aurora (the Provider of F&E Coupons...since she lives in Long Beach and getting all the F&E mail) told me about it but I haven't picked it up. And I was a little disappointed that it seemed more watery than the Silk counterpart. I don't know what are all in it that makes the difference but it tasted like a glass half full of Silk Chocolate Soy with another half a glass of water mixed in. Verdict: Purgatory.

Eat Well Creamy Basil Chicken was quite disaster. The whole wheat pasta was overcooked and was grainy in texture. And, a trend with Eat Well line, the sauce was under-salted. Having been to the Eat Well tasting event and talked with the chef, I knew why the salt level was low. But this thing just lacked flavors altogether. If there were more tomatoes, I think I might have been okay with it not having the salt. But I *did* eat it all, so it wasn't completely inedible. Verdict: Purgatory.

Tons of products at F&E for the summer grilling, you guys.

And of course, keep your eyes out for the great deal that are the Grill Pack: nearly 5 lbs. of burger patties, Italian sausage, and seasoned chicken pieces. The normally $9.99 deal usually go on sale for something like $5.99 during the high grilling season so keep your eyes peeled and stock up!

Four Girls. Three Wines.

When I got words about the Fresh & Easy Twitter Tasting of their wines on Tuesday, a party was instantly planned. Having volunteered to participate in this, F&E sent me all the three wines for the occasion.

I (@oakmonster) rounded up Sister Annette (@dananner), and my friends Ana (@anaperiodista) and non-tweeting Amanda for dinner, wine, and girl talk.

Well, Ana doesn't drink wine but she took a sip of each for a taste anyway. That's the spirit! :)

And boy, did we all had a day from hell before we got to the wine.

Note here that the Twitter tasting was supposed to start at 7 p.m. PST. We didn't chime in until 7:45. And here's why.

Amanda was taking the usual commuter bus we usually take together except that the bus got in a fender bender up in Downtown LA. So she was late but still first to arrive. Ana has a 2-year-old son who was sick and wanted no one but his mommy. She came in after Amanda. I wasn't home to receive either one of them as I was on my way to pick up Sister Annette from the Blue Line station. Annette hauled in from Burbank on the Red then Blue Line just to find herself stuck on the train one station away from final destination due to police activity.

So by 7:45 when Annette and I got back, we got back online and on with #fandewine hashtag and hell bent on catching up to everyone. They were almost done with their Malbec by this point.

However, we were being complete and total clowns about this whole thing.

Everyone was talking wine: "smooth and oaky," "lemon on the nose," "acidity balanced with bright zesty fruit."

The reviews from our corner? "Yeah, I'll chug that." And we continued to tweet off topic as the evening progressed and more wine was poured.

Hey, when you put 4 girls who all had a bad day with 3 bottles of wine, you can't expect any professionalism out of that!

Now, on to the wines.

Montcadi Cava Rose – under $6
"Let's finish this sucker off." - Heavenly

I have been on a bit of a bubbly kick since Thanksgiving. So I was excited to try the Cava.

It didn't disappoint. A little fruity, but not too much. I can see myself coming home to this every night of the week. This was the obvious choice as it was the only bottle that got polished off that night.

We thoroughly enjoy this with the F&E Gourmet Swiss Truffles , which by the way is made with CRACK I tell you--Nirvana. Especially the milk chocolate ones. Oh my god. Sooo soo good!


Boro Hills Sauvignon Blanc – under $11
"Where are the bubbles?" - Earthbound

It was not love at first whiff for this screw top. It has this funky little smell at first pour which dissipated by the time you swirl it around a bit. For a second there, Amanda and I almost didn't try the wine based on that whiff alone. It turned out to be the tail end of that passion fruit/grape fruit note so prominent in the wine.

Amanda said this would be the wine she can imagine drinking by the poolside on a hot summer day. However, we agreed that we kept expecting to taste some bubbles. All the flavors that would benefit from the bubbles are there. It tasted like a sparkling wine that had gone flat.


Matuco Malbec 2007 - under $10
"We'll totally chug this." - Heavenly

Annette was the one to initiate the chug-ability rating for the evening with the Malbec. Full body, tasty treat that went quite well with the barbecued baby back ribs from Maderas Steak & Ribs and went gangbuster with their mac and cheese. Although we also agreed with folks in twitter that steak and chimichurri should be the best match.

Amanda did like this one best of the bunch and took the half of it home.


So, the Twitter tasting was a lot of fun. I couldn't have done it on my own. 3 bottles to taste with just little old me would take 3 weeks to polish off.

Thank GOD for girl friends. :)

Melts in Your Mouth

Melts in Your Mouth - Fresh and Easy Sweets Review, originally uploaded by Nannerlady.

So I had had a satisfying dinner and needed dessert. Then I remembered that I hadn't opened up my latest Fresh & Easy box.

I was not disappointed. I have a new Hunk to enjoy on V-Day, some Swiss truffles that positively melt in your mouth and some kid-tested, mother-approved Snickerdoodles.

Onto the cookies. I don't make these but my mom does, so here's her review:
Pros:
- Throughly cooked. Neither over- nor under-done
- Not overly sweet
- Quote "For a store bought cookie these are pretty good. I would buy these."

Cons:
- Not much crinkle on top
- Needs more cinnamon. It should be evenly distributed over the surface of the cookie, not concentrated in the center.

Kid (that would be me) tested - cinnamon and sugar in a cookie. 'Nuf said. Crumbly, sweet, delicious. Now where's my cup of milk?

These would probably taste even better slightly warmed up in the microwave. The snickerdoodles are $2.59/8 count. Also, all natural so I don't have to worry about Josh eating them in the middle of the night.

Verdict: Heavenly

Gourmet Swiss Truffles ($3.99/6.3 oz)
*happy sigh* Chocolate craving for the day satisified. O.K., maybe one more. The wrappers are mint and silver, denoting milk and dark chocolate. I'm a HUGE fan of dark chocolate these days, but the milk variety was just as delicious. Extremely smooth and I only needed one to satisfy my sweet tooth. That in itself is amazing.

Verdict: Nirvana

One Huge Hunk $4.29/14.1 oz
I've had the Belgian Dark Hunk, and I can only eat one section of it at a time. The newest addition to the Hunk family (there's also a regular milk version) is a milk chocolate bar with candied pecans and fruit pieces. I may have to fight my mother for it. She saw "pecan" and her eyes lit up. I'll let you know how it goes.

Verdict: ...coming soon...

Have a little F&E New Year!

New Year's Eve Dinner

Giada's Beef and Butternut Squash Stew - made with 2 lbs. of beef roast and the miracle that is pre-cut butternut squash from Fresh & Easy. Verdict: Nirvana for the time saving factor alone. Seriously. The first time I made this, I spent half an hour attacking the mutther-effin' whole squash!)

Chilled bottle of Ogio Prosecco. Verdict: Earthbound. Not bad for $8.99 to drink straight up but I'd totally buy these to make bellinis and the likes.


New Year's Day Breakfast Plan

The fantastic Il Fornaio Panettone. Oh. My. GOD! This so so fluffy and delicious. It tastes so fresh, so un-boxed--unlike other panettone. Verdict: Nirvana.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Demo-licious

Yesterday Brandon looked up at me after his first bite of Fresh&Easy banana cream pie. Intently, he looked into my eyes.

"They put crack in this."

I looked at him, bemused.

"Banana cream pies should not taste this good."

And I couldn't have agreed with him more.

Verdict: Banana Cream Pie: Nirvana.

*

Flashback to Thursday.

F&E invited a handful of LA mom/dad bloggers and one of its biggest fan over for an evening of wine tasting and cooking demonstration with Chef Mike himself at Sur La Table at the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles.

We noshed on lovely snacks of dips and crackers, cheeses and meat, and crudites, while the wait staff brought us La Gioisa Prosecco to start. Nothing memorable about this one but it definitely didn't suck.

Verdict: La Gioisa Prosecco: Earthbound

I had the honor to meet Chef Mike. I know that I'm a blogger and that I put myself out there in the world, but it still freaks me out a little bit when Chef Mike told me he read my blog and wanted to know what I thought they should do about the tortilla soup situation.

Wow. I mean, WOW.

From then, we got to the hands-on demo. Each of the 4 stations attacked different dishes on the menu for the evening. All the while, the wait staff continued to pour any of the 5 wines on the tasting menu for us while we got our hands dirty.

I couldn't really eat that day since that very same morning I had a visit with my orthodontist. I managed to sample a few soft items that evening. And, of course, the wines to numb my pain. ;-)

My little team made lovely pizzas. My friend Lupe, one hell of a cook, even tossed the pizza dough for good measure! And then our group were tasked to make avocado sauce (fresh avocados + ranch dressing ...and a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon if you like a bit more flavors) for the heat-and-eat steak fajitas Chef Mike was cooking up in front of the class. A jar of the spicy bean dip also accompanied the meal.



The other teams made apricot (and mustard) chicken fingers with dipping sauce with (instant) brown and white rice and veggies with herb butter (heat-and-eat); and baked salmon with peanut sauce and soba noodles stir-fry with frozen Asian veggies.

Oh yeah, the peanut sauce. As I am a Thai, I don't put peanut sauce on anything but my satay so I'm a little wearied of people applying bottled peanut sauce to everything. But I must stay, F&E Peanut Sauce actually tastes pretty darn close to the real thing.

Verdict: Peanut Sauce: Heavenly (...or at least this Thai approves of it)

At this point you MUST understand what had already transpired at this demo.

You add free flowing wine to a room full of women (okay, there were a couple of men there, but surely out-numbered) who love to cook and eat and, well, drink. What you got by the time we arrived at dessert samplers was something just shy of total debauchery.

I must confess that at some point, I stopped watching Chef Mike's demo altogether as I was too busy sipping wine, noshing on whatever Chef Mike already dished out, and chatting with the other ladies, stopping occasionally to take some photos.

Lots of giggling. Lots of joking around. Lots of, I hate to admit it but it's true, that Sex And the City girl-talk. By the time dessert samplers were served, we were dying to try them.

Out came from all corners of the room, different moans, groans, and squeals of delight.

One word. Foodgasm.



We fell all over ourselves with different component of the sampler. The banana cream pie got the most moans and was quite a surprise to everyone. Sallie who usually doesn't eat banana cream pies that were not her mother's gave this pie a seal of approval. We have photographic evidence of Jennifer stuffing her face with almost the entire half of chocolate cupcake. Oh, and the tiramisu wasn't too shabby either although much overshadowed by the pie and the cupcake.

I know someone was taping part of the demo on the Flip Video (custom made with F&E logo by the way...adorable!). A play-back of the dessert tasting would probably be rated R.

Verdict: Chocolate Cupcake: Nirvana
Verdict: Tiramisu: Heavenly

I sipped the last drop of my Les Capages Pinot Noir (went great with dessert, oddly enough) and had all the intentions to lick my dessert plate. Darn super efficient wait staff took what he thought was empty plate away before I could have my way with it.

Then again, I couldn't chew much of what were made. Cream pie, tiramisu and super moist cupcakes were the only things I could eat that evening.

Verdict: Les Capages Pinot Noir: Heavenly

And finally, another star of the evening was the St. Helen Riesling. Just sweet enough for a hot evening in the kitchen and so drinkable I could see me sipping through the entire bottle by myself through out the course of the day. (Hey, I'm a light-weight! That's probably the best I could do without getting totally frakked up.) At $4.99 a bottle, darlings, buy a case and invite the entire neighborhood over to drink it with ya!

Verdict: St. Helen Rielsing: Nirvana

We left the joint with our bellies full and a goodie bag slung over our shoulders. More F&E products for us to experience on our own good times.

F&E should do more of these wine tasting/food pairing events everywhere. BevMo's $5 Saturday tasting seems to be popular. I can't see why F&E couldn't do something like that at other local collaborating venue or somewhere in the store itself.

You know, you'll have room once you clear out the clutter. ;-)



*

Quick bargain bin clutter update: I ran into the Spring Street store on Saturday afternoon to fetch the banana cream pie and I noticed the bargain bins in the produce sections were gone. I haven't gone through the entire store but that alone was a massive improvement. Thank you for listening, F&E!

Libation Lollygagging: Tropical Lemon Drop

- Lemonade pic from F&E. Kai Lychee Vodka pic by Jo McGarry

I picked up a bottle of F&E Organic Mango Lemonade from the bargain bin with a day left on its shelf life. Even that, it was still very tasty.

Verdict: Heavenly

Always thinking about what I can bring to a party over here, so I pondered what I can mix this lemonade with. Suddenly, a brilliant thought occurred to me to do something with my newest alcoholic obsession, Kai Lychee Vodka! (Unfortunately, not available at F&E but at BevMo, in the premium vodka case.)

Welcome to the first F&E inspired bar menu.

Tropical Lemon Drop

In a shaker with ice, mix 3 (or 4 to taste) parts of F&E Organic Mango Lemonade with one part Kai Lychee Vodka. Shake well.

Enjoy tropical party in your mouth!

The Horror...

The clutters.

THE. CLUTTERS!

A follow up from last post about the change I noticed in my F&E store: taller shelves, more brand names, more family sized items.

Front of the store is packed full of stuff. The bins are back in the middle of the produce aisle. To the greatest of my horror?

Wire basket displays in the middle of the last open space left in the store, between the toiletries and medicines along the wall and the rest of the shelves.

Even Brandon, who actually would gladly run into an F&E for me (and not the other places) because he LOVES the uncluttered spaces and self check-out, uttered, "What the...?"

Out of the respect of the store's request not to take photos, I didn't take any. I was too horrified.

We did walk out with more than what we went in for, as always. But the cluttered shop weighs heavily on our minds.

The self check-out really is the last thing left of the store I worship?

(Well, that and Belgian Chocolate Mousse.)

I tried to justify with the fact that UK items are coming to the store, that more wine selection are coming to the store...oooh, and they have turbinado sugar now...

But is that enough?

My faith is being tested.

You might still be fresh, my dearest store. But you ain't makin' it easy for me.

Verdict: Sale Item Displays Out In the Middle of Aisles: Hell. Heavenly

ETA July 20: Quick bargain bin clutter update: I ran into the Spring Street store on Saturday afternoon to fetch the banana cream pie and I noticed the bargain bins in the produce sections were gone. I haven't gone through the entire store but that alone was a massive improvement. Thank you for listening, F&E!

Review: F&E Brand Milk Chocolate Almond candy bar

I went to Fresh & Easy tonight with $7 and a mission: Must Obtain both salty and sweet snacks to feed my craving and fuel the vast amount of writing I'm doing today.

Enter one $.50 F&E Brand Milk Chocolate Almond Candy Bar.

If Hershey's is the bottom and Dove is the top of our scale-- this candy bar is far more Dove than Hershey's. And that is a VERY good thing! It is creamy and the chocolate literally melts in your mouth.

My personal preference would be MORE almonds in it, but that doesn't diminish the enjoyment of the candy at all.

Verdict: Heavenly

Review: Pinot Evil & Barefoot Champagne

Oh you guys! On New Year's Eve I went to Fresh & Easy for wine, champagne and the F&E cheese plate.

Have you tried the cheese plate? It is in the refrigerator case in the front of the store with the sandwiches and salads. It is just under $5 and has a little slice of brie, some cheddar cubes, some swiss (I think) slices, red grapes, apple slices and dried apricots. It has become one of my favorite snacks.

I picked up a bottle of Barefoot Champagne for around $6. This champagne was really good. Better than many champagnes priced far higher.

I was wandering the wine aisle thinking "what can I get that is good but also kind to my wallet?"

When what to my wandering eye should I spy but:


Pinot Evil! With the see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil monkeys on it. How could I resist buying this? I couldn't. Especially since it was only $4.99.

Pinot Evil! The BEST NAME EVER.

Verdict: Pinot Evil, Barefoot Champagne and F&E Cheese plate: Heavenly

Review: Cilantro Dressing

The refrigerated cilantro dressing, thou art an enigma.

I tossed you with the rocket salad mix. My thought is that you're creamy and zesty. Like a lemony creamy dressing. But nothing spectacular. You are not something I crave.

However, you spilled over onto a piece of the Shake-N-Bake pork chop to which the salad accompanied.

And my god, were you fabulous!

Something in your herby goodness wakes up the boring (and a little dry) pork chops and makes it crave-able. I would gladly toss you to coat all over the other 2 leftover thin chops in the fridge.

I have a feeling you will also be delicious as a fried chicken dip or toss with a fried chicken strip salad. Or maybe even replacing tartar sauce with the fish sticks!

Verdict: Heavenly

F&E "Dumpster Dive"

That's what I call it when I head directly to the "Half prized everything because it expires tomorrow" corner of the refrigerated area.

You would be surprise the awesome deals you get out of the "throwaways". No wonder some people are freegans. Most items still look pretty darn good. Some do look a little questionable.

Anyways, I made a stop there last night and scored me last night's dessert and today's breakfast and lunch. I could have gotten dinner out of that too, but Brandon already got us dinner.

• Tres Leches Cake : I don't remember what regular price was : Paid $2.15. (Oh, and by the way, Heavenly!)
  
• Exotic fruit salad : Regular $4.29 : Paid $2.40. 56% discount.
  
• Chicken Cacciatore for 2 : Regular $4.79 : Paid $2.15. 45% discount.

Not too bad, eh?

Amy's Reviews

Yesterday I attended the opening of the new Fresh & Easy location at 10 N. Eastern in Las Vegas. The F&E people in attendance could not have been nicer (Hi Simon!) and definitely embody the friendly neighborhood market energy that is Fresh & Easy's mission. I took pictures and will post them when I get back from vacation. (Hi Sallie!)

First, some product reviews:

Penne Pesto: This dish was delicious, light and flavorful -- which is perfect in the Las Vegas heat. I was so pleasantly surprised when the F&E pastas microwaved and didn't dry out. Fresh vegetables in this dish complement the pesto without overwhelming it. If I had one less positive comment it would be that I wanted my pesto heavier. But, disclaimer: I like a lot of pesto. My mom split the dish with me and it was the perfect proportion of pesto to penne for her.

Verdict: Heavenly

Penne Arribiata: OMGBBQ. SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO YUMMY. Spicy without being painful, with deliciously tender red and yellow and green peppers in the dish that add an aesthetic as well as aromatic appeal to this meal. (hey! I made a rhyme!) I've bought this dish a few times now. It is a perfect entree, late night snack, lunch idea.

Verdict: Nirvana

Penne with Tomato Cream Sauce: First of all it is only $1.99! You can find it in the sandwich and sushi display in the front of the store and it is the perfect amount of pasta for one person. Fresh diced tomatoes are throughout this dish and the sauce is the perfect shade of pink. I usually add some olives to it for my own personal perfection. This is what I'm having for dinner tonight.

Verdict: Nirvana

Tomato, Basil, Mozzerella Sandwich: The roll used on this sandwhich is delicious. Somewhere between a ciabatta and french roll, it is the perfect complement to the fresh buffalo mozz, fresh basil and tomato slices with a sprinkle of lemon juice/pinenut mixture on it. The ratio of bread to cheese to tomato to greens is DIVINELY PERFECT.

Verdict: Heavenly

Ham & Swiss sandwich: I've had this sandwich 3 times and it was delicious all three times, although once the bread wasn't the greatest--just passable. The next two times the bread was good, but not as good as on the tomato/basil/mozz sandwich and not as good as the individual french demi baguettes in the back of the store. The Ham is sliced thin enough for a gal like me who likes her lunchmeat wafer thin. The swiss is creamy. The dijon mustard has just the right amount of bite. This is the sandwich I'm tucking into my carry on for my flight to Aruba tomorrow.

Verdict: Heavenly

Chicken Escallopes and Rosemary Garlic Red Potatoes: I'm listing these together because together they take about 10 minutes to make and presentation and taste wise appear like you slaved in the kitchen for hours. Chicken fillets are in a crust of spices including rosemary, thyme, basil and garlic. Pan saute them in extra virgin olive oil for 10 min, turning frequently. Red Potatoes are in olive oil, rosemary and garlic mixture and microvave for about 3 1/2-4 minutes. OMGBBQ I could eat this everyday, for real.

Verdict: Nirvana


BBQ Chicken Pizza, Hawaiian Pizza and Pepperoni Pizza: for $4.49ish, they are a bargain and easy to pop in the oven. I did not add any extra spices to them and they were alright. They tasted like frozen pizza despite being fresh take and bake style. DiGiorno is better. Now, that said, some fresh garlic and tomato added to the pepperoni might have elevated its rating. My main criticism of the pizzas is that the crust was cardboard like.

Verdict on all 3: Earthbound

Fruit and Cheese Plate: Do you have to bring an appetizer to book club? For $4.49 this is the ticket. About 6 small rounds of bread with a small piece of brie, some white cheese that seemed havarti like, a few cubes of cheddar, sliced apples and dried apricots. This also makes a great snack and will also be in my carry on on the flight to Aruba tomorrow.

Verdict: Nirvana

Beef Fajitas: Oakley rated this a Nirvana, so I will give it another go after my vacation. I think perhaps the issue I had with the marinade/spices is cilantro. I'm not a huge fan. But the beef was tender.

Verdict: Earthbound

Pro-Yo Berry Crunch, Dark Chocolate Pudding and Vanilla Banana Smoothie: I AM ADDICTED to all three and my F&E is STILL out of them. HELP!

Verdict: Nirvana

Chili Marinated Chicken Tenders The plastic container melted in my microwave and the odor--oh good god the odor. This was a freak incident as no other F&E plastic container has fared a similar fate. I didn't eat them obviously and now I am (irrationally) afraid of them. Have you tried them? Should I give it another go?

Verdict: Purgatory for now, subject to change.

I'm off to Aruba tomorrow so I'll write more when I get back!
Amy

Party for $20

Actually, less than that.

I wish I wasn't in such a rush that I ran out of F&E on Friday without my receipt.

But just for $16.91 after the $5 coupon is applied, I managed to buy these for a barbecue with my out-of-town friend in Fullerton.

• Big bottle Tropical Iced Tea
• Big bottle Limeade
• A package of Dixie plastic cups
• 3 bags of Kettle Chips (Jalapeno Cheddar, Hickory Barbecue, and Original salted)
• Pretzel chips
• Raspberry Swirl Shortbread
• Chunky chocolate chip cookies (in a tub, not from the bread aisle)
• Small bag of Cheetos (to hold me over for the drive over)

We were expecting a lot of people, but it ended up just 4 of us. We took a few swills out of the drinks and dipped into the cookies a little bit.

The only thing of these that got consumed in its entirety is the Jalapeno Cheddar Kettle Chips. Salty and a little bit spicy without being overwhelmingly cheesy or that fake Jalapeno flavor you get sometimes. It was perfect. And even yummier when crushed and sprinkled over your hot dog a la Latin American style. ...oh god. Now I'm craving THAT.

Verdict: Nirvana

The Raspberry Swirl Shortbread was good. VERY buttery andso deliciously crumbly I wouldn't eat this on a couch...or at the office. Delicious buttery crumbs everywhere! It's tasty, however, it doesn't incite the same craving for the next bit like Walker's Shortbread does for me. You know the "I must eat the whole box" feeling. Must be the whole European v.s. American butter thing.

Verdict: Heavenly

The Pudding Escapade

All these few pounds I gain in the past 2 weeks are all for you guys, by the way. That's just how dedicated I am.

I picked up almost all of F&E single pudding and flans and tried them all out over the past week. I was never fond of anything "western" with coconut flavoring, having grown up where desserts actually HAVE coconut in them, I forwent the Coconut Flan to be subjective.

Here are the results.

Chocolate. A favorite at my household. Brandon got us buying the big tub now. I would occasionally dunk apples in them. It's definitely yummy. However, if you put me in a blind test between F&E and another brand, I'm not sure I could pick out the difference. But for whatever reason, Brandon seems to enjoy this one hence the high rating. Verdict: Nirvana.

French Vanilla. Not overpoweringly vanilla-y with crunchy little seeds. Not sure if I like the crunch but otherwise that wouldn't make it a FRENCH vanilla. I did like it quite a bit. Verdict: Heavenly.

Vanilla Flan. The flan was a double taste test. My coworker whose signature desserts are creme brulee and flans wanted in on the action. Neither one of us like it. We actually took a couple of bites each and decided to throw it away. It's neither creamy enough or caramel-y enough. So it tastes a little, well, bland. Not what we were expecting at all. If I have a flan craving to quench, I'd go to El Pollo Loco before I go to F&E. Verdict: Hell.

Rice Pudding and Tapioca Pudding. I had some that was more like vanilla pudding with tapioca in it. But this is more custardy and creamy and milkier tasting, if that's a term, than the vanilla pudding, Then again, on the same note, there is more pudding than rice/tapioca in theirs than in F&E's. The rice pudding, especially, it was almost like having a milk pudding in a bowl that used to have rice in it--too much pudding and note enough rice. It's almost the same way with tapioca, but I actually got more tapioca action than I did with riced. Verdicts: Rice pudding, Purgatory. Tapioca pudding, Earthbound.

Dark Chocolate. The king of the F&E pudding! I am already in love with the dark chocolate mousse (though I haven't officially reviewed it yet), and this was just like it...if you added more milk. Chocolatey with just enough sweet. My bias is toward dark chocolate so this is totally the winner for me. Verdict: Nirvana.

Now, I must go practice my Thriller to burn off the calories.

Ricey Redemption

Wednesday night, we went to dinner with my friends James and Aurora and baby Dresden at their favorite Indian restaurant, Ashoka the Great, in Artesia. Everything was delicious.

I thought it might be a bit unfair to be eating F&E Chicken Masala and Basmati Rice Bowl for lunch the day after I feasted at an authentic Indian restaurant. But it was the only lunch I had to take to work and so I had to eat it.

And to my surprise, I did enjoy it. As a matter of fact, I like it a lot.

The sauce may not be the same as the chicken tikka masala at Ashoka, but it wasn't bad at all for a grab-and-go. Not quite as spicy, as in with a lot of spices, and a little bit sweeter, but it was yummy. Also, unlike the bland chicken of the tangerine atrocity, the chicken pieces in the Masala actually has spices on them. The pieces can be eaten without the sauce and it wasn't bad.

Much like the frozen Indian entrees, F&E brings their British expertise in Indian food to just the right place, resulting in an edible, almost cravable rice bowl.

Verdict: Heavenly