Quaker Oat 3-Minute Steel Cut Oatmeal - Blueberries & Cranberries

So I had heard of steel cut oatmeal for awhile because it is recommended to assist in upping your milk production while breastfeeding, but I had never tried it. 

I got the Cranberries and Blueberries steel cut oatmeal from Bzzagent to try in exchange for my review. 

Let me be honest, my expectations were low. It says on the package that you can't make it with milk, which is the only way I enjoy my regular oatmeal. But I trusted the package and added water before microwaving. 

Note: you have to change the power level on your microwave before cooking, as I have seen some people ignore that advance and not have good results. It is actually much easier than you expect.

You know what? It's great! The texture isn't much different that the oatmeal you are used to (despite looking way different) and the flavor, especially the berries, is wonderful! My 17 month old son and 4.5 year old daughter love it too! We are sold on the Steel Cut Quick 3-minute Oatmeal around my house! Thanks Quaker Oats!

Professional Cocktail Muddler Bar Tool Review + Giveaway

My husband's favorite mixed drink is probably an old-fashioned, or at least his version of it, so he likes to muddle up a couple cherries in the bottom of his glass before adding the other ingredients. I have seen him do this (and laughed) with a spoon for years. It always seemed ineffective to me, so when I was approached to try and review the Professional Cocktail Muddler Bar Tool from BTIPSY, I was excited to surprise him.

The muddler bar tool is made of stainless steel and super easy to clean and it has a 3 year extended warranty. The actual end of the muddler is a rubber-like material so it isn't noisy while muddling in a glass or bowl and there is very little chance of damaging your dinnerware by using it.

So how did it work? Well my husband would like to add his own opinions:

"The husband here.

I would like to add that the muddler has a wide base (where you place it in the glass while muddling), so there doesn't have to be a lot of gyrating.

I think that places it above usual muddlers. No motioning around with your wrist. You just place a few cherries (or whatever ingredient) on the bottom of the glass, press the muddler down and twist it a few times.

Voila! A great mixture without a lot of work. Very convenient."

So there you have it, definitely better than a spoon.

You can buy it here,

 

but wouldn't it better to win one!?

Enter my giveaway below! Ends 10/23/14


a Rafflecopter giveaway
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

California Kitchenware Butterfield Silicone Cupcake Molds Review

Have you ever tried silicone cupcake molds? I am in lots of co-ops that often run buys for them, but I have never been brave enough to try them. I had a silicone bread pan once, but it was the WORST to clean so I was afraid the cupcake molds would be the same--that kept me from ordering any.

Until California Kitchenware contacted me about trying their silicone cupcake molds found here. Since I have a four year old with a mouth full of sweet teeth, cupcakes are a frequent flyer in my house so it was just a matter of the occasion to arise to try them. That day was today and I was oddly excited about making a cupcake mess in my kitchen that would allow me to try these adorable molds.

First of all, they are shipped in a plastic container that would probably be useful to keep for storing them (mine was stolen and mostly eaten by my one year old). Secondly I have to mention the colors--these molds came in a set of 12, which had 4 blue, 4 yellow and 4 pink (my daughter says its purple so it could go either way). The colors are very vibrant and bright! My daughter was excited to bake in such pretty colored molds.

Instantly I was in major like with these molds. My biggest peeve of paper cupcake molds are that they don't really stay down in the pan until they have some cupcake mix to weigh it down. Since the silicone molds keep their shape, they fit into my cupcake pan perfectly.

I prepared on pan of silicone molds and one pan of paper liners (I'm making marble swirl cupcakes):

All the cupcakes were done at the same time, but I think they silicone molds cooled a little faster for some reason (they were definitely hot to the touch out of the oven though--I checked). I was most excited to see the difference between the cupcake after you peeled away the mold and liner.

The cupcakes baked in the silicone seemed to hold the moisture a bit better so they are just a bit softer and fluffier. Also, the difference of the amount of cupcake remaining on the liner/mold was drastic. Aside from cupcake mixture I dripped on the edge of the mold, there are almost no cupcake stuck to the mold, but the usual amount stuck to the paper liner.

Both sets up cupcakes were delicious, but the cupcakes baked in silicone were prettier looking, more consistent in size and shape and easier to peel. A plus is that silicone is reusable, so less waste for the environment!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

**FREEBIE ALERT** HoneyBaked Ham Co & Cafe

In honor of my birthday in September, I am doing a series of posts about completely free products I have received for signing up for a company's email club or for my birthday.

HoneyBaked Ham has an online rewards club called HoneyBaked Rewards that you can subscribe to for coupons, deals and (best of all) FREEBIES!

Just for signing up, they send me a coupon for a FREE Classic Ham sandwich that expired in 14 days.

We have a HoneyBaked Ham Cafe close to my house in Bentonville, Arkansas so I took the drive over there today for my free sandwich.

Local Store Experience

Our local store smelled AMAZING as soon as you walked it. I wanted to just eat the air, seriously. I was helped very quickly and the employee gave me no problems or issues with my free coupon (I just printed the email and took it with me). I had the choice between dine in or take out (I chose take-out so I could eat at home with my family).

The Sandwich

The Classic Ham has comes with ham (obviously), swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and their sweet honey mustard. I opted for no lettuce on my sandwich because I am a lettuce-hater. I also got a pickle slice with my sandwich.

The Review

Oh. My. Oh. My. I may have tried to inhale this sandwich. Yum yum yum! The ham was so thick and sweet! The honey mustard was my favorite kind that tastes nothing like mustard and everything like honey sweetness. Fresh tomato and cheese were just "toppings on the sandwich" (read: icing on the cake). The bread was a butter, soft and delicious croissant that complemented everything else that was so wonderful about this sandwich. I am so sold!

Bonus!!!

HoneyBaked Rewards members should also receive a free Classic Ham for their birthday. Since my birthday isn't for two weeks, they still have time to send out that coupon (I will update when they do).

Enjoy!