Fruit Infused Water Review
I DO NOT like drinking water. I know I know; the human body needs water to survive and all that jazz. It’s just so bland in taste. I like to drink and eat things that have a robust flavor. As I’m writing this I can hear my daddy’s voice in my head; saying the same thing he always does, “Zee, drink your water. I don’t want to have to give you one of my kidneys.” Water is one of those things that is necessary no matter what. I make my kids drink water every day (what a bad influence right?), and they like it too. When I saw this fruit infused water craze taking over, I knew I had to try it. I figured it was the magic potion that would turn me into a water-drinking Voss bottle-toting machine. Needless to say, I was sadly mistaken. The water flavors I tried were watermelon blackberry, pineapple watermelon, and plain watermelon; I had extra fruit already, so I used what I had on hand. I chopped my fruit up, except for the blackberries, put them in twelve ounce wide-mouth mason jars and filled them with bottled water. They resided in my fridge overnight marinating for me the next day. The water was visually pleasing, with brightly colored fruits floating around in the jar plus it was effortless to make; unfortunately, I was disappointed. The waters didn’t get the blackberry flavor infused at all, and the watermelon and pineapple in the water made it taste slightly sweet and reminiscent of fruit; not like I thought it would be. I didn’t like the fruit infused water, and I don’t plan on making it anymore. I’ll just stick with plain ole’ clean-tasting bottled water. Summary
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Kentucky Fried Chicken Review
Nashville Chicken Strips Dinner I’m just going to get right into it; I wanted to like these chicken strips more than I did. First I’ll say, the meal was a great deal. My husband paid ten dollars and some change for six Nashville boneless chicken strips, two biscuits, and two individual-sized sides; it was enough food to share or to save for later. Next, I’ll talk about how perfectly crispy the strips are. They are spicy with a pinch of sweet and a deep smoky flavor adorned with tart dill pickles which taste great together. One of the things I didn’t like is the saltiness. The chicken strips had great flavor, but the amount of salt was so overwhelming that I couldn’t get over it. The last thing I didn’t like was the grease. I had grease on my placemat after opening my food; I thought it was due to poor packing, but I was wrong. My daughter wanted to taste the chicken, so I gave her a piece; there was so much grease that ran off the chicken that it had pooled up in a thin orange-ish puddle on my plate. My daughter went to dip the chicken because she thought it was a sauce; that’s when I shook my head and realized that my two-year-old shouldn’t even be tasting something like this. I wanted to finish my food but I couldn’t. I hate to waste food, so I snuck this one to the garbage while the kids weren’t looking; I can’t go around setting bad examples and all. Summary
Firework Oreo Cookies
With Popping Candy in the Cream Summer is finally here! Even though summer took longer than usual, I’m happy to see the sun out warming things up. That means more swings are swinging, more trampoline jumping, more golden brown toasted marshmallow eating, and that means more red, white, and blue everything. From drinks to desserts, to clothes and even nail color; late May to early June is when everything starts to bleed the colors of the ole’ U.S. of A. While the kids, and I were shopping for dinner, I spotted the Limited Edition Firework Oreos on a patriotically decorated end cap. When I saw the 10-ounce pack priced for a little over two dollars it was a no brainer; I knew I had to get them. We love Oreos; plus I figured they couldn’t be nearly as bad as the Peep Oreos I reviewed. I was surprised! They taste just like classic Oreos, but after about ten seconds of chewing, my mouth started to experience a frenzy of little small pops all over my tongue and the roof of my mouth. The cream is smooth, and the candy specks in the cream are tiny so that you won’t feel them. Just because the candy is small and barely noticeable doesn’t mean the popping effect is light. The popping candy showed up and showed out. I like these Oreo cookies. They taste like the regulars but have this fun surprising popping effect that is almost a conversational piece. I had fun giving them to the kids and watching their expressions change as their little mouths filled with pops. I wouldn’t eat them as often as the classics, but Firework Oreos will be at my next backyard party. Summary
Mitchell’s Fish Market Review Appetizer: Crab Spinach + Artichoke Dip Entrée: Lobster + Shrimp Stuffed Cod, Loaded Smashed Potatoes, Asparagus Sides: Caesar Salad, French Bread and Fresh Butter Dessert: Mini Shark Fin Pie Ever had a dream so lovely that you wish you could go back to sleep and start right where you left off? That’s how I felt. The hubby and I went on a date that was so perfect I wish I could replay it. He had me laughing so much my cheeks hurt, and he knows I love to laugh. There is only one thing that I would change about that night; the chocolate brown peep toe five-inch high wedge sandals I chose to wear that night. Oh, they were plenty cute, they just severely lacked comfort. God my feet hurt so badly; I tried to stay sexy and walk through the pain, but I think that made the pain ten times worse. The hubby and I had a more than great dinner and saw a heartfelt film; even though we originally wanted to see the movie Get Out, it wasn’t showing that night. Oddly enough on a weekend night, we had the restaurant and movie theater to ourselves. I’m not complaining in the least; the fact that we were alone made things even better. Now I want to talk about the lovely food we had. I always have great food when I go to Mitchell’s. The thing is I always get the same thing every time: blackened tilapia. With the pressure of my husband, I tried something new; and I am so happy that I did. We got crab and shrimp artichoke dip for an appetizer that was delicious! Melted white cheese entangled with wilted spinach, generous chunks of crab and artichoke topped with Pico de gallo had me in love from the first bite. They served the artichoke dip with these deliciously crunchy house made corn chips that I dunked deep into the side of warm oval appetizer bowl. When I witnessed the cheese stretch, I almost fell out…well maybe not, but you get the point. For my entrée I ordered lobster and shrimp stuffed cod with white wine garlic sauce, loaded redskin smashed potatoes, and asparagus. OH, MY GOODNESS. The lobster and shrimp stuffing was too tasty for me to handle. The cod was cooked and seasoned lightly yet perfectly, but that sauce was the star of the show. That buttery garlic yet slightly acidic sauce was everything. I wished I could get a bottle to go. Well, maybe not; I might try to put it on too many things. The potatoes were cooked perfectly topped with cheddar cheese; applewood smoked bacon, a sprinkle of fresh green onion and the perfect amount of sour cream. Yum is not close to a word suitable for what my taste buds were experiencing. Then I had this delicious tenderly cooked asparagus that I kept dipping in the extra white wine garlic sauce with every bite; I told you the sauce was delish. The only complaint I have, which isn't even considered a real complaint, is that I wish I had more than three asparagus spears. It’s not that the plate was lacking at all, but that asparagus was just so good! Everything at Mitchell’s is good and fresh. If you like great food prepared fresh by a chef who cares, go to Mitchell’s Fish Market. I love Mitchell’s, and I will be back! Oh and we had a great waitress who did more than just her job; she went above and beyond. She was very hospitable; I felt like I was at my grandma’s house. Anybody that carries themselves with love and dignity like grandma already wins in my book. P.S. I almost forgot about the salad, bread and butter and dessert until I looked at the pictures! The salad was fresh and flavorful, the bread and butter were both fresh, and the dessert was a sweet semi-frozen treat layered with bold but complimenting flavors; decadent chocolate, creamy peanut butter, sweet caramel, rich whipped cream and salty peanuts. Yum yum yum! Summary
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Zelanda DowellHi! I'm Zelanda! I'm a wife, mother to 4 wonderful children, an author and personal chef. I love food! I love to cook it, write about it, read about it, talk about it, look at it, and most of all eat it :-). Join me in my foodie adventures and sign up for my newsletter at the top of this page! |