Sweetstacks Gourmet Pancake and Waffle Mix Review and Giveaway CLOSED

Sweetstacks is a delicious way to help your rushed mornings become tastier.  Sweetstacks offers a very tasty gourmet quality pancake and waffle mix that's even won 1st place in the 2008 Celebrity Food Show!  Since I've had the opportunity to try Sweetstack's I totally see why!  We often times eat breakfast for dinner so these would be wonderful for anytime of day you want "breakfast food".

This is truly one of my new favorite pancake mixes.  With the mix, a little milk, egg and vegetable oil you have a great start to a morning.  These tasted wonderful.  They have a subtle sweet fluffy taste.  You just don't know until you try them.  Check them out on the home site www.sweetstacks.com, twitter, and even on their blog.

Sweetstacks is also offering one lucky reader a chance to win a 1 lb package of their awesome pancake mix! 

Mandatory Entry- Leave a comment telling me which recipe you would like try from the Sweetstacks  Recipe list if you won!

 

Bonus Entries

-Follow Time 2 Eat Yall via GFC
-Tweet about this giveaway!! 1 per day
-Blog about this giveaway!! 1 per blog
-Subscribe to Time 2 Eat Yall via a Reader
-Subscribe to Time 2 Eat Yall via email and verify

That's it!!  GOOD LUCK!!

Giveaway ends May 7, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST.  Winner will be chosen at random and will have 48 hours to respond.


There was no compensation for this review. The opinions expressed are my own and I was not swayed by the items mentioned above.

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Colorful Easter Egg Salad Sandwiches - Recipe Swap

Now that Easter had come and gone I had to do something with all the leftover eggs that we had colored.  I'm a big fan of egg salad so that's what I did.  I know some people do theirs differently but I like mine as plain and basic as could be.

I started with 8 eggs (boiled and peeled), mayo, mustard and salt and pepper.  Can it get any easier?

I put my eggs in a bowl and half them.  I use a potato masher (shown) or an egg slicer (mine broke) or simply a fork to get it all smashed well.  Once that is done it's time for the wet ingredients.

I use about 6 generous tablespoons of mayo and about 1 tablespoon of mustard.  Combine well and add your salt and pepper to taste.  Spread over your favorite bread slices and enjoy lunch!

What do you add to your egg salad?  My mother-in-law sometimes adds onions and or even tuna to hers!

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Purple Pickled Eggs

I made some purple pickled eggs right before Easter. This is actually my first attempt as I don't eat them. I made them for hubs as an alternative to deviled eggs this year. I found a super easy yet simple recipe online for them that was right up my alley. Now I can't tell you personally how they tasted because I still can't bring myself to eat a purple egg if you can fathom that. But it is hubs approved!   By the way if you do anything special with your pickled eggs I've love to know.

Here's what you will need.  I made a batch of 8 up.

I used 8 boiled and peeled eggs for my batch.
I used 1 can of beet juice (reserving the beets) along with equal parts of  sugar, and vinegar. You want to measure your beet juice in a measuring cup and whatever that amount is will be the same amount you use for the sugar and vinegar.
Put your eggs in a jar (I used a mason jar) and throw your beets on top of those (to weigh them down).   I actually put mine in last and it wasn't a big deal. 

On the stove heat up your beet juice, sugar, and vinegar until your sugar dissolves and comes to a boil then pour over your eggs.

Cover with a lid and let sit over night.  Stir the next day.  Hubs actually ate one the next day but preferably you want it to sit and pickle for at least 48 hours to 3 days.  The longer the better.

From the site I found this recipe it says that because they are pickled they will keep up to 2 weeks however I know everyone's opinion varies on that.  

I have also heard of other odds and ends people throw in theirs for flavor such as peppercorns, peppers, garlic, etc.  What are your favorites?

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Have Lunch in Style With Pier 1

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pier 1. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

 

 

Have you ever shopped at Pier 1?  They've already received their new Spring outdoor furniture if you are looking to replace your current set.   I would really love some new items this spring especially some sort of outdoor chic table where I can eat lunch at on beautiful days. I am a sucker for their kitchen items too!!

 

When I lived down South it was a necessity for us to have outdoor furniture because we always ate outside when the weather permitted which was quite often!  Some of my must haves for outdoor entertaining was chairs to relax in.  Pier 1 has some great looking indoor/outdoor chairs and a fabulous selection of cushions for decorating any space!   Perfect for inviting people over for those BBQ ribs you cook up.

 

 

We used to have a Papasan and I simply adore all the style cushions they have available plus they even have some that are double seated and outdoor ready. It was the best seat to read and relax in even the cats loved it. Everything is just lovely and I love dreaming and envisioning my space with their products!

 

They have the trendiest pieces perfect for that "wow" factor and/or magazine cover look.  What are some of your spring must haves from Pier 1? 

Keep your eyes open for Pier 1 Tweetups!

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My Sweet Coca-Cola Marinated Ham

Photo is pre-bake stage

We typically cook a ham every year around Holidays like Easter.  I prefer my ham particularly sweet so I do a lot of basting through out the cooking process.  I prefer a sweeter ham than salty.  So I'm going to share with you what I've been doing for years.  This is a mixture of techniques from some lovely ladies that I grew up with and I really just combined them all and love, love, love my ham this way.

Marinate in Coca-Cola

First, I take a big roasting type pan and lay my ham in it flat side down.  We pick up either smoked butt's or shanks preferably with a little fat.  I think fat adds more flavor.  I score my ham by taking a knife and making a checker board type pattern across the fatty (up) side. Then I pour Coca-Cola over it.  I don't measure but I would say at least a 20 oz.  I typically buy a 2 liter and whatever I don't use I drink.  But basically you want it to be about a half inch to an inch deep.  I then cover it and refrigerate it over night.

Add sugary love

The next morning or early afternoon I take my ham out and start throwing some sugary love on it but first I poor a little bit of maple syrup on it.   At times I may omit this step but if I'm in the mood I'll do it. I then take some brown sugar and pat it over the top of my ham.  You want just enough so that it is covering it nicely on areas of exposed ham.  Then I take sliced pineapple from a can and place them on top securing with toothpicks.  I use pineapple from a can because I use the juice as part of my glaze.

Bast every 30 minutes

Now it's ready for the oven.  I cover it and start baking it.  Now I work on my glaze.  I take the leftover pineapple juice and mix it with a little brown sugar (1/4 cup) and a little bit of mustard (about a tsp).  I heat this over the stove and every 30 minutes I just pour a little bit over my ham.  When it is gone I still glaze every 30 minutes but I use the pan juice instead.  The tale end of the ham's cooking cycle I uncover it to allow it to brown. 

And this in a nutshell is how I do my ham.  It's not only sweet but juicy as well.  A win win at our house.  What are some special ways that you do yours?

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Very Green Pasta Salad - Recipe Swap

 

I'm linking up with xmasdolly's recipe swap if you want to join!  This is actually something I made around St.Patrick's but didn't have the chance to post it.  Doh!

Here's what I used to make use of what we had on hand at the time.

Ingredients
1 8oz Spinach Fettucinni noodles cooked
1 can tuna
1 can peas
mayo
chopped fresh dill
chopped fresh green onions
shredded parmesan cheese

Simply mix every thing together.  I usually end up adding more dill than most people may like cause I love that stuff!  I would start with just a couple tablespoons then give it a taste.  S/P as desired and add green onions for taste.  As far as the mayo just add as much as you'd like for your desired wetness for the pasta.

I also topped mine off with extra green onions and parmesan cheese.


Other naturally green food ideas for you to toss in and create your own festive dish:

Bell peppers, basil, lime, grapes, spinach, apples, alfalfa, cabbage, green beans, green lima beans, pesto, broccoli, avocado, most lettuce's, snow peas, asparagus, cucumbers, green tomatoes, cilantro and other herbs, pears, jalapeno's and other peppers.

Did I miss one?

By the way...wouldn't green foods be appropriate for Earth Day as well?  Hmmmm.

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Freschetta Pizza By the Slice Giveaway

This post brought to you by FRESCHETTA®. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

Have you tried the New Freschetta Pizza by the Slice?  My little one loved the 6 cheese medley!  You can either cook these in the oven or microwave for 4 minutes. 

 

 

Pizza is our go to item for quick super busy nights and I especially appreciate pizza that has ample toppings and doesn't skimp out!

 

 

FRESCHETTA® By the Slice has just enough toppings to satisfy and smells yummy while cooking.  This slice singles are great for snacks or an easy quick lunch for kiddos during summer vacation.

 

Yummy flavors of Freschetta Pizza By the Slice:

* BBQ Recipe Chicken

* Vegetable Medley

* Chicken, Spinach & Mushroom

* Six Cheese Medley

 

Check out FRESCHETTA on Twitter at @FreschettaPizza and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/freschettapiz…

 

 

Giveaway!!

 

One lucky reader will win a FREE ITEM coupon for FRESCHETTA By the Slice and 6 piece FRESCHETTA storage set!

 

Mandatory Entry US Only- Leave a comment telling me your favorite pizza topping!!

 

Bonus Entries

-Follow Time 2 Eat Yall via GFC
-Tweet about this giveaway!! 1 per day
-Blog about this giveaway!! 1 per blog
-Subscribe to Time 2 Eat Yall via a Reader
-Subscribe to Time 2 Eat Yall via email and verify

That's it!!  GOOD LUCK!!

Giveaway ends April 30, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST.  Winner will be chosen at random and will have 48 hours to respond.

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Steam Team and the Kitchen Too

If you live in the surrounding areas of Austin Texas and need any forms of  total cleaning or restoration in your home or business check out The Steam Team.  They really seem to know what they are doing.  For over 20 years they've specialized in cleaning and maintaining commercial and residential flooring upholstery, tile and more.

From their site you can gain valuable information regarding rug cleaning tips.  Have you ever spilled wine on your carpet, food, had animal mess or even mud?   With the kitchen redo we just did and all the dust that inevitably spread to other rooms we sure could of used them!  It would be nice if they would come clean my carpets with the care they describe on their website!

The Steam Team is available 24 hours a day which is great for those all of a sudden leaky sinks, overflows, residential main break etc.  We actually have an unfinished basement and only when we get severely heavy rains does it leak a bit from the concrete.  It could really use their basement odor removal austin techniques and their advice so that we can really take a look at sustainability in the future.

Their couch upholstery cleaning austin techniques could have been to put to good use over the summer while we were at the Cabin on the lake.  One of the cousins came in from swimming and sat smack dab on the couch leaving a wet spot under him with Cheeto crumbs!  With Steam Team they treat your upholstery so that when life happens it minimizes the damage so you can have continued life out of your furnishings. 

What about you, do you need The Steam Team in your home like me?

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Crab Quiche

I absolutely love quiche.  I have decided to start making different variations besides the ole bacon and cheese or sausage quiche.   Today I pondered over a crab quiche.  While this wasn't my favorite it was pretty good if you like trying new things especially when you need an effort of distraction from a day at the doctor's office or Business Lawyer Austin.  It can be fun trying something new and definitely helps take my mind off worries.   You can use imitation or real crab meat for this recipe.  Give it a whirl!

Ingredients

1 frozen deep dish pie crust

3 eggs

1/4 cup mayo

2 Tbs flour

1/2 cup half and half

1 cup crab

1 cup shredded cheese - (swiss preferred or whatever you have on hand - I used provolone and mozzarella even a lil cheddar)

1/2 cup chopped green onion

1/4 chopped red bell pepper (optional)

1/2 tsp Old Bay

1/4 tsp dry mustard (optional)

1 tsp chopped dill (optional)

 

Directions
Preheat oven to 350.  Go ahead and get out your pie crust out and set aside to get it thawing.  In a mixing bowl add your eggs and scramble.  Add the rest of the ingredients to your eggs in no particular order.  Mix well.  Next pour your mixture into your pie crust. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the top is firm and not jiggly.
Allow it to cool before slicing.  Enjoy!

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Still Here and a Kitchen Re-Do

I've been MIA for a bit so I thought I'd share what I've been up to!  Last week we (hubs and I) pulled up our old linoleum in the kitchen and laid tile.  So for the better part of the week we have been filling up on a local Sub shop and Taco Bell.  Not to mention our refrigerator and stove sat in our living room during this entire process!

I'm so glad this is finally done because quite honestly I was never found of the color of the old linoleum.  No matter how much I cleaned it, the age of it showed and it always looked dirty and old.  In fact, this is the first home I've lived in where we've actually now have tile!  I've just always happen to live where there was existing linoleum or hardwood floors. It's amazing what a change in  Home flooring does to a room!  It's almost as drastic as a change in paint but a lot more work.

Now we have very neutral colors and I've added a few brown tid bits and love, love, love it. It feels so much cleaner and actually a little bit bigger. I repainted my kitchen table and chairs before putting them back in there as well.  We could actually use a bigger table but I have a hard time parting with it.  What do you think about our new floor?

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Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I've been playing lately!  Today was the first beautiful spring day we've had yet, so we grilled out burgers and later went for a 2 mile walk in the park feeling the nice cool breeze.  I hope you guys had a great weekend as well!

I like to experiment with different recipes and most recently I've tried the Reynolds Wrap Banana Bread which turned out looking very nice.  While I won't sit here and say it was the best I've ever had it's certainly noteworthy and has good reviews across the web.  At any rate I added extra banana's to mine and chocolate chips.  Hubs loves warm banana bread with melted butter.   What about you?

Banana Bread via Reynolds

2	cups flour
1	cup sugar
2	teaspoons baking powder
1	teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4	teaspoon each ground nutmeg and salt
2	medium (1 cup) ripe bananas, mashed
2	eggs
1/3	cup oil
1/4	cup milk
1	teaspoon vanilla extract
1	cup chopped nuts (I omitted)
1/2	cup mini chocolate chips (I just used regular)

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Line a 9x5-inch loaf pan with Reynolds Parchment Paper (great for easy clean up), extending paper up sides of pan; set aside.  If you don't have Parchment Paper just spray your pan with cooking spray.

COMBINE flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt on a sheet of parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl combine bananas, eggs, oil, milk and vanilla extract. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture; stir just until moistened. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips; pour into parchment lined-pan.

BAKE 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Use edges of parchment to lift bread from pan onto a wire rack. Pull back edges of parchment. Cool completely before slicing.

Number of Servings: 12

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Bacon, Mushroom, and Pepper Jack Quiche

Quiche is one of my favorites to make because it's so versatile and wouldn't ya know it's one of the first things I made since we made over our kitchen floor.  I didn't stop there either, I also made my ham soup since hubs eats it like they'll be a ham shortage come tomorrow!  Yep, we're still doing the soup thing here.  Can you believe we actually had snow flurries yesterday?  I mean come on mother nature please give me a break!  I'm so over being ready for spring!  This poor bird didn't know what to do....he looks so lost.

So back to the quiche - here's what I did.....

1 - 9 inch frozen pie crust defrosted
4 large eggs
3/4 cup of half n half
6 oz crumbled cooked bacon
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup sliced baby bella mushrooms cooked
(I threw mine in with the bacon at the tail in of my bacon cooking just to soften)
4 oz shredded pepper jack cheese
pinch of nutmeg and salt and pepper if desired


Preheat your oven to 350.  Mix all your ingredients in a bowl.  I whisk mine.  Then poor in your pie crust and bake for about 35-40 minutes or until center is fairly firm and or a tooth pick comes out clean.

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