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Kroger Low Fat Icecream

For my latest Bzz Campaign I got to try a free box of Kroger Yogurt Smoothie Bars. I tried the mixed berry variety (they also have a banana strawberry kind as well but I’m not personally fond of banana or strawberry icecream so I haven’t tried this one). They are delicious. My kids love them as well. I think the girls think they’re cool because they’re pink but they also really like the flavor, and I really like the creaminess of these yogurt smoothie bars.

The Yogurt smoothie bars are Kroger’s latest addition to their low fat and sugar free frozen treats. They also have Fudge Bars, Fruit Bars and Ice Cream Sandwiches.

We tried the ice cream sandwiches as well and while they’re a little big for the kids to eat a whole one alone (which means that I get all the leftovers!) the kids love them. The cookie part is just crunchy enough to not be gooey like a lot of ice cream sandwiches. So the kids don’t end up with all the sandwich part all over their hands.

The Kroger brand ice cream novelties are all very tasty, and they come in regular varieties and sugar and fat free varieties. Plus I’m always looking for the cheapest ice cream to purchase for the kids since they eat through ice cream all summer long. I’ll be purchasing more of these next time I go to the store.

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Private Selection Party Foods

I just loved this bzz campaign! You can go to bzzagent’s website to get into your own campaigns. I got to try all sorts of fun tasty foods from this campaign! My holiday party is coming up next week and I’m looking forward to serving some of Private Selection’s products to my guests.

1. Greek yogurt – this yogurt had the little fruit cup on the side. It’s mine and my 4yr old’s favorite yogurt style. My favorite flavor is honey. Though, I am picky about which brand of greek yogurt I’ll eat. I was a little worried trying this since I generally only like name brand greek yogurts. I was really surprised. The private selection yogurt was delicious! We tried the cranberry and the strawberry yogurt. (I had coupons for 3 yogurts). I’m definitely buying these again.

Though, I do wish they had a variety with honey, since this is my favorite flavor. If Private Selection had a honey greek yogurt I’d be buying it every time I was at Kroger. I also don’t know of a good way to serve this at a party but I’m more than happy to tell my guests how much I liked it 🙂

2. Deli Cheese – I tried the smoked gouda and it was really good. I think the cheese is a little pricey, however, they have unique flavors. I love serving cheese when I host a holiday party! I usually do a cheese tray with 4 to 5 different cheeses and crackers. Private selection has some unique cheeses that aren’t really that expensive if you want something more than just swiss, american, or cheddar. I’m adding at least one Private Selection cheese to my cheese tray this year because it’ll give me some fun variety!

3. Crackers – I got to try the Classic Water Crisps. I loved the idea picture on the front of the box and it’s the cracker I’m designating for the soft cheese on my cheese tray. I’m going with a sharp cheddar cheese ball because I like the strong cheese with the mild cracker.

4. Coffee – Not as good as the coffee from the Green Mountain Coffee campaign that I had last month, but it’s still pretty tasty. Though the package in my bzzkit was a regular coffee and I probably won’t serve it to my guests in the evening, I’ll go try one of the decaffeinated varieties so I don’t keep anyone up all night.

5. Olives – I just love their olives! I like olives anyways but Private Selection olives are my new favorite. I tried the mixed olive jar just to see what I thought of them and they have the perfect olive taste and texture! I’ll get one of the stuffed olives for my party so guests don’t have to spit out pits. These olives are going to taste great with hummus, crackers, and my cheese tray! (or just on their own)

I’ll post pictures of my party, all our food, and our fun food creations next week. (if I remember to take pictures during the party)

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Apple Pecan Cake

I tried out this cake recipe yesterday. Unfortunately, I sent it to work with my husband before I got a picture. However, it was delicious, easy to make, and contained all ingredients that I keep on hand so I’m going to post it without a picture.

I got this recipe out of this month’s Everyday Food magazine. This is my favorite cooking magazine. Most of the recipes contain ingredients that I can identify and the recipes are not too time-consuming to make. A must with little kids!

This recipe did use a large number of bowls, which my kids appreciated since they got to lick out every one of them 🙂

Apple-Pecan Cake

1/2 C unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 medium apple, peeled and diced
3/4 C pecans, chopped
2 1/2 C all purpose flour (I used 1 1/2 C all purpose flour, and 1 C wheat flour)
2 t baking powder
1 t nutmeg (I did not add this – I don’t usually like the aftertaste of nutmeg)
1/4 t salt
3/4 C unsweetened applesauce
1/2 C plain yogurt
1 1/3 C sugar
1 t orange zest
3 large eggs
confectioners’ sugar for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9in square pan. Line with parchment paper, butter parchment. In a med bowl, toss apple and pecans with 2 T flour to coat. In a large bowl, whisk together remaining flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and salt. In a small bowl, combine applesauce and yogurt.

2. In another large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, granulated sugar, and orange zest on high until light and fluffy, 3 min, scraping down bowl as needed. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until combined. With mixer on low, add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions applesauce mixture, and beat to combine. Fold in apple mixture. Transfer batter to pan and smooth top.

3. Bake until golden and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack 20 min. Using parchment, lift cake from pan. Dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.