With the rising popularity of gift basket businesses on the Internet consumers have plenty of options to choose from, today. One excellent option is EdibleGiftsPlus.com. One of the best things about this business is that they offer hundreds of basket options ranging from Holidays to themes such as Birthdays, Get Well, Anniversaries, and other events. Each basket has a fun theme and a selection of prepackaged or business made goodies to enjoy.

We had the pleasure of receiving the Deluxe Copper Drum from EdibleGiftsPlus and were more than pleased. The basket includes a musical note cookie, Lindt dark chocolate truffles, a tin of European Cookies, Downey’s liqueur cake, Belgian chocolate covered Oreos, Belgian chocolate covered graham wafers, and a couple Belgian chocolate covered pretzels. Everything is packed into a copper drum that can later be used as a table centerpiece or as a planter, if you are so inclined.

As college students, we took the basket with us to school and passed out the goodies for some friends and a few professors to sample. We left the liqueur cake at home, of course, but are happy to report that it was delicious and we’re sure that everyone would have loved it. The biggest hits of the goody buffet were the chocolate covered items. The graham cracker/wafer and the Oreos were my favorite, with the Lindt truffles coming in a close second. Dominick loved the pretzels and Oreos and our son enjoyed the musical note cookie.

Speaking of the truffles, they went the fastest. They come in a bag and were labeled dark chocolate though it seemed that many people got different flavors. One of our professors got a milk chocolate covering with dark chocolate center and a few other people mentioned they got the same. I got a dark chocolate cover and milk chocolate center. The dark on dark were by far the best, though all of them were good enough to eat with no complaint.

The European cookies got mixed results. If you’ve had standard butter cookies that are sold by the droves during the holidays you should be somewhat familiar with these. However, these are slightly different. Some of them are mixed flavors. At least one person compared them to gingerbread and another commented that it reminded them of a chocolate/vanilla wafer mixed in the same cookie. There were also some mini-chocolate chip type cookies in there and plenty of the traditional butter cookies that have always been popular in our house.

While this is an awesome and truly yummy gift basket the fact remains that it is $68 and that feels incredibly pricey for some cookies and some fudge covered delicacies. I have no doubt that you could form a similar style basket for less money. Of course, if you’re looking for a holiday gift and don’t feel creative enough to assemble a gift basket (or do not have the time) EdibleGiftsPlus is certainly a good option. It’s also worth noting that this is just one of hundreds of baskets. There are several that are cheaper than this that still offer excellent options. You should have no problem finding something in your price range that has what you are looking for this holiday season.

Technorati Tags: EdibleGiftsPlus, Holiday Reviews, Cookies, Oreos, Gift Baskets, Copper Drum, Deluxe, Butter Cookies, Downey’s Liqueur Cake

The thing that sets Silver Moon apart from the other ice cream companies that we have tried is that they add a secret ingredient to their ice cream. Silver Moon Ice Cream blends ice cream and liquor for a unique and absolutely delicious after dinner treat. It is an after dinner dessert and night cap all rolled into one.

Silver Moon was nice enough to send us some of the most popular flavors and a few that we specifically requested to go with them. The flavors we received include such staple flavors as Crème de Mint Chip, Coffee with Brownie Bits, Orange Creamsicle, and Strawberry Daiquiri. We also received some unique holiday options including Spiced Pear Sorbet, Bourbon Vanilla Bean, and Peppermint Wonderland (which has no liquor).

We were so excited about the holiday flavors that the first flavor we tried was the Peppermint Wonderland. It ended up being one of my least favorite in the bunch. I think that was because I tried Graeters Peppermint before the Silver Moon and I preferred Graeters peppermint filling to the candy pieces used in the Silver Moon. I also felt that in the case of the Silver Moon, the peppermint, just was not creamy. I was worried that I would feel the same about the other flavors, but as I suspected, some flavors were bound to be my favorite and others were not as fulfilling to me.

If there were just two flavors that I could have, I could live on the Crème de Mint Chip and Orange Creamsicle. These are seriously the best flavors that we tried. Further, they were the two flavors that everyone loved. If you want something lighter than ice cream, there are a few sorbet options including an absolutely delicious Stawberry Daiquiri. The Spiced Pear Sorbet was definitely a refreshing option to end a meal, as well.

We had to make sure the ice cream was kept way in the back of the fridge because our son is a Vanilla Bean addict. I envisioned him reading the Vanilla Bean portion of the label and ignoring the “Bourbon” part. I also enjoyed this flavor, though the aroma and aftertaste of liquor were much more pungent with the Vanilla Bean.

You can buy Silver Moon Desserts via the Silver Moon website. According to the website you can pick five pints for $48 plus shipping, which is calculated at the time of checkout. On the main buy page they have the staple flavors though there is an area where you can get special holiday flavors and different pricing. I don’t see a problem with the price here, as the cost for mail order ice cream has a tendency to be outrageous. If you are looking for a way to make your desserts more adult or you want to treat your friends to something tasty and unexpected, Silver Moon might be the way to go.

While I was not fond of all of their flavors, the ones that I love, I could eat every day! If you’re over 21, I highly recommend finding out which flavors you enjoy.

Technorati Tags: Silver Moon Desserts, Ice Cream, Sorbet, Alcohol, Liquor, Mail Order, Ice Cream Review, Food Review, Mint Chip, Orange Creamsicle

So, where does the Gum Drop Cookie Shop rank in the best and worst category? I won’t say they are the worst cookie I have ever had, but I am not going to recommend you waste your money buying them either. I like the idea of what the GumDrop Cookie Shop is trying to accomplish. They are edging towards the lines of designer cookies. Each cookie has a special design or a message and they look beautiful. They are wrapped up adorably, too. My problem is not with presentation in the least. In fact, if you were going on looks alone I would tell you to buy them. I fear though that you would be disappointed when it came time to eat them.

The big problem with GumDrop Cookie Shop cookies is that they are incredibly, horribly bland. On the whole, sugar cookies and shortbread cookies might have a more subtle taste to them, but they do have a taste. If you are using frosting, this should only make the taste more pronounced. Unfortunately, this is not the case with GumDrop Cookies. Despite being made with natural, basic ingredients the results are futile.

There is literally no taste to the cookies themselves and the frosting tastes like a separate entity that is equally bland in taste. It just tastes like another texture of tastelessness. I had high hopes for this shop because I loved the festive holiday designs and the variety of options concerning designs that they offer. However, the taste just doesn’t measure up to the look, leaving for a blah experience overall.

The other issue I have with these cookies, and I admit this has more to do with the taste of the cookies, is the price. One dozen cookies is listed as $39.95. All cookies are sold by the dozen. This puts the price at a little over $3 a cookie. Just to compare, you can purchase other cookies online for a dozen (of a national known brand) for $25. This is a significant difference when you are not getting anything out of paying more.

I cannot recommend anyone purchasing these cookies. When they sent them over, I was in love with the look. Now looking at them makes me sad because I know that there is no point in eating them. In any case, you can check them out at GumDrop Cookie Shop. When it comes down to it though, I recommend buying something else.

Technorati Tags: GumDrop Cookie Shop, Food Review, Sweets, Baked Goods, Sugar Cookies, Shortbread Cookies, Holiday Reviews

Frozen fish is not normally something that we cook for dinner in our house. I don’t know why, but the idea of frozen fish always conjures up memories of grade school. I always picture soggy fish sticks that don’t even resemble fish in the mildest way. It’s not anything that I wanted to relive. Still, every now and then I will partake in a box of fish. Usually when I do hit the fish aisle, it’s for a box of Gortons. That was one of the reasons that we agreed to the review when they approached us. We wanted to highlight some foods that would be college friendly and it had been awhile since I tried Gortons so we opted to give it a shot. I’ve had my share of unappealing frozen fish, but Gortons was a brand that we knew about going into it, so it was all good. We were sent three full value coupons so we grabbed a couple of boxes of fish and set out to making dinner.

We purchased a box of the Gourmet Tilapia, a box of the Herb, and some of the Potato Crusted fish. Out of all of them, no one had any complaints and everyone enjoyed the meal. If you wanted something similar to fish and chips (the traditional kind) the Potato Crunch would be your closest option here, if you were planning to buy one of these three. The Tilapia is a firmer fish than cod and it’s more flavorful. It is similar because it’s mild, which is good, but that is about where the similarities end. You can bake or fry this fish. I think you might be able to microwave it, too, but I am firmly against microwaving something like this. We ended up baking ours in one sitting and frying in another. The Tilapia and the Potato Crunch came out delicious after frying, but the Herb tasted better baked because it appeared to be a more delicate fish.

Dominick liked the Potato Crunch the most, followed by the Herb. My personal choice was the Tilapia and then the Potato Crunch. However, each of the boxes were excellent and we wouldn’t hesitate to buy any of them again. The most expensive option we purchased was the Tilapia and that was just over $6 and included eight nice sized pieces of fish. We made all of them (foolishly) and quickly realized that they were bigger than they originally looked. If one person purchased this box for themselves they would have anywhere from 4-6 meals depending on how much they eat. Even a couple of students could get about 2 meals a piece out of this with them both having two pieces of fish each time. When you consider that, $6 really isn’t that much at all. Just throw in a bag of fries and maybe some salad or a deli side and you have a full meal that’s just like you’d get eating out.

If you’re a college student looking for something good to cook (assuming you have kitchen access) for a filling meal this is going to be a perfect option for you. Given the amount you receive in each box, the price is fair and the food is good. It’s actually one of the best frozen/boxed fish products that I have ever had the pleasure to taste. The amount of variety should make it easy for just about anyone that likes fish to find something to please them. If you aren’t a big fish fan, but like seafood, Gorton’s also offers a variety of shrimp products, as well.

Technorati Tags: Gorton’s Seafood, Fish, Food, Dinner, Eat, College Must Have, Review, Food Review, Product Review

I am going to start this by being completely honest. If there was one food that I could eat every day for the rest of my life it would probably be chicken cordon bleu. This food has all of my favorite ingredients in it. There’s chicken, Swiss cheese, and ham. What more could you ask for? You get the chicken hot and the cheese begins to ooze out all over it and then more cheese pools out when you cut into it for your first steamy bite. Writing this makes me wish I had one to eat right now. I absolutely love them.

Nueske’s was nice enough to send me over six and I can only say one bad thing about them. They should have sent me 20. All things considered, it’s not such a bad thing to have to say about them. These gourmet Chicken Cordon Bleus were hands down the best that I have ever had. In fact, I think they have ruined me for any other Chicken Cordon Bleu options.

Just to give you an idea of how good they are, I will tell you what its like when we get review food in our house. I will generally cook up the food that comes in and we all sit down for dinner and weigh in on how good it is. I had a cordon bleu for lunch on my own since everyone had eaten lunch, but me, when these had arrived. I ended up making these for dinner for everyone (myself included) because I knew everyone else would love them. Once they were gone, the tally went Me (3), Dom (2), and my mom (1). When Dominick found out that he wouldn’t be getting a third one he said (about my mom), “She doesn’t do reviews so she shouldn’t be getting any!”

Did I mention Dominick doesn’t really like Swiss cheese much? Or ham?

Each frozen chicken is 8 ounces, which may not sound big, but they are definitely meal worthy and actually do a good job of filling you up. When we ate them we paired them with a small salad and I was stuffed. They take about 45 minutes (give or take a few) to cook in the oven because unlike most commercially purchased Chicken Cordon Bleu breasts, these are actually freshly made and then frozen. The chicken is breaded in a standard mixture that is seasoned to provide just the right taste.

When you cut open to these deliciously moist breaded chicken breasts you are greeted with some scrumptious Canadian bacon and the creamiest, most delicious Swiss cheese that I’ve ever tasted. They are absolute heaven and I highly recommend them to anyone that likes Chicken Cordon Bleu. Heck, all you have to like is chicken (as proven by those in my house) to like these.

You can purchase these at Nueskes in packages of six for $35. They also have Chicken Kiev (we hope to review that soon) for the same price. You can go for the bigger pack and get 12 for $59.95 and you are able to mix and match the Cordon Bleu and Kiev by picking up the six Breast Sampler packs for the same price.

If you haven’t tried Nueskes you don’t know what you’re missing. You should check out their Pepper Bacon and their Old Fashioned Smoked Ham.

You can purchase plenty of great things from Nueskes right at their website http://www.nueskes.com/.

Taste/Flavor: 5 out of 5 stars
Packaging: 5 out of 5 stars
Ease of Prep: 5 out of 5 stars
Look: 5 out of 5 stars
Kid Friendly: 5 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Nueskes, Smoked Meats, Chicken Breast, Food Review, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Chicken Kiev, Canadian Bacon, Swiss Cheese

I’ve had lamb before. I like lamb. Still, it has never been my favorite food. If we’re going on meat, steaks have always had a huge place in my heart. At one point, I would have said that I could take lamb or leave it.

Where I am from the family restaurants (we call them Coney Islands) all serve Gyros. For those that aren’t familiar they are seasoned lamb or pork (or a mix) with tomatoes, onions, and a cucumber yogurt sauce wrapped in a pita bread. They are some of the most delicious Greek food you will ever taste (especially if you’re not too adventurous). So, for a long time my experience with lamb had to do with these amazing sandwiches. However, when it came to cooking lamb I have been skittish.

I purchased a lamb roast and some chops in the past and I have never found them to be as flavorful as I have wanted them to be. I wasn’t sure if I was a bad cook (I like to think I can hold my own) or if it was the lamb, but it just didn’t turn out the way I wanted.

Then one day Lava Lake Lamb approached me about doing a review of their meats. I have to admit, when they mentioned how much Food Network Iron Chef Cat Cora (my favorite IC by the way) loved their lamb, I knew that I had to try it.

They were nice enough to send me a small selection including some ground, some chops, and a small roast. First, let me mention that this is Organic. If you’ve never had organic meat (I had not before this arrived) you’re in for a real succulent treat. In fact, if you’ve never had it you should be prepared to be spoiled towards non-organic lamb. Whether this was just because it was organic or because it was Lava Lake Lamb, I don’t know. All I can say is that this was an eating experience I will never forget!

This lamb was juicy, flavorful, and more delicious than anything that I have ever tasted. It made me feel excellent when I cooked it because I realized that the mediocre lamb mentioned above was that brands fault more so than mine. At least, I have to imagine that is the case, considering that I cooked this Lava Lake Lamb and everyone in the house had their mouth watering for more!

Despite the roast being on the smaller end, it was incredibly lean and it was large enough for us to get more than one meal out of it for the whole family. The first night we had the lamb with some Greek potatoes and the second night we made some lamb gyros. We had to have gyros at least once. We also had some amazing lamb meatballs and of course, some lamb chops. My mouth is watering just thinking of this lamb!

Lava Lake Lamb arrives packed in dry ice to ensure that your meat is packaged as safely as possible. You can then put the meat in the refrigerator or in the freezer if you’re not planning to cook it right away. The packing was top notch and I had no concerns about the fact that this had been shipped from another state.

I can see why Cat Cora loves working with Lava Lake Lamb. I do, too! In fact, I’ve come to realize that if we decide to have lamb I am just going to have to order more from Lava Lake Lamb because the lamb you find in the grocery store, or locally (depending on your area) just won’t cut it. This is quite possibly the best lamb in the world!

Taste/Flavor: 5 out of 5 stars
Packaging: 5 out of 5 stars
Ease of Prep: 5 out of 5 stars
Look: 5 out of 5 stars
Kid Friendly: 4 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Lava Lake Lamb, Lamb Chops, Roast, Food Review, Cat Cora, Cook, Ground Lamb, Gyros, Excellent, Tasty

I’ll admit this now. I grew up in Toledo. I have always been (for as long as I can remember) a Michigan Wolverines fan, but I grew up in a Buckeyes household. While I cannot stand the Buckeyes football team, I LOVE the Buckeyes candies. They remind me of Ohio and who doesn’t love delicious chocolate wrapped around yummy peanut butter? Ohio is the buckeye state, the buckeye is the state tree and Buckeyes candies are designed to look exactly like the Buckeye nut, from these trees, only in candy form. When I heard Pierre’s had a new flavor since I last lived in Ohio, Nuts About Buckeyes, I was elated.

We ended up getting a container of Nuts About Buckeyes and a container of Cupcake. Let me tell you, as good as Nuts About Buckeyes is, Cupcake is just as good. Eating Cupcake ice cream by Pierre’s is like eating a cupcake and ice cream together. This is probably because the ice cream is filled with swirls of cake batter. There are also yummy looking pink sprinkles and blue cake frosting. It is a cake completely immersed in ice cream. I didn’t get to eat much of it, because I was busy being Nuts About Buckeyes, but the ladies in the house ate pretty much the entire container without me!

Nuts About Buckeyes is a vanilla and peanut butter swirled ice cream with tiny pieces of Buckeyes candy. The taste of this ice cream is absolutely delectable! I cannot say enough good things about this ice cream. I am so glad they sent a container though, because everybody in the family loved this ice cream and it was devoured fast enough as it is! Of course, these flavors are not the only flavors we had the chance to review, though, seeing as I’m a chocoholic, this was definitely my favorite.

Pierre’s has realized that some of the people who purchase their ice cream have become health conscious and that is why they have developed a line of frozen yogurts. These are Pierre’s Yovation yogurts. I’ll be the first to admit that the only kind of yogurt I’ll eat is the frozen kind. We received a quart of Cookie Fudge Crunch. Ashtyn didn’t tell me that this was frozen yogurt right away, and not ice cream, and I’ll be honest. I knew it tasted smooth and creamy, but I thought it was just creamy ice cream. While it didn’t go over as well with the masses as the yummy, fat filled, ice cream flavors did, it certainly was appreciated by both Ashtyn and myself. Of course, you have to imagine how hard ANY flavor of yogurt or ice cream would have to work to beat both Buckeyes and Cupcakes in ice cream form.

Yovation is creamy, smooth and the Cookie Crunch tastes chocolate-y. If you like frozen yogurt and Cookies and Cream style flavors, you will want to give Pierre’s Yovation a try. Pierre’s sells their Yovation flavors in a five quarts set online. It is expensive (almost $100) if you buy it online, but shipping ice cream isn’t cheap, so that price is to be expected. However, Pierre’s also sells their Yovation flavors (and their ice cream) at a selection of retailers across the United States and Internationally. You can check out the Pierre’s website (http://www.pierres.com/), and see if there is a dealer selling Yovation, or any of the other Pierre’s flavors of ice cream the company makes, near you (Check the FAQ page to see where Pierre’s is sold).

Finally, we received a quart of Hola Fruta Piña Colada. Hola Fruta is Pierre’s line of sherbets. These sherbets are made of real fruit and are deliciously fruity. The Piña Colada makes an excellent palette cleanser. It is light, coconut-y and smooth. I prefer ice cream to sherbet, but that’s just me. Of course, this does not mean I do not like sherbet. I like it as much as the next guy. I believe Ashtyn was much more enamored with the Hola Fruta Piña Colada, since she is a huge fan of anything Piña Colada flavored. Either way, we both enjoyed this and were glad Pierre’s sent this for us to review. I just recommend you be a fan of sherbet. Otherwise, the Hola Fruta won’t do it for you.

All in all, the offerings from Pierre’s are great. I recommend you look for their flavors of ice cream, frozen yogurt and sherbet at your local grocers. If you can’t find Pierre’s there, look the company up online. If nothing else, I recommend becoming Nuts About Buckeyes though every flavor I’ve tried of their ice cream and other offerings has been worth the purchase. When it comes down to it, this frozen, dessert foods aficionado is more than satisfied!

Technorati Tags: Pierre’s, Ice Cream, Nuts About Buckeyes, Cupcake, Yovation, Hola Fruta, Piña Colada, Frozen Yogurt, Sherbet, Frozen Food, Dessert

Paula’s line, from what I have seen, focuses a lot on mixes and powders. For example, you can find her biscuit mix, a grill seasoning, and her famous House Seasoning, which is what I am about to review right now. Overall, this is a seasoning that I find it hard to do without. Since I received it for review, I have used it in everything from soup to sprinkling it on burgers and steaks. It’s multipurpose, offers great flavor, but it never overpowers anything. It always ends up offering mild and enhanced flavors.

Before I delve too far into this review, I should say that this seasoning is not incredibly profound. It’s something that you could make at home if you had the inclination to do so. However, rather than purchasing a separate mass of seasonings to mix them together, Paula offers them all in one jar for a lower price. The seasonings consist of garlic and onion powder, salt, and pepper. The blend is perfect and it offers a nice taste to whatever you put it in/on.

The main complaint that I have is that the adorable jar does not have the slotted top that many seasonings offer. This gives you a better sprinkle-ability and allows you to measure things out more evenly. Sprinkling in the palm or dipping my fingers in for a pinch was somewhat of a hassle depending on what I was making. It wasn’t so much of a problem that I wouldn’t use it, because the flavor outweighs any negatives, but it would have been nice to not have to worry about thIS issue.

I received one jar for this review and it lasted me quite awhile. In fact, had I not knocked it off the picnic table during a cookout, I would still have some. Considering all the use I got out of it when I had it, I plan to buy some more as soon as I get the chance. You can purchase Paula’s House Seasoning at the Food Network Store, where you get 2 good sized jars for $14.95. If you find yourself cooking a great deal this is definitely worth your money. You can use it on just about anything from popcorn to most meals. It will end up being a vital part of your seasoning arsenal, especially if this blend is something you use often already.

Taste/Flavor: 5 out of 5 stars
Packaging: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Food Network, Paula Deen, Signature Chef Line, Cooking, Seasoning, Onion, Garlic, Salt, Pepper, Popcorn, Meals, House Seasoning, Multipurpose