Product Review & Giveaway: Weight Watchers Cheese

I love cheese. No, you don’t understand. I love cheese. From Cheddar to Mozzarella to Brie to Parmesan to Cheez Whiz (sorry), to my absolute favorite: Cambozola – I could eat cheese all day. In fact, I’ve been known to skip dessert and sit down with a crusty baguette and a creamy blue cheese to end my night.  The thing about cheese though, is that it’s quite fattening and not necessarily a guilt-free pleasure for me.

Enter Weight Watchers Cheese!
{Trust me, I was skeptical too.}

I’m a fan of Weight Watchers foods – I like the cookies, cakes and breads (the yogurts are a way too “aspartame-y” for me though) – so I jumped at the chance to sample their new line of cheeses.  I was sent an awesome picnic basket, full of healthy snacks like trail mix and nuts, along with a ton of cheeses. I decided to try the Reduced Fat Cream Cheese Spread to start.

First off, I liked the fact that the package is labeled by “points.”

Image Credit: VanderbiltWife.com

So I knew exactly how much 1 serving was and was able to cut the package accordingly. I toasted a thin bagel and spread my Weight Watchers Cream Cheese on. Yum! A low-fat breakfast.

Then I got adventurous.

One evening last week for dinner I decided I was tired of the usual dishes we always have for dinner and wanted to make something new.  I opted for the Chicken Croissants that Jane raves about.  Here is the recipe:

Chicken Croissants

Ingredients:
- Cream Cheese (1 package)
- Mushrooms (1 package, diced)
- Onion (as much as you like…I use about 1/4 of an onion)
- Cooked Chicken Breast (2 breasts?)
- Pillsbury Crescent Rolls OR Frozen Filo Dough
- Gravy topping – you can use cream of chicken soup or make chicken gravy with broth and thickening

Directions:
Cook the chicken breast however you want (boil, pressure cooker, microwave). Chop up and sautee the mushrooms and onions. Mix chicken, mushrooms and onions into the cream
cheese. This is your filling. Here are the directions for each type of “crescent”:

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls: Put a blob of filling on the triangle of dough and roll the dough around the filling – cook for as long as directed on the package for the rolls.

Phyllo: Follow the directions on the package for phyllo.

Phyllo is SUPER yummy, but the crescent rolls are yummy too – crescent rolls are MUCH easier.

Top with gravy and enjoy!

I used the Weight Watchers Reduced Fat Cream Cheese Spread and, let me tell you, it was sensational! The kids crushed the meal and even hubby who has an aversion to mushrooms AND onions, cleaned his plate. Must have been the cheese…

I still have the Original Swiss, Garlic & Herb, Parmesan Peppercorn and Jalepeno Pepper wedge cheeses to try.  Each wedge is only 1 Weight Watchers Point, so this will be a great snack to toss into my purse and tote with me to work.

Do you love cheese? Please say that you do so we can stay friends. Better still:

(1) Leave me a comment about your favorite way to eat cheese; and

(2) Tweet this post using the #WeightWatchersCheese hashtag,

and I’ll randomly choose on on the comments to win a Weight Watchers Cheese Snack Kit! Easy. Cheesy.

Contest ends Wednesday, August 25 at midnight.

*Disclosure: Thanks to Weight Watchers for providing me with a selection of their cheeses to sample!

Countdown to BlogHer (with Chocolate!)

BlogHer ‘10 is just days away and it’s time for me to get my act together.  This year the pre-BlogHer excitement reached an all new level for me, and I think it’s largely because I’m in a comfortable groove when it comes to my blogging self. I belong to several blog networks that I adore and so many exciting doors have opened as a result.  Not to mention the energizing success of Blogalicious and all the opportunities that it has brought us Mamalaw gals.  Finally, there’s the bizarre and sometimes uncomfortable colliding of my blogging self and my working self.  No matter what aspect of my life I turn to, all roads lead to BlogHer ‘10!  So it’s a good thing that I have a ride to New York City this Thursday morning…

On the Hershey Train!

The what?

The Hershey Train!! The fantastic, fantastic Lara of Chicken Nuggets of Wisdom, Amy L. of Resourceful Mommy, and Amy M. of Teach Mama hooked up us DC Metro Area bloggers with travel to and from The Big Apple, courtesy of Hershey’s Chocolate. Sweeeet! (Sorry, I couldn’t help myself)

To celebrate, last week, we each received a S’mores Kit from Hershey’s Chocolate complete with – of course – Hershey’s Chocolate, marshmallows, graham crackers, and fancy dancy marshmallow roasters:

It’s been so ridiculously hot here that we haven’t had the courage to even think about firing up the grill, so I’m thinking that I’ll save this fun activity for September, when the DC Weather gods decide to have some mercy on us.  In the meantime, though, I did try a delicious recipe for S’mores Brownies for my Ladies Summer Luncheon last weekend.  Take a look at these beauties:

Want the recipe? SO easy:

S’mores Brownies a la Fergie

Bake store-bought brownie cake mix according to package directions (I chose Betty Crocker chocolate – not fudge – brownie mix); let cool and cut into squares;

Halve 6 marshmallows and place a half on each brownie square; Broil for 1 minute or until the marshmallow is golden and a little melted;

Melt 2 bars of Hershey’s Milk Chocolate in a double boiler; add a splash of heavy whipping cream and dash of vanilla (if desired);

Drizzle melted chocolate over the brownies and top with crushed graham crackers.

Just one of the many wonderful uses for Hershey’s Chocolate.  Another is to smuggle the candy bars onto the train on Thursday morning. I’m thinking I’ll need all the sugar I can get. BlogHer ‘10 is going to be HYPE!

If you’re going to be at BlogHer ‘10, make sure to get your piece of the sweetness:

Thanks to Hershey’s Chocolate for sponsoring my train ride to BlogHer ‘10 and for the cute S’mores Kit!

I Couldn’t Resist

Check out the announcement from my local Whole Foods store:

Wednesday, July 21st

TOP CHEF, SILVER SPRING – COOKING CHALLENGE
6:30pm – 8:00pm $5 per team – Registration is Required

Do you love Top Chef?  Do you ever wonder if you could compete?  Show off your cooking skills at our Top Chef, Silver Spring – Cooking Challenge.  Four teams of two will compete in an in-store cooking challenge with guest judges …stay tuned to find out who you could be cooking for! Who will win the coveted title of Top Chef, Silver Spring?

To register your team, email Melanie Sipple at melanie.sipple@wholefoods.com with a short explanation of why your team should be selected to compete!  Selected teams will be notified one week in advance.

My buddy Thien-Kim and I submitted our names. Are we crazy or what???

Fingers crossed!

Avoidance, Internet Safety & Me

In addition to being hot as all getout in the DC area, June is also Internet Safety Month.  As a tech lawyer, I’m well aware of the dangers that the Internet presents to children and teens when they’re given unsupervised access.  And those dangers are truly terrifying.  My children are ages 5 (almost 6), 4 and 2 years old – and lucky for me, they’re still at an age where their time on the Internet is extremely limited.  We went through a stint where the preschooler and the kindergartener wanted to use my laptop every chance they got to watch music videos or play games on Starfall.  We also visited PBS Kids often.  I liked Starfall and PBS Kids because they could click through themselves and the likelihood of them being led astray by flashing ads or attractive links was low.

YouTube was a whole ‘nother story.  I actually bookmarked 2 of their favorite videos so that they could click on them easily.  The problem is that, well, YouTube is a huge problem.  So we shut that down pretty quickly.

We actually brought up my old PC from the basement and hooked it up for the kids, so that they could have “their own” computer.  They liked clicking around, and would quickly would get distracted by a banner or smiley face ad. And we know those are all bad news.

It didn’t take Chatterbox too long to find Google.  We have the Google toolbar loaded. I mean how can anyone survive without access to Google at their fingertips 24/7?  So she quickly figured out that she could type in “Hannah Montana” or “Barbie” and come up with a bevy of search results – not all of them courtesy of Disney or Mattel.  I had to make sure to keep a close eye on her computer time and then not too long after – by the grace of God – the computer died.

So we’ve been on an Internet hiatus when it comes to the kids.  And I don’t mind one bit.  After attending the Cox Summit on Teen Internet Safety, I was bombarded with enough stats and horror stories to not want to let my kids even think about the Internet.  And so, for now, the Webkinz that I bought on sale last year will remain safely wrapped up on the coat closet shelf.

I know one day I’m going to have to bite the bullet and face the fact that my kids are online.  But I’m in no hurry.  For now I’m busy enough with shoelace-tying lessons and breaking up arguments over who gets the cherry Popsicle to have to worry about cyberbullying, online child predators, and sexting.  And I’m cherishing every moment.

A Yahoo Motherboard-inspired post.

Out of Town Eats

The past two weeks (well, really 6 years) have been busy.  The week before last I traveled to Nashville for work.  It was my second time going to Nashville – I was there in February for Blissdom Conference – but I didn’t get the chance to try any local BBQ.  I am in a love affair with the Yelp! app on my Droid, so I easily pulled up the best rated BBQ joint in downtown Nashville and walked to the main strip to check it out.  I ordered the beef brisket, coleslaw and cornbread.  While Jack’s was good, I really wasn’t all that impressed. In fact, I even thought to myself that our local BBQ place had them beat by a mile.  So I was feeling a little disappointed in my Nashville BBQ experience.

And then I arrived at the airport. Yes, the airport.  I saw the mini-location of the Neely’s BBQ restaurant! I was so excited and did not think twice before ordering up a pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw and fries. OH MY was it ever good. Now that’s what BBQ should taste like! It was moist, tender, flavorful and the sauce was divine.  The coleslaw was the perfect combination of crunchy, creamy and salty and the crisp fries were icing on the cake. Just you take a look:

Success!

Last week I headed to my native country of Canada for my best friend’s wedding.  Going home always calls for special trips to eat the heartwarming foods that I grew up on and that aren’t available in the States.  In addition to stockpiling the requisite Cadbury chocolate bars and Swedish Berries, I wasted no time in getting to Burger King and ordering a poutine – the Quebec french fry, gravy and cheese curd delicacy. There’s really nothing like it.

Oh Canada.

Fed Up with Facebook?

I joined Facebook years ago, waaaaay back in 2007 or 2008 in my role as a high-tech goods and services lawyer.  Hardly anyone was on it then and it seemed…simpler.  More peaceful.  Now that everybody and their Mama is on Facebook (including, incidentally, my Mama), Facebook has unashamedly picked up the pace in terms of chipping away at the walls of privacy that it built in order to persuade us to join in the first place.

Nowadays it seems like there is a new scandal involving Facebook on a weekly basis.  Their privacy policies are cryptic and full of holes, virtually impossible for the average user to navigate.  And increasingly the medium is becoming commercialized.  You only have to be halfway paying attention to notice the little tricks that have slowly been creeping into your Facebook experience that encourage you to grow your network (Hey! Aunt Marge suggests you become friends with her grocery store bag boy!) or provide third-party application providers with your personal information (Of course you can set up your family tree! All you need to do is grant this random, unidentified app provider access to your profile!).

Any yet, Facebook recently surpassed Google as the most visited site in the United States.  There’s no questioning that it has revolutionized the way we communicate with our family, friends and co-workers.  It’s easy to use (but for those pesky privacy settings), it’s fun to use, and it’s addictive.  So clearly they’re doing something right.  And even though I know all to well the privacy concerns and security issues that Facebook presents to users, I have yet to take my profile down.  Checking my News Feed and my Wall has become a part of my daily routine.

Because, after all, even though I may know better…I’m human.  And that means I need to update my status every 11 minutes. It’s only natural.

An original Blissfully Domestic Technology Channel post.

But It’s Just So Preeeetty!

Target has done it again. They’ve already laid claim to approximately $100 per month of my money, but now they’ve gone and put the nail in the coffin by offering several new lines of products that I already love: Caldrea and Miss Jessie’s, in addition to some brand new ones.

Yes, my kitchen-lovin’ friends, there is now a cookware line designed by miss Giada deLaurentiis herself.

Now I know what you’re thinking. And you’re probably right that this particular line of cookware is no better than the Cuisinarts or Calphalons of the world, but….it’s just so gorgeous!  {I can’t believe I just called cookware “gorgeous” but I did.  I gasped when I saw the aisle in the store.} I can’t wait to get my hands on some of the tools. I’ve got my eyes on this Stainless Steel 14-piece Knife Set:

and this Cast Iron Panini Pan with Press:

There’s a cute video of her introducing her line here {boo, Target, for not letting people embed.}

There are also food items available as well, such as dried pasta and infused oils.

Well done Giada.

Meals on Wheels: Food Meets Social Media

Have you looked up and down your street lately? Chances are you’ve seen at least one food truck – the hottest sensation in the food industry right now.  I love the concept behind these trucks: they’re mobile; bring a variety of foods to areas that might be lacking; affordable and fast; and “mom and pop” owned.

Near my building at work, we have very few lunchtime options.  It’s quite sad, really. And bizarre since D.C. is obviously a cosmopolitan city.  It just happens to be the particular area it’s located in, I suppose.  Imagine my delight when I peeped a food truck in the neighborhood last week. And, oh my, there was a line wrapping around the corner waiting! The food truck is run by Eat Sauca! and their concept of “Eat the World” combines food, music, travel, technology and design into a globally inspired dining experience. I saw another one yesterday – Fojol Brothers – which is a “Traveling Culinary Carnival.” Things are definitely looking up around these parts!

Of course food trucks are by no means brand new – they’re modeled after cities that have used them as a part of their cultures for decades.  But, what makes these new-wave food trucks unique is the fact that they’re connected…using social media to build their customer base and to stay in touch with their loyal followings.  My favorite example of this is Curbside Cupcakes, a mobile cupcake company, that tells its customers about their whereabouts using Facebook and Twitter.

The perfect meeting of food and social media…right up my alley (pun intended).

Check out this Yelp listing of mobile food eateries in Washington, DC.

Bring It On, Rach

I could give Rachael Ray a run for her garbage bowl.  She might make 30-minute meals, but I’m the queen of 20-minute meals. The window of time I have between when I walk in the door from work and when my middle child is going to pass out from hunger is slim. And so I’ve perfected the art of the quick meal.

Case in point: today I made 3 meals for a friend of mine who just had twins that haven’t made it home yet because they’re still in the NICU.  She’s exhausted and busy going back and forth to the hospital all while pumping and taking care of her older son. So, while I’m crazy busy, in comparison I really have it easy. And so I said I would bring her a few meals to get her through the week.

Now, about that “crazy busy” thing; this morning at 7am, I was in the car on my way to interview Hill Harper (yes!) for an upcoming Mamalaw project.  Then it was onto Chatterbox’s school multicultural festival. After 2 hours of ring tosses, bouncehouses and overpriced sugary snacks, we went to eat and then finally made it home. That left me with about 2 hours to grocery shop and throw together a few meals from my friend. I ended up making Sausage Penne with Vodka Sauce; Grilled Garlic-White Wine Marinated Tilapia with Corn on the Cob and Green Beans; and my infamous Taco Casserole and Yellow Rice.  And I did it all while watching my kids play on the deck and making dinner for my own clan.

What ‘chu got on that, Food Network?

It’s Tea Time

I have a thing for tea parties. Well not, you know, that Tea Party, but the sugar cubes, silver tea service, fanciful hats sort of tea party.  Spring Teas are a cornerstone of southern living, and by golly doesn’t it just happen to be spring! I feel a pot a’ brewin’…

Here are some of the lovely novelties on my tea party hostess list:

Save the date: your invitation is in the mail.