Hey guys!
Happy Monday!
Happy October! <- Whoa! How did THAT happen?!
But more importantly…
Happy Foodie Pen Pal Reveal Day!!
A big THANK YOU to Lindsay for all the hard work she puts into this program each and every month! And hey, how about that sweet new button Calee created!
Love…IT!
This month I was paired up with a blog reader, Gin, from Ohio and I have to say she did a darn good job picking out my goodies:
I was so excited to see my box was filled with unique local items! I received a packet of spicy dry rub mix, a baby jug of pure maple syrup, some cranberry honey mustard, and the CUTEST little tin of peach honey spread.
#tinythingsarecute
The rub has been sprinkled on everything from roasted veggies, to grilled chicken, to scrambled eggs…it has an amazing smoky flavor that I just can’t get enough of!
My Sweet Potato Pie Pancakes claimed the debut drizzle of syrup…
And I’ll give you two guess as to how I ended up eating the mustard 😉
It says “honey mustard” but I swear it tastes like a fruity cocktail sauce…forget the celery, I need some shrimp!
But the best? Well of course I saved that for last…
Toasty bagel + goat cheese + peach honey = HEAVVVVVVEN!
I’m sure that jar was meant to have something around the line of 4 or 5 servings, but I’ll admit, after breakfast the other day, there’s only a small spoonful left!
Oops? 😉
Thank you SO MUCH for everything, Gin…I loved it ALL!
As for the recipient of MY foodie package, Ashleigh, a new mother and blog from North Carolina, welcomed this lovely haul:
I think I got a little carried away! 😉
Through our email exchange, I knew she liked a mix of sweet, salty, and crunchy as well as a fine admiration for chocolate, hazelnuts, and black tea…
So I packed up some of my favorite snacks that I thought she might enjoy, including my coveted orange date nut honey jelly (I’ll be honest, it was hard letting that go!), a variety of bars, some pumpkin spice, chocolate, and chai tea (with some Stevia for her to try), and well, it only made sense to throw in some Justin’s chocolate hazelnut butter!
But believe it or not, there was still room left in the box after all that!
Of course, I couldn’t resist adding a little something extra…
I think she earned it! 😉
While she wasn’t able to type up a guest post, she did send me a lovely email the weekend after she received her goodies…
“Heather, I just wanted to say THANK YOU for my goodie box. I shared everything with my family too and my dad ate all the plantain chips if that tells you anything. LOL I really enjoyed the almond and coconut bar it was the shizznit. The Justin’s Hazelnut butter was also fabulous spread on top of walnut browines. I have not tried the chocolate tea yet but its nice and rainy this evening an it with some lavender bubble bath sounds divine. Lavender is my fav. So that was very much so appreciated!! :-)”
So there ya have it…another INCREDIBLE Foodie Pen Pal experience!
Wanna join in on next month’s fun?
Here are some deets:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email-
-You have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail-
-On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received-
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things-
local food items or even homemade treats!
-Spending limit is $15-
-Open to blog readers AS WELL as bloggers-
-For US & Canadian residents only-
Try it for a month, if it’s not your thing, there’s no commitment! But I’m pretty sure you’ll be hooked just like me!
What is your favorite jam/spread?
Any exciting tales from this weekend?
I was on call this weekend, and ended up getting called in (Boo!), but I still managed to get in a couple of good workouts, scored some AWESOME deals at the supermarket (more on that later), and watched a bit more Netflix than I care to admit! 😉
you are correct, tiny things are cute 🙂
Holy cow, that peach honey looks awesome. I’m a huge fan of honey mustard and I’ve never tried a cranberry flavor. You got a cool box!
I know, right? I’m a bit obsessed when it comes to mustard…I may or may not have jumped up and down when I pulled this out of the box! 😉
Local items are the best. Wow, those pancakes look and I’m sure taste amazing!
Oh yes…yes they WERE! It only pains me to speak of them in the past tense! 😉
tiny things are super cute. also, I need to jump back in soon. this month sucks for me though. so November.
also, every box I’ve gotten from Ohio has knocked it out of the park.
And thanks for the mention, sista!
I’m so glad I got back in! I took a month off during the summer and after seeing all the link ups on reveal day, I just couldn’t stand to sit out another! I always think the month I skip could be the month my foodie mind is blown! Lol
And you are SO welcome! I am always impressed with your mad skillz! 😉
This stuff looks great! I’m doing the program for the first time this month, and I’ll be sure to mention to my pen pal how much I LOVE Love Grown granola 🙂
Yay! You’re gonna have so much fun! And who knows…maybe you’ll get ME! I always do what I can to help spread the “LOVE”! 😉
That was a lovely spread on both sides of the mailbox! Awesome! I’m in LOVE with foodie pen pals and almost sad I must miss October (ok, not too sad since I’ll be on a beach in Hawaii)…but food takes a close second to Hawaiian beaches!! Happy October!
Hmm, stay at home and wait for a box of food or relax on the beaches of paradise? Yeah, that one doesn’t take much thought! Lol
So jealous! Have some coconut milk for me!
My mom gave me some maple pumpkin butter, and it might be the best fruit spread I’ve ever had. Delicious!
Looks like you got an awesome haul!
Omg, I LOVE pumpkin butter! And with maple? Mmm, sounds wonderful! I just used up the last of my jar of pumpkin butter today…spread it on top of some pumpkin bread…you know, because you can never have too much pumpkin! #naturaltanner #doilooklikesnookieyet 😉
Ooh that peach honey spread sounds so good! If you still have any left, I bet it would taste awesome made into a glaze for chicken or pork tenderloin!
My favourite spread is fig jam. I love it on anything from oatmeal to toast to sandwiches to pizza!
Brilliant! Oh how I forget how well fruit goes with pork…yes, I am DEFINITELY holding out and making a glaze with the rest!
LOVE fig jam…I’d have to say it’s my favorite too…next to my precious FROG, that is! 😉
That maple syrup is amazing!! I have had it!
I recently got pumpkin butter…TO DIE FOR! Dip some pretzles in it- cant go wrong!!
Been there, done that…half a bag of pretzels GONE in like 20 minutes flat! Lol
My goal in life is to one day be your foodie penpal.
Ditto! :*
your foodie pen pal box was great! too fun 🙂
I’ve actually written off bagels due simply to the fact that I didn’t want to eat cream cheese on them (I have an allergy to certain dairy products), but why oh why have I never thought to top them with goat cheese??!! I sincerely thank you for opening my eyes! 🙂
Aww, yay! Any time love, any time! 😉 And just fyi, goat cheese and blueberry jam is amazing together!
I love you got to enjoy some eats from Ohio. I love buying local whenever possible and I recognize some of your goodies. I haven’t done the foodie pen pal yet but you’d make a hell of a sponsor.
Oh yay! I forgot that’s your stomping grounds! You HAVE to do join! It’s so much fun! And I swear, I’ve NEVER received any green beans! 😉
Makes me saaadddd. Poor Australia – all we have is kangaroos and koalas and nooo foodie penpal 🙁
I want to cry for you, but now all I can think of is petting a baby kangaroo! 😉
Love the idea! I did an online gluten free christmas exchange once and it was so fun.
as for favourite jams, I was staying in a hostel in Hallstatt, Austria and the lady who ran the place made fresh jam to go with our breakfasts every morning, the first morning we were there she made this unbelievable banana, cinnamon jam that I still dream about, it was epic!
Oh WOW! That sounds beyond amazing! I really need to start making my own jams!
I love all the Ohio foods you got in your package! It’s really fun to try things you can’t find at home
I love this foodie pen pal idea—definitely going to check it out. My go-to eats are boring (I’m a creature of habit), so it would be a great way for me to try a few new things to jazz ’em up. Fun!
Oh yes, it’s GREAT for adding some fun to your usual snacks! It just stinks when you get something that is absolutely fabulous but not available ANYWHERE near you! Lol
Peach honey?! Yes, please!!!! I picked up some cinnamon honey at the farmer’s market and it was the BEST.
Mmmm! Sounds yummy! I love buying local honey from the farmer’s market!
hello! i’m gin’s pal who made the peach honey spread. i am so glad to hear you liked it! makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! 🙂
Warm and fuzzy, huh? Now you’ve just given me the idea to serve the spread HEATED UP! 😉 But seriously, thank you SO much Lizette! It was wonderful and made the perfect addition to breakfast that morning…I’m hoarding what little I have left now…gonna slap that stuff on some chicken breast! 😀 Lol
You make the BEST packages!!!
I love the cranberry honey mustard. I have a jar in my fridge from another pen pal swap and I cannot believe I haven’t finished it yet.
My favorite jam? DUH! FROG!!!!
Aww, thanks pretty lady! And right back atcha! I’ve always done a little happy dance whenever I’ve opened up a package from you! 😉
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