Fleischmann's Simple Homemade No Knead Bread Mix

On a scale of 1 - 10 I give this product a 8.

This was so simple to make.  It's just a matter of mixing the yeast, sugar and water.  Waiting a couple of minutes and then adding the bread mix.  I placed mine into a loaf pan, let it sit for 25 minutes and then baked.  The instructions call for a 400 degree oven and baking time of 20-25 minutes.  I did find that it took about 10 minutes longer in my oven.  Now, that might have been because the directions have you bake your bread on a flat pan and I used a loaf pan or it may be that my oven is off.  No matter why the added time, I still had a great product.

The bread mix comes in Stoneground Wheat, Country White, Multi-Grain and Italian Herb.  I love seeded rye so I bought the Italian Herb and added some caraway seed to acquire my rye bread taste.  Since I had not tried this before I made 2 mistakes.  #1 - I should have added the seeds to the yeast water instead of trying to work it into the dough.  #2 - I added about 1/4 tsp. and wished I had added just a bit more. 

After baking my bread I decided to dress it up a bit.  I removed it from the pan, sliced it just down to the bottom crust but not cutting through.  Inside the slits I added cheese, put the loaf back into the pan and placed it back in the oven for about 5 minutes giving the cheese time to melt.  Now this was good!  Add a little lunch meat and you have the perfect appetizer for a Monday night football game.

The only reason I didn't give this product a 10 is that the bread was a bit heavy.  But this is a product that I will continue to buy.The one thing I would like to ask of Fleischmann is to please add a Seeded Rye to their flavors.  Did I mention that my whole house smelled wonderful?!

Marzetti Simply Dressed

On a scale of 1 to 10 I give this product a nine!

Marzetti Simply Dressed Coleslaw mix has the perfect touch of sweetness enhanced with the perfect touch of vinegar and just a hint of onion.  For my coleslaws I shredded about 2 cups of cabbage, add about 1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar and equal amounts of vinegar, a sprinkle of dehydrated onions and then enough mayo to make it slightly creamy.  This makes enough slaw to serve 4 but you have to wait for the onions to plump back up, the sugar to dissolve and the flavors to blend before serving.  With the Marzetti Simply Dressed Coleslaw I used the same amount of cabbage and added about 3 Tbsp. of the mix.  Nothing else and no waiting.  Plus, with my old coleslaw recipe I would end up with the liquid running all over the plate mixing itself into everything it comes into contact with.  Not so with Marzetti.  It clings to the cabbage and giving you an enjoyable bite every time.

Now to dress up your coleslaw using Marzetti Simply Dressed Coleslaw mix you can add chopped apples, raisins, a little pineapple juice or pineapple flavoring.  You can drizzle it over a chicken wrap or even use it in place of the mayo for your chicken salad.  As I say in my cookbook "Think With Your Taste Buds."

Ro-Tel's new Zesty Tomato and Green Chili Sauce

On a scale of 1 - 10 I give this product an 8.  I've used this in both meatloaf and just recently in my newest recipe "Cube Steak Catatorie" and find the the flavor wonderful.  It has just a bit of heat and makes a moist, flavorful meatloaf.  My Cube Steak Catatorie was not only appealing to the eye it was also bursting with flavor.  So, why didn't I give this product a 10?  I know it's a sauce but I would loved to have seen just a few chunks of the  peppers in the sauce. 

Bauducco Panettone Specialty Cakes

On a scale of 1 - 10 I have the pleasure of giving this product a 10.  I've tried two of these cakes.  One is made with candied fruit and raisins, the other is made with milk chocolate chips.  Both are great toasted with a little butter but the best was when I made up a butter bourbon glaze (go to my site Stir, Laugh, Repeat for recipe) and let it seep into the one with the fruit and raisins.  Oh my!  This was delicious, easy and perfect as a take along for any party, cookout or gathering.  The chocolate chip one is great toasted, topped with ice cream and chocolate sauce.  And my food testers simply loved it!

Rice A Roni Rice Pilaf

On a scale of 1 - 10 I give this product an 8.  Why not a 10.  It makes a wonderful dish when adding meat and a touch of olive oil, but on its own it's a bit sticky.  Taste wise it's wonderful! 

Peter Pan - New Natural Peanut Butter

On a scale of 1 - 10 I give this product a 10!

If you, like me, like lots of peanuts in your peanut butter than you can't help but love Peter Pan's new 100% Natural, No need to Stir, Crunchy peanut butter.  As you can see, it's full of peanuts!  And they are all the way through, not just on top.  The spoonful in the picture were taken from the middle-bottom of the jar, still plenty of nuts.  Plus, it works great in peanut butter cookies.  I have a simple way of making peanut butter cookies in which I simply use a package of sugar cookie mix (dry), add 1 egg, 2 Tbsp. melted butter and 1/2 to 3/4 cups of peanut butter.  The new Peter Pan is creamy enough that you can cut down the amount of butter called for on the cookie mix package.  I believe the one I used called for 1/2 cup of butter and I cut it down to 2 Tbsp.  So, like I said, this is a new product so if it's not made it to your store yet, ask for it.  It's got to be the best Crunchy Peanut Butter I've eaten.

Don't like crunchy?  It also comes in creamy and honey.

K.C. Masterpiece Buffalo Marinade

On a scale of 1 - 10, I give this product an 9.  Why not a 10?  A little hot for me if used directly but most people do want their Buffalo sauce hot.

My 1st thought for using this product was, of course, chicken wings - but that's so common.  So I decided to use pork instead of chicken.  My 2nd thought was marinade which means to put the meat in the marinade for a certain period of time, remove and cook.  I decided to do what I teach in my cookbook Think With Your Taste Buds and decided to use the marinade as a cooking sauce.

So, this is what I did.  I put a 5 lb. Boston Butt in my slow cooker, covered it with K. C. Masterpiece Buffalo Marinade, set the controls on medium and let my butt cook all day.  When I came home this evening my whole house smelled tasty making me rush to the cooker to see how my butt was doing.  It literally fell off the bone, was juicy and tender.  Of course I had to taste test and picked a few bites from the center as well as a few bites from the outside to see how the flavor had distributed.  No matter which section I tasted, there was no difference in flavor. 

K. C. Masterpiece Buffalo Marinade makes the perfect sauce for slow cooking meats.  I can only imagine how it will taste on the grill.  It is spicy and tangy with a bit of heat.