Awhile back, I received an email asking me if I would be willing to try and review a new soft drink called Cascal. Since I don’t drink sodas, my first reaction was a big, fat ‘no’. But the more I read about Cascal, the more intrigued I was. It’s not your typical soda. It’s not loaded with sugar, high fructose corn syrup, or sodium. It’s all natural and only 60 calories per can. Whaaa?? And it’s flavor comes from fermentation. So then I started thinking, “Wine?! Yipppeee!” But no, it’s non-alcoholic.
So, at this point, I basically HAD to try it out of sheer curiosity. And let me tell you, it’s amazing! Crisp, refreshing and totally flavorful. I can’t wait to get my hands on more! My favorite was the Bright Citrus, hands down. I love the combination of flavors in each variety. The Ripe Rouge flavor had hints of dark chocolate and cherry- amazing. I would highly recommend these as a great alternative to regular sodas (oh, and they’re gluten and caffiene-free!)
Here’s the good news: I’m giving some away! Yippee! If you’d like to try these, just leave a comment in the comments section below to enter. (**This giveaway is now closed**) That’s it! Be sure and check out Cascal on Facebook (www.facebook.com/Cascal) and Twitter (@cheersCascal).
*The good folks at Cascal sent me one of each flavor to try, and I am giving my honest opinion. I was not compensated for my opinions or this post.
You know, there’s really only one man who can lift my spirits after a long hard day, make me laugh even when I don’t feel like laughing, make me sing for no reason, reduce me to tears in the most beautiful way and help look at life in a whole new light. You may think I’m talking about my husband….but I’m not (but you’re great, honey, really!). That man is none other than my beloved W.A. Mozart. Of course I kid- obviously my sweet hubby does all those things for me as well, but this post isn’t about him…it’s about Mozart! And Bake It Pretty, but I haven’t gotten there yet! 😉
Today is Mozart’s 255th birthday, and I just couldn’t let the day go by without honoring him on my blog (and facebook page…and twitter…). It’s tradition for me to throw him a big ‘ol birthday party every year, music nerd-style. I go all out – cake, music and the movie Amadeus. Sure, it’s pretty much a fabricated “enhancement” of Mozart’s life and career, but hey, it’s worth it for the soundtrack alone, plus I like to hear Tom Hulce’s silly “Mozart laugh”.
I always like to host a little giveaway on Mozart’s birthday – last year, if you’ll remember, it was the box of Mozart chocolates from Austria. However, Izzy managed to snag the box off the table, unwrap the plastic, tear into the box and eat all but 4. *sigh* So this year, I decided to do a non-perishable (and non-doggie-attracting) giveaway; a $20 gift card to Bake It Pretty! I seriously love this site- I spend hours just perusing the cupcake liners and sprinkles! They have everything you could ever want to fit your baking needs! My personal favorites are these “pretty in plaid” cupcake liners I just bought, pink pearlized chunky crystal sugar, and lilac shimmery sugar pearls…to name a FEW. I could seriously spend a fortune there! And one lucky winner will have 20 bucks to go wild with! Woo!
To enter:
leave me a comment answering this question: If you could ask Mozart any question, what would it be? Smart aleck-y comments will be discarded and if you’ve never heard of Mozart…..well, you should probably just leave. 😉
You have until midnight tomorrow (Friday) to enter. I’ll choose one winner randomly and announce it on Saturday. Good luck, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOZART!!!
**Props to my hubby for his sweet Photoshop skills! 😉
Thank you all for entering my Tate’s Bake Shop giveaway! It was so nice reading all of your comments about being thankful- incredibly uplifting! And one very lucky reader will receive a delicious package of 3 kinds of awesome, crunchy cookies along with a Tate’s cookbook- just in time for the holidays!! This is one awesome giveaway! Here we go…..
The winner is:
Congratulations, Hayley! I’ll be emailing you shortly with the good news! 🙂 Hope you enjoy these goodies as much as I have!
**And for the rest of you – don’t forget, you can receive 15% off any purchase at Tate’s website with the coupon code: ‘cookie’ through Dec. 15!! Yay! Go now!! I HIGHLY recommend the white chocolate macadamia nut!! SO good! Thanks to you all for entering- check back, because I’m going to be hosting more fun giveaways soon! Woo!
See these sweet, crispy, yummy looking cookies?? These aren’t any regular cookies- they’re Tate’s Bake Shop cookies! Maybe you’ve heard of Tate’s (they’re only the best bakery in Southampton!) and maybe you haven’t- but I can assure you, they have an amazing reputation (many claim that Kathleen’s chocolate chip cookies are the best out there!). They’ve been featured in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post and many more. So when I received an email from Elizabeth, asking if I’d be interested in trying out some of their cookies and reviewing the Tate’s cookbook, I didn’t hesitate before emailing back, “YES!”! In no time, I had a gorgeous package of 3 kinds of delicious cookies and a Tate’s Bake Shop cookbook signed by Kathleen herself! Sweet!
As soon as I got my package, it took me about .8 seconds to rip into it and sample those chocolate chip cookies right away (in fact, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t munching on what’s left of them right now….mmm), and let me tell you- these are delicious! Probably the best crispy cookie I’ve ever had! I’ve already blown through the cookbook and found some amazing sounding recipes I absolutely can’t wait to try! The ones that really jumped out at me were the Hummingbird Cake, Apricot Pie, and Nutella Shortbread Sandwich Cookies to name a few (I mean really, don’t those sound amazing?!), and I can tell you Kathleen’s Pumpkin Pie will most definitely be on my Thanksgiving table this year!
But you know the best part about all this??? I have a sweet package for YOU!! That’s right, Tate’s wants to send you the exact package of goodies they sent me- 3 kinds of homemade, delicious cookies (chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin and white chocolate macadamia nut!) and a shiny new Tate’s Bake Shop cookbook (with a foreward by Ina Garten!)! Aren’t you excited??!!
All you have to do to enter is leave me a comment answering this question: What are you most thankful for this Thanksgiving season? (**Earn an extra entry by becoming a fan of Tate’s Facebook fan page– just leave me a separate comment telling me you’ve done so)
You’ll have until midnight Friday, November 26th to enter, then I’ll pick one winner randomly and announce on Saturday. And if you aren’t the lucky winner, don’t worry- all Sing For Your Supper readers will receive %15 off any tatesbakeshop.com purchase now through December 15, 2010 using the coupon code: cookie. I highly recommend the chocolate chip cookies. 😉
Good luck to you all! This is an amazing package and I’m thrilled to add Kathleen King’s brilliant cookbook to my shelf!
Happy November, everybody!!! I hope you all had a wonderful and safe Halloween! Thank you ALL for entering my Dorie Greenspan giveaway! This has BY FAR been my favorite giveaway that I’ve done- I mean, how cool is it that Dorie signed the book “To a happy Sing For Your Supper reader..”?! SO COOL! So, without further ado…..the winner is……
CONGRATS, AMY!!! You’ve got yourself a signed copy of Around My French Table!! Now get in that kitchen and start cooking up some of these amazing recipes! 🙂 ENJOY!
Thank you all for entering! And don’t worry- I have a few more tricks up my sleeve for the coming weeks, so check back! 😉
The one and only Dorie Greenspan (my idol!) came to Dallas this past weekend to do a cooking demo and you KNOW I wasn’t about to miss out! After three years of worshiping her, I FINALLY got to meet her in real life and she was every bit as sweet and as wonderful as I thought she would be! I confess, I may have “geeked out” on her a couple of times….the first time she walked past us while we were in line, I waved at her so frantically you would have thought she was Santa Claus at the Christmas parade and I was a dorky 8 year old kid. But in a way, it was pretty much like getting to meet Santa as a kid- the most exciting day of your year. And it truly, truly was. She immediately walked over to Jessica and me and when we told her who we were, she got a big smile on her face and gave us both giant bear-hugs. Pure and utter joy.
The food was amazing! She made for us (all from her new book Around My French Table):
Salmon Rillettes– a delicious spread made with fresh and smoked salmon, spring onions and lemon juice. SO delicious!
Fresh Tuna, Mozzarella and Basil Pizza – so simple and light! And the puff pastry added just the right amount of richness!
Cauliflower-Bacon Gratin– OMG, so goooood!! Creamy, rich and flavorful! This dish is definitely making it to my Thanksgiving table this year!
Lamb and Dried Apricot Tagine– I think this one was my favorite. The lamb was so tender you didn’t need a knife and the spices were perfect! I loved it!
And lastly, a Sablé Breton Galette with Berries – lemon curd, strawberries and Dorie’s perfect tart crust. What’s not to love?!
Cheers, Dorie! And happy birthday to you!!!
See?? Geeking out. It happened numerous times.
OMG…Dorie hugged me!! 🙂
LOVE her!!!
Me, Dorie and Jessica- SO fun!
So obviously, my afternoon spent with Dorie absolutely DID NOT disappoint. I got to meet my idol, taste some fantastic food and lastly, I got an extra copy of Around My French Table to give away….to YOU!! Wheeeeeee!!!
Looky here!! That’s for YOU!! 🙂
So all you have to do to enter for a chance to win the fabulous Ms. Greenspan’s newest (and totally awesome!) book is:
Leave me a comment in the comments section below answering this question: “If you could meet Dorie today, what would you ask her?”
And for extra entry opportunities, feel free to do the following:
#1. ‘Like’ me on Facebook
#2. Follow me on Twitter (Sing4YourSupper)
#3. Tweet this post
You can do just one or all four if you want to- it’s up to you! Just leave a comment for each one (and if you already ‘like’ or follow me, leave a comment telling me so!). You have until Halloween (that’s Sunday) at midnight (Central Time) to enter. I’ll pick ONE very lucky winner randomly on Monday, November 1st!
Good luck!! 🙂
Thanks to everyone who entered my CSN $60 giveaway!! I was so shocked at just how many of you said you’d like to go back in time to visit the 1950’s! More than 80% of you – wow! Who knew so many of us were longing to be ’50’s housewives! 🙂 Anyway, on to the good stuff- the winner of the gift card is….
Congratulations, Amy O!! You’ve got yourself 60 bucks to spend on any of CSN’s online stores! Yay!!! Thanks again, to all of my wonderful readers- y’all are GREAT!
Alright folks, get ready, because this is awesome! The good people at CSN have approached me with a great giveaway opportunity – a $60 gift card to spend however you want, on any of their sites! Woah! Ok, so I’m being a little over dramatic, but it’s what I do, ok? They have a plethora to choose from- anything from lighting to kitchen supplies to home improvement to baby and kid stuff! 60 bucks, man! If it were up to me, I’d go with something along these lines:
.jpg "Pie Plate")
The Emile Henry Pie Dish – comes in lots of colors!
The Blomus Ondea Round Bowl – super chic!
You get the idea- you’ll have $60 to spend however you want on any of CSN‘s sites! Free reign! Here’s how to enter:
*Leave a comment on this post before Friday, May 7th at midnight answering me this question:
If you could go back in time to any era, what would it be and why?? Personally, I’d go back to 1700’s Scotland and find me a smokin’ hot Clansman to take a picture of. (Man, I’ve been reading too much Outlander…)
Bonus Entries:
1.) Follow me on Twitter- Sing4YourSupper and re-tweet this post
2.) Become a Fan (or ‘liker’) of my Facebook fan page
3.) Follow my RSS feed
So there you have it- 4 possible chances to win. Leave a separate comment for each bonus entry. And that’s all you have to do to get $60 to spend as you please on CSN’s websites! Sweet, huh?! I’ll randomly pick one winner, and then the CSN folks will email you with your sweet new gift card. Be sure and leave your email address in your comment so I’ll know where to reach you if you WIN! Yee Haw!! Best of luck, friends! 🙂
This was such a fun giveaway for me…I love getting to do things that cater to my nerdiness! Thanks to everybody who entered! Here’s the winner:
I love this post. Happy Birthday WOlfgang!!!!! What a wonderful way to celebrate the birthday of a true musical icon, hero, legend, etc.:)
Comment by Jennifer — January 27, 2010 @ 11:59 AM
Yay, Jennifer!! Mozart chocolates comin’ your way! Thanks again, to everybody who entered! I promise I won’t make you wait too long for another fun giveaway! 🙂
Yes, it’s that time of year again; when I go from being your average opera-singing food blogger to the world’s biggest music nerd. Every January the 27th, my husband and I (and sometimes friends…if they don’t make fun of me too much) watch the movie Amadeus and celebrate the birth of the greatest musician the world has known. Yeah, sure it’s nerdy, but it’s a big part of who I am – Mozart is a HUGE part of my life and I love taking a day out of my schedule to pay homage to him. And this year, you even get something out of it!
(sorry for the crappy pictures- I’m in a hurry this morning!)
Mozart Kugeln!!! When I was in Germany and Austria, this stuff was everywhere. And for good reason – it’s delicious! Chocolate, pistachios, marzipan – YUM!! Lucky for me (and you), they also sell it at World Market, so I can enjoy it anytime I want! And what better way to celebrate Mozart’s 254th birthday, than by giving away some yummy Mozart Chocolate!
All you need do is comment on this post. U.S. residents only, please. I’ll choose a winner before tomorrow night (Thursday around, let’s say 10 pm Central Time). Good luck! And don’t forget to stop and sing a little happy birthday diddy to our old boy Mozart today!
