Looking for fun snacks? Folio cheese wraps, Old Amsterdam Gouda, Walden Farms Dressing and Mighty Sesame Tahini

Are you looking for fun snacks? We had the chance to try some Folio cheese wraps, Old Amsterdam Gouda, Walden Farms Dressing and Mighty Sesame Tahini. 

Folios™ Cheese Wraps offer a low-carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly option for your meals and snacks. These are the first cheese wraps introduced to the market with only 1g of carbs per serving! We tried the Jarlsburg swiss cheese wraps and the cheddar and parmesan wraps and they were all delicious! The ones we liked the most were when we microwaved them for around 90 seconds and they got crispy - sooooo delicious!

Old Amsterdam Gouda was a delicious cheese and we truly enjoyed it! Old Amsterdam Aged Gouda is aged for a minimum of 8 months and has a perfect balance between sweet and savory. 

Looking to dress things up with your salads or wraps? Walden Farms Salad Dressings have no (zero!) calories, net carbs, fat, sugars, dairy, etc, and add the most delicious flavor to everything! We loved adding it to our salads and the cheese wraps. It was also great as a dipping sauce too!

I have always wanted to make baba ghanouj (a middle-eastern eggplant dip) and found it REALLY easy by mixing roasted eggplant with Mighty Sesame Tahini which comes in an easy-to-use squeezable bottle so just a few teaspoons added to roasted eggplant makes the best baba ghanouj! I added some Absolutely Gluten Free crackers we received to do a quick taste test and it all got rave reviews!

NOTE: We were provided with samples of these products to facilitate this review. No other compmensation was provided and all opinions, as always, are our own.

Great coffee and comfy socks!

Last week we celebrated National Pizza Day (one of my FAVORITE days of the year!) by having some great pizza from Frank Pepe's Pizza (some great New Haven style) here in Boston and I enjoyed the slices in my new comfy pizza socks :) You can get your own pair from Lavely here.

I also tried a new way of making coffee that is more like steeping tea, using coffee-in-tea-bags called Steeped Coffee. It's a pretty neat idea and also makes it a fun way to make the morning cup of Joe! It's a great way to brew single-serving coffee without using single-serve pods and a brewer. All you need is some hot water and time... it took me about 5 minutes to make a great tasting cup of coffee. You also can support a great non-profit, called Feeding America, with each purchase using Steeped's Pack for Good program. Use code FEEDINGAMERICA at checkout and Steeped will donate 20% of total sales to Feeding America and its member food banks.

NOTE: We were provided with samples to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided. All opinions, as always, are our own.

Brunch at Coppersmith's Bar and the New England Boat Show Recap

Our Saturday trip to Boston for the Boat Show started off with an easy drive up I-93 to Boston and we made our 11 am reservation at Coppersmith's Bar, a restaurant in South Boston located close to the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, the site of the New England Boat Show. The restaurant opens at 11 am, but they also have a cafe that opens a few hours before and you can order coffee drinks along with tasty treats if you're eager to get going on a Saturday morning.

We walked in and were promptly seated near the dueling food trucks, which are permanently installed inside of the restaurant floor. For weekend brunch, they also have a Bloody Mary bar where you order the alcohol from the bar and then go to the Bloody Mary bar to customize it to your liking. We're not big Bloody Mary people so we skipped that.

We ordered the food which took a little while to prepare. We tried all of the appetizers from sweet potato donut hole treats and tater tots to hangover wings and your typical steak and eggs or omelette. Emily tried the Felafel sandwich and the kids had sliders and chicken tenders. We truly enjoyed all of the food and smoothies, frappes and cappuccinos before heading over to the show.

Upon arriving at the New England Boat Show, we parked onsite for $18 in a lot behind the convention center which made it easy to get to the show since the show is on the first floor. We had to pass through metal detectors to enter and the whole process was quick.

We got to go on the various boats and the kids really enjoyed themselves, getting to explore boats and even try sitting in captains chairs! Luckily for the boat owners, the wheels were disabled so the kids could play with the steering wheel as much as they wanted to without ruining things.

One of my favorite booths was Yeti, the makers of the eponymous premium coolers and stainless steel rambler mugs. Their Tundra cooler line, which range from $200-450 are crafted with precision combine versatility with durability. The coolers are made of durable rotomolded construction and have up to two inches of PermaFrost™ Insulation. They also have cooler bags called the Hopper Flip which is a soft-shell cooler whose smallest size can hold 8 cans and the Hopper Two which is a carry bag that is built to last. The Hopper Two is easy to load and unload. Its tapered body shape is comfortable to haul and has a detachable shoulder strap. New for this year, they also have an attachable Side Kick dry bag which you can toss your mobile phone into and not have to worry about it getting wet thanks to RF-welded seams and a magnetic HydroShield™ Closure. The mugs are available in a variety of sizes and are double-insulated to keep your hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold. They are also made of stainless steel and are easy to wash.

There were also some great kid-friendly things for families. Progressive, the title sponsor of the show had a section where you could use a remote control boat to try driving it in a little pool and you could also enter to win a t-shirt, hate or cute keychain.

The Gerry E. Studds Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary had a booth and they brought along a huge inflatable life-size humpback whale that you could actually go into and learn all about whales. We found it absolutely fascinating! Who know whale poop was so good for the environment?

We hope you enjoyed our recap and we look forward to attending this show again - it was so much fun!

NOTE: We worked with the New England Boat Show and have been provided passes to attend as well as brunch at Coppersmiths Bar. All opinions are our own and are not influenced by any consideration we received..

Making back to school easier with Roche Brothers Supermarket #hosted

As the new school year started we were hosted for a quick tour of the Roche Brothers supermarket in Millis, MA to learn how they picked and packed the online orders tea. We learned about how the personal shoppers receive your order, pick each individual item (looking for the produce and meat as they would for their own house) and they will also pay attention to any suggestions or requests you give the shopper. If you like your bananas green, they will only look for green bananas. If you like your avocados ripe, then ripe avocados will be in the bag! The best part about this? The personal shopper will take their  time and inspect the food a lot better than I might if I was in a rush to get through everything and get home...

I also found out about a meal-in-a-bag option that are available at a bunch of supermarkets called Ready Chef Go dinners. They are prepared and selected are designed by a chef and packed in a microwave and oven safe bag. The bags have been designed to keep the food fresh, moist and of the best quality. It was inspired by the french cooking tradition of "en papillote" which means "in parchment." Basically, the food cooks in the sealed bag and is steamed in the sealed pouch and ready in a few minutes. Once cooked, you slide it out of the bag and can eat it right away! Perfect for a quick lunch at work and takes meal prep to a whole new, convenient level! Especially for parents who are always on the go... like us! There are many different options from meat, seafood, fresh vegetables to any combination of all of them along with seasonings! So delicious and so quick! The best part of all of this? They price it out by weight, so some of them are REALLY inexpensive. I know I'm going to be going to the Roche Brothers market in Downtown Crossing, Boston, to get some healthier meals and save some serious lunch money.

NOTE: We were hosted by Roche Brothers and the Dinner Daily. All opinions are my own.

PawSox Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, FanFest, a great season and an upcoming Craft Beer and Food Truck fest

We had the chance to attend the PawSox Hall of Fame induction ceremony in July. They were honoring one of my all-time favorite players, Mo Vaughn as well as Coach “Walpole Joe” Morgan. The beautiful Sunday morning started with a VIP barbecue located in the "Shady Pines" area of the ballpark. We were treated to some great ballpark staples like hotdogs and hamburgers, as well as one of my favorite things at a PawSox barbecue: the pulled chicken. I don't know how they do it but it is so tender and tasty without having too much sauce.

We met and took pictures with Mo and Coach Morgan as well as had the chance to have them sign some baseballs we brought with us. This was such a great opportunity to take the family to and I STRONGLY recommend it as a nice present for any baseball-loving dad/husband in your life.

After the barbecue, we went to our seats which were any general admission seat in the house (any blue seat or anything in the outfield/berm). It was a warm day and the kids were a little anxious to move around so we were really happy that the annual Fan Fest festival of all of many team sponsors was the same day! It took place in the huge field next door and fans had the chance to get samples and try different foods from various vendors. My favorites were Dunkin Donuts (of course!), AAA and Hasbro, which had the Pie-face type games with a twist, one with a Toilet Splasher called Toilet Trouble, and another one that was like a personal dunk tank in a hat called the Dunk Hat game.

The season went on through August and the beginning of September with the last home game at the end of August where the PawSox inducted the final member of the 2017 Hall of Fame class, Carlton Fisk.

Stay tuned as the PawSox are hosting their first ever Food Truck and Craft Beer festival on Saturday September 16 from 6-10 pm at McCoy Stadium. For more information and to order tickets visit pawsox.com. Guys, this would be a great thing to take the boys to or the family to as well!

Check out the video in slow-motion... Always fun:

NOTE: I was provided with tickets to the BBQ and Hall of Fame game as well as tickets for the food truck fest in order to facilitate this article. All opinions, as always, are my own.

New Kid-friendly initiatives from the Red Sox!

Here's a few new kid-friendly initiatives from the Red Sox that I want to let you guys know about...

Virtual Reality: 
There is a new Virtual Reality Home Run Challenge in the Kid’s Concourse where you can test your hitting skills. By putting on the VR goggles, you can step up to the plate at Fenway Park and have batting practice at the park. Don't worry, there is still the Virtual Reality Dugout right next to the Home Run Challenge, which has behind-the-scenes videos of spring training and the players.

Kid Nation:
The Kid Nation program is back and is available now for kids to sign up. In Mid-May, there will be a new Kid Nation booth coming to the Kid’s Concourse that will allow families to sign up for the program via iPads inside the ballpark. With each membership, each child will receive a free ticket code (one per email) with the purchase of an adult ticket (limited quantity available, so be sure to redeem it soon)!

Student 9’s: Student 9’s tickets are offered again this season for both high school and college students. Students can subscribe to get Student 9 game-day alerts, and will be notified with an alert sent to their cellphone on the day of a home game when $9 tickets are available. Students can sign-up online or by texting Students to 23215.

Red Sox Showcase:
The mobile Red Sox Showcase will be touring New England again this summer and will kick-off in Faneuil Hall this coming weekend, Saturday, May 6. The Truck has planned stops so far in the following cities and more to be announced later on this year...
Massachusetts: Boston, Franklin, Hopkinton, Hanover, Danvers, Springfield, Worcester, Wrentham
Rhode Island: Pawtucket
New Hampshire: Laconia

New Food Concessions:
The concession stands have some new, kid and healthy food options at Fenway this season:

• Fresh fruit cups and a customizable salad bar will be offered and feature select product from Fenway Farms.
• Lobster Poutine which just sounds amazing.
• New kids meals give a choice of mini hot dog, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or a grilled cheese and are served in a Wally and Tessie brown lunch bags.
• Pretzel bites with cheesy dipping sauce are available. I found the sauce to be a little on the spicy side, just to be forewarned.
• One thing that was pretty innovative was a bowl that fits on the top of a souvenir soda so you can have a drink and each nachos at the same time! Genius!
• Back again this year was the Cheetos Popcorn which was a fan-favorite from last season.

NOTE: We were invited to Fenway for a game at the beginning of the season to learn about all of the new kid-friendly initiatives from the Red Sox! All opinions are our own.

Gather Chocolates from Harbor Sweets and a giveaway!

Gather chocolate is a new type of chocolate created by Harbor Sweets in Salem, MA. It’s inspired by bees and is dark chocolate and honey. It is 6 different types of chocolates that will speak to people’s passions, especially people’s concern for the environment and honey bees.

They will raise funds (2.5% of proceeds) to give back to Pollinator Partnership that will protect honeybees.

Harbor Sweets chocolate also has another line called Salt & Ayre, which are inspired by flavors and salts gathered from all corners of the earth: Thai ginger, caramel, chai and Himalayan sea salt.

We are giving away some of the delicious chocolate to one of our readers! Enter via the rafflecopter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

NOTE: We were provided with some of the delicious chocolate from Harbor Sweets for review and giveaway. All opinions, as always, are our own.

Parent's Night Out at Trade Boston

Recently, I was invited to a Parent's Night Out at Trade Boston, which happened to coincide with their end-of-summer Patio Party.

Trade is located on Russia Wharf in Boston which is right at the corner of Congress Street and Atlantic Avenue in Boston. I happen to pass this location every day on my walk to and from work. I was pleased to be able to enjoy the cuisine after work one day!

As I was doing research, I realized that the Chef/Owner of Trade, Jody Adams, attended the same high school I did, the Wheeler School in Providence, Rhode Island. I was also pleased to find that for the patio party, they were service shrimp and oysters and that some of the oysters were from Cutty Hunk Island, where the owner is also one of my environmental science teachers at Wheeler. It just goes to remind me exactly how small the world is.

I arrived early and had the chance to chat with a few quite interesting people and even got to meet Jody, who was so nice and down to earth. After enjoying some of the food outside, it was time to go inside to meet the rest of my blogger friends and taste some of the great food Trade is known for.

As parents, we don't often get the time to go out as adults and enjoy delicious food and write about it. I was quite excited when I found out that Trade wanted to host a Parents Night Out to showcase some of their great eats. I think it would be a perfect place for parents to spend a nice "date night" without the kiddos in tow as the setting is relaxed and the ambiance is nice.

We sat at a table that was right near the bar, and were passed various plates of delectable delights. We even had the Giant Tank which was a lot of alcohol situated inside of a fish tank (and even had the plastic fish to go along with it). This drink was listed on the menu to have 2 people share but it was large and strong enough to have 6 people share easily.

The food was cooked perfectly and the conversation flowed like the drinks. We had such a great time, chatting, drinking, photographing and eating. It was really hard to pick out a favorite dish since they were all so great!

When dinner was over, they brought out dessert and I think my favorite thing might have been their milk and cookies which was all homemade. The "milk" consisted of a cream-based pudding and the cookies were homemade "oreo type" cookies. So unbelievably good!

Here's some photos to showcase the wonderful food:

Here are a few posts that recap the night from some of my friends who were there:

Capability Mom
DGrubs
Leah's Life
Appetite for Instruction






NOTE: I was provided with a complimentary meal to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.