Monday, April 30, 2012

April Foodie Penpal Reveal

My foodie penpal this month was Amanda all the way from California! I am always super excited to be paired with someone who is so far away because I can't wait to see what they send that I can get here and the new things I get to try!

I got my package with plenty of time to be able to enjoy everything and try it before I put my post together.

Of course I have to start by talking about my favorite thing which is the chocolate wafers. They are delicious and something I have never seen around Massachusetts!! I highly recommend them to anyone who comes across them.

I started doing foodie penpals because I wanted to try new things and get out of my comfort zone. That being said there were three things in my package that I was a little apprehensive about. First being the somersaults because they were salty pepper flavored and I do not like anything even remotely spicy which usually also includes pepper. I tired them and they were just too strong for me, my husband however has been enjoying them so win for him!! The other two things where the LaraBar mainly because they have nuts in them and I am not a fan of nuts but I figured I still needed to give them a try. One was apple pie the other was cherry. I tried them and they were actually ok, the texture is actually what got me but then again I have texture issues with lots of things. I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't mind the nuts so much, but still not my favorite things those nuts.

I did however thoroughly enjoy the fruit leather. It made a great snack while in my classroom at work! And who doesn't love chocolate? This chocolate actually had espresso in it too!!

I have to say thank you to Amanda for sending me all these goodies and forcing me to push the envelope and at least try things outside my comfort zone and new to me foods!! And of course thanks to Lindsay at The Lean Green bean for starting and running this great program.

And now it's time for some details about Foodie Penpals.  In case you’re a new reader, here’s a reminder of what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will 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 from your penpal! 
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month. 
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. 
If you’re interested in participating for May, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
You must submit your information by May 4th as pairings will be emailed on May 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!