Deleting the naughty...with the CraveBox "Coffee Lovers" Box December

 The next Cravebox that came out was the "Coffee Lovers" edition. This one cost $12.00. I was excited about this one because I love me some coffee.

Here goes:

Tully's French Roast Coffee:
This bag of coffee was the same as what came in the Cooking Light Cravebox, so no surprises there. Tasted the same, husband still doesn't like it, I think it tastes fine.

Torani Sugar Free Syrup in French Vanilla:
Another syrup, but excited to try a different flavor. My husband is especially excited because he loves flavored iced coffees, and sugar-free ones.

Barbara's High Fiber Cranberry Medley Cereal:
This is a single serving size of a naturally sweet cereal with cranberries, whole grains and pomegranate flavor. Promising to contain 40% of daily fiber, it contains a whopping 10 grams, 5 grams of protein and very low fat. My husband calls cereal like this "colon blow." LOL. He can eat bowl after bowl of cereal like this.  Me, I will just have one, thank you. The cereal is not too bad. It's a little sweet, so tastes better than just a plain bran flake, and the fruit was soft, not hard. I would like the flakes a little bit crisper, but overall, I enjoyed this bowl of cereal for breakfast.


Biscotti Brother's Bakery Biscotti:
I received two pieces of biscotti, one was Almond flavored, the other Cranberry Blueberry Almond. I opened Almond and the very first thing I noticed was the delicious almond scent. I love all things almond flavored. It smelled like homemade Christmas cookies. YUM! Tasted so good! I give these an A for sure. I really like the flavor, I liked the crunch and they tasted very fresh, not stale or old like some packaged cookies. The second biscotti, cranberry blueberry almond smelled like an oatmeal raisin cookie for some reason, didn't catch any almond scent, but this one tasted really great too!

Verdict: The Coffee Lovers box was ok. I guess I expected the box to have more coffee related items, rather than just one bag of coffee that was already in a previous box. Maybe some International Delight's instant coffees, another flavor of coffee and some mini packets of coffee creamer flavors or something? But, the Biscotti's were delicious, and my favorite part of the box, albeit, my favorite thing should have been coffee. Go figure.

Deleting the naughty...with the Cravebox "Holiday Spruce Up" Box

The special "Holiday Spruce Up Box" from Cravebox arrived! I wasn't sure what to expect. I was hoping for stuff to just give me a holiday boost. Not so much.

Price: This one was a $13.00 box.

On to the contents:

Oxi Clean Dishwashing Booster:
While this isn't what I would consider a holiday spruce up item, I will certainly try it. I hear good things about Oxi Clean products in general so I am sure this won't disappoint.  This was one of two full size products in the box.

Tide Pods:
This is a little pod filled with a detergent, a stain remover and a brightener in one. You put the pod in first and then add the clothes. It says one pod can be used for most loads. I am guessing they mean not an oversized or an overly small load.

Bissell Stomp 'N Go Stain Lifting Pads:
This only contained one individual pad with Oxy formula, and with the Febreze scent Spring & Renewal. It says it can permanently remove fresh and set in stains. You just open it up, place it on the area, step on the pad and leave it for a half hour. I will report back the next time I have a mess to clean up.

Febreze Set and Refresh Air Freshener:
The tag line for this product is "Replace Your Cone". I got the scent New Zealand Springs. I don't mind it, but I wonder how long it will last, since it says it is great for small to medium sized rooms. You put the cartridge in the container, then move the container up or down to release the scent. No plugging in or batteries used.

This was all for the products included. The rest was a coupon for $2.00 of Biz and $1.00 off Mean Green Cleaner.

Verdict: I wasn't impressed with this box. None of these items are something I would use in a Holiday Spruce Up. So, I have to say thumbs down to this box. The rinse aid will be fine, but the rest are not something I would probably buy down the road.


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Deleting the naughty...with Cravebox Knorr "Ultimate Thanksgiving" November

Happy Thanksgiving!  I was the lucky recipient of the Knorr sponsored "Ultimate Thanksgiving" Cravebox. This company is currently going through some changes with how they are doing the boxes, and I am not sure if they are doing subscriptions anymore. I joined and was waitlisted, but then there were special edition boxes that you could sign up to win but still pay for, which I did.  If you are selected, they automatically charge your payment method whatever the rate is for that box, this one was $14. On to the products:

Knorr Homestyle Stock:
The product I received for this was the chicken flavored stock, and it was one of the little cups. I have used this product before and actually have some in my cupboard, and it does taste good. I add it to soups if I don't have a homemade broth in mind.  I have to be honest, though...For this being a box sponsored by Knorr, that is all you got from their label...one little tub of the broth, not even a whole package, which makes no sense to me because you wouldn't have enough to make a whole pot of soup with only one. 

Pillsbury Grands Biscuits:
There was a coupon for one free can of grands biscuits. Most people are familiar with these, so I won't go into detail. I personally like the buttery, flaky ones. You can peel apart the biscuit layer by layer, smothering it with butter. I like 'em!

DelMonte Whole Green Beans:
Canned green beans are canned green beans. I am one of those green bean casserole junkies, the cheesier and onion-ier (is that a word?) the better.

McCormick Turkey Gravy Mix:
I have never used a gravy mix. I am weird. I actually love the process of making gravy and I think I'm good at it. A person should be able to eat gravy as it's own side dish, or like soup. A woman I know has a great hot turkey sandwich recipe...after you take the turkey off the bone and its all pulled, add an packet of turkey gravy mix and a can of chicken broth, stir and voila, a thick juicy turkey sandwich that is already in gravy. So good. We eat it at church potlucks.

Duncan Hines Frosting and Flavor Mix-In:
I have seen these on the shelf at the store for a little while now. I am not opposed to using canned frosting, I use the chocolate kind. But I don't use a lot of artificially colored products. I think these would be fine if you used them, but the packet of strawberry shortcake flavor does contain Red #40 and Blue #2.  I avoid Red #40 as much as possible because I personally think it's just plain bad for you. I wish companies would stop using food coloring all together or use natural coloring. My kids don't care what color something is, they just want it to taste good...at least my kids anyway.

Brookside Dark Chocolate Covered Pomegranate:
I think these are the star of the box. I absolutely LOVE these. They remind me of one of the chocolates in Brach's Bridge Mix, the one that the inside is a jelly? Do you know which one I mean? I am kind of leaning toward not sharing these or putting them in the snack bowl for Thanksgiving.  Is that wrong?

Verdict: The box is ok. I think Knorr could have sold themselves better, from a marketing standpoint. But those little chocolate bits...5 stars! I was notified that I won a Holiday Spruce Up Cravebox, coming shortly so I am stoked about that...not about cleaning my house.


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Deleting the naughty...with Cravebox Cooking Light November

Another subscription box I got interested in is the Cravebox. I went to their website and signed up, but got waitlisted. But, while I waited, I could enter a contest to win one of their specialty boxes, which happened to be sponsored by Cooking Light. And lucky me, I was notified by email that I happened to be one of the recipients!

Not too long ago, I received another email that shared news about how they were going to be changing the way they do things. So, I don't know if I am a member, not sure if they've changed things yet or what, but I have since then been notified of two more boxes I could enter for, so crossing my fingers because those sound fantastic too!

So, on to the Cooking Light box. First impression, the box was huge. And heavy.  This is a good sign. I tried not to focus too much on the spoilers that were coming out, as I wanted to be surprised..a little.

The box itself was stuffed full of what I would call "fall comfort food." On top was a sheet talking about the products, which were all advertisers in Cooking Light magazine. The biggest plus of all? They were all FULL-SIZE. The box was $13. Incredible value considering the contents:

McCormick Perfect Pinch Salt Free Garlic & Herb Seasoning:
There were 2 bottles of this, one for me and one I will share with my sister or mom. The one I received is a salt-free blend of garlic, Italian herbs (oregano rosemary, basil), red pepper onions, orange peel, celery and paprika. It smelled wonderful. I am leaning toward using this on a slow-cooked pork roast. I think it would also be tasty in a homemade vegetable soup.  Definitely thinking comfort food. Bonus - No MSG. And as I mentioned above..full sized bottles.

Nectresse 100% Natural, No Calorie Sweetener by Splenda:
This product is new, made from the extract of Monk fruit combined with other natural sweeteners (erythritol, sugar, monk fruit extract, molasses), nothing artificial. The box contains 40 individual sized packets.I opened up one of the packets and gave it a taste. I will be honest, on its own it is not for me. It has sort of an ultra sweet intense flavor. I do not normally use Splenda or artificial sweeteners, but my husband does in tea, and my dad and mother/father-in-law are diabetic. My husband will probably use it up. I personally try to avoid anything with aspartame, so this natural alternative might be worth looking into down the road.

Tully's French Roast Coffee:
A 12oz size package of ground French Roast. It's label describes it as rich, smoky, spicy. Tomorrow is Friday, and I do believe I will make myself a pot of this new stuff in the morning. I love coffee. I wake up in the morning and quite honestly it is the first thing I think about. The aroma...breathing in the steam off the top of the cup as I bring it to my lips, sipping it ever so slowly, letting it sit in my mouth for a brief moment to cool then tasting the coffee itself, mixed with just a little half and half, going down and warming my stomach.  The first sip is an experience for me...every day. I feel less than human until I get my coffee, oh what a vice to have.

Fruit Crisp from Dole:
This product is like the fruit cups they already make, but with an oatmeal topping provided. My box had a 2-pack of each flavor they make, peach, apple cinnamon and apple pear. You can enjoy these cold or heated up in the microwave. Now, I have purchased many a Dole fruit cup in my day. It was the perfect size and travel companion when my kids were babies and toddlers. Just pop one open and the kids had a healthy snack. So, the idea of a fruit crisp is intriguing to me. I enjoyed mine heated up with just a little bit of half and half added to it. The kids had theirs cold as an after school snack. To really fancy it up, I would heat it, then put a little light whipped cream or frozen vanilla yogurt on top..mmm.

Torani Syrup:
And if you didn't notice above, this is indeed another full size product, a 750mL bottle. I received sugar free Salted Caramel made with Splenda. My husband will love this.  He loves iced coffees and he actually orders his with Splenda, so I am almost certain he will be experimenting this weekend.  I love a good non-fat vanilla latte, so I am willing to try caramel.  I think this would even be good in just a steamed milk for the kids, a nice little Friday or Saturday night bedtime treat.

In addition to the products, there were recipes, a magnet with measurements, coupons and idea sheets wrapped up nicely in the Cravebox blue tissue paper.  I think this was an awesome box to receive in the mail and I love it! I will use all of these products and enjoy them.  Thanks Cravebox for choosing me!


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