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Unboxing Surprise Sweets: Christmas

I recently gave in and finally purchased an Amazon Prime Surprise Sweets Dash Button and let me tell you...I'm hooked. This new series will be about what's inside my treat boxes I order, and how delicious each goodie tastes. The boxes are $18 each, but you get a $5 credit off your first box for ordering the Dash button. You get 4-5 treats that are handpicked from artisan shops across the country. To make sure I don't overdue it (which I could easily do), I am only going to order these boxes on special occasions i.e. holidays and my birthday. Stay tuned to see what treats I've unwrapped!

LOL I am super late as usual. Will I ever prepare these blog posts to publish within a reasonable time period? Probably not. Anyway, I'm actually SUPER bummed because I was notified by Amazon that they are discontinuing the Surprise Sweets Box! My waistline is thankful, but the rest of me is so sad. I thought this was a great idea to try new goodies, but I guess I'll just have to get a donut from Krispy Kreme like a normal 24 year-old girl.

Amazon Prime Surprise Sweets Unboxing: Christmas Box

For this box I splurged and spent $4 more to get two more treats (big spender, I know). Since it was Christmas I was happy that I could share these with my family if I didn't like them...see below for details!

Snappers Dark Chocolate Caramel Brownie Pretzel- These are great but I feel like after every bite I needed an emergency dentist trip. These were SO sticky that if I had fillings they probably would have been sucked out. Despite all that, the taste was delicious and I'm a sucker for anything that mixes salty and sweet. Retail value: $3.99

Kukuruza Gingerbread Cookie Popcorn- This was hands-down my favorite item in the box. Gingerbread is my number one holiday flavor, and with chunks of an actual cookie this popcorn did not disappoint. Imagine caramel corn but with a hint of spices. So. Good. Retail value: $4.95

Country Fresh Chocolate Cheesecake Fudge- I LOVE FUDGE! Fudge is the perfect after dinner dessert when you need a little something sweet to tide you over. You can never eat too much fudge, which is why I love it so much...and I learned my lesson at Disney World in 2000. Estimated retail value: $3.25

Chocolate Chocolate Peppermint Bark Chocolate- This was my second favorite item in the box. I loooooove chocolate and peppermint, and this was the perfect mix of both. I think the white chocolate iss the perfect balancing agent to the strong flavors of dark chocolate and peppermint. Retail value: $4.99

Theo Hazelnut Crunch Bar- Chocolate and hazelnut...need I say more? I'm a sucker for artisan chocolate bars and this is the perfect bar to break a few pieces off of when you need a chocolate fix. I want to try more of the flavors! Retail value: $2.99

G Mommas Suuthern Style Bite Size Cookies in Chocolate Chip with Pecan- These were basically Famous Amos cookies. They were good, but I think instead of forking over the money for these you're better off getting a bulk pack of Famous Amos from Costco. Retail value: $4.99

Grey Ghost Bakery Chocolate Mint Cookies- Least favorite in the box. They had a weird texture and there was just too much minty flavor. Not worth the price AT ALL and I don't get why they included two sample packs...I would have preferred something else instead! Retail value: $9

TOTAL VALUE OF BOX: $34.16

I still have plenty of this box leftover so don't mind me while I munch away....

Cocktail of the Week!

With the holidays quickly disappearing, I decided I needed to make a cocktail that screamed "Jingle Bells" to keep the spirit alive. I created this concoction a while back, and forgot how good it was! I'm a sucker for anything with St. Germain (must be the Parisian in me) and white cranberry juice, so this cocktail is just the best way to ring in the holidays. Drink this while you toast in the New Year, relax by a fire, or before you stuff your face with leftovers. I present to you my Partridge in a Pear Tree Martini!

Partridge in a Pear Tree Martini

Like I said, any excuse I have to use St. Germain I will. This elderflower liquor is the perfect compliment to anything fruity, especially winter fruits like cranberry or pear! If you want to add a sparkling element to this cocktail, add a splash of prosecco for that extra zing. Honestly, you could just drink St. Germain and prosecco and it'd be the best mimosa EVER!

I sugared the rim with chunky gold sprinkles to keep with the holiday theme, but if decorating drinks isn't your fancy (I'm really not that good at it, actually) then you can skip that part! The drink is sweet enough without it, but I like the festive touch.

Recipe

1 oz Pear Vodka
1 oz St. Germain
2 oz White Cranberry Juice
1/2 oz lemon juice
Gold sprinkles for rim (optional)

Cut lemon in half. If desired rub lemon on edge of martini glass and roll glass rim in dish of gold sprinkles. Set aside. In a shaker, combine vodka, St. Germain, white cranberry juice, and the juice of the other lemon half. Add ice and shake vigorously. Strain into glass. Top with frozen cranberries for even more of a festive touch!








Let me know if you try this cocktail and like it! I feel like I was a bartender in a past life...or maybe just an alcoholic. Hope you all had a happy holiday!

November Favorites

Is there anything better than a four-day holiday weekend? I don't think so. I'm sad to be back on the grind, but I'm even sadder that November has come to an end. This month I booked a spontaneous trip to Mexico (see you in January, Cabo!), ate more turkey than any other meat, and spent WAY too much money Black Friday shopping. The only good thing about November's close is that Christmas is right around the corner! I better get started on my gift guide posts...

Food Favorites

Cranberries- The Jersey girl in me is a real sucker for cranberries. In a sauce, smoothie, dessert...I love these tart little berries. Cranberries are super good for you, too, so you might as well enjoy them while they are in season!

Moscow Mules- I don't know why, but this has been my go-to drink all month. Ginger beer and vodka is just an outstanding combo, especially when you mix it with flavored vodka (I like peach or prickly pear). Just make sure when you wash your copper mug that you do it by hand. No one likes a dingy-looking, dishwasher-destroyed mug for their drink!

Butternut Squash Soup- Panera has THE best butternut squash soup. Hands down. And it's now sold at CostCo which means I can buy in bulk and enjoy for much longer than a quick lunch break. Top it with some toasted pumpkin seeds and a little paprika for the perfect fall lunch!

Shopping Favorites

Long Sleeve Pocket Casual T-Shirt Dress- I'm probably going to buy this dress in every color. Not only is it super easy to dress up or down, but it's so comfy. I'm 5'10" and it's not too short on me, but I'd still wear it with tights just to be safe. Favorite fall dress!

Designs by Vecc- My good friend Shawna just opened her Etsy shop and you have to check it out! She hand-makes cute signs and wall-art to decorate your house, porch, whatever! Her shop would be a great place to look for holiday gifts...just saying.





November was full of shopping and eating..are you surprised? Let me know your November favorites!