Author: Jeni (Page 1 of 172)

The Gordon Ramsay Frozen Meal Review

September 16, 2023 / / 2 Comments

I went into this review wanting Gordon Ramsay to succeed.

I really did.

The reason is that I actually like Gordon Ramsay.

I’ve been a fan since I saw the British version of Kitchen Nightmares. It’s much different than its American counterpart – and I’ve seen that whole thing too.

Chef Ramsay’s producers must have told him to act extra angry and dramatic on the American version – the British version gives him a lot longer to work with the restaurants and he acts more like a mentor.

(Hell’s Kitchen just isn’t my thing.)

This new line of frozen meals called By Chef Ramsay just dropped in Walmarts, along with Guy Fieri, Kardea Brown, and Andrew Zimmern. They’re supposedly eight of Ramsey’s favorite meals.I bought the four available at my nearest Walmart – each cost $5.90.

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The Minnesota State Fair 2023: Things We Ate (And Wish We Didn’t Eat)

August 24, 2023 / / 3 Comments

The Minnesota State Fair is like my Halloween.

Halloween is like my 12 days of Christmas.

Christmas is like my Christmas?

I look forward to the fair all year, but now that we have young kids, we have to make the most of a short visit.

The best time to go to the fair is early in the morning on the very first day.

This year we could take the day off – I’m usually the most excited person at work for the fair -and  the only one who takes a day off to go on opening day. I’m like a Disney Adult but with the state fair.

I was determined to try a few new foods, even with the two little ones in tow. The new food list this year looked pretty exciting. I tried to make a list. But with little kids, you never know how the visit will actually go.

Sometimes you have to go with the flow – for example, I had brought them to the Mall of America the other day. Of course they had hangry meltdowns and we ended up at the restaurant with the shortest line instead of the best food which is how I spent $27 on a meal at A&W

Today we did try a few new foods, including one that was so disgusting I almost got sick, plus most of our favorite classics:

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Frozen Food Reviews: Summer Edition

August 13, 2023 / / 1 Comment

So, some of this stuff isn’t frozen, but it’s just easier to call it that.

Unfortunately, I can’t remember the prices on most of these items. Costco trips are a blur since we take the two kids. They always end up with us sharing a hot dog and slice of pizza in the food court until the baby has a melt-down.

This summer has gone by fast. Work has had some unexpected twists and turns – and then the weekends are busy with trying to entertain the kids at parks or family parties. We’re really looking forward to the state fair.

This might be the first year in seven that I can actually celebrate Halloween! I’ve either had a job that was involved in Open Enrollment on Halloween – last year, I had just given birth to Artie. As always, I’m planning to get an early start on celebrating fall.

Such is life taking care of two tiny ones, some weeks we’re thriving, other weeks we’re surviving.

Here’s a run down of frozen/refrigerated foods we’ve tried from Costco + Fresh Thyme. Plus a few bonus favs at the end.

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Lost

July 16, 2023 / / 0 Comments

When’s the last time you’ve been lost? Really, truly lost?

I’ve always been prone to getting lost. To this day I have no sense of direction.

Back when I learned how to drive, we relied on maps. We had to.

My parents and grandparents always had maps laying around – AAA maps and giant Rand McNally maps that unfolded into a million squares and were impossible to put back together.

Eventually the internet brought us Mapquest. You could simply type in two destinations and it would give you a route. My generation’s car floors were carpeted with Taco Bell and Mapquest directions.

Sometimes the instructions were wrong or you missed a step.

Boom, you were lost!

When I was a new driver, I got lost on the way home from a friend’s house. They thought it was funny when I called them crying asking, “WHERE AM I?!”

Without smart phones, a common thing to do when you got lost was pull into a gas station and ask for help. I haven’t had to do this for decades.

Smartphones were the best thing to ever happen to me. 

I haven’t been lost since. Well, until last week.

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Summer update + Two Patios I Like

July 8, 2023 / / 0 Comments

A quick summer update. . .

Baby’s actually sleeping well! Work is stressful, but you can’t say they aren’t giving me learning opportunities. I haven’t gotten to watch anything good on TV but I did read Killers of the Flower Moon in a single weekend because I couldn’t put it down.

The toddler is as busy as ever. Last night she ate half my bowl of spicy Desert Fire from Green Mill. I was too impressed to be mad.

We’ve been eating out less and grilling more.

I made this Spicy Pork Bulgogi marinade and it was fantastic –  worth the work. I bought most of the ingredients from Seoul Foods in Fridley.

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