By Emily:
I love fall. I have always looked forward to the change in the season from summer to fall. As a kid, perhaps having an autumn birthday had something to do with it; but now I love it for the cooler temperatures, the warm red, orange and gold colors outdoors, and the comforting seasonal food we serve in our home. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy the carefree days of summer without alarm clocks and schools schedules, but I can only take so much of the summer salads, sandwiches and grilled meat. By September, I am ready to pull out my slow cooker and put my casserole dishes to good use.
However, I can’t always put together that warm comforting meal from scratch every single day. To help, I’ve discovered a great line of food products from Tastefully Simple that make it easy to prepare a delicious, comforting meal. I had the opportunity to try out Tastefully Simple’s Cozy Comfort Kit which included their Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup, Bountiful Beer Bread Mix and Nana’s Apple Cake Mix. All were tasty and simple to prepare!
The bread directions called for 12 oz. of beer or carbonated beverage (we used club soda) and 3T melted butter (optional). Once the oven was preheated, we popped it in the oven for 55 minutes.
Now what could be easier? Well, the soup! The Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup requires 6 Cups water, a pot, spoon and 30 minutes on the stove.
Nana’s Apple Cake Mix required a little more prep: 2 cups chopped apples and 2 eggs, but I could hardly call that complicated. I put this in the oven for 45 minutes while we enjoyed dinner and served it warm out of the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
I can certainly say that Tastefully Simple’s Cozy Comfort Kit is easy to prepare, but before I began cooking, I was a little suspicious what it would end up tasting like. After cooking, I was pleasantly surprised at how good the entire meal was! The soup smelled amazing while it cooked, and tasted just about as close as you can get to homemade. It had the perfect consistency, not too runny, not too thick and it was so yummy soaked up in the bread.
So onto the bread, let me tell you about this bread! The loaf had a slightly toasted crust and the inside was soft and warm. It is dense bread, but the carbonated beverage made it taste much lighter than other quick breads. There was a hint of sweetness to it, which made it slightly addicting to me. Our family managed to finish off two-thirds of the loaf at dinner. As for the other half, err…well I’m not proud, let’s leave it at that.
Tastefully Simple’s Cozy Comfort Kit was a convenient way to warm our bellies on a rainy fall day. The Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup was enjoyed by the whole family and the Bountiful Beer Bread made the made the perfect accompaniment to these warm bowls of soup. Nana’s Apple Cake was a real treat for dessert, but I must admit it is great for breakfast too!
A couple other things that impressed me:
1. The kit arrived in a lovely blue canvas bag which would make it a great “Under $20” gift idea.
2. Tastefully Simple’s website, www.tastefullysimple.com, includes many recipes you can use to further enhance your product or create something new to enjoy!
3. I can reorder these items with ease from their website or through independent Tastefully Simple consultants. Now if they only sold the Bountiful Beer Bread by the case!
About Tastefully Simple from www.tastefullysimple.com:
“We offer a wide selection of convenient, easy-to-prepare foods designed to help people spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the rest of their lives. Our products are available through independent Tastefully Simple consultants primarily at home taste-testing parties nationwide.”
Disclosure – A product was provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or representing PR agency for the writing of this review; however, opinions expressed are my own and are NOT influenced by monetary compensation.
About Emily:
Emily is also very active in the local MOMS CLUB. She raises chickens and has 2 shih tzus. Her daughter Caitlyn attends Montessori school and she hates housecleaning, loves wine and enjoys dining out. She would love to find a cure for the depression and anxiety she has dealt with on and off over the past 10 years, just like me. She is an amazing mom and friend.
