Tag Archives: bars

What I’m Loving Lately

I actually had to search my own blog to see if I’ve previously done a post with this title, because it sounded so familiar. But good news – I haven’t! So here’s a little round-up of a few things I’m loving lately, because I don’t want to write a whole blog post on each of them (and I don’t think that would be nearly as fun for you to read, either).

Blaze Pizza

I’ll start with full disclosure…Blaze sent me two free pizza vouchers, and those are what Jeff and I used the first time we tried this place. But we have also been talking non-stop about it, and have made plans to return on a couple of occasions. (Both plans were foiled for a variety of reasons, but that’s not important.)

blazepizza

I describe Blaze Pizza as “Subway, but with pizza”. For a flat fee (thick crust is extra…and worth it), you go down the line and pick as many toppings as you want. Then the pizza is fast-fired at an extremely hot temperature, and ready for you in minutes. You can also add finishing touches after the pizza is done, like balsamic vinegar or – oh baby – ranch dressing. While I was happy with the creation I made above, I was very jealous of Jeff’s pizza, which escaped into his stomach before I could get a photo of it. Guess we’ll just have to go back so he can recreate it and I can get my picture! Blaze is a national chain so look for your closest location here.

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WIAW: Taste of Nature Bar Giveaway!

I received complimentary samples of Taste of Nature bars to review. This is not a sponsored post and my opinions are my own.

This post is not about the type of bar folks usually associate me with. No cocktails here, just what cocktails usually lead to – snacks! Taste of Nature reached out to me to ask if I’d be interested in doing a blog post about their bars, and once I checked out the flavor variety and the nutrition facts, I was 100% on board. Plus they’re up for doing a giveaway with five winners, which is rare to find in the blog world and something I didn’t want you guys to miss out on!

The perfect giveaway for a WIAW link-up!

Regular readers probably already know this: I’m not that into bars as a daytime snack. But night time? Let me at ’em! I love crumbling all manner of goodies into my sugar-free chemical-laden vice (Jello Chocolate Pudding) and enjoying my snack after dinner, in bed, with a book. The Taste of Nature bars made for a nice evening snack because they’re full of a nice balance of healthy fats, fiber, and protein – plus not too much sugar. That’s the number one thing I look for in a bar, even before I look at its calorie count (not that I want to be focused on that…)

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Thanksgiving Eve With Nana C!

I have so much to say about the long Thanksgiving weekend and it will take several (as in four) posts to do so, but that’s okay. You guys can just look forward (I hope) to a week of  fun-filled recaps, with a pinch of thought-provoking reflections. I’m going to start by announcing the winner of the Gymdoll giveaway though…congrats to Amy! I will be contacting you about getting you your Skulls & Barbells active tank!

gymdollwinner

Last time my Nana Connie visited us (in June), I was bummed that I didn’t have time to take her to one of my special favorite restaurants. So I knew that for her Thanksgiving visit, I had to bring her with me to Barcelona West Hartford for Thanksgiving Eve. I spent the night before Thanksgiving there last year (with Molly) and it was so great! And who better to spend it with this year than Nana Connie?

11-27-13-thanksgivingeve4

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MIMM: One Early Night, One Late Night

Be sure to check out Friday’s blog post about New Britain Museum of American Art events, and head to their Facebook page to like them and enter the giveaway for a pair of tickets to this Friday’s Scotch vs Bourbon tasting! I’ll be there!

I feel like it’s been awhile since I did a Marvelous In My Monday (MIMM) post! Not that my weekends haven’t been marvelous, but I’ve just been busy with real-life work and blog posts I’d previously committed to publishing. I promised myself I’d start this week off with a post about one of my marvelous weekends.

Be sure to join Katie’s weekly linkup!

Marvelous is…kicking off the weekend with a podcast feature! Awhile back I recorded a podcast with the Bate brothers of The Lifestyle Accountability Show. It went live this past Friday! Click here to listen and if you have a chance after doing so, please head to iTunes and submit a review. I had a nice time connecting and chatting with these gents!

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Kona Kase: Take Two

I received a complimentary Kona Kase to review as a participant in a Fitfluential campaign. All opinions are my own. This is not a compensated post.

You may recall from my first Kona Kase review that while I liked some of the products in my June Kase, I did not feel overall that the $15 price provide me a good value. I noticed a lack of variety (four bars!) and also felt the contents were geared toward endurance athletes (and I am surely not one). One of the founders, Taylor, sent out an email to the Fitfluential Ambassadors who participated in the campaign, asking if we wanted another Kase (July) to review. Of course my answer was yes – why not?!

As always the product-listing card that comes with each Kase is appreciated!

Though I still didn’t find a use for every product (some were still geared towards endurance athletes, so I gave those to a co-worker who loves biking), I certainly was more satisfied this time around with the amount of products I COULD actually see myself using, along with the variety.

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Kona Kase Review

I received a complimentary Kona Kase to review as a participant in a Fitfluential campaign. All opinions are my own. This is not a compensated post.

I really enjoy trying out different monthly subscription food boxes, and I’m fortunate enough that this blog gives me the chance to do that free of charge. My latest box to review came to me and other Fitfluential Ambassadors as part of a campaign to promote Kona Kase, which is more a box for active lifestyles than a box for foodies. The box costs $15/month and contains eight different products. You can get an idea of the types of products you might find in your Kona Kase here…or read on!

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I received the June 2013 Kona Kase, and like most subscription boxes I’ve tried, it contained some products I’m really excited about, some I’ll use eventually, and some I’d NEVER use. I usually hope for only one or two of that last category, but alas in this box, I got three.

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I Bestow Upon You a Giveaway!

I received a March Bestowed box for free to review. This is not a compensated post and all opinions about the service are my own.

Oh my goodness, I loved loved LOOOOOVED reading your “Hey, It’s OK!” contributions in the comments of yesterday’s post! Keep ’em coming and I encourage EVERYONE to do a post in that format or any format telling the healthy living blog world just how many stereotypes you break. And heck, I might even do a post soon on the stereotypes I embrace, because there sure are plenty of those too. Brussels sprouts, anyone?

I’m sure you’ve seen reviews/giveaways of Bestowed, a subscription service in which a box of fun, nutritious food finds are delivered monthly to your door. Even if you’ve read other opinions, I hope you’re still interested in reading mine, especially since I am offering a giveaway!

bestowed1

This is the third monthly food subscription box I’ve tried – I’ve also reviewed Knoshbox and Love With Food. Though Love With Food was cheapest ($10 vs the monthly Bestowed price of $19), the products in the Bestowed box are definitely of higher quality, so the price point makes sense. I opened my box and was excited to see familiar brands I’ve always wanted to try, like Artisana.

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Good Bean, Good Giveaway

Awhile back I entered a Lil Veggie Patch giveaway for assorted The Good Bean products, and was bummed out when I didn’t win. Sometimes I enter blog giveaways because it’s easy to do so, but I REALLY wanted to win that one! I am chickpea-obsessed and picky about bars, but the nutrition stats on The Good Bean Fruit & No-Nut Bars looked fabulous. Just 130 calories per bar (perfect amount for crumbling into a nighttime bowl of pudding or Chobani), 11 or 12 grams of sugar (I’ve seen much worse), and 5g of protein. And ever since sampling dried Chickpea Snacks at CT Veg Fest last spring, I have been seeking out more flavors of those adorable crunchy butts (come on, chickpeas totally look like butts).

Now do you agree with me?   Source

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On a Snacky Quest!

One of my favorite parts of being a Fitfluential Ambassador is – not gonna lie – getting the chance to participate in product review campaigns! I enjoy receiving fitness gear or healthy eats in the mail as much as the next girl, so I jumped all over this Quest Nutrition campaign and embarked on a Quest to try the super-generous variety and amount of protein-packed tastes they sent my way.

To be honest – Quest’s branding at first was a bit of a turn-off to me. I am not a user of protein powders or supplements and a visit to their website gave me a GNC/Vitamin Shoppe vibe. But I’d already heard a ton of positive reactions to Quest bars from some of my favorite bloggers, so I certainly wanted to try them for myself.

#allthebars

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SOYJOY Bar Review and Giveaway!

I’m so humbled by the compliments you guys left on my review post about the Millwright’s Tavern in Simsbury, CT! I seriously can’t stop recommending this restaurant to anyone in the area. I’m glad that the passion I feel about dining out comes through so strongly to my readers in my reviews. Knowing that means the world to me!

I’ve got another review and giveaway today for a product I was lucky enough to sample! And of course I enjoyed it, because those are the only giveaways you guys are going to see on here!

Soy selfie! (Alliteration all the timeeeee).

I tasted my first SOYJOY bar after the Healthy Living Summit, where I received the Mango Coconut flavor in my swag bag. I am picky with my bars, but this one stuck out to me because it didn’t taste too sickly sweet and the soy provided me a #plantPOWER protein punch that kept me well-fueled and satisfied for a workout.

My mom has already gotten lots of use out of this bag!

SOYJOY offered to send me samples of their two newest flavors, Dark Chocolate Cherry and Cranberry, for review (along with that sweet bag). Once again, I was impressed by the nutrition stats and lack of that fake-sugar taste so common in other bars. This time I used my bars in after-dinner snacks!

Crumbled Cranberry SOYJOY bar mixed into a chocolate Jello pudding cup!

The soy used in these bars is non-GMO and the fruit flavoring comes from real, whole fruit. The bars are vegetarian (unfortunately not vegan) and gluten-free too! I could go on about the health benefits of soy, but I’ve already done that on this blog. 🙂

A total #jadorelavie moment – Dark Chocolate Cherry SOYJOY bar crumbled into the Jello chocolate pudding again, with a book and candle on the side!

Out of the two new flavors, Dark Chocolate Cherry is totally my favorite. but I’m not too surprised about that. I still really liked the Cranberry and appreciate that I received one chocolate bar to review and one more like a “blondie”, because my mood certainly changes and I never know what I’m going to want! I also gave a couple bars to my fellow health foodie friend Alexis, who eats gluten-free. She was a fan!

Giveaway:

Now it’s your turn to try SOYJOY bars! Two lucky Cait Plus Ate readers will receive their own set of samples. Continental US only – giveaway will be open until this Thursday 11/15 at 11:59PM EST.

There are several ways to enter (leave a comment for each or additional entries won’t count!):

  1. Check out the SOYJOY flavors on their website and comment here telling me which you’d want to try most (mandatory).
  2. Follow @SOYJOYUS on Twitter and comment here saying you did.
  3. Follow @CaitPlusAte on Twitter and comment here saying you did.
  4. Tweet “I entered to win @SOYJOYUS bars from @CaitPlusAte! http://wp.me/p1SfTW-1F9 #plantPOWER #fitfluential #EAT” and comment here with the link to the tweet.

General Giveaway Rules: No Purchase Necessary. This giveaway is only open to residents of the continental United States. The email addresses that are collected for this giveaway will only be used for the purpose of contacting the winners and will never be given out to anyone nor sold. The winners will be randomly chosen and contacted via email. The winner will have 72 hours to respond. Please make sure you check your junk mail folder.

Good luck to all who enter! I received these SOYJOY bars complimentary to review. All opinions are my own.

Meet Caitlin

I’m a 28 year old full-time working girl living in Boston (previously lived in Connecticut). I’m passionate about food/drink, restaurants, self-love, fitness, and the ever-present search for balance. I write about that journey on this blog – I hope you enjoy!

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Design Credit

My header was originally designed by Mai Le and later tweaked by Chris Roggi to match this theme, which he helped me customize. He also moved me over to self-hosting! Both can be contacted through their sites for design & development work!

Disclaimer

I am not an RD and do not have any official training, certifications, or degrees in nutrition or fitness. This blog is a way to write about my life. Any views I express are mine alone, based on what works for me, and should never be taken as medical advice. Always talk to your doctor or a trained professional before starting a new diet or fitness plan. In addition, this blog and its content are in no way affiliated with Kate Gosselin, “Kate Plus 8”, TLC, or any related affiliates.

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