Everyday Goddess Does...

Fall is All About the Dips & New Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cheese Crisps. (And you can comment to win a $100 Visa Gift Card!)

This is a compensated review from BlogHer and Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cheese Crisps.

OK, first of all I'm just going to tell you that when my samples of Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cheese Crisps arrived, I immediately opened a box of the Four Cheese flavor and basically crunched my way through the whole yummy box. These crackers have some serious cheesy goodness, and they are delicious all by themselves. Pepperidge Farm says they have "Real taste, Real Crunch, Real Goodness." When I finally decided to share some with my roommate, *we* decided that they have "Real Cheese Cred."

But! It's fall. And fall means dinner parties. And party parties. And for me, that means whipping up some yummy dips for my friends to enjoy.

So I wanted to whip up some dips to try out with the Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cheese Crisps, which I received in both the Four Cheese and the Four Cheese Italian Herb flavors. Here's what I was looking at:

Natural, preservative-free snacks, made with an artisan blend of real cheeses golden baked to bubbly perfection on top of a thin, crispy, crunchy cracker. Four Cheese is made with Aged Cheddar, Asiago, Romano and Parmesan, while Italian Herb is seasoned with flavorful herbs and spices.

Since both of these chips are really cheesy and flavorful by themselves, I wanted to try something mild, and something with a flavor that would complement the crackers. My mind went immediately to seafood.

First up, one of my classic favs I've made for ages, Hot Crab Dip.  This dip is super easy and has a rich, mild flavor. I also love it because whenever I pull out the recipe, I see a dear friend's handwriting on a simple index card.

I'm always smiling at good memories when I make this dip.  The remaining directions on the back say:

Cover with paprika. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes at 350 degrees til bubbly.

I've also made a vegetarian version of this dip by substituting olive tapenade for the crab and paprika. Note: you can easily double this recipe, but I found long ago that it's so rich that a single batch is enough. I enjoyed this dip most with the Four Cheese Italian Herb.

For my second dip, which was cold, I made a Shrimp Dip by simply mixed baby shrimps with some cocktail sauce and sweet relish. This had a more bite than the crab dip, so I enjoyed it with the Four Cheese chips. Probably not a dip you're going to plow through a batch of on your own (should you be so inclined), but a nice easy addition to your party table. Next time I might try adding a touch of sour cream to cut the cocktail sauce a little and make it a touch creamy.

Now, about that $100 Visa Gift Card!

To enter, leave me a comment below and tell me about a Favorite Fall Get-Together. What brings out your social butterfly this time of year? The contest will begins today and will end 11/2/09.  Please make sure that the e-mail address you leave is correct.

Rules:

• No duplicate comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking to this post on twitter and leaving a link in the comments to your twitter.
• You may receive an additional entry by blogging about this contest and leaving a link in the comments to your blog post.
• This giveaway is open to US-residents age 18 and over
• Winners will be selected via random draw, using the random number generator, and will notified by e-mail.
• You have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
• Please see the official rules here: Official Rules.

You can also visit other BlogHer Reviewers for seven other chances to win a $100 Visa gift card.

And hey, if you invite me to your party, I'll totally bring the Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cheese Crisps!

The Long Overdue Nintendo DS Game Round-up. Five of 'Em, Anyway.

My goodness, am I *finally* blogging about some of the games I play on my Nintendo DS? Yes!

I've been wanting to do this for awhile now...

And I'm starting with Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir because it is totally that game's fault it took me so long to get to this. See, brilliant I decided that I would write up some of my games when I finished Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir. And it's HUGE.

For the most part, it's a search and find game, where you're looking at a room chock full of items, some obvious and some hidden, and you have to find certain things. I had some previous experience with that from playing Agatha Christie: Peril at End House on my Mac, and I have to admit, I couldn't believe it would be as much fun in a smaller format. I thought I'd go blind at least. But it actually works pretty well, and I enjoyed all the different search tools like the x-ray (which when you hit an animal shows you a skeleton, lol) and flashlight. The puzzle searches where you use the stylus to put two items together or modify them in some way to solve for an item were my fav. I couldn't get enough of that!

There's also plenty of items that are like a trick where what you find might not be exactly what you thought of when you read the item on the list, and some items where you're like, What the heck *is* that? So it definitely kept me interested. And there's plenty of hints available to help you if you get stuck. There's also various mini games like jigsaw and other puzzles, and I was totally tickled every time I had to blow on the DS to clear the dusting power to see a finger print. And I loved the music. I got into the habit of playing it before bed as a perfect little relaxing activity when I was too tired to read.

The one thing I missed that I enjoyed in the Agatha Christie game, was that MillionHeir has so many environments that you don't get often the component of remembering that you happened to notice an item in a room last time you were there so that when you see it on the list you might remember where it is. But that's a minor point. All in all, I enjoyed Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir and can definitely recommend it. It would keep a child it appealed to busy for hours, that's for sure.

Next up, another game that I finished and which completely rocked: Professor Layton and the Curious Village. This is a puzzle game, where you travel through a story line and must solve puzzles to continue. Best part of this game is hitting classic puzzles you know you solved as a kid (river, sheep on one side, wolves on the other, one boat), and yet which are totally stumping you. So much fun! Professor Layton and the Curious Village also features wonderful animated sections, great music, and an amusing story, and I can't possibly recommend it enough. It was delightful from beginning to end, and I was totally sad when it was over.

Next, my most favorite game to play on my Nintendo DS: World Series of Poker 2008: Battle for the Bracelets. When I got the DS, one of the first things I wanted was poker, so I emailed game reviewer Frank Provo for his advice, which he was kind enough to share. He actually recommended World Championship Poker Deluxe Series, but brought to my attention World Series of Poker 2008: Battle for the Bracelets. In a wonderful example of details being important, Frank mentioned that the World Series of Poker had only Texas Hold'Em and not many bells and whistles - Which was EXACTLY what I was looking for! I am *all* about the No Limit Texas Hold'Em, and seriously, I just wanted to play hand after hand of it.

What I love about World Series of Poker 2008: Battle for the Bracelets is that you can really practice your poker game and study things you might be learning about if you're reading poker books. It really facilitates thinking about your place at the table in relationship to the button, how many players are in the hand, what's the nut hand, and even who might be bluffing you. You can't actually try to read the computer players, of course, but each computer player has their own game style, which you can begin to get a sense for. The interface is top-notch.

If I have one qualm about World Series of Poker, it is only that once you're in a tournament game you have to play it to the end or leave the table and take your place in the tournament at that moment. Or ditch the game by turning off the DS without saving. This is realistic, of course, and allows for working on your stamina in the face of crap hands and player fatigue, but it also means you have to set aside time to sit and play a whole tournament, which is a challenge for me. So I do wish I could exit and save in the middle sometimes.

Still, if you're looking for a serious poker game for your DS, and you love Texas Hold'Em, World Series of Poker 2008: Battle for the Bracelets is the game. I love it love it love it.

I'll finish this round-up with two games that feature hot stylus action and that I really enjoy: Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day and Rhythm Heaven.

Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day is another one I like to play before bed. It's amazingly satisfying, particularly the sports games. I just love interacting with the DS with the stylus, I guess. Flash Focus uses a format similar to Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day! (and Wii Fit for that matter) where you're training regularly and stamping a calender, and it's rating your performance and sharing tips with you. In this case, tips about your eyes and your vision. One thing I find really interesting about these types of games is how you can really see the effects of fatigue in your performance. It's remarkable to me how dramatic the difference is.

Also remarkable: Rhythm Heaven my new go-to plane ride game. I got worried that I was making too much noise between the stylus tapping and the foot tapping - I used earphones, of course, but I'm tapping away and I wasn't sure how loud/disturbing that might be - but the game was so engaging that I just kept at it. It's completely addictive, and I've really only just started playing it. It's totally silly, too. I'm talking cheering monkeys and robot assembly line silly (at least the way I work the robot assembly line is most definitely silly). This apparently just makes me want to play it more. I haven't tried this one before bed, because honestly, I think it's just too hard and definitely *not* relaxing! Fun, yes; Challenging, yes; Relaxing, not so much! (Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!)

OK, I think five Nintendo DS games is a pretty good. I'll try to let less time go by before I do another round-up. Then again, I may just be playing  Rhythm Heaven for the next year!

Note: As a Nintendo Enthusiast, I received the following games for free: Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir and Rhythm Nation. Professor Layton and the Curious Village I received as a gift from a friend. I personally purchased Flash Focus and The World Series of Poker.

I have a SmartFood winner!

Well, that was fun!  And Mariana from Riding With No Hands is the winner of the $100 Visa gift card from SmartFood! Congratulations, Mariana.

I got 175 entries and I went through and numbered each one on a print-out. No one was penalized for entering more than once, but only the first eligible entries were included in the draw. Then I used random.org to pick a number. Then I double checked that that person had been entered correctly. And the winner was Mariana's tweet!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered and shared how they celebrate girls' night in.

Wii!

I got a wonderful surprise delivered today, and I have to say I was so excited by what was peeking through the peanuts, I just dumped them all over my bed:

My friends at Brand About Town heard I got laid off, and they sent me a Wii (which, I learned, comes with Wii Sports) and a Wii Fit and a massage from Burke Williams to help me "feel better, inside and out"! I am SO happy and excited! What a wonderful, wonderful surprise!

I didn't have anyone standing by with a video camera, but basically, it was like this:

THANK YOU Nintendo and Brand About Town! You are making it very difficult to concentrate on work (job hunting, etc.) today, but having something fun to look forward to has me plowing through it, for sure.

Wii!!!