Cornmeal Buffalo Wings

Do you ever dine out and try figuring out how a dish was made? What ingredients were used or what technique was applied? We recently dined at a local restaurant, The Frontier, and while there, we were struck by their 'Lollipop Wings.' It's simply their version of buffalo wings... with a twist. My husband and I really enjoyed them and sat there trying to figure out what they did to make them different. It had all the flavor of the typical buffalo wing but more importantly, the texture was a surprise. Rather than frying the chicken before tossing into a buffalo wing sauce, the chicken was coated in what I guess was... a seasoned fish fry coating. Fish fry coating with chicken? Yes. And hence, these Cornmeal Buffalo Wings were recreated...

6 Skewers for Summer...

During the summer, I have this appeal for foods on a stick. Maybe it's all the festivals, outdoor festivities and picnics where it's so convenient to walk and eat while enjoying the fun things going on. But for the times we're in our backyard with our grill, it's certainly such a great time saver to have skewers or kabobs made in advance. They cook up pretty quickly on the grill and well, who doesn't like eating off a stick anyway?! Will you be serving up any skewers or kabobs for the Fourth of July holiday? If you're looking for more ideas, here are 6 Skewers for Summer... and if you need more, check out these 8 Kabob Recipes for Summer Fun...

Salmon Potato Cakes

Joel is a very good eater... but I'm not surprised considering how well his Daddy eats too. :) I'm still waiting for the day all that changes and he gets into his picky food stage. But until then, I'm happily enjoying the opportunity to introduce him to new foods with different flavors, textures, colors and aromas. I will say that I was a bit nervous to incorporate seafood into his diet. There's a history of seafood sensitivity on my side of the family but there's no way of knowing whether Joel is sensitive or not unless he tries it. Thankfully Joel took to these Salmon Potato Cakes really well! Flaked salmon is mixed with mashed potatoes, spices and coated with a fish fry coating before pan frying to a golden brown...

10 Pies to Celebrate the Fourth of July...

They say pie is the new dessert trend but the way I see it, it's a dessert that never really went out of style. You'll see it highlighted all year round, especially during the summer (during Memorial and Independence holidays) and fall (during Thanksgiving). With Independence Day only a few days away, will you be celebrating with pie? If you're not sure, here's 10 delicious reasons to encourage you to have a slice this coming weekend! I'm sure you'll enjoy at least one of these 10 Pies to Celebrate the Fourth of July...

Grilled Cheese Hamburger

I love grilled cheese sandwiches. I also love hamburgers. So why did it take me this long to combine the two?! I guess in essence you could call them Patty Melt Sandwiches, but whatever name they're given, they're good. Really good. When I was surfing the web, I came across this article for the 'Web's Greatest Burger Recipes.' This Grilled Cheese Hamburger was one of them and ever since I laid my eyes on it, I couldn't stop thinking about them. I had to make them... and I did. A seasoned beef patty is cooked to perfection before nestling in between two slices of toasted bread adorned with melted American cheese. Heaven.

Indonesian Shrimp Fried Rice

Fried rice. When I was growing up, making fried rice is kind of like a college student making ramen noodles. It's something you usually have on hand because it's cheap, takes no time to make and you can add stuff to it to make a more filling meal. I grew up making fried rice as a way to use up leftovers because we always had rice available. Whatever we had leftover from the night before sometimes found it's destiny as a fried rice dish in a day or two. I rarely saw fried rice dishes as something special... always an after thought if anything. So when I saw this recipe for Indonesian Shrimp Fried Rice in a recent Cook's Illustrated magazine, I completely skipped it. I'm glad I read my magazine over again and the second time around, I skimmed the recipe. Granted, I didn't make it quite as written, but I did enjoy the flavors I got out of the recipe. A lot! Sweet and salty flavors came through while shrimp and vegetables studded this flavorful rice dish....

Sunday Fun Day Giveaway: GoPicnic! & Last Week's Giveaway Winners!

Happy Sunday! Hope you're enjoying the last week of June before the festivities of July 4th weekend come around. Last week the featured giveaway was a cookbook, Cooking for Geeks. For all those cooking/baking geeks out there, this cookbook will surely satisfy all your cooking/baking questions! Now, here's a big Congratulations to the winner of this past week's giveaway! Please shoot me an email at itsjoelen@gmail.com to claim your prize...

Cooking for Geeks
 
Winner: Comment #3!

With the Fourth of July holiday weekend coming up, it's a perfect opportunity for a picnic! My son and I have gone on quite a few picnics together this season. I've packed a number of things for us including sandwiches, fruits, vegetables with dip, cheeses, etc. However when I learned about this company that focus on healthy food on the go, I had to try it out. I came across Go Picnic! at the National Restaurant Show I attended a last month. I've seen them at stores prior to that but never really took the time to check out what they were. It was great to learn that they started here in Chicago (actually not too far from where we live) and have been a growing company with their products sold nationally. So aside from them being a local business I love supporting, their food focus is one I love too...

What really counts is what’s packed inside each handy, compact GoPicnic box. Every nutritionally balanced, shelf stable meal combines a satisfying mix of protein, fiber, and fruit, and each bite, from crackers to hummus to applesauce to delectable dark chocolate, is full of wholesome ingredients. That means no trans fats, no high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), no added monosodium glutamate (MSG), and no artificial flavors and colors…. whatsoever.

Here's another really cool part: GoPicnic meals need no refrigeration - they're shelf-stable entrees. As long as an individual food item is unopened, it's good until its individual expiration date kept at room temperature. They rely on excellent ingredients and high performance packaging methods, not chemicals and artificial preservatives, to keep products fresh and at the height of their quality and taste for an extended period of time without refrigeration. These processes and packaging are more expensive and complicated that just adding chemicals, but they enable them to give folks lots of tasty, portable, high quality food on-the-go with clean ingredient labels… the closest thing you can get to fresh food, in a box!

Also, GoPicnic meals are easy to eat -- everything in GoPicnic meals are ready to eat with no extra preparation required. Just open and enjoy, no need to heat anything up or add water. Which means you really can enjoy GoPicnic anytime you're hungry, anywhere you go!

Each item in a GoPicnic ready to eat meal is individually packaged, so you can eat at your own pace – some now, some later, or everything together – whatever you’re in the mood for or your schedule can handle (and let’s face it, sometimes you only have a minute for a bite!). The rest will wait for you. As long as an individual food item is unopened, no refrigeration or preparation is required, just open and enjoy when you’re ready to go.

Go Picnic! also have meals that suit special diets including vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, kosher and so there's something for everybody! Thanks to my friends at Go Picnic, they sent me a care package of kid-friendly gluten free treats, which is perfect for kids and adults alike. Inside the package I received their turkey stick and chips picnic meal along with other treats. It came at a perfect time since Joel and I were off to have a picnic at the neighborhood park. I brought the treats with us to enjoy and Joel loved it! It made packing up for a picnic so easy and I felt good knowing he was eating something balanced and without any chemicals or preservatives. Now Go Picnic meals aren't just for kids - adults can enjoy them too! They make a great snack any time of day and saves you time from fussing in the kitchen.

My friends at Go Picnic are sponsoring this week's giveaway and a lucky reader will be receiving 2 single Go Picnic meals of their choice (from all classic deli meals and/or all natural meals). So check out their site and start deciding what you'd choose if you win!

Some guidelines:

- Giveaway is only for those who live in the United States - my apologies to my non-United States readers!

- You must check back in a week when winners are announced and email me to claim your prize if you win.

To enter the giveaway, go to the GoPicnic website
& come back here leaving a comment answering: 

What GoPicnic meals would you like to try & what's your favorite picnic food?

Deadline: Saturday, July 2, 2011 at 12 midnight CST.

One winner will be randomly chosen by Random.Org's Interger Generator based on the number of your comment and will be announced on Sunday, July 3, 2011, within next week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway. Good luck!

Full Disclosure: The giveaways are sponsored by the same company that provided me with the food related product to review. Products I review and offer as a giveaway are ones I personally recommend and would use/enjoy myself and opinions reflected are mine alone.

Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies

When it comes to brownies, I can be pretty picky. I like my brownies to be dense and fudgy, not cakey. However if I were to choose what my favorite brownie would be, any cheesecake brownie would easily have my vote. When I spotted the recipe for these Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies, I knew I had to make them. Not only was cream cheese involved, but the addition of raspberry jam with chocolate really caught my attention. These brownies were so decadent with its swirled cream cheese and raspberry jam throughout a perfect chocolate batter.

Chipotle Lime Pork Ribs

The grill is something we're taking advantage of these days. It's just been too hot inside to cook on the stovetop so having the grill makes cooking in the hot summer nights so much easier. One of the things I enjoy about grilling is learning more about various marinades for meats. Having marinades to try out for meats allows me to grill up various things with a variety of flavor. Besides, after a while grilled meats without any really accenting flavor can get boring. The most recent marinade I tried is this one for Chipotle Lime Pork Ribs. Fresh lime zest and juice paired with chipotle chili pepper makes for a refreshing flavor and a slight kick! It went especially well with pork and I'm sure it would work for chicken just as well too...

Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwiches

When it comes to summer drinks, a favorite at our house is root beer. There's something about root beer that really makes summer even more fun. Maybe it's the nostalgia or even the fact it's awesome poured over a mug of vanilla ice cream. But aside from it's obvious sweetness, root beer does well in savory applications too. For example, in these Root Beer Pulled Pork Sandwiches, it's sweetness lends itself well with a homemade bbq sauce and tender, slow cooked pork. You'll be surprised how versatile root beer is after having one of these sandwiches!

Grilled Shrimp & Lobster Artichoke Fettuccine Alfredo

When it comes to seafood, my husband can have a bottomless stomach. He loves it. A lot. Maybe too much!  So when I was planning my Tuscan Grill Party menu, I wanted to make sure seafood was represented. Being that shrimp is his favorite seafood and that it was easy to cook on the grill, I added that to my menu. I also scored some lobster tails on sale at the store and figured I'd use that some how. I ended up bringing together shrimp, lobster and pasta to create this Grilled Shrimp & Lobster Artichoke Fettuccine Alfredo that really was a popular menu item on the table. Fire roasted shrimp and chunks of lobster tail are tossed with marinated artichokes in a buttery, creamy alfredo sauce and fettuccini noodles for a rich pasta dish!

Tuscan Lemon Chicken

To continue on with my Tuscan Grill Party recipes, this dish is one that's perfect for summer. This Tuscan Lemon Chicken is ridiculously easy to make and is equally delicious. The best part is that it requires minimal ingredients - most of which you probably already have on hand. Chicken is marinated with lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper before grilling to perfection and served with grilled lemon. This dish captures all the simplicity of Tuscan cuisine and allows the fresh flavors to shine...

Sunday Fun Day Giveaway: Cooking for Geeks & Last Week's Giveaway Winners!

Happy Father's Day Sunday! This post is a little late due to Father's Day festivities here at our house, but I've got a lucky winner to announce! Last week the featured giveaway was a sampling of Tiesta Teas. These teas are perfect to celebrate National Iced Tea month all year long and with so many flavors, it's definitely not hard to do. Now, here's a big Congratulations to the winner of this past week's giveaway! Please shoot me an email at itsjoelen@gmail.com to claim your prize...

Tiesta Teas

Winner: Comment #25!

The other day, I was with fellow female food bloggers and we had a great discussion about how the sexes approach food and cooking/baking very differently. We've noticed that females tend to approach food and cooking/baking with more emotion. Males, on the other hand, tend to approach it with a more technical or scientific approach. Of course, this is just our observation and not necessarily a generalization. But regardless of how you tend to approach food, you will probably appreciate this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway. Now the real question is... are you a cooking geek?!

Why do we cook the way we do? Are you the innovative type, used to expressing your creativity instead of just following directions? Do you want to learn more about cooking or are curious about the science behind what happens to food as it cooks?

More than just a cookbook, Cooking for Geeks applies your curiosity to discovery, inspiration, and invention in the kitchen. Why is medium-rare steak so popular? Why do we bake some things at 350°F/175°C and others at 375°F/190°C? And how quickly does a pizza cook if we overclock an oven to 1,000°F/540°C? Jeff Potter provides the answers to these questions and more, including recipes, interviews, and experiements in his widely well-received book, which The Washington Post called "one of the most useful books on understanding cooking."

Thanks to the folks at Book This, Inc!, they are sponsoring this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway, the Cooking for Geeks cookbook. More than just a cookbook, Cooking for Geeks applies your curiosity to discovery, inspiration, and invention in the kitchen. Why is medium-rare steak so popular? Why do we bake some things at 350 F/175 C and others at 375 F/190 C? And how quickly does a pizza cook if we overclock an oven to 1,000 F/540 C? Author and cooking geek Jeff Potter provides the answers and offers a unique take on recipes -- from the sweet (a "mean" chocolate chip cookie) to the savory (duck confit sugo).

This book is an excellent and intriguing resource for anyone who wants to experiment with cooking, even if you don't consider yourself a geek.

• Initialize your kitchen and calibrate your tools
• Learn about the important reactions in cooking, such as protein denaturation, Maillard reactions, and caramelization, and how they impact the foods we cook
• Play with your food using hydrocolloids and sous vide cooking
• Gain firsthand insights from interviews with researchers, food scientists, knife experts, chefs, writers, and more

Some guidelines:

- Giveaway is only for those who live in the United States - my apologies to my non-United States readers!

- You must check back in a week when winners are announced and email me to claim your prize if you win.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment answering: 

What makes you a cooking geek?

Deadline: Saturday, June 25, 2011 at 12 midnight CST.

One winner will be randomly chosen by Random.Org's Interger Generator based on the number of your comment and will be announced on Sunday, June 26, 2011, within next week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway. Good luck!

Full Disclosure: The giveaways are sponsored by the same company that provided me with the food related product to review. Products I review and offer as a giveaway are ones I personally recommend and would use/enjoy myself and opinions reflected are mine alone.

Italian Chocolate Nutella Ice Cream Cake (Zuccotto)

I've been anxious to share this all week! Since it's Friday, let's end it on a sweet note with this Italian Chocolate Nutella Ice Cream Cake (Zuccotto). This was definitely a show stopper at the Tuscan Grill Party I hosted last weekend. In planning my Tuscan inspired menu, I looked through various Italian recipes. When I came across the idea of making a zuccotto for dessert, it was a done deal. What could be more perfect than cake and ice cream? This version of the Italian ice cream cake layers chocolate cake, vanilla bean ice cream and nutella whipped cream into a frozen bombe, for a gorgeous presentation of a delicious dessert!...

5 Beefy Steaks for Dad...

Father's Day is coming up this weekend - are you planning on anything special? I'm still not sure what we'll be doing yet {gasp!} but I'm working on it. One thing I have in mind is preparing one of his favorite Filipino meals and playing around with combining 2 of his favorite desserts into one. On the other hand, he has some electronic toy he's been coveting. However when it comes to my dad, it's pretty easy what to get him for Father's Day. He'd be happy with a nice bottle of cognac and thick steak! It's just too bad that my dad is half way around the world enjoying his retirement on the sunny beaches of a tropical island. (Well, bad for me, since I can't enjoy the same surroundings!) So if you're planning on preparing a special meal this weekend in honor of Father's Day, here are 5 Beefy Steaks for Dad that he might enjoy...

Bistecca alla Fiorentina (Tuscan Porterhouse Steak)

Beef, it's what's for dinner. Yeah, I wish it were more often! My husband isn't big on red meats, especially beef, due to health reasons. So naturally, we don't have beef very often. However when we do on occasion, I make sure we get really good cuts of beef and keep the preparation fairly simple. One such way to prepare a nice porterhouse steak is in the Tuscan style, also known as Bistecca alla Fiorentina. When you're hosting a Tuscan Grill Party, this Tuscan porterhouse steak should be on the menu! Seasoned with fresh rosemary sprigs, sea salt, freshly cracked pepper and a drizzle of good olive oil, this steak is simply prepared over the grill in true Tuscan spirit!...

Italian Herb & Garlic Cheeseball

If there's one food I would take with me on a deserted island, it would easily be cheese. With so many to choose from, how could I get sick of it?! Aside from all the wonderful cheese varieties out there, I do have a special place in my heart (and tummy) for cheese balls. I'm not talking about those neon orange puffs of corn packed up in large canisters. I'm talking about a blend of cream cheese, seasonings, spices and rolled in some kind of textured coating. They're often served around holidays but why limit it to only that time of year? I love a good cheeseball and for our recent Tuscan Grill Party, I made this Italian Herb & Garlic Cheeseball for an antipasto platter. Smooth cream cheese and shredded mozzarella cheese is blended with a mixture of seasonings and spices, then coated in seasoned breadcrumbs and sun dried tomatoes. It's a delicious appetizer to spread on crackers or bread and served alongside nuts and fruit!

Grilled Tomato Bruschetta

When it comes to Italian cuisine, nothing starts off a meal like bruschetta. The simple flavors of good bread, quality olive oil and a hint of garlic makes it the perfect appetizer. Naturally, it also makes for a great foundation to top with meats, cheeses and various spreads. For our recent Tuscan Grill Party, Grilled Tomato Bruschetta was a must for our menu. We also wanted to include some other toppings so I also made a White Bean Bruschetta along with a dipping oil mixed with fig balsamic vinegar and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. The trio of toppings was a delicious way to serve up grilled bread and good enough to be a meal in of itself!...

Grilled Caprese Salad

 Everything's better on a stick, right?! When I was planning my Tuscan Grill Party menu, I knew I wanted to have caprese salad included. There's just so many ways to present a traditional caprese salad but I was looking for something a bit different or unique. Since it is a grill party after all, I was glad to come across this recipe for Grilled Caprese Salad. This was a fun spin on the recipe were the components are skewered, grilled and then eaten off the stick. Or for those that prefer, taken off the skewer and eaten like a panzanella (Italian bread salad). If you're looking for an interesting way to combine salad and skewers, this would be it!...

Foodbuzz Tastemaker: Tuscan Grill Party!

My husband and I have always wanted to go to Italy together, but that idea is far out of reach, at least anytime soon. So our way of traveling without leaving home is to do it through food. In this case, we traveled to Tuscany, Italy by hosting a special Tuscan Grill Party. Highlighting various Italian dishes on a Tuscan inspired table and setting, our summertime outdoor party was so much fun to host for family and friends. Thanks to the folks of FoodBuzz and Cost Plus World Market, our little Tuscan Grill Party was also selected to be featured on FoodBuzz's Tastemaker program! In our culinary travel to Tuscany, my husband and I prepared quite a spread of Tuscan inspired eats. Our menu included...

Antipasto Platter
(Salami, Crackers, Provolone, Italian Herb & Garlic Cheeseball, Roasted Almonds)

Grilled Bruschetta with a Trio of Toppings
(Fresh tomato & basil, Grated Parmesan & Fig Balsamic, White Bean)


Grilled Caprese Salad

Grilled Shrimp & Artichoke Fettuccine Alfredo

Grilled Tuscan Porterhouse Steak
(Bistecca alla Fiorentina)

Grilled Tuscan Lemon Chicken

Grilled Vegetable Medley
(Eggplant, Bell Peppers, Squash & Zucchini)

Cremini Mushroom Risotto

Italian Chocolate Nutella Ice Cream Cake
(Zuccotto)

Fresh Fruit Basket
(Strawberries, Peaches, Blueberries & Grapes)

Italian Wines, Prosecco Cocktails & Watermelon Lemonade

To set the mood of a Tuscan Grill Party, we set up our backyard with a long, continuous dining table. Tuscan colors include terra cotta red/orange, Tuscan gold, eggplant purple, sage or olive green. I incorporated these colors on our table in a few different ways. We used a neutral tablecloth and Italian Plum buffet napkins for color. I had some serving ware pieces that fit the Tuscan color theme and used those for some of our menu items. To add some rustic notes, woven baskets were also used to serve food, like our bruschetta and fresh fruit. I also purchased some new dinnerware along with some glassware. I also loved the simple white platters I picked up for serving the grilled veggies. For centerpieces, I had some sunflowers in rustic vases and a few tealights to add some soft lighting as the night went on.

We invited our friends Mike and Christine, along with my husband's side of the family. In total, we had 7 guests that joined my husband, son and me for our special Tuscan Grill Party. My son was especially excited to taste his way through Tuscany!

Sadly, it got a bit too cold and windy that we ended up moving our party indoors. It worked out well since some of our guests arrived late due to traffic. They may have missed out on our lovely table, but they were still able to enjoy our Tuscan inspired spread...

Overall, our family and friends who attended had a wonderful time. They definitely enjoyed our delicious travel to Tuscany with us. And if you're looking to travel without leaving home, have yourself a culinary adventure through the food of places you'd love to travel to. It's a fun way to learn about a culture and the best part is you can eat your way through it! For a great place to help decorate and set the mood for your next party, definitely check out Cost Plus World Market! They had a wonderful selection of decor, entertaining pieces, kitchen/dining items and even food and wine. I had fun shopping at Cost Plus World Market for my Tuscan Grill Party and whatever party you decide to put together, I'm sure you'll find something there that will add that special touch. Lastly, stay tuned this coming week for recipes of the dishes I prepared!

Full Disclosure: As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program,
I received a stipend from FoodBuzz & Cost Plus World Market for hosting this event.

Sunday Fun Day Giveaway: Tiesta Teas & Last Week's Giveaway Winners!

Happy Sunday! Here in Chicago, it's been quite a warm weekend so I hope you're staying cool and comfortable wherever you are. Last week the featured giveaway was a case of 6 Sparkling Ice drinks. Sparkling Ice is a refreshing drink of naturally flavored sparkling water that has zero calories, made with natural fruit juice, sweetened with Splenda and is refreshing too! With 6 flavors (orange mango, pomegranate berry, lemon lime, pink grapefruit, blackraspberry, and kiwi strawberry), everyone will find one they'll like just as is or better yet, used in their favorite summertime cocktail. Now, here's a big Congratulations! to the winner of this past week's giveaway! Please shoot me an email at itsjoelen@gmail.com to claim your prize...

Sparkling Ice Case of 6
Winner: Comment #12!

So did you know that for every day, there's a food or drink that's celebrated with their own special day? There are even national months dedicated to various food and drink. With that said, June happens to be National Iced Tea Month. I'm not one to really take these food and drink celebration days seriously, but I will admit it does make it fun. I'm making an exception to celebrate Iced Tea Month with this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway.... Iced Tea! I learned about a local tea company here in Chicago during the recent National Restaurant Association Convention that I just had to share with readers.

Tiesta Tea was founded by Patrick Tannous and Daniel Klein, former students of University of IL - Champaign/Urbana. They studied abroad together and we came across a traditional Czech tea house in Prague. There, they realized how tea was very much part of European culture and wanted to take that aspect and use it as an opportunity here in the United States. Once back in Illinois, they utilized the school's entrepreneurial resources to create their business from the ground up. Today, they have found their niche in the tea business and has been recently awarded Best New Product of 2011 by the World Tea Expo for their innovation, colorful and fresh tea tins.

When I met Patrick and Daniel, along with their colleagues at the National Restaurant Association Convention, I really loved their energy and enthusiasm. They truly stand behind their product and it's easy to do because it really is a wonderful, unique type of tea they provide. Most teas are dried leaves, maybe even packed with herbs or flowers. Tiesta Tea is much more interesting because aside from the usual leaves, you'll find dried fruit, flower blossoms and buds, bits of herbs and spices, as well as fruit leaves. Combined with the tea leaves, you not only get an amazing tea but the aroma alone sets the tone even before you start drinking. Furthermore, these teas have a purpose with each blend...

Tiesta Tea offers five lines of loose leaf teas categorized by their effects on health and physical well-being. Each line has a wide variety of flavors specifically designed for you. Tiesta Tea specializes in green tea, black tea, white tea, herbal tea, fruit tea, Rooibos, Maté, and oolong tea. Our mission is to transform tea from an affordable luxury to a daily health necessity.

Tiesta Tea strives to develop the highest quality specialty tea blends in the world, all of which are fomulated to provide a specific health or mood result. We have created five varieties of tea to cater to your daily needs: Energizer, Slenderizer, Relaxer, Immunity, and Forever Young.

The great guys at Tiesta Tea sent me a generous sampling of their teas from each of their 5 lines:

Maui Mango

This soothing infusion of fruity goodness contains all of your favorite flavors. Mango, pineapple, orange, strawberry…you name it! These fruity friends have just the right amount of boldness to make your taste buds happy. This blend was awarded best iced tea of 2009 from World Tea Expo; it's incredible and we highly suggest it. Ingredients: pineapple bits, mango bits, orange slices, safflower, marigold, strawberry bits

Tropical Savannah

A refreshingly bright rooibos tea with the lingering taste of lemon grass, orange peels, apple bits, ginger roots, coconut bits, cinnamon, cardamom, currents, red peppercorn. Enough has been said, give it a shot.
Ingredients: Rooibos, lemon grass, orange peel, apple, ginger root, coconut fruit, cinnamon, cardamom, currants, red peppercorn

Lean Green Machine

This blend of green teas is specifically formulated to make a great iced green tea! This tea will keep you lean as a machine for years to come! Ingredients: green teas, lemon peels, lemon grass, citrus flavoring

Pineapple Calypso

A light-bodied satisfying white tea partnered with pineapple and safflower. The hint of calendula is a subtle infusion and adds the perfect last touch to the smooth flavor. Ingredients: pineapple, safflowers, calendula

Minty Winter Wonderland

White chocolate and peppermint unite to give this rooibos a flashback from a white winter wonderland. Who can resist this brightly refreshing blend? Ingredients: rooibos tea, peppermint, white chocolate

Banana Split

This strawberry and banana infused maté blend will be sure to keep you up with an invigorating blend of banana slices and strawberry bits with a sweet rooibos and maté base! Ingredients: green maté, rooibos tea, banana slices, strawberry bits

I haven't tried all of them yet, but I did try the Banana Split and Pineapple Calypso. Both were amazing in aroma and in overall flavor as well. I tried both of these as hot teas and as cold iced teas. They were equally good in both ways but I prefer them cold. With the brightness of flavor and aroma, having them over ice was a perfect summer drink. Normally I like my tea sweetened but these teas has so much flavor and natural sweetness from the ingredients that I didn't need additional sugar.

Thanks to my new friends at Tiesta Tea, they will be sponsoring this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway by giving a lucky reader a sample of their awesome teas! Read on to find out how to get in on this week's giveaway...

Some guidelines:

- Giveaway is only for those who live in the United States - my apologies to my non-United States readers!

- You must check back in a week when winners are announced and email me to claim your prize if you win.

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment answering: 

How do you like or prefer your tea?

Deadline: Saturday, June 18, 2011 at 12 midnight CST.

One winner will be randomly chosen by Random.Org's Interger Generator based on the number of your comment and will be announced on Sunday, June 19, 2011, within next week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway. Good luck!

Full Disclosure: The giveaways are sponsored by the same company that provided me with the food related product to review. Products I review and offer as a giveaway are ones I personally recommend and would use/enjoy myself and opinions reflected are mine alone.