Earlier this month, I attended a fun lunch hosted by Stop & Shop. I have written about his company over the years. I just think that they are really smart and care a lot about their customers. Now that I live in Queens, I will actually get to visit one of their stores, so I’m excited about that. The lunch was made all the more special because some of my favorite blogger friends were there (including Jennifer, Melissa, Nicole and Victoria).
We all had fun making various “creations” at three different stations (floral centerpieces, chocolate covered pretzels and dry mixes). I skipped the floral station, since my florist skills leave much to be desired. I do better with things like bamboo. I did cover a pretzel in chocolate and cover it with sprinkles. That was a nice and easy gift idea. The one that I like the most though was the dry mix station. We had the choice between making cookie or soup gifts. Of course, I chose the cookies. (It won’t be a gift though, because I made them with my boys. They enjoyed them, so I guess that it was a gift after all.) I liked them so much that I asked for the instructions for you. They really make easy, thoughtful (and inexpensive) holiday gifts.
Country Soup Dry Mix
Ingredients:
1/2 cup barley
1/2 cup dried split peas
1/2 cup uncooked white rice
1/2 cup dry lentils
2 tablespoons dried minced onion
2 tablespoons dried parsley
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules
1/2 cup uncooked alphabet pasta
1 cup uncooked twist macaroni
Directions:
In a wide mouth 1 quart jar, layer in the following order:
• Half of the uncooked twist macaroni
• Barely
• Peas
• Rice
• Lentils
• Onion,
• Parsley,
• Salt,
• Lemon Pepper
• Bouillon
• Alphabet Pasta
Fill the rest of the jar with the twist macaroni. Seal tightly and decorate with ribbon. Attach gift card.
Chocolate Chip Cookies Dry Mix
Ingredients:
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup white sugar
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
Directions:
1. Combine the flour, baking soda, white sugar.
2. Place 1/2 of the mixture in a clean quart sized glass jar, and pack firmly.
3. Place the brown sugar on top, again packing firmly.
4. Place the remaining flour mixture on top and pack firmly.
5. Place the chocolate chips on top.
6. Seal tightly.
7. Decorate with ribbon, attach gift card and baking decorations. (The recipient will need to add a few non-dry ingredients – vanilla, eggs and butter).
The ideas for these gifts came from Andrea of Stop & Shop. The recipes are from Allrecipes.com (but you can substitute your favorite recipes.)
After the stations, we sat down for a wonderful lunch at Lady Mendl’s. (I have been there with friends before and they have a nice high tea service if you’re into that type of thing.) While eating, Andrea shared some helpful tips regarding saving time and money during the holiday season. To see various tips that Andrea has provided for our site over the years please visit this page. I really like her and I was happy to hear that in addition to her other duties, she writes the introduction for Stop & Shop’s new mini-magazine Small Victories. I have a copy of the first issue and it has a lot of useful recipes, coupons and more. (I’ve noticed that more companies are doing that – creating their own mini magazines – lately. Although they won’t replace my regular magazines, I think that they are a nice addition to my reading pile.)
We received a gift bag as we left. It included a $100 gift card. I was so impressed by their generosity that I did a quick twitter giveaway (yes – you should be following me on twitter!) where I used a portion of it to give to someone who would donate it to a needy family this holiday season. (I thought of it because Stop & Shop has complete heat and serve holiday dinners – turkey or ham – that serve six to eight people for only $59.99. That’s inexpensive, right?) Anyway, my family has been so blessed this year that it makes me happy to help another family out!