Fresh And Easy Does It Again!

I always like to eat, but eating during the holidays is one of my favorite things. I allow myself to let loose in the food department and the belt department and reflect on the year that has passed and the year to come whilst stuffing my face. 


And I like it all - savory, sweet, sugary, meaty, fruity, chocolatey, liquory and my most favorite of all... BUTTERY.

The fine folks of Fresh And Easy (my FAVORITE grocery store on the planet) invited me down to a Holiday face stuffing extravaganza last week which was awesome within itself, but the venue was amazing as well - The Queen Mary Verandah Grill. It was my first time on the QM and it was a beautiful night to gorge oneself on a ship.

I LOVE Fresh And Easy and their holiday specialities this year are amazing! Grab one of their Holiday Guides or view it online, and go to town. You can even order an entire fresh cooked holiday meal for 8 of turkey, ham or beef roast from between $45-$65!! Just be sure to order by December 18 if you would like to have it for Christmas.

The San Fernando Valley Ninja Moms - We are STEALTH! (BTW, I just made that name up. We're not really ninjas.) 

There's a lot to choose from and lots of it is seasonal so don't wait or it will be gone. Some of the items we sampled were the...

Cheeses, meats, veggies, nuts and dried fruits, crackers, salad and shrimp cocktail...

Petite Quiche (come in 3-cheese and Florentine, frozen section), 

Sweet sausage and yam skewers (YAY Chef Cindy!!), 

mini beef en croutes and brie & cranberry pastry puffs

Pie bites (apple raspberry & chocolate caramel, frozen section) & mini eclairs, pumpkin cheesecake pie, holiday cookies...

And of course, we all left with a giant bag of holiday goodies to sample and share with friends:

Aubrey and Bob Barker are ready for the holidays!

Belgian Biscuits, Dark Chocolate Nut & cranberry Squares,  Pumpkin Bread Mix, Orange Spice Granola, Napa Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Organic Cinnamon Flavored Coffee, Peppermint Hot Cocoa Mix, Panettone, Peppermint Bark, Swiss Dark & Milk Chocolate Truffles, Vermont Maple Syrup With Vanilla Bean

Aubrey is in love with the peppermint hot cocoa and we munched some of those truffles in the movie theater over the weekend. Shhh... don't tell. That's what the "mom purse" is for after all. Tonight I'm going to bring the wine and biscuits over to a friend's house to share and the rest is MINE!! ALL MINE!!!! Mwahahaha! I'll be cracking open the rest over the holiday week at home with Aubrey. I especially can't wait try the vanilla bean maple syrup on my homemade pancakes :)


Food makes a great holiday gift and I haven't tired a single thing from Fresh And Easy that I haven't liked yet. Great prices, amazing natural products with no corn syrup, no artificial colors or flavors and minimal use of preservatives. Stop by and pick up a gift - even if it's just for you!


Happy Holiday Eating everyone and thank you, Fresh And Easy, for a fantastic kick off to the holiday party season!

Fresh & Easy's New California Wines!

Marsha (@Sweatpantsmom) and I get to tasting!

Fresh and Easy is my FAVORITE grocery store and now there is yet another reason to sing their praises - NEW WINE!!


F & E has added 27 new varieties of proprietary brand wines from our very own delicious California grapes and some of us lucky local bloggers, foodies and Tweeters were invited to a tasting party at the Smog Shoppe in Culver City.


The Smog Shoppe was the perfect and coolest venue for this event. An actual former automobile smog-check garage, it was converted into an eco-friendly, indoor/outdoor event center. I'm telling you - it is one of the best kept secrets in Culver City! You can get married there, screen your newest cinematic masterpiece or have a party and eat and drink like pigs. I'll give you one guess which one we did.


We were treated to a tasting of four of the new Cali wines:
Open Field Pinot Gris
Cloud Valley Chardonnay
Open Field Pinot Noir
Barrel Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon


I think the general consensus of the night was that pinot noir was the favorite. While many people I talked to really liked the pino gris, I have to admit that the white wines weren't too awesome tasting to me, but I was like, "rock on with the reds, dude" (I'm trying to give a California-ny description). 


All 27 of the new wines are offered at affordable prices with the most expensive bottles being $19.99 and the bargain bottle being only $3.99! Quality drinking at recession prices. I like.

Bernadette (@Bernadette923) and I enjoying some great F & E appetizers

We also enjoyed a full belly of Fresh and Easy fare ranging from cheeses and fruit, to ceviche, to stuffed artichoke hearts to lobster ravioli to cookies and chocolate cupcakes. There was even more and I'm getting hungry just remembering everything we consumed that night.


Get to your local Fresh and Easy store and dig in! There is so much to enjoy there and now you have 27 more reasons to go.  :0)

Ceviche and skewers = Party!

Goodness is EASY! Now pack your lunch & get outta here...

The good people at Fresh and Easy have come up with a new line of foods called, the GOODNESS line. Why? Because it's just that and to help get the word out I teamed up with Fresh and Easy (my favorite grocery store on the planet, btw) to throw a Goodness party at my house.

Mmmmm... food...

We even had Fresh and Easy Balloons!

The whole point of the Goodness line is to give parents/child caregivers nutritious, easy and affordable options when picking foods for kids. The line includes breakfast cereals, animal shaped mac & cheese, prepackaged fruit, baked chips, kettle corn and more and most importantly they contain no artificial colors, sweetners, flavors or preservatives, no added trans fats or caffeine and no high fructose corn syrup. This is real food your kids will love and many of the items are grab-and-go ready for snacks and lunch bags.

Aubrey & her friend get busy cooking up some more food for the party!

We tested the Goodness products out on my daughter, 3 year old Aubrey, and some of our friends and it was thumbs up all around. The mac and cheese was especially a hit and Aubrey loves the cereals for breakfast or an after school snack. Not gonna lie, so do I.

The happy Goodness testers

School season is in full swing, so if you're a busy mom, make your life a little easier and check out the products. Now go pack that lunch, guilt-free, and eat the rest of the Halloween candy before the kids come home from school. Oh come on, I'm not the only one... right?


Fresh and Easy stores can be found in California, Nevada and Arizona. If you're one of the lucky people to live in these states, here's a link to find a Fresh and Easy near you!

Summer With Fresh and Easy!

My display of Fresh & Easy YUM!

I LOVE it when I get a new Fresh & Easy delivery to my po box. I know there's some awesome stuff inside and, of course, I get to brag about it and share the info with my friends. Then, I get to EAT it!!

The fine folks at Fresh and Easy are helping us get ready for all those summer barbecues with grill packs, chips, buns, condiments, cookies, booze and more! YEAH!

For under $10, grab a ready-to-throw-on-the-grill "Grill Pack" that includes nearly five pounds of hamburgers, chili-seasonsed chicken and Italian sausages. Top them off with the basics like Fresh and Easy's organic ketchup, yellow mustard or Original BBQ Sauce, all for under $3 each!

Then toss your meaty McMeaterson on a Gourmet Wheat Hamburger Bun ($2.99) - baked daily at Il Fornaio, btw - and grab a handful of F&E Malt Vinegar & Sea Salt Kettle Chips and VOILA!!!! You have some serious kind of yum for social noshing.

Aubrey's a fan of Fresh & Easy!

I also got a small vat of F&E Soft Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies with Walnuts ($2.99) and a bottle of The Vine Yard Pinot Gris ($6.99). I have yet to crack the bottle of wine and the cookies were ok, but I have to say the Malt Vinegar & Sea Salt Kettle Chips ($1.49) are some of the best I've ever had. You can really taste the malt flavor of the vinegar and they have just the right amount of tangy bite. Surprisingly, my 3 year old daughter even loved them, so we have another new favorite to add to our F&E list of loves!

As usual, I can never say enough about Fresh & Easy. They are absolutely, hands down, my favorite grocery store on the planet and I can't wait for them to expand around the US so more of my friends and family can experience the love.

For those of you lucky enough to be here in SoCal, Fresh and Easy is partnering with award winning Grill Expert Neil Strawder (aka Bigmista) at four of their store locations to kick off the grilling season with special grilling tips and recipes and the first 100 people will receive a free reusable bag!

Fri, June 4, 5-pm

Fresh & Easy

4211 Eagle Rock Blvd, L.A. 90065

Fri, July 30, 5-7pm

Fresh & Easy

10930 Rosecrans Ave, Norwalk 90650

Sat, Aug 21, 4-6pm

Fresh & Easy

2121 W Main St, Suite 300, Alhambra 91801

Sat, Aug 28, 4-6pm

Fresh & Easy

19350-A W Nordhoff St, Northridge 91324

Eating WELL at Fresh & Easy!

Bloggers at Fresh and Easy

My readers know how much I LOVE Fresh & Easy and for those of you not in California, Arizona or Nevada, I really hope they decide to open a store in your hood soon. They're such a great company and I'm happy to support them!

Last night, a group of local writers/bloggers were invited to the Fresh and Easy offices in El Segundo for a tasting party, introducing their new EatWell line of prepared, individual meals, soups, salads, sandwiches and sushi. If you're one of those people eating a microwaved Lean Cuisine or Lean Pocket every day for lunch at the office, listen up! Fresh and Easy is pioneering a new way of daily eating that is convenient, REAL food on the go. Grab and go meals that aren't frozen, all natural and no preservatives.

Based on a 2000 calorie diet, these meals have limited calories, sodium and fat while still providing taste and filling portions. Yes, people, it can be done so why settle for crap? With prices ranging from $1.99 - $4.99 you have no excuses. Jamie Oliver is revolutionizing school meals, you can revolutionize yours!

Mmmmmm! Food!

We were treated to a lovely sampling of seven of the seventeen new EatWell items that will launch next week on April 7:

- Arroz con Pollo

- Creamy Basil Chicken

- Bruschetta Chicken

- Teriyaki Salmon

- Turkey Chili

- Spicy Tuna Sushi Square

- Veggie Hummus Wrap

They even had nice plates & silverware

I can honestly say that every single item was delicious! The Spicy Tuna Sushi and Teriyaki Salmon were among the best tasting items, however, I do have some concerns over the seafood suppliers - not just for Fresh and Easy - but from any grocery store and restaurant. Most shrimp that we eat is farmed in Asia and is full of anti-biotics and most of the salmon we eat is farmed as well which contributes to the destruction of our oceans and total ecosystem. Wild salmon is healthier than farmed salmon but is being fished to near extinction. We are destroying our oceans! OK, this is a whole other blog entry, but you can read more about salmon here and about the overfishing of our oceans at EndOfTheLine.com.

Bottom line, I personally, would not purchase the seafood items, nor do I eat seafood in restaurants anymore unless I know it's a sustainable seafood that's not endangered or farmed. As much as I love Fresh and Easy, I hope that they will put some consideration into the sustainability and healthfulness of the seafood they choose. It's a really serious issue and they've been outstanding leaders in other eco/green/health areas. I LOVE seafood, but I love the ocean and the 70% of the oxygen it supplies us even more!

So back to the EatWell line. The chicken dishes were great. The Veggie Hummus wrap was awesome and fresh. Fresh and Easy hummus is one my daughter's and my favorite. Yum! The list of new items also includes a few I can't wait to try, like Singapore Noodles and the Veggie Breakfast Bowl! Cool, huh?

Please visit Fresh and Easy and check out their new Eat Well products. Americans are obese and diseased and I firmly believe it's mainly because of the "food" we eat. Or actually, the real food we are not eating. It's time Americans realize we have real, healthy, delicious food options and we should demand that our stores do better. Enough is enough folks! Thanks Fresh and Easy for taking the lead!

Valentine's Day Is Coming - Are you Fresh & Easy (& cheap)?

OK, more Fresh & Easy! Since I was so freakin' slow getting my post about the holiday treats up, I wanted to get my Valentine's Day treat post up right away. Why? Because I love Fresh & Easy and I'm pretty sure I can convert you too.

F&E just sent me two boxes of their special V-Day nosh and wines and once again they have some really great treats available for you at amazing prices! Check out these products and the other great stuff they have and you won't even have to tell your sweetheart you didn't spend a fortune.

Here's the loot in order from L-R:

Fresh and Easy Snickerdoodle Cookies - $2.59/8 ct

As much as I hate to admit it, these snickerdooodles are almost as good as mine and I'm a damn good baker. Because of my status as Damn Good Baker, I usually can't stand store bought cookies. The kind that come from the grocery store bakery are usually the worst - dry and flavorless - but these are really really good! They are chewy and just the right amount of buttery/cinnamony/sugary/sweet. Buy them.

Montcadi Cava Rose - $6.99 (on sale for $4.99)

I haven't opened either of these bottles yet, but trust me, I will. This is a rose sparkling wine that was a recent Double Gold winner at the San Francisco International Wine Competition. Get it while it's only 5 bucks before it goes to it's outrageous regular price of 7 bucks. Bwahahaha!

McGuigan Hand Made Barossa Shiraz - $12.99 (on sale for $8.99)

This is an Australian wine that is described as going well with red meats or strong cheeses. I haven't met a strong cheese I didn't like, so I have plans for this bottle.

Sweet Boutique Gourmet Swiss Truffles - $3.99/6.3 oz

This seems to be a milk and dark chocolate copy cat of the amazing Lindt Lindor Truffles and the good news is they are almost as delicious and for about half the price. My ball split in half when I bit into it, but the chocolate was nice and smooth and tasty.

Fresh and Easy One Huge Hunk Chocolate Bar w Pecans & Fruit - $4.29/14 oz

OK, this one is pretty self explanatory and how can you NOT buy something chocolate named "One Huge Hunk"? Go for it.

You really should stop in to your local F&E if you live in Cali, Arizona or Nevada. You'll be glad you did. And if I haven't raved enough, here's something else, non-food, that I love about F&E... click here to read about their green building initiatives. Helping the environment and saving you money - ahhhh. Refreshing!

Holiday Lattes, Episencial, Fresh & Easy - I'm Fat & My Baby Is SmoothSmooth!

Here are the rest of the holiday events I got to take part in over, duh, the holidays. So much fun and so much to write about...which is why I'm so far behind. I hope you see something here that you like! Well, who doesn't like milk, cookies, wine and lotion?! Sounds like a night of fun to me. Go on people... CONSUME!

2) GOT MILK Holiday Latte Event

OK, so I'm Asian and I'm in my 30s - the lactose intolerance has definitely kicked in over the last couple years, but I was adopted by white people in the Midwest and I grew up drinking 2% milk as a beverage at every meal. I love me some dairy and the GOT MILK people really know how to get their moo on.

Their Holiday Latte event was held at Le Pain Quotidien (HELLO YUM!) in L.A. and it was so much fun! We had delicious pastries and cookies and of course the lattes. My favorite was the eggnog latte - spiked, of course. Really delicious. I also had a pumpkin latte and an amazing hand/arm massage. There were fun wintery themed crafts for the kids and a raffle drawing and goodie bags. The venue was a little crowded so I'm glad Aubrey wasn't with me, but a fun time was had by all!

A giant thanks to Anglina Valencia, our gracious host, for putting together such a great event for all of us. She is one of those people who always makes you smile and remembers your name and face. It was a great way to kick off the holiday treat consumption (like I need an excuse) and it was totally worth the gas (both in my car and in my... well, you know what I mean).

3) Episencial / SproutBaby.com's Sensational Mom Spa Event

When I'm not bribing my child with popsicles to do her poo-poo in the potty or telling jokes in Pennsylvania, I'm hanging out with fancy people at swanky house parties in the Hollywood Hills. Well, maybe not all THAT often, but on December 8, I actually was. Episencial and SproutBaby.com threw a wonderful party to show off Episencial's new babies and children line of skin care products.

The party was really cool - complimentary massages, infant massage demo, delicious vegetarian nosh, fun crafts for the little ones and my favorite part (since I missed the massages) - a sit down with Dr Alan Greene, an amazing "green" pediatrician and author of the terrific book, Raising Baby Green and Feeding Baby Green. He talked about EVERYTHING moms of little ones want to know. Food allergies, organic foods, soy milk, air cleaning plants, picky eaters and food imprinting... he was absolutely fascinating and full of useful knowledge. We also received an autographed copy of Raising Baby Green. Woo-hoo!

Before I go any further, let me tell you that my daughter has had persistent and fairly serious eczema for over a year. I received a tube of Episencial's "Soothing Cream" in my goodie bag and I'm hooked! It has been the best thing I've used on her eczema and she loves the Eric Carle illustration on the tube. We call it "caterpillar lotion"! Cute, huh? Yes, the smart Episencial folks made a sweet deal with Eric Carle and all of their products are designed with his famous, beloved illustrations.

I can't say enough good things about these products. A couple of the highlights:

- VERY reasonably priced

- no synthetic chemicals

- scented with real fruit juice extracts - not fragrances

- all natural ingredients and lots of organics

- packaged in recycled and sustainable materials, phthalate & BpA free

- manufactured under solar power!

Please check out their products and their Facebook Fan Page today!

4) Fresh & Easy - HELL YEAH!

I have been singing the praises of Fresh & Easy since I learned about them last summer. As much as I'd like to keep their store in Van Nuys my own little secret, I can't stop blabbing on and on about them. They have a nice big parking lot (unlike Trader Joe's) and I haven't set foot in a TJ's in ages.

Last month, I was treated to a special holiday sampling of Fresh & Easy's sweets and wines! In order from left to right:

Cranberry & Nut Popcorn Clusters ($4.99): YUM! My daughter begged to eat these from the second she saw them. She LOVES popcorn and, being only two and a half, had never sampled popcorn drenched in a sticky, crunchy, sugary sauce before. Definitely a hit. My boyfriend polished off most of the container and he gives it two thumbs up!

Vine Yard Cabernet Franc ($7.99) & Ogio Prosecco Spumante ($8.99): The man and I drank the cab Franc and really enjoyed it. I'm not a wine connoisseur, but Mr Boyfriend is. While he wouldn't say it was an AWESOME bottle of Cab Franc, it was easy to drink and nice for a casual dinner at home. Bottom line - and I'm a bottom line kind of gal - it costs $8!! WHAAA?!! Even if you hate wine, what the heck? We haven't popped the Prosecco yet, but soon. Soon!

Sweet Boutique Gourmet Swiss Chocolate Assortment ($7.99): I brought this box of yum (and the next biscuits) out at a holiday party and they went over well. There were milk & dark chocolate pieces and while some were a little too sweet or "gourmet" tasting for my personal tastes, overall, very delicious and beautifully packaged. Don't ask me though because I dig a Twix bar like none other... and would eat one off the ground if I were lucky enough to find one.

Sweet Boutique Belgian Biscuit Collection ($7.99): I really loved this one and so did my party guests... and my daughter when she snuck one behind my back at our annual holiday party. Cookies covered in chocolate in a pretty gold tin for only eight bucks... Enough said.

Fresh & Easy is awesome and this isn't the last you'll hear about them on my blog. The employees at my local store are always kind, polite and helpful. The food is great and most of all affordable. I especially love the way they are taking simple steps to conserve energy, help the environment and ultimately, save you $$!! Simple. Great! Thanks F&E!

FRESH & SUPER EASY! And Awesome!

Fresh & Easy: Bring your boyfriend. Wear matching shirts. Have a great time!

OK, first off my sincere apologies for posting this blog SO embarrassingly late, but I'm just now getting my personal blog, FunnyYellowMom, in order after a whirlwind of traveling and whatnot earlier in the year. Telling you of my true love for Fresh and Easy is something I couldn't just let fall by the wayside, even if it is five months too late, so... here goes...

Waaaaay back in July 2009 (yes, 5 months ago... time flys when you have a toddler), I was lucky enough to attend a Fresh and Easy cooking demo with their Head Chef, Mike Ainslie at Sur La Table in the Los Angeles Farmer's Market. I can not begin to tell you how much fun I had at this event, but let me begin anyway...

First off, if you're not in CA, NV or AZ, then you probably have never heard of Fresh and Easy... I think it's best described as Trader Joe's meets Whole Foods but simpler and more affordable. The employees are friendly and helpful, the stores are basic and food is natural with lots of organic, they have yummy free samples every day, recycle bins on the way out the door, two sizes of shopping carts... I could go on and on. SIMPLE and AFFORDABLE! LOVE IT!

Back to our cooking demo night: upon arrival there were appetizers and drinks and then we broke up into four groups and prepared four simple and affordable dishes with ingredients entirely from Fresh and Easy. My group made mini pizzas and I think mine were quite spectacular! They look like amoebas, don't they?!

The other dishes were baked honey dijon chicken fingers, salmon with soba noodles and beef fajitas. All of the dishes were prepared and cooked and then, the best part, we all got to eat together. Everything was delicious and at the risk of sounding like a complete cheeseball, I was really impressed by the affordability of the complete meals. One of the things I loved about this event is that we each received printed copies of all of the recipes with itemized prices of all of the ingredients.

Since this event, I've made the beef fajitas, pizzas and chicken fingers several times. I even had my friend, Marsha (aka Sweatpantsmom) and her family of four, over for Fresh and Easy pizzas last night! I'm not kidding, I'm really in love with this store.

And I'm lucky that I have a Fresh and Easy about 3 miles from my front door and since discovering it, I haven't set foot in a Trader Joe's. Their parking lots make me want to shoot myself in the eyeball. So good on ya, Fresh and Easy. Once again, I'm sorry this is so late, but I'll keep throwing pizza parties in your honor!