Friendly Farms Egg Nog!

 
I have a pretty short history with eggnog. So short that this is really only our second winter together.  Full disclosure, I drank enough eggnog last season that we've effectively had four winters. I'm not sure why I wasn't on the bandwagon before, probably has to do with the unappetizing name. But really, it's just melted ice cream with some nutmeg? (Really, eggnog ice cream recipes on the internet consist of just pouring the eggnog back into an ice cream maker.)

Beaumont Coffee - Mocha Mint

Happy December to you! Not for me though. I'm home blogging about coffee when I should be at work but I'm waiting for the critter guy to come and seal up my house because I have a rat(s?) in my attic.  Yes, it's as awful as it sounds. I'm consoling myself with seasonal coffee and a playlist I call "Get Down! (in the dumps)". Pretty clever, right? Ok, Beaumont Coffee's Mocha Mint flavor:

Cafe Bistro Soft Gingerbread Cookies

 

I've been talking to you guys for about nine months now which means that this blog is fully gestated and we're all family now. So strap in, I'm going to start laying some truth on you.

Winter is the best season*. People generally look adorable in winter clothes (hats, mittens, scarves, tights, perfect). Wearing giant fuzzy socks and a second cardigan at the office gets 30 percent fewer disapproving looks. Holding hot steaming mugs of hot steaming liquids. Christmas lights! Coats! ETC.!

WE INTERRUPT OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED BLOG POSTING - Sea Salt Caramels

***ALDI EMERGENCY BLOG POST***

Sorry for the panic I know this has caused, but I just got the ALDI flyer in my inbox and found something you need to know about. There is one thing at ALDI that comes around once or twice a year that turns this blog from "What's Good At ALDI" into "What's GREAT At ALDI" and it's these and they're back!

INCREDIBLE and only $3.49!

I'm not going to waste time with a review. Time you could be using to run, I repeat RUN, to ALDI and grab every last box of these. I'll only say this - this post is by me, GC and you know how hard I am on ALDI products. NOW GO!

Update from the Lady: Specially Selected Sea Salt Caramels get an A++. Bonus points for being an amazing gift and a for a having a box sized for 10 pieces but only giving you nine.

Triple Chocolate Creme Cake

Guys, my mom is the best. Without any prompting - she sent us a review for L'Oven Fresh Triple Chocolate Creme Cake! And now I'm blogging it from the Tabernacle in ATL. Technology, America, Apple; life is amazing.

Went shopping at my favorite place to save money, to see what I could cross off my list, before going to one of those glitzy, bells and whistles, stores for what was left. As is typical, I ended up with a few things that were not a part of the original plan. As we were beginning to unload the cart, I spotted the cutest little chocolate bundt cake sitting right there next to the checkout lane. Into the cart it went, and then after thinking better of it, put it back on the shelf. Then back into the cart, after a very convincing argument arose in my head.

That Triple Chocolate Creme cake would be the perfect birthday cake for the man of my house, who celebrates his birthday the day before Thanksgiving. It would have to be that Triple Chocolate Creme cake or no birthday cake at all. Now that just seemed wrong.

Aldi's Mint Oreos

After an entire week of mostly disappointing pies, I'm glad I get to bring something that was so great. So great, in fact, that I had to throw them away to keep from eating 5000 calories in three days. Benton's Mint Creme Chocolate Sandwich Cookies! I love mint oreos and I enjoyed Benton's Chocolate Sandwich Cookies original version, so these were destined to be a slam dunk.

Piepocalypse Now! - The Final Reckoning -- Cherry Pie

And so we come to the end of the Piepocalypse and I've saved the worst for last. Readers I give you the worst pie I have ever eaten...L'Oven Fresh Cherry Pie.

Just Don't!

It's products like these that make me wonder if anyone at ALDI actually eats ALDI food. I don't think I have the language skills to explain just how horrible this pie was. But I'll try.

Piepocalypse Now! - Day Four -- Dutch Apple Pie

When we last convened, we had just finished a not terrible pecan pie. I just heard the oven timer go off so it must time for the warm pies, starting with L'Oven Fresh Dutch Apple Pie.

What country is Dutch anyway? Iceland?

With both of the fruit pies, I cooked the pie at 350 for 20 minutes so it was warm but not overly hot and tented it with some ALDI foil so as not to burn the crust. It worked out pretty well but there are no heating instructions so I was just winging it. I'm not sure what ALDI is thinking - maybe heat causes some horrible reaction in ALDI pies but none of the boxes had any reheating instructions. Note to ALDI: people enjoy warm pie.

Piepocalypse Now! - Day Three -- Pecan Pie

When last I left you I had just finished a disappointing pie #1 - Sweet Potato. On to day three - L'Oven Fresh Pecan Pie.

 How do I love thee?

Of all the things I have claimed to love on this blog, this one is closest to being true love. I love pecan pie. It is delicious. Toasted pecans on top of a dark rich sweet Karo syrup flavored filling in a flaky Crisco shortening crust. It's pretty close to the perfect dessert. I think we all know this review is headed for a fall.

Piepocalypse Now! - Day Two -- Sweet Potato Pie

When I left you last time, I had just purchased 4 L'Oven Fresh pies for tasting. Now the moment you've all been waiting 24 hours for - Let the pie eating begin!

First up, L'Oven Fresh Sweet Potato Pie.

3.14159265359

Sweet potato pie is one of my very favorite pies. Do they eat this anywhere else but down here in the South? It's very similar to pumpkin pie - I think they use the same spices - but it has a distinct sweet potato flavor. 

Piepocalypse Now! - Day One

Maybe because Thanksgiving season is upon us or maybe because the boys in the lab over at L'Oven fresh made too many pie crusts, it was pie week at our ALDI . And if there's one thing I love, along with all the other things I've sworn I love in this blog, it's pie. Seriously, pie is my number one choice for dessert or dinner or breakfast...basically at any moment I'm liable to be eating pie. So this week I'm bringing you Piepocalypse Now, a review of 4 of the 6 L'Oven Fresh pies that were available.

 

The Four Horsemen of the Piepocalypse

The pies that made the cut were Cherry, Sweet Potato, Dutch Apple and Pecan. The two that didn't were Pumpkin  (haven't we had enough pumpkin lately?) and Carmel Apple (one apple pie seemed sufficient and dutch apple is a classic). The pies were about $3 each, a pretty good bargain. 

Since I'm inclined to love any pie and hate most things ALDI, the Lady joined me for this taste test. She added some needed balance to the reviews. The tasting was pretty straight forward. We heated the two fruit pies for 20 minutes and ate the other two straight out of the box at room temperature. One slice of the same pie for each of us. Comments held until the everyone was finished. No accoutrements like ice cream, cheese or whipped cream. Each pie rose or fell on it's own merits. Seems pretty unbiased right? I'm pretty sure this is how the Pillsbury Bake Off is judged.

And so loyal readers, as foretold in prophecy, prepare yourselves for the coming L'Oven Fresh Piepocalypse!

Nature's Nectar Sparkling Spice Pumpkin Cider

There is so much pumpkin-themed food still for sale at ALDI - we went to two separate ALDI's yesterday morning and I came home with one more pumpkin item (cookie mix). Are you guys tired of all this pumpkin yet? Honestly, I think I'm getting tired of it - the fun of it is starting to wear off.  When you can buy a pumpkin version of everything, nothing is special.

Don't worry, I'm not letting my encroaching pumpkin ennui affect my review of Sparkling Spice Pumpkin Cider!  Of all the pumpkin things I bought for Pumpkin Blitz, GC was convinced that this cider was going to be the only decent item. Boy was he wrong! Of all the items I've already reviewed, this one is the least likely to be purchased again.

Do You Know The Muffin (Gentle)Man (Caller)? -- Cranberry Orange Premium Muffin Mix

I guess like all of us I tend to buy things that I know I like and I like orange-anything muffins. So I was pretty excited to see these cranberry-orange muffins at ALDI one day. Into my basket and now on to my blog. Ladies and Gentlemen, today I bring you --- Baker's Corner Cranberry Orange Premium Muffin & Quick Bread Mix!

 Cran-tastic!

Okay first things first, ALDI. Enough with the crazy long titles. Enough. I'm already tired of typing it. From now on in this review it will be referred to as BCCOPM&QBM. No, no, that's too long too. It's just going to be The Muffins.
 

Pumpkin Blitz: Pumpkin Spice Bark

It's pumpkin week at ALDI and that means all manner of items that should not be mixed with nutmeg and cinnamon are mixed with nutmeg and cinnamon. But white chocolate seems like an easy winner in the nutmeg and cinnamon sweepstakes. And so I give you Specially Selected Pumpkin Spice Bark.

Straight off the Pumpkin Tree

Pumpkin Blitz: Pumpkin Ravioli

I just ate this Specially Selected Pumpkin Ravioli for dinner and it was great!  Of course, I knew it was going to be great. I have also had ALDI's portobello mushroom ravioli which will be reviewed in the future (spoiler: also great).

You have to be pretty careful when making these raviolis as they're very delicate. I've never been considered delicate, so naturally at least one ravioli will break in the pot and a couple of more in the strainer. I will say that when the first one broke in the pot, my entire stove-area immediately smelled like pumpkin pie. So fragrant!

I ate them with a light mushroom sauce and it was perfect. So perfectly fall. I think I said before that ALDI's sweet spot was snack food, but maybe it's ravioli. I hope everyone starts buying their ravioli from ALDI! A bag of 15 ravioli is $2.50 which is three servings so that is definitely a steal.

I love it when ALDI does well. It makes me think that at some point, I might have enough awesome items that I can go to ALDI more frequently than the regular grocery. I give these Pumpkin Ravioli an A+. Bonus points for smelling so good (and I haven't been smelling too well lately).

Pumpkin Blitz: Pumpkin Spice Milk

I was jazzed when I saw Friendly Farms Pumpkin Spice Milk in the ALDI weekly special. Pumpkin and dairy are foolproof, right? I walked straight to the refrigerator section to pick this up and right as I reached for it, I hesitated. This could go horribly wrong. Things have gone horribly wrong in the past - sunflower bread comes to mind. Maybe this is ALDI reaching too far, they do that sometimes.

But you know what? This specialty milk is only $1.99 and I knew I would lay in bed at night thinking about it if I didn't buy it when I had the chance. Two dollars is a small sacrifice for peace of mind.

Pumpkin Blitz: Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows

Pumpkin madness continues with Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows from Baker's Corner.

Did anyone leave ALDI during pumpkin week without these adorable marshmallows in their cart? I hope not. Just look at how perfectly autumn these are. Just look:

Pumpkin Blitz: Beaumont Pumpkin Spice Coffee

I have a weird trigger about pumpkin-flavored things. When I see them, I must have them. So a couple of weeks ago when I discovered that ALDI was just starting their pumpkin-themed week, I dropped everything and ran to the store. They had so many pumpkin-flavored things! Here is a list of all the pumpkin-themed things that I can remember off the top of my head:

Pumpkin Cream Cheese, Pumpkin Bagels, Pumpkin Pancake Mix, Pumpkin Spice Milk, Sparkling Pumpkin Cider, Pumpkin Cookie Mix, Pumpkin Ravioli, Pumpkin Ice Cream, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Pumpkin Marshmallows, Pumpkin Chocolate Bars, Pumpkin Bread Mix, and Pumpkin Spice Coffee!

GC has reviewed coffee on this blog before (here and here) but this is my first time. I'm mildly particular about coffee - I don't need super fancy coffee but since I tend to drink it black, I do have a bar (it's just low). That said, this coffee is fine. Even though it's called Pumpkin Spice, I was really expecting it to be more Pumpkin Pie flavored. There was a reason why it is Spice and not Pie flavored; it was not sweet at all.


I mixed it with French Vanilla flavored coffee to sweeten it up, regular coffee to cut some of the spice, and alone. Each way tasted like scarves, boots and zero percent humidity. Perfect.

I give this coffee an A+. I will definitely be looking for this again. Extra point for being part of Pumpkin Blitz 2012.

Guest Post: Bake House Pie Crusts

Hi everyone! Today we have a guest post from my Mom. I feel like she chose to make this as a not-so-subtle way to encourage us to come home more. A steamy, delicious bribe. Anyway, thanks Mom!

It is with great humility that I write my first ALDI review.  It will be hard to fill the shoes of the original blogger, who just happens to be my daughter and has smaller feet than I do.  It is only within the last year that I have included ALDI as one of my top places to shop.  Who doesn't enjoy the satisfaction of saving money whenever possible?  And ALDI is a good place to start.

I've just cleaned the dishes away from our Sunday lunch and wanted to write this review while the smell of turkey pot pie still lingers.  Knowing that I had leftover turkey to use up at home, I thought I'd give the Bake House Pie Crust a try.

Simply Nature Sweet Potato Corn Tortilla Chips

Simply Nature Sweet Potato Corn Tortilla Chips are really great chips.

They are not really great at being tortilla chips, however. Putting salsa or any type of dip on these chips is a mistake as it takes away from how delicious they are. They are sweet and salty and buttery. I hope these chips hang around so I can buy more.

Buy these! I loved them - because of these chips, I'm going to buy any Simply Nature brand foods I find at ALDI.  They get an A+. Extra point for being semi-fall themed. Happy fall!

Tin Foil Hat -- Aluminum Foil

Staples, it's hard to screw up paper towels, napkins, sandwich bags, etc. I tend to buy all mine at ALDI and I've had pretty good luck. Today I give you....Boulder Aluminum Foil.

Tea Party endorsed Anti-Government Mind Reading Fabric.

So tin foil... Man, I'm running out of things to say about the really boring products I've been reviewing. This foil is like other foils - bright on one side, dull on the other, crumples well, has a sweet serving suggestion on the box and it's about the same thickness as name brand aluminum foil. Or fole, as we say down here in the South. 

Deutsche Kuche Sunflower Seed Bread

This stuff is terrible. DO NOT BUY SUNFLOWER SEED BREAD.

Puff-n-Stuff -- Authentic German Peanut Puffs

First a little housekeeping. In her post about the cinnamon pretzels, the Lady sent a shout out the Food Science Lab at UGA without giving them a hearty GOOOOOOOO DAWGS! So GOOOOOOOOOO DAWGS! GET 'EM, SIC 'EM! My apologies, she went to Tech. Now on with the review.

Peanut Puffs, I just love saying it. Ingestinging it...well....you'll see. Ladies and Gentlemen, on my triumphant return I give you....Deutsche Kuche Authentic German Peanut Puffs!

 And you thought rotten cabbage was a bad idea!

The German people have a long history of bad decision making. The Eurozone, Kraftwork, that really angry dude in the 40's. I mean their love of David Hasselhoff alone should disqualify them from making any choices for the remainder of the human habitation of this planet. So you would think that I would know better than to try some German snack food. But they had me at puff. As you know from earlier reviews I love cheese puffs and I also love the Lady's pancake puffs (oddly, not a euphemism AND a euphemism).

ALDI Oddity: Pitching Machine

Crackers, milk, eggs, cereal, grapes, pitching machine. Oh you know, just doing my weekly shopping.

Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

Blog Business Up Front: I just want to say "Hi" to my extended family! I heard at a recent wedding that some of you are reading. Annnd, now you're famous - congratulations. As repayment, you must all write a guest review for us.  Haha, just kidding. Or not, we do need the help. Also, a wave to the Food Science Lab at UGA (seriously).

April was German Cuisine month at ALDI (at least at our ALDI). There were little Deutsche Küche brand items all over the store and most of them had high novelty factors. I knew I wanted to try at least one of them before they were ripped back out of the store and out of my life. There were a lot of questionable choices (bratwurst, peanut puffs, goat cheese, etc).

Out of all the choices, these Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels practically floated into my basket.  I thought these were a slam dunk, GC was predictably skeptical. They break open like any other pastry in a tube, with a satisfying pop. Then you have to form them into pretzel shapes, which I thought I could do with pizza-dough-spin dramatic flourish (I could not). You sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture on top and put them in the oven.

Guest Post: Bremer Kids Chicken Nuggets Complete Meal

We would like to welcome our first guest reviewer! Thanks for sharing the burden of this completely voluntary blog with us; we couldn't do it without you, GD.

Hi there loyal readers, nice to meet ya. I’m the Gentleman’s daughter and possibly only reader of What’s Good at ALDI? So this blog entry is somewhat of a diary to myself. Listen, self, I love ALDI. My husband and I are trying to raise three kids and I don’t know if you’ve ever been around a child, but they like to eat. As much as I love to cook for the family, there are those nights when a bottle of wine and some water crackers is a full meal for me. Those nights are the times that I forget about the words “healthy” and “mono sodium glutamate” and turn to frozen meals. The kids are always begging for those god-awful Kid Cuisines, so when we saw these on sale at ALDI, we couldn’t resist. These guys were on sale for a meager $0.99. When I see something on sale for less than a dollar, my brain reads “Free”. We scooped up three and headed home with three super excited children.

You want dinner AGAIN? I just fed you dinner yesterday!

F&A Devil's Food Fat Free Chocolate Cookie Cakes

Hello internet! We just got back from a lovely mini holiday and walking back into my office after four days off made me realize that all my hopes and dreams of a better life are resting on this little blog.* Anyway, Fit&Active's Devil's Food Fat Free Chocolate Cookie Cakes are what we're talking about today.

Free Dog!!!

Not Purchased At ALDI

So I found this dog wandering around my neighborhood and I'm trying to find it a home but I need to post some pics somewhere and then it dawned on me - I can work two angles today - one, a solid review and two, trying to find a home for this dog. So today I give you a win/win - Shep Premium Cuts With Beef in Sauce dog food and a free to a good home pup!

Looks Better Than ALDI Chili

Winking Owl - Shiraz

If you are one of those people who wants to drink wine like the Cul-de-sac Crew, but just can't get past the taste of red wine then this Winking Owl Shiraz is for you as it is a very watered-down wine. It simultaneously tastes like red wine and nothing.

Frozen Blueberry Waffles

Finally a review of frozen waffles. If this blog has a weak spot, it is definitely waffle-related. Well Breakfast Best Blueberry Waffles are here to rescue us all.

I eat frozen waffles for breakfast a lot of mornings while driving to work. You can toast them and wrap them up in a paper towel then delicately balance them on top of your coffee cup while you try to lock the door before the alarm goes off. And two waffles are less than 200 calories, so it's perfect. 

I Scream, You Scream -- Jumbo Waffle Cones and Neapolitan Ice Cream

Is there a food more associated with Summer than ice cream? No, I've looked into it and there's not. And Bud Light doesn't count, it's a drink. Summer's almost here but there's no need to wait, not with ALDI in the neighborhood! Readers it's time for Benton's Kids Jumbo Waffle Cones and Sundae Shoppe Neapolitan Ice Cream...

Summertime Is Here

So I live about two blocks from what bon appetit magazine has ranked as the fourth best ice cream in the country. The salted caramel ice cream is like the crack cocaine of fat people's dreams. It's amazing. But at $4 for a single it's a pretty expensive habit to have. So when I saw theses waffle cones I thought hey, it's like methadone for fat people! I can ween myself off salted caramel at last. So I grabbed a box and since they didn't have salted caramel and I couldn't make an ice cream choice, I picked Neapolitan.



 ChocVanStrawBox

Drop and Give Me Twenty! -- Strawberry Cereal Bars

Even though the Lady forces me on nightly three mile marches, fit and active are two words that have never been used to describe me. But they are two words that describe today's post - readers, strap on your leg warmers we're you're about to jump into Fit&Active Strawberry Light & Crispy Vitality Cereal Bars!

You Could Read War And Peace Quicker

So the first thing I want to talk about is the name.  Fit&Active Strawberry Light & Crispy Vitality Cereal Bars - come on ALDI that is way too long for blogging. Let's dissect it and see what we can take out. Fit&Active - okay, they want to position these as healthy and you can see they have lots of goodness listed in green blocks. Fine, that stays. Strawberry, I have no qualms with that - I don't want to get home and find out they're jack fruit or something. Light, yeah okay sure - only 90 calories and they don't weigh much either. Crispy, they are not. Strike it. Vitality, why? What's makes them that? It's not explained - dump it. Cereal, I've never seen any F&A Strawberry cereal so that can go too. Bars, yes they are. So we come up with  Fit&Active Strawberry Light Bars. Or maybe Fit&Active Light Strawberry Bars. (TM www.whatsgoodataldi.com) Much more manageable.

I Play It Straight -- Milk Chocolate Coated Butter Cookies

Since I have nothing but good things to say about this product, in this post I'm just going to play it straight. No wise cracks - just a solid review. I give you...cafe' Bistro Milk Chocolate Coated Butter Cookies.

Delicious!

We Got Sauced -- Primavera Sauce

Humble spaghetti sauce, a staple of single people and tired mothers everywhere. So much so that there are a ton of different brands and everybody is upscaling it. So you knew the folks at ALDI were gonna get in on this sweet action.

Shitload -O- ALDI Sauce

And BINGO - I bring you.....Priano Primavera Sauce! 

FIBER NOW Cereal

 

I think most of my reviews about ALDI food are going to be cereal and wine.  I have two more Winking Owls and two more cereals to review. That probably says a lot about my lifestyle. But you're reading about ALDI wines and cereal, so what does that say about your lifestyle?  

Millville Honey Clusters FIBER NOW cereal is clearly attempting to knock off Fiber One. And similarly to Fiber One, this stuff is pretty bland. I had assumed that Millville would have skimped on the clusters but they were pretty abundant. Unfortunately, they didn't add flavor or texture to the cereal. 

"I want an Oompa Loompa now!" ~ Veruca Salt -- Table Salt

Salt, the oldest of man's spices. Awww who am I kidding, I don't know if that's true. I'm no food historian. Is that even a thing? That would be an amazing job. ALDI if you're reading this, I want to apply for any Food Historian positions you have open. So today's post is.....Stonemill Essentials Iodized Table Salt!

Boring but salty and only $.35!!

What can I say about this?

Mini Bread Bowls - Spinach and Artichoke Edition

 

I bought these Appetitos Spinach & Artichoke Mini Bread Bowls with hesitation. I just couldn't imagine how these could be good and $3? That's pricey for ALDI. My hesitation followed me home and this item sat in my freezer for a month at least. I was imagining a chewy, salty, mouthful of processed dough and grease. 

Cleanliness is next to ALDIness Part II -- Glass Cleaner and Paper Towels

I know you've all been waiting on pins and needles to read another cleaning product post so let's get to it! Another twofer is on the way. Ladies and gentlemen I give you.....Freshine Glass Cleaner and Boulder Paper Towels!

Reunited and it feels so good.

As you may recall, there are some products that I buy based solely on price. Well for those of you keeping a list of those items, you can add paper towels to dish washing detergent and laundry detergent. However, when it comes to multi-use cleaners, I was born a 409 man and I'll die a 409 man so the Freshine made me a little nervous but....

Cleanliness is next to ALDIness -- Laundry Detergent and Dishwasher Soap

Before I get to the review I'd like to apologize for the Lady's use of this sacred blog to promote her non-ALDI Arbor Mist agenda AND ALSO buzz market her Coach Paul Johnson buttons. I would however, like to give her a shout out for making a sweet new header for this blog, adding the A.L.D.I. scale and a label cloud for easy reference LOOK------------>
and a disclaimer at the bottom of this page so ALDI doesn't sue me and take all my stuff and build a new ALDI where my house once stood. Now, on with the show....

If you're a dedicated reader of this blog and live in Maine, a state I love but which has no ALDI's, then you might think all that ALDI has to offer is great bargains on food. Well you'd be wrong my dear Pinetree State friends. ALDI has great bargains on EVERYTHING. Everything. Including pet stuffs, health care items and today's blog items - cleaning supplies. Since there's just not a lot I can think of to tell you about cleaning products, I'm going to review a couple here and a couple in my next post. So I give you a twofer ..... Tandil laundry detergent AND Reeva dishwasher soap!!

Conjoined

Do you think ALDI and IKEA use the same company to name their products? Tandil? Reeva? I feel like they're both just a random K and an umlaut away from being sold at IKEA. In fact, I think I own a REËVAK table and some TÄKNDIL chairs. Anyway...

Arbor Mist Tasting Party

This is a pretty controversial post. You cannot buy Arbor Mist at ALDI (at least not at mine). But I think that an Arbor Mist tasting party fits perfectly within the milieu of this blog. GC thinks that talking about groceries not purchased at ALDI violates some unwritten agreement we've made with the reader. As the starter of this blog and the female in the relationship, I win. (High fives all around!)

We drank a lot of Arbor Mist that night - I think we went through nine bottles of "wine" and two bottles of "champagne."

Flatbread Melt

Annnnndddddd I'm back!  I apologize for my extended absence but I recently became the proud owner of every season of Gilmore Girls on DVD, so you can imagine how busy I have been.

In order to make it up to you I bring you a very special entry: Bremer Selects Chicken Quesadilla Flatbread Melt!

This is the ALDI item that started it all. On my first trip to ALDI, I was marveling at all of the neat little prepackaged meals like this. GC warned me that I "would be sorry" if I ate any of them. Not one to back down from a challenge, I cased all of their frozen foods and picked the Chicken Quesadilla Flatbread Melt as my test.

Stop, Pizza Time! Oh, oh , oh.... -- Stone Baked Margherita Pizza

My apologies to MC Hammer who, due to recent monetary setbacks, probably shops at ALDI too. Anyway, we all love pizza. LOVE IT! I'm always on the lookout for a delicious frozen pizza - which might be an oxymoron. At any rate, I'm always eating frozen pizza, to the point that I fancy myself somewhat of an expert on the subject. So when I saw that Mama Cozzi had a stone baked variety for a mere $2.99 I was pretty exicited, but I've been fooled by Mama before so it's with a bit of trepidation I give you Mama Cozzi's Stone Baked Margherita Pizza -

Imported From Europe (NJ)

This pie claims to be "Imported From Europe" which seems sort of suspicious to me. I mean it's clear they want you to think "ITALY" so why don't they say Imported From Italy? For all I know this pizza was slapped together in some slave wage kitchen in Serbia or Croatia. It's made with real cheese whatever that means and has 0 grams of trans fat. As I recall, Margherita was the only flavor of the stone baked variety that ALDI was selling. It's got lots of diced tomatoes and it's liberally sprinkled with what I assume is the traditional Margherita topping of lime and salt...er, basil. It's a pretty thin crust too which is usually a good sign in the frozen pizza world. A quick math lesson for frozen pizza buying. Because the crust is usually the weakest part of the pizza the less of it you have to gnaw through the better so....thinner > thicker. I tossed it in the oven at 425 for 12 minutes per Mama's instructions and....

Cheese and Crackers and Crackers and Crackers... -- Port Wine Cheese Cup, 6 Cracker Assortment and Salt Pita Crackers

As you all know from our earlier posts, the Lady hosted an Arbor Mist tasting party. Assuming that anyone who would attend had no food or drink dignity, I decided to stock the party with ALDI snacks. So this review is a three-fer. Happy Farms Port Wine Cheese Cup, Savoritz 6 Cracker Assortment and Savoritz Sea Salt Pita Crackers.

Pita Crackers + Cheese = TADAAAA!!

Italian Espresso Groast - Italian Espresso Roast coffee

I'm going to be short and to the point here. If you ever see this product, avoid it at all costs. Even if your doctor tells you you're dying and all that can save you is a cup of this coffee, just go ahead and die. You'll be better off.

Mussolini was better to the Italian name.