It is Christmas Week and I hope you are excited. My daughter has been counting down the days and can not wait to see what Santa has brought her this year. I may have had a few words with the big guy and know what it is but I'm not telling. She has been pretty good this year and thankfully is really good about only asking Santa for a couple smaller requests. Last year she only asked Santa for walkie talkies. Her friends all use them when they play hide and seek... which makes it pretty hard to hide but is pretty funny to watch. This year she asked for Jojo Siwa wall decals to decorate her room and Jojo Siwa makeup. I am sensing a theme.... that has carried to her request for a birthday also themed with Jojo Siwa. I guess I'll have to resign myself to listening to those songs for another year.
All of our gifts are wrapped and everyone in our home is finished shopping so we have started to make the rounds to deliver the few gifts we purchased for those we don't live with. I love seeing everyone's reactions to their presents and hoping we hit just the right note for whatever has been gifted. I can tell you that when we exchanged gifts with our closest friends the other day they absolutely hit it out of the park for me. As with my hats, I have begun collecting quirky salt and pepper shakers. A found a few in thrift stores and Cracker Barrel but most of these have all been gifts. I told only a few friends at first that I was even considering starting this collection and had been for years and all of a sudden they began finding some amazing pieces to add. Flea markets, Ebay, thrift stores, antique markets and other assorted sources have all been rummaged for these great pieces. (The wire running through is for lights but I had them turned off during this photo). Pretty soon I'm going to need a bigger cabinet or another space to display them because it is getting full but I love every single one.
When we were finished being prepared for giving and recieving gifts with friends I was ready for one of my favorite things. A brand new Aldi was opening just 6 minutes away from my door. If you missed the previous blog about Aldi and my recipe for Mexicali Dip check it out here (https://pamperedlinny.wixsite.com/coffee-required/post/trips-to-aldi-mexicali-dip). I LOVE Aldi. Therefore, when they opened the doors on Thursday I knew I had to get there. As soon as my lunch hour hit I made a run to check out the brand new location and do some shopping. I took the below photos because I was so excited. I know that's crazy but I was just so happy! Everything clean and new and fresh.
If you have never shopped at Aldi the rest of this may seem a bit odd so let me give you some Aldi information. They do have quite a few things that are always in stock. This is a grocery store and so produce, cereals and the rest are always in stock. However, they mostly carry only thier own generic brands and they rotate a LOT of stock. An entire aisle of the store, a section of the refrigerated area and a section of freezer are all things that are either seasonal or only there for that week. When these things are gone they are gone. However, many of these items rotate and come back so finding a slew of favorites I thought I would share this weeks favorites and if you see them you need to snatch those up fast!
First up is something I kept hearing about from other Aldi shoppers but our nearest location, until now, never seemed to get these in stock. These rotate out but seem to have been an Aldi Find at least 3 times this year. I sincerely hope that means they are considering making it a regular item because they are phenominal. These Pub Style pretzels are so addictive. I absolutely need to use my food scale to keep myself from eating a full bag and keep it to a single serving. If you see them though you need to grab them up quick.
Next up is flavored whipped cream. Mmmm. Obviously my blog is named "Coffee Required" because without coffee you won't see me as a functioning human being. I still had a few single serve coffee pods from earlier in the summer that had also been an Aldi Find flavored as Vanilla Bourbon (no alcohol, just coffee) and I added some of this Maple Vanilla Whipped Topping. So Good! This is not the only flavor and I have seen multiple flavors depending on the season. The pumpking spice is also very good.
Third, I need to share these Chicken & Pesto Fillo Blossoms. These were also out last year and they do carry another flavor as well. Only 2 servings in a box but a serving is 6 pieces for 200 calories. I bought 2 boxes and need to go see if they still have more before they are gone for another year. These are super tasty when you want a hot and slightly filling snack. It feels like you are indulging in calorie heavy party appetizers while keeping within a reasonable snacking calorie range. Just pop them in the oven or air fryer for a few minutes and you are good to go.
I want to tell you about 2 things that go together amazingly well here. This spinach dip is fantastic and it has to be the easiest one I have ever purchased. Just mix 2 packages of cream cheese (we used the neufchatel cheese) and a splash of milk with the dip mix and microwave. That is it and it was delicious. We purchaed these Grilled Crostini Toasts in both Garlic Herb and Sea Salt. They paired really well with this dip and with the other hot dips that were around over the past weekend. Even a friend of mine that is not a fan of spinach at all ate this dip so we give it two thumbs way up.
Nearing the end we have this amazing Spiral Sliced Hickory Smoked Honey Ham. This has been my favorite ham for my entire life. My dad used to buy it from Aldi when I was a kid. We had a friend here when I made it and they said it was as good as or better than Honey Baked Ham brand. These are truly the best. Being an Aldi seasonal item these are only out around Christmas and Easter but I highly recommend getting one and tossing it in your freezer for when you really want one. Also, check out that price! Where else are you going to pick up something this delicious for only 95¢/lb??? Then you can use any leftover ham for all sorts of tasty recipes and that bone is perfect for soups. I have a bone in the freezer now and I am already thinking of a hearty vegetable soup I need to make soon.
I have saved the best for last. Or at least the cutest for last. Earlier this summer Aldi had Unicorn Cones and Galactic Cones. Right now they have Snowflake Cones. My daughter is obsessed with any of the cute cones that come out at Aldi so whenever I see they have a new set as an Aldi Find I am sure to grab a box. They come 4 to a box so and usually these are only in store for a week or until they are sold out so watch those weekly sales papers or the Aldi website to see when they come out. If you can't tell from the photo the top of the ice cream really is a snowflake shape and it could not be more adorable. Also, her sweater says "Santa Saw Your Instapics". Given her age she doesn't have any instapics but I hope you were all good in your posts so he doesn't skip your house this year.
I plan to take next week off from blogging and spending the week between Christmas and New Year focusing on spending time with my family and celebrating. I will see you again in 2021 and I hope you have an amazing holiday season!
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