Foodie Pen Pals!!!

When you were in grade school or junior high, did you have a pen pal?  Back before the days of email, it was so much fun to send that letter off and then wait, wait, wait for one to be delivered to me in return.  I had a few pen pals when I was a kid, and let's be honest, even as an adult, it is so much fun getting something in the mail other than bills, ads, or other less-fun items.

As a lover of all things food-related, imagine my elation when I discovered Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean.  Every month, she puts together the Foodie Pen Pals program, matching participants (some bloggers, but not a requirement), and then hosting the link-up reveal party in the blogosphere.  You can check out the link for all the details.

This month, I was paired with Samantha from Nutrition to Fruition.  We exchanged information over email and a couple of weeks later, this is what came in the mail for me:

Ooooooh, I was so excited!  First I tried the golden honey almond granola:

 

The container is empty.  I kept saying I needed to take a picture before it was all gone and then.... oops.  It was so delicious!

Then of course I had to try the pumpkin butter!

 

I love pumpkin butter..... well, I love ANYthing pumpkin, but I do adore pumpkin butter, and this did not disappoint.  I do still have quite a lot left, as I've been rationing it.  It's so delicious.

Then I tried this herb seasoning:

I used this on some chicken we had for dinner one night and it was delicious with a perfect spicy kick from the red pepper in it!  Yum!

I haven't opened this bruschetta oil seasoning yet, but I'm planning to use it in my first grilled pizza attempt this week.  I'm certain it will be delicious!

 

Finally, every Foodie Pen Pals package is to contain something written.  Samantha wrote me a very lovely message in a card:

This was such a great experience.  Everything that Samantha sent me was from her local farmer's market, which is pretty cool, plus I made a new blogger friend!  You don't have to be a blogger to participate though, so if you're interested, check out this link for more details.  Also, be sure to check out Samantha's blog.  Her tone is really funny (read her post on Dr. Oz) and I think she and I could be friends in real life.

I'm looking forward to next month!  Have you ever participated in a foodie exchange?