Product review: Newtons Soft & Fruit Chewy Fig Cookies

Fig newtons are a long time favorites in our house.  The box from Amazon had an expiration date a year in the future and was quite fresh.  The box had four packages of 12 packs. Eack of the packs has 2 cookies. 1 pack is 1 serving size and is 200 calories. These are very tasty cookies - a little bit sweet, a little big tangy!

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Progresso Traditional, New England Clam Chowder Soup Cans

The texture, thickness, and chunkiness of Progresso Clam chowder were fine, however, I was disappointed in the taste.  It just was not very good.  My local supermarket has Legal Seafood clam chowder available in the deli department, it is much better.  Unfortunately, it is not shelf-stable, requires refrigeration, and cannot be stored for as long.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★☆☆

Movie review: Call of the wild. Amazon early preview. Harrison Ford movie.

I saw this movie as "Early Preview" on Amazon Prime rentals. I enjoyed it. It is a touching story that pulls on your heartstrings. It felt to me a bit like a Disney animation movie because the dog scenes, especially at the very end, were very much like an animated cartoon.  The dog was clearly CGI'ed through the movie, but I enjoyed his clever human-like expressions.  The movie is based on the Jack London novel about the dog named Buck who was stolen from his home in California and sent to the Yukon, where he befriends an old outdoorsman, played by Harrison Ford.

You can buy or rent this movie on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Amy's Organic Lentil Soup, Vegan, 14.5 Ounce / Whole foods home delivery during COVID-19

This is my first order of Amy's Organic Lentil Soup.  This is a thick lentil soup with a pleasant flavor. Not too salty, not artificial tasting, not spicy. It has a label BPA free (I assume this refers to the liner).  I like that it has easy to open a pop up lid. It is also easy to prepare, we heat it up in the microwave.

Ingredients
Filtered Water, Organic Yellow Split Peas, Organic red lentils, Organic Carrots, Organic Tomato Purée, Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, shallots, Organic Garlic, Organic Ginger, Sea Salt, Organic Spices, Organic Turmeric, Organic Black Pepper.

This soup was part of my first on-line delivery from Whole Foods, and the ordering and delivery worked well.  6 of the 12 items were out due to COVID-19 and I got texts with substitutions, which I could accept or reject.  The delivery occurred within a promised two-hour period, with the substitution messages happening one hour before.  WholeFoods, of course, is not a bargain. The price of the items and the delivery tip did make it pretty expensive. However, in the current situation, it is a very helpful option to have.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.


Ali Julia review ★★★★★

Product review: Ambesonne Fabric Shower Curtains, Colorful Leaves

The description states the shower curtain is made out of polyester fabric, so I expected a textured fabric similar to window curtains. The fabric was not what I expected the polyester fabric to be; the material feels like nylon - smooth, slightly shiny, and not textured at all. The fabric texture is not a bad thing, just not what I expected.  The shower curtain had no scent.

The shower curtain fabric arrived with sharp creases from packing. It did not look good when I hung it. The label said "no ironing," but I am an experienced seamstress, so I know how to iron this type of fabric: iron on a warm setting and ironing from the reverse side. After I ironed the material, the shower curtain looked good.

Each leave of the design is 7.5" measured in the longest direction. The stock image is a pretty good representation of the color on the part that faces outside. The reverse side has much paler tones.

The hook holes are not reinforced; they are just buttonhole openings finished on a sewing machine. Those buttonholes areas are reinforced from the back with another strip of fabric (good).

The hooks enclosed in the package are white cheap-looking plastic loops, which I am not using. I did not throw them out to see if I can use them in my garden to hold up vines on the trellis. To hold the shower curtain and a liner, I purchased double shower curtain hooks, which are working beautifully and look good.

Overall, I am pleased with the shower curtain.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.


Ali Julia review ★★★★☆

Book review: Ninety-Nine Cent Tour of Bar Harbor Maine (Photo Tour): Traveling Cheapskate, Ken Rossignol

I live in New England and Bar Harbor Maine is a place we visit every now and then. I wanted to see if this book would give me some new ideas of places to see, things to do, and places to eat.  It did not.

This book was not what I expected in many ways. This book has no text.  It is just a book of photos with captions.  The captions are written in an unusually small font that does not scale at all. Even on a large 30" computer monitor, the text was not readable. Zoom-in controls in the browser did not work to enlarge the fonts, so no matter what I tried I could not see what the author wrote. I was only able to look at the photos.  The photos were not particularly good. They were not artistic, they did not have good composition, the colors were washed out.   The photos did not give Bar Harbor justice.  The book did not make Bar Harbor look like a desirable place to visit. 

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★☆☆☆☆

Product review: Annie's Macaroni & Cheese, Shells & Real Aged Cheddar

I like the flavor of Annie's Mac and Cheese better than the Kraft products.  Annie's Mac and Cheese does not have the artificial flavor.   Good packages to have on hand for emergencies.

The key to making it really good is adding a little bit of warm milk to turn cheese powder into cheese sauce.  I use 1/4 cup of walk milk to make a smooth cheese sauce to which I add cooked pasta. If I add cheese powder to the pasta directly I can never get smooth sauce and it does not taste as good.

You can find it on Amazon by following this link.

Ali Julia review ★★★★★