UPDATE: And the Winner is….Marcie W! Congratulations!

Mondays are a bitch and yesterday was no exception.

Somehow my alarm clock malfunctioned. Fortunately my ever-vigilant three-year-old was up at 6 a.m. on the dot and saved me from utter ruin…well, until he decided to throw a major fit about everything under the sun. There weren’t enough Lightning McQueens on his underwear. His toothpaste was too blue. His sister got to the bottom of the stairs before him. Somehow, some night gnome pushed the boy’s “brat” button and jammed it stuck. It was one of those mornings where I was happy to hand him off to the paid professionals at daycare.

I think the night gnome made the rounds in the wee Monday morning hours. People in traffic were jerks. I nearly lost my temper at the office. And, for some insane reason, I got a bug up my butt to start my graduate school career a year earlier than my original plan.

So, when I got home, I knew the dragon that crawled out of his loft bed still needed to be tamed and I had a grad school app to start working on. AND I had a ton of writing work to get moving on. Oh? And laundry. Let’s not forget that.

So…what better time to do the taste test for Seattle’s Best iced coffee drinks? Their PR peeps sent me samples about a week ago and they’d been chilling in the fridge, just waiting for the right moment.

Something told me this was a prime time. So, here’s my review.

Seattle’s Best Iced Coffee Drink Review

You know, there’s a reason that directors hate working with animals and kids, or in my case, kids with animals.

If I didn’t have to keep the kids from knocking open cans of iced coffee on my desk, I would have told you that I was really surprised how much I liked these things. The vanilla and mocha flavors were very smooth and rich.

By the time I downed the mocha one (the only one I actually finished that night), I was full enough that I really could have gone to bed without dinner. Hell, the sugar and caffiene high had me soaring well past midnight.

These were so good, that I dragged the kids to the store after work and got some of these (we needed milk and bananas, so you all can back off on the judgy stuff). At about $5.50 a four-pack, this was a great deal, especially when you consider that I spend about $20 a week on four frappachinos from Crack-bucks.

So, I’d say that if you’re a caffeine addict like me, go buy yourself a pack and give them a try. Or, you can win a pack from the good folks at Seattle’s Best. You can win a 4-pack of each of the three flavors I tried.

Here’s how:

1. Tell me your favorite coffee drink. Are you a latte person? Is a frappachino more to your liking? Do you take it straight up black, or are there more accoutrements than coffee?
2. Leave a comment below by midnight (pacific time) on Monday, May 24, 2010. One comment per person, please.
3. The winner will be chosen by a random draw and posted here after the award has been confirmed.

Good luck and bottoms up! If you really like the stuff, sign up on the website and, if you’re one of the first 10,000 people, they’ll send you some cool stuff.

[This was a solicited, but uncompensated review. Samples and giveaways were provided by the manufacturer, but in no way influenced my opinions of the product. Trust me. I've reviewed samples and haven't been a fan.]

The parent/teacher conference was over. The Weight Watchers meal back in the office fridge had lost the appeal it held at 7 a.m. when it was packed. I wanted something fresh and somewhat healthy, but a little bad.

I swear my iPhone winked at me. Ahh yes. I downloaded the Chipotle app awhile back and hadn’t had a chance to try it out yet.

Why not try it out today?

First off, let’s find the right store. Ahh yes. The one closest to the office.

Next, my order. A steak salad with roasted corn salsa. Chips with guac on the side. (I did say somewhat healthy, right)  A large soda. Ahh heaven.

The ordering system gives you the option of prepaying for your order online through the phone or paying when you get there. I really didn’t need my credit card info in another company’s database, so I opted to pay cash on site.

The whole ordering process took all of five minutes, even with the initial account setup. The application flowed incredibly smoothly, allowing me to order my salad just the way I wanted it. It was as seamless as walking through the assembly line at one of their restaurants.

When I was done with my selections, I was given the option to choose the pickup time. I was starving and didn’t want to wait any longer than I had to, but it was the end of the lunch hour and I wanted to be fair. So, from two blocks away (at a stoplight, mind you) I gave then 15 minutes to get my mission accomplished.

Okay, I made it through a five minute wait in the parking lot before my stomach got the best of me. I passed by this sign on the way and smiled….

Sure enough, they had my order in the system. It wasn’t waiting for me, but they rang me up swiftly and by the time I had my cup filled to the brim with diet coke and a slice of lemon it was bagged and ready to go. No waiting in line. I was out the door in three minutes. That rocked.

Did they get it right?

Yes they did. The ingredients I ordered were all where they should be. I could have used more dressing and the beans were a bit watery, but it was pretty good. The chips weren’t as warm as I like them, but it didn’t stop me from making a guacamole mess all over my dry-clean only blouse. Overall, it was good, fast eats.

The Chipotle iPhone app makes getting what you want, when you want it, where you want it incredibly easy. I’ll be curious to see how well it works as more folks start using it, especially at peak luncthimes. From a marketing standpoint, the app is pure genius and should help increase their sales substantially.

Last night was another blast in my rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. This time it was The Killers at Mandalay.

The show started at 8, and with the Mayweather fight the same eve, the prospects of a post-show meal were daunting. So, my date and I opted to use my gift card for Sushi Roku at the Caesar’s Forum Shops for an early nosh.

After winding our way up a spiral escalator to the third floor, we were greeted by elegantly dressed hosts and boisterous sushi chefs and led to a strip-view table with an amazing southbound perspective of Las Vegas in all her glory. The sun began to set during our meal, making the vista that much more spectacular.

Our server recommended the Secret Crush martini and the Tuna Carpaccio appetizer. Both were delightful. The refreshing fruitness of the cocktail balanced the salty smokiness of the sauce lapping on the piscine shores with crispy fried garlic chips and finely diced chives.

My date enjoyed a lovely sashimi sampler plate with tuna, shrimp, yellowtail, salmon, whitefish and eel along with six pieces of spicy tuna roll. While not a fan of eel in general, he enjoyed the well-prepared platter, but warns others not to add too much wasabi to their bites, as the chef liked to nestle a piece between the fish and rice. The overzealous adorers of the green glob could very well burn his or her palate off.

I opted for a non-raw option: “Grilled Salmon and Hokkaido Scallops; XO Sauce with Potatoes and Asparagus.” It was a beautifully presented plate with two nicely prepared pieces of salmon atop two breaded scallops next to two roasted red-skinned potatoes, which were balanced atop two criss-crossed grilled asparagus? (Are you catching a theme here?) It was a nice dish with a lovely variation of textures that oscillated between salty and sweet. For those who may be intimidated by a meal at a sushi place, although it was a little salty, it was quite pleasant and un-fishy.

The service was very attentive, not surprising since we were there so early in the evening. I was little sad that my Miso Soup add-on didn’t make it to the table before my entree, as I love the stuff. The staff was very apologetic for the error, but by then the manager, Johnny, had already made us VIPs, which pretty much was a business card entitling us to 20% off every subsequent trip across the threshold of Sushi Roku, or it’s neighboring eatery, Boa Steakhouse.

If you’re looking for cheap eats, there are other sushi establishments around town I can recommend. Our total for the evening, even with our 20 percent off and $25 off (thanks to my KNPR membership) nearly topped $100. While the meal was great, what you’re really paying for is craftsmanship, service, ambiance, and did I mention the view?

Let it be known that I don’t think there’s a carbohydrate that I don’t like. Chips. Cookies. Pita. Crackers. Sweet. Savory. Chewy. Crunchy. Crusty. I love it all.

But one of my favorite doughy, batter-y treats has to be cake. I have waited in lines and around blocks for the famed paper-wrapped sugar bombs at NYC’s Magnolia Bakery. I have spent hours perfecting my own recipes.

And now, I must have died.

Because I am in cake heaven.

We celebrated my mom’s birthday tonight. I happily surrendered cooking duty to my brother so I’d have an excuse to try the Twitterriffic RetroBakery.

I knew we were in for it when after what felt like an epic drive (I think I passed Moses along the way, but maybe that was a hitchhiker on the freeway on-ramp) and the guy who opened the door admitted that he and his friends were on their second run for the day.

The glass case of cupcakes sang their siren song to me. There were but a precious few left at that hour of the day, but there were enough for me. Kari is a great salesperson, but I was an easy mark. My plan for a purchase of eight quickly became ten and ten became an even dozen.

Let me tell you, I have yet to find a “you’d better eat your dinner if you want your dessert” motivational tool for my daughter than the vanilla on vanilla cupcake, complete with rainbow sprinkles, of course.

The kaleidescope of flavors was amazing. I had the pink lemonade first (yes, I ate more than one, duh!). As I peeled the wrapper, my nose was alive with the smell of fresh lemons. The pink buttercream frosting was a perfect balance of sweetness without being too rich or grainy. The cake itself was awesome. All too often cupcakes have become these dense mini-bricks used as frosting conveyances.

My mother, the birthday girl, picked out the chocolate fountain cupcake a “chocolate cake topped with chocolate buttercream and dipped in chocolate ganache.” She’s a little 5’2″ dynamo of healthy eating. But she sucked down that cupcake like a Dyson on dirt. Seriously, I turned my back for a second and then she was this:

The kids loved their vanilla on vanilla and chocolate on vanilla concoctions, although after the frosting was devoured, there was little appreciation for the cake. But, they’re kids. So, I fully expected that.

After the sugar-fueled tantrums spun the kids into a deep slumber, I gently nibbled pretty much inhaled a Red Carpet. No, I’m not talking about a lesbian encounter with a fellow ginger-haired beauty. I’m talking about their version of a red velvet cupcake.

Red Velvet is a tough recipe to master. It’s an odd combo of vinegar, cocoa powder, food coloring, and more that’s more science experiment than cakery. For me, it’s the litmus test of a great baker.

Oh. My. F’ing God. I have never had anything like this before. Perfect density, beautifully balanced, a hint of cherry that totally blew me out of the water. I snagged a bite of the Peanut Butter Cup.

Dear Lord. You can take me now.

Oh wait. I still have two more in the kitchen. And there are so many flavors yet to try. I’m gonna be all over that Maple Bacon. I AM half-Canadian, eh.

*Cake images are borrowed from the Retrobakery website. The cupcakes didn’t last long enough to be captured in frame.

I showed amazing restraint.

Ah-may-zing.

I brought home a box of Fling chocolate bars from my BlogHer swag bag from Chicago in July and I finally ate the last one yesterday.

I am the portrait of self-restraint.

I had never had nor seen these little delights, but they are quite delish.

Think of them as individually wrapped Twix bars with a sweet crispy meringue in place of the cookie.  The caramel’s been swapped out for a truffle-like mousse filling. The milk chocolate coating was much smoother as well. The manufacturers tout the the visual appeal of the snack with it’s Mica-dusting that results in a shimmering effect. While I love me some pretty food as much as the next girl, these were not unwrapped long enough to look at before they were consumed.

At 80 calories and 4.5 grams of fat per piece, don’t believe the clever hints at a “skinny” sweet. Yes, a two-pack of Twix is packed with 280 calories and 14 grams of fat. So, in comparison, Fling aren’t a bad alternative. That is, if you can restrain yourself to just one.

Trust me, that’s hard. It’s about as hard as a one night stand with this guy would be.

Or at least I’d like to imagine.

I love food.

It loves me. I know it does. It doesn’t have to say it, but I swear I hear it calling my name. It’s at a subliminal pitch that not even dogs or bats can hear. It whispers so sweetly in a tone only audible to my once-shrinking fat cells.

Naaaa-ncy. Naaaaa-ncy. Forget that Weight Watchers thing. Points shmoints.

We looove you. Come baaaack! Come baaaack!

You know you want us.

You deserve us.

You’ve earned us.

Normally I can resist. Usually I can silence their calls with an apple or a glass of water or even a handful of carrots.

Until these came into my life.

I found these on my last trip to New York City. They were at a corner bodega. Perfect for a late night snack after a night on the town. A light snack, right?

Oh. dear. God. These things are so good. When I got back from my trip, my eyes scanned the chip aisle of every grocery store I visited in giddy hope that they had traveled westward.

Week after week went by. I gave up. Like corner hot dog stands and kinishes, I had written them off as a legendary NYC treat to remember.

And then…they were here…and then they were here…and I bought them.

And I ate them.

And ate them.

I’ve cleared an entire bag in one sitting.

With a diet coke, mind you, but in one frigging sitting.

I don’t even do that for my “stranded on a desert island” food – Cool Ranch Doritos.

I should feel guilty, but I don’t…well, sort of.

They are not fried. They’re not even baked. Apparently they’re popped. They’re not rice- or corn-based though. They’re potato chips made crispy through heat and pressure. Don’t ask me how it works, but thanks to their Willy Wonka-eqsue methodology, it works. They can have all the oompa loompas they need (As long as they are engaging in fair labor practices, right?)

Three 120-calorie servings in a bag. Four grams of fat per serving. Not necessarily health food, per se, but there’s certainly worse stuff out there.

And oh dear god, they are soooo good.