Friday, January 11, 2013

Valentine Baskets reveal -- Check out what I have for you!

 Yesterday I decided to finally get my Valentines baskets put together for pictures. Natalia was there with me--and I love it because she is the only one in the family who cares to give me her honest opinion about anything that I do, wear, cook, or change around the house. I guess all of my kids are pretty honest when it comes to my cooking, but Natalia is the one who pays attention to detail and notices all the little things--if I moved a picture to a different wall, changed the curtains, made a new wreath for my front door, or bought a new vase. She is also the one who warns me  NOT to show up at school without make-up, or to put on a different pair of earrings because the ones I have on "just don't go". She even asked me one time if anyone has ever asked if I am Nathan's grandma! So yeah, she is pretty honest, and her opinion is very valuable to me, even when it hurts. Ouch!


Yesterday Natalia asked me, "So why do all of your baskets have to have bread? Can you make something different?" For a moment I thought, yeah, she is right, I am going to bore my customers to death with the same ol' bread in those baskets! But then I quickly replied, "What would you think if Chick-Fil-A all of a sudden started selling burgers?" "That would be soo weird!", she replied. And so that was my teaching moment with Natalia. lol! This is what I do, and it would be weird if all of a sudden I started selling...I don't know...black beans. But...Natalia still got me thinking, and that is how I came up with the bread you see on the picture above. It is the Simply Wheat version of Cinnaburst Bread, sold at Great Harvest here in town!

 I know, I know, it is still bread, but a different kind of bread! I have always loved the cinnaburst bread from my local competitor :), and while on the internet looking for that perfect recipe, I found one that I was able to tweak here and there to make a very tasty loaf of cinnamon bread! First of all, I eliminated the sugar and added honey. Then, instead of using fresh milk I tried it with nonfat dry milk. And last, but not least, I added a good amount of 100% whole wheat flour to cut back on the white flour! I am sorry to say that this tasty bread is NOT 100% whole wheat--but maybe in the near future I will experiment with the recipe a little further. =-) I think it still has a wonderful texture, it is very nutritious, and it tastes delicious, especially when toasted with some butter, or used to make french toast. mmmmm!


 My plan is to offer two options on the baskets:

1. Forget me not gift basket - This basket will include your choice of a loaf of 100% whole wheat bread OR cinnamon-honey bread, a honey bear, a bag of chocolates, and the cutest chocolate scented bear you have ever seen! I will arrange all the items in a cute wicker basket, wrap it in cellophane, and tie it with some valentine garland and a gift tag. This one goes for $20.00!
I found these adorable bears and I could not resist. They come in beige and dark brown. You may choose which one you prefer (quantities limited).

 The honey is just perfect to pair it up with the bread, especially for this fun holiday.
 The basket should look something like this on the right--take a peek at the dark brown bear that I used on this basket sample.

The pictures don't do justice to how cute this basket is!



2. Hugs and Kisses gift basket - It is my pride and joy! This basket includes a loaf of 100% whole wheat bread, a loaf of cinnamon-honey bread, a honey bear, a bag of chocolates, a valentine treat, and of course, one chocolate scented bear. This basket will go for $30.00! It will be all wrapped in cellophane with a red bow and some valentine garland with a gift tag.



 Like I said before, my camera does not do it justice. The baskets turned out very beautiful and if you choose to let me worry about your gift giving, your friends/family will not be disappointed!


 So here they are. I finally got this done. Now let's move on to my next project. =-) If you have any questions please call me, message me, or text me! My goal is to sell about 25 of these--if you know of anyone who would be interested feel free to forward this to anyone on your mailing list. As I have said before, thank you for supporting my little "business". I enjoy it so much and love helping you with your gift giving needs!! 


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