Free Pretzels and The Oscars: A Gold Pairing

It’s that time of the year when the stars of Hollywood dress up and the little gold men are given out! While we know you will be serving our pretzels at your Oscar party, we wanted to give you a chance to guess the winners. Instead of an Oscar, the most accurate of our nominees will be provided with six of our two-pack boxes of pretzels. In the case of a tie, our winner will be chosen from a hat!

Below you will find the list of categories and nominees. Leave your guesses in the comments section before noon on Sunday February 26th to be eligible. Tell all of your friends and good luck!

Best Picture:

1. The Artist
2. The Descendants
3. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
4. The Help
5. Hugo
6. Midnight in Paris
7. Moneyball
8. The Tree of Life
9. War Horse

Actor in a Leading Role:

1. Demian Bichir, A Better Life
2. George Clooney, The Descendants
3. Jean Dujardin, The Artist
4. Gary Oldman, Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy
5. Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Actress in a Leading Role:

1. Glenn Glose, Albert Nobbs
2. Viola Davis, The Help
3. Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
4. Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
5. Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn

Actor in a Supporting Role:

1. Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
2. Jonah Hill, Moneyball
3. Nick Nolte, Warrior
4. Christopher Plummer, Beginners
5. Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Actress in a Supporting Role:

1. Berenice Bejo, The Artist
2. Jessica Chastain, The Help
3. Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
4. Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
5. Octavia Spencer, The Help

Directing:

1. The Artist, Michel Hazanavicius
2. The Descendant, Alexander Payne
3. Hugo, Martin Scorsese
4. Midnight in Paris, Wood Allen
5. The Tree of Life, Terrence Malik

Wordless Wednesday: Name that Logo

Kindness Connection

Year round Kim & Scott’s Gourmet Pretzels works to make a difference in the world community.  And on this special day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we are honored to be a part of the work of The Kindness Connection.  The Kindness Connection is a non-for-profit organization that facilitates volunteer work for students.

In celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., New Trier High School and the Kindness Connection worked together today at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.  The day was filled with family-based volunteer projects, all to benefit the elderly, sick patients in hospitals, veterans, children in need and homeless.

Kim & Scott’s donated pretzels and helped to raise money for the good work they did today.  We can’t think of a better way to commemorate Dr. King.  This is certainly Pretzels with a Purpose in action!

Pretzel lovers from today's event!

Black-eyed Pea Gumbo with a Twist on New Years Day!! Happy 2012 from Kim & Scott!

It might be an old superstition, but I can’t resist having the traditional black-eyed peas on New Years Day for good luck. Here’s a recipe for something different, black-eyed pea gumbo.

Slow Cooker Spicy Black-Eyed Peas

Ingredients
6 cups water
1 cube chicken bouillon
1 pound dried black-eyed peas, sorted and rinsed
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and diced
1 jalapeno chile, seeded and minced
8 ounces diced ham
4 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
salt, to taste
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions
Pour the water into a slow cooker, add the bouillon cube, and stir to dissolve. Combine the black-eyed peas, onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, ham, bacon, cayenne pepper, cumin, salt, and pepper; stir to blend. Cover the slow cooker and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours until the beans are tender.

Recipe and photo courtesy of allrecipes.com

Enjoy a traditional bavarian soft pretzel on the side while you’re watching the football games or hanging out with family and friends.

We are so excited for 2012. As we continue our pretzel journey, we set out to continue our mission of “Pretzels with a Purpose.” We are focussing on continuing to “empower” our pretzels, with options for making an organic line, more gluten free options, and “empowered” pretzels for kids lunches…powered with protein, omegas and more.
We also continue to look for ways to empower others. We are looking for opportunities to help schools have healthier lunches, and to teach kids about healthy lifestyles. If you have programs or ideas that we can get involved in, please reach out to us.

Wishing you a healthy, joyful, adventurous 2012!
Kim and Scott

Twisted Hanukah Lights!

It’s not your regular menorah….but why not add a twist to your Hanukah lights. In our house, we are pretty obsessed with pretzels. So we opted for the pretzel menorah this year….as an addition to our collection.

Hanukah is a holiday that can be celebrated by everyone…it’s really an eight day festival of lights that brings light into your life at the darkest time of the year. It’s also a celebration of miracles, from back when the oil left in the light of the temple lasted eight days instead of just one. It reminds us of all the miracles around us.

At this season of celebrating lights, we wish you all much light in the coming year.

Kim