Friday, November 25, 2011 at 07:08 AM
This ginormous cup of coffee is for all of you who braved Black Friday this morning.
I had never experienced Black Friday until last year. I didn’t really go for a great deal on a television or computer or anything like that. Rather, I went for two reasons. One: I was woefully behind in my Christmas shopping. We had recently moved into a new house, so I had spent every second of my free time unpacking boxes and getting settled. So, here it was the day after Thanksgiving and not a gift had been purchased yet. Two: I wanted to see what Black Friday was all about. I work in the business of grocery retailing, and with Black Friday being a major retail phenomenon, I felt obligated to see what it was all about.
So, I headed out at 4 am. I went to Kohl’s. I got lots of great deals – on toys, on clothing for my mother-in-law, on teacher gifts. And it was really fun! Everyone was in a super-good mood. Then, I headed over to Target where I got the best deal to be had on an Ipod for my daughter, more toys. I bumped into my neighbor while I was there. She – also a busy full-time working mom of three boys – was simply using the time to get stuff done. I was home by 6:30 am. Just in time for my husband to help me haul everything in – and hide it! Now that the kids are bigger, it gets really hard to hide stuff. I recently bought some fake Ugg boots for my daughter on a quick lunch break at Target. I thought I would hang on to them and give them to her from Santa. But then, when I picked her up at her after-school program, she spied them immediately in the back of my car. So much for that. So, Black Friday is good for stealth missions.
I’m working this Black Friday – so no 4 am shopping trips for me. But for those of you who braved it – have a cup of coffee. Or a nap.
By the way – in case you’re wondering – NuVal does not score coffee. It has no nutrients.
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: coffee
Tags: coffee
Thursday, September 30, 2010 at 07:08 AM
“And I like cream in my coffee
And I like to sleep late on Sunday
And nobody knows me like my baby
And I like eggs over easy
With flour tortillas
And nobody knows me like my baby”
from Nobody Knows Me, by Lyle Lovett
Have you ever heard Lyle croon that song? It’s really beautiful. I once saw the Boston Ballet dance to it when they performed Nine Songs by Lyle Lovett – awesome! And it reminded me that I too like cream in my coffee. Not skim milk. Not even whole milk, really. But cream. Or something like it.
I actually could almost do a Trade Up Tuesday on Coffee Creamer because my husband and I have made a huge trade up in the coffee creamer department at our house. The problem, however, would be shipping it out to one of my loyal A Better Bag of Groceries readers. That would be a problem, because we buy a refrigerated coffee creamer. I don’t think it would hold up too well during the shipping process!
We used to buy Nestle Coffeemate Refrigerated – just the plain one, no flavorings, thank you very much. Want to know the NuVal score? It gets a 1. Yes, a one. Ouch! I asked Rachel Rodek, MS, RD, LDN, CSSD, and Nutritions Communications Manger for NuVal why and she said, “The Coffee Mate scores low because the third ingredient is partially hydrogenated oil, a source of trans fat. It also has a higher energy density (calories per gram) and more added sugar.”
Well, my husband and I ditched the Coffeemate long ago and we’ve been buying Land O’Lakes Fat Free Half and Half Ultra which scores a 41. Much better!
We could do even better with Hood Simply Smart Fat Free Half and Half (NuVal score of 55) or Food Club Fat Free Half and Half Ultra (NuVal score of 59). That is much, much better than the Nestle Coffeemate. Don’t you just love NuVal?
At our office, we have Land O Lakes Mini Moos UHT (Ultra High Temp) creamers.
That means they require no refrigeration. They score a 10 on the NuVal scale. So, when I am organized, I actually try to bring in my own creamer from home.
Now, these fat-free creamers aren’t the “cream in my coffee” that Lyle was singing about. I do love that treat. That is coffee in a restaurant treat. But in case you are wondering how real cream does on the NuVal scale, Hood Light Cream scores a 6. So, it’s not an everyday treat for me.
I’ll save it for Sundays when I can eat flour tortillas, and have my eggs over-easy, and sleep late. Yeah, right! Lyle must not have kids!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: coffee
Tags: coffee, Coffeemate, creamer, Food Club, Hood, Hood Simply Smart, Land O Lakes, Lyle Lovett
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 06:53 AM
Welcome to Trade-Up Tuesday! Every Tuesday, I blog about a Trade-Up I’ve made since learning about NuVal scores and I give away something for free. Today’s Topic? Coffee! Not any old coffee. Coffee With Kick. Since I started working for NuVal just about two years ago, my coffee has gotten much darker! Yes, NuVal is really beginning to take off. It’s a very exciting time, with NuVal getting national attention in the Wall Street Journal and on Good Morning America. But that means that we have been working incredibly hard. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not complaining. I absolutely love it. I’ve just turned up the caffeine level in my brew!
So is this a trade up? Um, no. It’s just a really good giveaway – so just go with it! You see, NuVal is not scoring coffee. We’re not scoring certain things that have no nutritional value and no nutrition facts panels (like coffee, teas, vinegars, cooking sprays, baking soda, lemon juice, lime juice, plain water, gum and corn starch). But that doesn’t mean I can’t give it away on a Trade Up Tuesday!
These are two brands that I have been buying recently. Growing up in Rhode Island and living in Massachusetts, there is a Dunkin Donuts on every corner. I have a whole bunch of distant family members who work for the company. It’s part of the culture here. But as I said, my taste for coffee has changed, so I was so happy when Dunkin came out with Dunkin Dark. I love it – especially Iced. This is a good compromise for me and my husband, who does not need his coffee as jacked as I do.
When I worked in Chicago, back in the late 1990′s, there was a Starbucks on every corner. I would visit the shop in my building every day, but I always went for one of their lighter roasts. Not these days. I take it dark, thank you very much. I recently saw this Morning Joe in my local Stop & Shop and we’ve been brewing it ever since. Good stuff!
Today’s Giveaway
One lucky commenter will win both the Starbucks and the Dunkin Dark coffee. Just leave a comment below telling me how you like your coffee (if you like it at all). Good news – you have all week to enter! I’ll choose the winner on Monday morning August 23rd. Good Luck!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: coffee, Trade-Up Tuesday
Tags: coffee, Dunkin, Starbucks
Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 06:30 AM
Welcome to Trade-Up Tuesday, a very popular day here on A Better Bag of Groceries because I talk about a Trade Up I’ve made and I give away free stuff.
I know you’re all dying to see what the NuVal score is on coffee…..
Oh, how I wish it was a 100. I’d even take a 50. But the truth is that it doesn’t have a score! You see, while NuVal is scoring virtually everything you find in a grocery store, there are a few categories that we are not scoring. Namely, we are not scoring the following:
- Cooking Sprays
- Teas
- Coffees
- Some spices
- Vinegar
- Salt
- Baking Soda
Now, this gets a little complicated, but basically we are not scoring products if they meet one of the following criteria:
- It is not a meaningful source of calories
- There is no inter-changeable choice
- Nutrition Facts Panel and ingredient information is not readily available
So, we are not scoring coffee. But, as you know, on Tuesdays, I always give away products that I now buy since I started working at NuVal. And I must tell you that since coming to NuVal, I drink more coffee anddarker coffee than I did before. It has actually started a little coffee war in our house. My husband is happy brewing up some Dunkin’ Donuts coffee. Not me – I need something with a little more oooomph. Thankfully, Dunkin’ has now come out with Dunkin’ Dark and we can agree on that. However, this Starbucks (with no NuVal score!) does find its way into my shopping cart on a very frequent basis!
I would say that I am addicted to coffee since:
- The sight of a Starbucks franchise makes me crave coffee.
- By the end of my 5:45 am workout, all I can think about is the cup of coffee I am going to have when I get home (you would think I would be thinking about water!)
- I start to think about my morning coffee when headed to bed the night before.
One footnote I would like to add on the No Scoring List is that while we are not currently scoring teas, eventually we will. My NuVal Scoring Intel has informed me that because teas have lots of bioflavanoids, we will score them – just not yet.
In the meantime, I will be brewing up a nice pot of Starbucks!
To Enter:
One lucky reader will win this bag of Starbucks coffee. Just leave a comment below telling me your #1 product that you would LOVE to see scored. I will choose a winner at random at 8 am Eastern Time on Wednesday. Good Luck!
Posted by: Melissa
Posted in: Trade-Up Tuesday
Tags: coffee, Starbucks
