This month I was paired with the very sweet Lisa from Michigan. Right off the bat I knew I was getting a great Foodie Penpal box. In addition to the normal dietary restrictions “I don’t want to poison you” questions, Lisa asked if I was interested in receiving local Michigan goods. YES! We emailed back and forth a bit and a few weeks later a package showed up on my doorstep. It was awesome timing. I had a little accident that week. Clumsy me managed to walk into a stand pipe and cut my leg. I could show you pictures, but it’s best you just use your imagination. Seven stitches and a bit of a bruised ego later I was doing fine, but needed to stay off my feet for a few days. Lisa’s penpal package was like the get well gift she didn’t even realize she was sending!

My favorite item was the kettle corn from Kalamazoo Michigan (I just like saying Kalamazoo…). Did I tell her I love kettle corn? Not sure, but so glad she sent some! My gripe with kettle corn is it’s often more like caramel corn, way too sweet and toffee like. This was perfect, a great combination between butter, salt and sugar. I put some out for my family when they came to visit as a pre-dinner snack. They were a bit late, so my husband and I ended eating half the bag before they even arrived! Luckily I chose a small serving bowl so the damage went unnoticed.

Next up: macaroons from a local bakery. These were unlike any macaroon I’ve ever tasted. Moist, fluffy and crumbly. I was a bit disappointed at first in how soft they appeared to be. Where was my crunchy exterior that I love so much! Trust me, after devouring the three macaroons and all the crumbs I could pick up, I didn’t even miss them.

Some of my other favorites in the box included:

• Homestyle Amish Noodles — Used in my Sautéed Zucchini over Pasta recipe
• A bag of dried fruit medley — Perfect for my next batch of granola
• Tazo Dark Chocolate — Arrived a bit melty thanks to Brooklyn’s heat wave but still tasty!
• Snapea Crisps – My new go to chip fix
• Salsa Verde and Canned Chilies – complete with one of Lisa’s fav recipes

Thank you Lisa for putting such thought into such a wonderful box! This month I sent goods to a lovely reader, Katie, in Stroudsburg, PA. I happened to be on my way to Pittsburgh that weekend drove right by the area. I joked with my husband that we could have stopped by and delivered the package personally! He seemed to think it was a bit creepy. Oh well.

♦ ♦ ♦

Interested in joining Foodie Penpals? Here’s what you need to know:

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penplas is open to US, Canadian & European residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. Same with Europeans. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in joining, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on August 5th!

Related articles

• June Foodie Penpal Reveal (bklynlocavore.com)
• June Foodie Penpal Take 2 – Guest Blogger! (bklynlocavore.com)