Jun 25

iCoffee – Review

I love coffee makers.  I decided to try the icoffee after hearing about it from some friends!   It does use the Keurig K Cups, so that was a big plus.  I was excited to try a new maker that was rumored to have less bitter tasting coffee.

Color

The first thing you notice is that the iCoffee has a pretty neon color glow. I loved that!  It didn’t have a clock, which was okay given that we have a bunch of clocks throughout our kitchen anyway…  So I was set up and ready to go!

Cup Size

Before making your coffee you need to turn a dial to choose what size cup you would like to fill. You can see on my picture I had chosen 8 ounces.  The selections went down to 4 ounce, but won’t fill a big carafe.  I think 12 ounce was the biggest I could fill in one go.  Each new friend that dropped by, I had to give instructions on making coffee.  Turn the dial to pick your coffee size and then press the unmarked center of dial.

 

Heating

Unlike my Keurig which seemed to always have hot water ready, the iCoffee took a while to make a cup each time.  My morning begins with walking in, picking a cup, sticking it under the maker, put in a Kcup and hit the button.  I’d love instant coffee.  Keurig pretty much provided quickly…. iCoffee didn’t have as quick of a gratification.  Later in the day puttering around the kitchen I can live with that, but seriously, first thing in the morning…  UGH… I want coffee.

Taste

To me they taste the same.  I’m probably not the best to rate taste though….  I do drink my coffee black, but I drink coffee because I love Mt Dew!  I’ve been trying to cut down on sugar and when comparing the calories between black coffee and soda, it’s an amazing difference.  Keurig also has options for Hot Chocolate (not as calorie conscious), chicken noodle soup, teas, and more!  For coffee though I tended to stick to the milder coffees normally.  I did find one that I love, but it’s a bolder flavor – Death Wish Coffee!  It’s now on my favorite list. The iCoffee claims a taste difference because of it’s spin brew technology.  Spinning the water through all the coffee so that the coffee beans are used evenly.  I’m not really sure how much that affects taste in reality.  I think so many other things with the beans make more difference, age, acid level, and more!

Overall

I love the look of the iCoffee and I love that I can choose the size of the cup… but the instant gratification I feel with the Keurig rates high on my list. Buying a new coffee maker now, I would go with a Keurig.  The K475 was what I previously had which also allowed for – K-CUP POD BREW SIZES: (4, 6, 8, 10, 12 oz.) and a Carafe (22, 26, or 30oz).  The only thing left that the iCoffee had on my Keurig was the cool neon look and I think I can live without that for a quick cup of coffee.

May 21

Homemade Whipped Cream

I decided to make my own whipped cream! It’s really easy to do and tastes great! I can control the ingredients too.

I used cream for mine and vanilla.  I have my kitchen aid mixer, but a blender or food processor would have worked also. To mix it up, I added my cream and put in little vanilla. I didn’t really measure but I would say it was about a tablespoon of vanilla.

I then mixed everything until the whipping cream was the right consistency.  If you would like the whipping cream sweeter – you could add sugar… I didn’t though.  I was planning to put my whipped cream on strawberries, so I was pretty excited just to have the vanilla flavoring added.  I did take a little of the extra left over and froze it. I’m going to see if it works out as a replacement for ice cream. I think maybe a little sugar would have worked well with the frozen cream?

It did work out well though!  I haven’t tried it with low fat cream yet, but that may be my next try.

May 11

iFit – With Treadmill

iFit finally started working with our treadmill!  It took many calls to the company and a complaint to the Better Business Bureau, but they finally got the software working.

iFit does have an entire community that you can interact with.  Additionally in the software you can design your own route and download it to your iPad to work with your treadmill.  The iPad hooks to the treadmill through Bluetooth.

The Set up:

While trying to get it to work we started with our original iPad.  After many tries the company informed us that the treadmill wouldn’t work at that time with an older iPad.  Newer iPads were expensive, so we decided to try an Android tablet.  We ran to Best Buy and got a cheap tablet, only to find that the Android tablet got an error too.  Knowing the iPad better, we invested in a new iPad – we had already spent too much on the treadmill, so figured may as well go for the iPad too… and I’d use it for other things.  Shortly after, we found that the iPad was getting the same error.  The company then informed us that despite the box saying iOs ready, it wasn’t… and since the Android didn’t work either, they would have to investigate.

Investigate:

The investigate went on for a few months.  Every week I would receive the story that the system would work next week.  Needless to say it didn’t.

Finally working:

When it did finally work, it was just happenstance that I tested it and it worked.  I already had the routes downloaded and the iPad had already been connecting.  The system had been giving a firmware update all along.  It finally resolved itself and the app moved on. Inside the app,  I can choose where I would like to walk.  The app then adjusts the speed and elevation of the treadmill to match the training program.  You can manually change the adjustment, but as it goes through it’s paces it will change as you move along.

The system does have different views that let you see the map that shows the route, or you can see the view.  Only some areas are available, and we found that you have to have a really good internet connection to view the location.  For us it only worked a couple times.  – I have to say I was not impressed and can’t recommend it.

 

The treadmill adjusting itself with the app was cool!  – but the lack of support, difficulty in getting the system working, and much higher cost definitely made it not worth the cost.  BitGym definitely won out!

May 04

Bitgym – Fitness Programs / App

I’ve tried treadmills, elliptical, bikes, stair steppers and weights. So far none really hold my interest…. but with the treadmill, I’ve been exploring the cool apps that allow me to explore the world and walk around at places I’d love to see!

I first tried iFit, but it wouldn’t work.  I was super disappointed because I had bought a treadmill specially designed to interface with iFit.  Tech Support for iFit was unable, and unwilling to help – so I moved on to BigGym.

BitGym is an iPad app that allows you to walk around while viewing the location you are visiting.  It doesn’t like to the treadmill, but it does use the camera in your iPad to track your movements.  It can tell when you are moving and uses the motion to extrapolate how fast you are going to count your steps and keep up on the screen.   Pretty Cool!

Being uncoordinated though, what I found was that it was fairly easy for me to misstep and nearly fall off the treadmill.  For someone that has some coordination though, it’s a pretty cool app and way to exercise.

It does have an option for a free trial and will let you go a short distance in the trial, so it’s definitely worth giving it a try!  – It even has little pop ups with information about the area you are exploring that  come up while you walk.

Apr 27

Top Spring Must Haves

My spring must have list probably varies from the standard list, but here goes:

 

    1. A firepit…. I’ve wanted one of these forever!  During the spring it can get chilly at night. Though I think we’ve already passed that time.  I would love to have a firepit though to be able to light up a fire on the back porch and sit out around it.  It’s not on my husband’s list though, and would interfere with the telescope he uses, so I suspect my firepit is going to have to wait until we retire to Illinois.  It is on my list of must haves for the future though.
    2. Grill and Propane…  We actually have the grill, but having propane for it is critical.  I also recently found that you can get a gauge for the propane tank!  It makes life so much easier!  My husband loves hamburgers and I love brats, so cooking out on the grill is excellent!
    3. Yard Games…. Things to play outside with the kids. Whether it’s in your yard or at the park. (This can include bikes and scooters too!)
    4. Bug Screens…  As the weather starts to warm up the bugs start to come out.  I love the little bug screens to put over my food.  I won’t eat outside without them.
    5. Plastic plates and Silverware…  I really believe in recycling.  Plastic plates and silverware that is re-washable is the way to go!

     

    Time to get outside while it’s nice out!