Tropical Traditions Organic Oats - Review and Giveaway!

***This giveaway is closed! ***
Winner: Talex

Is anyone else starting to think about holiday baking yet? I am starting to get in the mood for loads of yummy baked goods. I have a great product to review today that will be so perfect for holiday baking - mine and yours!

Tropical Traditions sent me a bag of their Organic Thick Rolled Whole Grain Oats to play with. I'm a big oatmeal fan, so the first thing I did was make oatmeal. I have a fantastic recipe for oatmeal done in the rice cooker (yeah, really!) - it's so creamy and yummy. I made it with dried cranberries, cinnamon and brown sugar... a very comforting and healthy (well, maybe with a little less brown sugar) breakfast! I bet adding a bit of orange zest or a spoonful of orange juice concentrate instead of the brown sugar would be delish, too... hmm! Next time!

This is a BIG bag. You know the 'standard' bags of oats you can buy at the grocery store (the brand starts with a Q, you know what I mean) - those are 1 kg. This bag is 2.27 kg or a whopping 5 lbs! I've already used 4 cups of the oats and there are loads left for more yummy goodness. And these are certified organic AND whole grain - both things I appreciate. Whole grains are good sources of soluble fiber (good for everyone, especially when you're pregnant... I'll say no more...) and contain more nutrients than those that have had the germ and bran removed. Whole grains are also linked with reductions in risk factors for diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular and coronary disease. So... it's really a no-brainer to choose whole grains over refined grains.

Besides oatmeal, I've made yummy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies with these oats (which may just override all the healthy goodness of the whole grains, but man, they are good). I used the recipe from Martha Stewart's Cookies: The Very Best Treats to Bake and to Share, and I will say that I'd add another 1/4 to 1/2 a cup of whole wheat flour next time, as they did tend to spread a little more than I expected. I also only used half the called-for nuts and chocolate chips, and substituted cashews for some of the peanuts. I know, I just can't follow a recipe. I like to make my own way in the kitchen! They are definitely delicious, though!

There are also lots of recipes over here - I'm thinking these Oat Cakes look pretty awesome (and easy!).

I know a giant bag of oats is not only a regular staple in my cupboard, but will definitely come in handy for the upcoming holidays. Breakfast for stay-over guests (think oatmeal, muffins, scones, granola), snacks (granola bars) and desserts (crumbles and cookies! Yum!). And here's the best part:

Tropical Traditions has generously offered one of my readers the chance to try the Organic Thick Rolled Whole Grain Oats for free!

The giveaway:
A 5 lb bag of Tropical Traditions Organic Thick Rolled Whole Grain Oats!

How to enter: Head over to Tropical Traditions and let me know one other thing you'd like to try, OR one thing that you learned there. Make sure I've got a way to contact you if you're the winner!

Extra entries (please leave an extra comment for each. If you already do any of these things, leave the comment - you do get the entry for it!):

• Subscribe via email to the Tropical Traditions newsletter
  
• Follow @troptraditions on Twitter (leave your Twitter name!)
• Follow me on Twitter (leave your Twitter name!)
• Tweet about this giveaway for ONE entry, this is not a daily! You can use this if you like:

  Win Organic Whole Grain Oats from @TropTraditions at Emily's Latest @emilyisland US/CAN http://bit.ly/bW3NQC 12/6 -great 4 holiday baking!
  

• Follow my blog (publicly) – 2 entries, leave 2 comments
• Add my blog button to your blog– 2 entries, leave 2 comments (please leave a link to your blog)
• Blog about this giveaway, linking back to this post and to Tropical Traditions – 2 entries, leave 2 comments and please include a link to your post
• Let me know what you'll be making first with these if you win!
  

I will be verifying comments so please actually do the things you say you do ☺ If you already do any of these things, it still counts for entries!

Please be sure to include your email address if it’s not public in your blogger profile! Anonymous comments without a way to contact you will be rejected. Canadian or US mailing addresses only, please. Giveaway ends December 6th at 11:59 EST. A winner will be drawn the next day, announced here, in a separate post and emailed!

Prize will be shipped by sponsor. Note for Canadian entrants: Tropical Traditions is not responsible for customs or duties that Canada may charge if you decide to participate in this Tropical Traditions sponsored blog giveaway. (FYI - it's unlikely to have a charge, being well under the $60 that incurs duty charges. There was no extra charge on my shipment, which came to Canada quickly and packaged well.)