Shrimp Avocado Dip September 12, 2010

A USC friend made this recipe and shared it with me. Without a doubt, every time I make it, I get a request for the recipe. So if you like shrimp and avocado, you’ll love this appetizer.

1 lb of shrimp, cut into small pieces (use larger shrimp. bay shrimp are less expensive, but the flavor is different)
1 avocado, cut into small pieces
1 box crumbled feta cheese (I’m not a fan of feta cheese, and so I leave this ingredient out. I think it tastes more “fresh” when it’s left out)
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1/3 purple onion, chopped
tabasco sauce
salt & pepper
lemon juice

Mix everything and adjust the seasoning to taste.

In San Diego, the homemade tortilla chips from Harvest Ranch (a grocery store Del Mar) are light and salty and go perfectly with the dip. Otherwise, try going to a Mexican restaurant and get some of their homemade tortilla chips.

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I’m not a Wheaties fan, but could I be one for Wheaties Fuel? September 11, 2010

So this morning with my Saturday paper, a small box of Wheaties Fuel was in included. What is interesting to me is not that Wheaties has a new product, but it’s the marketing tool they used to generate awareness of it.

I found this on the back of the box:

The funny looking square is a Microsoft Tag. As instructed I downloaded the “tag” app from GETTAG.MOBI. The website smartly detects what type of smartphone I had (which is a Blackberry) and offers you the appropriate app to download. Then when you run the app, it uses you smartphone’s camera to scan the tag which then takes you to the Wheaties Fuel mobile website to learn more about the cereal.

I’ve not seen this “tagging” on any consumer products I typically buy, so this was intriguing to me (but then again, I have a career in marketing, and I love when technology brings new tools for us marketers). If this, what marketer’s consider a “call to action”, had not been on the box, I would have just tossed the box of cereal in my cabinet to be consumed at some later date. I would have not taken the time to discover the difference between Wheaties and Wheaties Fuel (as I have never consumed Wheaties in my life). Now I wonder if this marketing tool becomes more pervasive on consumer goods, will I some day just ignore the call to action or will I always wonder what’s on the other end of that tag?

P.S. I did try the cereal. It tasted exactly as the box describes it: lightly sweetened crunchy whole wheat flakes and crispy rice with real honey and cinnamon. I used it as a topper for my greek yogurt. Yum!