I finally remembered to take back my receipt from a few weeks ago where I got double charged for something.  Luckily, the Costco Customer Service people are so great they didn’t care or give me any attitude and just refunded the money to us.  Plus, I took back the Merrell shoes that I mentioned last week, and then I forgot to look for replacements.  Oh well.

Very Lazy Caramelized Red Onions

English Provender Company Very Lazy Caramelized Red Onions –  So, the name probably isn’t all that descriptive, but is pretty truthful and amusing nonetheless.  Very Lazy Onions are actually caramelized red onions for those of us that are indeed very lazy, like me. I love caramelized onions, but don’t often look forward to doing it in the middle of the week for dinner, though I have before.  And sadly, sometimes I’m just out of onions.  But these make it easy to add a little touch of sweet oniony taste to just about any dish.  And honestly, these are awesome.   They are great added in with mashed potatoes for a little perking up.  We’ve also had them with cooked carrots, but just a little bit to enhance the natural taste of the carrots.  They would also be great with baked chicken breasts or pork loin.  Well, obviously, anyplace you’d normally add caramelized onions.  I blame the nice sample woman at Costco for these ending up in our cart because once we tasted these with the goat cheese that she was handing out, we were sold.  It’s very handy to have the big jar that we can keep in the fridge until we feel like we need a little something extra to jazz up our regular dinner.  750 grams for £2.89 (US: $4.49).  Item #: 0094486.

Riverway Foods Italian Sausages

Riverway Foods Italian Style Pork Sausage –  We’re big fans of sausage in our house and love the Italian sausage in particular.  And these were really quite good because they have a great mixture of spices, such as red pepper flakes, sage, basil, rosemary, thyme, and garlic.  If you’re not a fan of garlic, I’d steer clear of these for sure.  I’d also suggest immediately putting them in a different container once you get them home, something that is very tight like a zip top bag.  Or else, you’ll end up with the aroma of garlic wafting out of your fridge every time you open the door.  They’ve got a great spicy kick too, so they are more like hot Italian sausages that we’d get in the US.  They cook up marvelously in the oven in about 20 minutes and the casing gets nice and crispy, while the inside remains juicy and full of flavor.  Our favorite way to have them is with some garlic buttered spaghetti, but any pasta shape will work really.  They are also pretty tasty on ciabatta rolls with melted mozzarella cheese.  If you’ve got some handy, you could add some red sauce to them as well, but it isn’t really necessary.  I also use the Italian sausages to make lasagna, you just have to cut the casings and use it loose.  Really, can you go wrong with some really great Italian sausage and cheese, in any form?  Yum!  1.2 kg, 18 sausages, for £4.85 (US: $7.53).  Item #: 0100590.

Simplehuman Rectangular Recycler

Simplehuman Rectangular Trash & Recycling Bin –  We’ve been looking for a nice kitchen trash bin for months now, since we moved into our flat.  But we were having a hard time finding one that was nicely made, wasn’t enormous, and had a foot pedal.  It didn’t seem like we were asking for much, but we didn’t really like any of them.  A lot of the stainless steel bins are either really large or rather tiny.  And let’s be honest, most of them are made rather poorly with cheap feeling foot pedals and loudly clunking lids.  But recently, we found a nice bin at John Lewis (the local Macy’s equivalent) that met all of our requirements, plus it had a bin for recycling too.  The bad part was that it was £130.00!  So, even though we liked it, I decided that we should wait to see what was available at Costco on our next visit.  And would you believe it, they had the exact same bin for practically half the price!  Even I was amazed at that kind of price difference.  This is a great bin too with two separate buckets under the single lid – 30 liter side for trash and then a 16 liter blue bin for recyclables.  It’s got a very nice foot pedal that doesn’t feel cheap and like it is about to break.  And the lid has nice little air shocks so that it has a soft close action and doesn’t clang shut.  I also like that the brushed stainless steel body and lid feel very sturdy, and are fingerprint proof.  There are some other nice little features too such as the little wheels on the back to move it around easily, or the air vents in the back that keep it from getting all hot and smelly in there.  And for anyone that hates having their trash bag hang over the inner bucket and show when the lid is closed, they’ve got this nice little place to tuck your bag in and get it to have a tight fit.  Oh yeah, and as if all of that isn’t enough, it’s got a 10 year warranty.  I definitely believe this is the best buy from our time in the UK.  £67.99 (US: $105.58).  Item #: 0098972.

Sunggledown Goose Down Pillows

Snuggledown of Norway Luxury Goose Down Pillows – Oh, I so totally wanted to love these pillows.  But they’ll be going back to Costco because they have a very funky odor (much like old sneakers mixed with plastic from the bag they came in).  I can’t seem to get rid of the odor even after airing them out and washing them.  I’m kind of hoping that this is just a problem with the pack that we got and that the others are fine and smell of nothing really so that I can get another set of pillows.  They are really nice and fluffy and are stuffed with the 90% goose down and just 10% goose feathers.  This is good since the pillows or duvets with more feathers than down always feel prickly.   Aside from the smell, they are really nice pillows and nicely made.  They have enough fill to maintain some loft even after you put your head on them and the cotton 300 thread count down-proof cover assures that the down won’t keep migrating out of the pillows until you are left with hardly any fluff.  But the best part is that you can easily wash and dry them at home, and they encourage it even.  I’ve always done this with my down pillows and duvets because it keeps them fluffy and clean.  So, they would be great if they didn’t smell like feet.  Does anyone else have these?  Is there a way to get rid of the aroma?  I washed them according to the instructions and dried them thoroughly but there is still some unpleasant smell coming from them.  Thankfully, Costco has an awesome return policy.  2 pack for £29.99 (£37.99 – £8.00 coupon) (US: $46.57).  Item #: 0080558.

Sony Blu-Ray DVD Player

Sony Blu-Ray DVD Player BDP-S370 – When we moved to London we decided not to bring our DVD player since it wasn’t compatible electricity-wise and of course there’s the whole region encoding thing, so we wouldn’t have been able to rent or buy DVDs locally and watch them on our old player.  We had figured we’d just get one of the cheap regular DVD players that are everywhere now, but then we saw this one at Costco and Dave thought it was worth getting since it is Blu-Ray.  Aside from being Blu-Ray, this player has some other nice features that make it nice to have.  The thing we probably get the most use out of is is the network capabilities because that allows us to access a variety of Internet services such as music videos, television shows, and movies that we can easily download and watch.  There’s a ton of other things available too but those are the ones we use the most.  It’s nice to be able to catch up on television shows that we missed on BBC, like Top Gear.  They’re only available for a few weeks after originally aired, but it still gives you a some time to do a little catch up.  Here in the UK, the local Netflix like service is called LoveFilm and we can also download movies and previews from them using the DVD player now.  And if you’re a fan of YouTube, you can also easily access that through the player too.  It’s got all the major things that you’d like or expect: BD Live, Dolby True HD, dts HD, DivX HD, AVCHD, 24P True Cinema, and has USB and HDMI connections, wired network, as well as wireless network capable (you have to get an adapter to actually use the wireless though).  The Blu-Ray quality does really give movies a level of detail you miss normally on DVDs at home, and on our projector it makes it pretty much just like being in a cinema without the sticky floor and uncomfortable seats.   £99.99 (US: $155.28).  Item #: 0107944.

Costco Canada Coupons - August 16 - 29, 2010

In the continuing week of Costco Coupons, today’s are from Canada courtesy of Steven.  As you can see this isn’t like the big books that are available in the US or UK, or even like the little book in PR, and these only run for two weeks.  However, even though it looks small it does have 31 different coupon deals that cover lots of stuff that I think people would want to purchase for back to school, like the giant pack of gluesticks, pens, and pencils.  There are also some nice deals on computers, laptops, a printer, and even a nice laptop backpack.  And if none of that interests you, there are plenty of other great things too.

The coupons are in JPG format (since the file size was small), and you can just click on the image to the right to get the full sized image.

I also found something this week that should definitely help out Costco fans in Canada that like to keep up to date on the current coupon deals.  The Costco website for Canada has a whole separate site, called Get More of What you Love, where they provide information on the current coupons, weekly deals, contests, and what’s new in the various Costco Canada locations.  At first I wasn’t sure if this was an official Costco site or not, but since the Costco.ca website links to it on the homepage, I decided it was safe and Costco-sponsored.  When you visit the website, you can pick your province and view all of the pertinent information for the Costco warehouses specifically in your area.

The Costco Canada coupons are currently valid and will run through the 29th; only 10 more days.  Also, don’t forget that the coupons for the US and PR (if you live there instead of Canada) start today and run through September 12.

Thanks to Carlos in PR, I’m able to post the upcoming Costco Coupon Book for Puerto Rico that runs from August 19 – September 12.  Several of the items are identical to what you’ll find in the US coupon book, but there are some different brands and different items offered as well.  What is really nice is that they include the prices for all of the items in the coupon book.  So, you can easily see, for instance, that Jif peanut butter would normal be $7.99 but with the $2.00 coupon, it’s just $5.99.  This is something that they do in the UK coupon books too and I find it really helpful.  It makes it very easy to do price comparisons and know what kind of a deal you’re getting with the coupons, before you go to the store.  Also, you’ll notice that the book is all in Spanish and a different format than the US or UK books because it is smaller, with just 4 coupons per page in a vertical arrangement instead of the horizontal alignment with 10 coupons per page.

I’ve got a PDF of the PR Costco Coupon Book that you can download or view, in case you haven’t gotten yours yet.  According to Carlos, it isn’t necessary to clip the coupons because the discounts are given automatically at the registers.  Of course, it’s always nice to have a copy of the coupon book to make a shopping list or know what is available before you get to the warehouse.  Carlos also says that, in Puerto Rico the coupons are usually picked up inside the store, but these last two booklets have arrived by mail, but he hasn’t seen this latest one in the warehouses yet.

Here’s some other observations from Carlos about the differences between PR and other Costco location:

Now, I don’t know how many people go to Costco in the UK, but here it is really crazy, always long lines to pay and for the food-court too. I don’t know if this is only in PR, but you can buy the food for the food-court when you are paying for the warehouse products and then go and pick it up at the food court and save yourself a second line and one receipt for all!   When I was in Dallas for 6 weeks a couple of months ago I went into Sam’s Club (I have both memberships) and I was taken aback that there was so few people in it, I couldn’t go to a Costco over there because it was more than 5 miles away from my hotel. Here Costco and Sam’s lines are always crazy, but prices are way cheaper than buying from the supermarket and the electronics tend to be cheaper, especially with Costco coupons.

We are definitely enjoying the UK Costco shopping experience more since we’ve started going on Saturday morning.  And that seems so strange to me because it is completely opposite of the US Costco locations I’ve been to on Saturday; usually it’s a mad house.  But we have noticed that it almost always seems to be unpleasant weather when we go lately, either rain or cold.

Also, if you’re in the US, don’t forget to check out the upcoming coupon book and avoid buying those things that will be having coupons starting August 19.

Kirkland Signature Maple Syrup

Kirkland Signature Maple Syrup –  I’m not a maple syrup expert but this seems pretty good to me. It is 100% pure maple syrup, nothing added in or just maple flavored.  It’s also from Canada, which seems like the home of all things maple.  Even though it is from Canada, they use the US system of grading:Grade A medium amber.  The smell is really nice, with a subtle scent and the taste matches with a not too sweet taste, it’s just the perfect amount of sweetness for me.  And of course, it has the expected maple taste that you expect from good, quality maple syrup.  We had some on pancakes and it was awesome!  So much better than imitation stuff or other syrups.  I think I like that it isn’t too sweet.  It enhances flavors instead of just overpowers them and I’m pretty sure this is because it has a lighter flavor and less sweetness than other syrups.  Plus, there are a ton of ways that you can use maple syrup, other than just on pancakes, waffles and French toast.  Really, any place you want a little touch of sweetness, it could definitely help with that.  I also like that the KS syrup isn’t so watery that you think it’s just a little bit of maple and a whole lot of water (I know you’ve had this type of lousy maple syrup).  I don’t know if this is something that is different about the way they refine the syrup or what.  In any case, it isn’t as thick as other syrups (of the imitation variety) but not so watery that it won’t actually cling to your food either.  And sure, it’s high in calories but you console yourself with the fact that it is a great source of manganese and zinc.  The one negative to someone with a tiny fridge, like me, is that you have to refrigerate the syrup after you open it.  But it’s worth the fridge space.  32 fl. oz. / 946 mL for £9.79 (US: $15.29).  Item #: 0386374

Goikoa Spanish Chorizo

Goikoa Spanish Chorizo –  This was great!  While there are a number of ways that you could use this, paella, with scrambled eggs, sliced and grilled for tapas, or even paired with pasta.  I used it for adding a little flavor and interest to black bean soup.  Chorizo has a smidge of a spicy flavor going on, not really hot, but lots of flavor.  It gets all that flavor from smoked paprika, various herbs, nutmeg and garlic.  The mix of flavors is just really great for pairing with lots of different things.  The sausage is quit firm, so if you’re going to do something with it, you’re probably going to want to slice it, which is what I did.  I had intended to try it with scrambled eggs, because that is one of the suggestions on the package that caught my eye.  However, after I made the black bean soup with it, Dave was wanting more of that instead.  I don’t have an exact recipe or anything, but I used minced garlic, sliced chorizo, minced fresh chiles, and diced red onions.  I sauteed all of that up with some olive oil until the onions were translucent and then I added the black beans.  I used canned beans and dumped them and their liquid right in with the other stuff and then added some water until it seemed like a decent consistency (highly precise).  After that I just cooked it on medium-low heat for about an hour.  Though, it probably wouldn’t matter too much how long you cooked it for, as long as you use a very low heat.  When I served it, I grated a little bit of cheddar cheese on the top too.  It was so delicious and the chorizo added just that little something extra to it too; perked it up a bit.  500 g (about 20 sausage links) for £3.89 (US: $6.07).  Item #: 0109477.

Ford Farm Vintage Cheddar

Ford Farm Vintage West Country Farmhouse Cheddar –  Did I just write about cheese last week?  I try to space it out so I don’t look like all I do is sit around eating cheese all the time.  This cheese is made using only milk from either Ford Farm’s own dairy or from other Dorset farms within a 30 mile radius.  This cheddar has also been given Product of Designated Origin (PDO) status for the West Country cheesemakers.  It is a wonderful cheddar that has been aged for more than 12 months, which gives it a really strong, deep cheddar taste.  It’s not mild in the slightest, but full of rich, nutty flavor.   Since it is so strong, you have to be a little careful about what you try to pair it with, you wouldn’t want to try to use it in something where a delicate cheese flavor was called for, let’s say.  It is great on crackers and would probably work equally well with apple slices.  It’s also great to use for cheeseburgers or grilled cheese sandwiches, and would be awesome in real mac and cheese.  I used it to grate on the chorizo soup too.  Dave finds it a little too strong, so I’m enjoying it but he’d like a milder cheese next time, I think.   1.018 kg for £6.10 (US: $9.52).  Item #: 0065861.

Garofalo Spaghetti

Garofalo Signature Line Spaghetti –  We are big pasta eaters in our house.  We always have spaghetti on hand, as well as the shaped pasta like penne or gemelli.  Our favorite, is garlic buttered spaghetti.  It’s easy to make but really has so much delicious flavor.  Of course, anyone you’re talking to the next day might not appreciate it quite as much.  There are so many ways you can prepare pasta and it really is our easy weekday dinner.  You can pretty much saute up most vegetables or meats and have a great pasta dish in no time at all.  They’ve been stocking the Garofalo signature line of pastas at Costco (UK and US) for a while now, and we’ve always been big fans.  Garofalo has been producing pastas for more than 200 years, so they’ve got it down at this point.  Here’s a little information from the Garofalo website about their pasta:  ”Semolina wheat used to create Garofalo Signature pastas must meet the highest standards for protein content and color quality to guarantee a product with superior aesthetic and flavor that will perform consistently whether prepared by a professional or home chef. Garofalo performs over 25 quality checks on each of its Signature cuts and runs all standard industry controls twice to ensure unmatched quality for its Signature line of pastas.”  And that explains why every time I get it, it turns out beautifully.  The one tip I would give, no matter what type of pasta you’re making or what brand you’re using: don’t rinse your pasta!  If you rinse your pasta after cooking it, you’re going to get rid of all the starches that will help the sauce or oil or butter (or whatever) to cling to the pasta.  And you don’t want that.  8, 500 g packages for £4.99 (US: $7.79).  Item #: 0069981.

Merrell Waterpro Ultra-Sport Shoes

Merrell Women’s Waterpro Ultra-Sport Shoes –  I loved these shoes and I’m really bummed but I have to take them back.  They are very lightweight and the main body of the shoe is mesh so they are great for summer or water involved sports where you need shoes.  They are also designed with Merrell’s QForm, which combines design and technology specifically geared towards a woman’s body.  It all has to do with the angle of our quadriceps between our hip and knee; ours is much more pronounced that of men.  So, Merrell has changed the way the foot is cushioned and held by changing around the midsole to add different zones, thus leading to better foot alignment.  They’ve also got a great air cushioning layer that feels great when you’re walking or running.  The shoes have a nice rugged sole that you could definitely use for walking, running, or hiking.  Oh yeah, they’ve also got this great Aegis microbe shield to control odor, staining, and deterioration.  What more could you ask for in a shoe?  And they felt so good….until they started rubbing a big blister on the top of one of my innocent toes.  Sadly, it was just on one of my feet and I finally figured out that it was because of a mis-sewn piece that had excess fabric on the inside.  I would keep them if there were anyway that I could fix the problem, but I don’t think I can, so I’m taking them back to Costco.  I’m hoping they’ll still have some and maybe I’ll be able to get another pair that doesn’t have this problem.  £23.99 (US: $37.46).  Item #: 0108953.

I want to thank everyone that participated in my competition to get me the latest Costco Coupon book.  I got my first coupon book PDF yesterday afternoon at 4:50 pm my time here in London (that’s 10:50 am US central time) from Mikele in California.  So, she is this month’s winner of the Costco Cash Card for Coupons contest.  But I want to thank everyone else that sent me stuff too!  I really appreciate that you are so cool about helping out fellow Costco fans.  This was fun and I definitely plan on doing it again next month.  So, for all of you that didn’t win this time, maybe next month.

Costco Coupon Book - August 19 - September 12, 2010

It might just be me, but this is a really great bunch of coupons available this month.  There are so many things that I would be purchasing if I were in the US.  All of the items that I stock up on at Costco, and am running out of now, are having coupon deals this month.  So not fair!  In total there is $1,200.00 worth of coupon savings that you can use in the warehouses, with an additional $4,700.00 in Costco.com savings.  There seem to be a good amount of savings on cleaning products and health and beauty type items that you might want to use to stock up your supplies.  There are a couple of computer deals for back to school shopping, as well as a couple of things that might be great for your college age kids such as a mini-fridge for their dorm room and a GPS unit so they’ll be able to get back to your house when they need their laundry done.  And of course there is the usual Bridgestone coupon for $70.00 off a set of 4 tires.

To check out the coupons for yourself, if you have yet to receive your new book, I’ve uploaded a PDF of this month’s Costco Coupon Book that you can peruse until you get yours.  While you can print these out for reference purposes, Costco only accepts the original coupons.  If you didn’t get your book, you should stop by Customer Service and make sure that they have all of your information correct and that you have allowed them permission to send you things in the mail.  Also, while you’re there, ask them for a copy of the latest book.

So, there are so many things that I like in this round of coupons, but I’m going to try to pick out my five favorite items.  It’s going to be hard because I really do buy a lot of these items: Bounty paper towels, Charmin, Ziplocs, Jif, Classico Sauce, Sun Chips, Clorox 2, OxiClean, Finish, Aquafresh, Sonicare Toothbrush Set, and Langers Mango Nectar.  These are all things that I have probably reviewed or talked about at some point on my blog.  So, if you’re looking for info on those (and it isn’t here) you can search through my old blog posts and probably come up with a post or two.

• Langers Mango Nectar, 128 ounces, $2.00 off; limit 2. I LOVE this stuff!  I was seriously trying to figure out how I could bring some back with me from the US when we were in NY in July.  But you know, it’s way over that 3 ounce liquid rule for flying and I didn’t think it would do so well in my regular luggage.  If you like mango, you really need to try this.  It is thick, delicious, and what I imagine it would be like if I took the time to make my own mango juice or nectar.  Because it is so thick, you probably will want to cut it with something to get it to be more like a juice or a spritzer.  My preference is for some type of fizzy water, like the Pellegrino that you can also get at Costco.  However, the La Croix flavored waters, like lemon or lime, are also good because they add a subtle tart, citrusy flavor that works really nicely with the mango.  There are 140 calories in an 8 ounce glass, with no added sugar, but if you mix it with the water you reduce that greatly and have a healthy, delicious mango drink.  The last time I wrote about this was in 2008 and at that time it was $5.99 per gallon, so that would be a total steal with the coupon.  They don’t have this at all at the UK locations and I miss it terribly.
• Tillamook Medium Cheddar Cheese Slices, 2 pounds, $1.75 off; limit 2. Slices of cheddar cheese are so useful to have around for sandwiches, making your own cheeseburgers, or cheese sauces for things like mac and cheese.  And then of course, there’s just eating them with crackers or apple slices too.  I could think of a ton of different ways to use some nice cheddar like this.  The Tillamook is nice too because it is the medium cheddar which just about everyone loves because it isn’t too sharp but still has plenty of delicious cheddar flavor.  Now I completely want some homemade mac and cheese!  I guess I know what I’ll be getting at Costco this weekend, even without a coupon.
• Clorox 2 2X Ultra Stain Fighter & Color Booster, 82 loads, $3.00 off; limit 5. I always get a couple of these when there is a coupon because I use it in pretty much every load of laundry I do.  It does an amazing job of keeping all of our whites looking bright and like the day we bought them.  I also use it for the colors and though I don’t have any actual proof, it does look like it has done a good job of keeping the colors from fading out in the wash.  But the real beauty of it is how amazingly well it handles stains of all kinds.  It’s astounding how well it can get rid of things that you’re thinking will never come out even.  I’ve had it get rid of such things as mud, ink, blood, grease, and grass stains.  And there have been a few times when I’ve even had success with old stains.  Plus, it’s color safe and safe for all fabrics so you don’t have to worry about using it like you do with the chlorine bleach.  And it doesn’t have that bleachy odor either.  The last time I wrote about this, it was $13.35 before the coupon, so $10.35 with the $3.00 coupon.
• Rubbermaid Premier BPA-Free 28 Piece Food Storage Set, $6.00 off; limit 1. Now might be a great time to replace your Gladware or Ziploc storage containers if you are looking for something that is BPA-free.  This is the nice set too where everything nests neatly inside each other and the lids do too so that they’re not falling all over you each time you open your cabinet door.  Plus, the lids snap to the bottom of the containers or other lids to take up less space and keep them easily at hand.  The containers are made with Tritan plastic that resists stains and odors.  Who doesn’t like that in a container?  For more product details, you can check out the Rubbermaid website.
• Fellowes Shredder DM-12CT, $20.00 off; limit 5; no coupon necessary. You can get this either in the warehouse or through Costco.com, and if you don’t have a paper shredder this is the perfect time to rectify that.  With identity theft becoming ever more of a problem, you really can’t be too careful with things like credit card and bank statements or other personal information.  And all of those annoying checks you get from the credit card people, or even just the tons of credit card offers, you definitely want to make sure you are shredding those things.  Better to be overly protective of your information, than stuck having to do damage control after someone has snatched your personal information.  We had the earlier version of this and it shreds like a champ!  It cuts through CDs, credit cards, staples, paper clips, and several sheets of paper and envelopes without complaining or anything.  It isn’t super quiet, but what do you expect when something is chomping through 10 sheets of paper?  This version does cross cut through 12 sheets of paper, so you can make very quick work of your shredding.  The bin is quite large and easy to empty, though little bits always seem to fall down out of the cutters after you remove the bin (I’ve never had a shredder that this didn’t happen to though).