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Campbell's Emphasizes Oodles of Noodles With New Campaign

YumSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:30:02 -0700

To commemorate the 75th anniversary of its celebrated chicken noodle soup, food company Campbell's has really used its noodle. Yesterday, the 140-year-old company launched a bold campaign called "Slurp" to get consumers to think about its staid soup in a new way.

To promote the fact that there are 32 feet of egg noodles in every can of its chicken noodle soup, the corporation partnered with ad agency BBDO New York and Traction Creative. They've erected a giant billboard with a 54-foot noodle coming out of it, which appears to be slurped by a mannequin standing in a window three stories above.The billboard is near Manhattan's Times Square and will be displayed on the corner of 7th Avenue and 53rd Street for the next four weeks, where it will attract plenty of attention in a high-traffic area.

The campaign is cute - I only wish I could see the billboard in person! - and I learned something new (I would never have guessed there are 32 feet of noodles in every Campbell's can). What do you think of the marketing effort? Does it make you want to buy Campbell's chicken noodle soup?

Source: Flickr User Vagamundos

Green Bean Casserole Two Ways - Beginner and Expert

YumSugar — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 06:45:52 -0800

I mentioned last week that I've noticed casseroles making a comeback. What better time to bring them back than during the holidays? If you've got a lot to plan this Thanksgiving, stick with a no-muss, no-fuss recipe that'll be ready in around half an hour. If you're feeling a bit more ambitious, however, we've got just the expert green bean casserole for you, complete with homemade fried leek chips on top. To scope out both recipes, read more.

Beginner Green Bean Casserole
From Campbell's Casserole Kitchen

Ingredients

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular, 98% Fat Free or 25% Less Sodium)
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. soy sauce
Dash ground black pepper
4 cups cooked cut green beans
1 1/3 cups French's® French Fried Onions

Directions

Mix soup, milk, soy, black pepper, beans and 2/3 cup onions in 1 1/2-qt. casserole.
Bake at 350°F for 25 min. or until hot.
Stir. Sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 min.

Serves 6.

Nutritional info using Campbell's Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup: Calories 161, Total Fat 9g, Saturated Fat 3g, Cholesterol 4mg, Sodium 529mg, Total Carbohydrate 17g, Dietary Fiber 3g, Protein 3g, Vitamin A 12%DV, Vitamin C 14%DV, Calcium 6%DV, Iron 3%DV

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Expert Green Bean Casserole
From The Hearty Boys

Ingredients

6 tablespoons butter
2 shallots, finely chopped (about 3 tablespoons)
8 ounces portobello mushrooms, sliced
8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried sage
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sherry
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed
Frizzled leeks:
Vegetable oil, for deep frying
1 leek
Superfine flour, for dredging (recommended: Wondra Flour)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Make sauce: Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes.
Add the mushrooms, thyme and sage and saute until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the flour and cook 5 more minutes.
Next add the sherry and stir until thickened.
Add the cream and simmer an additional 5 minutes. Set sauce aside. (Recipe can be made to this point up to 2 days before, refrigerated.)
Make frizzled leeks: Heat a couple inches of oil to 350 degrees F in a large, heavy pot. To check the oil temperature, drop a bread cube into it. If the cube browns within 30 seconds the oil is hot enough. Trim leek, slice in half lengthwise, and wash well under running water. Cut the root end off the leek and then cut each half lengthwise into long, thin strips. Season flour with salt and pepper. Dredge leek strips in flour. Fry leeks for 1 to 2 minutes, or until crisp and golden. Drain on paper towels.
Melt the remaining butter in a large skillet over high heat. Add the beans, toss to coat with the butter and saute until bright green, about 7 minutes. They'll still be crispy. Season with salt and pepper and place on a platter.
Bring the sauce to a simmer and spoon over the beans. Top with the frizzled leeks.

Serves 8 to 10.

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Trend Alert: The Casserole's Back

YumSugar — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 08:00:55 -0800

Casserole has long had a bad rap, but after many years, it appears to be shedding its negative image and staging a comeback.

These hot entrées hit their pinnacle of popularity in the 1960s, when housewives relied on the easy formula to put dinner on the table. Over the years, however, people grew to associate the word casserole with unappetizing mixtures of mystery meats and canned soups, and casseroles went the way of the tape player. Enter the current economic crisis, and casserole dishes have been reappearing everywhere. To see why, read more.

On Nov. 10, one passionate casserole chef, Emily Farris, will organize her fourth annual casserole party, a showdown between the best casserole dishes. She's also just released a much-discussed cookbook, Casserole Crazy, with non-traditional recipes from star chefs like Paula Deen and Donatella Arpaia.

Today Kraft Foods announced a casserole competition, challenging five bloggers to create an original casserole recipe using its Velveeta cheese product that costs under $10 and feeds a family of four for two meals. And Campbell's even has an entire site dedicated to the creation of casseroles.

One thing's for sure: Casserole's not going away anytime soon, regardless of your feelings for it. Are you excited to see more of it?

Source

What's For Dinner This Summer?

Sponsor — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 08:58:07 -0700

Head into summer with easy, tasty recipes from Campbell's! They have everything you need: delicious 30-minute meals, slow-cooker favorites, easy skillet dishes, grilling classics, and even a perfect Father Day's dish! Let's get cooking!

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Campbell's Green Bean Casserole

Sponsor — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 11:17:38 -0800

No holiday meal is complete without Green Bean Casserole. This recipe using Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup is the perfect side dish that will win rave reviews!

INGREDIENTS
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (regular, 98 percent fat free, or 25 percent less sodium)
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon soy sauce
Dash ground black pepper
4 cups cooked cut green beans
1 1/3 cups French's® French Fried Onions

DIRECTIONS
Mix soup, milk, soy, black pepper, beans, and 2/3 cup onions in 1 1/2-qt. casserole.

Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes or until hot.

Stir. Sprinkle with remaining onions. Bake 5 minutes.

Tip: Use 1 bag (16 to 20 oz.) frozen green beans, 2 packages (9 oz. each) frozen green beans, 2 cans (about 16 oz. each) green beans, or about 1 1/2 lb. fresh green beans for this recipe.

For a change of pace, substitute 4 cups cooked broccoli flowerets for the green beans.

For a creative twist, stir in 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese with soup. Omit soy sauce. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup additional cheddar cheese when adding the remaining onions.

For a festive touch, stir in 1/4 cup chopped red pepper with soup.

For a heartier mushroom flavor, substitute Campbell's® Condensed Golden Mushroom Soup for Cream of Mushroom Soup. Omit soy sauce. Stir in 1/4 cup chopped red pepper with green beans.

Reader Recipe: Powderhorn Potatoes

Yum Community — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:50:11 -0800

This story was written by member b1uebunn and comes from the Kitchen Goddess group in the YumSugar Community.Check out her family's Thanksgiving recipe when you read more

Recall Warning: What Exactly Are Those Chunky Bits?

YumSugar — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 06:28:33 -0700

If you've purchased a can of Campbell's Chunky Baked Potato with Cheddar and Bacon Bits, you may want to look at the UPC number and make sure it wasn't one of the cans they're recalling. Don't worry, it's not due to salmonella or E.coli, or anything like that, but they are dangerous to consume as they may contain pieces of hard plastic. Campbell's is voluntarily recalling the soup as three consumers have reported minor injuries in and around the mouth.

24 states are affected by the recall: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.

The label on the recalled cans have the following info:
JUL 08 2009 CT DT - BZ - 07097

Consumers with affected cans should not eat the soup and should return it to the store where they purchased it in exchange for a full refund.

Pieces of plastic?!? Talk about mmm mmm good...

San Francisco's New Candy Store

YumSugar — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 14:23:18 -0700

June is almost over, but I couldn't let National Candy Month pass by without telling you guys about one of my favorite new places. In the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, Diane Campbell and her hubby Brian have opened a new shop simply called, "The Candy Store." Based on the name you'd assume that the store sells candy - which it does - but it's not like the kind of Sweet World type stores you see in the mall. If that's what you're envisioning, just stop right there: This place is better than that. It's a bright white space sprinkled with walls of clear candy jars, mountains of delicious chocolates, bins of crystal fruit slices and more.

Although it was a dreary gray day when I visited, the inside of The Candy Store was as bright and beautiful as a lovely spring morning - a lovely spring morning in candyland! To find out more about The Candy Store, including lots of pictures, read more

As a kid, owner Diane Campbell wasn't allowed candy and would sneak it from her mom. However like most vices, candy's something you end up craving the more you can't have it. So naturally, as an adult, Diane is now the proud owner of a beautiful store. The store is filled with handpicked items that really cover the candy gamut. From inexpensive candy lipsticks (50¢ each) to pricey imported chocolates, there is something for everyone. She even carries hard to find candy bars like Valomilk, Idaho Spuds, and Sky Bars, as well as the intriguingly flavored Zotter bars (plum bacon anyone?!). My personal favorite is the wide array of of by the pound (around $10-12 per pound) candies including mango chile gumballs, assorted gummi candies (including one that looks like an egg), peanut butter malt balls, green & black "olives" (which are candies that happen to look like olives), black licorice (which apparently sells like mad) and many, many more.

When I asked Diane what she liked best about being the neighborhood candy pusher, she earnestly gushed that it was the customers smiles.

"I'm going to be that candy store in people's memories. That's so freaking cool to me. To be part of that memory is thrilling."

Personally I think the thrilling part is to have this candy store in your memory. So if you're ever in San Francisco, be sure to stop by and tell Diane we said hello! If you're nice she might even hook you up with a sample.

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Due to Customer Backlash, Tropicana Ditches New Logo

partysugar — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 10:15:32 -0800

Last month Tropicana debuted a clean new look to emphasize the all-natural, fresh squeezed juice. However, due to an overwhelming amount of customer outrage, the company is abandoning the changes and returning to the old packaging. Many loyal Tropicana fans were disgusted by the brand's redesigned logo - which features a glass of orange juice against a white backdrop, instead of the familiar orange with a straw poking out the side - calling it ugly, stupid, and generic-looking. According to Neil Campbell, the President of Tropicana North America, the company was unaware of its fiercely loyal consumers:

We underestimated the deep emotional bond [of the brand's original logo]. What we didn't get was the passion this very loyal small group of consumers have. That wasn't something that came out in the research. Those consumers are very important to us, so we responded.

The reaction will be quick: Tropicana plans to discontinue the redesigned packaging immediately and have the old image back on the carton by next month. The juice giant isn't the only brand to update its logo; Pepsi, Snapple, and Heinz have recently revamped their trademark images. Only time will tell if these companies fare better with consumer support than Tropicana did.

Did you notice the new Tropicana packaging? How do you feel about the controversy?

Have Your Food and Sit On It Too?

YumSugar — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 15:49:39 -0700

Conceptual designer Adrian Rovero has come up with a new line of pasta called Sedie. At first glance you're reminded of old-school Campbell's alphabet soup, or maybe even slightly more grown-up, wagon wheels. However, upon closer inspection you'll see that they're actually little chairs! The pasta is extruded from the machine and are formed into little chairs. Just don't sit on them, okay? Something tells me they're not quite sturdy enough.

Source: Core 77