Giveaway: Nature Box & Sunflower Seed Cornbread Recipe

I received a box of fabulous snacks in my mailbox…those are the happy mail days, when I get a little something extra & fun in my box instead of bills & junk.  This package was from Nature Box as part of an event hosted by Shy Babies & Little Inspiration and sponsored by Nature Box.

Nature Box sends a selection of healthful snacks to each of its subscribers for $19.95 a month (including shipping).  Their snacks are generally an assortment of nuts, dried fruits, & grain mixes (such as granola) that never include anything with high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, partially hydrogenated oils, or artificial colors, flavors, and sweeteners. 

My box arrived with five fabulous snacks:  Zesta Fiesta Mix, Sunny Trails, Lemon Pucker Pistachios, Garden Tomato Crunchies, & Southern BBQ Sunflower Kernels.  All the snacks were good, but the all-star favorites at our house were the Lemon Pucker Pistachios (fresh, tart, & wonderful) and Southern BBQ Sunflower Kernels (BBQ is always a hit here & there were just what we expected & fabulously addictive).  The Garden Tomato Crunchies were toasted slivered almonds covered in a sweet-savory tomato seasoning.  Sunny Trails features small pieces of diced fruits intermingled with raw almonds.  The Zesta Fiesta Mix was a snack mix of nuts and cracker-like crunchy bits seasoned with zesty spices (cilantro, paprika, garlic, & chili powder).  All these snacks would quickly disappear around my house.

We used some of our sunflower kernels to bake up a little something to share with you.  Check out more recipes (and enter more giveaways) using Nature Box snacks as you hop around this Food Fun Hop event (see the linky at the bottom)!

Barbecue Sunflower Seed Cornbread
1 c. cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder (optional)
2 eggs
1 c. milk
1/2 c. canola oil
1 c. corn (fresh, defrosted frozen, or drained from a can)
1/4 – 1/2 c. Southern BBQ Sunflower Kernels, to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients except for sunflower kernels.  Mix well. 
3. Pour into a greased 8” x 8” baking dish.  Sprinkle sunflower seeds over the top.
4. Bake for 20 minutes or until slightly golden on top. 

Serves 8.

Notes:   This is a more savory cornbread.  If you have a cast iron skillet, that would be a top choice for baking your cornbread in, but you may have to adjust the bake time.

Do you want to win a Nature Box?  One reader will will one future box (it will have different snacks than were in my box) sent directly to their house.  If you’d like to order your own Nature Box, use the promo code REFER25 to get 25% off your first box!

To Enter: Like Nature Box on Facebook.  See the Rafflecopter form to enter and for details on additional entries.

Giveaway Closes: 12:01 am EST on Monday, Sept. 3, 2012. Winner will be contacted by email and will have 48 hours to respond. You must be at least 18 years old and have a US address. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How about more Nature Box recipes? 

Nature Box was received in order to facilitate this review and giveaway, but all opinions are 100% my own.