Thank You

to my wonderful friend Angela.  She and I talked for quite a while yesterday and I learned some wonderful, helpful tips and hints, from her!!!  Let's just say that today I didn't have a salad for lunch like I have had everyday  since finding out I was diabetic!!!  Today I had a low carb tortilla with turkey pepperoni and reduced fat Monterrey jack cheese.  I had so  been craving pizza for the last few days and couldn't stop thinking about it!!!  SOOOOO   I had a pseudo-pizza today and it was awesome!!!  Thanks for the info AB!!!   There is so much to learn and I am so overwhelmed right now!!!  My first mantra to myself is everything in moderation, ESPECIALLY on our Christmas CRUISE!!!!!!

Tonight there will be roasted chicken, cabbage, fingerling potatoes with lemon and dill!  I can't wait!!!  How is it that I can make low carb/good carb/low fat/weight watching dinners but when it comes to breakfast and lunch, I loose my mind like I have never fed myself before!!!???!!!

News and Adventures!!!

Recently I found out that I was diabetic.  Sucks I know, but not life threatening.  Well not for me.  It made me sad because I had started eating better and exercising to avoid this, I guess I just didn't do it soon enough.  Who knows, I have family history of it anyway, so maybe it was unavoidable no matter what I did.  So who knows.   It's nothing to be depressed about, you just well I just have to adapt to a new life style!  So this blog will now be my adventures of finding ways to make my favorite foods, with less everything, fat, calories, SUGAR, carbs... you name it! 

I found out November 30th, ummmm for those who don't know that's the day before my birthday!!!!  So not a very nice birthday present, but now I know what I have to do to have many more birthdays!!!  After my 3 day freak out, I started researching.  Now I am by no means an expert nor do I claim to be, I am just trying to figure out what works for me and sharing it in hopes that it may work for you or help you find a way to help yourself! 

So it's the holiday season and I have to say that one of my favorite things to make is Chex Mix.  Well hello carbs and sugar.  LOL  So I set out to find out how to make it better for me.  I will share my recipe in a moment.  Did you know that there are so many things out there that are fat free, gluten free, suagr free, no sugar added, no this no that..... I never realized exactly how much stuff was out there!!! 

There are so many websites out there to help also.  If you google diabetes, or diabetic recipes, there are like a gazillion pages out there!!! So look for mare information, but always talk to your doctor first. 

Now I hope that some of you will join me on my journey and if not this is a great way for me to journal my recipes and things! 

Low Sugar Chex Mix


4 cups Gluten Free Corn Chex
4 cups Gluten free Rice Chex
2 cups mini pretzle twists(or any shape you want)
1 cup pecan pieces
1 cup mixed nuts
6 tablespoons butter (don't skimp, there is fat here, but taste is important)
2 tablespoons worchestshire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Seasoned Salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder

Mix first 5 ingredients in a large microwave safe bowl.  In a small microwave safe bowl melt butter.  When melted add next 4 ingredients and mix well.  Pour over cereal mixture and blend until well coated.  Microwave, uncovered, on high 6 minutes, stirring  well every 2 minutes.  Pour out onto paper towels to cool, about 10 mins.  Store in airtight container.   Makes 24 1/2 cup servings.

Nutrition Information:  Per 1/2 cup serving
121 calories, 9.5g fat, 7.6 mg cholesterol, 171.7 mg sodium, 64 mg potassium, 8.3 g carbs, 1.1 g fiber, 0.8g sugar, 2.1 g protein

Wondering

If I should make this a food blog and just talk about food as that is all I seem to think about.... what to make?, what to eat?, just wondering.....

Is it possible

to mke your teenage daughter understand that true friends will always come back to you.  No matter what the reason was that they stopped talking in the first place.  Yes your relationship may be different, but a true friend knows that girls do stupid stuff over boys and they forgive anyway!!!  Long story short, she just broke up with boyfriend and now is mad at herself because of the friends she has lost over him.  Is it possible to gain those friendships back?  I say to her yes, they will be different, but if they were true friends in the first place then they will understand when she explains what happened!  Am I wrong?  Is it possible at all or am I dreaming?  HELP!

YUMMY YUMMY SOUP

So in December for the Hubby's  birthday dinner we went to Carraba's.  If you haven't been you should go, if you don't have one near you I am so sorry!!  Anyway, I digress, we went for his birthday and my son got this creamy tomato basil soup!  Now IDK about yall but we always have bites of everyones new dishes, anyway we were all tasting this soup and Hunter almost didn't get it back! That stuff was GOOD!!!!!!!!!!  Anyway, I have looked and looked for something to compare and couldn't find it....SOOOO you know me, I made it up myself! 

1 can of Campbells tomato bisque soup
2 cans of Campbells tomato soup
2 cans of water(like rinsing out the soup cans)
1 tsp salt
1tsp pepper
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
2 oz cream cheese...

Mix everything into a pot except the cream cheese.  Heat until simmering, add the cream cheese and stir until melted and mixed well!  Serve with your favorite grilled cheese( ours usues 9 grain sandwich thins and smoked gouda cheese)!!!

ITS YUMMY Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Apple Cider Tea

Ok so in all the hoop la of the season, I have found my new favorite tea to drink!!!  It is a process to make it but oh My word so worth it!!!!  Apple Cider Tea, now I have had lots and lots of teas in my day but this is probably the best I have ever had!!! 

Like I said it is a long process that could probably be broken down by using store bought Apple cider but making it is so easy!!! 

Apple Cider

1 gallon Apple Juice, I used Martenellis because that is my favorite
4 Cinnamon sticks
2 Star Anise
2 Cardamon
6 whole cloves
peel of one orange(very little white part)

Put everything into a crockpot and let steep on low for 4 hours.  Strain and let cool then put back into juice bottle for storage.  Let sit in fridge overnight.  The next day add a simple syrup...

Simple Syrup

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup water

put sugar and water in sauce pan and simmer until sugar is dissolved.  Let cool completely then add to juice.  Mix well.

Apple Cider Tea

To make the tea mix half a cup of the Apple Cider with one Black pearl tea bag and fill your tea cup up with boiling water... the cold cider makes it the perfect temp for drinking right away!!!

By half a cup I mean half the size of your tea cup!!

Now the cider is awesome by itself, but you add that black pearl tea and it is awesome!!!!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday and that you receive all of your wishes!  Thanks for looking

Blesses Be

Yummy No-Bake Cheesecake

Ok so this cheese cake was thought up out of the need to get rid of some holiday cookies!  You know the ones I'm talking about, those butter cookies that come in the decorative tin!  Yes they are quite tasty by themselves, but we all know we have loads of tins each year.  Wether we buy them ourselves because we want them or wether they are given as gifts.  So I came up with a way to use them in my favorite dessert form!!! AND the best thing about this is I already have the items needed in my house, ESPECIALLY around the holidays as I do a lot of baking!!!!!


So I took these cookies:

and made this cheesecake (which the hubby and kids got into before I remembered to take a picture)

Heres what you need: 

For crust

1 12oz tin of danish butter cookies

1 1/2 sticks of butter

For filling

2 8oz pkg cream cheese softened

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 8oz tub of creamy cool whip

zest of one lemon

juice of 1 1/2 lemons

To prepare crust melt 1 1/4 sticks of butter in sauce pan.  In food processor pulse the cookies until they are crumbs and resemble sand.  With 1/4 stick of butter grease the sides and bottoms of a 9 x 13 glass pan.  When cookies are crumbled, pour melted butter into them and pulse until just combined.  Press into bottom and just a little up the sides of pan.

To prepare filling:  In large bowl, cream the cream cheese with a hand mixer or by hand.  Add the zest of the lemon and mix well.  Add the juice and mix well.  Mix in the condensed milk.  FOLD in the cool whip so it doesn't deflate.  Pour onto crust and chill for at least one hour!  Serve!!!!!

IT'S VERY VERY YUMMY!!!!!