Archive for the ‘Articles’ Category

Sausage, Mushroom & Spinach Lasagna

Since I found out that I had diabetes I have been reading a lot about the disease and quite frankly a lot of the articles are “doom and gloom”.   I am not saying you should not take the disease seriously, you should; it is serious!

But what I have found is an attitude that if you have diabetes you must be on your death bed.  I am nowhere near there believe me.   Sure I have to watch what I eat, be aware of carbohydrates and sugars in my diet, take my medicine as instructed and get plenty of exercise, but it is not the end of the world and for me it is not because of what I ate but rather heredity.  Yes I am overweight and this has contributed to the disease but the chances are pretty good even if I were skinny I would have the disease sometime in my lifetime.

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Paula and Diabetes

I watched the Today show this morning with Paula Deen.   And I was impressed with really how open she was, and how right.

It is not what I eat, but how much of it I have eaten over the years that has caused my Type 2 diabetes.  You can’t expect to eat high fat, sugary foods at every meal and throughout the day and not expect consequences.  It will happen eventually.

If you have watched Paula at all in the last few years you will notice a slight change in her recipes, not enough to lose the taste, but enough to make a difference.  And before you ask…No I can’t name one specific recipe to back me up.

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Controlling Diabetes

What is Diabetes and how do you go about Controlling Diabetes?

When you have diabetes there is too much sugar in your blood. After you eat, your food is broken down into a sugar called glucose, which is carried by your blood to cells throughout your body. Insulin, a hormone, helps the glucose move from the bloodstream into cells, where it is burned as energy to keep your body functioning. People with diabetes either don’t make enough insulin or their cells don’t recognize insulin. The result in both cases is that glucose in the bloodstream can’t get into cells to be used for energy, and instead builds up in the blood.

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Frosting or Icing-You Choose

Recently a discussion was had by my husband and myself on is it called icing or frosting. Typically the term is often used to identify the same ingredients causing quite a bit of confusion among those of us who are trained chefs. This discussion led to research on what, if any, is the difference. Here are some of my conclusions.

Frosting

Frosting is a fluffy, thick concoction that will hold its shape. You can pipe decorations with it like you see on cakes.

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Christmas Cookie Exchange

When the children were young and I was overwhelmed with cleaning, cooking, shopping, wrapping, decorating, parties;  the one party I loved attending was the Cookie Exchanges.  Usually these were organized by someone at one of the kids schools.  Not only did it give me an evening away from kids, husband and chaos, but the cookies were so good!

We would each bring a variety of cookies to the exchange.  For instance each person who attends makes a large batch of cookies (2 recipes each), then divide those batches into a dozen cookies each, then everyone who attends will go home with enough cookies for the holidays!  To make it even better, we each brought the recipes with us and copied them so each of us had the recipes from the other people.

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Energy-Memory-Focus

Yes, it is food related.  If you are not eating the right foods and giving your body the right amount of nutrients then all three elements will go out the window.

I know what you are thinking (at least I think I know) I am a confessed “junk food junkie”.  I am not ashamed of it or afraid to let anyone who wants to listen to my thoughts on how food should be prepared or consumed.  Just take a look at some of these recipes and you will see what I mean…rarely will you find one that would qualify as something from a health food junkie’s kitchen.

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Kolacky

Two different recipes for the same cookie.

The dough for these cookies is what makes them exceptional.  Most popular fillings are peach, apricot, raspberry and date. Use your imagination!

Happy Holidays!

CREAM CHEESE KOLACKY

Ingredients

* 3 ounces cream cheese
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup any flavor fruit jam
* 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar for decoration

Directions

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Thumbprint Cookies

A staple in any holiday cookie, the thumbprint cookie is easy and fun to make with your family.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM OUR FAMILY TO YOURS!

Ingredients

* 1 cup of butter (2 sticks or 8 ounces), room temperature
* 1/2 cup of sugar
* 2 eggs, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
* Pinch of salt
* 2 cups of flour
* 1 cup of chopped nuts (optional)
* 3/4 cup of your favorite jam

* Parchment paper

Method

1 Cream the butter and sugar on high speed for about 3 minutes.

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Pumpkin Cheesecake

This is one of my favorite recipes for pumpkin from my favorite chef…Paula Deen.  My husband made it a couple of years ago for Thanksgiving and it was a huge success.  It is easy to make and can be made a day ahead of the holiday.  I hope you enjoy it as much as my family did.

Happy Holidays!

Ingredients
Crust:

* 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
* 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1 stick melted salted butter
*

Filling:

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The Ultimate Mac And Cheese

This mac-and-cheese makeover has all the comfort and great taste of its predecessors with a substantially more healthful profile. It uses whole-wheat pasta and includes a colorful layer of spinach. It’s also a winner for make-ahead convenience.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS

  • 3 tablespoons plain dry breadcrumbs
  • 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 16-ounce or 10-ounce package frozen spinach
  • 1 3/4 cups 1% milk, divided
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese (6 ounces)
  • 1 cup low-fat (1%) cottage cheese
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
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