Thanksgiving 2008

Wishing you all a warm and wonderful holiday season.

Music by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Our House

Savory Meatloaf, Veggie Salad and Cranberry Cake

Everyone knows by now that I don't eat anything with sugar or white flour and lately I've come up with a couple of tasty recipes I thought I'd share. The veggie salad recipe is a variation of a recipe my daughter served last time we were visiting.

Meatloaf:

1 pound of hamburger
1 pound of sugar free mild Italian Sausage (which I can only find at Whole Foods)
Handful of green olives with pimentos (sliced)

You can add about a 1/8 or 1/4 cup of the glaze mixture too (optional)

Glaze:
Chili powder (about 1/4 to 1/2 a cup)
Smuckers Sugar Free Jam (1/4 cup)
Tomato Paste (1 small can)

Put all the meatloaf in a loaf pan and coat the top with the glaze
Cook the meatloaf at 350 for 1 hour


Veggie Salad:
2 small zucchini
1-2 cucumbers
Red onion (optional)
Tomatoes
Roasted Tomatoes (Davini from Whole Foods-Optional)
Pitted Calamata Olives
1 Red Pepper
1 Yellow Pepper
1 Orange Pepper
1 small herbed goat cheese (room temp. for crumbling on top of salad)
2 T (good) Olive Oil
2 T Balsamic Vinegar

Crumble the goat cheese on top, mix and serve


Cranberry Cake:
1 cup Flaxseed meal
1/2 cup Splenda
1 cup Almond flour (Trader Joe's)
Cinnamon to taste
1 cup Wheat Bran
1/4 cup Psyllium Husks (Trader Joe's)
Raw Whole Cranberries (as many as you like)
Raw Whole Walnuts (as many as you like)
3/4 cup No sugar added applesauce

Mix everything in a large bowl by folding the applesauce with the dry ingredients and the cranberries and walnuts. It will remain crumbly and then place in loaf pan and press it into the load pan with a plastic spatula.

Sprinkle a mixture of Splenda and Cinnamon on top and bake.

Bake 350 for 1 hour.

And yes, I do realize that my Cranberry Cake looks like meatloaf--LOL! I made that cranberry cake recipe myself by trial and error--it's excellent!

The Motley Crew

Paul and I went to visit my mom and Dave the other day and due to the excellent training they've both put into their dogs (ala Cesar Millan, The Dog Whisperer) and common sense training they've always imposed, I was able to capture this photo with ease.



From left to right:
Mona, Zoe, Paya and Libby

The many faces of Miss E.

Music by The Beatles
Let it Be

Last night, this little star in the making performed in her school's auditorium. She blew me away. She played the piano while singing, "Let it Be."

These lyrics are timeless, but mean so much at a time when so many are struggling right now and I was overwhelmed; she did a fantastic job!

E- you have my admiration, love and support always, so I put together a slideshow covering what I'm confident will be your path to stardom...

Don't forget me when you make it to Broadway!

Mr. D: SHOOT, SWOOSH and JUMP!

Tonight Paul and I (and the rest of the family) came out to support our nephew and his basketball team. What a great group of boys. Although they didn't win, they played like champs and more importantly; they played as a team.



Music by Dire Straits
Walk of Life

A little bakin' goin' on...

I made sugar free peanut butter cookies--courtesy of Paula Deen.

They are a yummy option for those who don't eat white flour or sugar.

Enjoy!



Peanut Butter Cookies, sugar-free, from Paula Deen

Magical Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe courtesy Paula Deen Show: Paula's Home Cooking Easy Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 12 minutes Yield: 18 cookies

1 cup peanut butter, creamy or crunchy
1 1/3 cups baking sugar replacement (recommended: Splenda)
1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a large baking sheet. In a mixing bowl, combine the peanut butter, 1 cup sugar replacement, the egg, and vanilla, and stir well with a spoon. Roll the dough into balls the size of walnuts. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet. With a fork, dipped in sugar replacement to prevent sticking, press a crisscross design on each cookie. Bake for 12 minutes, remove from the oven, and sprinkle the cookies with some of the remaining sugar replacement. Cool slightly before removing from pan.

DIY Halloween Backdrop

My Uncle made this cool Halloween backdrop in his garage. He made it to take some photographs of his granddaughter. I saw this and thought it was genius! He actually took leaves from his yard and taped them to some brown butcher paper and then hung the paper on a rolling garment rack he purchased at Lowes.

I loved it so much I couldn't leave without asking my uncle to take a photograph of Paul and I. Great work Uncle Bob! I know a lot of time and love went into making this backdrop--it's fantastic!