Burned Biscuits!

Today I just wanted to share this great post that I found on facebook. It has nothing to do with eating low carb, or low sugar, or weight loss. But I just thought it was a wonderful story to share. I can't give credit to anyone, because I'm not sure who wrote it, but I think it's a great lesson. Hope you are all doing well.

Burned Biscuits - A lesson we all should learn.

 

When I was a kid, my Mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my Mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed!
All my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my Mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that ugly burned biscuit. He ate every bite of that thing...never made a face nor uttered a word about it!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my Mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget what he said, "Honey, I love burned biscuits every now and then."

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Your Mom put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides--a little burned biscuit never hurt anyone!"
As I've grown older, I've thought about that many times. Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people.
I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else. But what I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

And that's my prayer for you today...that you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker!

We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!

  Thought for the day :" Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle. 

 

Love is in the air!

Happy Valentines Day!! Hope you have plans to spend some time with the ones you love today.

Today I made a special treat for my sweetheart. It's a variation on the dark chocolate nut clusters that I make all the time.

They are delicious and easy, and my husband loves them.

 Today I decided to make my him a variation of these as a Valentines treat. I saw a recipe for pistachio bark in Whole Living magazine and I adapted mine from that. These are very low sugar since you are using a low sugar chocolate.

Here's what you need:

9 x 13 baking dish - lined with parchment and
                            sprayed with cooking spray
 
4 bars of dark chocolate - 85% ( I love Green & Black Organics)

1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped pistachios and almonds
 
coarse sea salt such as fleur-de-sel ( I used a lavender sea salt)
 



Melt chocolate slowly in microwave. It's very important to melt and stir. If you cook too long the chocolate will seize up, and once that happens, it's done. Start with about 1 1/2 minutes and then stir and most of the chunks will melt. Microwave a few seconds more if necessary.

 

 

Pour into prepared pan.

 

 

Sprinkle the nuts on top. Gentle press into chocolate. Sprinkle the sea salt over top.

 



Put the pan in the fridge and chill for at least 30 minutes. When chilled, lift sides of parchment and remove chocolate from dish. Break into pieces.
.

Presentation is important, so box it up pretty and tie with a bow!

Give it to someone you love!

 

Thought for the day:
 

 

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Add caption

I love Boston Creme Donuts. They bring me back to my childhood. It was always my favorite donut, and the one I chose when my grandparents took me to the donut store. Soft and doughy, filled with a silky vanilla custard and topped with a decadent chocolate glaze. They were my favorite.


Every year I would allow myself one Boston Creme Donut on Fat Tuesday. I did that for many years, well into adulthood. It was my Fat Tuesday tradition. Fat Tuesday is the traditional name for the day before Ash Wednesday. It is also known as Fastnacht day, and also Mardi Gras. It is supposed to be a time of feasting and celebrating before the somber time of fasting and penance of the Lenten season which leads up to Easter Sunday. Every year after Fat Tuesday, and my donut , I gave up all sweets during those 6 long weeks of Lent, 

Many Christians abstain or give up something during lent. It is a personal thing, and not something that is mandatory. Many Catholics do give up or deny themselves something as a form of self discipline and penance during this holy season leading up to Easter. As Catholics we also do not eat meat on Fridays during Lent or on Ash Wednesday or Good Friday. 






When I discovered the Belly Fat Cure, that was my first real connection to the sugar/insulin roller coaster I was on and why I always struggled to lose weight, fight the cravings and get in control. Sugar was everywhere and in my quest to eat low fat, I was actually increasing the amount of sugar in my diet. Now I know better, and I'm wiser, and I haven't had a donut on Fat Tuesday in a few years. 

As we grow and learn, we may have to tweak and change some of the traditions we grew up with for a healthier lifestyle.I can still have those wonderful childhood memories, but stop that donut tradition. 

Maybe I'll make a new one with this recipe I found on Maria's blog for mini filled donuts. Someone on that blog post suggested filling them with cream and topping them with the glaze from her Boston Creme cheesecake recipe. I just might have a new Fat Tuesday tradition, and one that is  a lot better for my health!

Happy Fat Tuesday! Laissez les bons temps rouler!!!


 The English translation is: let the good times roll


Thought for the day:  If you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got!!

Making sense of it all.

Hello everyone! I am typing this looking out on the 2 inches of snow that we received last night. So pretty and the good news is, that it's not enough to cripple us and we really don't have to shovel to get out of the driveway.

This week I have been more focused on what I am doing and eating. I have been tracking everything in my fitness pal. I always try to do that, but I never really succeed 100%. I stop short or forget to put in a meal or snack. It's not always easy to figure it out, but I have been focusing less on if it's the exact item that I ate, and just trying to come as close as I can to entering every bite that I take.

Last night we went to a lovely place called the BlackFish for dinner with some friends. It was a cold, rainy/snowy night. We shared some great wines and had a great time catching up.

This was what I had for dinner last night:



1st course:  Smoked scottish salmon, deep fried egg, potato, sour cream, mizuna  ( the egg was inside with the salmon wrapped around. Unbelievably delicious!)





2nd course:  Salmon 'confit', maitake mushroom, globe artichoke, brussels sprouts. ( The best salmon I ever ate. Confit is a french type of preparation. So tender and flavorful.)


As you can see I love Salmon and the waiter said they are very different preparations, so I tried them both. Both dishes were delicious and so beautifully prepared and presented.

To record this in my fitness pal, I just broke it down the best that I could and entered it in.

After entering all of what I ate yesterday, my fitness pal showed the following:

Calories 2376
Carbs 92  ( net carbs =69)
Fiber 23
Sugars 10

Now looking at this, I realized there is a very good reason why I struggle to lose weight. That is too  many calories to consume on a regular basis. I am well within my limits for sugars and carbs according to the BFC. I am still eating my flasxeed bread for my morning meal and it contains wheat ( spouted organic wheat berries is the first ingredient.), but I really watch my carbs and sugars and still that is not enough. I know that calories do matter to some extent. Some people naturally have the instinct to keep their calories in check.  I have the instinct to always figure out a way to eat what I want and stay within the set parameters of sugars and carbs.

So this week I'm going to continue to track in my fitness pal, and also pay attention to the calorie dense foods that I eat  and try to cut back on them.  Cheeses and nuts are hard foods for me to limit and they pack alot of calories even though they are relatively carb and sugar free.

I am also making a real effort to lower or cut out alot of the wheat products (I usually have toast at breakfast, sandwich or wrap at lunch). I just want to see if that helps me.  I have had terrible luck with some of the recipes on Marias blog. The protein bread was terrible. I'm still so puzzled as to why it is a staple of hers and why it tastes fine to her. It really was like stryofoam and not good even dipped in egg for french toast. But there are others that I can try. I am always willing to find healthier swaps for foods, but I won't sacrifice taste.

I organized alot of the random scraps of paper containing recipes from all of you. I always print them out and shove them in  a file. I am going to try some of those recipes in the coming weeks and come up with some new ideas for things to eat.

Have a warm and cozy winter Saturday, wherever you are! XO

Thought for the day: 

“If you only read the books
that everyone else is reading,
you can only think
what everyone else is thinking.”

~ Haruki Murakami