Wednesday, March 31, 2004

Do You Have a Humor Deficiency Syndrome?
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Millions of people suffer from HDS. Take this test to find out if you're one of them.If you are then you need to get help. Your lacking someone like myself to drive to silly laughter.

This quiz is so simple, it will help you assess the health of your funny bone. That's right folks...Simply answer TRUE or FALSE to each question.



TRUE FALSE
1. You wake up each morning complaining — too little sleep, too many aches and pains, another crummy day.
2. You drag yourself to the closet and find that your basic black wardrobe looks too bright.

4. Everybody on the road is a lousy driver except for you.
5. Everyone ahead of you in the express line at the supermarket is conspiring to slow up your progress. ( Know that person in front of me has at least 30 items)
6. Do you light up a whole room just by leaving it?
7. When playing cards, golf or tennis your blood boils when you don't beat the pants off your opponents.
8. It makes you feel better to regale family and friends with detailed accounts of your daily misfortunes.
9. Your favorite topics of dinner conversation are your backache, sore feet, food allergies and cholesterol readings.(of course there'e always gas)
10. If somebody teases you or makes a joke at your expense you react angrily and hold a grudge forever.
11. Daily chores — banking, laundry, errands, dishes,etc. — are an endless source of complaint.
12. You can't help ranting and raving about how society is falling apart and how the country is going to hell in a handcart, or is that handbag.
13. You find that talk radio and TV news are spiritually uplifting.
14. You feel overworked, underpaid and under-appreciated.
15. It is your duty to criticize friends, co-workers and family members for their own good.
16. You think jokes are silly, offensive and a foolish waste of time.
17. When somebody beats you to a parking spot, you secretly wish you had a bazooka on board.
18. When someone tells you a joke you either groan or hasten to point out that it's politically incorrect or not funny.
19. Cheerful people are annoying and you suspect they're faking it — nobody is that happy.
20. Anybody who does not share your political or religious beliefs is an uninformed, wrong-headed ignoramus.


RATE YOURSELF:


0-3 TRUE — You do not have a Humor Deficiency Syndrome. In fact, your sense of humor is your greatest asset.
4-9 TRUE — You are showing the first signs of Humor Deficiency Syndrome. Make sure to get at least 15 good laughs a day.
10-20 TRUE — An advanced case of HDS. A funny bone transplant is your only hope. On the bright side, you will never die laughing.

Things that make you go hmmmm...

Monday, March 29, 2004

HAHAHAHA HEHEEE!!!
Here's some silly food jokes...on the verge stupidity really...but they make me laugh everytime i tell them...sometimes people give me strange looks. on the other hand that is nothing unusual for me. The little quips are short, to the point and very easy to remember. pass them on maybe you can get a strange look, too!!

Driver: "Hi, is your name Jello?"
Hitchhiker: "Uh... no..."
Driver: "Too bad... 'cause there's always room for Jello!"

A ham-and-cheese sandwich walks into a bar. The bartender says "Sorry, we don't serve food here."

A Zen Buddhist walks into a pizza parlor and says, "Make me one with everything."

Did you hear about the cannibal who loved fast food? He ordered a pizza with everybody on it.

If Ivana Trump married, in succession, Orson Bean, King Oscar of Norway, Louis B. Mayer, and Norbert Wiener, she would then be Ivana Bean Oscar Mayer Wiener.

In these days of multiple marriages, would the marriage of Raymond Burr, Terry Garr and Martin Luther King be called Burr-Garr-King?

The Grocery Bag Law: The candy bar you planned to eat on the way home from the market is buried at the bottom of the grocery bag.( this would never happen to me..#1 i usually don't buy candy and#2 I would have them put it in the bag)

A friend and I were standing in line at a fast-food restaurant, waiting to place our order. There was a big sign posted that read, "No bills larger than $20 will be accepted." The woman in front of us, pointing to the sign remarked, "Believe me, if I HAD a bill larger than 20 dollars I wouldn't be eating here."

What do you get if you divide the circumference of a pumpkin by its diameter?
Pumpkin pi.

What do you call a stolen yam?
A hot potato.

What was green and a great trick shooter?
Annie Okra

The other day, I dropped a piece of bread and it fell butter side up. I was convinced that I'd buttered the wrong side of the bread.

Eat a prune and start a movement.( this one will get you that look i was talking about earlier...he he hee...)

I hope you enjoyed some silly food humor...i certainly do...I know it's a little cheesy...oops I try not to be sooo punny...he he hee i just can't help myself!!

Sunday, March 28, 2004

Do you know what happened/ in the world of food today past and present??

MARCH 29

National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day

1886 Coca-Cola was created by Dr. John Pemberton.

1900 Charles Elton was born. Elton was an English biologist who first developed the idea of a 'food chain.'

1903 Gustavus Franklin Swift died. Founder of the meat-packing business Swift & Co., the inventor of the refrigerated railway car, and the first to ship 'dressed' beef to eastern markets instead of live animals.

Interesting little tid-bits....

Todays health note:
How much caffeine is to much..Because of the wide variety of products containing caffeine a person may be ingesting a large amount without being aware of it. Sources of caffeine include items sold to help in fitness and sporting performance, energy drinks, soft drinks, various medicines, herbal tonics containing guarana, as well as coffee, tea and chocolate.
Caffeine overdose can cause nausea, diarrhoea, light-headedness and urinary frequency. Caffeine withdrawal even after moderate chronic intake may be associated with headache, nausea, nervousness, reduced alertness and depressed mood. Symptoms are most acute in the first 20-48 hours but they may persist for as long as seven days.

No known health risks are associated with drinking 2-3 coffee cups' worth of caffeine a day, or about 300-400 mg. However, the jury is still out on the potential for adverse effects at levels of intake above that.

So take a look below, because i want everyone to be healthy and happy!!
Caffeine
APPROXIMATE CAFFEINE CONTENT

COFFEE (5 oz. cup)
Drip method - 110-150 mg
Percolated - 65-125 mg
Instant - 40-110 mg

TEA (5 oz cup)
1 minute brew - 10-35 mg
3 minute brew - 20-45 mg
Instant Tea - 12-30 mg

SOFT DRINKS (12 oz. can)
Coca Cola - 45 mg
Pepsi Cola - 39 mg
Dr Pepper - 40 mg
Mountain Dew - 54 mg

we can chat more on tusday, see you all then!!!







Thursday, March 25, 2004

Hello all!!
...Well first I will cover the news. First I would like to congratulate my sister and bro-in-law, they are the proud new owners of there first home, You go with your super bad domestic selves... The past couple of days my super coool Mom has been visiting, our humble dwelling in J-ville. She is back at home now on the west coast. Thanks for coming Mom we had a great time. Stop on anytime ...The welcome matt gets lonely. In other news of the 656 apt., Joe is sick with a nasty sinus infection. He will be better soon between the homemade chicken soup and the antibiotics. My little sis karen is plum tuckered out from all her busy weekends as she goes hither and yon. She said she is happy to be at home this weekend where she can finally get some R and R. As far as my lovely hubby he is staying at a friends to puppy site for a very energetic black lab.As far as my self I had been hanging out with my Ma-maah. And enjoying having to days off from work. Well that's the news and I am sticking to it.

On the food front. Recently had a question from my Mom-in-Law about a reference to what vegan wine is. Since I was writing meatless recipes without thinking, I'm used to dealing with some people that cannot or do not use any animal products, or by products. It just shot right out of my hands without thinking. But to answer that question...Here it goes. Organic, Vegetarian and Vegan Wines
Aware to the needs of the vegetarian and vegan followers, many of the organic producers ensure that their wines are suitable produced to standards acceptable to this growing section of our community.

For many years the only thing used to clarify wines after fermentation came from cows, fish and chicken, however as demand for vegetarian friendly wines grows, new techniques are being used.

Egg whites and Casein are used in many vegetarian suitable wines, following their strict requirement that no animal be harmed in the production of the foods and drinks they consume.

For our vegan community, wines are either filtered but left unfinished or clarified with products such as bentonite. This is a very fine powder that attaches itself to the impurities in the wine and drops them to the bottom of the tank, allowing the wine to be racked off, leaving the sediment residue behind.

So I hope this was an interesting piece of info. So many people do not realize the extent of how far vegetarian's goes. There are some many types, and belief systems that exist that working in the food industry is much more difficult, or I like to say challenging. There are so many things that today's chef have to keep up with, to say on top of it in this diet crazy world.

Things that make me go hmmmm.

Tuesday, March 16, 2004

Soup for the meatless soul.

Spinach Tomato Pasta Soup #1

Ingredients:
1 med. yellow onion
1 qt. of canned tomatoes
1 qt. of tomato juice v-8 is good because it has more flavor
spices-I like sage, basil, and oregano
1/2-1 pkg. of frozen spinach (amount depends on how you like spinach, start with less then add more if needed)
pasta- I use penne
you may also need to add more tomato juice depending on how much juice you want
Directions:

In a large pot, add sliced onion to a couple tsp. olive oil. Cook onions on low heat until translucent then add together tomatoes, tomato juice, and spices. Let these cook for awhile so the spices can cook. After the soup mixture has come to a boil you can add the pasta and allow to cook to desired consistency. Add spinach it's already cooked so you need to get it hot. Or i recommend that you can precook the pasta and add when you feel the soup has cooked long enough. I have made this soup several times and I do not use a recipe. If you find a better way, or mistakes, please let me know since I am doing this out of my head.
This a yummy one..you can add chunks of vegetables like carrtos or peppers..whatever you like use your imagination..

#2Roasted Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

Choose 4 or 5 of the following vegetables to make 8 cups, chopped:
red onion
mushrooms
zucchini
celery
leek
green beans
cabbage
broccioli
cauliflower
garlic cloves
potato
tomato
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup
vegan red wine
6 cups vegetable broth
soy cream (opt)
Directions:
Choose 4-5 vegetables and chop about 8 cups worth into bite sized pieces.

In a glass ovenproof dish, place all vegetables and drizzle with the olive oil, salt & pepper.

Bake in a 450 oven for 50-55 minutes, stirring a few times

Remove pan and add white wine and enough hot vegetable broth to deglaze pan. (that means to get the good stuff that is stuck to the pan..the flavor)

Transfer to a saucepan and cover vegetables at least one inch with remaining hot broth. Bring to boil, then simmer 15 minutes. Add soy cream ( veg version of cream)if desired for a creamier texture. Salt and pepper to taste) this one is very simple

#3
Bean and Barley Soup

Ingredients:

water and or veg broth
onion, chopped, up to a cupful
15.5 oz. can of white beans
15.5 oz. can of roman beans
15.5 oz. can of chickpeas
15.5 oz. can of blackeyed peas
15.5 oz. can of lentils
1-2 cups of cooked barley, cooked according to package directions
extra-virgin olive oil
salt, or sea salt or Salt Sense
dried rosemary (sprinkle to taste)
fresh chopped or crushed garlic (to taste)
Directions:
Saute the onion, rosemary, and garlic in a fry pan, or in the bottom of your soup pot. Should have a nice aroma.

Rinse the canned beans, peas, lentils, to remove extra salt.

In a large pot or Dutch oven add equal quantities of the beans, peas, and lentils. Stir. Make sure you still have a few inches at the top -- extra beans can be reserved in the fridge, covered, for up to a week. Or make another batch right after!

Stir in the barley; stir in the onion mixture.Sprinkle generously with salt, but you may need to add more later during or after cooking. Stir in a little more oil if desired, for flavor and to prevent sticking.

Add water till an inch or two from the top. Mix thoroughly. Cover and cook over medium heat till heated thru, stirring occasionally. Lower flame to prevent boilover or burning on pot bottom if it seems imminent. Cooking for a few extra minutes (past the heated stage) on simmer will increase the flavor and the thickness, but cook it too much and the beans will fall apart. If soup seems too salty, add cut raw potato, and remove potato after cooking a few minutes. Potato should draw out salt.

Cool slightly and serve, add salt if needed. Goes well with crusty Italian bread, warmed or toasted. If the soup is extra-thick, you can spread it on the bread!

Extra soup can be frozen in individual servings and heated in the microwave. Do not add extra salt before freezing -- add more if needed when soup is reheated.

this one is also yummy!!!!!

The very beginning and meatless soups
To start a truely wonderfull meatless soup you should start off with a wonderful stock!!

Simple Vegetable Soup Stock
Ingredients:Oil - 1 teaspoon
Carrots - 2
White onions - 2
Celery stalks - 1 - 2
Parsley - 5 - 8 strands
Bay leaves - 2
Black pepper - 1 teaspoon
Salt - 1 teaspoon
Water - 6 - 8 cups

Chop the carrots, celery, and onions into 1 - 2 inch sized pieces.
Heat the oil in a stock pot to medium-high. Then add in carrots, onions, and celery.
Add in the black pepper and salt. Stir for 5 - 10 minutes.
Add in the parsley, bay leaves, and water.
Bring to a oil, and reduce the heat to low - medium, and let it simmer.
Skim off the foam every once awhile.
Let this cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Then strain the vegetable soup stock from the veggies. Gently squeeze the veggies to extract the soup stock.
Carrots, onions, and caller are the 'standard' vegetables used to making vegetarian soups stocks. However, there's a variety of vegetables that you can use to make vegetarian soup stock. Some other veggies you can try are mushrooms, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumber, bean sprouts, and etc...

You can use this vegetarian soups stock to cook all types of vegetarian soups.

Monday, March 15, 2004

Iron is not only good for pumping!!!!

Iron

For women, the RDA for iron is 15 milligrams per day, 5 milligrams more than the RDA for men. Women need more of this mineral because they lose an average of 15 to 20 milligrams of iron each month during menstruation. Without enough iron, iron deficiency anemia can develop and cause symptoms that include pallor, fatigue and headaches.

After menopause, body iron stores generally begin to increase. Therefore, iron deficiency in women over 50 may indicate blood loss from another source, and should be checked by a physician.

Animal products--meat, fish and poultry--are good and important sources of iron. In addition, the type of iron, known as heme iron, in these foods is well absorbed in the human intestine.

Dietary iron from plant sources, called non-heme, are found in peas and beans, spinach and other green leafy vegetables, potatoes, and whole-grain and iron-fortified cereal products. Although non-heme iron is not as well absorbed as heme iron, the amount of non-heme iron absorbed from a meal is influenced by other constituents in the diet. The addition of even relatively small amounts of meat or foods containing vitamin C substantially increases the total amount of iron absorbed from the entire meal.

Hopefully this bit of info is helpful.

On our agenda tomorrow meatless soups. The yummy kind of course!!

Thursday, March 11, 2004

This does a body good

Chapter one in womans nutrition
Calcium
Both women and men need enough calcium to build maximum bone mass during their early years of life. Low calcium consuption appears to be one very important factor in the development of osteoporosis. Women have a greater risk than men of developing osteoporosis.

A condition in which progressive loss of bone mass happens with aging, osteoporosis causes the bones to be more susceptible to break. If a woman has a high level of bone mass when her skeleton ages, this may change her risk of developing osteoporosis.
Particularly during adolescence and early adulthood, women should up their food sources of calcium. "The most important time to get a sufficient amount of calcium is while bone growth and consolidation are occurring, a period that continues until approximately age 30 to 35," says Marilyn Stephenson, a registered dietitian with FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. "The idea is, if you can build a maximum peak of calcium deposits early on, this may delay fractures that occur later in life."

The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for calcium for woman 19 to 24 is 1,200 milligrams per day. For women 25 and older, the allowance drops to 800 milligrams, but that is still a significant amount, . "There is a need for good dietary sources of calcium continues throughout life.
How do you get enough calcium without too many calories and fat? After all, the foods that top the calcium charts--milk, cheese, ice cream--aren't calorie and fat lightweights.

There are lots of lower fat choices. There's 1 percent or skim milk instead of whole milk. There's a good variety of lower fat cheeses, yogurts, and frozen yogurts, and there's a whole flock of substitutes for ice cream.

In addition to dairy foods, other good sources of calcium include salmon, tofu (soybean curd), certain vegetables (for example, broccoli), legumes (peas and beans), calcium-enriched grain products, lime-processed tortillas, seeds, and nuts.

So i hope this info on calicium is helpful. Who knew so many things have calcium in them..One of the fun things about doing these nutrition tips and what not, I get to pick my husbands brain and also get the opportunity to learn and pass it on to help other.

Wednesday, March 10, 2004

In honor of march...

National Nutrition Month and National Womens History Month


So far this month I have posted many healthy hints and tips. So to celebrate woman in honor of this month i'm going to talk about our special nutritional needs as woman.

Breast cancer. Osteoporosis. Iron deficiency. Weight reduction. What do these things have in common? They are either unique to women, or are more prevalent in women. And they affect current recommendations on what women should eat for optimum health.

While new information on what's good and what's bad seems to surface almost daily, some basic guidelines have taken root over the past several years.

eat a variety of foods
maintain healthy weight
choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol
choose a diet with plenty of vegetables, fruits, and grain products
use sugar and salt/sodium only in moderation
if you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.

That sounds simple enough. Except, what exactly is variety? Cake one day, cookies the next? What is a diet low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol? And, finally, what parts of a healthy diet have special importance for women?

There are several vitamins and minerals essential to a healthy diet. A well-balanced diet will usually meet women's allowances for them. However, for good health, women need to pay special attention to two minerals, calcium and iron.

So in the next few days i'm going to explore calcium and iron. Akong with thoughs I'm going to throw in a few other tidbits. I feel that if we spent so much time and energy on our finances, career, and family we should invest the most into our well being. Don't get me wrong i love my mountain dew, but it's no way to fuel my body for top performance. I would never dump dirty gas in to my car... it would run like crap, if it would even run at all. We spent so much time making sure our cars run well, but how much time and energy do we put into our own well being? I am the beat investment i will ever have.




Tuesday, March 09, 2004

Did You Hear about this story..it supposed to be true?
No Underwear

A couple who drove their car to Wal-Mart, only to have their car break down in the parking lot. The man told his wife to carry on with the shopping while he fixed the car in the lot.

The wife returned later to see a small group of people near the car. On closer inspection, she saw a pair of male legs protruding from under the chassis. Although the man was in shorts, his lack of under-pants turned private parts into glaringly public ones.

Unable to stand the embarrassment, she dutifully stepped forward, quickly put her hand UP his shorts, and tucked everything into place.

The wife stood back up, she looked across the hood and found herself staring at her husband who was standing idly by.

The mechanic, however, had to have three stitches in his forehead.

I thought it was kind of funny..what do you think..fact or fiction??

Todays Tip:Dinner
There has always been this notion that dinner should be the biggest meal of the day. However, I think that dinner does not have to be that grand because what you do after dinner may not require as much energy as what you did during the day. But I still look forward to dinner because I get most creative for this meal. I am going to take a different approach with this section. I am going to list nutritious low-fat recipes that are fairly easy to prepare. I always say if you can read and follow directions you can cook too!! These are traditional recipes with a healthy twist...And if you have any questions or need more ideas just let me know.
Chicken Cacciatore (Serves 6 )this is a great meal to share with others...
Ingredients:
6 med chicken boobs
2 T. vegetable oil, olive oil is even better
1/2 c. flour
2 med. yellow onions thinly sliced
1/2 c. chopped green pepper or red pepper if you prefer
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 tomatoes, quartered
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
4 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp. oregano, basil
Salt and peper to taste
Directions:

1. Wash chicken, pat dry; remove skin and coat chicken with flour.
2. In a Dutch oven or large saucepan, heat oil.
3. Brown chicken in oil; cook over medium heat for 7 to 10minutes.
4. Remove chicken from saucepan; set aside.
5. Add onion, green pepper, and garlic to saucepan; cook until tender.
6. Add remaining ingredients to saucepan; return chicken to pan.
7. Cover tightly and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes.

Try serving with hot cooked spaghetti( whole wheat would be even better), bread, milk, and fruit cocktail.
Okay that recipe was quite ambitious, but fairly simple don't you think?

Spinach-Cheese Frittata(Serves 6)
Ingredients:

1/3 c. chopped onion
1 T. olive oil
3 eggs
1 pkg. (10 1/2 oz.) chopped spinach, thawed and drained
12 oz. low-fat cottage cheese
1 T. flour
1/2 tsp. thyme(useful but not necessary ingredient)
1 tomato, sliced
1/4 c. fine bread crumbs
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a 10", ovenproof skillet, add olive oil and saute onion until limp.
2. In seperate bowl, beat eggs; then add drained spinach, cottage cheese, flour, and thyme.
3. Pour spinach mixture into skillet and stir with onions.
4. Place skillet in oven and bake at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes.
5. Add sliced tomato to top, sprinkle with bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.
6. Turn over to broil, broil 1 to 2 minutes until brown.

Try serving with tomato soup, crackers, salad, and fruit juice.
this is a great breakfast, lunch, or dinner

Red Snapper Supreme (Serves 4)Ingredients:

4 red snapper steaks
2 T. margarine
1 T. chopped fresh parsely
1/4 tsp. basil
1/2 carrot, minced(cut really small, if you have a food processor great)
1 celery stalk, minced
1 c. white wine
1/4 tsp. pepper
Lemon slices

Directions:

1. Melt margarine in baking dish.
2. Arrange fish in dish and cover with parsley, carrots, and celery. Sprinkle basil over top and pour the wine over.
3. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Arrange snapper on hot platter and pour sauce over it. Garnish with lemon slices. Serve immediately(19).

Try serving with baked potato, salad, fresh fruit, and water.

Okay that's all the recipes (for now!) that I have for you. Enjoy!


My Mom makes dishes similar to this..she really loves her fresh herbs from the backyard
cooking should be fun and easy, the best thing that i know how to do, and now cooking healthy is easy fun and tasty. It takes just the same amount of time to cook healthy..as it does to make an unhealthy meal. And some silly person says that if its good for you it doesn't taste good..well then there just missing out!!

Sunday, March 07, 2004

HMMMM...
Invisible accidents
Have you ever been driving on an interstate highway when traffic suddenly slows to a crawl? You inch along for many minutes while waiting to see the accident which must have caused the jam. At the same time you also curse the "rubberneckers" who are causing the whole problem. But then all the cars ahead of you take off at high speed. The jam is over, but no accident, no police cars, nothing. WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT! A traffic jam with no cause? In the rear-view mirror you see all the poor saps behind you still stuck in the jam. But why? If all those people could just speed up at the same time, the whole traffic jam would evaporate. Why don't they ever do that? What caused the mysterious slowdown in the first place?


Todays Tip:
Snacks

Snacking during the day can be dangerous because you may tend to eat many sugary sweets or sodium filled food such as potato chips. Eliminating snacking is definitely not the answer; snacking can serve as one of the many little meals you eat during the day. Here are some suggestions--that may require a bit of planning--for snack foods:


fresh blueberries

fresh fruit and nonfat milk "milk shake"

1/2 papaya filled with nonfat yogurt

1/2 cantaloupe filled with chicken salad or cottage cheese

air-popped popcorn

2 rice cakes(toasted) with a think slice of cheese

crunchy vegetables

peanut butter spread on a whole wheat bagel and topped

with raisins or banana slices

corn tortillas cut into triangles, baked until crispy, and served

with salsa

an English muffin topped with all-fruit jam

fruit-filled shredded wheat, Cheerios, and other ready-to-eat

cereals
If these seem to complicated or you are pressed for time, try snacking on the food that I mentioned above which you should carry with you at all times outside of home.

Friday, March 05, 2004

Do You Ever Wonder What this means???

More talk on ingredients.

What substances or ingredients can be listed as "natural flavor," "flavor," or "flavorings" rather than by a specific common or usual name?

Ingredients such as ginger, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, celery powder, and garlic oil may be listed as one of the three categories mentioned above. They may be designated as "natural flavors" because they are substances used chiefly for flavor. They do not make a nutritional contribution, are not derived from an animal species, and there are no health concerns linked to them.

i thought this was an interesting tid-bit.

Todays Tip
Lunch

I am going to focus on "brown bag" lunches. If you do have the option to stay at home and make something, you can still use these ideas. The easiest things to make are sandwiches. All you need is bread, lettuce (tomatoes, cucumbers, sprouts, and all the other vegetable fixings you like), mustard or low-fat salad dressing, and sandwich meat, if you like. Sandwich meat today is pretty low-fat, especially the turkey sold in prepackaged boxes. Tuna is also another ingredient for yummy sandwiches. So slap those ingredients and you will end up with a nice thick sandwich. You might also think about bringing a thermos of homemade chili, stew, or soup. As for drinks, try non-fat milk, fruit juice, or water. How about some fresh fruit or yogurt for dessert?
As you can tell by the short description, I do not think there's much to say about it besides what you can bring from home. I think it might be common for people to go out for lunch, later there will be tips for eating out. Plus another advantage of brown bagging it, less expensive, no lines, no traffic, and you can have exactly what you want!!



Thursday, March 04, 2004

Do you really Know what humble is???And do you want a slice??
Nanh...I skip it...

Humble Pie
Humble pie was a 17th century English dish made with the heart, liver, kidneys, etc. of a deer, baked in a crust with apples, currants and spices.

In Old English, 'numble' referred to edible animal organs (liver, kidneys, heart, etc). Originating in the 17th century, a 'numble pie' evolved into 'umble pie' and finally 'humble pie'.

Todays tip: Breakfast

Has anyone ever told you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? Probably, but do they ever tell you why also? I hope so because I can't emphasize enough what a bite in the morning can provide for the rest of the day, or at leats until lunchtime. Your body needs energy to start the day off and food will give your body that energy. So even if you aren't hungry in the morning, try to eat something or your body will start to take away from your muscles for energy.
Toast and jelly, fruit, cereal, bagel and cream cheese, non-fat or low-fat milk, and fruit juices are all great for breakfast. They are also your typical breakfast foods. Personally, I have often in the pastup ate leftovers from dinner for breakfast and I think there is nothing wrong with that either. It seems like that would be too heavy for the morning, but I think it is okay. However, it really depends on your preference. The important thing is to eat something.




Wednesday, March 03, 2004

Another funny day at the place I call work!!

Sometimes i am amazed at how gullable the new young culinarians are these days. It just makes me chuckle. Here let me give you background before i go into full detail. Fact
#1: My Boss Executive Chef L. was talking to a new Hire, he is fresh out of culinary school. #2 My boss could just about pull the wool over anyone's eyes. This is what happened:


Boss: "I've decided to give the cooks blunt knives -- they might hurt
themselves with sharp ones."
Cook: "But it will take us longer to cut all the vegetables."
Boss: "We'll just hire more cooks. And more middle managers, and chef team
leads, and Sous chefs.. And I'm writing a whole book
about How To Cut With Dull Knives. Besides, culinary schools don't bother
teaching people how to use sharp ones."
Cook: "We can teach them . . ."
Boss: "Not in time for our infeasible internal deadline for this meal!"

Ok..duh how can you fall for this one..I don't know if the new hire is just young..or stupid. He was ready to argue with the boss over this issue. Then all of a sudden my boss starts to crack up and turn a little red. He said He didn't think he would fall for it, He was just trying to get the new kid to feel a little for comfortable, And not act so serious. Because there is a time and a place for that..not in a kitchen, except when we get down to crunch time right before we serve a meal.

Pretty funny!!

Tip of today:

What Foods to Keep On Hand at All Times at Home

Life can get pretty busy and sometimes it is just so much easier to stop off at McDonald's or order a pizza for dinner. Now if your kitchen is always stocked with healthy and easy to prepare foods, you won't have to compromise your eating style because of time. The foods suggested below should provide you with several options of quick meals you could make.
Fill the cupboards with low-fat crackers( such as saltines), cans of kidney or garbanzo beans, fruits canned in their own juices, canned clams, and tuna packed in water(don't go over board with the tuna). If that's not enough, how about granola bars, low-fat spaghetti sauce(or make a big pot of sauce and freeze it in small containers), and pasta(try the whole wheat variety it's very good, we eat it 95% of the time)?

Fill the crisper with fresh fruits and vegetables and the freezer with frozen plain vegetables, fruit juice, and frozen yogurt. (have you ever had frozen grapes? athey are tasty too...

Tuesday, March 02, 2004

Happy Wednesday all!!A little peek into my day.
As you all know I’m writing this late on Tuesday and not early wed. morning. No I still have not become a morning person, but that is the price I have to pay for going into work around noon. It is sooo hard, ok not really! So today I enjoyed my day off from work. It wasn’t too exciting really. Did the usual stuff, starting off with waking up around 10 am. I had a cup of tea then a glass of water. Next it’s on to a small breakfast. Like cereal or fruit. It’s not the most balanced breakfast but I’m much better than I was before. I never used to eat any breakfast at all. It’s a very nasty habit to get into, trust me. i used to wake up in the middle of te night and stand over the kitchen sink and chow down on about anything. but one i started eating regular meals..that almost stopped. I also bicycle about everyday. During lent I decided not to give up this or that but to bike everyday even if my legs feel like they will fall off. They can't, can they? Hopefully I will gain better discipline. The whole idea of being disciplined is doing something even when I don’t want to!!! Lord knows i need it, not that i'm a slacker...
Today I biked about 10 miles in the morning on my stationary bike and in the afternoon my roomie Joe Bob got be to go a challenging ride around the area. I have to say my legs are fine but my behind is a little sore. Than about 8 pm we all had a lovely diner. That was earler than most nights. Remember it's not when you eat dinner but what you eat for dinner. I know you want to know what a chef eats on her day off??? I knew you would, well I'm going to tell you anyway. Today we started with a romaine salad with grape tomatoes and carrots. The dressing was Good Seasons powder Italtian mix balsamic vinegar and olive oil. EntrĂ©e was yummy,consisting seared Pork loin chops, finished in the oven with apple juice, Brown rice( if you haven’t tired this stuff it’s yummy and good for us) And our vegetable d’ jour was peas. Yep dinner was very good. But we don’t eat like this everyday or every meal. We are trying to since it is much better for us than some of that other stuff we eat.

Tip of today:What Foods to Bring with You at All Times Outside of Home

So much of the day is spent outside of the house now and so you need to be prepared for an attack of the munchies. As an alternative to candy bars, doughnuts, and other sweet temptations, try carrying low-fat foods such as apples, rice cakes, dried fruit, oranges, tomato juice, or a raisin bagel in your purse or briefcase, backpack, glove compartment, or work-desk drawer. And carry a bottle of water.



Hello All…
Sorry about the delay …but I’m back in action. I was crazy busy working the last 11 days. That’s right no rest for the weiry! And in addition to that my computer had a case of the grumpies. It was so full that it was about to pop so I had to dump some things onto discs. I thought it was an internet problem but I don’t think it was. So how everyone been? Were doing quit well thankyou!

Happy March everyone!! It’s national nutrition month. We are very excited and I hope you are too!!!

In September 1998 a group of scientists from around the world met at the US Department of Agriculture in Washington, DC for an International Symposium on Tea and Human Health, co-sponsored by The American Cancer Society, the Nutrition Committee of the American Heart Association, the American Health Foundation, and others. Dozens of new studies reaffirmed earlier work done in Europe and Asia that three or more 6 oz. cups of tea a day help fend off cancer, reduce heart disease, fight the negative effects of aging, and promote elimination of dietary fats, among other health benefits.
So in the up and coming weeks we are going to explore the benefits of drinking Tea. If you feel interested in tea you should check out this web site Near and Far Tea. And there pricing is very good!! And from my personal experience one you try the good stuff you will be hooked!!

I hope this will be an enlightning experience for all!!