Updates!

I realize I announced my Friday Foodie Linky Party and haven't done anything since then.  The last two weeks have been so incredibly busy for me, and some of that was unexpected.  The Linky Party will be back up next week.

Here is the update I'm most excited about:  I hit my goal!  I have lost 20 lbs, 25 inches, and have gone from a size 8 to a size 4!  (And even the 4's are getting roomy...)  I have never felt this incredible or alive!  My life is completely changed and I am so grateful for the opportunities I have had because of Herbalife!

The Shiny Coating on Candy

I have never been a huge candy eater. It was always cookies and cakes that sucked me in and put me in a sugar coma. But I did always have my candy favorites. My most favorite has always been candy corn. I have always loved the Autumn Mix with the pumpkins in it. Since I have cut sugar out of my diet, I no longer eat candy, so when I saw this video, I got a little queasy...

Most people think candy corn is just sugar, but there is way more to it than that.  The 'glaze' this video talks about is called Confectioner's Glaze, (in the food world), but it is also called Pharmaceutical Glaze.  It is usually made with Confectioner's Sugar, (powdered sugar), and 'food grade' shellac.  Nasty!  Shellac is also found in wood finish, primer, high-gloss varnish, etc., and is used in many foods to give it that shiny coating on the outside.  Some of these foods are candy and some are 'diet' foods.  Kinda shameful that shellac is an approved food coating.

The point to all of this is to remind everyone to read food labels!!  You don't know what's in your food unless you look and if you're trying to lose weight or get healthy, the 'diet' food you eat might be keeping you unhealthy or overweight.  If you'd like to learn more about getting healthy or how to lose/gain/maintain weight, email me at cheffiejo@gmail.com and I would be happy to teach you how I went from a size 8 to a size 4 and feel better now than I ever have!

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Last Friday I blogged about my new Foodie Linky Party and I gave a recipe for Baked Meatballs.  On Sunday, I made said meatballs and they were SO good!!  I also made whole wheat dinner rolls to go with them, (and fried apples...  mmmmm!).  I always forget to take pictures, (even though it was required in Culinary school), so I only have pictures of the wheat rolls.  They were an absolute hit and there was not a single roll left by the end of dinner!

Here are the rolls before I baked them:

And here they are after:

And here is the recipe:

Makes 2 large loaves or 35 dinner rolls

2 tablespoons nonfat dry milk powder

18 fluid ounces warm water (warmer than room temp, but not hot)

3 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

3 tablespoons honey

5 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

Directions:

1. In a mixer bowl, add milk powder, water, yeast, honey, and enough flour to make a pancake-like batter.

2. Sprinkle flour on top to make a 'blanket'.

3. Cover bowl with a towel and place in a warm spot, until flour on top cracks.

4. Pour rest of flour on top, then salt.

5. Mix with a dough hook attachment until dough starts to come together.

6. Add butter and mix 5-8 minutes.  Dough should be elastic, but not tough.

7. Pour dough out on clean counter, cover with plastic wrap and let sit 5 minutes.

8. Punch dough dough to knock all the air out.

9. Portion dough as desired and shape into loaves or rolls

10. Cover with towel and let dough rise until doubled in size.

11.  Put dough in sprayed pans and bake at 375 degrees (loaves - 1 hour, rolls - 20 minutes)

12. Immediately remove from pans and allow to cool.  May be brushed with melted butter.

Cancer & Radiation

The past couple weeks I have done a lot of reading.  I have always loved reading and I'm fascinated by different subjects, so I'm always reading books from various authors.  The book I just finished is 'Natural Cures "They" Don't Want You To Know About' by Kevin Trudeau.  In his book he talks about the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and how, in his opinion, they are making and keeping America sick.  I don't necessarily agree with everything he says, but he does have some valid points.  The book was very intriguing.

In the book, Kevin Trudeau talks about cancer.  He talks about possible causes ad why there has been such an increase of cases over the past couple decades.  He proposes that it is because of lack of nutrition as well as chemical additives in foods, lotions, etc.  He also talks about  how radiation, in fact, breeds cancerous cells instead of lessening them.  He wrote the book several years ago.  Today, I found an article on Yahoo News about radiation.  You can read it here.  It is interesting to note that we are just now 'hearing' that radiation is harmful.  Have you ever wondered why you have to wear a lead vest when you go to the dentist and get x-rayed?  It is to protect your heart from radiation.  Interesting, isn't it?

New Friday Linky Party!

After last week's Friday inspiration, Sarah at The Pumpkin Patch inspired me further.  Cheffie Jo's Blog will be hosting a weekly Foodie Linky Party!  Each week I will pick one recipe and convert it any way you want (for allergies, to reduce sugar or fat, etc).  So, here's what I'm looking for:  Leave me a comment with your recipe and how you'd like it to be revised.  Also, let me know if your recipe revision can be shared on the blog.

Here is today's Foodie Recipe:

Baked Meatballs
1 small red onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 lbs ground turkey
½ cup of grated fresh Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1/2 teaspoon sage

1/2 teaspoon basil

Preheat your oven to 375°F.

In a skillet, over high heat, cook the onion for 5 minutes or until softened.
Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Transfer to a bowl and mix in ground turkey, grated Parmesan, eggs, and seasonings. 

Roll into meatballs and arrange on a pan.
Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the meatballs are browned and cooked through.

Peanut... Peanut Butter!

Today, I would like to talk about peanut butter.  I LOVE peanut butter!  There are so many different kinds of peanut butter, though.  How do you know what to choose?  There are a few things to look at:

• Serving Size
• Calorie Count
• Amount of Protein
• Ingredients

Let's start with serving size.  For peanut butter, it varies, but it's usually 1-2 tablespoons.  The serving size and calorie count are directly linked.  If the serving size is 1 tablespoon and the calorie count is 200 calories, that jar may not be the best choice.  However, if the serving size is 2 tablespoons and the calorie count is 210 calories, that's about as good as it gets for peanut butter.

You want the amount of protein to be as high as possible.  A really good peanut butter choice will have at least 5 grams of protein per serving.  The higher the protein, the better.
The ingredients are what can really kill you.  If you see hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated anything on the ingredient list: run away.  Same goes for high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, partially modified anything, etc.
Here is my favorite choice:  Adam's Natural Peanut Butter.  There are two ingredients: peanuts and salt.  The salt content is extremely low, though.  The serving size is 2 tablespoons and it has 210 calories and 8 grams of protein.  Stir it up, then put it in the refrigerator so you don't have to stir it again.

Mmmm... Chocolate...

Boy, do I love food!  I did go to Culinary school, after all.  I'm sure most people expect to hear me talk about all the elaborate dishes I made in school, but the elaborate dishes aren't always my favorite.  Here are some of the elaborate sounding dishes I know how to make:  Ratatouille, Saffron Risotto, Fraisir Torte, Sangria, the list goes on.  Notice I said elaborate sounding.  Here is what these dishes are in plain English: Ratatouille is stewed vegetables arranged in a cool shape.  Saffron Risotto is as amazing as it sounds because true Saffron is $450 an ounce!  But risotto is basically a rice dish with some type of stock, (chicken, beef, vegetable).  Fraisir Torte is a type of cake-like torte.  It is pretty much gorgeous, (see above), but still simple to make.  The Sangria we made was white grape juice and tons of fruit that we put in the refrigerator to percolate overnight.

During my Intro to Skills class, we got to be creative.  I decided to make my secret chocolate cake. I've been perfecting the recipe for nearly ten years.  The funny part?  I don't even like chocolate cake.  The even funnier part?  I won't touch that chocolate cake with a ten foot pole now.  It is full of heavy cream and sugar and you gain ten pounds just looking at it.  My friend's birthday is Sunday.  She, too, eats very healthy.  So, in an effort to have cake and eat it, too, I have found a new, healthier chocolate cake recipe.  Here it is:

Healthy Chocolate Cake
1 1/2 cups flour (or Personalized Protein Powder from Herbalife)
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup Splenda, granulated
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup warm water

Procedure:
1. Sift the dry ingredients.
2. In separate bowl, mix wet ingredients.  Add to dry ingredients and mix gently.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Thanks to Sarah from The Pumpkin Patch for today's Foodie Friday inspiration!

Too Much of a Good Thing

Yesterday was Memorial Day.  I had a great day!  Before I get into what I did, I want to share what Memorial Day means for me.  My little brother is in Navy Boot Camp right now.  He is 19 and one of my very best friends.  I miss him dearly, but I am SO proud of him!!  He's extremely smart and dedicated to his work.  The military is not uncommon in my family, as my dad, uncle, and grandfather, (and some greats in there, too), were all in the military.    I am truly, truly grateful for the sacrifices they and hundreds of thousands of others have made so I can have the freedoms I have today.  I'm grateful that I can wake up in the morning and not have to wonder whether the water is safe to drink or the air clean to breathe.  I'm grateful to be able to walk down the street without having to hide my face because I'm a woman.  I'm grateful for the abundance of good food in this country and for the ability and freedom I have to teach people about that good food.  The freedoms I have are not lost on me and I am so very happy and proud to support the military of the United States of America.

Tangent?  Maybe, but I feel like I need to share my gratitude.

So, back to yesterday.  I had the opportunity to go to a Medieval Fair.  We saw lots of costumes and jewelry.  We saw jousters.  My friend's two kids each got a broken piece of lance, signed by the jousters.  It was cool.  After the fair, I had the opportunity to have dinner with some of the most amazing people I have ever met.  I was able to cook with and for them and spend time learning from them and sharing my own experiences.  We talked about so many different things, all over some of the most simple, incredible food!  We had grilled burgers, Italian sausage, chicken, pineapple, lots of fruit and vegetables, pasta salad.  So much food!  And, boy, did we eat!  Everything we ate was fresh and healthy and tasted so good!  My downfall:  the vegetables.  We were having such a great time, I didn't realize just how many vegetables I was eating.  Needless to say, by the time we were done, I was F-U-L-L!  Good thing it was vegetables and not sugar...