Yogurt

I wanted to buy some yogurt tonight while at the store and had a coupon for Weight Watchers brand yogurt. I bought the Amaretto Cheesecake flavor and have to say it is the best yogurt I have ever tasted. It really took care of my sweet tooth. I will definitely be buying that one again.

Carol

"20 pounds in 6 months"

Yep, that's what my doctor told me last week. I knew it was coming and I had already decided to go back on my diet AGAIN. I can usually lose weight pretty fast, but then I can put it right back on just as quickly.


Why is it when you start a diet, all the commercials on television are about food? Were they always there, or did I just not notice them before? It's not that I'm hungry, because I do get to eat plenty on my diet, but it those darn commercials. McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Papa John's, they're all my favorites. At least I can eat at Subway on my diet. I love bread and can get my fix with a Turkey sub from Subway at least once a week.


Well, maybe since I have admitted to everyone on the world wide web that I am trying to lose 20 pounds, it will give me the incentive to stick to it. Oh, but don't worry. I will still have some great recipes on here. I won't resort to only posting diet recipes now. No way, this will be my own little way of legally cheating on my diet.

Carol

Bottle Tops

Have you seen the infomercial for Bottletops, if not click on the name and see what I'm talking about. I first saw these at my local convenience store and thought it was a pretty good idea. I finally bought one last week and used it tonight. I really like it.

It will be great for vacations, where we usually drink out of cans while on the road. I don't have to worry about about an occasional fly finding it's way into my can and then drinking it. YUCK! It also nice to not have to worry about knocking over a can and spilling the contents.

Personally, I think they are a little expensive. I paid $3.00 for just one at the convenience store. If you order them via the infomercial, they are slightly cheaper, but then you have to add on the postage. You also get either 10 or 12 when you order them. I think I saw somewhere that you can find them at Target, but not sure of the price.

Either way, I am happy with mine and my mother asked me to pick one up for her this weekend. One thing you must remember when using the Bottletop, you have to make sure you wash the top of the can. A lot of the drink stays on top of the can when you use it.


Carol

Fake Baked Apple Pie

Sooner, or later we all have cravings for something sweet. It usually happens to me sooner than later, and more often than I would like to admit. Today, I want to help you with those cravings with something sweet, simple, mostly healthy, and hopefully with ingredients that you already have in the kitchen.

I plan on making some these to have for dessert tonight. My favorite football team, the Indianapolis Colts, play the late game this afternoon and dinner time will occur at just about halftime. Now that dessert is taken care of, all I have to figure out is what to fix for dinner.

Carol

Fake Baked Apple Pie

1 small apple
1 graham cracker, plain or cinnamon 2- 1/2 square
1 t. brown sugar
Cinnamon, to taste

Cut the small apple in half, core but do not peel. Put the graham cracker, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a plastic bag. Using the back of a spoon, crush the cracker up to a large crumb consistency, then shake. Place the apples into a casserole dish and sprinkle the cracker topping over them. Cover and bake at 350° until the apple is very soft and crumb mixture is wet. Uncover and brown under broiler.

Christmas Candy

It's never too early to plan for Christmas and I really enjoy making Christmas gifts in the kitchen. Making up little gag gifts from food is something my family and friends look forward to each year from me. In the past, I have made Snowman Poop, Turkey Poop, Reindeer Food, Jelly Bean Christmas Trees, and Hot Chocolate Cones. This year, I think I will give a shot at making Pigeon Poop. I have included the recipe below.

What kind of odd food gifts have you given at Christmas? Let me know, I may want to borrow the idea.

Carol

Pigeon Poop

5 C. peanut butter crunch cereal
3 C. Rice Krispies cereal
2 c. small pretzel sticks, broken in half
1 1/2 C. mini marshmallows
2 lbs. white chocolate



In a large bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients. Melt the white chocolate in a double-boiler. Once melted, pour over the dry ingredients and mix well, but carefully. Spread the mixture out onto some wax paper and let cool. Once cooled, break the mixture into chucks. Store in plastic bags.

Grilled Cheese Casserole

I think casseroles are one of the most economic and easy dishes you could serve to your family. Most of the time, you can assemble everything in the casserole dish. Mix, bake and serve in one dish; very little clean-up, now that's my kind of meal. Today's recipe is for Grilled Cheese Casserole. It calls for four different kinds of cheeses, but don't worry if you don't like the cheeses listed, or don't have them on hand, you can easily substitute other cheeses in their place. I don't have a photo of this particular casserole and I couldn't find one anywhere on-line.

Carol

Grilled Cheese Casserole

1 tube of crescent rolls
1 C. each of shredded Muenster, Monterey Jack, Swiss, and Cheddar cheeses
1- 8 oz. package Cream Cheese, sliced
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 T. butter or margarine, melted
1 T. sesame seeds, optional

Unroll crescent roll dough, divide in half and line an ungreased 8 x 8 inch baking pan with half of the dough Make sure and seal the seams. Layer with all the cheeses and then pour the egg over all of it.

Place the remaining crescent roll dough (seams sealed) on top. Brush with butter and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake uncovered at 350° for 30-35 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

Southern Sweet Tea

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. It was a long holiday weekend and we had dinner guests on Sunday night. I had two slow cookers running, one with a pork loin in it and the other with my Chicken and Dumplings recipe. The pork loin cooked on high for about 6 hours and then I pulled the meat apart and added one bottle of my favorite BBQ sauce, Sweet Baby Ray's Honey. I actually think it needed more sauce, but I did set a second bottle on the counter for anyone to add more to their sandwiches. After having a house full of guests Sunday evening, I spent Monday relaxing on the couch.

Today, I wanted to share a beverage recipe. After I finish my coffee in the morning, you can usually find me with a glass of iced tea. No matter whether it is winter or summer, I enjoy a glass of tea over a soda anytime. I've always heard that Southern Sweet Tea is just the best. I wondered what they did in the south to make it so much better, so I looked it up. Every recipe I found was pretty much the same way as I make iced tea. Who would have thought that I actually make Southern Sweet Tea and didn't even know it.

Southern Sweet Tea

3 Family size tea bags
2 C. cold water
1 C. sugar

Place the two cups water in a pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add tea bags, and let steep for about five minutes. Pour warm tea into empty pitcher. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Fill remaining pitcher with cold water.