Water Rich Snacks!

Since I am chronically dehydrated, I have decided to have really healthy, water rich snacks. Here is today's snack: I had a half red pepper in the fridge and I am so proud of myself that I did not forget about it and let it turn slimy. I chunked it up and had it with some humus that I bought earlier in the week.
Lots of fiber and vitamins and I do love the taste. MMMmmm!

My Last Bag

OK..I am giving up potato chips.
They are my all time favorite comfort food, especially the thick super crunchy Kettle brand from Oregon and these Dirty Chips(which have the lowest sodium of any potato chip on the market. See the label as proof!)
Why, you may ask?
Well..because I want to be healthier. Potato chips have been implicated as possibly contributing to high cholesterol(which I have). I also need a good experience in resisting temptation. Believe me, this will be hard. Especially since this is how I usually get my raw onion in my diet since I always make my onion dill dip to go along with my chips...and I use 1 whole cup of finely chopped raw onion mixed with a cup of light sour cream plus the dillweed.

So about 5 days ago I finished up the last few chips in this bag...and that's that.

How Do They Do That?

OK..last Sunday evening I ordered 2 books from Amazon.com They arrived by special delivery (this cure Hispanic man who drives a special white van) the next day, Monday, in early afternoon. I have Amazon Prime, which Larissa gave me, which promises shipment in 2 days...but this..this is FAST! I am going to try again..that is..order something Sunday evening (tonight) and see what happens.

Finally, A Mug I REALLY Like

I know this sounds selfish, but I must report on the best mug for me, ever: I got it from Ross for 1.99 and it holds a little over 2 cups. It is very pleasant to hold and the thick rounded edge of the rim make it a pleasure to drink from! i bouth 5...each in a differenct color. But red is my favorite. So this is how I have my morning hot chocolate now.

The Best Way To Do Yams

Bake then at 425 degrees for an hour and 10 minutes or until they ooze and the oozings start to carmelize. Serve with real butter an cracked black pepper. Be sure to use foil on your baking sheet! Or you'll have a sticky blackened mess that will take a long time to clean off.

Tips for Next St. Patrick's Day

First of all, if you live near a Trader Joe's, get your corned beef from them:It has no nitrates! And very little fat compared to the ones in regular stores. And the combination of spices they use are really yummy.

Also..cook the carrots, potatoes and cabbage in a separate pot from the corned beef. Why? The vegetables take on too salty a flavor if cooked with the beef, plus they lose their vibrant color.


Our meal for March 17th: I also made Irish Soda Bread with 1/2 wheat flour.

Chocolate Dipped Macaroons

At any time, one will find in our fridge a container full of dark chocolate dipped macaroons.
They are easy to make! Below is a cookie sheet lined with Parchment paper of relatively big macaroons. The batch I made later gave me about 40 smaller macaroons
and I was more pleased with them. They all fit on one large cookie sheet.
A close up after they had backed at 350 degres for 15 minutes or so...

And here they are on a plate after being dipped and set in the fridge to harden.
These are the ingredients....except I forgot the vanilla.

C H O C O L A T E D I P P E D M A C A R O O N S

THE RECIPE...I got it from this site

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/bakers-chocolate-dipped-macaroons/Detail.aspx

However, this is how I do it ..I made some good changes:

1. Just use the whole bag (14 oz.) of coconut (Baker's or Mounds or whatever brand you want)

2. Therefore, you will not use the entire can of sweetened condensed milk...leave about 1/3 inch in the bottom of the can. (It is such a pain to measure out sweetened condensed milk into a measuring cup..I just pour it from the can, and leave some in the can...since you are using the whole bag of coconut ( original recipe calls for 2 2/3 cup coconut and then you are left with some coconut in the bag. My method eliminates leftover coconut.

3. USE PARCHMENT. Even when I generously grease the pan, the cookies stick like crazy. Actually this is more of a candy than a cookie. We love coconut...it is so good for you and it keeps John "regular".

4. Don't drop the mounds onto the parchment lined cookie sheet....grease your hands with a bit of oil and make balls.

5. Bake longer than the recipe says...that way the cookie will not fall apart, but be nice and chew. let them get golden on the edge and then some.

6. I use dark chocolate chips ...just microwave them in a bowl. Turn microwave off every 20 second and stir until all are melted.

Here are the ingredients I use (also vanilla...forgot to put in picture. Good Luck! ~Joanie

Do store in refrigerator, otherwise the chocolate get whitish and crumbly because, well, I did not temper the chocolate...I need to learn how to do that!