Thankful Thursday - Birds, A New Recipe, and a Tip

So much to be thankful for this week.  Cooler weather for one thing.  Now cool in Florida is quite different than most places.  Cooler here in central Florida is 80-90 degrees.  Nights are in the '70s.  It is wonder-full, Gail-Friends.  I can spend time on my porch in the mornings without two fans blowing on me.  I'm loving it!

This morning, I saw my first male painted bunting of the season.  October 3 is way early, so it must already be getting cold where this little snowbird lives.   Sorry for the bad (phone) photo.  Hopefully, I'll get more in the days ahead.

We had a great Rosh Hashanah celebration to welcome in the new year 5780.  Lots of shofar blowing:

food and fellowship:

Round challah is a tradition for Rosh Hashanah - and we had this beauty-full one made by our Miss Barbara

I made this hummus dish and it was a big hit with everybody.  I found it on a website and changed it up a bit.  Here's my version:

Ingredients:

2 containers of plain hummus
olives - whatever type you like
cherry tomatoes
baby carrots
Cumin
Paprika
Dried parsley flakes
Salt and pepper

 Preheat the oven to 350

Split the tomatoes in half and cut the carrots to small pieces.  Toss in olive oil, then roast until veggies are tender to your liking.  I did mine for about 45 minutes.

Let veggies cool, then sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

Empty the hummus onto a plate and use a spoon to spread it into a big circle.

Sprinkle cumin and paprika over the hummus.
Sprinkle the olives and tomatoes on top of the hummus
Place the carrots around the edges of the dish
Sprinkle all with the parsley flakes.

VWA-LA!!!  Refrigerate.

Serve with crackers or pita wedges.  SO GOOD!

I also made a sugar-free, gluten-free apple dessert.  It did not turn out good.  I figured out why later...I forgot to add the butter to the crumble topping.  (Martha Stewart I'm NOT!)  I must admit, the topping tasted like sawdust.  But the filling was fabulous!  I used glucomannan to thicken the apple juice.  That part was perfect.  It's a Trim Healthy Mama recipe if anybody's interested in making it, let me know and I'll give you the info.

Also, I'm thankful for a great tip I found this week.  I learned how to keep apples from turning brown.  It's so simple.  Core and slice the apples, cover them with water, and then add a tablespoon of plain old table salt.   I made these apples way ahead of time, stored them in the frig, and they stayed perfectly white  as you can see below:

I love getting to use my little bumblebee honey dipper.  Isn't it cute?

Minnie Blue met a new friend at the library this week.  She's thank-ful.

Well, that's all for this week, Gail-Friends.  I hope you have a great week ahead.  Shalom and blessings to you.

Thankful Thursday - Hurricane Praises & Chocolate Truffles!

 


THANK YOU FOR THE PRAYERS. We are praising God because Dorian passed us by last night and today (DOWN FROM A CATEGORY 5 TO A 2) and we had very little rain, no yard or home damage from wind. AND, we didn't lose power!   There was lots of damage to the beaches and the sea turtle nests, but not to people or homes. He's riding close to the coast a he goes north, so keep praying friends.   Our prayer was for him to turn east and to lose strength!  Haleluyah!

My dear husband and our son-in-love worked like Turks to get ready for the storm.  We couldn't have done it without dear William.  After William finished boarding up their house and helping his parents, he came to help Jem with the new generator.  They worked for hours on it  setting it up, adding oil,  and letting it run. Then when it was time to drain the oil, the nut where the oil drains would not come off because the tool to release it was not in the box.  They tried all of Jem's tools and asked a neighbor if he had one -- but no luck.  William finally found a tool somewhere, somehow and they got it done!!  


I was amazed at the endurance and strength of my sweet husband - who just turned seventy-three.  He worked from morning till night on Monday boarding up and moving plants and moving the stuff on the patio to the shed. At the end of the day, his poor feet had huge blisters. But, even as tired as he was, he saw our neighbor struggling to move something and went across the street to offer his help.   He's a hard-working man and I admire him so much.  He never gives up and never gives in until the jobs is done -- and done well.  All of this is done with NO complaining.  What a man! Can you tell I love him?  I love my son-in-love, too.  Men like those two are very rare and I'm thankful for them both.

We started preparing for Dorian last Wednesday - that's a whole week, Gail-Friends!  While organizing the shed and cleaning off the patio, I realized we still have too much STUFF!  This, after cleaning out and donating three van loads of STUFF before, during, and after the garage re-do.  So, the van is filling up once again.  We both worked hard getting ready in the house and the yard, and I told Jem, "This is why old people move to condos."  

God was so good to us in not letting anything happen to us or our neighbors and we give him all the praise and thanks.  

The weatherman is talking today about more storms in the Atlantic that could be headed our way.  I told him, "Shut your mouth!"  (Yes, I talk to the TV.) Those memories of three back-to-back hurricanes in 2004 are still very fresh!  It could happen, Gail-Friends, so,we came through Dorian with resolve to do two things:

1.  To talk to our neighbor about cutting down the three pine trees adjacent to our front yard, one of which leans toward Golden Cottage.  That was our biggest concern.  

2.  To purchase storm shutters that stay on the windows all the time.  Putting plywood up is a tough job.

While we were waiting for the storm to arrive and then move north, I was struck by a burst of energy and a burning desire for ORDER!!!  I cleaned cabinets and closets like a mad woman.  I organized my office files and decades of  family photographs, records, and cassette tapes.  So, thanks to Dorian, I'm super organized.  

I also decided to color my hair and give myself RED highlights.  Then I decided to cut it.  All of this was NOT a good idea, so I'm not sharing any pictures.  My daughter, Amanda, is going to try to  help me tomorrow.  

While we waited (and listened to the weather people go on and on)  I went through recipes and found  a wonderful treat I have to share with you.  During hurricanes in the past, I ate crunchy junk food and chocolate -- but not this year!  I loaded up with raw veggies with hummus, triple zero yogurt, and THIS Trim Healthy Mama treat:  

Easy-Peasy to make, too!

 the picture and recipe makes seven large marble sized truffles

TWO MINUTE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES from My Montana Kitchen

I'm telling you, Gail-Friends, I could kiss the feet of this woman.  Jem ate Snickers and I ate these wonderful treats, which are sugar-free, low-carb, gluten-free, dairy-free, keto, and THM-S.  You have to visit her blog because she has tons of good, healthy recipes. The blog post has the ingredients and instructions and, like she said in her post, don't be ashamed if you eat it with a spoon right out of the bowl.  I asked Jem if he'd like to try it and he loved it.  So, I made a double batch the next day.  (The Trim Healthy Mama books are available on their website. They also have a Facebook group that's very helpful.)


I was determined to stay on track with my health goals through the hurricane and I praise Hashem for giving me the strength to eat right.  I've lost sixteen pounds over the past four months and I feel fabulous!  I've been exercising four or five days a week, too.  I do two pool days and two gym days weekly, and then walk on the weekend.  I've been working with a personal trainer and she has taught me so much.  I told Jem I think I'm getting addicted to exercise because I really missed going over the past week. I still haven't experienced those endorphins people talk about, though.

Please continue to pray for those in the path of Dorian as he heads north.  Let's just pray he heads further east and fizzles out completely.  And pray for those in the Bahamas,too.  The reports are horrific - people were killed and thousands of homes are completely destroyed.  They're going to need lots of help, so let's pray about what we can do to assist them.

Blessings and have a good week.  Let me know if I can pray for you.

~~~~~

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Make It Monday - Trim Healthy Mama Key Lime Pie

Our lime tree has flourished lately.  We had about a dozen over the last couple of weeks, with more coming on.  Rabbi Jem wanted a Key Lime pie, so I made one this week.Our limes aren't Key limes, but they are very tasty.  The recipe called for lime juice in the filling as well as the topping, so it was nicely tart...just the way Jem likes it.

The recipe I used is from this website:  Mrs. Criddles Kitchen .  She has lots of other wonderful recipes for the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating. Be sure to stop by to see all of her resources. 

We took the pie to a party, and everybody raved about it.  I let them know that there was no sugar and no gluten. I used Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet for the filling and topping, and the crust was made with Trim Healthy Mama Baking Blend.  No one complained.  It was wonderful to have an on-plan dessert, and I had no desire to eat the sugary cake that was also on the menu.

I promise not to bore you with talking about my health, but I hope this will help someone. I find out recently that I have an under activc thyroid, and I attribute that to my struggles with weight loss lately.  Now that I'm on the medicine, I expect to continue to lose.

I've been on the meds for about three weeks, and over the weekend, I began to feel like Wonder Woman.  I've had so much energy, and am working from morning to night without being tired.  I'd felt bone tired for a long time, but I just figured I was getting old.   My other symptoms, in addition to struggling to lose weight,  were being cold all the time, and thinning of the outside of my eyebrows.

But, back to Trim Healthy Mama...I highly recommend the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating, not just for weight loss, but also for health.  The plan uses whole foods, and is sugar free.  There are also many recipes that are gluten-free.  Eliminating the sugar and gluten has been very helpful for me.  It eliminates cravings, brain fog, and being congested in the morning.  Check out their Facebook groups, Pinterest boards, and You Tube videos.  You will find a wealth of helps for eating healthy.  I love Trim Healthy Mama!


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I sometimes share my posts  with  friends at:  

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I Love Trim Healthy Mama

                                                  

I LOVE TRIM HEALTHY MAMA

                      
I learned about Trim Healthy Mama from Facebook, and was intrigued by the success so many ladies were having by losing weight with this method.  I ordered the book and was immediately intrigued by a plan of eating that uses whole foods, including real butter, and a thing called Skinny Chocolate.  Could it be possible to lose weight eating full-fat foods and candy??????  I had to try it!

Since starting the food plan in mid-January of this year, I've lost sixteen pounds, which is an average of about five pounds a month, an inch from my hips and waist, and I love this new way of eating. Basically, the method is not to mix fats and carbohydrates.  Doing this forces your metabolism to do a kick start by burning different fuels.  Also, you must wait at least 2 1/2 to 3 hours between meals or snacks.

The food plan has a bit of a learning curve, and I admit it was difficult at first because I was so used to eating carbs and fats together, such as grits and eggs for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch.  I hung in there, however, and now find it quite easy to separate my fuel sources.  I can still have a sandwich, but don't add fats such as mayonnaise or high-fat cheese.  I can still have coffee with cream, but not with carbs such as oatmeal.  When I eat oatmeal, I drink hot tea.

The plan includes lots of healthy protein and vegies, whole grains, fats like coconut oil and pure butter, and low glycemic fruit.  Oh, and chocolate!  I love Skinny Chocolate, and there is absolutely no guilt involved, believe me.  It's actually good for me.  Another thing I love are the Trim Healthy breads and baked goods that use alternatives to wheat. I'm a big fan of their Muffin in a Mug!  Yummy, and it tastes like cake!

I highly recommend the Trim Healthy Plan book, cookbook, and lifestyle.  You can learn more by clicking HERE.  I'm pleased to be an affiliate with the company because the owners are committed believers and write about Biblical principles in their books and  Facebook groups.  They are having a great sale right now, and any purchases you make through this LINK will give me a small benefit.  I'd really appreciate that!

In the weeks ahead, I'll be posting about my progress and sharing my menus and some recipes.  I think you'll enjoy learning about this wonderful, healthy, long-term lifestyle.  Let me know what you think, Gail-Friends!