It's All In The Presentation

For dinner here with our friends last night, I decided to get out the Christmas table cloth and napkins and my mom's gold Rosemary depression glass and the gold silverware.  It looked quite festive.  I made the whole dinner; pot roast with potatoes and carrots and green beans with mushrooms.  Everyone seemed to enjoy it.  Then I made the pears. I got very creative and broke some cinnamon sticks in the pears after I put the rum and butter in.  Then, the last five minutes I put a tablespoon of marscapone cheese on the top and served it with whipped cream in a Rosemary dish.  They loved it.  I must say, I do like to be creative in the presentation of serving a meal to company.

A little brown sugar was added in baking

Ah.....the whipped cream; the finishing touch

Believe It Or Not....

I am cooking dinner for our friends tonight.  I know I have mentioned that I don't like to cook anymore, but pot roast with all the veggies is my speciality.  I can already smell it cooking; yum.  I am making the baked pears for dessert and bought some marscapone chesse to dab on top the last 10 minutes they are baking. I bought some fresh flowers for the table and things are shaping up. 
And I know I don't eat sugar and wheat but these Wyoming Whopper Cookies are the best.  They are like 3 cookies in one; peanut butter, oatmeal and chocolate chip. I am going to post the recipe. I can't believe I am posting such a decadent cookie on this blog!  I hope to make them tomorrow. You think I can not eat one?   

Don't Give Up

I have to tell myself that just because it is Christmas, I don't have to eat all those desserts.  To eat is just a few moments of pleasure for what?  Gas?  A sick feeling? a few pounds that are harder to get off than they were to get on?  So, not to feel deprived, I will make my yummy pumpkin pie, and my baked pears, and baked banana's are good also (that one's for you Kath), and I will use my coconut sugar to make them.  Hot sugar-free drinks are good too.  In fact, I have to go drink my sugar-free Chai right now.  And, I have to keep up with the swimming even though most of the ladies will not be there the rest of the week. It's an hour and a half out of my early morning; surely I can manage that.  
Time for my wheat-free blueberry pancake with chopped pecans.  I worked hard for it this morning.    

Baked Pears

It's winter almost and this is when I like to make my baked pears.  I cut the pears in half and take off the stem and cut out the seeds and core.  Then I put a little Rum in the hollowed out space; or you can use rum flavoring.  I put in a half of teaspoon of Smart Balance and some sweetener; a little brown sugar, stevia, or coconut sugar.  You can add chopped pecans if you like them.  I add a little water in the dish and bake them at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes until they are soft.  You can use Anjou pears or yellow pears.  Serve warm with a little fat-free whipped cream. 
I just read in a magazine where they added Marscapone cheese; that sounded good and I would add it the last 10 minutes of baking.

Gingerbread Cookies

Why did I buy the bag of little gingerbread men cookies at Target when I love them so much?  Eating them with tea is the best.  Well I had 1 yesterday and 1 today.  I think that is funny-why  just not have any?  Like I've said before, the pleasure of eating something like that is so fleeting, it almost isn't worth it.....almost. I guess if you can limit yourself; a hard thing to do this time of year it might be okay.  I'm a stickler for the rules because that is how I was brought up.  It doesn't matter if they are my own rules. Ha ha.  I tell you, some of the substitute wheat and sugar products make you feel worse than the real stuff.  You are better off not eating anything like that.  My chiropractor tells me to eat food that is as close to nature as you can get.  Oh...where does that put dark chocolate?  And coffee?   And tea?  And honey?  And Stevia?  And German Rock Sugar?  I will have to tell you about that sometime.  Those little gingerbread men are calling my name everyday.  Just eat them and get it over with and don't buy anymore!!!

DaVinci

                           
It was delivered last week and it is hmmm hmmm good.  These sugar-free flavorings make a cup of coffee or a cup of hot chocolate so much better.  Just ask my sistopher as she had the Cinnamon one in her coffee this morning with a little fat-free cream.  Yesterday, I had the Peppermint Paddy in my hot chocolate....very smooth.  It's like drinking an almost calorie-free dessert.  You will have to try some.  I am going to find a store that sells them.  

NO Wheat.....

the last couple of days.  Had a little sugar....one little gingerbread man....or was it two.  And then there is that one piece of chocolate I must have.  I tried my sugar-free DaVinci peppermint patty in my sugar-free hot chocolate and it was hmmmm good.  I have been actually hungry this weekend which is a change for me.  That is why I am going swimming at 7:00 a.m.today with my sister; I am sure we will be dragging ourselves there. She has been wanting to come and try it out.  She has lost weight, you can tell.  But somehow the thought of getting in a pool in the winter is not appealing especially when it is dark and cold when you start out, but exercise with diet is VERY effective.  Get on it people!  Find something.  Riles wanted me to go to Zumba with her Brownie class ha ha.  That one is not for me.  Whatever it is you can do, do IT!!!  And watch that sugar in the next two weeks, so you don't have to start all over again with the weight loss next month.  I am really talking to myself here....