(Read more: Healthy Foods to Lose Weight – Foods That Help You Lose Weight – Good Housekeeping.)

 Here is a recipe for pear sauce to try, sounds yummy!

 Homemade Pear sauce:

 3 1/2 lbs. pears, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

1/4 cup water

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 – 1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

 Directions:

In a large saucepan, combine the pears, water, lemon juice, cinnamon, cardamom, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and boil gently, occasionally stirring, for 20 minutes.

 Transfer mixture to a food processor, working in batches if necessary, fitted with a metal blade and puree just until a uniform texture is achieved. Do not liquefy.

 Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Alternatively, freeze in one cup quantities in the freezer and store for several months.

 Today, you hear more about children with eating disorders then we did in the years past. The TV, radio, and internet all help your children shape their mind about how to treat food. Why not make a better choice and let them learn from you? I was looking for some good ideas to help out with this. This is what I found on WebMD.

 1. You should avoid putting restrictions on food – this can increase the risk of your child developing

2. Keep healthy foods readily accessible – typically children will eat what’s available! Keep the fruit bowl in eyesight.

3. Don’t label foods as “good” or “bad” – tie foods to things your child cares about, like sports or doing well in school.

4. Praise the healthier choices that kids make – such as fruits, veggies, etc.

5. Don’t nag your child about the unhealthy choices – when they choose the fatty foods try to redirect them to the healthier options!

6. Never use food as a reward!

7. Sit down to a family dinner as often as possible – research has shown that kids who eat at the dinner table with parents have better nutrition and are less likely to get into serious trouble as teenagers.

I truly believe that the nation of obesity that we have become can be OVERCOME and it has to start from our home!  Share your ideas on how we can raise food smart children – I would LOVE to hear them!

I just happened to find this “Modern Women of America Cookbook” online, and it intrigued me.  It is a PDF file of a 1913 recipe book that has been scanned and then put online, for those of you that are smart-alecks,like my hubby.  (“I didn’t know that they had the internet back in 1913 . . . [insert groan here].”)

I love old recipes.  For starters they are often healthier and used far less convenience type foods, for obvious reasons.  They also used far less sugar in their recipes.  And the things that people made in the generations before us just taste better . . . probably because they are healthier.  Go figure, LOL!

It was so much fun to look through all of the old biscuits, cakes, buns, cookies, pies, breads, and “breakfast helps”.  My 10-year-old future chef, and I, spent quite a long time pouring over all 297 pages of recipes.  And we have many a recipe in mind to try in the future, especially the Taffy and Turkish Delight.  It’s kind of neat to see recipes for so many things that we really only buy in the store pre-made now.  And to think, women were making these same things a hundred years ago in their own kitchens.  Kind of neat, when you really think about it!  Talk about blowing the dust off of an old book . . .

If old recipes interest you as much as they do us then click on the recipe book’s link here.  Who knows?  Maybe you will find your new favorite recipe in this book, you modern woman (or man) you.

Let me let you in on a secret. Forget the cookies–sauté some onions instead. Walking into a room filled with a cooked onion aroma will put a smile and a “let’s stay for supper” into anyone’s mind. The beauty of the onion is that the outcomes are endless. Will they go into a spicy vegetarian chili, be layered on top a juicy lean roast beef sandwich, or serve as the star in steaming bowl of French onion soup?
(http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/chop-onions-pro-without-shedding-tear-151100169.html)

I have to admit, I love a good onion. I grew up with southern grandparents who made Sunday dinner like a typical southern meal. Fried something, with mashed potatoes, green beans, yummy sweet cornbread, and a plate of onion wedges, or even a plate of delicious green onions. From as far back as I can remember and to this day, I have to have some type of onion anytime I make cornbread.

Whenever I have a burger, it MUST have an onion on it, and pickles for that matter. If I order a burger from a restaurant, my first request is “extra pickles and onions please”.

I have to agree with the article above, there is just something about the smell of an onion sautéing in a pan. So much better a smell in my opinion than the cookies! Don’t forget the taste, simply divine!

So, whether you are just chopping up veggies for a salad or grilling some burgers, I say “Don’t forget the onion!”

One of the things that I am learning as I grow as a cook is about how much of a difference having the right tool makes when preparing ingredients AND cooking.

You see, when my husband and I got married, our utensils, everyday dishes, and pots and pans were collected from a variety of places.  Our dishes and silverware were wedding presents that we had registered for.  Our “fine china” was a fun but nice set of dishes the I bought when I was a late teen that I still love .  Many of our pots, pans, towels, and kitchen utensils were my husband’s from before we were married.  And I even brought a towel set or two into the marriage that were former Christmas gifts from friends.

When you are a young married couple in love you really don’t necessarily care if all of your belongings are the best of everything.  But after 12+ years of marriage, and A LOT of practice in the kitchen, I have begun to realize how nice it is when you have the “right tools for the job”.

In light of this, we have begun to put together some kitchen items that we really appreciate.

One thing that we really appreciate is a good set of knifes for prepping fresh ingredients for our favorite recipes.  Our set is the green color coated set from Pampered Chef found at this link. *  Not only is it a nice set of knives, but I appreciate the fact that they come with protective sheathes on them for safety when storing them in the drawer.

I have also retired the old set of dishes that we received as a wedding present and decided to use our “fine china” as our “everyday dishes”.  Fun dinnerware isn’t as fun when it’s stored away the majority of  the time.  Why not enjoy it everyday?

Now I have my eye on some new pots, pans, cookie sheets, and utensils.  I HAVE HAD IT with pots and pans with flaking non-stick coating!  I AM DONE being embarrassed by my overly “seasoned” cookie sheets!  IT’S TIME to replace the utensils that are worn out and falling apart!

So, what do you recommend?  What items do you love that you think that we should know about?

* Disclaimer: Instead of putting a generic Pampered Chef link in my post, I decided to support one of my good friends, Bridget Whipple (of Waterford), by linking to her consultant page.  If you would rather not support her directly when purchasing something from them you may go to the regular Pampered Chef homepage here.

Naan, or Indian Flatbread, has been one such “rut buster” for our family.  It is so chewy and delicious!

We use it for many things in our house.

We use it for a personal size Pizza Crust, or a bread to make Garlic Bread.  Yummy!

It is also delicious as a “sandwich bread” with deli meats, cheeses, and other sandwich toppings.

It is super tasty when you wrap it around your favorite salad fixins’.  Mmm!

I’m also wanting to try it as a “taco shell”, or a Sloppy Joe “bun”.

Or it’s tasty just as a “dipping bread” to go along with your favorite meal.

And these are just the ideas that I’ve come up with.

So far we have only bought this bread at our local healthy grocery store, and while it was reasonably priced, I was very excited to find Food For My Family’s blog post about making Naan at home!

If you want to make this tasty bread at home, or you just want to see what in the world this Naan stuff is, head on over.  Here Shaina will show you step by step how to make your own.

And while I’m at it, I’m gonna have to see what other tasty recipes I can find there . . . hmm like the Buttermilk Custard Pear Pie here . . .

Happy Belated New Year!

Do you have any resolutions for this year?  If so, how are they going so far?

While is can be easy to come up with ideas of things that you’d like to change, we ALL know how hard it is to carry them out.

But when it comes to this blog, the irony is it is just the opposite.  It’s the ideas that I want.  And that’s where YOU come in . . .

I want YOUR input! 

What do YOU want to see here?  What interests you?  Recipes?  Personal stories from people like you?  Healthy eating?  Living a healthy lifestyle?  Something else not mentioned here?

Thank you in advance, and remember, I’ll be looking forward to your feedback with as much anticipation as I have for the next Dobrasevic box!

Some people are super planners when it comes to the holidays.  They have their entire game plan laid out a month in advance it seems.  Not me.  Admittedly, I am a PROcrastinator!

So what do you do when you are looking for super duper ideas for snacks and appetizers the week before New Year’s.  Hmm, lets search the family recipes and our favorite recipes sites to get some ideas, searching for recipes with some of what’s in our box, fridge, or pantry . . .(this is also a good way to treat your family to something special any day)

My family recipe stash has some cool ideas, like my mom’s famous BBQ Meatballs.  This is another recipe that I have been sworn to secrecy with.  The ARE THAT good! **

CopyKat also has a lot of awesome snacks and appetizers like the infamous “Blooming Onion”, Crispy Fried Wonton Pizza Bites, and Veggie Patch Pizza.

Tasty Kitchen also has a lot of cool but easy ideas like Homemade Fried Mozzarella Cheese Sticks, made by breading and frying String Cheese.  Here you will also find Bacon, Avocado, and Tomato Quesadillas and Jalapeno Cream Cheese Crescent Poppers among other tasty treats.  And the cool thing about this site is that you can actually enter the NUMBER OF SERVINGS that you want.  The site then alters the amounts of each ingredient needed automatically!

So what are your favorite personal recipes?  What are your favorite sites to find recipes?

Have kids at home?  Make a game of finding that perfect recipe (that’s age appropriate for their help) and make it together!

** I will share this top secret recipe with two lucky readers.  Be the first to comment on this blog post notice on Dobrasevic’s Facebook Page, and I will message you with the recipe (just in time for New Year’s if you hurry).  The first one to share this post on Facebook will also find a message in their Facebook inbox.  This offer expires New Year’s Day.

The search for Avocado recipes started out normal enough.

“OK, here are the recipes. Bacon, Avocado, and Tomato Quesadillas . . . sounds good.”

“Sandwiches, Guacamole, Soups even . . . yup, sounds good.“

“Wait!  What?!  Creamy Avocado Banana Pudding?  Avocado Cookies and Shakes??  Savory Avocado Doughnut???  Chocolate Peanut Butter Avocado Mousse???!  Are you kidding me?  And some of these crazy recipes are rated 5 oven mitts!  People REALLY like them!”

Hmm . . . maybe it’s time to rethink the humble Avocado.  Maybe it’s time to step outside the routine Guacamole and topping recipes.

What do you think?  If I’m brave enough to try something new, I’ll let you know how it goes . . .

Have you ever been brave enough to try a recipe that you weren’t sure about?  How’d it turn out?

-Not brave enough or are you a plain old Guacamole lover like me?  You’ll find the CopyKat recipe for  Chipotle Mexican Grill Guacamole here.