theworldaccordingtoeggface

A day in my pouch

2012-01-25T05:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday in post weight loss surgery eating...

Breakfast: Well I woke up to a busted water heater. We thankfully caught it before too much damage was done, water was confined to the garage but uggggh grrrr #&$%ity, #&$% #&$% #&$%! I spent a good part of the morning making phone calls and then waiting for call backs so I had time to make a batch of my Pancake Bites.

I couldn't make up my mind what kind I wanted the original sausage, the bacon, or the fruity version. So I made all three. Sausage are my favorites. I love that sausage & maple combo. My Mum loves the blueberry ones.

Shelly's Pancake Bites

1/2 cup Multigrain Pancake Mix, dry
1/3 cup Soy Milk (any milk would do)
1/4 cup Torani Sugar Free Caramel Syrup
Assorted Toppings: Cooked Sausage, Crumbled Cooked Bacon, Fruit (I used frozen blueberries but banana slices or apples are yum too)

Mix pancake mix, milk, syrup together till thoroughly combined. Pour batter into a non-stick 12 cup mini muffin tin that has been sprayed with Pam. Fill about 3/4 way up.

Top each muffin with sausage, bacon or fruit. Make all one flavor or a combo. If you set the ingredients out family members and whippersnappers can make their own... banana blueberry bacon surprise.

Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until golden. Serve with warmed Sugar Free Maple Syrup.

Lunch: One of my easy go-to favs: Shrimp and Cocktail Sauce.

Dinner: Monday night, in honor of Chinese New Year I made meatloaf. I know what you are thinking meatloaf?! Ummm Eggy that's not very Chinese. Seriously this was yummy, a few Asian flavors transformed this classic American diner food into a delicious dinner fit for an emperor. Leftovers reheated were just as yummy. I served them on Monday with a green salad and the leftovers I served with sauteed onions (like the ones I make for my Faux Spaghetti & Meatballs.)

Shelly's Chinese New Year Meatloaf

6 Large Mushrooms, diced
1/2 cup (1/2 of a small can) Water Chestnuts, chopped (found in the Asian food aisle)
3/4 pound Ground Beef
1/2 pound Ground Pork
1/4 cup Oatmeal, uncooked
1/4 cup Milk
1 Egg, beaten
4 Green Onions, diced
1/2 teaspoon Garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Ginger, grated
1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Sherry
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper
Butter/Oil for sauteing

Saute mushrooms till golden. Add water chestnuts. Cook 1 minute more. Set aside to cool. Soak oatmeal in milk for 1 minute. Beat egg. Add egg and soaked oats to ground beef and pork. Add cooled veggies and all remaining ingredients. Mix till combined.

Divide into 8 equal mounds. Form into mini meatloaves or if you have this super groovy pan like me use it (spray with Pam.) Bake for 45 minutes total in a 350 oven. At the 30 minute mark you can glaze the meatloaf with my optional Year of the Dragon Glaze then return to oven to finish cooking.

Shelly's Year of the Dragon Glaze

2 Tablespoons Ketchup
2 Tablespoon Sweet Chili Sauce

Mix together and brush on meatloaves. Continue cooking for final 15 minutes. I use regular ketchup and chili sauce (found in the Asian food aisle, sometimes called Thai Sweet Chili Sauce) they do make low sugar or no sugar ketchup but I just use the real deal. If you dump easily skip this but divided over 8 mini-loaves it's really not that much sugar.

Snacks: Too much coffee and at some point I logged on to twitter and found out it was National Peanut Butter Day so I made a batch of Peanut Butter Swirl Protein Ice Cream. I ate it while I watched Tori & Dean Home Sweet Hollywood (I'm a sucker for reality TV) over the sound of the monstrous dehumidifier unit doing it's thing all night in my garage. Tomorrow a new water heater goes in, in a temporary location while we sort out the drywall damaged area. $$$.

Shelly's Peanut Butter Swirl Protein Ice Cream

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
2 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder
2 Tablespoons Torani Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup
1/4 cup Powdered Peanut Butter (AKA PB2, Peanut Flour, Defatted Peanut Butter)

Mix together milk, protein, syrup, powdered peanut butter. I used this gadget to mix it up. It makes it airy and lump free. If you don't have one of those just whiz it on super turbo high in the blender, you want airy. Pour into ice cream maker. Follow your machine's instructions for freezing.

You can eat it right away it is soft serve-ish but I like to put it in the freezer to set for an hour or so to get scoopable. If you leave it longer and it gets too hard just nuke ice cream 25 seconds to soften again. Optional: I took 2 Tablespoons of regular Peanut Butter, nuked 30 seconds, then drizzled it on the soft serve before I put it in the freezer. So each scoop gets a little swirl of peanut butter in it.

Other Eggface Protein Ice Cream flavors
Protein Ice Cream 101

Well, it wasn't a great day in my world but I sure did eat well.

More "A day in my pouch" posts

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Hot off the press

2012-01-22T10:46:00.000-08:00

A little local press for the donation project. My Mum made me go out in the cold this AM to procure a paper. She saves things like this, still.

Link to the article: TEMECULA: Woman’s donation matches weight loss | Breaking News | PE.com - Press-Enterprise

Anyone want to see my 1st grade report card I bet she has it ;)

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Join me!

2012-01-19T11:27:00.000-08:00

Losing 158 pounds has been life changing. I feel like I have been blessed with a second chance and I just want to celebrate this healthy new life every day.

Last month, I was thinking it would be fun to celebrate my weight loss by donating one non-perishable food item for every pound I've lost to my local food bank. I set aside a few bucks, collected coupons, trolled sale papers and I'm excited to announce I met my 158 item goal and will be donating all this tomorrow...

This was so much fun. I'm so excited to drop it off. I decided to post about it on the blog in hopes others will want do the same thing or something similar. Think about it... if we each took on a project like this what an awesome impact we would make as a community.

If you don't want to donate food, maybe you could do toiletry items (toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo) or clothing. Maybe cans of dog and cat food to your animal shelter. Maybe donate $1 for every pound lost to a favorite cause. May I suggest the Obesity Action Coalition or The Weight Loss Surgery Foundation of America. Maybe you could donate volunteer hours to your local senior center or hospice or something near and dear to your heart. The possibilities are endless and exciting.

I hope you will join me. If you email me a picture or let me know what you've done I'll give it a huge shout out on the blog.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. ~Margaret Mead

A Tale of Two Tortilla Pizzas

2012-01-16T10:01:00.000-08:00

Last night I had a Tortilla Pizza Party while watching the Golden Globes.

The highlight of the show was Morgan Freeman accepting the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement award. So many awesome movies. The montage made me want to turn the Globes off and pop in, "The Shawshank Redemption." Probably should have.

My pick for best dressed was Jessica Alba in that pretty lavender Gucci dress and representing the dudes (they have it so easy) my pick was yum George Clooney. I loved the midnight blue color of Sofia Vergara's dress but not the style. I'm not feeling the whole Little Mermaid, fish tail trend. She looked like she should jump in the water and swim off with Tom Hanks.

The show was OK but dinner was awesome...

Shelly's Meatball and Ricotta Tortilla Pizza - Mission Carb Balance Whole Wheat Fajita Size Tortilla, Leftover Meatballs and Marinara Sauce, dollops of Ricotta Cheese, a sprinkle of Oregano and Parmesan.

Shelly's Philly Cheesesteak Tortilla Pizza - Mission Carb Balance Whole Wheat Fajita Size Tortilla, Leftover Sauteed Onions reheated with a Tablespoon of Worcestershire Sauce, a slice of Boar's Head Low Sodium Roast Beef, and topped with Cheddar Cheese.

The Eggface Pizza Porn Gallery

How to make them: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. I put 1 drop literally of olive oil on the cookie sheet and spread it around. Place tortilla on cookie sheet. Spread the sauce on the tortilla (pesto, marinara, alfredo, bruschetta sauce, BBQ sauce, hummus, ricotta cheese, (peanut butter or ricotta for dessert pizzas.) Put cheese on top of the sauce and then I add any combination of toppings or leftovers I can find bumping around the fridge. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan if desired. Pop in oven. 10 minutes exactly. Have the oven hot before you do the toppings **Do not let them sit. Pop them in the oven right away or the toppings will make the tortilla soggy versus the yummy crispy pizza porn pictured above.

FAQ's:

How much is a serving?

The answer is: serving size can vary. What I eat as a 5 1/2 year weight loss surgery post-op is a very different amount than a 3 month, 6 month, post-op. My standard answer when it comes to portion size is: always go with what your medical posse recommends. For me if the toppings are protein dense like the one's pictured above then I usually eat 2 wedges and call it a day. If they are lighter just cheeses, veggies or pepperoni. I can eat the whole pizza but remember these are 6" fajita size tortilla (not typical size tortillas) If it's lighter toppings and I'm having a scoop of bean salad or a green salad with it I eat 2 wedges.

What's the nutritional value on (insert Eggface recipe)?

I don't put the nutritional info on my recipes because frankly that can vary so widely. I use full fat cheeses (the good stuff) others may use low fat or (horror) non fat, the % fat on beef, differences in packaged products, brands of protein, etc. will change the info dramatically. I eat full fat (cheese, butter, olive oil, etc.) Fat = flavor. I eat it in moderation (thanks to my pouch and my lifestyle changes) if I ate Reduced Fat or Fat Free (aka nuclear waste) I wouldn't be satisfied and in an hour I'd be thinking about my next meal. I eat yummy, lip smacking stuff so I never feel like I'm on a diet or suffering in my new life.

What I do when I need to find the nut info is go to a site like fitday.com type in each individual ingredient, this will give you cals, carbs, fats, protein gram totals, then divide by the # of servings you get from the dish. It's not exact but it's close enough for me.

Where do you find the Mission Carb Balance Whole Wheat Fajita Size Tortillas you use?

I get mine at Albertson's, Vons, Winco, I have seen them at Walmart a few times. If you don't have those stores near you contact the Mission Tortilla web site. Here's another "crust" option I use on occasion.

More Eggface Pizza Porn

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A day in my pouch

2012-01-15T13:35:00.000-08:00

My yesterday in post weight loss surgery eating...

Breakfast: Mixed up a protein shake and hit the farmer's market for some veggies and fruit for the week. I didn't get too much this week. I'm trying to use up my freezer stock (casseroles and soup plans this week) so just some onions, mushrooms, garlic, apples, olives and the world best feta cheese from the Greek olive man.

Shelly's Cherry Vanilla Protein Shake

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Black Cherry Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
1/4 cup Frozen Cherries
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream, optional.

I worked a little in the garage on my never ending organization project. Every day I try and do a little at it. I've made at least 10 trips to the thrift (I have a 2-seater car) and had them come once to pick up big stuff. I'm almost done but every time I say that I see something else. I basically have 2 more floor to ceiling cupboards and a rack of tubs to go through. For those that don't know, I have a degree in Political Science and Child & Family Studies, the plan was to go to law school to become a Child Advocacy Attorney, but alas roads change and at one point in my past I was the Curriculum Director for the largest child care center (infant to 12 years) and private Kindergarten in the state of California. I have several tubs from those days. I can imagine it will mean several more thrift store runs.

Lunch: I packed up my super cool bento box and took it to the beach (my zen zone) I had some errands in the area so it was a little business mixed with a lot of pleasure. I needed to stare at this for a hour or so and recharge...

and enjoy this yummy lunch...

Pink Box (top left): Tomato, Basil, Feta Salad w/drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar
Green Box (top right): Cucumber Slices (my crackers)
Blue Box (bottom left): Salami and Provolone Slices
Orange Box (bottom right): 1/2 a Peanut Butter & Jelly Quest Protein Bar

More Bento Box lunches

Dinner: Took a few of the onions from the morning market haul, sliced them and cooked them low and slow till they were soft and just beginning to caramelize. Served them with Turkey Meatballs, Marinara Sauce and a sprinkle of Parmesan Cheese on top.

Generally I don't like pasta replacements. I don't do wheat or tofu noodles (there's Sicilian law against using those, not really but there should be) but I love to use veggies as a pasta replacement like these "Spaghetti" Onions or my Zucchini Manicotti. I actually prefer them and would choose them over pasta any day.

Snacks: Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce No Whip Soy Latte, a Cutie Mandarin, and 4 Frozen Protein Drops. I love those little suckers.

Tonight it's the Golden Globes. I love the arrivals to see what everyone is wearing & the last 20 minutes or so when they give away the best actor, actress, the middle of the show is like Charlie Brown's parents talking, "Wahwah wah wah." A snooze fest. Though they serve booze at the Globes and that can make for some interesting speeches. I'm making some snacks with some of the leftovers from above so I'll snap a few pics to share and post later or manana. Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Girl Scout Cookie Combat - 2012

2012-01-11T11:08:00.000-08:00

It's that time again. There's no getting away from them. Those smiley-angelic faces are everywhere, a sweet chorus of little voices, "Would you like to buy some cookies?" In my neighborhood you can't get in a store or bank without being hit up. The itsy-bitsy Daisies (first level Girl Scouts) are the worst. That should just be illegal, they are too darn cute. How do you say "No" to those?! It's just plain mean.

Ahhh but mean I must be because those little angels are hawking some of my pre-op crack. Not sure they still are packaged this way but Thin Mints boxes used to come with two sleeves of cookies inside. Wasn't that two portions? ;) Seriously though it's way too easy to eat a ton of them so since weight loss surgery they just don't get through my door.

Still jonesing for those iconic Girl Scout cookie flavors. Try these healthier ways to satisfy the urge...

This year in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Girl Scouts, in addition to classic favorites like Thin Mints, Samoas, and Tagalongs, the little whippersnappers will sell a new lemon cookie called Savannah Smiles (Savannah, GA is the birthplace of founder Juliette Gordon Low) so of course I had to make a yummy lemony alternative...

Shelly's Lemon Protein Shake (aka Savannah Smiles™)

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
2 teaspoons Lemon Jello Powder, dry
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream and sprinkle of Jello powder, optional.

Shelly's Chocolate Mint Protein Shake (aka Thin Mints™)

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Peppermint Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Unsweetened Cocoa
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream and a shaving of SF Mint Chocolate or drizzle of SF Chocolate Topping, optional.

Shelly's Caramel Coconut Protein Shake (aka Samoas/Caramel deLites™)

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Caramel Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Coconut Torani Syrup
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream, a sprinkle of Toasted Coconut and a drizzle of SF Caramel Topping, optional.

Shelly's Peanut Butter Chocolate Protein Shake (aka Tagalongs/Peanut Butter Patties™)

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Chocolate Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Peanut Flour (aka PB2, aka defatted Powdered Peanut Butter)
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream and shaving of SF Chocolate, optional.

Shelly's Peanut Butter Protein Shake (aka Do-si-dos/Savannahs™)

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
1 scoop Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Peanut Flour
2-3 cubes of Ice

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with a squirt Sugar Free Land o Lakes Whipped Cream and a few chopped Peanuts, optional.

Here's a great variety pack that includes the Sugar Free Torani flavors used in the shake swaps.

Ways you can still support the Girl Scouts:

Buy the cookies and leave the boxes with the troop. I'm sure the girls would like a snack (it's hard work selling crack) or can re-sell those boxes to others (double their $) or some troops are collecting cookies for Operation: Taste of Home (cookies for the US soldiers serving overseas)

If your sister, friend at work, neighbor is asking you to buy them from their kids and you feel like you must *cough* emotional blackmail. Tell your sister, friend at work, or neighbor to keep the cookies. They can figure out what to do with them.

Donate your saved cookie $ to the Girl Scouts. I was a Girl Scout (photo evidence below) The cookie sales money we made helped us go camping each year. Give them money instead.

Or if you can be strong on the car ride... buy the boxes and drop them off at your nearest food bank.

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Leftovers transformed

2012-01-09T06:36:00.000-08:00

Repurposing: Transforming leftovers into something equally as yummy. The goal is for them to taste and look so completely different you don't realize you are having leftovers.

This was dinner...

Shelly's Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie

1 Sweet Potato
2 Tablespoons (plus a teaspoon for sprinkling) Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Tablespoon Milk
Kosher Salt to taste
1 pound Ground Beef (or Turkey or Sausage)
1/2 cup Frozen Peas
1/4 cup Shredded Carrot
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
a few twists of Black Pepper

Nuke sweet potato till soft about 9 minutes. Peel and mash with 2 Tablespoons Parmesan, butter and milk. Add salt to taste.

Saute beef till no pink is seen. Add peas, carrots, soy sauce and pepper. Mix to combine. Divide mixture equally in 4 ramekins till 3/4 full. Save any leftover meat in fridge for the delicious beginnings of breakfast the next day.

Top each ramekin with the mashed sweet potato mixture. Sprinkle with a little more Parmesan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. I served them for dinner with a simple green salad.

Leftovers repurposed into a delicious breakfast the next day...

Shelly's Leftover Shepherd's Frittata

1/2 - 1 cup remaining meat mixture from making Shepherd's Pie
2 Eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Feta or Ricotta Cheese
1 Tablespoon Parmesan
Fresh Basil

Heat leftover meat mixture in oven proof saute pan till warmed through. Pour beaten eggs over. When egg is almost set, spoon dollops of cheese on top and sprinkle with Parmesan. Place in oven on broil for 5 minutes till top is golden. Sprinkle with fresh, chopped basil before serving.

Mission accomplished. Nom squared.

More leftover transformations.

Frozen Protein Drops

2012-01-06T11:57:00.000-08:00

A quick and easy, weight loss surgery friendly frozen protein snack...

Shelly's Frozen Protein Yogurt (or Pudding) Drops

1/2 cup Greek Yogurt (or Sugar Free Pudding)
3-4 Tablespoons (to taste) of any Protein Powder

Mix together till well combined. Line a baking sheet with wax paper and drop tablespoons of the mixture (yields about 25 drops)

or fill an ice cube tray.

Freeze till solid about 2 hours. Store in the freezer (up to a week or so) and pop a few in your mouth whenever you want a frozen protein treat or add to smoothies for an extra protein boost instead of ice.

In this batch I used Celebrate ENS in Strawberry & Chocolate Milk. I had weight loss surgery in one of the hottest summers on record. I would have LOVED these that summer. I kept hearing the music of the ice cream truck driving by the house and it about drove me nuts.

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National Bean Day and Cosmic Reminders

2012-01-05T10:18:00.000-08:00

You know those nights when you get home late and you really don't want to cook but you still want something warm and satisfying. This is the go-to weight loss surgery friendly dinner I make. It is a sort of a quickie cassoulet.

Shelly's Quickie Cannelini Cassoulet

1 Yellow Onion, chopped
1 (15 oz) can Cannelini Beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup Cooked Sausage Crumbles (I use those Jimmy Dean crumbles)
dash of Greek or Italian Seasonings
a few twists of Black Pepper
Crumbled Feta Cheese

Saute the onion till golden. Add drained beans and seasonings. While the drained beans are heating through. Nuke the sausage crumbles for a minute. Leftover Turkey or Beef work great too. Even a chopped up mini meatloaf in a real pinch. Toss sausage (or whatever) together with beans. Stir to combine. Serve warm with crumbled feta on top.

I get this great goat's milk feta from the farmer's market but really any cheese will do (feta, ricotta, ricotta salada, goat cheese, queso fresco, cotija, even Parmesan in a pinch)

I've had a ton of these nights lately. One of the causes is a huge cleaning and organization project in the garage. It's resulted in 5 thrift store donations (by car, darn 2-seater only holds so much) and 1 truck pick-up. I was going to have a yard sale. I kept shoving stuff off to the side to have one. I could have really used the $$ but I finally just thought, "That's it, it's going. I'll hope for some good karma for putting it all back out into the universe for free." I gathered it all up and donated it. Then as I was moving boxes I found this...

There you go. The sign I already was rewarded and anything I can do to pay that blessing forward I will gladly do. By the way, 26/28 wasn't my biggest size, just before surgery I was buying 30/32's at Avenue's. Now... Small/Mediums and Size 4 pants. Ohhh yeah I have been rewarded. BIG TIME. Thank you universe for the cosmic reminder.

Back to the Bean Day celebrating. Here's some other favorite Eggface bean dishes...

Shelly's BBQ Baked Bean Casserole
Shelly's "Award Winning" Jazzy New Orleans Muffaletta Salad :)
Shelly's Savory Garbanzo Bean Crepes
Shelly's Chick Pea Fritters
Shelly's Mexican Beef & Bean Bake
Shelly's Cannellini Bean Mash
Shelly's Italian Beef & Bean Soup
Shelly's Cannelini Bean Soup
Shelly's Black Bean Soup
Shelly's Chickpea Deviled Eggs
Shelly's Chicken & Chickpea Salad
Shelly's Greek Three Bean Salad
Shelly's Italian Bean Salad
Shelly's Kidney Bean Soup
Shelly's Greek Bean Salad
Shelly's Chicken Cacciatore with Beans
Shelly's Roasted Chickpeas
Shelly's Beef & Bean Bites
Shelly's Greek Hummus Rounds
Shelly's Burrito Peppers

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T08:12:00.000-08:00

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year
May 2012 be your BEST year yet!
☆ ✮ ☆ ✮ ☆
It was a quiet night well until I tested out my collection of vintage tin noise makers. I've been cleaning the garage and finding all sorts of stuff. I noshed on some weight loss surgery friendly snacks and watched Ryan Seacrest, Gaga & the Biebster :x

Shelly's Shrimp Cocktail with Two Dips

Cheated and bought a tray of cooked shrimp at Costco. I did mix up a couple of yummy dips. It was a delicious protein packed way to usher in the New Year!

Shelly Lemon Dill Yogurt Dip

3 oz. Greek Yogurt (I used 2% Fage Plain)
1 Tablespoon Mayo
1 Tablespoon Fresh Dill, chopped
Squeeze of fresh Lemon Juice
Kosher Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper

Mix till well combined. Can be refrigerated a couple of days. Great as a dip for fish and veggies.

Shelly's Healthier Remoulade Sauce

3 oz. Greek Yogurt (I used 2% Fage Plain)
1 Tablespoon Cocktail Sauce
1 Tablespoon Prepared Horseradish
a few dashes of Hot Sauce (I used Cholula)
Kosher Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper

Mix till well combined. Can be refrigerated a couple of days. Great as a dip for meats, shrimp and veggies.

Dessert was my traditional raisins.

For new readers... every New Year I toss 12 raisins, one at a time, toward my mouth at the stroke of midnight. The idea is for every raisin that you get in your mouth that will be one month of good luck in the coming year. I've done this now for several years. Thankfully my aim has gotten better since the first year. The first year... first raisin I tossed SCORE right in the mouth, second raisin BAM right in the eye. This raisin thing is pretty accurate because that was an INTERESTING year.

It's going to be a GREAT 2012... 10 out of 12!

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P.S. Sending cyber xxxx's to those of us that were kiss-less last night when the ball dropped. Silver lining: a single kiss can exchange between 10 million and one billion viruses. Cootie heads ;)

2011 Blasts from the Past

2011-12-27T08:30:00.000-08:00

Some of my favorite posts from the past year. It was an AWESOME year in my post weight loss surgery world...

January: 10 Favorite Protein Sources

February: Girl Scout Cookie Combat

March: Ramblings

April: NYC Wrap Up & Brooklyn Bridge Walk

May: Cinco de Mayo and Weight Loss Surgery Friendly Memorial Day

June: Fun at the Fair and Obesity Action Coalition in Washington DC

July: Cucumber Crackers

August: Weight Loss Surgery Meet & Greet Snacks and 5,037 pounds lost with Weight Loss Surgery

September: National Pancake Day! and New Orleans Recap

October: Deviled Eggface and Just Add Water

November: Weight Loss Surgery Holiday Survival

December: Strawberry Cannoli Santas

2010 List

Thanks for joining me on this journey!

Heads up: Celebrate Vitamins FREE SHIPPING

2011-12-27T06:53:00.000-08:00

Fellow Celebrate Vitamins ♥ers: Here's a heads up on a FREE SHIPPING coupon code offer. For ALL orders placed between now and DEC 31, 2011, Celebrate will be providing FREE SHIPPING.

The coupon code is: SHIPNOW. You need to input this code during the check-out process and then choose the Free Shipping from the shipping options. Woot! Stock up on all Multi's, Calcium, Iron, B12, etc. for a healthy New Year!

If you nab some of that super yummy ENS (multivitamin, calcium, fiber AND protein all in one) be sure to make one of my nom nom nom slurp shakes:

Pumpkin Pie
Apple Cake Shake
Strawberry Snowball

Drum roll...

2011-12-26T17:55:00.000-08:00

Thank you for the wonderful response to The World According to Eggface and Quest Protein Bars Holiday Giveaway.

The random generator has selected:

Debi
Squeezymama@xxxxx.xxx

Congratulations!!! You are the winner of a huge 12 bar sampler box of the new Quest Protein Bar All Natural line: 3 Cinnamon Roll, 3 Chocolate Peanut Butter, 2 Strawberry Cheesecake, 2 Lemon Cream Pie, 2 Coconut Cashew bars. Check your mail and follow email instructions for claiming your prize.

When you get your prize be sure to warm one of those Cinnamon Roll Bars for 10 seconds in the microwave = Heaven

Interested in finding out more about Quest Protein Bars (20 grams of protein). Here's a link to learn more or purchase. Currently only available online. They sell individual bars too which is way cool.

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A Christmas Day in my pouch

2011-12-25T19:25:00.000-08:00

My Christmas Day post weight loss surgery eats...

Breakfast: I decided to make this a day in my pouch blog post but had this been a post just about these crepes I had a bitchin' title... Nog Nog Noggin' on Heaven's Door. OK maybe it wasn't that great a title but these were seriously heavenly.

Shelly's Egg Nog Crepes

2 Eggs, beaten
1/2 cup Egg Nog (I use Silk Soy Nog)
1/4 cup minus 1 Tablespoon Water
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Torani Syrup (I used SF Vanilla)
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1/2 cup Spelt Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
dash of Salt
dash Nutmeg

Blend all ingredients on low till thoroughly combined. Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate for a half-hour. Spray a non-stick 8 to 10 inch crepe pan with Pam. Pour 1/4 cup of the batter into the pan and twirl it around to spread the batter in a thin circle.

Cook till top appears dry and flip. Cook a minute or so on other side. Repeat till all batter is used. While you are making them you can keep them warm in a low oven 200 degrees or nuke for 20 seconds before serving. Makes 8-10 crepes depending on size of pan. I put a dollop of my Egg Nog Ricotta filling inside each and served with optional warmed SF Maple Syrup.

Shelly's Egg Nog Ricotta Filling

1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 Tablespoon Silk Soy Nog
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
a few dashes of Nutmeg

Mix till well blended. Refrigerate till ready to use.

Lunch: We normally head to the beach but we decided to hang out closer to home today. We were just there a few days ago and we have to go in that area later in the week so in the interest of saving gas money we went to the lake near my house for a walk and packed up the super cool bento boxes for our annual Christmas picnic. Here's what we ate and some pictures from the day...

Pink Box (top left): Christmas Ham
Green Box (top right): Cucumber Slices (my crackers)
Blue Box (bottom left): Shelly's Christmas Chickpea Deviled Egg and a variety of Cheeses
Orange Box (bottom right): A storebought Spelt Sugar Free Cookie dipped in SF Chocolate (I made a few as a holiday treat)
Along side: Mustard for dipping

Shelly's Christmas Chickpea Deviled Eggs

4 Hardboiled Eggs
1/4 cup canned Chick Peas (Garbanzo Beans), rinsed & drained
2 Tablespoons Greek Yogurt
1 (2 oz. jar) Pimentos, drained
1 Green Onion, diced fine
dash of Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Hard cook eggs. Cool. Cut in half. Remove yolks and mash with above ingredients (hold back a little onion for the top) till smooth-ish. Spoon back. Top with diced green onion.

It was a beautiful day...

If my friends up north wonder where their ducks go in the winter I think most of them moved to my 'hood.

Dinner: Leftovers from yesterday's Feast of the Seven Fishes. Crab Cake (Costco) and a simple Green Salad (lettuce, tomato, crumbled fresh feta, store-bought balsamic dressing.)
Snacks: Oodles of coffee including a Grande Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce, No Whip, No Foam, Extra Hot, Soy Latte (could my order be any longer) at Bux.

The end.

I hope everyone had a lovely day filled with smiles and laughter.

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Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T03:19:00.000-08:00

It's true. The best gifts in life will never be found under a Christmas tree. I am blessed to have you all in my life. Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

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xoxo

A day in my pouch

2011-12-20T22:15:00.000-08:00

What I ate today post weight loss surgery...

Breakfast: Started the day with a classic, old-fashioned malted chocolate milkshake. If you loved Whoppers or Maltesers as a kid you will love love love this...

Shelly's Chocolate Malt Protein Shake

1 cup Soy Milk (any milk will do)
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Malted Milk Powder (the No Sugar Added kind)
a few Ice Cubes

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with optional squirt of Sugar Free Whipped Cream and a crushed SF Malted Milk Ball.

My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard. Not so much. Well not the right boys.

Ran errands most of the day. Costco, supermarket, post office to mail a package. The line was out the door literally but it moved pretty quickly and they played great music so I actually enjoyed the people watching. Cutest little baby. Made my ovaries twitch a bit ;)

So I got home and realized I forgot to drop my Christmas cards in the box while I was at the P.O. Grrr. I was in luck though our mail hadn't come yet so I put the flag up and left them for our carrier.

Lunch: Yay for nicer weather. I was able to sit outside and soak up some afternoon Vitamin D. Brought my super cool bento box outside and noshed on this. My own personal ploughman's lunch...

Pink Box (top left): Turkey, Sopressata, and a hunk of fresh Feta cheese
Green Box (top right): Cucumber Slices (my crackers)
Blue Box (bottom left): Pickles, Olives, Sliced Tomatoes
Orange Box (bottom right): 1/2 a Cinnamon Roll Quest Protein Bar

More Bento Box lunches

Went out a little before dinner to get the mail, reached in the box and thought wow we got a lot of mail today. Went in the house to realize my postal carrier put the new mail on top of my cards and never took them. WTH!? So if you normally get a Christmas card from me ummm, yeah... Happy New Year!

Dinner: I did a little twist on my old faithful Healthier Hot Chicken Casserole that I make (a go-to when I have leftover rotisserie or baked chicken.

Shelly's Healthier Hot Chicken Salad Casserole (Italian Style)

2 cups Cooked Chicken, cubed (leftover rotisserie is great)
3 Green Onions, diced
1 can (15 oz.) Artichoke Hearts, drained, chopped
3 1/2 oz. Greek Yogurt
1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise
1/4 cup Shredded Italian Blend Cheese (one of those 6 cheese blends with Mozzarella, Fontina, etc.)
1 Tablespoon Fresh Basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
a few twists of Black Pepper

Topping:
1/4 cup Durkee Onions (the Green Bean casserole kind)
1 Tablespoon Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon Oregano

Blend yogurt, mayo, cheese and seasonings together till well combined. Pour over other ingredients and mix till well combined.

Pour into a Pyrex casserole dish. Crush topping ingredients together and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes till golden.

Would be great served with a steamed veggie, sauteed spinach, or a green salad. I ate it with sliced tomatoes (I'm on a kick)

Snacks: Lots of coffee throughout the day including a Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce No Whip Soy Latte at some point in my travels and the other half of that Cinnamon Roll Quest Protein Bar while waiting on line at the post office.

More days in my pouch.

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Drum roll...

2011-12-19T14:08:00.000-08:00

Thank you for the wonderful response to The World According to Eggface Stocking Full of Samples Giveaway!

The random generator has selected:

Lisa Z.
2315lisa@xxxxxxxxx.xxx

Congratulations!!! You are the winner of the AWESOME Christmas Stocking chock full of samples of some of my favorite weight loss surgery friendly products! Check your mail and follow email instructions for claiming your prize.

Link to learn more about the great products in Lisa's stocking.

Thank you for playing everyone! Be sure to add your info to the hat for the current Eggface Giveaway! A huge sampler box of All-Natural Quest Protein Bars.

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Quest Bar Holiday Giveaway

2011-12-18T16:00:00.000-08:00

Since having weight loss surgery I always have a protein bar in my purse and toss a few in my carry-on bag while traveling. Protein Bars are a great portable protein source and because it isn't a powder or a liquid the airport security dudes don't give me the stink eye or pull me aside to use their x-ray vision machine to see what color underwear I'm wearing. Tossing some bars in my bag also saves me from paying $7 for an in-flight snack box that maybe has 1 or 2 items in it we can eat and keeps me from making a not-so-wise choice off a hotel room service grease-laden menu.

Quest Protein Bars are a great choice. 20g of Protein, Low Carb (most are 4-ish grams), High Fiber, No Sugar Alcohols (Stevia and Erythritol are used to sweeten the All Natural bars) and they are Gluten Free.

It's the holidays so let's put a box of these yummy Quest Bars under someone's tree. It's Giveaway Time!

The Prize: A Huge 12 bar Sampler Pack of the new Quest Protein Bar All Natural line: 3 Cinnamon Roll, 3 Chocolate Peanut Butter, 2 Strawberry Cheesecake, 2 Lemon Cream Pie, 2 Coconut Cashew bars.

How to Enter: LEAVE A COMMENT (include a name and an email addy) on this blog posting (scroll to bottom of this post and click on # of comments to leave yours.)

Contest periods ends: Sunday, December 25th, midnight (Pacific time)

Monday, December 26th I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the addy posted. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. One ENTRY per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the United States (48 contiguous, Alaska & Hawaii.)

***Want extra chances to win?*** Do anything listed below and leave me a comment letting me know what you did! For up to four more entries per person!!

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Hey everyone enter the @Eggface @QuestBar Holiday Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/74wdzcz

* Post about the giveaway to your pals on Facebook or some other social networking or support forum you frequent.

If you are a blogger:

* Blog about this giveaway and include the link to the contest (send me the url so I can enjoy your post!)

* Place my super snazzy badge on your site.

P.S. Can't wait to see if you are a winner to try Quest Protein Bars. Here's a link to learn more or purchase. They sell individual bars too. Woot!

Friday Five

2011-12-16T23:11:00.000-08:00

A weekly round-up of tidbits, tips, ideas, news articles, random cool things...

1. If you haven't read through my Holiday Survival Tips. Check them out. A made a few mistakes early on... bad shrimp incident. I hope it will help you guys (especially new post-ops) avoid a similar experience. There's some yummy recipes too.

I find myself repeating this in my head often this time of the year: Don't trade what you want most, for what you want at the moment. I'm thinking a tattoo ;)

2. Shopping, parties, holiday pageants, visitors, everyone has lots going on this week. Here's a quick and easy protein packed meal that is a go-to when things get busy at my house.

Shelly's Cold Cut Roll-ups w/ Mustard Yogurt Dip

Ham (or any cold cut)
Pickle Spear (or cheese sticks are great too)

Roll up and spear with a toothpick. I prefer Boar's Head Low Sodium cold cuts if you can find them they are great. I also sometimes heat them up like this or this.

Mustard Yogurt Dip

3 oz. Greek Yogurt
1 Tablespoon prepared Mustard
dash Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Mix till well combined.

3. Some articles I read this week that were worth checking out:

FDA Tells Weight-Loss Surgery Centers To Pull Misleading Ads
Taking the stairs makes you more fit, saves you time

and there's a new Obesity Action Coalition Bias Busting effort underway to put an end to the use of derogatory and degrading images that depict individuals affected by obesity in a highly negative manner. You know those horrible headless photos and overly animated images of people stuffing their faces with burgers and chips. Help us put a stop to the use of these stigmatizing images. Here's the link for more information on how to help.

4. Our Weight Loss Surgery Twitter Twibe reached a milestone this week. 1000 members. A "twibe" is basically a place where people with common interests (who are using Twitter) can find each other. A few years ago I was chatting on twitter (I'm @eggface) with several of my pals who had weight loss surgery and realized those pals didn't all know each other so the WLS Twibe was born.

Basically you add your name to the WLS Twibe so others can know you are "one of us" and can follow your tweets on twitter. All surgery types and all stages (pre-op & post-op, newbees to old farts) are represented. You can't have enough support networks. So if you are tweeting feel free to add your twitter name to our twibe. You can post directly on the twibe page or most of us just use the hashtag #WLS on weight loss surgery related tweets.

5. Stop by Sunday when another Eggface Giveaway begins!!! What will it be?! Hint: Nom nom nom. Be sure to add your name to the hat for the current giveaway: A Christmas Stocking full of AWESOME weight loss surgery friendly samples (ends Sunday midnight PST)

A day in my pouch

2011-12-14T10:33:00.000-08:00

My yesterday in post weight loss surgery meals...

Breakfast: Started the day with my latest CLICK Espresso Protein creation.

Shelly's Malted CLICKball

1 cup Soy Milk (any milk will do)
2 scoops CLICK Espresso Protein Powder (any flavor)
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Malted Milk Powder (the No Sugar Added kind)
a few Ice Cubes

Whiz in blender till smooth. Top with optional squirt of Sugar Free Whipped Cream and a SF Malted Milk Ball. This is one of my favorite protein shakes.

Lunch: Made a batch of these. I love Deviled Eggs.

Shelly's Chickpea Deviled Eggs

4 Hardboiled Eggs
1/4 cup (plus a few extra for top) canned Chick Peas (Garbanzo Beans), rinsed & drained
2 Tablespoons Greek Yogurt
dash of Greek Seasoning (blend found in spice aisle)
dash of Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper
Optional: Flat Leaf Parsley

Hard cook eggs. Cool. Cut in half. Remove yolks and mash with above ingredients till smooth-ish. Spoon back. Top with a chickpea and a parsley leaf.

How I hard cook eggs: Place eggs in pot. Fill pot with cold water till 1" over eggs. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and cook for 20 minutes. Pour off hot water and cover eggs with very cold water. This is an extremely important step which prevents the greenish ring you sometimes see on yolks. When eggs are cool enough to handle. Crack & peel away shell. Chill.

I had a slice of provolone and salami and a couple of olives with my deviled egg. Would have been the perfect picnic except it was cloudy and gray. I ran a ton of errands including waiting in the line from h e double hockey sticks at the post office. I unfortunately need to do this again today or tomorrow too.

Dinner: Remember Shelly's Bacon Onion Cheeseburger Mini Meatloaf...

I pulled one out of the freezer. Nuked it in this groovy gadget keeps it super moist then topped it with a 1/2 a slice of American cheese and broiled it for 2 minutes. 2 Pickle Chips and you have a Bacon Cheeseburger. I ate it with sliced tomatoes.

Snacks: Too much coffee and I have been jonesing for Crustless Sweet Potato Pie for days and finally made a batch.

If you are a lover of sweet potato or pumpkin pie you must make this. Full of good stuff and no added sugar. It is soooo good.

More A day in my pouch posts.

Drum roll...

2011-12-12T11:30:00.000-08:00

Thank you for the wonderful response to The World According to Eggface & Celebrate Vitamins Healthy Holidays Giveaway!

The random generator has selected:

Kim
sprmom98@xxxxxxx.net

Congratulations!!! You are the winner of the HUGE holiday gift basket filled with some my Celebrate Vitamins favorites! Check your mail and follow email instructions for claiming your prize. When it arrives make up a batch of that yummy Berry Merry Christmas Fluff. Soooo good!

Thank you for playing everyone! Be sure to add your info to the hat for the current Eggface Giveaway! A Christmas stocking full of great weight loss surgery friendly samples!

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Stocking Full of Samples Giveaway

2011-12-11T14:45:00.000-08:00

When I was a whippersnapper my favorite part of Christmas was reaching down into my stocking and opening all the little mysterious packages. The more expensive gifts like roller skates, Atari 2600 and boom boxes were always under the tree but there was something wonderful about that stocking and it's treasures. Truth be told it's still my favorite part.

It's the holidays so there must be a stocking! It's Giveaway Time!

The Prize: an AWESOME Christmas Stocking chock full of samples of some of my favorite weight loss surgery friendly products...

1 packet Celebrate Vitamins Strawberry ENS
1 packet Celebrate Vitamins Chocolate Milk ENS
1 packet Celebrate Vitamins Vanilla Cake Batter ENS
1 packet CLICK Espresso Protein Mocha
1 packet CLICK Espresso Protein Vanilla Latte
1 packet CLICK Espresso Protein Vanilla Latte All-Natural
1 packet CLICK Espresso Protein Mocha All-Natural
1 Apple Pie Quest Protein Bar
1 Wild Berry Quest Protein Bar
1 Chocolate Brownie Quest Protein Bar
1 packet Just the Cheese Crunchy Baked Cheese - Grilled Cheese flavor
1 packet Just the Cheese Crunchy Baked Cheese - Classic White Cheddar Cheese flavor
1 packet Kay's Naturals Protein Cereal - Honey Almond
1 packet Kay's Naturals Protein Cereal - Apple Cinnamon
1 packet Kay's Naturals Protein Cereal - French Vanilla
1 Sampler Set of Sugar Free Torani Syrups (4 - 150 ml bottles in SF Caramel, SF Raspberry, SF Vanilla, and SF Hazelnut)

and I decorated the stocking with an Eggy's Mum original homemade knitted holly pin.

How to Enter: Like The World According to Eggface on Facebook. Come back here and LEAVE A COMMENT (include a name and an email addy) on this blog posting (scroll to bottom of this post and click on # of comments to leave yours.)

Contest periods ends: Sunday, December 18th, midnight (Pacific time)

Monday, December 19th I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the addy posted. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. Remember winners MUST be a Facebook friend of The World According to Eggface. One ENTRY per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the United States (48 contiguous, Alaska & Hawaii.)

***Want extra chances to win?*** Do anything listed below and leave me a comment letting me know what you did! For up to four more entries per person!!

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Hey everyone enter the @Eggface Stocking Full of Samples Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/c49sos7

* Post about the giveaway to your pals on Facebook or some other social networking or support forum you frequent.

If you are a blogger:

* Blog about this giveaway and include the link to the contest (send me the url so I can enjoy your post!)

* Place my super snazzy badge on your site.

P.S. Curious about any of the great products mentioned above? Click on the highlighted links to learn more or purchase.

Trim the Tree Party Snacks

2011-12-10T17:48:00.000-08:00

A few packed with protein, weight loss surgery friendly appetizers (of course I called it dinner) and some Christmas music gave us the motivation we needed to finish decking the halls.

Shelly's Red & Green Holiday Shrimp Cocktail

Cooked, chilled shrimp
Cocktail Sauce
Guacamole

Serve shrimp in small cordial glasses. Some with a dollop of guacamole, some with cocktail sauce. They do make sugar free cocktail sauces but I just use the real deal. I don't slather, a small dab per shrimp and I don't have issues but if you are highly sensitive look for SF versions they are out there or make your own. The alternating red & green on the table looked so festive. Perfect for a Christmas party!

I also sliced some zucchini lengthwise and grilled them earlier in the day. Then took slices and wrapped them around a piece of fresh feta cheese.

Shelly's Zucchini & Cheese Roll-ups

Grilled Zucchini Slices
Feta or Mozzarella (whatever you like)

Slice the zucchini lengthwise, brush with olive oil. I sprinkled a little Greek seasoning on each slice (an Italian seasoning would be great too.) Grill the zucchini on the BBQ (or an indoor grill) till bendy and tender. Set aside to cool. Wrap each slice of zucchini around a piece of cheese. I get fresh Feta (unsalted) at my farmer's market, it's the best feta I have ever eaten in my life but fresh mozzarella would be great too. I skewered them with a food pick for ease of eating. I served them room temp but they would be great warm too with some marinara sauce for dipping. Yum!

Here's the finished tree...

Every ornament has a story or memory. I love carefully unpacking each one and reminiscing each year, like old friends coming for a visit.

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Crafty - DIY Sugar Free Sauces

2011-12-09T12:01:00.000-08:00

What is it about this time of the year that makes the Martha Stewart crafty in me rear its head. Today's Christmas DIY edible gift project: I made 2 sets of these yummy Sugar Free Sauces. One set is a gift for a pal and one I'm keeping for me!

These are soooo yummy... drizzled over protein ice cream or protein cake, smeared on ricotta pancakes or crepes, swirled in Greek yogurt, ricotta cheese or cottage cheese, as a dip for apples, strawberries, bananas, a spoon swirled in SF cocoa, coffee or steamed milk or used to jazz up a protein shake.

These would make a fun hostess gift when you attend a holiday get-together. Best of all the project takes 15 minutes tops because you start with a store-bought sauce.

What you need:

Sugar Free Caramel Sauce or Sugar Free Hot Fudge (I used Smucker's, found in ice cream toppings area of store)
Sugar Free Torani Syrup (any flavor you like)
I used 8 oz. Regular Mouth Quilted Jelly Jars (Kerr or Ball Mason)
Holiday Material, 6"x6" squares
Pinking Shears

Optional mix-ins:
SF Peppermint Candy Cane/Starlight Mints, crushed
Nuts
Toasted Unsweetened Coconut

For each jar: mix 3/4 a cup of store bought sauce and 1 Tablespoon of Sugar Free Torani Syrup till well combined. Mix in any optional items up to about a Tablespoon.

Pour into a clean jelly jar. I used Kerr 8 oz. jars because I had those but Ball Mason makes 4 oz. jars too, just half the recipe.

Decorate and label your creation. According to Smucker's web site opened toppings do not require refrigeration but I recommend you refrigerate it if you aren't going to use it right away. It'll last several weeks then.

Today I made: Sugar Free Salted Caramel Sauce (3/4 cup SF Caramel Sauce + 1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Salted Caramel Torani Syrup) and Sugar Free Peppermint Fudge Sauce (3/4 cup SF Hot Fudge Sauce + 1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Peppermint Torani Syrup + 1 Tablespoon crushed SF Candy Cane)

Next batch I'm thinking SF Coconut w/ SF Hot Fudge and some chopped almonds (Almond Joy-ish) and SF Coffee Torani w/ SF Caramel (like a Macchiato.) The combos are endless.

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Friday Five

2011-12-09T11:05:00.000-08:00

A weekly round-up of tidbits, tips, ideas, news articles, random cool things...

1. I just made these...

I'm uploading all the pics and typing up the how to's right now. Yum!

2. More Yum: The New All Natural Quest Protein Bars will be ready for sale today at 11 AM. Previously they were released as prototypes. If you haven't tried them yet ( Quest Protein Bars are currently only available online) grab a single bar or two (love that they sell them this way) and give them a try.

When you get your hands on one try popping them in the microwave for 10 seconds. Yum! My fav flavors: Apple Pie, Wild Berry, Lemon Cream Pie and Cinnamon Roll.

3. Some articles I read this week that were worth checking out:

Healthy Habits Are Most Contagious Among Similar Friends - Come join our #WLS Twitter Twibe Support = success!
Soda’s Evil Twin - Great Infographic
Obese Americans face discrimination, even from medical community

I had to comment: "This serious and potentially deadly behavior is NOT ACCEPTABLE in the medical community. This bias and stigmatization can lead to obese patients avoiding preventive health services and exams, cancer screening tests, pelvic exams, mammograms, follow up appointments. I have been both morbidly obese and normal weight and have felt that difference in treatment first hand. This is SAD and WRONG. People, be kind to one another and take note: since 34% of Americans are obese chances are one of them is your Mom, Grandma, Pop, Uncle, Best Pal, Child. Consider that when making your callous comments and the what the effect of this behavior in the medical community could mean to YOUR loved ones life."

All the more reason to join the Obesity Action Coalition and build our voice!

4. I started my morning out with my Candy Cane Protein Shake it was a festive start to day that will be filled with Christmas stuff.

I'm prepping a few tidbits for tree trimming snacks (tonight's dinner) I'll take pics and post them manana for sure. I figure the snacks will give us the motivation to get this tree finished. I pulled everything out of the garage last week. I did start but yeah, that's where ended. It was an interesting week... freezing temps and the ignition control in my heater died = 3 days with no heat. Brr. We're warm again thankfully but I can't imagine what the electric bill is going to be next month with every electric blanket and electric space heaters on. Well... cheaper than a hospital bill.

5. Stop by Sunday when another AWESOME Eggface Giveaway begins!!! What will it be?! Be sure to add your name to the hat for the current giveaway: A HUGE holiday gift basket filled with some my Celebrate Vitamin favs! (ends Sunday)

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