Whole Grain Rice Krispy Treats

I can hear you now, "Oh, no! Not more sweets! I've had too much at the holidays and now I'm crackin' down and on my New Year's diet."

Well, not to worry. This is a healthy dessert—even alkalizing in the body.

I've been looking for a healthy recipe to replace the old marshmallow rice krispy treats we all remember as kids and some still make. Got one in my inbox as a video from a website I follow and wanted to pass it on to you.

You can make up the batter in 15 minutes. Than you'll spend some time... forming it into balls and rolling them in coconut. Of course that makes them very different looking than the original rice krispy treats so if you're in a hurry, you can press the batter into a pan and cut them into squares instead. With or without the coconut. However, the coconut serves the purpose of making them less sticky.

Continue Reading

Christmas Crash ~ A Cautionary Medical Tale

My torso is scattered with small red spots. It may look like chicken pox, but it's far more sinister.

It all started the day of my writers' group Christmas brunch on December 11 at a local cafe. The telltale sign of something not perfectly right. A trip to the restroom before everyone arrived and the urge to go again before leaving.

As evening approached, the issue, an obvious urinary tract infection (UTI), roared it's ugly head. It became so painful I thought I'd have to go to the hospital emergency. The pain felt like an intense burning in my lower abdomen. It miraculously settled down enough for me to sleep, but not without numerous painful trips to the toilet during the night.

Mistake #1

Continue Reading

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip:
Bleach your teeth and kill the bugs———two health tips in one:

Make a 3% hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) solution from 35% food-grade H₂O₂ purchased from the health food store. Mix 11 oz. of distilled water with 1 oz. of the H₂O₂ to make a solution safe for your mouth. Take about 1/2 tsp. in your mouth and hold it there for about 5 - 10 minutes. It will foam and grow. After you spit it out, your mouth will be clean and your teeth white.

Continue Reading

Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake

For the holidays, I wanted to make a healthy, no-bake pumpkin pie, but instead came across some recipes for pumpkin cheesecake that inspired me. Heather at Sweetly Raw inspired the pumpkin filling and crust. Jen at Jen's Natural Kitchen inspired the coconut cream topping. This is a very easy recipe to put together and the finished product is delicious and beautiful. I made some adjustments and changes to the recipes to make it all work.

Continue Reading

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

For some Christmas holiday cheer, replace your pumpkin spice latte with this yummy smoothie and you'll never go back.

Continue Reading

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip:
Here's a great site for delicious Indian vegan recipes: 21-Day Vegan Kickstart India. Deeeelicious!

Continue Reading

My Thanksgiving Meal Plan

This year we're having Thanksgiving dinner at our house with our son and my husband's parents. I don't eat turkey and the rest don't care so we'll be having a Turkey-less stuffed roast from Trader Joe's as our "meat."

For starters, we'll enjoy this wonderful garlic and lemon bean dip served with cut-up veggies and crackers. The accompaniment for the non-turkey includes Roasted Butternut Squash, Mashed Yukon Gold Potatoes and Green Beans with Tahini-Lemon Sauce from Kalyn's Kitchen.

Continue Reading

Vegetarian Hot & Sour Soup

I love hot and sour soup, but don't eat it because it has pork. So I made a vegetarian version. It turned out delicious.

Since I live in a semi-rural area of suburbia, trying to find an obscure Asian food ingredient is a wild goose chase. One weekend while visiting our son in the Bay Area (San Francisco), I went shopping at an Asian market. This place was not your little shop in a strip mall. It was the anchor store (99 Ranch Market), super market size, in a strip mall. This store had everything for any style Asian cooking... and several brands of everything to choose from. I counted four brands of tiger lily bulbs. How do I choose?

Continue Reading

Wisdom Wednesday

Tip:
Stuck at a meal function and wondering, Do I have spinach in my teeth? Another reason to own an iPhone. Use your Apple mirror to check your teeth.

Continue Reading