Living Well Etc.

Look out baby, Memorial Day is nearing so barbecue season has officially begun        I bet this sounds familiar.    You are standing in the middle of your backyard, drooling on the bucket of just pulled weeds, because an enticing aroma of yummy barbecue wafts through the air.    Sadly, it is not coming from your grill.    The bad and good news of this tasty temptation is that I'm that neighbor torturing you with mouthwatering BBQ aromas, but I'm letting you in on some of my secrets!   Good BBQ begins in the kitchen Although not a food snob, I am particular.  I believe that the best 'cue begins in the kitchen.   Fresh food is a must, and it has to be cooked just right.  Moreover, whatever goes on the grill must be bursting with flavor.  Luckily, I have a prolific herb garden.  This won't rub you the wrong way Since I tend to lean toward Mediterranean dish...

  Eat Well, Spend Less, and Engage Children This Holiday Season As a young mother, many years later a small business owner, now retired, I've always found ways to save money.   The holidays often bring budget-busting challenges, especially when hosting the extended-family Thanksgiving dinner.  However, after 30+ years of hosting, I've come up with some great money-saving tips.  Follow along as I share mine with you.    Decorate with found objects or real fruit and vegetables. Feeding a large group of people doesn't leave much room in the budget for decorations.  This doesn't have to be an issue as most of us have just the right table centerpiece in our own homes.   I often dress a large oval plate with leaves, pine needles, or herbs from my garden.  On top of this, I arrange fruit, vegetables, nuts, pinecones...whatever I can find that looks appealing.  One year, I filled the plate with bright orange persimmon...

  All Treats and No Tricks for Those Who Go Green As an avid recycler, composter, and green gardener, I use every opportunity to be green .  Halloween can be a bit tricky but offers us a chance to be inventive with our eco-friendly efforts.  Let's explore some of my favorite green and eco-friendly ways to celebrate this ghoulish holiday. Trick or Treat Goodies Treats don't always have to be food .   In fact, most candy packaging is excessive with a tiny treat packaged inside paper, packaged inside plastic, making most a non-green option.      As a retired teacher and gardener, my favorite choices are recycled bookmarks, stickers, and seed packets.   Ghostly Parties Halloween parties are a much better green option for serving organic, home-baked goodies in a safe environment.   Involving children in the planning, baking and hosting makes this an even more memorable event.   Compostable Invitations Begin by hand-deliveri...

  Diet and Exercise is my Fountain of Youth Menopause is a major life change for women.   Some welcome it, as it means the end of the dreaded monthly visitor.   Nevertheless, some mourn , viewing it as the end of their youth.   No doubt, menopausal women are not as youthful as we once were, but this can be the best time of our lives.   So true, except for that one enormous elephant in the room.   That elephant can be us due to the typical weight gain associated with menopause.   My experience is slightly different than most because I am also saddled with a chronic disease that limits my activities .   Combine the natural weight gain many menopausal women face with the neurological damage of multiple sclerosis and I could become that elephant quite easily.   Yet, I am not.   Why?   Follow me and I will share all my secrets.   Move that body! Even though my form of MS is a chronic progressive type, which chips away at my...

  Surprisingly, those with multiple sclerosis and women over the age of 50 share a similar problem.   It's common knowledge that metabolism slows significantly for women over 50, leaving us feeling tired.   Similarly, those with MS suffer from severe fatigue.     As an MS sufferer and having passed the half-century mark, I know fatigue with a slowing metabolism firsthand.   Fried after five, I know well.   Since fatigue and loss of energy are common for both groups, it seems logical that foods recommended for those with MS would also benefit women over 50.   Through trial and error during my many years with MS, constant research, and with advice from my doctors, I have come up with a diet that works well for me.   I believe it can help others as well.      What foods speed up metabolism and relieve fatigue? Eating the typical three full meals each day slows our metabolism to a crawl.   During the time it takes ...

Summer is the Best Season for Dieting! As a woman over sixty with an activity-limiting autoimmune disease, I must adhere to a calorie-reduced diet if I wish to fit into anything remotely resembling a swimsuit this summer.  However, the good news is that this is the absolute best season for dieting!   Best part, for me at least, is that most of my diet food choices come from my backyard.  I plant a few vegetable plants in the garden, apply a bit of water, and a flood of ripe, yummy, low-cal treats is my reward.  Interested?  Follow along to get summer-thin with me by eating healthy summer foods like these.    Low-Calorie Summer Breakfasts Can be Colorful and Delicious. Taking advantage of the plentiful fruit in summer , I begin the day with vibrant colors and unbeatable flavors.  My favorites include blueberries and halved strawberries topped with a 1/2 cup of fat-free yogurt--less than 200 calories.   ...

  Join Me for an Alfresco Dinner From My Organic Vegetable Garden Summer is the best time for organic gardeners.  This summer is no different.  Most days were hot, but not too hot.  Most nights were cool, but not too cool—perfect for a bountiful and healthy garden.  In fact, since the weather has been so perfect, my vegetable garden is overflowing with delectable goodies just ready to make their table debut.  Tonight should be ideal for an alfresco dinner on my herb and flower-lined patio, so let's get cooking! Munchies Are An Imperative. Purple eggplant orbs hang like plentiful ornaments just waiting to be plucked for my culinary masterpieces.  Today's will be a roasted-eggplant-herbal dip served with freshly harvested carrots, bell peppers, and zucchini cut into pencil stick pieces. Slicing the eggplant in quarters, I sprinkle it with olive oil and salt and roast it on high heat until done—about 20 minutes. It...

  What to do with an overabundance of lemons?  Try making preserved lemons.  It is amazingly easy and there are a variety of recipes out there.  All one needs to do is to quarter the lemon—I prefer Meyer—sprinkle each piece heavily with Kosher salt, and pack all into a container with lemon juice covering the sour, salty mixture.   I don’t actually 'can' mine.  I just set the containers on the kitchen counter for about a month and then freeze them.    What to do with the preserved lemons?  That’s the fun part.  Since the flavor is remarkably similar to lemony capers, I chose to make a simple pasta with them.  Super yummy choice. List of Ingredients.   Amounts are a personal choice. Roughly ¼ cup of preserved lemons cut into thin half-inch long pieces A bunch of asparagus sliced into one-inch pieces 2 cups of cooked string pasta of choice (I used vermicelli) 2 cloves garlic...

  While I LOVE chocolate croissants so much, I resort to purchasing them at a coffee shop when out with others; I prefer real croissants and not just something that appears to be one. Well, Trader Joe’s has nailed it again.   These Frozen Chocolate Croissants are elegant, flaky, and downright yummy.   Plus, they are less than $5 for four delicious supreme pastries!   The only downside is inflexibility.   These chocolaty goodies must rise from a frozen state.   But with planning—best left out the night before—they are perfectly risen and ready to bake into the perfect chocolate croissant this side of France .   What I found is that these require a warm setting to rise, even when left out all night.  So, I put them on a plate, covered with a towel, and place them in a cupboard, which is roughly a constant 70 degrees.  Anywhere where there is a constant warm temperature is fine.  When baked, the chocolate croissants a...