Cream Cheese Mints


With just six days left in Christmas, I want share this mouth watering easy to make treat that will be easy to make and is healthy. I came across this recipe on Christy Jordan’s  Southern Plate.

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces softened fat free cream cheese
  • 3 tablespoons I Cannot Believe It’s Not Butter softened
  • 7-8 cups cane sugar (start with 7, reserve 1 cup for dipping later; I use organic cane sugar but you can also use confectioner’s sugar)
  • 4-6 drops peppermint oil

Instructions:

  1. Place softened cream cheese, butter, and peppermint oil in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until fluffy.
  2. Add 7 cups of sugar and beat again until dough like in consistency. It will seem stiff and dry at first but after a minute or two it will come together. If it is too dry to form balls after you are done mixing (this is rare), add in a tablespoon of fat free milk and mix again.
  3. Form into small one inch balls and place on waxed paper.
  4. Roll each ball into sugar and flatten slightly with your fingertip, a fork, the back of a spoon, or a tiny seasonal stamp (something like this).
  5. Allow mints to dry for a few hours before storing. If they will be eaten in a day or two, I leave them out at room temp in an airtight container. For longer storage, place in the refrigerator.

This is a great treat to make with your family. After all, togetherness is a great holiday treat. Happy reading.

 

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Edible Fruit Tree


You says you cannot enjoy your own unique edible fruit creation for the holidays with your family at the fraction of the cost as the professional made kind and look just as great. I just as excited so find this unique creation while searching for unique easy to make creative holiday recipes for you guys at the Ginger and Garlic Blog. Hope you enjoy creating with unique treat with your loved ones. Happy reading.
Ingredients
  • 1 styrofoam cone (small or medium size) from your local craft store. It can be something like this.
  • Toothpicks
  • Cookie cutters with various shapes (similar to these)
  • Assorted fruits  such as green and black grapes, strawberries, kiwis, raspberries, mountain-dew and a honeydew melon.
  • Cilantro for garnish.

Instructions:

  1. If you only have a white one then you can drape some green paper on a white cone or attach fruits very densely so it resembles more like a tree trunk.
  2. Using the cookie cutters create various shapes out of the melon slices.
  3. Attach toothpicks to the styrofoam cone. Attach one piece each of a fruit to a toothpick. (Think free-form; as the tree starts building you will know more about which fruit combinations are looking better and how densely packed you want your tree to be).
  4. Continue building the tree as dense as you want!
  5. Use cilantro leaves as grass garnish.
  6. Enjoy your new edible fruit tree!!

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Holiday Gift Ideas


With just seven days of Christmas left, are you all set with your holiday gift for your loved ones? If not today I have come up with list of some ideas of gifts. This year I have done most of my shopping online avoiding the lines in the store and taking time away from my busy day going from store to store. Instead shopping online gave me the chance to do some research and avoid the traffic and the store lines. Hope you enjoy the blog. If you have any clever ideas for gift please share with us.

1. HP Stream $295.82 at Amazon hpstreamIt’s a light weight 14” windows 8 notebook with AMD Quad Core A4 6400t 1.0 GHz processor and 2 GB 2 GB DDR3L SDRAM. It also has 32 GB Solid-State Drive and 100GB OneDrive Cloud Storage for 2 year with 6.5 hours batter life. This would be a wonderful gift for anyone, young and old. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

2. Acer Chromebook $339.99 at Amazon

It’s a lightning fast 11.6” notebook with Intel Core i3-4005U 1.7 GHz processor and 4 GB DDR3L SDRAM. It also has 32 GB Solid-State Drive and Intel HD Graphics 4400 with 8.5 hours batter life. This is also great gift for anyone including students. However, as one use puts it, “Ask yourself these questions: 1. Do you have a constant internet connection for using the computer? 2. Does the student need anything outside of google docs (So, docs [word processing], spreadsheets [think excel], presentations [think powerpoint])? 3. Are you and the student fine with this not being able to play standard computer games? (This includes games such as minecraft) 4. Do you have a cloud ready printer, or are able to get it to work with google cloud print? If you answered no to any of these questions, then this computer might not be suited to your or the student’s needs. That said, if you did answer yes to all the questions, than the computer may very well be suitable for you and or a child.” The computer is of a good quality, and is great for daily use. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

3. Kindle Fire HD 7 Tablet $114 at Amazon amazon-kindle-fire-hd-7_2013You would not love a tablet for gift. Your loved ones can not only enjoy the crisp, vivid HD display (216 ppi / 1280×800) with over a million pixels—perfect for apps, movies, TV, games, photos, and more but can also enjoy over 33 million movies, TV shows, songs, books, Android apps and games—including Facebook, Netflix, Minecraft, and more. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

4. Kinetic Sand (Age 3+) $15 and up at Uncommongoods This is a great product to give to your kids and teenagers. For $15 you get 1 kg of this wonderful product and $45 will give you 5 kg. A secret binding agent keeps the granules together, so you won’t find sand dunes or drifts settling around your home after playtime. As a result, you kids will be happy and you will be happy too.

5. Make Your Own Body Butter $29 at Uncommongoods Do you have a teen girl in your life, then you know how hard you might be to please her with gift here is a unique gift idea that she would definitely like. Why not give her this unique gift where she can use simple way to make your skin feel luxuriously smooth and nourished using all-natural, organic and Fair Trade ingredients. This is great gifts for adults as well.

6. Pick Punch $25 at Uncommongoods or $24.95 at Amazon  and get free 2 day shipping with prime account.Have a love one who plays the guitar then this is the great gift for him/her. With this gift he/she can make guitar picks out of anything: credit cards, old records, DVD cases, thin pressed wood. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

7. Pocket DJ Mixer $119 at Amazon

The musician in your life will also love this as a gift. This handy mixer does its job. The equalizer works just great. Versatile and easy to use, the mini mixer needs no power source—just plug it into the headphone jack of your mp3 player, laptop, or phone and instantly amp up your own beats. It is compatible with any device with a headset outlet. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

8. Infuser Water Bottle 28 oz $24.95 at Amazon 

infuser

This is the perfect gift the active ones in your life or the ones whom who want to see make more healthy choices. Whether they are at the gym or in the office, it will be easy to add a little flavor to their day with the Infuser Water Bottle. To create their own infusions, they simply have to cut up their favorite fruits and veggies, place them in the center capsule, add water and shake! You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

9. Fitbit One Wireless Activity Plus Sleep Tracker $79.99 at Amazon

Impress the health nut on your list with this intelligent activity and sleep tracker. Fitbit tracks steps, distance, calories burned and stairs climbed. It also wakes you (and not your partner) with a silent alarm and syncs automatically to your computer or select smartphones and tablets via Bluetooth 4.0. Most of all, it will goals, view progress and help earn badges. You can get 2 day free shipping with your prime account at Amazon.

10. Aquafarm $60.00 at Uncommongoods

aquafarm

This is great gift for your teenagers for older kids. Not everyone has the time to grow their own fresh herbs in a garden or keep up with an attention-hungry pet. The AquaFarm is part micro-garden, part fish tank and its sustainable ecosystem, which means that there’s very little work involved. The fish waste sustains edible plants you can grow from home and the plants keep the fish tank clean. In the top tray, basil, mint, spinach, baby greens, and other edible or decorative plants thrive as nutrient-rich water is circulated past their roots. That process purifies the water, which is then sent back to the 3-gallon tank below, creating a happy, healthy habitat for a betta fish. This will also an intriguing visual centerpiece for anyone’s own environment, whether that’s on a side table or countertop, in an office, classroom or kitchen.
Hoped you liked our suggestions of holiday gift ideas. If you have any creative of unique gift suggestion don’t forget to comments. Happy reading.

 

 

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Healthy Egg Nog


I got this wonderful recipe at the Chocolate-covered Katie website, who turned this traditional holiday treat into a healthy protein-rich recipe and today I want to share that recipe with you. Hope you enjoy that recipe. I used fat free lactose free milk.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup fat free lactose free milk  (1 can do 1/2 milk and 1/2 Silk creamer for a deliciously-rich shake; you can substitute full-fat coconut milk for non-diary vegan version)
  • 1/2 cup Mori-Nu silken-firm tofu
  • 1/2 tsp lemon juice (omit if desired)
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp splenda or sugar
  • 1 nunaturals stevia packet, or 1 tbsp sugar (or evaporated cane juice, coconut sugar, etc.)
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp each nutmeg and ginger
  • tiny dashcloves

Instruction

  1. Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth.
  2. Drink cold, or heat if desired. Recipe is single-serving and can be sugar-free, dairy-free, vegan, cholesterol-free, low-fat, and gluten-free. And no raw eggs!

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Christmas Tree Cheese Board


I know you guys are all getting ready for the thanks giving festivities. I for one loves easy to make and creative appetizers for the holidays. Hence, I was very excited when I saw this recipe in pinterest on my friend’s board, and I thought why not share it with my readers. I just adopted it for my preference. Hope you like it. If you like it, and have better adopted versions don’t forget to share with us with your comments.
cheesechristmastree
Ingredients:

  • 2 (8-ounce) bar Sharp Cheddar plain and flavored
  • 1 (8-ounce) bar Jack
  • 1 (8-ounce) bar Mozzarella
  • 1 (8-ounce) bar Swiss
  • Fresh thyme sprigs
  • Green and red grapes
  • 1 broccoli floret without stem
  • 1 small celery stick
Directions:

  1. Cut each bar of cheddar into 1-inch cubes.
  2. On large platter or cutting board, arrange cubes in rows to form tree shape, using different flavor for each row and separating flavors with thyme sprigs and rows of red and green grapes.
  3. For star on top, add the broccoli floret.
  4. For the bottom stem, add the celery stick.

 

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No Bake Christmas Wreath Cookies


christmaswreathcookieThe holiday season is upon us I for one love this season, which makes me feel warm and fuzzy. I love decorating with my family and specially love trying new foods. As I have mentioned in my previous blogs when it comes to cooking or baking, I always love recipes which are easy to prepare and make because I am not the best cook in the world and I always love finding innovative recipes. Hence, I was quite excited when I came across this no bake cookie recipe at the Betty Crocker website, and I though why not share it with you guys. hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients:

  •  1/2 cup I Don’t Believe It’s Not Butter
  • 1 package (10 oz) miniature marshmallows
  • 20 drops green liquid food color
  • 3/4 cup cornflakes
  • 5 cups Whole Grain Total™ cereal
  • 56 red small round candies
 Directions
  1. In large microwavable bowl, microwave I Don’t Believe It’s Not Butter uncovered on High 30 seconds to 1 minute or until melted.
  2. Add marshmallows then toss to coat. Microwave uncovered on High 1 minute 30 seconds to 2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended.
  3. Stir in green food color to desired shade of green. Add cornflakes to marshmallow mixture, and stir until melted, microwaving an additional 30 seconds if necessary.
  4. Stir in cereal until evenly coated.
  5. Drop 1/3 cup of cereal mixture on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet. Use greased hands to form into wreath shape. Place 4 red round candies on wreath to decorate. Repeat with remaining cereal mixture and candies. Refrigerate 15 minutes before serving.
 You can ask you kids to help you make this cookies with you and hope you will enjoy making and eating these delicious and easy to make No Bake Christmas Wreath Cookies. Happy baking.

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Antipsychotic Medication Overuse In Nursing Homes


The past couple of mornings, I have been hearing the same story in NPR that has really alarmed me since my grandfather once has spend some time in nursing homes. If you have loved ones in nursing homes you need to pay attention. According to the NPR news, over 300,000 nursing home residents are wrongfully getting antipsychotic medication for Alzheimer or other forms dementia for which these drugs can be deadly. The Food and Drug Administration has black box warning for this drugs saying that they can increase the risk of heart failure, infections and death.

In 2012 the federal government started a program to get nursing homes to stop using such drugs. Nevertheless, nursing homes rarely get penalized for not complying with the program. My grandfather spend some time in nursing homes after losing his leg to gangrene and we brought him home after several incidents with nursing home abuse and I cannot imagine someone else’s loved ones going through this.  Remember FDA did not approve the drugs to treat dementia. Nursing home residents should only receive antipsychotic drugs only medically necessary.

Our current federal law prohibits the use such drugs for staff convenience, known as “chemical restraints”. These drugs can abruptly change behavior, can cause sedation, and increase the risk of fall. This is a public health concern and we need to adequate action. If you have a loved one in nursing homes make sure if he staff tells you that the doctor prescribed a medication and asks you to sign a form, ask questions and don’t sign until you are sure of what medication the doctor described and what it is for. Remember, getting informed consent when prescribing antipsychotic drug is required by law. As a public health person I found this topic quite important and hence wanted to bring it to you attention. If you have faced any issues with nursing homes with your loved ones please don’t forget to comment. Happy reading.

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Holiday Shopping


Now that holiday season is upon us, I know that everyone is already busy deciding what to get the loved ones for the holidays. I for one love this time of the year, the lighting, and all the decorations and festivities. It is all so magical…enchantment of the disenchanted world, as George Ritzer, Sociologist and author of McDonalization of Society, might put it as. Through Ritzer’s point of view one can argue, in today’s McDonalized society all the holiday decorations and lighting we see outside is just a mere attempt to create a feeling of grandiose and magic to lure shoppers to malls and stores and empty their wallets to shop during the holiday seasons. In many ways, that is true.

Nevertheless, whatever the reason might be, I love the warm fuzzy feeling that this season brings; whether drinking hot chocolate or making holiday deserts with family; shopping for gifts for friends and family or just spending quality times with the loved one, it is all so just magical. No matter what religion you belong to, this season is still joyous and magical for all. I was watching the news the last few days regarding holiday shopping, and learned that more and more people are shopping online. I for one am one of them. It is more convenient for one. I can do all my shopping in the comfort of my home. One thing that I have been doing lately that has helped me earn money while shop online I will share that secret with you today.

ebatesThe site is called Ebates. I have made close to three hundred dollars so far just for shopping at my favorite stores, such as Sephora, Nordstorm, Bath and Body Works, Body Shop, Gap, Macy’s, Best Buy. You go the the shopping sites through Ebates and you get paid just for shopping at your favorite sites. I even got paid for booking my travel through Expedia and Priceline. If you are a online shopper like me that this is the site for you. You have nothing to loose. Just click on my link and you will get a $10 gift card just for signing up and after you sign up refer your friends and they will receive gift cards for signing up.

As part of my holiday giving mood, I am providing you with some online promo codes from some of my favorite stores. Hopefully, you all can sign up for Ebates, which by the way is absolutely Free to sign up. You use the following coupons to not only save online but use Ebates to earn some cash back as well. Hence, this going to be double savings. Hopefully,  you will take advantage of it. Happy readings.

  1. Aldo Shoes:  CM14 – Cyber Monday Extended Sale – 20% off full-priced items (Exp. 12/3/2014)
  2. Amazon:  WATCHES25 – Take 25% off select Anne Klein watches! (Exp. 12/16/2014)
  3. Amazon:  CYBWEEK14 – Spend $100 and receive 30% off Fashion! (Exp. 12/06/2014)
  4. American Express Gift Cards and Business Cards:  FPHURRY – Green Monday – No order fees on Gift Cards. (Exp. 12/17/2014)
  5. Amrita Sign: EBATES10 –  Save 10% off Your Entire Order (Exp. 12/31/2014)
  6. Barnes and Nobel: BN10OFF75 – $10 off $75+ order! (Exp. 12/03/2014)
  7. Bath and Body Works: WINTERXD8z7sw60WTJ – 20% off any online order (Exp. 2/28/2015)
  8. BCGC: FREESHIP- Free shipping on any order. (Exp. 12/31/2050)
  9. Bliss: Blissrocks – 20% off any order. (Some exclusions apply.) (Exp. 12/25/2014)
  10. Bluemercury: SCOTCH – Free Bobbi Brown Gift with $50+ Bobbi Brown order. (Exp. 12/19/2014)
  11. Dell Consumer: G1TWNG6GD6L8F$ – Cyber Week – 38% off Inspiron 17 5000 Series laptop with Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB memory, 1TB hard drive and Windows 7 Now: $699.99 and Free shipping. (Exp. 12/08/2014)
  12. E.l.f. Cosmetics: COLOR – Free 12 Custom Colors and 3 Custom Compacts with $25+ order. (Exp. 12/31/2014)
  13. ebags: LEATHER – 20% off Leather Handbags. (Exp. 12/06/2014)
  14. Express: 1848 – $10 off $30+, $30 off $75+, $60 off $150+ or $90 off $225+ order. (Restrictions apply. See store for details.) (Exp. 12/05/2014)
  15. Foot Locker: LKS14D5B – 15% off $75+ order. (Online Only. Exclusions May Apply.) (Exp. 12/31/2014)
  16. Gap: HAPPY – 30% off any order. (Restrictions apply, see site for details. ) (Exp. 12/03/2014)
  17. Giorgio Armani Beauty: FAMILY14 – Get 20% Off your purchase of $75 or more, plus free shipping. Spend $150 or more and get 20% off, plus 5 Deluxe samples and free shipping! (Exp. 12/07/2014)
  18. Godiva: CARAMEL – Rush shipping only $5 on $25-$64.99 order. (Exp. 12/21/2014)
  19. Guess: FNPNTEB – 10% off all regular priced items site-wide! (Exp. 12/31/2014)
  20. JCPenny: CYBRMNDY – Take an extra 20% off purchases up to $100 and 30% off purchases $100 or more. (Exp. 12/03/2014)
  21. Kate Spade: WHATFUN – 25% off full priced items! Free shipping and free returns. (Exp. 12/03/2014)
  22. Kohl’s: CYBERTAKE20 – Cyber Monday Sale – 20% off any order. (Exp. 12/03/2014)
  23. Lancome: FRIENDS – 20% off any and Free shipping on $49+ order. (Exp. 12/07/2014)
  24. Macy’s: EBATESFF – Friends & Family Extra 25% off. (Exp. 12/08/2014)

Hope you will enjoy using these promo codes and shop through Ebates and get paid for shopping and save during this holiday season. Hope you’ll enjoy the warmth of the holiday season and all the blessings that comes with it. I will love to here your comments. Happy reading.

Forever NijLeave a comment

Roasted Turkey Pinwheel


Pinwheels-600x393

Now that Thanksgiving is over. What do you all do with the leftover turkey meat? I for one love making leftover roasted turkey pinwheel. This is the recipe hope you like it.

Ingredients

  • 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury™ refrigerated Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls or 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury™ Crescent Recipe Creations® refrigerated seamless dough sheet
  • 2 tablespoons fat free ranch dressing
  • 1/4 cup leftover shredded turkey meat. I liked to take the white meat if there are any I lightly cook it in olive oil and 1 small chopped onion until the onion is golden with little bit of seasoning as desired.
  • 1/2 cup finely shredded fat free cheddar cheese (2 oz)
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onions (4 medium)
  • 1/2 jalapeno

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. If using crescent rolls: Unroll dough; separate into 2 long rectangles. Press each into 12×4-inch rectangle, firmly pressing perforations to seal.
  2. If using dough sheet: Unroll dough; cut lengthwise into 2 long rectangles. Press each into 12×4-inch rectangle.
  3. Spread dressing over each rectangle to edges.
  4. Sprinkle each with turkey, cheddar cheese, jalapeno and green onions.
  5. Starting with one short side, roll up each rectangle; press edge to seal.
  6. If too soft leave in refrigerator for 1o minutes to harden a bit.
  7. With serrated knife, cut each roll into 8 slices; place cut side down on ungreased cookie sheet.
  8. Bake 12 to 17 minutes or until edges are deep golden brown.
  9. Immediately remove from cookie sheet.
  10. Serve warm.

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Chocolate Delight


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I made this second desert for the Thanksgiving dinner, which everyone absolutely enjoyed.

Ingredients

  • I cup all purpose flour
  • I  stick I Cannot It’s Butter, softened
  • 1 cup finely chopped pecans
  • 6 tablespoons Hershey’s Unsweetened Cocoa
  • Pinch of Salt
  • 8 oz of fat free cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup Splenda
  • 2 8-oz fat free cool whip
  • 1 3.9-oz fat free sugar free instant jello chocolate pudding
  • 3 cups fat free half and half milk
  • Semi-Sweet chocolate for garnish

Crust Instructions

  1. Combine flour, butter, pecans, cocoa, and salt and press into the bottom on a 13X9 baking dish.
  2. Bake at 325 dish for 25 minutes.
  3. Cool completely.

Filling Instructions:

  1. Mix cream cheese and splenda with an electric mixture until smooth. Fold in half cool whip and mix until combined. Spread the mixture evenly onto crust. Let the cream cheese layer to set in refrigerator for an hour.
  2. Mix pudding mixes, milk, and 2 tablespoon of splenda with an electric mixer until combined then mix on medium speed for two minutes. Spread mixture evenly onto cream cheese layer and again leave in the refrigerator the the pudding to set.
  3. Spread remaining cool whip onto chocolate layer then sprinkle with shredded semi-sweet chocolate.

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