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If you have family that has special needs, from gluten free, diabetic, cancer patients, or just allergies, please direct people to my blog!
I can help make recipes easier and better for you to eat!
Thank you for reading and please feel free to suggest recipes you'd like to see made less fattening or just better to eat :)

Breakfast Quesadilla

One of my favorite breakfasts ever!
You will need Tortilla's (i like the spinach ones)
low fat shredded cheese or fat free cheese slices
one cup spinach (fresh if possible)
2 strips per person of turkey bacon or regular bacon. (you can also substitute ham, steak, chicken, tofu or seafood)

one egg per person


First you will want to use Egg Beaters or eggs. If you've never seen an egg beater here it is!

They are actually tasty and I don't really see a difference in taste or cooking them from a regular egg. If you don't like yolks they even offer an egg white option as seen above. 

You will want to scramble cook either one egg per person or one serving of the egg beaters. After they are cooked, set them aside to cool in a bowl.

Depending on what you want to fill your quesadilla with, you will either want to precook your bacon, or turkey bacon. The ham can be added cold and cubed up. Once you cook the bacon/turkey bacon you will want to cut it into small strips like so: 

Add a some oil to a frying pan and grab your tortillas.

You can use any flavor or brand but I prefer spinach myself, extra fiber never hurt anyone!

You are going to want the flame on medium. Take your tortilla, and put it halfway in the pan, meaning half in and half out.

You will want to sprinkle some of this cheese on the half in the pan:

It melts really good. 

Now sprinkle half of your egg on top of the cheese. Add as much protein (bacon, ham, cubed steak, cubed chicken, crab, shrimp, tofu, etc) as you'd like. Add the rest of the egg on top of that.

You can choose to add vegetables if you want. I like to add some chopped fresh spinach, tomato, onion, or slice some avocado on top. Sprinkle some more cheese on top of that and flip the other half of the tortilla over. You want to cook this until it browns, and then lightly flip it over and brown the other side. Turn the flame onto low and let it slow melt for a bit.

It should look like this after flipping:

After it's done to your desired taste, slide onto a plate. I use a pizza cutter and just slice it into 3 or four pieces.

I sometimes share this with someone else, because it is filling. I either make a fruit salad on the side, or have half  a grapefruit with sweet n low.

You can do lots of things with this recipe. The more veggies the better. The tortillas are pretty low carb, and you can even buy the lower carb ones as well.

Remember fibery veggies are a freebie and you can have as much as you'd like. (within reason of course).

I hope you try this recipe. It's a favorite with my mom and myself.

P.S. - you can also choose to scramble the eggs with the other ingredients, and then just layer it with the cheese in the tortilla. It's up to you what you want to do. It all turns out the same in my opinion!
ENJOY!!

So who's got a suggestion or a craving for something? I don't want to keep assuming you guys want what I'm posting. I'm taking requests. Let me know :)

My favorite Dessert! Low Sugar and Definately Low to No Carb Apple Crisp

This has to be my favorite dessert to make, especially in the winter. I created this on my own. I LOVE apple crisp but with all the sugar and struessel people make theirs with, I found myself getting the sweats from high blood sugar.
This is not a glamorous dessert by any means but it's simple to make, and really warms you up in the winter time.
You can use any apple variety you want, but I find my favorite is a Fuji apple. It cooks nicely but remains firm and slightly crunchy after it's baked. If you prefer a softer apple, I'd advise a Golden Delicious or Ginger Gold.
I like a slight crunch in my apple so I use Fuji, Honeycrisp, or Gala. If you like a sourness to your apple definitely Granny Smith.
Here's a chart to give you an idea of taste and type of apple:

You will want to wash your apples. I usually make one apple per person, but if you want to split an apple between two people and have a cup of low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream more power to you!
If you own an apple corer, just core the apple and cut it in half. I never seem to have one so I cut the apple in half and cut out the core, adding a little extra so that I can fill the apple a bit better. Make sure you remove the  flower end (that little brownish/greenish flowery looking item). You can leave the stem on if you want or remove it.

Preheat your oven to 425 and grab a cookie sheet. Put a piece of aluminum foil down.
Set the apples skin side down, so the open spooned out part is facing up. Add a little bit of lemon juice and cinnamon so the apple doesn't brown.

Now for the low to no carb part of the dessert. I love apple crisp with oatmeal topping. There is an easy way of making this happen. Try to find these oatmeals:

or 

All you are going to do is grab a packet, and pour some into the apple halves in the hole you've made in the center. I try to use half a packet for each half. If you'd like to be adventurous, empty a packet into a bowl, and add some chopped nuts, raisins, or dried fruit and spoon it into the apple.
If you are wanting to cut some fat from this recipe, do what I do and use:

I love the taste, and it's got Omega 3's in it which is really great for diabetics. 

If you don't care about fat content, just add a pat of butter on top of the oatmeal mixture.

To add a bit of sweet without guilt, I use:

You just want to sprinkle a little on top to help caramelize it a bit. You can also sprinkle it on the apple around the oatmeal. It depends on ability to have Splenda without getting high blood sugar. Unfortunately I'm one of the types that gets high blood sugar from Splenda as if it were just regular sugar so I tend to be a little frugal using it.

If you don't want to use Splenda and can afford it, drizzle a little Agave or a dark honey on top.

You are ready to bake this yummy dessert!

Just put it in the oven for about 15 minutes. Check the apple with a knife and if it gives way easily in and out, it's ready. If you want it really well done and soft put it in until the apple skin buckles/wrinkles a bit.

Your apples should look like this:

I hope you try this, and let me know how you like it. I know my mother and I used to make them all the time back when I lived in Alaska. This was one of our favorites. I like it plain as is, but you can add some frozen yogurt or low sugar ice cream just like it was an apple crisp.
I  like this recipe because you aren't obligated to eat a whole tray of apple crisp. They are individually made and can be made with different kinds of apples so you can try all kinds of ways of eating it.
Enjoy!!!

Sorry for the late post. Spinach Portabella Salmon bake.

Recently my mother asked me to post about salmon.
I don't really care for cooked salmon all that much. I usually have it smoked or raw in sushi. For me most fish tastes better raw and the flavor drastically changes when cooked.
I do have one salmon recipe that I like. It's simple and tasty.
First you will want to get a nice sized salmon fillet. Try to go for King Salmon if possible. To me, it's the meatiest tasting of the others.

Try to make sure all the bones are removed and any bloodlines are cut off.

Get a pan hot and add a little oil. Season your salmon with salt and pepper (not a bunch). I don't use pepper but sometimes use a little Mrs. Dash.

All you will want to do is sear the fish on both sides and set it aside. (when I say sear, you want to cook it skin down first until crisp, then flip it over just long enough to give it some color but not cook it through).

Turn your oven on to 425. Let's get started on some tasty stuff.

You will want either two cups of fresh spinach, or one block of frozen spinach.

When cooking with frozen spinach always defrost before using and always, always squeeze out as much water as possible.

Grab a mixing bowl and add the spinach, with one cup of ricotta cheese. You can use regular, or low fat. I prefer regular because it binds a little better.

Grab a portabella mushroom (the cap portion only) and rinse underneath. The dark part can either be removed or left, but I like to remove it because it holds a lot of dirt.

You will want to chop into bite size pieces (thin lengthwise pieces if possible). Add this to the spinach ricotta mixture.

I usually add some chopped garlic and onion (if you add onion and garlic, try cooking it in the pan and lightly caramelizing it if possible), but you can leave these out. Also add a pinch of paprika, and/or cumin. This is all about what you like so do what you want to :)

You want to grab a shallow corning ware dish or line a cookie sheet with foil and pour the mixture down.

Sprinkle a little Parmesan or low skim mozzarella on top and bake until it bubbles.

Put the salmon to the side and bake until the cheese browns.

Some people like their salmon slightly pink inside, some like it well done. Best thing to do is stick a fork in the middle and pull it out. If the tines are cold, leave it in a little longer, if they are hot, remove.

Spoon or use a spatula to plate some of the spinach mix on the plate.

Put a serving of the salmon on top. 

Hopefully it looks like this:

Sorry I'm not precise with serving sizes and measurements since I make most of these up myself, but if this doesn't look like an entire meal to you, remember vegetables, especially fiber ones can be a freebie food. I like to make a salad or bake a sweet potato to go with something like this.

Low Calorie Low fat lunch snack!

We have a bare fridge right now so I was kind of doing some digging around.
I came across...a few things here and there and decided my craving for pizza must be taken care of.
Ingredients to have on hand for this tasty treat are:
Flour tortillas (you can make small ones with corn if you have issues with gluten and sometimes they have rice tortillas in the health food section.
On the vine tomatoes
Green onions
Low fat or fat free cheese (regular if you are not concerned with fat content)
Low fat, or fat free dressing (regular if you are not concerned with fat content)
Cookie sheet with foil on top

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Grab your foil covered cookie sheet, and lay down one or two tortillas. I like to use flavored tortillas personally and I made mine with:

or I will get 

You will want to pick something you like, dressing-wise. I've found they changed the recipe for Miracle Whip, and it actually tastes kinda yummy with tomatoes. I know Miracle Whip isn't for everyone, and while I used to diss it and hate on it, it HAS improved in taste. Lightly drizzle Miracle Whip or dressing of your choice onto the tortilla. Don't coat it, you don't want it to get soggy. I would use fat free blue cheese from Wishbone, or a low fat Cesar.  You could also use tomato paste or sauce to make a low carb pizza!
Now you want to slice fresh tomatoes for the pizza. If possible get these:

On the vine tomatoes taste soooooooooo fresh and are just really yummy.

Slice into thin slices and scatter them around the top of the tortilla (just think like pepperoni).

Take your green onions and wash them. Remove the root end, and trim the greens so there is nothing yellow or limp hanging off of them.

You will want to chop them lengthwise but if you prefer little circles go for it. They should look like this:

Sprinkle these over the top of the tomatoes and reach for your cheese.

You can use any kind of cheese. I prefer to use Mozerella or anything low fat because I find the grease from cheese nasty and you don't really need that swirling around in your stomach.

If you can find low fat or low skim, try to get:

It's a tasty cheese in my opinion and it melts pretty good. 

That is one thing offputting about low fat or nonfat cheese. It doesn't melt right!

Put the cookie sheet in the oven and bake it until the tortilla bubbles slightly or browns on the edges. Don't overdue it or when you bite into it, it will shatter into crumbs and be messy. (unless you like that kind of thing!)

The finished product should look like so:

Of course that is not onions on top, that is basil and I didn't take this picture because I ate mine too fast to think about it.

You can cut this into quarters and eat it just like a pizza.

Other things you can add, could be fresh chopped basil like in the picture above, or sliced meat. I used some rotisserie chicken broken up on mine. 

This is another recipe that is simple and has many possibilities! 

All it needs is creativity from you. This is something you can even make with your kids.

I had a bowl of homemade vegetable soup on the side and it was a complete meal and very comforting.

If anyone makes this be creative and take pics. I would love to see people posting pictures of stuff they've made from my recipes!

Enjoy!

Pan Fried Pork Chops (for Callie)

This recipe is my favorite recipe and I've been making them since I was in high school.
The key to juicy pork chops is searing them pretty good, and slow cooking them at the same time.
And most of all, using the thick cuts. Thin cuts are worthless in my opinion and turn into leather. Get the on the bone chops too if you can. The fat on the bone really helps keep things moist and tender.
This recipe does have a bread crumb crust but there's not enough to really make it shoot your blood sugar up if you are diabetic. I've personally never had a problem, especially if I balance it out with steamed vegetables or something non carb.

First you will want 4-5 good sized pork chops. Here's a pic of what you are looking for.

Crack a couple of eggs onto a flat plate and scramble them til the yolk blends with the whites.
sprinkle a little salt and pepper on each side of the pork chops and get a nice sized flat pan ready with a cap full of canola or olive oil.
You don't need a large amount of oil to make a nice crunchy fry on these, I promise!
If you have a paper plate or a regular one (paper is easier and disposable so less mess), dump a cup or so of bread crumbs onto the plate. I use this kind of bread crumb because I like the herbs infused in it. But you can use anything and add fresh herbs if you want.

If you have a food processor or chopper, chop about 1/2 cup of nuts of your choice. I like to use almonds, or   cashews, but you can use walnuts, macadamia nuts, pine nuts, etc. Anything works.
Do a rough grind/chop so it looks like this:

Add the nuts into the bread crumbs and give it a good hand stir so its blended.
Now soak the chops in the egg wash. You don't have to marinate them. I usually just slap it in the egg on each side and move on to the bread crumbs.

Now move onto the crumbs. You can lightly coat them on each side, or turn them on each side, press into the crumb mix, and keep doing it until there's a nice thick coating. Whatever you feel will work, go for it!

Make sure the oil in the pan is hot, and swirl it around to coat.
When you are sure the oil is hot, drop the chops into the pan and let em cook for about 5-10 min on one side.
Do not flip them over until the chops are browned.
When they are ready to turn them over, turn them, and add a few flicks of water from your hand and cover them. This is where the insides will steam and get juicy.
Cook a good 5-7 minutes and uncover them.
Now you are safe to turn them over a few times without them drying out.
Turn again, until the outsides crisp up, and when all is said and done, they should look like this:

You will know they are ready, when you poke them with a knife and you see no blood/red tinge in the juice.
When you are making the breadcrumb mixture, you can add things for different tastes. I've been known to use wasabi powder, cayenne, paprika, or fresh chopped herbs. This is another recipe you can doctor up and do what you like. It's all about taste and experimentation.
Also when you are cooking, if the chops appear dry on the outside, drizzle another cap full of olive oil or canola oil into the pan and move them around so they soak a little up.
I usually throw the egg away, but you can save them, scramble em and give em to a dog or cat :)
You can also do this without the bone but I'm a major carnivore and like to chew on the bone after.
I hope you enjoy this :)