On the lighter side of things....

COLOUR  IS  GOOD
Yesterday  I went to the doctor   For  my yearly physical.  My blood pressure was high.  My cholesterol was high.  I'd gained some weight,  and  I didn't feel so hot.  My  doctor  said eating right doesn't have to be complicated and it would solve my physical  problems.
He said:
Just think in colours.
Fill your plate with  bright  colours.
Try some greens, oranges, reds, maybe something yellow, etc. and  eat an entire bowl of  bright  colours. 

 And  Sure Enough,  I  Felt Better Immediately!!  I  never knew eating right could be so easy!!
Now  you stay healthy my dear friend,

 Be blessed .... have a awesome day and I'll catch you later...

Anet

Meat Lovers

Hi Guys Hope you are all well and healthy where you are......

So today I was thinking ...... do you love red ... or shall I rather rephrase that....... do you enjoy having red meat or are you a chicken, pork  or fish sort of person??....

In my household my hubby absolutely love red  meat.... to be more precise... STEAK..... a good thickness and good marbling of fat .....

So for today I thought, for our girls and guys that is still deciding that to do for Valentine day, well here is another option for that all important dinner for your loved one.

The most important part of a perfect steak I think is the cut..... to decide which cut will be the most tender and flavor some when cooked.  For us fillet mignon is top ranking followed by rib eye, sirloin and then rump.... all cut about an inch in thickness.

So.... now for the  important part of how to cook this piece of meat..... do I marinate or not ......nnnnnn..... so many questions..... Ever hear of   ''KISS''...... (keep it simple stupid)..... not that I'm saying you're  stupid...... someone else came up with this......

We prefer to only have a good amount of good quality of rock salt and pepper when doing the cooking.... So this is what I do and never had a problem with tenderness and flavor of my dish....

So my chosen cut of meat is fillet mignon..... get a cast iron skillet screaming HOT, once that happen put a half stick of real butter in that skillet and straight in with your meat.  Season with a good amount of salt and pepper. Keep cooking one one side till the desired ''done-ness'' is achieved, and then only turn the meat to cook on the other side.

  How cooked you like your meat, will depend on how long the cooking time will be...... for us we love medium to rare meat.

Here's a table for you guys........

After the desired cooking is achieved I like to ''rest the meat for about 3 minutes and then just top it the a slice of herb and garlic butter.

Well guys..... have a go ..... it's real easy and oh.... soooo yummyyyyy..... have fun and enjoy your cooking after all it is fun to try all this easy and rewarding stuff in the kitchen.

So once you have tried this let me know what you think ...

Until next time 

Be blessed and stay save and comfy.

Anet

Valentine Theme

Hi guys..... I'm back with another recipe on our Valentine theme for you to cook for that very special person in you life.

Seeing it is still so cold in the northern part of our world ..... and so hot here in the south...... I was thinking of still staying in the seafood theme...... fun, light, healthy and very very tasty....

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can use what ever tickles your fancy in the seafood line.....
When I made it I used Mackerel, salmon, prawns, muscles and scallops..... yip I know the scallops is a little on the expensive side of things but....... it IS for that one very special person in your life.......

Here's the recipe for you
1 onion chopped
1 celery chopped
1 leek chopped
1 smallish sweet potato diced
10 rashers of bacon chopped
Salt, pepper & garlic to taste.
...... That's all..... the hard work's done guys.......

Fry onion celery, leek and bacon till soft.  Add sweet potato with salt, pepper and garlic and cook with 750 ml of chicken stock.  When sweet potato are nice and soft add 2 cans of coconut milk and your choice of seafood.   ......  I have used 150 gr of mackerel, 150 gr. of salmon, and 10 each of muscles, prawns and scallops. ....  and cook for about 12 minutes. When cooked drizzle a little lemon juice over and topped with chopped garlic chives.

Serve immediately.

Well guys have a go and tell me what you think..... take part in the fun and I will be back with something else for our loved ones ..... keep an eye out for another healthy fun and tasty recipe.

Be blessed where you are.
Anet

Spring is on it's way.....

Hi Guys...... Are you still keeping up with the new years decisions you've made???.... it's only February.......

So how are you all doing out there....... Here it is still really really stinking hot ... the air conditioners are running non stop and the only place where it is really cool.... is right under the cool air of the air cons.  Hope where you are you are well and comfy.

So it's official ..... it's the month of love and spring is on it's way...... the best reasons to feel that we..I can cope with another month of heat and humidity.....

What are your plans for that very special person in your life on Valentine day...... planning to go out for dinner or do the cooking yourself.?  Well if you want to do it yourself I have some easy options for you which will be in the line of our healthy living life style (remember that was the decision we've made in January) .... not boring old diet food buy something really nice that everybody will enjoy......

Are you a seafood fan?..... I surely am love, love, love seafood any seafood...... luckily we are not allergic to seafood so I was thinking about seafood for our Valentine Dinner ..... So keep your yes out on the blog ... I will be posting some delis-hes  seafood recipes and then some awesome dessert recipes as well.  There are a few strawberry ideas on the blog already but some more are on the way.

So lets start of with a grilled prawns Or shrimp as it is called in some parts of the world....  recipe......Healthy, good looking and really deli shes but still easy to do......we are not all chef's .....

I have made this It's easy and SO SO yummmmmm.......
Here's how to.....
Some fresh herbs..... finely chopped... Basil, thyme, parsley, fresh crushed garlic, 1 tbsp lemon juice. salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well with 4 tbsp of olive oil.
Deviene  and peel the prawns / shrimps and cover them with the herb dressing .... leave to marinade for about 2 hours.  Once they are marinated put them on a kebab or skewer and grill them in a hot skillet with a little olive oil till nice and pink.... do not over cook....... once they 're pink they are cooked.... serve with a tartar sauce  and a green salad.

Well guys try this and let me know what you think.... would love to hear your comments.

Just one last thing before I go..... on the site you will see a  Amazon box in the side banner ..... in there you can search for ANYTHING you want...... does not have to be only related to what is going on at the site but whatever you need or want ..... just search in there and you can find what yo need..... no more going onto Amazon itself .... do it form this site.

Well that's it from me......  Have fun take part and remember to leave a comment.

Have a wonderful time where you all are.

Gluten free on Valentine Day

Hi all you lovely people out there......

So how are are you all doing almost 2 week into 2015.... gosh.... time isn't waiting for anybody and here where I live in Australia it is really really hot at this stage.  The fires down south was really bad but thanks  to  some rain that fall it's not so severe at this stage.

Well all that said.... Cupids cloud.... Valentine Day is on it way...... what do you guys think about Valentine Day..... do you make a fuss over it, or do you just do what you always do with lots of love anyway ... regardless ...... do the normal dinner.  For me... I do not get to fussy over Valentines Day and presents and ....and...and all the rest ..... but, I do like to cook a special dinner for my hubby and I.  I think it is important to make the most important person in your life feel special, and if there is one day to do it, well then I think Valentines Day is the perfect opportunity.

So thinking of food.... entrees, main meals and  delicious desserts.... and still on our healthy living life style  it may get I little tricky don't you think.....  So I thought in the next few weeks prior to Valentines, I may have to put some recipes on here to cover I few eating plans as far as healthy eating is concern.  So here we go.......For this recipe I thought lets go Gluten free....with a really cupids cloud light  dessert with the fruit of love..... Strawberry.......

I a mixer whip together 2 cups of cold cream with stevia  / sweetener or 1 tablespoon sugar  with 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. 

In a food processor or with a fork mush halfway thawed  2 cups strawberries with sweetener or sugar to taste, and fold into the whipped cream.  Distribute dessert in fancy glasses and refrigerate for at least 2 hours until firm and ready to eat.

'' Note'' - - If you so prefer you can use any type of fruit  fresh or frozen.  (The Photo show Raspberry)

Just remember .... It does not have to to complicated to be nice. 

Well try this and let me know what you guys think.

Be blessed and have an great day / evening where you are.

Talk to you soon

Anet

Plump juicy strawberries

Hi guys......

Yip it's almost time for Valentine Day and I had a request for some ideas with the ever soft juicy strawberry.  Seeing that there's a lot of guys thinking to make their lovely wife's happy with a once in a year dinner..... self prepared.....  that is.... I was think of something not to difficult but really really tasty and thought of this idea.

I know there is a lot of ideas out there about a strawberry salad with lots of ingredients but if you want something easy,  still tasty and still keep it fun.... this is my idea......

Cut some watermelon in about an inch square size, cut strawberries in wedges.  On a cocktail stick start to skewer the watermelon a  fresh basil leave some feta cheese and top it with the strawberry.  You can have this as a entree drizzled with some balsamic reduction  to the main meal or you can have this as a salad with the main meal. 

I just love, love, love the combination of these ingredients...... so give it a try and see what you think about it....... quick healthy and so so easy.

Earlier in the blog is an idea for a dessert with strawberries as well

Well guys .... have fun and I catch you later

Blessings to you

Anet

Scales or not

Hi to you all out there.......

So..... after seeing this ..... what do you think...... fairly true hey......

Well I hate the word DIET  and  the word SCALE is the worst nightmare for me ever.... no really... If I just think I have to get on a scale I get so a anxious, I get hot flashes and all the other  feelings that make me feel sick and then I am not  in a good place...... . So for me NO scales or the word diet.

But I have to loose some extra pounds/ kilo's .... as I think a lot of us have to  ....

I believe you do not have to be this perfect out of this world human what do everything just so perfect and never make a mistake and aren't allowed to make a ''of'' decision ..... You do not need to be perfect .... We all know how to loose weight in a scene.  It is the motivation that  lacks at some stages and the mental challenge is the other 'ghost' that make it so hard to make the right choices.  I have experience that  just make  ongoing healthy eating decisions, add some activity into your day  and try to kick the bad habits .... and you are on you way work the best for me.  Temptations will be around us all the time ... I can't think of a place to go and not find any temptation of any sort there..... Ummm  made yes I can..... but ....... a health farm is not in my normal way of everyday life...... unless you work there...... that's a different scenario........

 So my tip for today will be.... take one day at a time..... go through that day,  make the right choice .... you will know what is right and wrong....... take small steps and you'll be surprised how easy it comes after a short while and we will reap the benefits. Remember Rome wasn't build in one day..... It took us a while to get those pounds there.... it will take some inspiration to get rid of them..... Just take the first step........ not a big leap into the the unknown of weight loss.....

Well that it from me for now guys.....
Hope you all have a blessed day
Catch you later.
Anet

Clean eating

Hi all you lovely people out there.....

So how are you all....... I surely hope that all is back to normal for you guys. After all the holidays and vacations and eating and doing nothing and being lazy..... which is/was ....permitted for that 'silly season' ... we are all ready for the new year and what it is going to bring us.

So ... do you guys make any new years decisions..???...  Well for me....  I don't.... not because I have anything against the thought.... it's just that I know myself I wont stick to it..... I know of a lot of people that make a decision and stick to it .... and I have a lot of respect for them,  But then I know of a lot of other that will make some decisions and they don't even stick to it through January.

I prefer to learn from my mistakes that I made in the last year .... adn there was many .... believe me,  and TRY not to make them again .... Well is you can see 'try' is in capitals..... which mean I am really trying but then... one is only human and bound to make mistakes and be decipointed in decisions you have to make.  I think that if you are alive, you will just have to do life ..... make decisions and then be happy  with it .... don't beat yourself up about anything that's not working out the way you have planned... have fun and if that was the wrong one ...... well you just make another one in the right direction......

Well for me eating more healthy and make better choices as far as eating and exercising will be the center of my grocery shopping and evenings ... not the couch ....... and try to stick to it..... this is why I am going roast vegetables with lots of salads and interesting herbs and spices.

In there is:- Red onions, sweetpatato, cauliflower, zucchini, carrots, mushrooms, bell peppers, low GI potato. 

 Marinated in a herb mixture of:- Finely chopped fresh Parsley, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme, 2 cloves of fresh garlic, some Cajun seasoning,  salt and pepper.  Combine everything with some olive oil and toss all your vegetables in .... make sure everything is covered in the marinade.... Bake in oven for about 40 min.  

Well guys I hope you try this and please let me know what you think about this..... I just love it....

So for me....... it's of to my oven.... my vegetables are cooked and I am looking forward to a great meal.

Catch you later and have a blessed day / evening where you are. 

Come on take part in the fun and let us know what your ideas are.

Anet