Category Archives: recipes

The Diet….

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Note:
There in an auction where you can bid happening on the blog.  You can find it HERE.  Now for today’s post.

So my dreaded diet started on LAST Friday…well Saturday actually but I always start a day early to “get in the mode”.  I know that sounds weird but it so easy to wipe a bit of peanut butter off of a knife and put it in my mouth.  I’ve had a bad habit like that for years and most of the time it’s okay but when I’m on this diet it’s a HUGE no-no.

My diet is a low-iodine diet.  I have to be on the diet to do the upcoming test to see where the cancer is hiding in me.  So I can have salt…not iodized.  No dairy, fish, no product whose label says “salt” or “seasonings” on it.  Absolutely no going out to eat or processed food.  Egg whites are okay but yolks are a no-no.

I’ve had to do the diet three times already…this is the fourth.  I hated it every time.  It’s such a mind play.  Then conflicting information doesn’t help.  My book of recommendations say rice is okay….but if I go on the internet and look up rice, some versions of the diet frown on it.  So what’s a girl to do?  I want the test to be as successful as possible so I avoid the rice.

Then they will list an item like oatmeal.  I can have oatmeal…but I can’t have milk on it.  I’m picky and not a fan.  I can have a salad but I have yet to come up with a dressing that doesn’t include mayo, mustard, eggs, salt, “spices”, dairy or other no-no items.  It’s no fun to eat a salad without dressing…that’s why I complain.

This time around I was determined to be better and not whine as much.  So I decided that I need to step up and be the good cook I am….so I tried.

Brownies…with oil instead of butter and applesauce substitute for the eggs.


The batter looked okay…but how would they taste?? Continue reading →

Apple Pie Muffins

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The family recently got together.  Kelli and Kalissa knew we’d all be here and also knew how hard it is to get all of us to a restaurant so everyone pitched in and made something.  I was in charge of potato salad and my macaroni ring salad.  (recipe for ring salad HERE).  Kalissa brang hamburgers…Kelli brought Apple Pie Muffins.

Here’s Lucy trying one…they were a HIT!

The original recipe was for Apple Pie Bread but Kelli likes muffins better.  I do for the kiddos too.

Kelli found the recipe at Hillbillies Down Home Cooking Facebook page.  You can find that HERE.  In the meantime, here’s the recipe….. Continue reading →

Never the Same: Macaroni Salad

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I’m not a recipe follower.  I don’t know if that’s good or bad.  I think good.

Awhile ago I gave you my recipe for ring macaroni salad.  (find that recipe HERE)

Well the other day I decided that I was going to make macaroni salad.  I went to the cupboard to check the noodle selection and there was ring macaroni.  Yahoo.   It’s my favorite!

I started boiling the noodles only to find that the ham I thought was in the refrigerator was gone.  I went to the cabinet thinking DARN…I’m going to have to use tuna for the meat.  I don’t like that as well but oh well.  My goal has been to use what’s in the cupboards so I was sticking with that and planned to use it but I opened the door and saw two things….

Spam and Queso cheese.  Hmmm.  That sounded interesting.  Time for a recipe tweak.

So I chopped up the Spam into small pieces.  Chopped an onion and just then our son Buck called on the phone.  He asked what I was doing and I said making macaroni salad.  He said, I hope you’re putting celery in it.  Hmmm..  I wasn’t.  I didn’t have any.  So as I was talking to him I walked to the cupboard and got the celery salt.  I sprinkled a few shakes into the salad.

I got done talking to him and chopped an onion.

Now for the Queso.  How was I going to incorporate that??  I ended up taking Mayo, Queso, salt and pepper and a little milk to smooth it out and used that as the sauce.

Oh my…check it out…. Continue reading →

Instant Pot Update

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You might remember my delemia when Kramer was in the hospital this spring and I had to eat on the low-iodine diet.  I couldn’t eat any food from a restaurant or prepared food yet I was staying overnight in the hospital with Kramer.

I ended up going to WalMart and buying an Instant Pot.  I already had one so it seemed silly to me but it was SUPER important that I stay on the diet.  So I did what I had to do and bought a second one.  This time I bought the larger 8 quart one.  This is one I bought.


I ended up getting it home and immediately Kalissa asked if she could have my old one.  Reluctantly I let her have my 6 quart one.  I had kind of thought it would be nice to have two as I use one so much…but then reality struck and I realized that the kitchen only has so much room in it.

I am so happy I purchased the 8 quart though.  Here’s one of the reasons why…

I can fit a whole chicken in it!!  I love being able to do that.  I couldn’t do that in the 6 quart one.  I am going to do the beer can chicken with this one….I just popped it in to show you how roomy it is an 8 quart.

Something else I started doing with this larger Instant Pot that I couldn’t do with the other one is make two things at the same time.  See?? Continue reading →