For His Glory...

Cold house + Rising bread dough = flat bread!

In my very cheap way of keeping the thermostat set at a very low temperature, I am sabataging my own bread! I keep having to turn my oven on warm just to get it warm enough for the bread to rise. This time I also turned up the heat because I figured I wasn't really saving any money with the oven on. (and because I am tired of freezing! LOL!!) It really has helped us to keep our light bill down though.

One day we hope to have a small wood heater hooked back up to the chimney. When we bought the house, it had a gigantic wood stove, and no central heat/air. But the stove had to go because it leaked smoke and I think that it was originally made for a shop or garage or something. It was HUGE!!!! (and incredibly ugly) Both of the girls also had a problem with allergies and ashtma. Not good with a smoky house! In time.......

Anyways, back to breadmaking. I had a chat with my sister the other day, and I told her that I was trying to make my own bread in an attempt to save a few dollars. She was so funny when I told her that the hardest part was kneeding the dough. She said " You are making it by hand?!?! Jessica, Thats what bread machines are for!!!" I said "I know, but I am too cheap to buy one until I know that this is something that I want to keep doing and that I am saving some money." Anyways, nobody had a bread machine until the 90's, so why do I need one? God gave me 2 perfectly good arms and hands didn't He?

Here is a close up view of my profile picture. Cute isn't she? For some reason I don't look that cute when I am cleaning the house. Although I do get a bit rosy cheeked from over-exertion! LOL!

I guess that will do for today. God bless you all.

Trying something new.....

Well, I've decided to give bread making a try. I have been a little scared to try it even though I an no beginner in the kitchen. We made 2 medium loaves and 2 mini loaves of the white and 2 loaves of wheat. Obviously the 2 mini loaves are for the girls. LOL! They thought that it was very fun, even though kneading the bread was hard work. We are waiting for it to rise a second time and then they will be ready to go into the oven. Yummo!

Here I am giving my good friend Rach all the details. She loves it!

 LOL!!!  I sent my Mom a funny picture of myself in the kitchen and this is what I get back from her. She loves to Photo Shop and is having WAY too much fun! Notice that she put burnt french fries on a plate too. Those did NOT come from my kitchen......well, not today anyways! LOL!

We are also making crock-pot bean soup with fresh pork sausage in it. I will probably make a homemade cornbread to go with it. I personally do dot eat the bean soup, but it is cheap and the family loves it. Hubby expecially loves it when I cook "southern" for him. I usually find something else to eat if I dont like it or cant eat it. I am also diabetic so I do this alot. I continue to cook food for them that I cannot eat simply because I love them and it makes them happy. Then I am happy!

I will post again to let you all know how the bread turned out. Wish us luck!

God bless you all!

Low-Sugar Cherry Dump Cake

Low-Sugar Cherry Dump Cake

1 15-18(?) oz. can crushed pineapple w/ juice & no sugar added.

2 cans sugar free cherry pie filling

small bag of unsweetened coconut

1 box low sugar yellow cake mix

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts

2 sticks butter or margerine

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 13 x 9 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. DUMP pineapple and cherry pie filling into the bottom of the pan and stir to mix. In a seperate bowl mix the DRY cake mix, coconut and the nuts until fairly well mixed. Sprinkle the dry mix over the fruit in the bottom of the pan. Now cut "pats" of butter off of the stick and lay them on the dry cake mixture. Try to cover a fair amount of the surface. It will not be perfect! Thats ok! Now bake it in the oven for about 45 minutes. This is a wonderful dessert served warm out of the oven plain or with a small scoop of sugar free cool whip or low sugar vanilla ice cream. Another version is to use a low sugar chocolate cake mix and omit the coconut and the pineapple. Just add another can of the cherry pie filling and a small amount of liquid (no sugar added juice would be best) to help with the moisture.

This recipie is only a modified version of the original that can be found on the internet. Just type in Dump Cake. I hope that you enjoy it and I hope that this encourages those of you who are sugar sensitive to experiment and try something new. God bless!

Minted Coffee Mix

Minted Coffee Mix

• 3/4 c. powdered creamer
• 1/2 c. splenda measure
• 1/4 c. instant coffee
• 1/4 c. cocoa
• dash of salt
• 4 sugar free peppermint candies finely crushed

Mix all ingredients well and place in air tight container. Spoon 2-3 tbls. of the mix into a mug, add hot water, and enjoy!

Thanksgiving is on the way!

Good afternoon! I hope that everyone is enjoying the great fall weather. I know that I certainly am.It is such a relief to finally be able to open all of the windows to enjoy all of the fresh air.

You know, it is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only 3 weeks away.I haven't given any thought as to what I will be making.Considering the fact that I was diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes this past February, the menu will have to be changed. I did find an interesting recipe for a pumpkin pie that I would like to share with you.

Low Carb Pumpkin Pie 

Praline Crust:

·       2 Tbsp. hot melted butter

·       ½ c. finely chopped pecans

·       ½ c. sugar substitute (Splenda recommended)

·       dash salt

·       dash ground cinnamon

Pie Filling:

·       1 (15oz.) can no sugar added pumpkin filling

·       ¾ c.  sugar substitute (Splenda Recommended)

·       1 Tbsp. plus a dash of pumpkin pie spice

·       1 ¼ c. heavy cream

·       4 eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  

To make the crust: Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. While mixture is still warm from the butter, press it evenly into the bottom of a deep dish pie pan. Bake crust for about 5 minutes or until browned. Remove crust from the oven, and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

To make the filling: Place all filling ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well with a wire whisk. Pour the filling mixture into the baked pie crust.

Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce to oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue to bake for an additional 50 to 55 minutes. To test for doneness, stick a toothpick in the center; if it comes out clean, the pie is done. Cool and chill before serving. Try a slice with a dollop of low carb whipped cream.

Low Carb Whipped Cream

·       1 c. heavy cream

·       1/3 c. sugar substitute

·       1 tsp. sugar free vanilla extract

With an electric mixer on high, whip the heavy cream just until frothy. Add the sugar substitute and vanilla extract and continue to whip on high until peaks begin to form. Be careful not to over whip, or the cream will break. Best if used immediately, so make this right before serving.

I have not tried this recipe yet, but when I do, I will post about it. I also do not have any of the nutritional info. for this because it was not posted with the recipe. I hope that you enjoy and God Bless!