Chicken Piccata with Pasta A Weight Watchers Recipe

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Today I am sharing this yummy recipe for Chicken Piccata with Pasta from the Weight Watchers Five-Ingredient 15-Minute Recipes Winter 2017.  This chicken piccata is so delicious and very easy to make and you can lose weight eating it.  I made it for my mom the other day, and she loved it so much we wrote the recipe down for her, also.  The lemon and lemon zest add so much flavor to this recipe.  It really makes the flavors pop.

I shared with you a few weeks ago that I had joined Weight Watchers, and I'm so grateful that I did.  As of Tuesday, February 7th, I have lost 10 pounds.  I am thrilled. That is 10 pounds in 5 weeks.  So approximately 2 pounds per week, which is great as far as I'm concerned.  I am eating everything that I want to eat.  Nothing is off limits.  I do have to make choices with my points, but isn't everything about choices.  I may forgo an english muffin so that I can have a cookie butter cheesecake bite from Trader Joe's. That is totally worth it to me, because there is no good food or bad food, no off limit foods, just choices about what I want to eat.  I get to make the choices not someone else saying you can't have that.  So for me this is a good thing.

Now, on to the recipe.  You know me, I always change things around. and this is not different.  Here is my version of this Weight Watchers recipe.

Chicken Piccata with Pasta

Makes 4 servings - 7 points per serving

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

5 ounces uncooked capellini  pasta

4 (4 ounce) boneless skinless chicken thighs - (the recipe called for breast cutlets, but I prefer thighs and the cutlets are very expensive)

1/8 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp salt ( I use pink Himalayan salt)

coconut cooking spray (I use Trader Joes, but you can use you favorite type of cooking spray)

3 tsp vermouth or dry white wine

2/3 cup of fat free low sodium chicken broth

2 tsp lemon zest

1 1/2 TB lemon juice

2 TB butter

1 TB capers, drained

Directions:

Start bringing a pot of water to a boil for your pasta. 

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.  Set aside

Heat a large skillet and then spray a with the coconut oil spray.  

Next add your chicken and cook for approximately 8 minutes per side.

While your chicken is cooking put the pasta in the pot and cook it according to the directions on the package.

Once your chicken is cooked, pull it out of the pan and set it to the side, keep warm.

Add the wine to the skillet and cook for about 30 seconds stirring and scraping any of the brown bits loose in the pan.

Next at the chicken broth, lemon juice, and lemon zest, bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/3 to 1/2 cup.

Then add the butter and capers. and then add the chicken back to the pan. 

Make sure the chicken is well coated with the lemon sauce and it is ready to serve.

Put the pasta on a plate, put 4 ounces of chicken on top, and then pour sauce over each piece of chicken and the cappelini.

This is one of my favorite recipes.  I love chicken piccata, I love pasta, and I am so excited to be eating pasta again after so many years of avoiding pasta and breads.  Yeah!!!  Life is good.

I hope you like this recipe also.  Let me know what you think.  I always love hearing from you.

Have a great week.

A Battle For Souls

There is an unseen, invisible battle going on around us, a battle for souls, for yours, and mine, and everyone that we know. The battle between good and evil has been going on since the beginning of time.

By the abundance of your trading you became filled with violence within, And you sinned;
Therefore I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God; 
And I destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the fiery stones.
Ezekiel 28:16

Spiritual warfare has been part of this world since before Adam and Eve were evicted from the Garden.  It continues to this day.  You can't see it, but it's happening, everywhere, and all of the time.

1  Now the serpent was more cunning then any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.  And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, "You shall not eat of every tree of the garden"?
2  And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden;
3  but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden God has said, "You shall not eat it, nor touch it, lest you die."
4  Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.  
5  For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
6  So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave it her husband with her and he ate.
7.  Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
Genesis 3:2-7

The snake wanted Adam and Eve to fall, so he convinced them that God wasn't being truthful.  He was a deceitful witness and he still is. He uses deception to blind our minds and hearts.  He doesn't want us knowing the Bible because God's word keeps us from being deceived by him.

A true witness delivers souls, But a deceitful witness speaks lies
Proverbs 14:25

He tries to convince people that God is not real, that Jesus wasn't the son of God, that He didn't die for our sins, that He wasn't resurrected, that we are not saved through the grace of God.  He tries to convince people that they are worthless, unloved, that there is no need for God, and no need for Jesus our savior.  Satan continues to try to convince humanity that there is no salvation.

God has given us freewill, and Jesus was a true witness who delivers souls to his Father, our Father.

17  Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."
18   And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightening from heaven.
19   Behold I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
20   Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."
Luke 10:17-20

We have authority over the spiritual realm when we pray in the name of Jesus Christ.  God has given us the weapons to fight for our souls, the souls of our family, for the president, the country, and the world.  In Ephesians 6:10 - 18 we are told to put on the whole armor of God.

10  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
11  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13  Therefor take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15  and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16  above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
18  praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-
Ephesians 6:10-18

You actually have the power in this age old battle for souls. You are in control, but you need to know His word, hide it in your heart, keep it with you at all times.

9   Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
10  No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
11  For he shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways.
12  In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your food against a stone.
14  You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
Psalm 91:9-14

God is on one side of this battle and the devil is on the other side and we already know the outcome.  The outcome has already been written.  The battle has been won, but it is a battle to save more souls, to not allow the devil to lead even one more person away from God.  So fight for your family, friends, country, and the world, because if we are not fighting in prayer who will be?  This is a battle we win, but we wont have won the battle if we haven't won souls over for the Kingdom of God.  That's what this battle is for, souls.

The devil who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are.  And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Revelation 20:10

Have a blessed week.

Pure Flix Movie Channel

This post contains affiliate links, which means if you purchase something, I will receive a small commission.  All of the opinions are my own.

I love PureFlix.com, and I have had it for several years.  If you have not heard of it before, it is similiar to Netflix, but with Christian content.  It has something for everyone and you can let your kids watch it without worrying what they may be seeing.

They have also added PureFlix original series such as The Encounter and The Inspectors which are both great family shows.  I started watching The Encounter series at the end of last year and really enjoyed it.  It is based on the movie series The Encounter with Bruce Marchiano who continues in his role as Jesus.

They are offering, Watch "The Encounter" now and get the 1st month FREE at PureFlix.com.  Which means you can try it for a month for nothing and if you like it continue, or if not you can cancel your subscription.

I hope that you will give Pureflix a chance, they offer great family entertainment, which you don't really find anywhere else.

Have  a great week.

Whoopie Pies for Valentine's Day

I made these really easy, super cute Whoopie Pies for Valentine's Day to share with all of you.  I wish you could taste how delicious they are. Yum!!!  These are semi homemade Whoopie Pies.  I used big soft cookies from the store bakery and then fill them with the heavenly filling. There are two kinds in this batch, peanut butter cup cookies and chocolate chip cookies.  I think the peanut butter cup cookie Whoopie Pies were amazing.  I loved them.  It was reminiscent of marshmallow fluff and peanut butter for any of you who like marshmallow fluff / peanut butter sandwiches.  I thought it was absolutely delightful.  The chocolate chip ones are scrumptious also.  Are there enough adjectives describing these Whoopie Pies for all of you?  I was trying to be creative.

I first made them at Christmas for my daughter in law's birthday.  She requested them for her birthday party.  I didn't have time to make the devils food cakes for the Whoopie Pies, so I bought several different kinds of soft bakery cookies from the grocery store and then filled them.  She was very happy with this tasty alternative.  Everyone at the party thought they were really good also.

Anyway, here is the recipe.

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Whoopie Pies for Valentine's Day
Serves 6
Print Screen

Ingredients:

12 large soft bakery cookies (any flavor you would like)
4 cups Marshmallow Fluff - 16 oz plastic tub
2 cups Crisco Baking Sticks All Vegetable Shortening, 20 Ounce
3 cups powdered sugar
3 tsp OliveNation Alcohol Free Gluten Free Vanilla Extract - Add Great Depth of Flavor in Baking and Cooking Recipes - Size of 2 oz
any type of Valentines Mini Hearts sprinkles

*Marshmallow Fluff, Crisco, Olive Nation, and Culpit are not paying me to give you my opinion.  If you’d like to order any of these products, though, click the Amazon* links above (who will pay me a small commission for your purchase).

Directions:

Put the marshmallow fluff, shortening, and powdered sugar in you mixer and mix using the whisk attachment until well blended.

Next add the vanilla.

Spread a several large spoonfuls on one cookie, then top with the second cookie.  I used a lot of the marshmallow frosting

Then, over a plate sprinkle whatever sprinkles you have on the frosting edges.  I did this way rather then rolling them in the sprinkles, because it worked better.

Finish putting the rest of the cookies together and put them on a serving plate and you are done. 

The only way these would be easier would be to buy them, or maybe buy the frosting.  This frosting is so good though, that you can be really proud of serving this for dessert.  They look and taste like you worked really hard on them.

I hope that you enjoy these Whoopie Pies.  I always love hearing from you.

Have a great week.

Apple Banana Bake

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In a recent post, I told all of you that I had joined weight watchers, well this Apple Banana Bake recipe is delicious and only 1 point per serving.  I am enjoying eating fruit after so many years of only eating very small portions.  I am loving making new recipes for desserts with fruit that are healthy and low in points.  This came out so delicious and I think you are going to love it as much as I did.  It was so easy to make and you should have all of the ingredients in you house.  Especially, since there are only 3 ingredients.  Give me an easy dessert recipe to make any day of the week. 

I am also giving you an alternative option, using Log Cabin Sugar Free Syrup.  This would be 0 points and that would make the whole baking dish 0 points.  So you could eat 2 servings instead of 1 for 0 points.  This is a delicious alternative and if you are really hungry, it would certainly fill you up.

Apple Banana Bake

Serves 2

1 Smartpoint per serving - with maple syrup

0 Smartpoints for all of it - with sugar free syrup

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 large granny smith apple, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly

2 bananas sliced

2 tsp Butternut Mountain Farm Grade A Dark Maple Syrup - 8 oz  (or substitute 2 tsp Mrs. Butterworth's Syrup, Sugar Free, 24 Ounce for 0 points)
1/4 tsp cinnamon 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a small baking dish with non stick spray.

Put your sliced apples and bananas in a large bowl and pour maple syrup over them.

Toss the fruit and syrup.

Pour into the baking dish.

Bake for 25 minutes.

  

Eat and Enjoy!

I always love hearing from you, so send me your comments.

Mrs. Butterworth's and Butternut Mountain are not aren't paying me to give you my opinion.  If you’d like to order either of these syrups, though, here’s the Amazon* links (who will pay me a small commission for your purchase).

God Provides

I was trying to come up with a topic for today (on my own, never a good thing), and I finally turned to God and asked Him for a topic.  (Which I should have done from the start.)  I, of course, was provided with one while I was washing my hair, it always seems to happen that way.  He told me "I will provide", which He did.  On this day He provided the topic for me, other days He provides inspiration for my designs, or recipes, whatever I may need that day.  He provides.

  

He is our constant, our healer, our deliverer.  He is dependable, reliable, loving, and kind.  He is all seeing, all knowing, available.  He is our Father.  He is our Provider.

I love the stories about Abraham's life.  He was such a faithful servant to God.  He finally received Isaac, that child that God had promised.  Then God asked him to do the unimaginable, He wanted Abraham to sacrifice his cherished son to God.  I can not even imagine how hard that would have been, but he was willing to do it for God.  He took Isaac to the mountain and was prepared to sacrifice Isaac, but God sent and angel at the last minute and said not to sacrifice his son and provided a ram for the burnt offering instead.  You can read the entire story in Genesis 22.  God provided.

So Abraham called the name of that place, "The Lord will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided."
Genesis 22:14

God will provide, you need to trust Him, you need to believe in Him, you need to ask Him. Spend time with God in prayer.  Get to know Him.  He is waiting to spend time with you.

I love Matthew 7:7.  Jesus told us exactly what to do when we need something.

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you."

Matthew 7:7

Have a blessed week.

Valentine's Party Crackers and Dollar Tree

**I was compensated for this post. This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

I saw some images of Party Crackers on Pinterest, and thought that it would be fun to make some Valentine's Party Crackers for my family.  They are incredibly easy, you just need to remember to save the cardboard tubes from the center of  toilet paper rolls to fill.  

I bought lots of cute little candies at Dollar Tree to stuff the tubes with.  I was also able to get the tissue paper and ribbon to wrap them.  This is such a simple project and it cost me all of $14 to make 12 of these fun little Valentine's Day Party Crackers.  I still have more supplies left for another 4 or 5,  but I ran out of the toilet paper tubes.  Dollar Tree has so many fun things to stuff into them.  I bought 7 different kinds of candy, 1 Valentine's Day Tissue Paper, 3 Valentine's Day Ribbons erasers, and little foam stickers.  I had bought some other things also, but I ran out of room in the tubes, so I will just send them separately.  You can fill them with whatever you would like.  You can Shop For Quality Supplies Today! Visit DollarTree.com!

By the way, this cost about $1.16 per Valentine's Cracker, and it is so much cuter then buying a small box of candy at the store and the cost is so much less.  I can still make four more once I have more cardboard tubes, and that would bring the cost down to under $.90 per cracker.  An amazing price for such a cute little gift.

You can even have your supplies to make these cute Party Crackers Shipped To Your Local Dollar Tree Store For FREE*!  You don't get much more convenient then that, and the added plus is that you don't have to pay for shipping.

Now I know that you are buying these items in bulk, but they would make such a cute party favor for a school Valentine's Day Party, and you can do a ton of them for very little money.  They would also make cute party favors for birthday parties or weddings, just change the tissue for the outside and you are set.

Supplies:

7 small bags of any type of wrapped candy ( I used Smartees, chocolates, and suckers)
Valentine's Day Stickers
Valentine's Day Erasers
1 package Valentine's Day Tissue Paper
3 rolls of Decorative Ribbon (3 yards each)
1 double stick tape

These are some of the candies that I used for my Valentine's Day Party Crackers.

I laid everything out and then separated everything into 12 piles for each toilet paper tube.

I cute the tissue paper in half lengthwise.

Next, I stuffed the tubes with the candy, stickers, and erasers.

I then put a piece of double stick tape on the cardboard tube and set it on a piece of tissue paper and rolled it up.

Then put a piece of tape at the edge of the tissue paper and finish rolling.  This way you don't have to worry about getting the tape in the right place.

Cut the ribbon into 8 pieces, a little over 12 inches each and tie into bows on the crackers.  If the candy has fallen out of the tubes, just push them back in and tie.

This is such an easy gift to make and they are so cute.

Have fun and thank you for joining me today.  I always love hearing from you.

Have a great Valentine's Day.

God's Small Miracles

God's small miracles happen everyday, in every way, and everywhere. Most people don't believe that miracles happen any longer.  They think that they are just Bible stories, but I am here to tell you that the miracles are in front of us every moment of every day.  We just have to believe.  We have to look to God, have a relationship with Him, have faith in Him.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1

As a whole, we even take for granted waking up each morning.  We take for granted each breath that we take.  When a baby is born, the excitement in the room is almost palpable when a baby takes its first breath.  People do not attribute this to God any longer, but God is who gave us breath.  Adam was given life by God.  God actually breathed life into Adam and God's breath of life continues in each of us to this day.  That is a miracle

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Genesis 2:7

You just need to look at the world around you to see these miracles.  Some are small and some are big, but they do exist.  As I sat down to write this post I looked out my window to see a dove sitting on a branch in front of me.  A miracle, a sign that He is here with me while I am writing about Him.  While I am sharing His story.

Have a blessed day.

Apple Blackberry Gallette and Weight Watchers

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I joined Weight Watchers two weeks ago and I decided to make this delicious Apple Blackberry Gallette.  Yum!  It was delicious and super easy to make.  I always like easy recipes.  I adapted this recipe from a Weight Watchers recipe for a Pear Blackberry Gallette.  I didn't have any pears on hand, but I had lots of apples.  I took this to my cousin's house for dessert and was so excited to share it with everyone.  It is such a simple, rustic, looking kind of dessert.  Just so beautiful. It looks like something that would have been made for dessert after a long day working on the farm or ranch. That thought makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  There is something so comforting about connecting with our roots through food.  

Anyway, I never took the pictures yesterday, so I made another one today to share with all of you.  Only this time I made it without sugar and used my Sugar Free Sweetener - CopyCat Gentle Sweet, and that was just as delicious as the first Gallette with sugar.  So today you have a recipe for the Apple Blackberry Gallette with or without sugar.  The one with sugar is 7 points and the gallette without sugar is 5 points.  You get to choose.  You could also substitute Splenda, stevia, or Swerve confectioners also for the Copycat Gentle Sweet.   

Now, I want to share why I joined Weight Watchers.  I am not an affiliate right now, though I have signed up for their affiliate program.  I have done every kind of diet on record, only to gain the weight back and even more.  I was hesitant to share my journey, because a lot of people who follow my blog are also friends, and it makes me feel bad about myself that I can not keep the weight off.  Not only keep the weight off, but to gain even more, is even more difficult to share with people.  I have even done Weight Watchers in the past, only to gain the weight back again.  I have been on a Ketogenic diet for the past year for health reasons and those issues were taken care of by the Keto Diet.  I have done low carb diets, counted calories, the Atkins Diet, The Scarsdale Diet, The Palm Beach Diet, lots that I no longer remember.  I joined a health club a few months ago, so I had already started exercising several times a week, but I knew that I needed something to help me with weight loss.  Enter, Weight Watchers!

The reason that I am sharing this with all of you now, is that I decided to be transparent about what I am doing in hopes that it may help someone else.  To help someone like me to feel better about themselves.  You are beautiful and your worth is not in how you look or how much you weigh but the kind of person you are.  I am telling you right now that no matter your weight, you need to love yourself.  For me, it is trying to see myself the way God sees me, and I know He sees a beautiful woman.  I had been thinking about this for several months and kept seeing Oprah in the WW commercials and decided to bite the bullet and join Weight Watchers again. 

It has been even easier this time to start it.  I can eat anything, I just need to count my points.  Some of the things that I had really missed were pastries and breads.  I can eat these now, but again I have to count my points and make decisions about what I really want to eat, and what will I give up to have it.  I had pizza and garlic knots last week and it was delicious and worth every point.  What did I give up to have it, nothing really.  I had egg whites scrambled for breakfast, Trader Joe's Veggie Flaxseed tortilla chips for lunch, and for dinner and antipasto salad, 2 pieces of pizza, and 2 garlic knots.  All of that came to 32 points.  I get 30 points in a day and 35 extra points in a week, so I used 2 of my extra points for that day and it was worth it.  I also had a couple of apples for snacks that day, and they are 0 points.  Normally, my meals are a healthier then this, but this was exciting.  I didn't feel like I was cheating or doing something wrong, I am allowed to eat this.  It is a novel thought for me after years of not eating things because they are not allowed.  I guess that always set me up to fail.

Anyway, I lost 5.6 pounds in the first 12 days and that makes me happy!  I have a long way to go, but this is a good start.  Anyway, on to the recipe for this delicious Apple Blackberry Gallette.

Apple Blackberry Galette / Sugar Free or Not

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 Granny Smith Apple, peeled, cored, and sliced very thin

2 cups blackberries

2 tsp butter melted

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 cup Copycat Gentle Sweet, or Pyure Organic Stevia All-Purpose Blend Sweetener, 16 Ounce, Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated 9.7 Ounce Bag by Splenda, Swerve Sweetener, Confectioners, 12 Ounce, or Sugar

1 Pillsbury Pie Crust

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Lay you pie crust on a piece of parchment on a baking sheet

Put you apples and blackberries in a bowl and add the butter, salt, and sweetener and stir together.

Lay the apples on the pie crust starting at the center in a circular pattern leaving 2 inches from the edge free to fold over the apples and blackberries

 Then pour the blackberries over the apples

Next, fold the pie crust over the edge of the apples and blackberries.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the crust is done and lightly browned.

Let sit for at least 10 minutes before cutting to let the juices firm up

Serves 8

with sugar 7 points
without sugar 5 points

I hope you like this recipe.  As always I love hearing from all of you, and if you have any questions please feel free to send me a message.

Have a wonderful week.

Craftsy BOGO Class Sale

I may be compensated for this post. This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

  Make 2017 a year of more making! Get two classes for the price of one. Use coupon code BOGOJAN17 at checkout.  I love Craftsy classes, and today I am so excited to share a great new buy one get one free offer.  I have taken all kinds of classes from Craftsy, and this is an amazing offer.  You can take these classes in your own time frame and stop and start them as you need to. I am going to sign up for a couple of classes that I have not yet taken. I think The Essentials for Understanding Light (w/ Alan Thornton) will be a good class to take, since I just bought a lightbox and need to understand lighting my jewelry designs.  I also always make chocolate candy for my family for Valentine's Day and I think I am going to sign up for this class on Homemade Chocolate Candy: Truffles, Bonbons & More (w/Jen King and Liz Gutman)  . I really hope you will give Craftsy a try.  Go in and check our their classes.  You have nothing to loose and everything to gain. Have a great week. Debi  *Purchase one Craftsy class and get another Craftsy class of equal or lesser value for free! Excludes classes from our Mastering in Minutes series and classes from our partner, The Great Courses. Limit one per user. Cannot be combined with any other offers. Expires January 15, 2017. 

Sugar Free Sweetener - Copycat Gentle Sweet

I made this Sugar Free Sweetener a copycat version of  the Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet sweetener and it tastes the same to me.  It was a lovely surprise.  It uses erythritol, zylitol, and stevia.  I found the recipe for it at Joy Filled Eats Sweetener.  I modified her version a little bit.  I found that granulated erythritol doesn't dissolve easily.  I have been buying Swerve's confectioners erythritol and I thought that it would work great in this recipe.  The copycat Gentle Sweet has a cotton candy taste to it, and when added to my ice cream recipes and coffee creamer recipes it is amazing.  There is no funky aftertaste.  I think it saves a little money by making it yourself.  You can buy it for $9.99 per pound from the Trim Healthy Mama Site plus shipping. 

Swerve Confectioners Erythritol 1 Lb $7.85

Xylitol 1 Lb $6.87

Stevia 70 packets box $4.92 

Total $19.64 for approximately plus shipping 2 lbs at I Herb, so the cost is approximately the same. If you order $20.00 there is free shipping which is an added plus.

 The good thing about making it yourself is that you can actually buy the products from Whole Foods if you are in a hurry and can not wait for shipping or even local grocery stores. So that is an added bonus.  It is a little more expensive, but no wait time.

Print Recipe

Sugar Free Sweetener - Gentle Sweet Copycat

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup + 2 TB Swerve Confectioners Erythritol

2 cups + 2 TB Xylitol

2 tsp Sweet Leaf Stevia or 5 packets

Directions:

Put all of the ingredients into a food processor and whirl for several minutes.

You now have 3 3/4 cups of Sugar Free Sweetener Copycat Gentle Sweet.  

*The reason that I put it in the food processor is that I want it to be a very fine powder, not granulated.  I feel like it works better in recipes.  Since xylitol is still granulated, this helps the sweetener to dissolve into your recipes better.

I hope that you like the recipe and that you give it a try.  I comes the closest to sugar in taste that I have ever had, and it doesn't raise you blood sugar levels which is great.

Have a great week.

Debi

"flexoffers"

John 3:16 Meme

John 3:16 Meme

I have been practicing working with memes a little bit and sharing them on twitter, but I wanted to share some of them here also.  Since Christmas is coming up, this is the time of year that people are thinking about Jesus more often,  I wanted to share John 3:16.  I have shared it in the past, but I thought it would be good to share again.

Have a blessed week.

Debi

Dollar Tree Sale 12/7/17

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

Dollar Tree is one of the best places to find gift wrap for the holidays.  I have already ordered tissue paper and gift bags and had them shipped to Colorado, so that when I get there, all of my wrapping supplies will be there.  They are also offering $4.95 Flat Rate Shipping At Dollar Tree (12/7 through 12/9), which is a great incentive to buy what you need over the next few days.

I decided to order the gift bags from Dollar Tree this year, because when I was ordering Christmas gifts Amazon and Target they wanted to charge $5.99 gift wrap.  That is ridiculous, I was able to order super cute Christmas gift bags and tissue and have them shipped, so that I don't have to take them on the plane with me or go shopping once I get to Denver.

Here are some examples of what I ordered.

I was even able to order my gift bag tags online and ship them also.

I hope this helps make your Holiday Shopping a little easier.  The great thing is that everything is just a dollar.

Have a great week.

Debi

English Toffee Creamer Sugar Free

I just made this Sugar Free English Toffee Creamer and it came out delicious.  I was so excited I couldn't wait to share the recipe with all of you.  I love sweet, flavored creamers in my coffee, and I have been on a mission the last few weeks to make my own creamers. My first experiment was a peppermint mocha and it bombed.  I drank it, because I wouldn't waste it, but the recipe was a fail, not something I would share with all of you.  I ordered some good extracts last week and a different sweetener.  The english toffee extract came first, so I decided to give a new recipe a try this afternoon and it was a winner!  Yeah!

I have been using cream and either liquid flavored stevia or a powdered caramel stevia FOREVER!!! At least that is what it feels like, and even though stevia is OK, I have been looking for a different sweetener that just tastes better.  I have tried erythritol,(Swerve), which is OK also, but it is still not as good as real sugar in certain recipes.  I just tried this new sweetener from Trim Healthy Mama called Gentle Sweet and it is delicious in this creamer recipe.  I added the Gentle Sweet to cream first and it tasted delicious all on its own.  It didn't need the extract to taste like a great creamer, so you could just use it in your coffee all on its own, kind of like a Sweet Italian Cream Creamer.

I love coffee, I mean I really love my morning coffee.  I love the whole morning ritual of making my coffee, putting my sweetener and flavoring in my coffee, getting it just right.  I even have specific mugs that hold the right amount of coffee, they have the right handle size, they fit in my hands perfectly, and they even have scripture on them.  One says "Trust in The Lord" Proverbs 3:5, and the other says "This Girl runs on Jesus and Coffee".  I even have one in the trailer that says "This is the day the Lord Made".  

Can you relate?  We all have our little morning rituals that help us start our day out right.  This is how I start mine.  Next up, is my prayer time and Bible Reading along with my coffee.  I have been using BibleGateway for their study guides, and I really enjoy the app.  Anyhoo, that is how I start my day.  How do you start yours?  I would love to hear from you.  

So, onto the recipe.  I hope you enjoy it.  I'll be sharing more in the next few weeks.

Print Recipe

Sugar Free English Toffee Creamer

Ingredients:

16 oz heavy whipping cream

5 TB Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet

1 1/2 Tsp English Toffee Extract

Directions:

Pour the heavy whipping cream into a bowl and add the 5 TB of Gentle Sweet.  Whisk until will blended.  Just a few minutes.  Not too long, you don't want to make whipped cream.

Next, whisk in the 1 1/2 teaspoons of English Toffee extract.

Pour into a jar.

It is ready to use.

Makes 16 oz creamer.

Enjoy.

Debi

Let Them See You In Me - Bible Study

Do you ever get a song stuck in your head?  Let Them See You by JJ Weeks Band has been playing in my head all day.  I am a Big Bang Theory fan and they called a song playing in your head an EarWorm, but I think it is more then that today.  Today I am hearing God.  The song is beautiful, but it also reflects what I want people to see when they see me.  I want them to see Him, Jesus.  I want to be a reflection of Him, Jesus.  

Prayer for the day

"God help me to be a reflection of you to this world, help me to be a reflection of our living Lord. Jesus Christ"

Amen

 Here are the words and I'll also share the YouTube video.  Maybe it will touch a nerve with you also.  If it even touches one of you then He has done His job and I have done mine.

Have a blessed day.

Debi

Let Them See You

JJ Weeks Band

Does the man I am today

Say the words you need to say

Let them see You 

in me

Let them hear You 

when I speak

Let them feel You 

when I sing

Let them see You

Let them see You

 in me

Cinnamon Roll in a Mug - Keto

I started making this recipe for these grain free cinnamon roll Keto mug cakes a few weeks ago. I found the inspiration for this recipe over at A Heart Surrendered  and tweaked it a little to fit my tastes and calorie count.  These taste as good as your everyday cinnamon rolls made with flour and sugar, but they are totally grain free and sugar free.  YUM! I can not believe, not only how amazing these taste, but also how filling they are.  One is truly enough.  So if you are on a reduced calorie, keto diet, these totally fill the bill. 

Print Recipe
Keto Cinnamon Roll in a Mug

Ingredients:

1 TB Melted Butter
1 tsp erythritol
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
pinch of baking soda
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp maple extract
egg yolk
1/4 cup almond meal

Mix ingredients well and put into a mug or small ramekin.

Cinnamon Sugar Mix Ingredients:

1 TB erythritol granulated not powdered
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Mix the erythritol and cinnamon together.

Next, take a knife and starting at the center of your dough, swirl it out and then pour the cinnamon sugar mixture into the swirl marks and the rest will sit on top of the cinnamon roll.

Microwave for 45 to 60 seconds depending on your microwave.  Mine is normally done in 45 seconds.

I put a tsp of butter on top of my cinnamon roll when it comes out of the microwave and it is delicious.

I hope that you like this recipe as much as I do.  It is soooo very good.  Let me know what you think of these cinnamon roll.  I always love hearing from you.

Have a great week.
Debi

Psalm 150

Blood Moon - 09/27/15

I read Psalm 150 last week and thought is was really beautiful and wanted to share it with all of you.  I love all of the different ways of praising God in these verses.  I hope you love it as much as I did.

Let All Things Praise The Lord

 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. 

Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. 

Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. 

Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. 

Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. 

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.