A Slice Of Heaven

I don't know why anything lemon flavored makes me giddy with happiness.  Especially the pastries.   So, when I saw this recipe by frugalfarmwife, it was love at first sight.  It looks so yummy and gluten free too!

For years now, instead of a cake, I enjoy a lemon meringue pie for my birthday instead.  This year am going to try these for sure.  

Here is the recipe.  Enjoy!

Gluten-Free Lemon Bars Recipe

For the crust:

• 1 ½ cups gluten-free flour
• ½ cup powdered sugar
• ¾ cup butter (softened)

For the Filling:

• 4 eggs
• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• ¾ cup lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 2-3 teaspoons grated lemon peel (optional)

Preheat oven to 350º.

Combine crust ingredients and mix well.

Press into the bottom of a greased 9×13 inch baking pan.

Bake for 20 minutes until the crust begins to turn a light brown.

Remove pan from oven.

Beat filling ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl.

Pour over warm crust.

Return to oven, and bake for and additional 15-20 minutes until filling is set, and slightly brown around the edges.

Remove from oven, and cool for 10-15 minutes.

Sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.

Use a butter knife to loosen lemon bars from the edges of the pan.

Let cool completely.

Cut bars, and remove from pan.

Cherio!

Pie - A Little Slice Of Heaven

I found this pie recipe a little while ago on asgoodasgluten and I just had to share!  Just looking at this makes me sooooooooo happy....this is definitely my Thanks Giving desert.  Yum!

Apple Pumpkin Salted Caramel Pie
Ingredients: 
·1 GF Super Easy Pie Crust Recipe (I use a homemade blend of gluten free flours or Bob's Gluten Free All Purpose Blend)
Apple Layer:
·2 medium Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
·¼ cup sugar
·1 TBS GF flour mix
·½ tsp cinnamon 
Pumpkin Layer:
·1 cup canned pure pumpkin
·¼ cup sugar
·1 egg, slightly beaten
·½ tsp cinnamon
·1/8 tsp allspice
·1/8 tsp ginger
·1/8 tsp cloves
·1/8 tsp nutmeg
·Dash of sea salt
Streusel:
·¼ cup packed brown sugar
·2 TBS GF flour
·2 TBS butter, softened
·½ cup pecans, chopped
Salted Caramel Sauce:
·12 individually wrapped caramels
·¾ TBS skim milk
·Dash of sea salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚. Prepare pie crust according to recipe. 

In a large bowl, combine all apple layer ingredients. Spoon mixture into prepared pie crust.

In the same bowl, mix pumpkin layer ingredients until well blended. Pour over apple mixture. Bake for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix streusel ingredients with a pastry cutter until mixture resembles course crumbs. 

Sprinkle streusel over baked pie, and then return to the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes longer, or until a knife inserted into pumpkin layer comes out clean. 

Over a double boiler, combine caramels and milk. Stir frequently and heat over medium-low heat until mixture becomes a sauce. Stir in a dash of sea salt and drizzle over the pie. Let pie cool completely before topping with caramel and serving.

And there you have it, an amazing mouth watering desert.  I have a feeling that once I make this, it will be a happy happy Thanks Giving.

Cherio!

All salads Were Not Created Equal

One of my favorite foods is salads.  No kidding, I love 'em!  Perhaps it is the fact that there are so many types and ways one could make a salad.....I don't know.  All I know is, I love variety and salads do it for me.  


And so this week I set out to find three salads that I have never tried before.  Salads that earned off the charts reviews.....and are not too difficult to make.   I like to keep it simple.  So here are the 3 nominees for scrumptious salads of  the week:  drum roll please.........


These first two by  www.thefoodiediaries.com will hit the spot for sure. So yummy!

Ingredients: baby spinach, mozzarella, roasted cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper,   onion, celery, cucumber and the dried cherry + pom concoction. 

Ingredients: fresh spinach, roasted butternut squash, cauliflower, grilled onion and sun-dried tomatoes, dressed in Newman’s Own Asian Sesame dressing. You have to try this!

Now this one had me at custard, not to mention the recipe is by miss Paula Deen.  Oh my goodness....this looks so pretty I almost didn't want to eat it. ALMOST. Am so happy right now...so happy.

Find the recipe here.

And there you have it, 3 delicious recipes that will bring you lots of happiness and mad satisfaction.  I guarantee it!

Cherio!

Age Defying Divas - Weight Loss & Fitness Inspiration

About a week ago, my sister sent this video to me and it totally blew me away.  If there is a fountain of youth, Annette Larkin has taken more than a sip from it.  She looks fabulous!  I was so inspired by her story that 70% of my diet is now raw vegetables, fruits and grains too. I am not 100% raw like she is (hey, baby steps) but the health benefits of my new diet regimen is nothing short of incredible. This is only week one for me and I know there will be meat craving bumps along the way but am up for the challenge.  Bring it on!

Another lady who inspires me is Ernestine Shepard. She is a 74 year old body builder and athlete who currently holds the Guinness book of world records for being the oldest female body builder.  And, for all of us late bloomers, she started her fitness journey in her 50's. Yep, it is NEVER too late. 
Ernestine starts her day at 4am in the morning and diligently runs 10 miles...every day.  She is also a fitness instructor, personal trainer and avid marathon competitor.  Whew!....am tired just thinking about all this stuff.  This lady is no joke.  She and Annette are solid proof that you can be healthy and look fierce at any age.  It's up to you though, so go get it!   


Cherio!

New Year. New Attitude!

.............HAPPY  NEW  YEAR!..............  

Woo hoo!, we made it. Am totally siked as always but minus a resolution list this time.  I know what I have to do so instead I plan on making a "to do " list on a daily basis and stick to it.  I find this strategy to be more practical for me and less overwhelming.  Also, I can actually accomplish everything that would have been on my resolution list this way, one step at a time.  So much easier.  Now why didn't I think of that sooner......


Now that I am on the subject of resolutions and such, I made a promise on this blog that I am going to make good on today.  I had done a post entitled Weight Loss/Fitness Inspiration Mel B and in that post I promised to share my weight loss "after" photos.  At the time I had gained ten pounds and I was really motivated to lose them.  So, with Mel B as my inspiration and Tae-Bo and Pilates as my method I worked out four times a week for three  long hard months.  And I didn't lose a pound until the fourth week but that's another story I will tell in detail in another post.  Let's just say for now that I was thoroughly disenchanted and frustrated with the whole thing after the third week with no results. 

Hey if you going to pose you might as well commit, lol.

My photos are not the best since they were taken inside with no natural light....cause there was no way I was wearing these "booty" shorts outside where my neighbors could possibly see me.  Absolutely not.  I still have ways to go for the muscle definition I crave but I am encouraged to keep going.  Hey, who knows what'll happen in 2012 with hard work and a little sweat equity.  I don't know exactly but it will be all kinds of fabulous! 

Cherio!