Hambone to pick with you...

We bought a spiral ham and after taking slices off and bagging them up to freeze I decided to boil the bone for a while to make ham soup. I added peeled and cut up carrots and potatoes to the broth after removing the bone, and then cut up cabbage, onions and celery. I tasted it and added pepper and a little powdered garlic and a little salt, the ham was salty enough. After the vegetables were softnened I picked the ham off the hambone and added this to the soup. We all loved the soup. Good day of eating. With the overcast sky and the feeling of Autumn in the air it is homemade soup season and this one was a winner!

I did squeeze in a ten mile bike ride. It was really dark south of here so I didn't want to get rained on if I got too far south before heading back... I did the five and then turned around and rode the five back...the cut off yoga pants under my stretchy jeans worked out nicely...I was much more comfy riding.

OOPS! I just realized I forgot to mention that I also added ONE 10 oz. CAN OF UNDRAINED PINTO BEANS.

Hazelnut milk

Okay so I don't do cow's milk or goat's milk or soy milk but I do do rice milk and almond milk and my latest...hazelnut milk. It has 30% daily calcium in a serving and that is nice to know since I do wonder about that sort of thing. I give it a squirt of chocolate syrup and heat it up and yum...I just used it for the liquid in a bowl of grits and yum...so double yum.

About the debate last night. Yes, I am a registered Democrat but I try to have an open mind and yet I still think Barak Obama conducted himself more presidentially, but that's just one woman's opinion.

Still riding the bike...one problem...delicate. Underwear...to wear or not to wear...don't laugh...the elastic around the leg is the problem so I think I will wear my cut off yoga pants (I never did get into yoga but the pants were only $3 so hey)under my pants when I ride...I know that is perhaps more info than you wanted but it is a biker's concern...saddle sores...ugh...

HAPPY SATURDAY or whatever day it is when you read this.

*Pic is of me after riding 8 miles, I am taking a break before riding back...what happened to my usual smile? Must have been thinking about the underwear question...to wear or not to wear...

Tuna yum

I got turned off when I realized most canned tuna has soy so I didn't have tuna for a long time. I recently learned the foiled packed, can-free, tuna products don't have soy so I bought some and have been into tuna again. Today I opened a pack and added the tuna to leftover rice. I added cut up celery and salt and pepper and olive oil. What a treat. It was a nice cold plate lunch.

I have not been on my bike since Saturday...I better get out there...yes, I dread the Winter months now...I love pedaling, but it is more than just pedaling, it is the wind on my face, the sights and sounds and smells of traveling on the side of the road...on my bicycle. !*!

I find my self checking out the sides of the roads when riding in a car, as if I am constantly checking on possible bike riding routes. Nice new obsession for me. Beats the half bag a day of Tootsie Rolls I used to be obsessed with in my out of control ingesting days of the past. RIDE ON!

Garden fresh sauce

Well the garden only yielded 3 squash but we are getting some tomatoes out of it so I took about a dozen of them and made some sauce. I cut them up and cooked the heck out of them with mushrooms, onions, garlic, leftover cooked gr. beef, basil, oregano, a little sugar, salt and pepper. I simmered it for hours uncovered, and then served mine over corn pasta; the rest of the family had theirs over regular pasta. Everyone loved it.

I don't ingest anything acidy anymore, but I had to make an exception...garden fresh! What a treat and so far no ill effects. Bon appetit!

Saturday nite date...

I wanted to ride...that bike has become my obsession. It used to be chocolate or candy or junk food but now I can't get enough of my bike...hehe...any ways...I rode five miles to the Chinese restaurant and hubby drove and met me. We dined on shrimp with hot pepper sauce and veggies and rice and then he drove back and I rode my bike back. He offered to stick the bike in the trunk so I could ride in the car home but NO WAY...I am a rider...I got on the bike and pedaled back...I am not losing weight but I sure am destressed after riding the bike. I kind of hum along when I ride and can't ever remember what I thought about, probably concentrating on not getting flattened by a fast moving vehicle, but it is the greatest passtime for me next to writing...riding and writing...writing and riding...am I eleven years old? LOL

HAPPY DAY EVERYONE!

I might take off one day and just keep going...

Okay, so that was attention getting...I took another 16 mile bike ride and I find that I enjoy it so much I don't want to stop...not a bad thing...but I do have to go home at some point...hehe

Yes, Flamenco Mom...get on a bike and ride...having written that, I do caution you...there are dangers out there, getting hit by a car, falling off the bike...well, you get the idea, so I don't want to be responsible for you putting yourself in harm's way. I wear a helmet always and a bright ORANGE jacket while riding...they certainly can't miss my shallwesay big old butt...but perhaps in time I will reduce that bubble...although even when I was much thinner I had junk in my trunk...

SO...any ways...two times out on the bike, 16 miles each time and three days with NO sugary foods...I sure feel at the top of my game when I avoid sugary things...of course I have NO problem not eating gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, yeast, anything acidic, but I was slipping back into my sugar obsession and thinking about it all day long...when can I have some more...more...more...so I KNOW I am more in control when I just don't eat it...

Oh...wow...what a feelin'...

Just wanna hug someone...hubby?

16 miles baby!

Probably the only one who will appreciate this sign is Lea...but I just had to photograph the moment...I rode my bike 16 miles today. Caneadea NY is halfway. I stopped there for an iced tea and a break from pedaling before riding back home. I saw lots of sticks on the shoulder of the road where I ride and a huge chunk of a tree on a roof that some folks with chainsaws were attending to, must have been from the storm the other night...I heard about five dogs barking at me, but no sign of them, so luckily they must have been tied up. Phew!

I did very well on my eating today...I was slipping back into too much sugar in my ingestion, but today I had very little. I sure do feel better when I eat less of it...

I am hooked on watching everything and anything about the election...I am a registered Democrat and will vote accordingly...BTW I loved the Saturday Night Live opener...SARAHOUSLY HILARYOUS! :)

Farm-style GF oatmeal cookies

I loved making the farm-style oatmeal cookies in my Betty Crocker Cookie cookbook, so I adapted the recipe so the whole family could enjoy them.

375 deg. oven

Mix the following well
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup shortening (I used palm oil shortening)
1/2 cup milk (I used rice milk)
1 tsp. vanilla

Add
4 cups oatmeal (I used Bob's Redmill certified GF)
1 3/4 cups flour (I used white rice flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. Xanthan gum
3/4 tsp. salt

Drop by 1 inch balls on an ungreased baking sheet. Flatten the balls and bake 8-10 min. and then remove immediately to a wire rack.

Okay...you got me on the use of sugar. I try not to ingest fructose but for cookies I give in...so sue me or thank me for this scrumptious adapted recipe...oh yeah...LOVE YA BETTY CROCKER!!!!!

I rode my bike 25 miles so far this week. One day 10 miles, another day 2, another 3, and another 10 mile trip...feelin' good!

Have a fun Friday and weekend...HUGS

Hamburger stew

I browned hamburger and then removed it and drained it and set it aside...then I added water to the pot and boiled cut up potatoes, carrots, onions, celery, zuccini, garlic, and one skinned and seeded tomato (from our garden)...I added salt and pepper and let it simmer until vegetables were soft and then added the meat and scooped out some yum...a squirt or two or three of hot sauce in your bowl gives it a nice kicked up flavor.

Cooler weather here...feels good. Late afternoon fires in the yard, the smell of autumn approaching and the sight of leaves turning to bright colors...my favorite time of the year.


ENJOY!

GF Mexican meatballs

Hubby saw a recipe in a magazine while we were passing the time in a waiting room and I jotted down the ingredients and tried to make it today...Mexican meatballs!

Mix together
12 oz. ground pork
one small ground zuccini
1/2 cup chopped corn chips
1/4 cups chopped onion
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp oregano
some powdered garlic
1 egg

Form into small meatballs and fry. I fried them and then baked them at 350 deg. for a while. I really can't remember how long, but I kept checking them. I served them with a side of grilled white corn tortillas, and a leftover rice, black bean, and green bean mixture that was also seasoned with oregano, cumin, and garlic.

The family enjoyed the dish. They put sour cream on their food and my son used a little salsa. I did nothing but dig in...delish dish!

GF Granola

So I made those oatmeal bars the other day and crumbled one up in a bowl, poured almond milk over it and ate it and it got me thinking about granola, so I made granola last night and this morning I had...drum roll...homemade GF granola.
I know most of you have probably already made your own granola but this was my first time...I know it won't be my last...yummy!

Googled (cooks.com) and adapted (of course)...

Put the following in a microwaveable bowl:

2 cups GF oatmeal
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup br. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix well. Cook in microwave for 6 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. Cool. Store in an airtight container.

I watched both political conventions and I am a registered Democrat but I must say this is proving to be an interesting race. I look forward to the next two months. It will be anything but d-u-l-l.