Layer cooked (brown) rice in the bottom of the crock pot on high
Mix together and add:
Shredded cooked chicken
Frozen mixed veggies
Chicken broth ( Better than Bouillon [? gluten free] w/ water)--this is full of salt so I don't add any
Shredded mushrooms
Shredded onions
Cubed potatoes
Paprika
Turmeric
Granulated Garlic
Powdered Ginger
Fresh ground pepper
For the crust:
One or two potatoes--grated
micro grated garlic
two eggs
mix together and spread over the top. Cook until done.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Sunday, November 10, 2013
How to save money on your garbage bill
How often do we think about our garbage bill? Once every three months when we pay it? When the container is overflowing with garbage? Maybe it on your property bill or the landlord pays it and you don't think of it at all.
Let's talk about it now, and you may feel better about it when we make a few changes.
Change came slowly for me, I learned about composting almost 20 years ago and slowly incorporated it into my life. Started a worm bin, that broke down our kitchen waste and gave me the best compost I've ever had. This was the first part of decreasing our garbage stream.
In class the teacher held up a baggie with dryer lint in it, "Is this compostable she asked?" We had varied guesses, "Yes," "No," and "Maybe" It was maybe, if the lint was a natural fabric like cotton or linen then the answer was yes, if not better to leave it out.
Class went on like this, here is a list of many of the items you can compost:
Food-- Fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and small amounts of meat (you will need to bury these to keep animals away) *don't put too much of one thing in there, if you are collecting stale bread, for example, don't put so much in that it overwhelms the system.
Tree products -- Cardboard (our dog chews it up for us) in small pieces, shredded paper (black ink is okay, not colored), toilet paper and paper towel rolls, pizza boxes and so on.
Dryer Lint -- Cotton, wool, linen & other natural fabrics *remember that wool and linen don't like the dryer
Leaves/Branches-- Rather than paying to have them hauled off, put them in your compost, the smaller they are the faster they will break down.
Recycling, some communities charge separately for this, others include it in the bill. Is a great way to save on your bill (and help the environment, it takes 90% less energy to recycle an aluminum can than to dig more out of the ground.) Find out which plastics (they take up a lot of room, so this is a really space/money saver) and metals are accepted for recycling and fill up your bins.
Newspaper and office paper (black ink only) can be composted or recycled.
Plastic bags -- can be taken to your local grocery store to be recycled, there is usually a bin near the front of the store, including grocery store bags, newspaper sleeves and vegetable bags. In addition, you can reuse these at the store and will often get a refund for using your bags again.
We carry cloth bags (doesn't rip when wet, handles are thick and comfortable, can put heavy items in them) and use them over and over and get 5 cents back for each one we use, every time.
Buying used -- is one of the best ways to prevent garbage from coming into your house, thereby decreasing what needs to go out. Less packaging as someone else has already unwrapped it. If it was going to fall apart after one or two uses, it has already done that and been junked.
When I noticed that we were only putting our garbage can out once every 3-4 weeks (we would wait until it was full before putting it on the curb) I called our hauler and asked for a smaller can, they told me I had the smallest one that they offered. She suggested that we go to once a month pick up, a savings of a few dollars. I didn't think it was worth it, because despite the fact that we were only putting it out that often, if we missed one month we would have to wait a whole month for the next pick up. Despite the fact that our garbage doesn't stink (food waste is in the compost) it would be stressful making sure we put it out in a timely manner.
Another option, is to share with a neighbor. This would cut your bill in half. I tried this but for whatever reason it didn't pan out.
Finally someone suggested to me that we could go to pre-paid bags and that is what we use now. I only pay for the garbage that I send out and we stuff the bag to the hilt. Taping it shut if necessary (rather than using a twist tie as it uses the whole interior bag space. This is the right time to fold, spindle and mutilate everything going into the bag!
Let's talk about it now, and you may feel better about it when we make a few changes.
Change came slowly for me, I learned about composting almost 20 years ago and slowly incorporated it into my life. Started a worm bin, that broke down our kitchen waste and gave me the best compost I've ever had. This was the first part of decreasing our garbage stream.
In class the teacher held up a baggie with dryer lint in it, "Is this compostable she asked?" We had varied guesses, "Yes," "No," and "Maybe" It was maybe, if the lint was a natural fabric like cotton or linen then the answer was yes, if not better to leave it out.
Class went on like this, here is a list of many of the items you can compost:
Food-- Fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and small amounts of meat (you will need to bury these to keep animals away) *don't put too much of one thing in there, if you are collecting stale bread, for example, don't put so much in that it overwhelms the system.
Tree products -- Cardboard (our dog chews it up for us) in small pieces, shredded paper (black ink is okay, not colored), toilet paper and paper towel rolls, pizza boxes and so on.
Dryer Lint -- Cotton, wool, linen & other natural fabrics *remember that wool and linen don't like the dryer
Leaves/Branches-- Rather than paying to have them hauled off, put them in your compost, the smaller they are the faster they will break down.
Recycling, some communities charge separately for this, others include it in the bill. Is a great way to save on your bill (and help the environment, it takes 90% less energy to recycle an aluminum can than to dig more out of the ground.) Find out which plastics (they take up a lot of room, so this is a really space/money saver) and metals are accepted for recycling and fill up your bins.
Newspaper and office paper (black ink only) can be composted or recycled.
Plastic bags -- can be taken to your local grocery store to be recycled, there is usually a bin near the front of the store, including grocery store bags, newspaper sleeves and vegetable bags. In addition, you can reuse these at the store and will often get a refund for using your bags again.
We carry cloth bags (doesn't rip when wet, handles are thick and comfortable, can put heavy items in them) and use them over and over and get 5 cents back for each one we use, every time.
Buying used -- is one of the best ways to prevent garbage from coming into your house, thereby decreasing what needs to go out. Less packaging as someone else has already unwrapped it. If it was going to fall apart after one or two uses, it has already done that and been junked.
When I noticed that we were only putting our garbage can out once every 3-4 weeks (we would wait until it was full before putting it on the curb) I called our hauler and asked for a smaller can, they told me I had the smallest one that they offered. She suggested that we go to once a month pick up, a savings of a few dollars. I didn't think it was worth it, because despite the fact that we were only putting it out that often, if we missed one month we would have to wait a whole month for the next pick up. Despite the fact that our garbage doesn't stink (food waste is in the compost) it would be stressful making sure we put it out in a timely manner.
Another option, is to share with a neighbor. This would cut your bill in half. I tried this but for whatever reason it didn't pan out.
Finally someone suggested to me that we could go to pre-paid bags and that is what we use now. I only pay for the garbage that I send out and we stuff the bag to the hilt. Taping it shut if necessary (rather than using a twist tie as it uses the whole interior bag space. This is the right time to fold, spindle and mutilate everything going into the bag!
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Gluten free mexican casserole (easy)
Had to come up with a quick casserole that I could feed to a group of people. The theme was Mexican food. I wanted to do quesadillas but couldn't take the time to make them one by one, so I came up with this:
In a large casserole dish lay down one layer of corn tortillas. I broke some apart to cover the whole bottom.
Add a whole can of Chili beans including the liquid (these are flavored beans, no meat)
then add a layer of shredded cheese (I used a mozzarella mixture)
do this all again and top with thick tomato slices and more cheese and a mixture of granulated garlic, powdered ginger, turmeric and sweet paprika as well as some nutritional yeast.
(optional add wheat germ to make a crust--this has gluten however)
put in a 225 degree F oven until heated through and the cheese is melted
In a large casserole dish lay down one layer of corn tortillas. I broke some apart to cover the whole bottom.
Add a whole can of Chili beans including the liquid (these are flavored beans, no meat)
then add a layer of shredded cheese (I used a mozzarella mixture)
do this all again and top with thick tomato slices and more cheese and a mixture of granulated garlic, powdered ginger, turmeric and sweet paprika as well as some nutritional yeast.
(optional add wheat germ to make a crust--this has gluten however)
put in a 225 degree F oven until heated through and the cheese is melted
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Easy rice and spinach casserole
I like one pot dishes, less cleaning up really appeals to me! So I came up with a dish that uses raw rice. The trick is to make sure the rice is covered with liquid throughout the cooking process. Because of this the rice needs to be on the bottom of the dish.
Rice and Spinach Casserole
Use a 9" x 12" oven safe (e.g. pyrex, anchor hocking) casserole dish
Pour in 1-1 1/2 cups of washed Basmati rice (you can use other rice, but Basmati has a ton of flavor) in a layer on the bottom of the casserole dish, pour 2-3 cups of boiling water over it (double the amount of rice) and let sit until cooled. This begins to cook the rice. Sprinkle with a mixture of Turmeric, sweet paprika, granulated garlic and powdered ginger) * Optional-sprinkle with salt
Then add a layer of frozen spinach, liquid and all, with some chopped parsley over that.
I put a layer of shredded mozarella next, then thickly sliced tomatoes in a single layer before adding more cheese.
For a crunchy top I added raw wheat germ.
(I didn't add any salt because the cheese has salt, as does the spinach. The rice could have used a bit of salt for flavor)
Rice and Spinach Casserole
Use a 9" x 12" oven safe (e.g. pyrex, anchor hocking) casserole dish
Pour in 1-1 1/2 cups of washed Basmati rice (you can use other rice, but Basmati has a ton of flavor) in a layer on the bottom of the casserole dish, pour 2-3 cups of boiling water over it (double the amount of rice) and let sit until cooled. This begins to cook the rice. Sprinkle with a mixture of Turmeric, sweet paprika, granulated garlic and powdered ginger) * Optional-sprinkle with salt
Then add a layer of frozen spinach, liquid and all, with some chopped parsley over that.
I put a layer of shredded mozarella next, then thickly sliced tomatoes in a single layer before adding more cheese.
For a crunchy top I added raw wheat germ.
(I didn't add any salt because the cheese has salt, as does the spinach. The rice could have used a bit of salt for flavor)
Friday, April 19, 2013
Easy Mashed Potatoes
I love mashed potatoes and I almost never made them because I saw them as a multi-step process. Then I figured out how to make them quickly and easily.
First scrub enough potatoes to fill a large microwave safe bowl, then cut into one inch cubes (I leave the peel on for nutrition and flavor and because it saves time.)
Chop a small handful of onion.
While you are doing this heat a small amount of water in the bowl in the microwave.
Add the chopped onion to the bottom of the bowl then the cubed potatoes.
Cover with a microwave safe lid (I use a glass plate) and cook until tender (this can take 10-15 minutes depending on your microwave -I use the baked potato setting on our microwave)
When cooked there will be some liquid in the bottom that I leave there because it contains some of the nutrients from the potatoes, add a stick of butter and some milk along with salt, pepper and granulated garlic, mash and enjoy!
First scrub enough potatoes to fill a large microwave safe bowl, then cut into one inch cubes (I leave the peel on for nutrition and flavor and because it saves time.)
Chop a small handful of onion.
While you are doing this heat a small amount of water in the bowl in the microwave.
Add the chopped onion to the bottom of the bowl then the cubed potatoes.
Cover with a microwave safe lid (I use a glass plate) and cook until tender (this can take 10-15 minutes depending on your microwave -I use the baked potato setting on our microwave)
When cooked there will be some liquid in the bottom that I leave there because it contains some of the nutrients from the potatoes, add a stick of butter and some milk along with salt, pepper and granulated garlic, mash and enjoy!
Monday, April 1, 2013
Mitigating the side effects of Metformin
When I first started taking Metformin I had a lot of stomach upset and later acid reflux, and it took me a while to figure out what to do to mitigate the symptoms. As instructed by my endocrinologist I ramped up slowly. Started with two a day, then three then four. He prescribed 500 mg Extended Release (ER) tablets because they are easier on the stomach. So I started with 1000 mg ER per day and ramped up to 2000 mg ER (this is the therapeutic dose for PCOS.) I remember going to three tablets a day and taking them every eight hours, I could feel them wear off and would watch the clock until it was time to take the next dose! I felt like an addict, but they helped tremendously. Recently I got a bottle of Metformin from the pharmacy and noticed that they did not give me huge bouts of diarrhea and almost no stomach aches. Looked at the bottle, it said Amneal Pharmaceuticals. Now I have it listed at the pharmacy that I can only take Amneal. Since it is generic I don't pay anything extra.
I started to lose inches, more than I lost weight and began to look like I remembered myself from years ago. I felt good. My bad moods slowly slipped away. I used to be just fine then in a second I would be screaming at anyone near me. It was awful and the Meformin corrected that. All during this time I was having diarrhea on and off from the Metformin. Yes, I took it with food and no I didn't break or chew the tablets. When I went to the pharmacy for antibiotics the pharmacist told me to take the pills at least an hour before going to bed, otherwise they would sit in my stomach all night. AHA! I realized that is what I was doing with the Metfomin, then taking the morning dose on top of that then running to the bathroom. So I started to take the nighttime dose earlier. Often I would remember just before going to bed, I found that two pills was too much for overnight but I could take one and not have much in the way of side effects (I talked to my endocrinologist about this, your should too) and then take the full dose the next day. It makes it harder to keep the weight off if I do this all the time but is easier on my stomach.
Another side effect of Metformin is acid reflux, I called it in and was told to take an acid blocker (it tells your body to make less acid) so I scooted over to the pharmacy and asked for it. There, it was explained to me that this was an everyday medicine used to prevent your body from making acid, not a "take if you have symptoms" medicine. We need the acid in our stomach to break down the food we eat. I ended up with the one you take only if you have symptoms. When I was talking with a friend about this, she suggested I think about why there would be an abundance of acid. It made me think, and I remembered that I had learned about digestion (from a book by Adelle Davis, nutritionist in the 50's) and that I could help my body digest the food by taking an enzyme pill (I like Trader Joes Papaya enzymes) and by taking a pro-biotic (make sure it comes refrigerated) so I did. In addition, I cut back on things that cause acid reflux like caffeine, acidic foods and fatty foods (you can find a full list on www.medlineplus.gov.) With these changes my acid reflux went away. I could sleep peacefully again.
Metformin blocks the absorption of B vitamins, this can make you tired. So to combat this I take a B-Complex, when you are low in one B vitamin you can easily be low in others because they all work together (that is why they are called a complex) I started with Trader Joe's B-100 and my urine was always dark yellow. B vitamins are water soluble and the extra is excreted in the urine. So I switched to the B-50, which I still take today, sometimes my urine is dark and other times not. You can also take Nutritional yeast (it is an acquired taste, but I love it now!) as it is full of B vitamins.
A friend of mine who is a nurse and took Metformin explained that eating a large amount of sugar with the pills will cause diarrhea too. I probably did that in the beginning unknowingly, now I don't.
One small change that helped me a lot was to have a bit of food about half an hour before my morning or evening pills, something on the order of toast with butter (plain toast will shoot your blood sugar up quickly, the fat slows it down) or an apple with a bit of cheese. When that is in my gut digesting I take my meds with my morning/evening meal.
I started to lose inches, more than I lost weight and began to look like I remembered myself from years ago. I felt good. My bad moods slowly slipped away. I used to be just fine then in a second I would be screaming at anyone near me. It was awful and the Meformin corrected that. All during this time I was having diarrhea on and off from the Metformin. Yes, I took it with food and no I didn't break or chew the tablets. When I went to the pharmacy for antibiotics the pharmacist told me to take the pills at least an hour before going to bed, otherwise they would sit in my stomach all night. AHA! I realized that is what I was doing with the Metfomin, then taking the morning dose on top of that then running to the bathroom. So I started to take the nighttime dose earlier. Often I would remember just before going to bed, I found that two pills was too much for overnight but I could take one and not have much in the way of side effects (I talked to my endocrinologist about this, your should too) and then take the full dose the next day. It makes it harder to keep the weight off if I do this all the time but is easier on my stomach.
Another side effect of Metformin is acid reflux, I called it in and was told to take an acid blocker (it tells your body to make less acid) so I scooted over to the pharmacy and asked for it. There, it was explained to me that this was an everyday medicine used to prevent your body from making acid, not a "take if you have symptoms" medicine. We need the acid in our stomach to break down the food we eat. I ended up with the one you take only if you have symptoms. When I was talking with a friend about this, she suggested I think about why there would be an abundance of acid. It made me think, and I remembered that I had learned about digestion (from a book by Adelle Davis, nutritionist in the 50's) and that I could help my body digest the food by taking an enzyme pill (I like Trader Joes Papaya enzymes) and by taking a pro-biotic (make sure it comes refrigerated) so I did. In addition, I cut back on things that cause acid reflux like caffeine, acidic foods and fatty foods (you can find a full list on www.medlineplus.gov.) With these changes my acid reflux went away. I could sleep peacefully again.
Metformin blocks the absorption of B vitamins, this can make you tired. So to combat this I take a B-Complex, when you are low in one B vitamin you can easily be low in others because they all work together (that is why they are called a complex) I started with Trader Joe's B-100 and my urine was always dark yellow. B vitamins are water soluble and the extra is excreted in the urine. So I switched to the B-50, which I still take today, sometimes my urine is dark and other times not. You can also take Nutritional yeast (it is an acquired taste, but I love it now!) as it is full of B vitamins.
A friend of mine who is a nurse and took Metformin explained that eating a large amount of sugar with the pills will cause diarrhea too. I probably did that in the beginning unknowingly, now I don't.
One small change that helped me a lot was to have a bit of food about half an hour before my morning or evening pills, something on the order of toast with butter (plain toast will shoot your blood sugar up quickly, the fat slows it down) or an apple with a bit of cheese. When that is in my gut digesting I take my meds with my morning/evening meal.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
How I deal with Insomnia
Recently a friend complained on Facebook that she is bothered by insomnia. So I made a couple of suggestions and one of her friends said that she would try them too. So I thought to share them here.
The conventional wisdom is that you reserve the bed for sleeping and sex, and that is a good start. Reading and watching TV in bed gives your body conflicting signals. Will we be going to bed to stay up and watch TV? Read an exciting book? So when you see the bed and the bedroom, thinking of sleep will help.
Yes, exercise helps too, as long as it isn't too close to bedtime so do that as well.
A couple of weeks ago I was reminded that taking calcium is crucial for me regarding sleep. For a week, I left my calcium pills in the car after a trip, and I noticed that I couldn't fall asleep. If I did sleep, I would wake up in the night and not be able to fall asleep again. This was getting worrisome until I remembered my calcium pills. Started taking them again and the insomnia went away.
I have been taking Tri-boron Plus by Twin Lab for many years now. Ever since they were recommended to me by a clerk at at health food store in Everett, WA where we used to live. I have strayed to other brands, and then I come back to this one. I won't leave again!
In addition, sleep can be affected by a lack of B-12 (maybe this is why all the vegetarians i know need more sleep?) and since all the B vitamins work together a lack of one can also indicate a lack of others, I take a B-complex. My favorite is Trader Joe's B-50. I started out with the B-100 and was peeing dark yellow all the time, indicating that some of the vitamin was going out in my urine. So I switched to the lower dose of the B-50 and only pee dark yellow some of the time. Nutritional yeast is also a good source of B vitamins and I love in on popcorn, beware that it is an acquired taste! The first time I had it was at a leadership camp in California when I was a teen, I HATED it. By the end of the week, I was gobbling it up with the rest of the campers. Then I introduced it to my family, who ate it in small amounts (hey I was making pop corn for them, not an easy feat with the old aluminum pot we used on the stove top!) until I put so much on they couldn't stand it!
So now that I have been reminded to take my calcium, including boron, magnesium, and Vitamin D among others. I am sleeping better again. Hope you will too.
The conventional wisdom is that you reserve the bed for sleeping and sex, and that is a good start. Reading and watching TV in bed gives your body conflicting signals. Will we be going to bed to stay up and watch TV? Read an exciting book? So when you see the bed and the bedroom, thinking of sleep will help.
Yes, exercise helps too, as long as it isn't too close to bedtime so do that as well.
A couple of weeks ago I was reminded that taking calcium is crucial for me regarding sleep. For a week, I left my calcium pills in the car after a trip, and I noticed that I couldn't fall asleep. If I did sleep, I would wake up in the night and not be able to fall asleep again. This was getting worrisome until I remembered my calcium pills. Started taking them again and the insomnia went away.
I have been taking Tri-boron Plus by Twin Lab for many years now. Ever since they were recommended to me by a clerk at at health food store in Everett, WA where we used to live. I have strayed to other brands, and then I come back to this one. I won't leave again!
In addition, sleep can be affected by a lack of B-12 (maybe this is why all the vegetarians i know need more sleep?) and since all the B vitamins work together a lack of one can also indicate a lack of others, I take a B-complex. My favorite is Trader Joe's B-50. I started out with the B-100 and was peeing dark yellow all the time, indicating that some of the vitamin was going out in my urine. So I switched to the lower dose of the B-50 and only pee dark yellow some of the time. Nutritional yeast is also a good source of B vitamins and I love in on popcorn, beware that it is an acquired taste! The first time I had it was at a leadership camp in California when I was a teen, I HATED it. By the end of the week, I was gobbling it up with the rest of the campers. Then I introduced it to my family, who ate it in small amounts (hey I was making pop corn for them, not an easy feat with the old aluminum pot we used on the stove top!) until I put so much on they couldn't stand it!
So now that I have been reminded to take my calcium, including boron, magnesium, and Vitamin D among others. I am sleeping better again. Hope you will too.
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