Christmas baking is upon us! Follow me on Pinterest for amazing cookie recipes! The raspberry almond shortbread were by far my favorite Christmas cookie yet!! <3

Time to start planning your plan for the new year! How will you spark up 2015?!

 

New Years Menu Idea's

Instead of going out to dinner for new years, try
throwing a small party. Dress up, wear your little black
dress and head to the Rochester Convention Center for
a free fire work show after! You can find all the recipes to these
pictures on my pinterest "New Years Menu Options"

FREE New Years Eve Events on my
"Rochester happenings page!"

 

Get rid of that holiday bloat!

Detox Soup: Baby it's Cold Outside!

I need to detox from too many parties and holiday eating. 

It's easy and works for 4 simple reasons

• It's short term - just four days
• Convenience- once you make the soup in advance- it's always ready
• No choices- that keeps me on track
• Healthy,  filling and tasty- full of vegetables and beans
• It helps stabilize your blood sugar to eliminate cravings

Also , Since I haven't been starving myself or eating restrictive foods, I'm able to maintain the weight loss once I go back to my regular healthy eating habits.

Can't do it for 4 days? Even 2 days can help you detox some of the bloat

The other good part is there is no steadfast recipe. You can substitute any non starchy vegetable or bean in your recipe. Don't like kidney beans? Add black beans. I added spinach to my 2nd pot of soup and my daughter in law Wendy added string beans to a soup she made.
* Do not add potatoes, butternut squash, or sweet potatoes if you want to lose weight.

Ingredients:
1/2 cabbage, chopped
1 28 ounce can of organic only chopped tomatoes ( or 6 fresh chopped fresh tomatoes)
1/2 cup organic only tomato paste if you like a richer tomato flavor ( I didn't)
1/2 bag of dry uncooked lentils, washed
2 cups of cooked kidney beans ( or 1organic can )
4 carrots , sliced

1 large red pepper, chopped
1 package of sliced mushrooms, or any dried mushrooms
1 onion chopped
4 cloves garlic, pressed
salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste ( I also added 21 Salute salt free seasoning from Trader Joes)
 20 cups filtered water
a few sprigs of fresh basil
a few shakes of ground hot pepper ( optional)

 Easy Directions:
Put everything into the slow cooker on high for 3 hours and then  change to low for another two hours if the lentils are not soft enough OR put in a regular large stock pot , bring to a boil, turn down heat and cook until everything is soft ( 2 hours ?)

Remember, you can substitute the vegetables and beans to any beans or vegetables of your liking.. use any kind of non starchy vegetables and any kind of beans. You won't be hungry and the best part is that your meal is always ready and waiting for you
Don't have a crock pot/slow cooker? Just make the soup in a pot.. tastes even better

(http://glutenfreewithjudee.blogspot.com/2013/01/detox-soup.html)

Holiday Appetizers

Holiday Treats: Start these several days in advance!

CHOCOLATE COVERED SPIKED CHERRIES

Here's what you will need*:
1 jar (16 ounces) maraschino cherries with stems
1/2 cup liquor (Cherry vodka or creme de cacao work well.)
1 cup chocolate chips (dark, milk, or white)
1 teaspoon shortening

*I recommend making two batches at once so that you have an additional chocolate to garnish your cherries.

Begin by soaking maraschino cherries (with stems) in liquor for 4-7 days. I tried two different versions. One with cherry vodka; the other with white creme de cacao. I soaked my cherries right in the jar they came in. Just empty out the red syrup and fill the jar with the liquor.

Once they have soaked for the specified time, drain off the liquor. (You can save this for cocktails.) Then, dry the cherries on a paper towel. This will help the chocolate to stick.

Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper and set aside.

In a double boiler (or the microwave), melt your chocolate chips and shortening. (The shortening prevents the chocolate from getting really hard.) Stir until smooth.

Next, dip the cherries into the chocolate and set on wax paper. Add any leftover melted chocolate to a plastic baggie. Cut a very small section of the tip of the bag and pipe lines or designs on the cherries.

(http://www.inspiredbycharm.com/2014/12/chocolate-covered-spiked-cherries.html)

Soak the Cherries for several days to a week - Use milk chocolate for the vodka-soaked cherries and white chocolate for the ones soaked in the creme de cacao. Quick tip here: Dry off your cherries with a paper towel before dipping them. This will help the chocolate to stick.

Once you dip the cherries transfer them to wax paper. Use the opposite color melted chocolate to drizzle the top for decoration! 

Let them chill completely in the fridge until you are ready to serve them. These come in handy for great holiday appetizers!!