A Package from Dhemz!

Once again, I got a package from a very good friend of mine and yours, (Dhemz). It took awhile for me to get it because the office forgot to tell us that we have a package waiting for us before we even get here in Texas. Then, my laptop gave me hard time to download the pictures from my camera. So here are the contents of the package. Thank you so much once again, Dhemz for your kindness and thoughtfulness :-)! To me, you are indeed my younger sister, I adopted you already like it or not :-)!

I haven't used the kare-kare mixed yet, but the dried fish (bulad), candies (which Matt loved so much that he ate most them all), and sinigang mixed were already gone :-)! I love them all! Bells were added to my collections, yehey! Isn't she (Dhemz), an amazing person? Opps, Matt said: Thanks!

Eating Deli (Sandwich) Dangerous to Our Health!?

I am not really fond of eating processed foods especially meat. And that is the reason why I don't really like sandwiches or subs; plus at the back of my mind all along that there is a danger of eating salty foods. On the other hand, my husband likes it, oh well, obviously because he grew up eating it. I always remind him that to much salt and processed meat/foods are not good for him, but it is hard to stop him. Anyway, if you likes deli sandwiches, you, the next time you consider purchasing deli meat, think twice--there could be health dangers lurking behind the counter. Here is some critical information that you should know before making or buying your next sandwich.

Meat Menace
According to a growing number of health officials and researchers, seemingly harmless deli meat may be harboring a secret that could harm your health.

Due to their high levels of sodium and fat, processed meats can be bad for your heart, warns the American Heart Association. A study done by the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii stated that those who eat large amounts of processed meats have a 67 percent increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Plus, most deli meats also contain nitrates, which have been linked to other forms of cancer in children.

Not only could your sandwich be harmful to you, but it could be dangerous for your unborn your baby as well. According to the American Pregnancy Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, eating undercooked hot dogs, luncheon meats, or deli meats can cause dangerous infections that may lead to premature birth, miscarriage, infection of the fetus and stillbirths.

How to Avoid Deli Dangers
Before you give up your favorite sandwich for good, try these tips:

• Check for the heart-check mark on meat packages. Heart checked packages indicate that the product is certified by the American Heart Association to be low in saturated fat and cholesterol. To find lists of certified deli meats, go to these websites for deli department meats and pre-sliced deli meats.

• Reduce your intake of processed meats such as bologna, sausage, salami and hot dogs.

• “Healthy” meats can be high in calories, sodium and saturated fat. Make sure to read the health information labels on the back of pre-packaged meats before making your purchase.

• When looking for processed sandwich meats select low-fat turkey, chicken, turkey ham, turkey pastrami or lean boiled ham. Check the amount of sodium; some have 25% or more of the daily value. These need to be avoided.

• Try finding healthier brands. Many companies now produce organic, nitrite-free deli meats that are much better for you than the usual deli counter fare.

• Avoid meats that list sodium nitrite as an ingredient.

• If you are pregnant, heat hot dogs, luncheon meats, or deli meats to 160 degrees.
  
  With some thought and a little bit of investigation, your sandwich will be healthy, and keep you healthy long after it’s gone.

Peppermint Bark, our favorite...

Are you a fan of Peppermint Bark? We love it so much that we make sure we have it in our house during holiday season. I also give it as present for my father in-law who is a huge fan of it. He can have it anytime of the year if he want to. It is a bit expensive, but not easy to make either(at least for me that is)! So I prefer of buying than making it myself.

We are Techi-holics!

Do you remember the green looking family who is trying to fit in the human world? Yes, that’s them, The Sproutwells. They are typical fruit and vegetables who are avid users of FreshFunds.com. They are living a healthy lifestyle and are being rewarded for that. This last episode is all about Ruby who is trying to bid on almost all electronic gadgets she wants. It’s funny because she reminds me of my husband who like electronics gadgets and is constantly trying to get his favorite Nintendo Wii Fit through eBay.com. I’ll say, he's Techi-holic.

Anyway, the secret of The Sproutwells freshness is through freshfunds. It is a place to bid and get great prizes like elliptical machine, ultimate ski weekend for two, Nintendo Wii Fit and more. The funds for the auctions can be obtained by collecting points from Fresh Funds found on the back of the packages especially marked on Chiquita Fruit and Veggie Bites, Fresh Express Gourmet Café Salads and Fresh Express Packaged Salads.

You not only get fresh healthy products that keep you healthy, but also get to win awesome prizes or donate your “fresh funds” to charity. Isn’t it great? You will get the packages like The Sproutwells do. At freshfunds.com, they prizes are new every week; and soon you can also bid on a new apple MacBook, just like Sweet Baby Green Sproutwell and you can keep yourself a techi-holic. I would love to have MacBook myself, that means I need to bid also.

If you haven’t seen any episodes of the Sproutwells video, now is the chance to watch one of their everyday life and see for yourself that they are just human like us!

My Favorite Pecan Pie

Dear Abby's Pecan Pie Recipe

This recipe was published by Dear Abby many times over the years in her advice column. I love this recipe because it is really good and I make it every Thanksgiving Day; my Thanksgiving menu is not complete with out Abby's pecan pie. You guys should try it and you will know why I love it so much.

Ingredients:
• 1 9-inch unbaked pie crust
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 3 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 heaping cup pecan halves

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl, combine corn syrup, sugar, eggs, butter, salt and vanilla; mix well. Pour into pie crust and sprinkle pecan halves over top. Bake 45-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center will comes out clean. If pie or crust appears to be getting too brown on top, cover with foil for remainder of cooking time. Allow to cool.

Want free asparagus?

When I served a mission for our church for 1 and a 1/2 year in 1996-1998, asparagus is not a problem with us. It wasn't only cheap, but we don't need to buy it. Why? Because in the place where I served in General Santos City, Dole has a very big asparagus, bananas and pineapples plantations. Members of the church work there and they just give it to us free! Back then, I wasn't a fan of asparagus and that's when I learned to eat it especially if you got nothing to eat. Now, asparagus is very expensive especially here in the U.S. I just wished I could go back there and get some to take here with me, that way I don't have to worry buying expensive asparagus at all.

In-laws vacation in Virginia and North Carolina

My in- laws are coming to visit us next month from New Mexico. I am very excited and at the same time worried because they are going to stay here together with my sister in-law for a week. My concern is that my sister in-law is a vegetarian and I am afraid that I will run out of vegetarian recipes to cook for her, plus my in-laws are not very in to asian foods. I guess I betther look online for more vegetarian recipes that every one can or will eat including my very picky four year old son.

Dinner time...

I didn't know what to do for dinner last night, so I decided to make this baked cornish hen. I used the recipes I found in Allrecipes.com. It turned out to be very tender and moist. Love It!

My son ate a lot because he likes these foods: greens beans (steamed) boiled corn on the cob, rice and of course the chicken ( Did I tell you, he is a meat lover?). It is a treat for him!

Baking Amish Bread is Cool!

I have been meaning to try to bake Amish Bread for a long time, but no time and thought it requires a lot of labor. So I kept putting it off till I went to church and one of my friends gave me a recipe of it with the batter she already made. The bread she calls "Amish Friendship Bread". I think Amish are interesting people by the way they live; they are very resourceful and creative and conservative and very forgiving people, too! I like to try to live like them someday. I like their bread, too! So finally after 9 (nine) days of waiting for it to be ready to be baked, I have a very delicious and pretty looking AFB! The good thing about making this bread is that before you bake it, you have three batters to share it with your friends along with the recipe. You will never run out of it as soon as you made batter; instead you will run out of friends to share it with! How cool is that? A blessing of bread and more friends!

Salmonella outbreaks…in tomato!

Guys, ever heard about Salmonella tomato outbreaks? It already hit 16 states. Yes, the FDA and the CDC warned people who got sickedlast week after eating raw tomatoes served in the restaurant and also in the store shelves.It is now estimated that 167 people affected by it and are sicked and hospitalized. As we all know, Salmonella bacteria can cause diarrhea, nausea, fever and abdominal pain. FDA said not all tomatoes are affected by Salmonella, only those red tomatoes like: plum, roma and red round tomatoes. There are tomatoes that are not off limits; we can still enjoy eating tomatoes like: grape, cherry, tomato on the vine and homegrown tomato.The 16 states that were affected are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
Because of the outbreak, the FDA advices us not to eat raw tomatoes mentioned, unless they came from states which were not affected by the outbreaks such as: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, New York, Nebraska. North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, Belgium, Canada, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Israel, Netherlands and Puerto Rico. We need to be careful on where the tomatoes came from before we buy it and don’t forget to wash them before using it and that goes with the other fruits and vegetables we are eating/using, I think. Bummer, we love tomatoes in the house. Search for it at www.webmd.com .