Annieway987 Member

I went on a business trip something like 3 or 4 days after my endoscopic gall bladder removal. It involved flying most of the way across the country for a 1 week meeting. My doctor said it was OK. I was a little tired at the end of the day, but I managed just fine. I don't think you will need to miss much work.

Don't forget about grilling veggies! I grill zucchini and yellow squash. Just split lengthwise, add salt and pepper and brush with oil. Grill until crisp/tender. They will get a bit softer even after you take them off the grill. I make a massive amount and serve hot the first day. Leftovers, cut in bite-size pieces, become…

I'm your same height and, before my weight loss, weighed pretty much exactly what you weigh. I travel all over the world for work and never had to ask for an extender even at 230. Occasionally I was right at the full expansion of the seat belt, but I never needed an extender. You should be fine. That being said, there is…

I've been traveling about 2 weeks out of each month to Europe, mostly Switzerland and Germany. I am something of a foodie and would not think of missing out on the delicious offerings of each country which are paid for by my employer. My concession to limiting calories is to make one meal per day a Quest bar. The lunch…

I use a Foodsaver vacuum sealer. I love it. Doesn't deal with liquids well, but if you freeze soup in a rectangular or square rigid plastic container first, you can pop the frozen block out and then vacuum seal it in a bag. This saves a tremendous amount of space in the freezer and the food keeps almost forever without…

Last time I cooked baby bok choy, I grilled them whole. I had the grill going for some fish anyway and I just brushed the baby bok choys with some olive oil and put them on the grill until they started to caramelize and wilt. Served them to my whole family (8 people, most visiting for the holidays) and everyone loved them.

Here in Southern California we have 99 cent only Stores. I live about 2 blocks from one and I think I lived here for a whole year before I visited for the first time. Where I came from on the East Coast, 99 Cent or Dollar stores only ever had junk. This one has food (and junk, too) - real bargains. Some of the things I've…

Bok choy is one of my favorite veggies. Usually you need to pull it apart and wash the dirt out from between the stalks before you cook it. It needs very little cooking. The most typical way to prepare it is in a stir fry. Slice it in bite size pieces including the green leafy parts along with other veggies and meat and…

I have a Nesco cooker that browns, pressure cooks and slow cooks. I cooked in it every day for several months when my kitchen was being remodeled and I had no stove. I was exploring pressure cooking more and more during that time but since I got my stove back I haven't used it as much. This topic is going to get me going…

I've been trying to learn Indian cooking. I have been using: Madhur Jaffrey, Indian Cooking - it has beautiful pictures and interesting explanations of the traditional cooking Suneeta Vaswani, Complete Book of Indian Cooking - has many more recipes covering all regions of India along with an excellent introduction about…

Greek yogurt and horseradish (the prepared kind in a jar) to taste. Similarly delicious as a dip, on potatoes, etc. This is also good with meats such as steak or roast beef (like the creamy horseradish sauce you get in restaurants sometimes with prime rib).

I often give my leftovers in a to go box to a homeless person. I set aside the "leftovers" before I start eating my portion. There are so many homeless in Los Angeles where I live that I almost always pass one on my way home, and they always seem happy to get it. Good Karma!

Ratatouille - a vegetable stew with eggplant - I don't think anyone else listed this Cut up in bite size pieces zucchini, egg plant, yellow squash, onions, bell pepper, mushrooms, any other juicy veggies (NOT things like potatoes or parsnips) as much as you can fit in your pan and still be able to stir it up. The eggplant…

My whole family eats hot dogs with Major Gray Mango Chutney. This started when my kids were young and we were out of ketchup. The little darlings refused to eat the hot dogs I had prepared for dinner without ketchup and started making a fuss. I did a quick reconoiter in the fridge and found an old jar of chutney. I somehow…

Get a night splint. I had horrible plantar fasciitis for several years. I had orthotics, I even got cortisone shots in my heel from the podiatrist (ouch!). The ONLY thing that helped was the night splint and I am still angry that the podiatrist never mentioned trying that and I had to discover it on my own.

That looks yummy. You can make all the substitutions you propose for these muffins (I'm assuming muffins from the recipe and photo). The only problem you may run into is that the splenda for sugar substitution may result in a different texture once it's baked. If I remember correctly, sugar helps keep the product tender…

I use the overnight slow cooker method for overnight oatmeal with steelcut oats which appears a few posts up. I have an old crock pot from the thrift store and I don't use a water bath. It's good with sliced apples and dried cranberries. I put some cinnamon in there too. I have read that the newer crockpots run hotter than…

No suggestions on using under-ripe honeydew-type melons, but I know how to pick a good one. This only works for honeydew types with smooth skin. Run your fingers lightly over the surface of the melon. If it feels slightly tacky, sticky, or waxy it's a sweet one. If it feels smooth like a bowling ball it's not going to be…

For 2 lbs of meat plus 2 eggs and the other stuff, those 5 servings are huge. Did you use the same number of servings for each calculation? I think you could get up to 8 reasonable size servings out of that much meat plus eggs and the other ingredients.

Just follow the pumpkin pie recipe on the can of pumpkin (use canned pumpkin, not canned pumpkin pie filling - that has other stuff in it). Substitute Splenda for the sugar if you want. Or use maple syrup - won't save calories but some people think it's healthier than sugar or splenda. The recipe usually includes…

I had been doing lower carb diet for a long time and constipation was a big problem for me even though I was eating lots and lots of veggies and other fiber. I don't want to take laxitives. The thing I found that works for me is bran cereal - I use All Bran - for breakfast. I eat it with 2% milk. It keeps me feeling full…

I travel a lot for work and have found these are great to bring along on the airplane for a quick, portable meal replacement. I also use them for breakfast at hotels where the breakfast buffet carb selection is my downfall. I try to stay away from buffets. The only negative came from my husband who has TMJ (jaw problem)…

You can probably find Black Bean Garlic Sauce in a jar in your Asian store. It's harder to find the fermented beans, but I have found them in Asian markets. They come in a plastic bag, not refrigerated. I can get the sauce in a jar in the supermarket sometimes in California or NY (where I used to live). I make stirfry with…