in my continuing study of Hebraic roots and customs, it continually boggles my mind just HOW MANY people eat HAM to celebrate the Ressurection   One of the few things that have seemed clear to me so far in my studyings is that the Levitical food laws are still applicable. In that infamous Acts passage where Peter sees the sheet with all things on it, it is clearly about the Gentiles being welcomed into the fold. If you really REALLY study that passage, it's clear that the one thing it is NOT about, it's food. And the other passage where it says "Jesus declared all foods clean"? well, THAT is interesting, but if you look closely at Scripture....the Bible only uses the word "food" when it talks about the Levitical foods....in other words, the FOODS that the LORD has already declared as clean.

just some "food for thought" on this Ressurection weekend...may you all be blessed beyond measure

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i came across this site a while back, and it's been in "My Favorites" for a long time...without being viewed

In His Image Study

but now, on my cyberhome away from home, some of us are going to go through it! i'm very excited, as i really want to do the "healthy" thing...even though i enjoyed  the Biggest Loser contest we had, i know why i didn't really get too much out of it (except for sore legs, thanks Kirky) because i was focused on the contest, the food, the exercising...none of which is bad...but i was NOT focused on Christ. Not due to anything but me...I lose focus easily when there's a distraction (kinda like Dori in Finding Nemo)

so i printed off my "Goals" sheets and plan sheet...i will be filling this in later on today when i can sit and look at it and pray over it...i'm also doing a yeast cleanse this week so it'll be a nice way to keep focused on THAT also...what's life without BREAD???  But between yeast and perimenopausal nonsence, i really need to cleanse and get a fresh start and really incorporate more of the Nourishing Traditions/Great Physician principals into my lifestyle (see link on sidebar for an MSN group)

my little boys also got me an exercise ball for Christmas  so i tried out the routine that came with it...ouch my stomach! I actually stayed ON the ball though, so things aren't too bad.....

(COMPLETELY off topic, but i MISS the emotions we used to have here...that makes me sad  )

well, that's probably my last post of 2006...have a BLESSED 2007 everyone! thanks for reading this year!

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i just invented this one and you all MUST try it    

firstly, use this recipe from King Arthur Flour...you'll never be disappointed with this Basic Drop Cookie!

now, to make Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies, you need to revise it as such:

instead of the WW flour, use 1 c of oatmeal (i do this all the time, it makes excellent chocolate chip cookies!)

now, decrease the flour by 1/4 c and use 1/4 c cocoa powder

after it's all mixed add 3/4 of a bag of Andies Candies Peppermint Crunch baking chips

oh my oh my oh my my my!

enjoy! more recipes to come next week i promise! (and no low fat ones either! )

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yes, i have nothing else to do with my days, so i started yet another group

after years of attempts to make my diet healthier, trying to lose weight,, etc i did run across this great book a few years ago...i copied a bunch of recipes out of it and sent it back to the library....but it still sat in the back of my mind, especially after reading "The Maker's Diet" and "Physician Heal Thyself" by Jordan Rubin.

I have tried the low carb thing too...I am not knocking it but i will say for me, it doesn't work. I can only go so long without a slice of bread, a bagel, or pasta. Call me undisciplined i guess <----not really relevant but i wanted to use him

so, as i continue my journey in Messianic teachings, specifically dietary laws,  my thoughts have strayed back to Nourishing Traditions and Jordan Rubin...and i ordered it off Amazon the other day  with Rubin's book "The Great Physicians RX for Health and Wellbeing"...they should be here over the weekend. Now a few of the groups i belong to discuss the book and methods from the book from time to time....but nothing specifically about the BOOK, et al...so i started the "Nourishing Traditions Menu and recipe Review" on MSN (i know, but i can't download a phpBB board) and i invite any of you interested to join...just PLEASE let me know you are from HSB or i won't approve  part of my control-freakieness....so far it's me and another gal...

of course, i plan on skimming over the parts that use shellfish and pork, and possibly the whole "organ meat" thing...and raw meat was never a good choice in my view....but i'm looking forward to some good changes, yummy additions to our limited family menu and just some plain fun. And i think this is a great way to get my younger boys off the many processed foods they enjoy. Even though i already make a good amount of stuff myself, there's always the "easy" things like chicken nuggets, white bread, etc...it'll take a little getting used to by the family, but it'll be a good thing. And who says a few highly processed chicken nuggets every once in a while will hurt?

anyhow....that's what's new today

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that's dancing PRAISE veggies, in case you are wondering *snort!*

really, i have been following the plan (LOOSELY) in "8 Minutes In The Morning" by Jorge Cruise, but i have to say that i don't always eat all  that's allowed...because i am NOT HUNGRY!!! Following the study in The Lord's Table has been beneficial also, because my overindulging nature is really a spiritual battle at the heart. It's a battle of the will and the mind. It is a battle that i can WIN with full submission to GOD.

i know that for some of you, weight loss is just something you need to do and it isn't a huge battlefield like it is for me, but i would encourage ALL of you who are wanting to get healthy to put it all before the Lord...you may be pleasantly surprised at the results! And what you will GAIN is far more important that what you LOSE

so i am off to do my "8 Minute" routine, shower and try to upload the pictures of the 500 lb community bear that my hubbyman and i were blessed enough to see at 5:30 this AM...eating everyone's garbage!

be incredibly blessed this weekend!

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to reflect my team spirit for my message board's "Biggest Loser" competition, i redecorated, and i reset my ticker to reflect the "starting" weight...and i an still undecided on posting that "before" picture

i am officially a "purple eggplant" so i decided to find purple and eggplants, and whatever else struck my fancy...that's okay, since i happen to love eggplant almost any way you can fix it...oh, and Wendy, our team moderator, is British, so she is an official "abrogene" (which i am CERTAIN i spelled wrong)

Be Blessed!

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i doubt you remember a while back i was waxing poetic about the evils of "Biggest Loser" (i couldn't find the post to link to it )

well, since then, i have watched friends from my online home go through two rounds of BL and it has been fun, exciting and a blessing to see the Lord working in their lives.

So... this round, i am IN !!!

now, i know that Melissa and Kirky have all  the rules and team colors and names all picked out and ready to go, but true to my rebel self, MY team will be "The Dragon Riding Muffin Chycks" or "The Rainbow DragonRiders". I really need to find a picture of a neat dragon, eating a chocolate chip muffin would be ideal, so i can make a logo for the team to use in an "unofficial" capacity...................... of course

seriously, i am looking forward to this round. It will be fun, encouraging and honoring to the Lord. Maybe i'll even post my before picture here  okay, maybe not!

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okay...i admit this HUGE problem here with weight loss and general lazieness in reading and applying the Word of Life to MY own life  i desperatly do NOT want to be a "hearer" and not a "doer"  (James 1:22, "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.")

what??? am i deluding myself? i am surely saved, sealed by the Holy Spirit sometime in the winter of my 15th year, after a disasterous relationship ended with aborting my first child...i cried out in desperation and Christ shone down His love on me, a wretched wreck of a rebel. Unfortunately, that rebel still surfaces from time to time, surely not as strong as she was then, but never the less tossing me into periods of wading through much muck and mire, struggling to obey the Word, and general chaos. I become a "hearer" of the Word, not a "doer".  The "me" that Christ is refining starts to get rusty again and i need to walk through the refining fires once more to be purged of sins that so easily beset me.

so once again, i started The Lord's Table study, which is online and free. They have numerous other studies also for smoking, drugs, pornography addictions, etc...the last time i did  the 60 day course, i got to about day 27   I want to finish the course this time through...i want to walk in the victory that Christ supplied for me. I want to be a "DOER" of His word and not just hear it...i want to stop deluding myself that all is peachy keen, and i can get by my day with a quick "okay Lord, help me out today" in the morning. I surrender myself completely, once again, to the Lord Jesus, to search my heart and cleanse it...and to create a clean heart once again (Ps 51:10, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.") To make me steadfast in my walk with Him. Praising Jesus that i CAN lay my heart in His hands without fears

be incredibly blessed today!

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i know, most of you are running far away and fast!

okay, i lost 3 lbs...i'm shocked, amazed and thankful to Jesus because i really did not do much.

in a fit of morose discouragement, i paid $15 to join eDiets.com  my hubbyman will not be happy about this, and i do tend to do thing on the spur of the moment...anyhow, i signed up for the Vegetarian plan, but you know what i'm realizing this week? I have held up vegetarianism as this "unreachable" goal, sort of idolizing it. There is nothing wrong about being a vegetarian. I have no deeply rooted spiritual reasons for wanting to be one. It's definately healthy if you do it properly. But, I am making it into such a "thing" that it has sadly usurped the place of Jesus in my heart of hearts. So, as i type this, i am printing my second week of vegan recipies, and here  is what i am going to do:

i am going to follow the breakfast, lunch and snacks daily and eat with my hubbyman for dinner...no matter what that may be. And I am going to carefully watch my portions, pray my head off before I eat, and really really try to not have hissy fits when i can't have something because i'm "not hungry"...why should I have it if i am NOT HUNGRY????? I'm sorry that i destroyed all my Weigh Down materials when i found out that Gwen popped her cork. WDW was always about my relationship with Christ, not about Gwen...it's sad that a ministry can be so corrupted, but that's a rabbit trail i probably should NOT go down right now  My point was, there was some really good, encouraging stuff in there that i would benefit from now...and relying upon my less-than-stellar memory isns't a great thing...but i'll press on and get into the Word daily, look up those verses that talk about dying to self and living unto Christ, stick with my one month of eDiets.com because i've committed to do  that  and i have 4 lbs of tofu that need to be eaten or used as wallpaper paste, whichever comes first

anyhow....off to read Romans once again and to be thankful for all that Jesus has done for me. Have a blessed weekend!

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as you can see...it went UP and not DOWN!!!

now, i could make all kinds of noise about stress, PMS, etc, but REALLY wahat it all boils down to is that i am a willfull creature who has to have every desire satisfied yesterday...especially ones involving sugar and dairy...

so back to Dr McDougall land for me!

NO MEATS

NO DAIRY

NO SUGAR

i know i said this before, but i diosagree with "no fats" because...well, i just do! and really the only thing i cook with is olive oil, so even though i haven't cut that OUT i have cut it WAY down...a little is good...alot is bad  (and don't let any of my Italian family hear me say that!)

i hesitate to post my weekly menu, only because it seems to change every day...sometimes i'll make something else the last minute oir have Friday's dinner on Wednesday instead...i am, however, posting it daily on my message board (no, NOT the one about fantasy lit, silly goose!) so i have accountability there. I really think that PERSON TO PERSON accountability is what i am missing. I'm not lying to my friends online, but it's really easy to just NOT do something rather than do it. But i'll have to keep plugging along online for now since there's no good Christian groups around here...**SIGH**...stuff like this really makes me miss where we used to live. Plenty of real life people to be in my face about things....

so, for today my menu is this:

5:30 am...bagel with a VERY SMALL amount of butter (ugh, there's that DAIRY)

mid-morning...a mouthfull of pecans and craisins

lunch...whole wheat pita pizza with NO CHEESE (weep with me please)

mid afternoon...frozen fruit treat

dinner...veggies soup

really, it's not so bad to have no meat...or sugar...i'm really amazed how the dairy is throwing me for a loop...i thought surely the sugar would have me weeping...but it's the dairy

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yes, it's a day early, but i couldn't help myself! after all night last night my hubbyman telling me i'm not as "puffy" as i was, i HAD to look!

it's the darn dairy!!!!! it really does puff you up, i have been noticing that in my face

since i have switched to the McDougall plan and ditched Marilu (it's a difference of  not only taste but expense) it's been much more enjoyable...okay, so i haven't started walking yet...maybe i'll get in on that thing next month (and i do have black bears to avoid walking into) but needless to say, i'm so thankful to Jesus for allowing yet another small victory to encourage and uplift my spirits, which had been down ovet the weekend...

so, the plan, much like Marilu's, is simple:

NO FATS (i have to confess i do not agree here and have cut BACK my fats, not cut OUT)

NO DAIRY (see above! )

NO MEATS (i may cheat with tuna every now and again, and i still will use my sauce when i make it, just not have a meatball...and i'll probably cave to bacon every now and again  )

NO SUGAR (refined only; honey, maple syrup and other natural sweetners are allowed

another thing i like about this plan is that he isn't pushing alot of soy based replacements...i'm not entirely comfortable with the AMOUNTS of soy that Marilu was calling for. i did try and enjoy Willow Run Soy Margarine and Rice Dreams Rice Milk and 8th Continent Soy Milks...i will experiment with almond milk alos once i get my bearings with this whole new eatingthing...which i REALLY am enjoying! Just subbing the milks in my coffee (vanilla milks) was a big thing (i LOVE half and half) Also, for ME the big thing was the extra treats, cookies, cakes that are loaded with dairy and fats...it's amazing how the Lord had really taken my taste for them away...i still have a chocolate thing going, but one small mouthfull of chocolate chips is more than enough. (i did have a chocolate chip muffin on saturday and it tasted fine, but the after taste on my tounge wasn't worth it...slimy  ) i'm still not too sure how to make eggless cookie, but there was a great recipe on the carton of Rice Dreams that i tried and it was pretty good...except that the cookies don't get really brown like regular ones do, so you really have to watch them before they burn

i found the books on eBay for a song, so it was worth it to me to grab them...my Marilu books are on there now, so anyone interested in them can take a peek and bid...heeeehehehhee!

be blessed today!

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okay, enough celebrating...i'm so blessed by jesus that i was able to post a POSITIVE ticker change!

see, i've been trying to follow the Marilu Henner 30 Day to Better Health plan... it's tough! i have two of her books, but i had gotten the 30 Day one out of the library. I figured if i had the plan for 30 days, how hard would it be? UGH!!!!!!  this is NOT for the faint at heart! But even with my small cheats (a few chocolate chips, one chocolate cupcake and a heavy dairy and pasta day yesterday) the Lord STILL graciously allowed a loss!

so, the gist of this plan?

NO MEAT

NO SUGAR
NO DAIRY
NO CAFFIENE

alright...the meat i can deal with...except maybe for bacon every now and again...i've been a vegetarian wannabe for far too long in my adult life and this is the time to go for it. I can eat all the fish i want, and i'm still out there on the dairy issue. The sugar thing i know i need to do because of family diabetic history. Caffiene i've been off of totally for many years, because ever since my almost 18 yr old was born, i can't tolerate the stuff other than chocolate...it's this DAIRY thing that i'm having issues with. I will NOT completely go all soy for protien. There's just too much conflicting reports. I don't mind the soy margarine, that's passable and small amouts. I'll even try some tofu for stuffed shells or something (all my Italian anscestors just died again)

but i'm not making it a staple of my diet. Which leads to  the second "pillar" of her program, which is food combining.

okay...here's where i'm having a tough time. It's relearning all the right things about food and abandoning all the wrong things. what when eaten with what makes a complete protien...what eaten with oranges isn't allowed. what can't i put cheese on (ANYTHING!!!!) rice milk and soy milk is alright...i even have an online friend who is cheering me on in all this...but DARN!!! i want my cheese!

i really can feel it today...even yesterday, after i had my ricotta.butter/pasta-fest, my tongue felt...slimy!  so i have positive proof from my own body that dairy (at least in the massive quantities that i obviously partake) is NOT a great thing (i forgot about the huge dollop of REAL mayo that i put on my tuna too)

but still...after ALL this complaining, fussing and completely rebelling...Jesus STILL saw fit to give me a gift. A small gift in the whole huge scheme of things, but a gift none the less. He gave a gift to a misreable wretch like me. I think i'll go cry a bit and PRAISE Him for all the gifts He has given me...

-SALVATION

-my husband

-my healthy children

-way too much to even list

three pounds can really change your whole attitude!

be blessed this Easter!

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and i'm happy to say that i don't need to go the whole 40 lbs! actually, i don't think i'd really be able to go below my goal weight at this stage of my life

here's the link to my goal prize...this is the SWEETEST dress! (and Allison, who is modeling it, is the seamstress)

http://www.beeyeglad.com/cordflowdress.htm

she has so much other neat-o hippie threads on there...she's working on updating since much of it is sold (even my dress) but she's keeping me informed of new arrivals  also, if you look around her site, check out her link to "The Real Deal", which is her testimony! POWERFUL stuff!

so, i'm off to a lifechanging breakfast...i think

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okay, so over at HK's, where we have an accountability group for losing weight, they have all lost their minds, and i am being swept along in the insanity! No,it's not about the big wedding...it's the Biggest Loser contest!

i was absolutely determined to stay out of it...i'm having a hard enough time being the "leader" on the accountability thread, since i can't seem to get below...ummm, well, let's just say i have a certain number that just won't break!  So when i got asked about having a Biggest Loser contest, i passed the baton, thanks very much, because i have a weird outlook on it...if i WON'T lose the weight for the LORD, whom after all i am answerable to about my gluttonous nature, then why have a contest and lose it? See, I KNOW why i'm not losing, why i can't break the plateau that i am on...i WON'T stop eating! very simple! I do not want to have to confess that the last 4 pretzels i just ate really shouldn't have been anywhere near my not-hungry mouth...that i eat when bored, instead of going to the Lord and asking for direction. That i have 2 full helpings of dinner without thinking if i really am HUNGRY or just feeding my head. This is a big deal to me and a conflict of interests. I don't want to do something to please men (or women in this case) that i won't do to please God...

now before you all start to comment about how legalistic this all sounds to you, stop. I'm saying that *I* know what *MY* weakness and area of sin is, no one else's, so please, no one take offense in what i am saying here. My sisters over on HK's are not sinning in their fun contest. They are having a ball...and as my sarcastic self, i jokingly started the Rebel Reds, who weren't going to join a team, and now i am the reluctant LEADER of the Rebel Reds! I guess i just have to take my proverbial foot out of my mouth and suck it up for 12 weeks! Which means that i have to get serious with GOD about all this food buisness...i think HE had something to do with this!

so.....

GO REBEL REDS!!!

GO SHRINKING VIOLETS!!!

GO TEAM GREEN!!!

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i love low carbing! unfortunately, i also love high carb food!

when i low carb it, i feel so much better! but, unfortunately, i have been so sugar laden this past month, that trying to get back into  that "low carb swing" is frustratingly hard. Add to that that i have to major grocery shop and there's a big problem in the Poconos!

i have thrown away almost all the "high carb" Christmas goodies that were left over...but alas, all we have for food choices the next few days are sandwiches and rice and macaroni! then i start with the chocolate cravings! OY VEY!!!!

there's a great site that i have linked to down under "Fun Internet Places" for a whole slew of carb-free fun! lots of great info also. There's also a free "Carb Counter" to download in Adobe, 17 pages of listings for all sorts of foodies!

so, i'm starting over again (after i just ate 4 cookies! ) and the shopping list has all sorts of good carb stuff on it...break out the chicken cutlets and tuna salad! (at least i can have REAL mayo! *giggle, snort*) i'll start adding some good low carb recipies i have, most are from the Dana Carpender book, "500 Low Carb Recipies", but some i just sort of made up on my own.

my daily goals are:

40 total carbs (i'd really like to get below 30, but i have to start somewhere!)

6 glasses/bottles of water (why is it easier to  open a bottle than run the tap???)

1 smoothie per day with flax seeds and Kefir for intestinal health (and my sugar fix)

1 fresh juice per day, carrot, apple and celery (hey, i have a juicer, may as well use  the darn thing!)

i'll also post my ticker somewhere once i change over my blog design...yes, i'm trying to figure it all out...hopefully i can do it without bugging dear AmyBeth, but methinks i will have to one more time to really get it looking great...she is such a sweetie! (go tell her that! she won "Best PhototBlog" in Spunky's awards!)

blessings to all today!

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well, for all of you who apparently were not headbangers in the 80's that picture below is the group Twisted Sister, it was a special present for my pal Dawn...who probably NEVER really listened to them

anyhow, it's Cookie Day at Hippiechyck's! here's our list for today:

Oatmeal Wreaths

Chocolate Chips

for the Oatmeal Wreaths:

use whatever oatmeal cookie recipie is your fave...

on parchment paper, make 2-3 in circles...flip over and place on cookie sheet

arrange the dough to form the circles

decorate with green sugar or green/red sprinkles/jimmies/whatever it is that you call them

bake

when cooled, pipe a small bow onto the top with red piping frosting

our cookie plans for the rest of the week:

Tues... cream cheese sugar "roll and cut"

Wed...break...maybe some cinnamon raisin bread?

Thurs...Stuffeli and more choc chips and plain old oatmeals

Fri...break...Challah

Sat...preparing cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning

Blessings to all!!!

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(is there a prize for longest title? )

my outstanding hubyman is going to do the Thanksgiving run tonight on his way home from work...i have my extremely accurate and pared down list right here in front of me.

accurate because i have to tell my hubbyman EXACTLY what to buy, even down to ounces in a can...this is the only way he will tolerate going to the store to shop alone  okay, i can do that, even though it really taxes my brain, but not as much as the next part...

pared down...because he can't get all the little "extras" that i would merrily toss into the cart as i passed by, you know like mixed nuts (maybe i WILL add them) tiny little gourds that no one knows what to do with, the extra toilet bowl scrubbies that i need and may as well get since i'm at the store, the newest Cross Stitch magazine (if i deem it worth buying after reading through it at the checkout), the Ben and Jerry's that i'd rather have myself instead of just the half gallon of Edy's Grand Gourmet Vanilla that is on the list, pumpernickle/rye swirled bread for sammies on Friday, a new wooden spoon since my old one broke and i really need it for the weekend to stir tomato sauce....you know how it is when you shop...and all those little "extras" that really make the day special will just have to go by the wayside in favor of the necessities...which are:

turkey...under 12 lbs please, or a turkey breats of same size, as i am still not sure who will or will not show up here tomorrow...do i really need to clean today???

5 lb bag of Russet potatoes....see below for Potato Stuffing

1 lb bacon, store brand is fine....same

1 tube of country sausage...this may be the tricky item to find, not because it's noit available, but they never keep it in the same spot from day to day

2 boxes of Stove Top savory Herb stuffing...i decided to not make homemade this year

2 cans cranberry sauce, jellied...strictly for hubbyman and sammies...no one else eats the darn stuff!

1 apple pie

1 half gallon Edy's Vanilla ice cream...yes, skip the B&J's

thyme...this is another potential problem item

egg nog...i was going to try and make homemade, but i'm not feeling ambitious enough

apple juice

orange juice

milk

eggs

(see? i snuck in a few extras )

okay, so tell me if i forgot anything...and if i don't  come back 15 times today to check my posts, have a Blessed Thanksgiving!

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by AmyBeth's request for people to put on the Company Couch...errrr, i mean, for Thanksgiving recipes to post  here's my list of traditional stuff we eat and the recipe for Potato Stuffing

main fare for 8-10 (depending upon friends who may come by):

15 lb turkey, so there's plenty of leftovers for my family who don't EAT leftovers

5 lbs of mashed potatoes

5 lbs of sweet potatoes, which only my mother and i actually eat

1 tray of Famous Potato Stuffing that took me 10 years to perfect

1 gallon homemade gravy

2 cans of cranberry sauce because no one would eat homemade

1 bowl of old fashioned bread stuffing that only my mother and i eat

2 boxes of Stove Top Savory herb stuffing because everyone else eats that

corn casserole

brocolli (strictly for color enhancement of the kitchen, makes loverly soup the following day)

salad (see brocolli)

2 homemade pizzas for the waiting period for the turkey

tray of veggies, cheese, pepperoni, etc

okay, so you see that i am able to feed half of North Africa, but we are paring down this year...for one, my mom won't be here as she is ill. Not sure about my daughter and her boyfriend yet, she'll probably call me on Wednesday to let me know...maybe i'll just invite some of Big J's friends and see if they can eat half the turkey in under 15 minutes....now that's better than a football game any day!

anyhow, here's the extremely un-complicated recipe for potato stuffing

(ps...once i started making this, my MIL wouldn't talk to me as it was her specialty, but everyone liked mine betternot that Thanksgiving should be a time of relative bashing or some other nasty gossiping about others)

okay, Famous Potato Stuffing

i was told that my hubbyman's grandmother (who probably would have liked me) used to actually stuff the turkey with this...we make it in a 9x13 roasting pan

5 lbs of RUSSET potatoes (really, do NOT use any other potatoes for this, it comes out icky, hence my years of perfecting)

1 large yellow onion

1 lb bacon, diced(whatever really fatty store brand you get is fine)

1 tube of country sausage (NOT breakfast sausage)

1 stick butter (NOT margarine)

about 1/2 a SMALL container of Thyme (i guess it's about 4 tbsps)

salt and pepper

wash the taters and cook them in a large pot whole and UNpeeled...very important, don't understand why, but don't peel them

while they are cooking, start frying in this EXACT order (remember, 10 yrs are behind these directions!)

melt the butter in a large fry pan and cook the onions till nicely golden, but not crispy...place in a large mixing bowl (very large)

in same pan, cook the bacon till crispy...place in same bowl with onions and do NOT empty the grease out of the pan

in same greasy pan, crumble and cook sausage till done nicely, not crispy...reove to same pan, and again, if there's any grease, do NOT dump it out, just set it aside

by this time the taters should be cooked (stick a fork in them, if it breaks apart, they are done)

drain them and let cool till able to touch them...the warmer you can handle them, the better...peel them, break into large chunks and add to the mixing bowl...they break down while cooking...

stir them all together, adding thyme, salt and pepper to taste...now the tricky part in all this is that it tastes different when it's all cooked together than when you are taste testing it before...suffice to say that you can adjust salt and pepper on your plate, but go a little heavy on the thyme pre-baking...it's worth it

we bake this in a baking pan for about 30 mins, then broil on low for 5 just to crisp up the top...you can certainly stuff the turkey with it if you want, but MY family won't eat anything that's cooked inside a bird of any kind...where do all these weird kids come from????

anyhoo, i hope AmyBeth is impressed with my attemp at the Company Couch...errr, i mean thankful that i posted a recipe to share

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firstly, if you scan down to the Foccacia recipe that i jacked from Taminaz, i made this the other day for my sickly hubbyman except that i actually HAD the required amount of Bisquick and instead of the onions, i chopped up a 2 in piece of pepperoni...YUMMMMO! (to quote Rachael Ray)

okay, now what i did yesterday was make chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies (it's amazing what you get done while trying to post every 3 minutes on your favorite message board ) how i revised the cookies, i added about 3 tbsps of flax seeds to them...no adverse reactions yet

here's a great chocolate cake recipie, and my revisions are in red

Sour Cream Chocolate Cake

4 oz baking chocolate (6 tbsp cocoa baking powder)

2 c sugar (1 1/3 c)

1 c water

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 c sour cream

1/4 c butter softened

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 c flour (1 1/2 c flour, 1/2 c oatmeal)

buttercream frosting ( i used cream cheese frosting, like what you use on cinamon buns)

preheat oven to 350*F...grease and flour 2 round or one 9x13 baking pan...set aside (i made cupcakes and froze 18 of them...made 24)

melt the chocolate in a double boiler, stirring constantly. measure all ingrediants into a large mixing bowl (i added the cocoa powder to the flour) Mix at low speed for 1 minute, scraping constantly...beat 3 more mins...pour batter into desired pan and bake till tests done (25-30 mins for the pans, 20 for cupcakes)

remove from oven and cool completely

frost when cooled

my own version of cream cheese frosting:

equal parts of softened butter and cream cheese

about 1 tsp vanilla

dash of salt

about 2 cups of powdered sugar per every 4 tbsps of butter/cheese mixture

beat together butter and cream cheese, then add vanilla...scrape bowl to make sure it's all incorporated well...add salt, then slowly add sugar till it's the thickness you prefer...frost whatever you have lying around the kitchen, it tastes divine! (try it on steak, chicken, whatever...it's really good)

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