Holiday Greetings and Leaving BC

Hope that you have had a wonderful year in 22; in spite of the craziness going on in the world around us.
I’m convinced now that the best path to real peace and happiness going forward is to “carve out” a good personal space to dwell in and dwell on; not just in the physical sense, but mentally too.
When I get too fixated on “the news” and in particular, some of the very bad decisions being made worldwide by so-called “leaders”, it’s easy to get discouraged and depressed. That will continue to be one of my biggest goals, heading into 23. To dwell on “what I can change” and not nearly so much on “what I can’t”.
There is still joy, goodness, beauty, kindness, integrity….all the good things, in abundance, in this world. And all that still gives me reason to have hope and to feel cautiously optimistic.
Right now, the packing goes ON and ON and on…..as we are preparing to leave BC, after living in this province for about 15 years. It’s time for a big change and BC is not the province that it was, even 10 years ago. Very expensive to live here now and climate change that continues to “rear it’s ugly head” each summer with the wildfires raging for weeks at a time. Also, no incentives or perks from the government to stay here, just more ways to gouge us it seems. I have some fond memories of BC but not enough to want to stay; that’s been the case for too many years now.
We are deciding between Northern Alberta and Mexico to move to. How is that for a range of options? They both have their pluses and minuses. Time will tell. We plan to check them both out thoroughly and take some time to get a “feel” for what seems like a good place to really settle down and be “at home” in the best sense of that term.
I wish all my blog readers, past, present and future a VERY Merry Christmas and much happiness in the New Year. Here’s hoping it’s a memorable one for all of us, for all the right reasons!
HEALTHY HOLIDAY COOKIE ROUND-UP!
***YUMMM….DON’T THESE LOOK YUMMY?***
I’M GOING TO TRY SOME OF THESE HEALTHIER, HOLIDAY COOKIE RECIPES.
REBLOGGED FROM: SIFT, STIR & SAVOR. THANKS FOR SHARING!
HAPPY BAKING! :<)
Last year I was obsessed with eggnog. This year I’m obsessed with cookies.
So when I was asked to be a part of a healthy christmas cookie round-up that Sandra from Candida Diet Plan was organizing, I was pretty excited! Sandra was able to organize 18 different bloggers, which means there are 18 scrumptious cookies to drool over. And these aren’t just any cookies, these are healthy cookies- virtually all of the recipes are gluten-free and loads of them are also grain-free, dairy-free, egg-free, refined sugar-free and vegan. So, what are you waiting for? Here are the links to all of the cookies:
Sugar-Free Sugar Cookies (Candida Free Candee)
Dark Chocolate Truffle Cookies (Tessa the Domestic Diva)
Macadamia Coconut Cookies (Candida Diet Plan)
No-Bake Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies (Gluten-Free Cat)
Jungle Balls (Carrie on Vegan)
Raw Gingerbread Men (Om Nom Ally)
Chocolate Orange Gogi Cookies (Coconut and Berries)
View original post 120 more words
Yummy (and healthier) Holiday Recipe Suggestions :<)
It’s not always easy to think “healthier choices” when it comes to holiday recipes.
But it doesn’t have to be ALL bad either. 😉
Here’s a round-up of holiday-ready recipes from the Veggie…archives that I hope you will enjoy.
This oh, so yummy hummus recipe was a winner in a recipe contest, here at Veggies, Yarns & Tails, a few years ago.
Delicious with crudité, tortilla chips, pitas…great on wraps too.
And what a gorgeous bright orange color to add to your holiday table.
Who needs additive-laden commercial party mix, when it’s so easy to make it in the slow cooker?
Pick and choose your fav ingredients and leave out what you don’t want. This is by far, the best party mix I have ever tasted.
Fill up a pretty jar, add the recipe on a ribbon tie and it makes a great hostess gift too. 🙂
Kasha and Beet Salad with Celery and Feta
This is one of my all-time fav marinated salads.
Oh, so delish and colorful too. Gluten-free is an added bonus.
A great potluck or buffet table addition.
What could be better after a day at the rink or skiing, than a hot and spicy bowl of black bean soup?
This is my version of this classic, comfort soup.
Makes a crowd-pleasing and oh so satisfying “meal in a bowl”. 😉
Mushroom Stroganoff with Herbed Pasta
My redo of this classic, oh so rich and yummy main dish. Lower in fat and no meat required!
If you are a meat-eater, you won’t miss the beef, I promise. 😉
And if you already ♥ mushrooms like I do, this is definitely one you’ll enjoy.
Makes a quick and elegant main dish, perfect for a holiday supper.
This luscious Berry Cobbler recipe is courtesy of the Veggie Table.
Lower in sugar than a lot of cobbler recipes. I sub Earth Balance for the butter and use buttermilk, not cream.
A nice dessert to make when you’ve got supper in the oven and want something sweet to finish a meal.
I make mine with organic frozen mixed berries (so convenient) and top with a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt. Yumm…
***
Happy Cooking and Happy Holidays! 🙂
It’s Potato Salad Time Again!
Potato salad.
Don’t ya just love it? 😉
It’s such a summer/picnic/BBQ favorite.
I love all kinds of potato salad. Particularly recipes with lots of fresh dill included.
I recently tried this amazing Dilly Potato Salad (pictured above) from the cookbook:
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Sensational Salads by Leslie Bilberback.
Chef Bilberback has kindly allowed me to share the recipe for this yummy salad with you.
And just in time for July 1st and July 4th holidays, coming up in the next few days.
See the complete recipe on page two.
And if you are looking for lots of great salad recipes that are quick and easy to prepare, this is definitely a cookbook you might want to add to your collection. I’m looking foward to trying a lot more in the near future. I ♥ (all kinds) of salads.
Happy July 1st and July 4th. 🙂