Spring 2015 ~ Randomness

Some peeks into my Spring.

The hostas I planted in 2013 and forgot about came up again.   Love me some hostas because they’re so easy to grow.

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Eating supper on the front porch can be so relaxing after spending the day inside.

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My oldest daughter has fallen in love with gardening.  She has planted so many beautiful flowers this Spring.  Now I need to get her interested in veggies. 🙂

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After an extensive search, I was so excited to find this cute owl mug for only .25 at the thrift store!

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I love it when my hubby cranks up the grill.  I know some yummy food is on the way.  He prepared enough for us to eat on through the week and when the grilled veggies were gone, I pan roasted these in the oven.  Real food and good eatin’!

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After my last post on that beautiful Spring day,  I found out my oldest brother had died suddenly.  He left a void in the lives of his daughters, grandchildren, siblings, and father.  I think of him often and miss him daily.  Some of my family made the trip to Reelfoot Lake in his memory.

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Thanks for stopping by!

Reboot with Juicing

Today I’m trying something different.  This is supposed to last 3 days, but I’m not sure how long I’ll make it!

Here’s my Morning Juice of 3 carrots, 2 apples, and a small piece of ginger.

This juice was pretty good.  Funny how I tend to lean toward the sweet juices instead of the more savory juices.  Might be an indication of my current condition!  😉

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This is the juicer that Joe Cross uses in Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead.

I decided to start out juicing with the Hamilton Beach Big Mouth juicer and if I see we will be doing this on a regular basis, then I’m getting the Breville!

So far I’m pleased with the power of the juicer and the amount of juice I’m getting.

 

Spicy Shrimp Stir Fry

I’ve started trying to watch my calories and this tasty dish naturally falls right into the low calorie category.

And it’s quick and easy!  That’s a plus, right?

I fix this all the time and use whatever veggies I may have.  This time I used a bag of frozen stir fry veggies and the preparation was even faster.

Spicy Shrimp Stir Fry

1 bag of Walmart frozen medium shrimp, peeled
1 bag of frozen stir fry veggies
1tsp Cajun spice
splash of soy sauce

First of all I thaw the frozen veggies, then toss in my wok skillet with about a tablespoon of oil.  I toss in a little Cajun spice and soy sauce and give it a quick stir.

When the veggies are tender,  I add the thawed shrimp and continue cooking about 4 minutes or until the shrimp look done.  You don’t want to overcook the shrimp or they’ll be tough.

You can serve over rice for those who want it, but I usually eat it as is.  Fewer calories and carbs that way.  🙂

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Nutritional info I found on the shrimp and veggies:

Shrimp Peeled & Deveined With Tail on (Walmart Frozen Medium Cooked Shrimp) Serving Size: 3 oz (about 3/4cup), Calories: 77, Fat: 1g, Carbs: 0g, Protein: 17g

Kroger Frozen Stir Fry Vegetables (1 cup)
calories: 30, fat: 0g, carbs: 5g, protein: 1g

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A friend of mine turned me on to my new favorite website, My Fitness Pal.  What a neat and easy way to keep up with my nutritional intake!  Check it out.

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Linking to…

  

Slow Cooked Pot Roast with Root Veggies

I made this a few months ago, but still

remember how delicious it was!

My daughter loves roast,

so I try to have it ever so often when I find

it for a good price.

Slow Cooked Pot Roast with Root Veggies

3-4 pound English roast or pot roast

1 packet dry onion soup mix

1 cup water

3 carrots, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

4 potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 beef bouillon cubes

½ cup low carb flour blend

salt and pepper to taste

oil for browning

Take the roast and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Lightly dredge in the flour blend.  Brown on all sides in a large cast iron skillet over high heat.  (Mom always said that searing the meat first seals in the juices and flavor.)  Place in the slow cooker and add the soup mix, water, carrots, onion, potatoes and beef bouillon.   Cover and cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours.

If there happen to be any leftovers, I like to add tomatoes and more broth and mixed veggies to make soup.  That’s another thing my Mom did.   Love and miss that woman like crazy!

TIP: If your trying to stay away from potatoes, substitute cubed turnips for the potatoes.  I usually add them in the last few hours of cooking.

 

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DISCLAIMER: If you purchase from the affiliate links in this post you are helping support Heart of a Country Home at no extra charge to yourself.  Thank you!

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Beating Cancer

Note:  Please forgive this discombobulated post.  I felt to write about this today, but I’m very busy and have had many interruptions today, so my writing may be a little hard to follow.

My friend’s mom has cancer. 

So many people are affected in some way with this horrible disease.

 My friend’s mom…let’s call her Bev…has a very positive outlook on life, even though the doctors have done almost all they can for her.  Bev is a very active woman and is always encouraging others.

 The other day, Bev received a phone call from a lady telling her about her cancer story.  How she had been given up to die 6 years ago and decided to live to the best of her ablility.  She said she is now cancer free.

 This lady shared with Bev what she now eats.

Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.  No canned or frozen.

 

No white potatoes, only red.

No sugar or Splenda, only Stevia.

No margerine, only real butter.

Only a very small amount of pasta.

 

Green tea.

 

Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.

 

Fresh herbs.

 

And lots of garlic.

Lots of garlic…up to 6 “pods” per day.

 

Bev is excited, uplifted, and encouraged.  Hopefully I’ll be back in a few months telling you that Bev has beaten cancer!

 

My mom also has cancer,  since 2003.  A rare sinus cancer.  She has had chemotherapy and all the radiation that she can have.  Her only hope is a very drastic surgery involving removing most of the left side of her face, then rebuilding with bone and skin taken from her leg and arm.  She decided against the surgery.  I hope to be able to encourage her to follow the diet that Bev is following.  Maybe some of Bev’s excitement will encourage my mom to hope again.

 

If you pray, please say a prayer for my mom, Genelle, and for my friend’s mom, Bev.  These are two very special ladies and we need them around a while longer.

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More information on foods to boost health can be found at WebMD.

*Images courtesy of Microsoft

Vegetable Beef Soup with Southern Cornbread

This soup began as a Pot Roast with baby carrots and baby whole potatoes

baked in the oven for 6 hours at 275º.  That wasn’t long enough or the temp wasn’t high enough.  It was supposed to cooked in the crockpot while I was at work until I discovered my crockpot was missing in action and left at the church after the last dinner.

My cupboard was nearly bare of soup ingredients except for the 2 home-canned jars of mixed veggies sent back home with us from a trip to Aunt D’s house in Kentucky. I also had a small can of tomato sauce, but no diced or whole tomatoes which I normally use in soup.

The soup turned out to be the best I’ve made in a while… it was delicious!  Very hearty and full of flavor.   Only from memory, since I didn’t write anything down; it goes something like this…

Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup

Small portion of leftover pot roast
Whole new potatoes, from leftover roast
Onions, from leftover roast
2 cans mixed veggies
1 small tomato sauce
2 bouillon cubes
2-3 Tbs Flour or cornstarch for thickening
1-2 cups of water

Put all in a large pot or dutch oven and cook on medium heat for 30 minutes and until broth is thickened.  Serve with cornbread, breadsticks, or saltines.

Pacify your kids when they come asking for more, by informing them that soup’s all gone but homemade Pecan Pie with a dollop of fresh whipped cream is coming up!