Many thanks to my Dear friend Jueseppi for posting the Inauguration Day Television Coverage. I understand it will be televised worldwide.
Monthly Archives: January 2013
Obama Family Chili Recipe
President Obama and the First Lady prepare for Inauguration Day with an official swearing in ceremony on Sunday, January 20. The next day will be the ceremonial swearing in, followed by a parade and balls. Schedule is here. This is only the 2nd time in my 62 years that I have been excited over a President’s inauguration (2009 being the first) because it wasn’t until Obama was elected President have I ever been proud to be an American and feel part of this society. If your grandmother had been born into slavery as mine was, and you had spent all your years dealing with racism, you’d probably feel the same.
I would love to attend the parade on Monday and celebrate with all the people for this historic event. Seeing as I will have to watch it from home, I decided to prepare this Obama Family Chili recipe for my family. It’s a healthy, tasty one!
Obama Family Chile Recipe
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
several cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 pound ground turkey or beef
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground oregano
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp ground basil
1 tbsp chilli powder
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 can red kidney beans
several tomatoes, depending on size, chopped
shredded cheddar cheese (for garnish)
sour cream (for garnish)
- Saute onions, green pepper, and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add ground meat and brown.
- Combine spices together into a mixture, then add to ground meat.
- Add red-wine vinegar. Add tomatoes and let simmer until the tomatoes cook down. Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes.
- Serve over brown (preferred) or white rice. Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, onions, and sour cream.
Make it a complete meal…
Check out the healthy cooking substitutes here.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Beautiful lady and oh how I love her sultry, smooth music! Many thanks, Jueseppi.
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An excellent rant on the idiocy in America, from my friend The ObamaCrat. I can’t agree with him more. As an educated, go by the rules, love my family African American, I am disgusted to see that racism in AmeriKKKa never went away. My grandmother who was the last in our family born in slavery was right when she told me: Always vote, even when you doubt good will come of it. Always work until you can’t. Always look out for your people because this white country won’t. I would love to leave this country too. It is no place for decent people. Heck, it’s no place for animals.
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How easy is this recipe? Thank you, Creative Noshing!
I have been on a diet for the past 2 and a half weeks. I have lost five pounds which is pretty good for me. I have had to say no to a lot of things and a lot of people trying to pawn off all their leftover holiday goodies at work. It will pay off though when I am at my goal weight in a few months. In the meantime, I am getting creative with some new ingredients. Today I present to you my take on wild rice, full of flavor and fiber. Yum!
Wild Rice with Leeks and Peppers
1 cup wild rice
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Yes, the NRA and the GOP have completely lost it!
This article speaks to the NRA’s ad that targets Sasha and Malia Obama. (The announcer calls them: “the president’s kids”.)
Salon – Joan Walsh
While Obama signs 23 executive orders on gun control, the organization takes a bizarre shot at his family
On the eve of President Obama announcing his gun control agenda, based on Vice President Joe Biden’s task force recommendations, the National Rifle Association needed to go big: to remind Americans that the organization protects their gun rights, and to remind politicians that they’re a smart and formidable political force they’d be unwise to cross.
Instead, they showed us the truth: They’re part of the vast and increasingly incompetent right-wing conspiracy that’s sacrificed its own effectiveness for the pleasure of hating Democrats generally and our first black president in particular.
You’ve either seen or read about the ad: A narrator intones, “Are the president’s kids more important than…
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Many thanks for this, Daryl. I’ll even hold the door open for them…
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/01/mississippi-obama-gun-plans.php
Personally, I would endorse the secession of this fucking cesspool of a state in a heartbeat. Racially driven madness of 1960’s Meridian, Mississippi, as well as the dead bodies of three civil-rights student workers, who lost their lives in the shit hole known as Neshoba County(6/21/1964), has done NOTHING to move their modern day chromosomal abnormalities,posing as blood relatives toward any definition near normal. I wish it could be lawful for the POTUS to create, and sign an executive order that would send these kissing cousins to Costa Rica along with every conservative’s favorite babbling, block of blubber-Rush Limbaugh. I thought this prescription drug- addicted flotsam had threatened to forever float on if -President Barack Obama was successful in implementing the Affordable Health Care Act?
“They killed a nigger, one Jew, and a white man. I gave them all what I thought they deserved.”-Federal…
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Yes, this is historical and no doubt the broadest gun control ever proposed. Thank you, Jueseppi…excellent post!
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This is what is causing the NRA’s, GOPs, and right wing gun holder’s derangement. Many thanks for nailing this, 3Chics!
THIS, here is the reason for the NRA’s DERANGEMENT.
President Barack Hussein Obama
Attorney General Eric Holder
B. Todd Jones, Director U.S. Bureau of ( ATF&E) Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
How’s this for 21ST CENTURY DIVERSITY?
WINNING!
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How to Make Your Baking Healthy
I grew up surrounded by African American cooks who prepared some of the most wonderful Southern desserts and meals that would make your mouth water and cause a 5 pound gain just smelling it baking or on the stove. Thank goodness I was an active child or that chubbiness would have resulted in obesity early on. Like many of you, unhealthy cooking habits learned from loving family members stay with us until we become sick or cannot get the weight off.
Having enjoyed physical activity and dancing all my life, I had always been able to keep the weight under control…until I began working long hours into the night and relied on fast foods and restaurants for my meals. Coming home after dark discouraged me from my usual exercise. And the meals were not providing me with the nutrients for energy and health.
Five years ago I came down with a bacterial infection that almost did me in. Having been away on a trip for a week, my husband found me half dead, unable to reach the phone for help. The infection was riddled throughout my body and close to the brain. After weeks in the hospital, I went home with bags of medications, including antibiotics and morphine for pain. I was told my organs were probably affected and I would have escalating health issues for the rest of my life. It was necessary to stay on the meds and close to my doctor. That’s what I was told.
While I believe meds have a place on a short term basis, I avoid them. With this diagnosis, I was really scared. I began my research on the particular infection I had, looking for natural remedies…and how to avoid a recurrence. Down the rabbit hole I went. What I learned floored me: almost everything I ate and put in my body was leading me to disease and death! While I will write future articles on on this, today I will share substitute ways to make your baking and cooking healthy. Oh, and my health today? I have more energy and feel healthier than ever at 62. I take no prescribed or over-the counter medications. ♥
From Christine Frazier, No Meat Athlete…
Problem #1: The recipe calls for butter, margarine, or shortening
STF fix: Butter is a fat. Therefore, the easiest substitution for it is another kind of fat. I sub in canola oil one-to-one for butter with great success. This will work in baked quick breads, but not something like buttercream. Canola oil is relatively inexpensive and a good source of omega-6′s. Walnut oil and almond oil also work great in desserts by adding a nice nutty (duh) flavor, though they are more expensive. Coconut oil is excellent with its light tropical flair and can be helpful when you are looking for the “structure” of unmelted butter. It works well in pie crusts and cookies. [I prefer coconut oil ~ Marion]
For any of these options, add a pinch of salt [sea salt!] for every half cup of butter you swap out. You can trick your tongue into experiencing a buttery flavor with the hint of saltiness.
Problem #2: The recipe calls for way too much fat
STF fix: Taking down the fat a notch (bam?) is half the fun of healthy baking! Why? Because there are just so many alternatives to choose from! Start by just replacing half the amount of fat with an equal amount of any of these options:
- Fruit purees like unsweetened applesauce, canned crushed pineapple, or mashed bananas. Use an old banana for sweetness and banana-y flavor, a green banana for all the nutrition without competing flavors.
- Vegetable purees like sweet potato, cauliflower, or canned pumpkin. Also try shredded veggies, like the familiar carrots or zucchini. Though technically a fruit, don’t forget about mashed avocado! Save the darker veggies like spinach puree to combine with chocolate desserts or with a darker fruit like blueberries.
- Beans, my personal favorite option. Beans add protein and structure to a recipe and, when pureed, go completely unnoticed! Try great northern beans or pinto beans for a neutral taste, and chickpeas for a slightly nuttier taste. Use black beans and adzuki beans in recipes that call for cocoa or chocolate.
- Nut butters, like peanut butter, almond butter, or tahini. Cashew butter has a particular neutral creamy taste. These also pack in some extra protein.
Problem #3: The recipe calls for eggs
STF fix: If you don’t want to use eggs in your baking there are again many options. An egg is 2 ounces of thick liquid, so it is best substituted with 2 oz of another thick liquid. Try any of the above fruit, veggie, bean, or nut butter substitutions listed for subbing out fats.
There are also “flax eggs” which are made by combining 2 teaspoons of ground flax seed with 2 ounces of warm water. Stir and set aside until the consistency has thickened. Flax eggs do well binding ingredients together. There are also egg replacers you can buy, like Ener-G brand. This is mainly potato starch and leavening. It works well in lighter, more traditional cake recipes. If you are worried about your baked goodies rising, add a pinch of baking powder for each egg replaced.
Problem #4: The recipe calls for dairy
STF fix: Yes, there is always soy milk to substitute one-for-one for cow’s milk, but haven’t you already met your tofu quota for this week? Try out almond milk, hemp milk, or coconut milk.
Don’t forget that any time there is a liquid, you have a chance to add flavor. Try these alternative milks brewed with coffee in a chocolate recipe, chai tea for spice muffins, or mixed with Guinness for gingerbread! You can also mix the milks with fruit juices like apple or orange juice for added sweetness.
Problem #5: The recipe calls for all-purpose white flour.
STF fix: I use whole-wheat pastry flour one-to-one for all-purpose without any problems. But there is a world of flours outside of wheat! Try out an ancient grain like teff or spelt for extra protein. Go international with gram flour or grind your own chickpeas or fava beans into flour. One of my favorites is oat flour; it only takes a second to go from rolled or steel cut oats to oat flour with the food processor. Try replacing 1/4 cup of the flour with ground flax seed too. Mixing and matching these flours will help it stay more flavor-neutral in the recipe.
Problem #6: The recipe calls for way too much white sugar.
STF fix: A lot of times you can just go ahead and lower the sugar amount by a quarter of whatever is called for and you won’t notice a thing. There are several unrefined sugars on the market like raw sugar, demerara sugar, and sucanat. Sucanat stands for sugar cane natural, and is just the dehydrated cane juice. These unrefined sugars retain the mineral in the sugar cane plant. However, there’s not a ton of nutritional value in this plant so the main point of using these kinds of sugars is just to avoid all the processing and bleaching.
There are also classic liquid sweeteners like maple syrup and honey which give a warmer flavor to a recipe. If you use molasses, do so with an easy hand or use only a couple tablespoons to supplement another sweetener. Blackstrap molasses is especially overpowering.
Agave nectar is my personal favorite because it has a lower glycemic index. It’s also 25% sweeter than sugar, so you can use less. Any time you use a liquid sweetener, cut back a little on the other liquid ingredients by about 1/4 cup to compensate. There is also stevia extract, which frankly I don’t know much about yet. [See my post all about stevia] I’ve only tasted it in Tropicana’s Trop50; it was very good but did have a slight aftertaste. [Actually, I PREFER stevia and found the perfect brand ~ Marion] I don’t recommend Splenda or other synthetic sweeteners. They just don’t seem like real food to me. [From what I have learned, Splenda, Sweet N’ Low and other artificial sweeteners are dangerous, causing cancer, autoimmune disorders and other diseases ~ Marion]
So those are the six main problem areas in a recipe. Finally, I want to highlight some “distracters” to help disguise unusual tastes and textures. Cocoa or baking chocolate does a great job covering the taste of bean and veggie purees as well as the color. Peanut butter is good for totally drowning out any mystery flavor competition. Liqueurs and extracts also cover up flavors nicely; try some creme de menthe or amaretto. Lemon zest adds a nice fresh citrus note to baked goods and, while it doesn’t cover anything up, it does add dimension to a sometimes flat flavor spectrum. Finally nuts and dried fruits vary the texture of a baked good—this is especially helpful when you are using pureed beans to help distract from the inevitable mystery lump.
Ok, that just about covers what I’ve picked up during my run so far as the NMA’s resident healthy baker. Remember, there are a lot of strategies here; start off just using one or two new elements at a time in your recipes. One of the keys to substitutions is keeping the ratios of the original recipe the same regarding liquid to liquid and dry to dry ingredients. Just keep tasting as you go and trust your instincts—you know what you like.
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My final thoughts…
Your health is your wealth. The body requires fuel to function. If it is provided with refined, artificial, chemically-laden ingredients, it cannot function well for very long. Loving ourselves and our families starts with loving our bodies. It all begins with what goes in it. ~ Marion ♥
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cadesertvoice 
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