It’s been a while since I’ve given myself a new assignment concerning my weight loss efforts. I took up running again and almost instantly my appetite seems to have been cut in half. One thing that I still have a problem with is eating too late. I eat dinner too late, and then I often have dessert around 10 o’clock. (I made an apple pie the other day.)

So, that’s the thing I will be working on. I think part of the problem is that I do a lot of work at night and it’s easy to mindlessly munch. Plus, my office is right next to the kitchen. So I am making a pact. When I sit by my desk I will prevent mindless munching by drinking tea. Some teas I will have on call:

• Ginger
• Caramel Rooibus
• Green Tea
• Chamomile Tea
• Mint blend (made from peppermint and spearmint)

Those are flavorful and satisfying so drinking them instead of eating should do the trick. I wrote more about it here .

As you know from reading this blog, I am on a personal quest to be healthier through clean eating and proper exercise. My first step is to eat a healthy breakfast. Sounds simple enough, but I have not quite mastered this step. Sometimes I don’t eat until two hours after I wake up. Sometimes I don’t feel hungry. Sometimes my food choice is not that great.

I have to breakfast staples - oatmeal and smoothies. I’ve shared my oatmeal recipe so now it’s time to let you in on my smoothie recipe. You can keep all of these ingredients on hand. I buy frozen organic berries which are a lifesaver.

Blueberry Smoothie Recipe with Ground Flaxseeds 

This is a quick and nourishing breakfast that is very portable. It takes minutes to make. Pour it into a thermos and this is an easy on the go breakfast.

Ingredients

3/4 cup frozen berries - I use blueberries

1 1/4 cup milk (almond, soy, cow, goat, hemp, etc) - I either use almond or soy

1 scoop protein powder (I use goat whey)

1 tablespoon ground flax seeds

Instructions

Add the berries to the blender and pour milk over. Pulse for a few seconds. Add ground flaxseeds and the whey protein. Pulse until completely smooth and pour into a glass. If mixture is too thick, add a bit more milk.

Christmas Day is fast approaching and French toast casserole is one of the most popular things to serve for Christmas breakfast - or at least it probably will be this year. Don’t believe me? A few hours ago, Google Trends showed this as being a top keyword - which means that tons of people were online searching for recipes. Even if just a fraction of those people make it on Christmas Day, that still translates to a lot of households serving it for breakfast.

What is French Toast Casserole?

Essentially, this is a recipe that allows you to prepare the French toast the night before in a casserole dish. Just pop it in the oven while opening presents. After the morning festivities are done, the casserole will be ready. Even if you do assemble it in the morning (and it comes out better if you do) this is still an easy breakfast solution.

How do you make it?

The basic ingredients are bread cubes, milk, eggs, cinnamon, and sugar. That’s it. You can follow a recipe if you wan, but it isn’t necessary. Just cut the bread into cubes. Beat eggs and milk together. Add some sugar and cinnamon. Arrange the bread at the bottom of a buttered baking dish. Pour over egg and milk. Sprinkle with some cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 degrees until golden, about 45 minutes.

But If You Do Want to Follow a Recipe…

If I were to make this, I wouldn’t follow a recipe. I’ve made enough French toast in my lifetime to know what works and what doesn’t as far as the proportions go.  And I’m sure my version would come out fine. However, I understand that you may want to follow a French toast casserole recipe so I found one for you.

This isn’t just for Christmas day. The recips is so easy, you can do it whenever you want.

I joined a wine club yesterday. There’s this wine shop that I go to whenever I want to purchase a bottle of wine. I love the selection and the people who work there are very knowledgeable. I go in there, tell them what I want for dinner, and they show me some of the wines they think would be great. They’ll even give me a sample occasionally.

For me, joining that wine club made sense. I can go to one wine tasting a month and sample various wines throughout the month. Plus, I get 10% off each bottle of wine I purchase. There’s another wine club in town but it seems to target tourists, not people like me who want to find something to sip with dinner.

So, Should You Join a Wine Club?

But the question is, should you join one? There are different kinds of clubs. Some you can join online and they’ll send you bottles of wine each month or a few times a year. For me, the local wine clubs are more fun because they host wine sampling events and give discounts on the odd bottle of wine that you purchase. If you drink wine all the time and tend to purchase it from the same wine shop, it couldn’t hurt to consider joining their club.

Finding a Club to Join

After you’ve decided to join a club, your next step is to find one. Look around locally to see if there are any options. If you live in an area that doesn’t have a lot of local offerings, consider searching online. A quick google search revealed these companies:

• The Wine Club - based out of CA, thewineclub.com offers discounts and local events
• Cellars Wine Club - this company offers a wine of the month club. Find them at cellarswineclub.com
• Wine.com - this site is a portal of sorts. Shop for wine, join a wine club - no matter what you want, they’ll point you in the right direction

You Don’t Need to Be Obsessed With Wine to Enjoy a Wine Club

I love wine, but I don’t pretend to know how to describe it. I can’t tell you the history of each vinyard. I barely even know the difference between the grapes. But I do know which wines I like. I write them down in a notebook. I even make a feeble effort to describe what it tasted like.

One of my scribbled descriptions was, “Tastes yummy, a little like bubble gum.” Have you ever read a wine label with that description? Probably not,  but I don’t care. Just develope a knowledge for what you like and why you like it. There really are no right or wrong answers.

And since I buy around one bottle of wine a week, a club simply made sense. I don’t care if my fellow members know more about wine than me. It isn’t about them, anyway!

I’m a big fan of hot chocolate, especially as the weather gets colder. What I love even more? Giving it some spice! I often add cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, even cayenne pepper to my hot chocolate. Why? Because it not only gives my food a completely different flavor and keeps my taste buds happy, but it also has added health benefits. Here’s a list of my favorites:

• Cinnamon - helps regulate blood sugar, aphrodisiac, boosts the metabolism, and has an antimicrobial action which can help get rid of infection.
• Cayenne pepper - boosts the metabolism, improves blood flow, helps you get rid of colds
• Nutmeg - aids digestion and is an aphrodisiac
• Cardamom - warming, is an aphrodisiac, aids the bronchial system, and helps your digestion
• Ginger - warming, anti inflammatory, and boosts metabolism

Here is a link to my Spicy Hot Chocolate Recipe on eHow.com. You don’t need to follow it exactly. You can use any combination of the spices that you want. In fact, I’d start out with one at a time so you can see how the spices affect your body. After you become familiar with them on an individual basis, you can begin to mix them.

I just purchased some watermelon from the store and it’s delicious! I don’t think it’s quite in season here in Massachusetts. But it’s in season somewhere close. During my walk today I started to think about how I wanted to eat a slice. And then I realized that watermelon is a perfect compliment to pomegranate juice and oh ya, why not throw in some rum and turn it into a cocktail?

Ingredients:

1 cup chopped watermelon flesh, seeds removed

1 cup pomegranate juice

3 shots white rum (you can substitute tequila for something different)

1/2 cup ice (you can use 1/2 cup frozen strawberries instead if you want)

Fresh mint leaves for a garnish

Instructions:

Add watermelon, pomegranate juice, rum, and ice cubes (or frozen strawberries) to a blender. Cover and blend until mixture is smooth and all the ingredients are well incorporated. Pour into glasses and garnish with fresh mint leaves. Serves 2.

You can freeze the glasses until they are frosty. This will keep the drink extra cold. You can also make this in larger batches if you’re serving it to a crowd.

Plain iced tea is fine, but sometimes I want something with a little more pizazz. The delicate taste of peach adds a sweet flavor while the ginger gives it a zing. You can use either green tea or black tea. I prefer black tea.  You’ll need a quart sized pitcher for this recipe. If you have a larger pitcher just double the recipe.

• 4 cups boiling water
• 4 tea bags
• 1 ripe peach
• 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced

Slice the peach down the middle and remove the pit. Cut the peach into quarters and add to the pitcher. Sprinkle the peaches with the ginger, add the teabags, and pour the boiling water over it. Let it steep for around ten minutes and then remove them. You can leave the peach and the ginger in. Serve chilled and garnish with fresh mint lives or candied ginger.