Recently in Diet Category

Now I’ve only been diabetic for a few years now, but every day (or meal, or test) I am reminded of it’s impact on my life. Please help the fight to end diabetes by sponsoring this Microsoft programmer dude I admire.

Thanks!

For father's day, I gave my dad a Brinkmann smoker. This past week, I got one too, because, well heck, I live in Arkansas and have access to some of the finest minds in smoke cooking. Here's the results of my first attempt (click images for full size):

1. First, get a smoker and someone to help you put it together:
2. Next, get some hardwood chunks to add flavor to the meat. I went with hickory:
3. Soak the chunks in water for a few hours so they burn slower:
4. Fire up a few coals-- don't overdo it, slow and low is better:
5. Apply a meat rub. Since I was using baby-back ribs, I chose a simple rub of 2C brown sugar, 1/4C coarse sea salt, and a good bit of ground black pepper. Apply liberally:
6. Put it on the smoker! Put larger stuff below and small stuff up top. Leave it alone, and add charcoal and wood as it runs out. It will begin to smell up the neighborhood with smoky goodness:
7. Get someone to watch it go:
8. If it rains, don't give up:
9. It takes awhile, so a nap might be in order:
10. After 4-6 hours, you will have wonderful smoked meats!   Enjoy!

So here I sit in front of the computer eating some pistachios. My eye glances down to the can. I see the ingredients list: Pistachios, Salt. Then, right below it, I see the strangest thing ever. Three little words: "MAY CONTAIN PEANUTS". What? How does THAT happen? I'm fairly certain that peanuts and pistachios are pretty different. One comes from trees, the other from bushes. Don't believe me? Grab a can of shelled pistachios from Inter-American Products, Inc. of Cincinnati Ohio. Very strange, but that's pretty much par for my life.

Last night I made the Feta Burgers from the Atkins site. My friends Bayly and Emily came over for dinner and they were a hit! The burgers were expecially good with a bit of Ring Of Fire hot sauce smeared over them. My mom mentioned a similar recipe with olives and walnuts that I can't find on the Atkins site. Maybe she would post it here.

Weight loss to date: 12.5 lbs

So tonight I tried to make the Atkins Crab Cakes. No lump crab meat to be found, so I thought I'd use crawfish tails instead. Bad idea. After dirtying almost every pan in the house and having to clean the floor twice and change shirts once, I have a collection of what could only be called Crawfish Gravel. No amount of Keto Crumbs made them hold together, nor a surgeon-like gentleness, or much threatening with spatulae. Argh! Oh well, I guess failure is the mother of invention. Tomorrow night I'll try the feta burgers my friend Emily (Bayly's wife) recommended.

In other news, my sister has moved to Spokane, so if you are close, stop off and see her cats: Jasper and Onyx. Also give her a job. Preferrably one that pays very well-- she deserves it.

Also-- I've been discovered by another Kelly Adams! Read the comments on this post here (opens in a new window) from a few weeks ago. I think we should form a credit union or something. Or maybe a secret society a la H.P. Lovecraft.