| What a wonderful break we just had in Florida! Temperatures dipping to Usher in October! For a minute, it looked like we actually were going to have Fall here in our Sunshine state, but alas – true to Florida - if you don’t like the weather With this new season a lot of new and exciting foods are appearing! Those winter squashes are in abundance and packing lots of antioxidants in them! Have you tried them yet? Get out of your box and go try one of those funny shaped things, and see what you can do with it! We get mundane in our food choices and by nature we tend to be creatures of habit. We can get so caught in a rut, that we really aren’t enjoying our food anymore. You know God never meant food to be a curse or something we had to think so hard on. He really did make our food to be enjoyed. Imagine His delight each season as He brings in another flavor – different colors to all these incredible fruits and veggies we have access to. I can almost see the Father’s smiling face and delight as He pours them out into the fields for us! So, my encouragement this month is going to be “try something new!” or “try something a different way than you always have it”. Raw, steamed, baked, stir-fried, roasted veggies - all taste entirely different! Oh, and what about fruits? Have you tried grilling them? Broiling them? Now, if it’s a sweet treat you are looking for, just try some grilled pineapple or broiled peaches! Baked apples create a nice scent throughout the whole house! Just because you don’t care for something made one way, doesn’t mean you won’t like it another way. What if we were to get excited about food and started to experiment – we just might break up that boredom or monotony that can come with “dieting” or trying to eat healthier. There are lots of options! Your local Farmers Market is a great source of good, fresh produce. And most vendors have someone who is more than willing to tell you how to cook it or serve it. I’ve even had them cut open a piece and let me taste it before I made my purchase to make sure I was going to like it! So – I’m going to end with that challenge above. Can you do it? I think you CAN! I’m going to start you out with just a couple great recipes to try – that I think you’ll be very surprised with! Butternut Squash Soup! YUM Servings: 12 Preparation Time: 10 min Cooking Time: 10 min Nice and simple: a puree of squash and apples with just a hint of fall spice. Serve hot, chilled or at room temperature. Ingredients > 4 cup(s) vegetable broth > 12 oz butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch cubes* > 1/2 large Vidalia onion(s), cut into 2-inch cubes > 1/2 small apple(s), peeled and cut into to 2-inch cubes > 1/4 tsp table salt, or to taste > 1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste > 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg, or to taste In a large stock pot, combine broth, squash, onion and apple; cover pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Uncover pot and reduce heat to low; gently simmer until squash is very tender, about 10 minutes. Puree soup in pot using an immersion blender (or puree in a regular blender in batches, careful not to splatter hot liquid). Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg; serve. Yields about 1/2 cup per serving. You can purchase already peeled and cubed squash in the produce section of some supermarkets. You can also swap frozen, cubed squash for the fresh. Garnish with chopped mint. Deb McConnell - Weight Watchers Leader .... My little website/blog: www.freewebs.com/wwdeb |
| NOVEMBER 2009 |
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