Diets and Diabetes, Foreclosure

This morning on GMA, Chris Cuomo was talking about diets and exercise. Also about cutting carbs. This is fine if you are fit and healthy in the first place, but if you have diabetes, you should check with your dietitian and doctor first. At the moment all dietitians say you should eat 2 or 3 carb points at every meal and NOT cut them out. You can do this by eating vegetables rich in carbs such as carrots and peas, or by adding whole wheat products to your meal. The key to all weight loss is to eat a healthy, balanced diet and be moderate about what you are eating. MODERATION in everything. A glass or two of red wine is OK a bottle or two is not. They also showed some simple exercises which anyone can do at home including the proper way to do push ups. I have never, in my life, been able to do a push up. However, I have watched people do them and they do not keep their torso absolutely straight which is what was demonstrated. Resistance exercise is highly recommended. You can do it at home or join Curves if you are female, there is a similar place for men but I can't for the life of me remember the name.

Isometrics are resistance exercises and Matt has been doing those since the year dot, so much so that he doesn't even know when he is doing them, sitting watching TV or something. This is why we recently had to change our love seat for a new chair for him as he had totally worn the nap off the material due to his incessant moving. Of course he is slim and has absolutely no extra pounds. People have been telling him for years that he will gain weight when he is older, he is now 73 and still more or less the same weight he has been all his life. I hate him. I have threatened to divorce him for cruelty for years. He never gains an ounce, never needs his teeth filled and never has a hangover. If that's not cruelty, what is?

Another item on Good Morning America today was about all the foreclosure scams which are taking place during this difficult financial climate in the States. Their advice is to go to your current lender and talk to them before you do anything or commit to anything. Seems sensible to me. One woman thought she was being helped to re-finance and ended up losing her house altogether due to a scam.

Today I thought I would give you another shrimp dish. This comes from Betty Crocker's New International Cookbook which, in this home, is known as Dottie's Book. She lent me this book many years ago and never did get it back. Last time I tried to return it she refused it and said she knew where it was if she wanted to read it. Trouble is, I have now moved 1,000 miles away.

Marinated Gingered Shrimp

This is a simple Japanese preparation that can be prettily arranged on a serving plate. Sweet sake is widely available, but the same quantity of sweet sherry may be substituted if sake is not to be found.

1 1/2 lbs shrimp, shelled and deveined
1/2 C soy sauce
3 oz. giverroot, chopped
1/3 C Vinegar (we use white wine vinegar)
2 tbs sugar
2 tbs sweet sake
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 to 3 Tbs thinly sliced green onion.

Cook shrimp until pink and still tender; arrange in a single layer in a glass or plastic container 12 x 7 1/2 x 2 inches. Heat soy sauce to boiling; add gingerroot. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 5 mins. Stir in the vinegar, sugar, sake and salt; pour over shrimp. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Remove shrimp from marinade with slotted spoon; arrange on serving plate. Garnish with green onion. Actually we never do this last step and we find the bits of ginger are delicious with the shrimp, obviously its your choice.

Have a great day.