Logitech, Smoothie, Sugar Dog.

I’m impressed. I have a wireless mouse for my laptop – its made by Logitech. The little gadget (like a flash drive) which fits in the USB port came apart with the metal staying inside the machine. Matt managed to fish it out. I phoned Logitech and they are sending me a new Mouse. Excellent service.  Meanwhile a customer has returned a gadget which I sold them late last year, it is a nail buffer and when you switch it on the head flies off. It nearly hit my customer in the eye. Avon do not want to know. For such an international company I am extremely disgusted. I wonder what would have happened if it had damaged her eye!!

For some reason, late afternoon yesterday, the heat really got to me and knocked me for a loop. I felt as though I was boiling, and didn’t feel good at all. Nor was I hungry. In the end after cooling down a tad, I made myself a smoothie. I have never had a smoothie and didn’t think I would like it, but, after Googling for some recipes, and already knowing I didn’t have a lot of suitable stuff handy, I peeled and orange and blended it, then added some whole milk and a dash of vanilla and finally ice and a banana. It was delicious. I am converted. It looked a bit like the ones in the picture except I didn’t decorate it for me. My friends have been recommending smoothies for years, I should have listened.

Lovely story in the news about a dog being trained to recognise signs of low or high blood sugar in a 7 yr. old child with type 1 diabetes. Keeva is a trained service dog and will eventually learn to do other things like fetch juice or use a paw pad to dial 911 if necessary. Damned expensive animal though, $19,000 but the family feel its worth it for their peace of mind. At the moment Keeva is only a puppy but will be constantly learning as she gets to know the youngster and recognise his smell. There is a video on the news page.

Before we came to Canada I don’t think I had ever eaten raw spinach. I tasted it, I liked it. I’ve been eating it one way or another ever since.

Loaded Spinach Salad

From EatingWell: March/April 2007, The EatingWell Diet (2007)

Like many spinach salads, this one features lots of chopped-up hard-boiled egg. But since most of the calories in an egg are in the yolk, we use just two whole eggs, plus the whites from six additional eggs. The result is a rich, eggy, satisfying spinach salad that keeps the calories in check.

2 servings

Ingredients

• 8 large eggs
• 6 cups baby spinach
• 4 tablespoons Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing, divided (recipe follows)
• 1 8-ounce can beets, rinsed and sliced
• 1 cup carrots, shredded
• 2 tablespoons chopped pecans, toasted (see Tip)

Preparation

1. Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook at the lowest simmer for 10 minutes. Pour off the hot water and run cold water over the eggs until they are completely cooled. Peel the eggs, discard 6 of the yolks, chop the remaining yolks and whites.
2. Toss spinach and 2 tablespoons dressing in a large bowl. Divide between 2 plates. Top with chopped eggs, beets, carrots and pecans. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons dressing.

Nutrition

Per serving :300 Calories; 13 g Fat; 3 g Sat; 6 g Mono; 216 mg Cholesterol; 26 g Carbohydrates; 22 g Protein; 8 g Fiber; 823 mg Sodium; 592 mg Potassium

1 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 4 vegetable, 2 lean meat, 1 1/2 fat

Tips & Notes

• Tip: To toast chopped nuts & seeds: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.

 

Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing

From EatingWell: March/April 2007, The EatingWell Diet (2007)

Creamy blue cheese dressing is still rich and delicious when you make it with low-fat dairy products and reduced-fat mayonnaise. Choose the tangiest aged blue cheese you can find; its flavor will go a long way.



1 1/4 cups

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup nonfat buttermilk, or nonfat milk
• 1/3 cup nonfat plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar, or white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese, (1 ounce)

Preparation

1. Whisk mayonnaise, buttermilk (or milk), yogurt, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in a medium bowl until smooth. Add cheese and stir, mashing with a spoon until the cheese is incorporated.

Tips & Notes

• Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 week. Stir before using.

Have a great day