Today is National German Chocolate Cake Day...

...which begs the question:  What is your favorite cake?

Source: google.com via Cindy on Pinterest

Did you know German Chocolate Cake isn't German at all?

Yes, today is National German Chocolate Cake Day.  And according to this website:

 A recipe for "German's Chocolate Cake" first appeared in a Dallas, Texas newspaper in 1957.That it was sent in by a Dallas homemaker is all we know..... 
According to Patricia Riso, a spokeswomen for Kraft foods, It used a brand of chocolate bar called "German's" which had been developed in 1852, by an English Confectioner named Sam German, who was employed by Baker's Chocolate Company.The cake had an immediate and enthusiastic response, and requests about where to find the German's chocolate bar were so numerous that General Foods (who owned Baker's Chocolate) decided to send pictures of the cake to newspapers all around the country.Everywhere the recipe had the same response and the sales for German's Chocolate exploded so they could make this cake!

German Chocolate Cake doesn't happen to be my favorite cake.  That honor would go to the Brownie Chocolate Cake my mom makes, and which I make a lot as well.  It resembles a Texas Sheet Cake.  I also love red velvet cake.

Is German Chocolate Cake your favorite?  If not, what is? Let me know in my comments section.

And if you'd like to try your hand and making German Chocolate Cake, here's the original recipe.

Stuffed Cabbage Casserole: A Smashing Pinterest Success!

Source: skinnytaste.com via Cindy on Pinterest

One of the great things about Pinterest is the plethora of amazing recipes available. But although I have a "Food and Recipes" board chockfull of recipes I plan to try, I've actually gotten around to making just two of them.

Last night's Pinterest recipe endeavor was a SMASHING success. I made Kalyn's Stuffed Cabbage Casserole from Skinnytaste.com, a wonderful site that blogger Gina bills as "delicious low fat recipes from my family to yours."

As soon as I discovered this site on Pinterest, I immediately "followed" it and put the link on my sidebar.

2012 is the year of eating healthy for me and my husband. Recipes that fill his grown-man stomach but stick to our healthy mantra are, as my son would say, "money"!

Not only was this casserole delicious and filling, but judging by my blood sugar check this morning, it's very good for Type 2 diabetics as well.

Of course, you'll only like this recipe if you like cabbage...fortunately both my husband and I love it!

There is brown rice in the recipe, but some commenters at Skinnytaste say they substituted quinoa with excellent results. Others fiddled with the spices or made it with spicier or Italian-seasoned tomatoes or tomato sauce. There's lots of room for improvisation.

Some commenters also saved some valuable prep time by using bagged cole slaw, but I liked having the cabbage pieces a little bigger.

(The only way I had to modify it was that I couldn't find Sweet Hungarian Paprika at my local grocer, so had to use just regular paprika.)

Anyway, two thumbs up from both me and my hubby!

I'm linking up today to Company Girl Coffee, hosted by Home Sanctuary--click on the icon!

From the Archives:Thursday 13: 13 of My Favorite Recipes

Nine of these are ones I've featured here on this blog...the other five are ones that I plan to try because they look delicious!

Here we go:

1. A delicious chicken skillet recipe

2. The easiest, best banana pudding recipe ever

3. Incredibly delicious fiesta chicken recipe

4. Yummy taco soup recipe

5. French toast casserole

6. The very best spinach salad recipe

7. One of my all-time favorites: The Weight Watchers graham cracker dessert

8. My sister Beverly's incredibly delicious, easy-to-make lasagna (you'll have to scroll down a bit)

9. My beef stew recipe (again, scroll down)

And here are a few I've tried or want to try

10. Sauerkraut salad--I know, sauerkraut...but I had this at a restaurant in Texas and it was fantastic! My sister Lisa made this recipe using Splenda instead of Equal, with great results.

11. Orange Beef Stir-Fry with Broccoli and Red Pepper--I've made this one, and my family loved it

12. As a diabetic, I really miss carrot cake--so I want to try this Carrot Ginger Muffin Recipe I saw in the current Women's Health magazine.

13. This Chipotle Chicken Alfredo Pizza , currently being featured at Ashley's Cafe, the recipe blog of Ashley, who happens to be a Pampered Chef rep. It looks mouth-watering! In fact, scrolling down the page on this blog is enough to make me gain five pounds. Everything looks so delicious.

I'm participating today in Thursday Thirteen!

Today is Invent A New Sandwich Day. Which begs the question...

...is there a sandwich you enjoy which is uniquely of your own creation?

AND/OR...

What's your favorite sandwich?

I can't lay claim to creating a new sandwich variety. The sandwiches I make at home are pretty run-of-the-mill.

Oh, I might throw on some sweet peppers to make it interesting, or slap it on my George Foreman grill for an instant panini. I've been known to get creative about what I put in my tuna salad--I like pretty much everything but the kitchen sink in there, to the consternation of my daughter, who wants some Miracle Whip thrown in and nothing else.

However, I CAN tell you what my favorite sandwich is, currently, and has been for some time.

The Door County Melt.

The Door County Melt is from an amazing little restaurant we have here called Egg Harbor. (The name is misleading; there is oh so much more than eggs at this charming eatery.)

Here's a description of the sandwich, from the restaurant's own menu:

"Our famous all white- meat chicken salad blended with dried cranberries, toasted pecans and crisp diced apples grilled on multi-grain bread with Jack and Cheddar cheeses and ripe tomato."

To quote Ferris Bueller: "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up."

My husband Doug and son Justin at Egg Harbor recently

So, have you invented a sandwich? If not, do you have a favorite? Let me know in the comments!

So what's your favorite cereal?

What are the 5 top-selling cereals in America?

Here's the results of at least one survey:

1-General Mills Cheerios
2-Kellogg's Special K
3-Post Honey Bunches of Oats
4-Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
5-Kellogg's Frosted Mini Wheats



In an earlier Zogby survey, Kellogg's Raisin Brain was listed as the top choice.

But not for kids!

However, age was a significant factor in cereal preference. Among respondents under the age of 30, Cinnamon Toast Crunch outperformed every other cereal.

When my kids were growing up, I had to walk a fine line when it came to cereal purchases. If I got something really good--like the aforementioned Cinnamon Toast Crunch, or Peanut Butter Captain Crunch, or even Lucky Charms--well, I would be lucky to see those boxes of cereal survive until breakfast the next morning.



On the other hand, if I got something that was really good for them, like Cheerios or Raisin Bran,--or really cheap, like Corn Flakes--the boxes would go untouched for weeks.

So I had to get something that was good for them and tasted OK, but not so delicious that they felt that had to raid the box during distinctly NON-breakfast times of day.
Better to get something like Life or even Honey-Nut Cheerios. Something that tasted good, but not so good that it wouldn't stay around a while.

And OK, I admit it. I've been known to reach for a cereal box when it isn't breakfast time. And when you've eaten all the cereal in your bowl, and there's still a sizable amount of milk left, of COURSE you have to put more cereal in the bowl, right?



As for my favorite cereals, I think I'd have to say Grape-Nuts Flakes and Grape Nuts are at the top of the list, followed closely by various Chex cereals. And in cold weather, I do enjoy oatmeal.

So, what's YOUR favorite cereal? Or do you usually just bypass cereal altogether?

I'd love to know.

And I leave you with a chuckle..from College Humor.com, this from "If Boring Cereals Had Mascots":



Photo credits:

1st photo
2nd photo
3rd photo
4th photo
5th photo

The Magic Foods for Better Blood Sugar

via


OK, maybe with Thanksgiving just around the corner you might not be thinking about eating for good health. But...

I've blogged several times about a book that has really helped me in my battle to manage Type 2 diabetes: Reader's Digest's Magic Foods for Better Blood Sugar.

Just in case you don't want to plunk down money for this wonderful book, I thought I would share with you the list of Magic Foods.

Some of these--like Jerusalem artichokes (?!), I haven't tried yet. Others have become staples of my diet, and I do want to incorporate as many as possible into my eating.

So, for the inquiring minds that want to know? Here's the list (and who knows, you may be able to incorporate some of these into your Thanksgiving festivities!):

(By the way, there's no significance to the varying font sizes--I just did that to break up the visual monotony of the list.)

photo by Alain Chirkov via

apples
avocado
barley
beans
beef
berries

via


bran
broccoli
brown rice
Brussels sprouts
bulgur
cabbage
carrots
cauliflower
cheese
cherries
chicken and turkey
cinnamon

via

citrus fruits
coffee
eggplant
eggs
fenugreek
fish
flaxseed
garlic
Jerusalem artichokes
lamb
lemons
lentils
melons
milk
nuts
oats

via


olive oil
onions
pasta
peaches, apricots, plums
peanut butter
peas
pork
pumpernickel bread
rye bread
seeds
shellfish
sourdough bread
soy foods
spinach and other dark greens
sweet potatoes
tea
tomatoes
turmeric
vinegar

wheatberries
wheat germ
whole wheat bread and flour
yogurt