Filling the molds

So I adapted a recipe yesterday from Kimspired DIY‘s site where she did a low carb, keto version of Butterfinger fat bombs-and I made a couple of changes.

This easy, no-bake, sugar-free recipe will have your tastebuds tingling with delight! If you like chocolate, peanut butter, and pecans, you are in the right place!

I took her recipe and modified it to what I had on hand, as per usual. Where she called for chopped peanuts, I used pecans.

My dad has about 7 pecan trees so I have bags of unshelled pecans I’ve been trying to shell and use up. Plus, I needed a small recipe to make so I could check the status of my almond flour again.

Previously I did a post where a recipe I made failed, I wasn’t sure if it was the baking soda or the almond flour? Well, I discovered after tasting my creation yesterday-almond flour is fine!

Where she used Lily’s chocolate chips, I used Aldi’s dark chocolate chips-they are pretty low in carbs and sugar, so I didn’t think the tiny bit that’s on each fat bomb would matter much.

As long as you don’t go crazy and eat more than one at a time, I mean this is supposed to help curb your sweet cravings, not replace a meal! So mindful snacking, please!

Everything else about her recipe is the same, although I may not have measured accurately on the cream cheese, they turned out yummy just the same.

Here is the recipe the way I did it:

• 2 oz. cream cheese softened
• 1/4 C Low carb peanut butter-I used this
• 2 Tbsp. Pyure granulated (I didn’t have any keto confectioner’s sugar) sweetener
• 1/2 C almond flour-Baker’s Corner-(Aldi brand)
• 3 Tbsp. chopped pecans
• 1/4 C Baker’s Corner-(Aldi brand)
• 1 Tbsp. coconut oil-any brand as long as it’s unrefined (I use Tropical Plantation)
• silicone candy molds

A note about coconut oil. As long as you use unrefined, virgin, chemical-free (preferably cold-pressed) coconut oil, you can use any brand.

I use any brand of cream cheese as well. Most of the time, I get mine from Walmart, Aldi, or Win-co. Cream cheese is one of those “good fats” you can have on Keto.

Ok, the directions are so simple. Mix everything but your chocolate chips and coconut oil in a medium-size bowl, press the mixture into silicone candy mold leaving room for the chocolate layer. Set molds in the freezer while you melt the chocolate.

Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil and spoon on top of frozen mixture, then set back in the freezer for at least an hour. Pop them out and store back in the freezer for quick snacks.

Easy peasy, right?!!

Give them a try and tell me what you think about them. To me, they still taste closer to Reese’s than Butterfinger but hey, you’re eating keto candy so…that’s something!

Did you know that Brandless and also Thrive Causemetics are two companies that give back in some way, every time you make a purchase?

Let’s talk about Brandless first, I have ordered a box from them before as you know from this post.

Through their partnership with Feeding America, every order placed with Brandless provides a meal for people in need. That’s awesome!

Brandless has products that provide wellness, clean your house, products for your baby, pet supplies, and lots of other unexpected values and items. You pay less because there is no brand name, yet the products are high quality.

Every order also includes a free gift! When you share with others, you receive a discount as well!

They even started offering CBD products! I have not tried them yet, but I am curious. All the products were winners that came in my box, except for the maple glazed almonds…way too sweet for me.

It just makes me feel good to order from a company that gives something back, how about you? You also get free shipping on orders over $48 or more.

Next on my list is Thrive Causemetics. The name says it all. For every order you place with them, they donate a portion to several different causes like homelessness, domestic abuse victims, and women veterans.

All of their products are 100% vegan, cruelty-free, with no parabens, sulfates, phthalates, or fragrance.

Their cause was started by founder and CEO Karissa Bodnar who wants to make a big impact through the giving of the company’s products and earnings.

For her birthday the company made the biggest donation yet, $30,000,000 of products to charities benefitting women in need.

Their partners in giving include Ronald McDonald House Charities, Hope House, Jovenes, Lydia Place, 2Lives2Cure and more.

They have been featured in many magazines including People, Forbes, Refinery29, Fashionista, Insider Beauty, Marie Claire and more.

When you make a purchase, they give the same product or a monetary donation to women fighting cancer, women surviving domestic abuse, emerging from homelessness, and women veterans during and after military service.

My purchase of semi-permanent eye liner and Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara proved to me the quality of the products, I love them! The cool thing is knowing that my purchase not only helped me, but someone else in need!

The final company I want to mention is I Heart Dogs. Every purchase made through their site benefits dogs in shelters through an assortment of give-back programs. They feed shelter dogs, donate toys to shelters, pair companion dogs with veterans and so much more.

Check out their site, make a donation, or buy one of their awesome products and you will be helping not only dogs, but veterans and the shelters that care for so many dogs around the nation.

They offer products for pups as well as pup lovers! Toys, treats, supplements and more. T-shirts, jewelry, garden décor, home goods, and drinkware too!

They have been featured in Buzzfeed, Reader’s Digest, and HGTV! They are also partnered with GreaterGood.Org.

I sincerely hope you give these companies a try, let me know what you think, or if you’ve ever tried them before, leave a review! PS: I am not getting any kind of compensation for this post, just sharing the information.

Happy New Year’s Eve everyone! Maybe you can help me solve a mystery today. What’s the problem with these biscuits I made last night??

I was craving some bread after my hubby made this fabulous dinner of beef stroganoff and they were eating what I could not…cheesy garlic bread.

So, I scoured Pinterest for a low carb version and came up with these delicious sounding Cheddar Biscuits like Red Lobster makes-using almond flour of course!

I followed the given recipe, yet frowned when it called for 1 Tablespoon of baking powder. Maybe I should have trusted my instincts, they turned out beautiful-but bitter!

I was so disappointed!! You don’t know how badly I wanted that bread and how so looking forward to something delicious I had been. I almost cried. Now I have to pitch the whole lot.

That’s a waste of expensive ingredients, I know us cooks have failed experiments and that’s just part of the process but…ouch! Whether you grind your own or buy a bag, almond flour is pricey!

Now, I guess it’s possible that the almond flour was bad, yet it had been in the refrigerator, not even opened yet. It was an off brand that I got from Aldi, but fresh.

Normally I buy the brand in the link above, yet this time I replaced what I’d used once before with the same thing. I don’t think it was the culprit though.

I’ve included pictures of the recipe and my final product. You tell me…what went wrong?? They were so pretty too. 🙁

All the ingredients I used were new and fresh except the baking powder. Not sure if it’s old, or if the quantity was just too much, just want to understand why they were bitter!

I know I have been away for a while, I’m considering scrapping my whole site since I have not had the time lately to post. The internet is saturated with keto blogs now anyway.

I’m about to be unemployed again (even though I was only working part-time, I still need the money), so I need to get serious about my goals and really try to earn a living through my writing.

Should I keep it? Change it again? Write about something entirely new? I’m open to suggestions here, I know, I do this every year don’t I? What can I say, New Year, new aspirations.

I got a new journal for Christmas, a prayer journal, and my hubby is remodeling the office and buying me a new desk for my Christmas present!

I had him paint it cream and lavender-it’s going to be lovely when he is done and hopefully, inspiring!!

Well, I hope you can help me solve the mystery! I also want to wish you all a Happy New Year whatever your plans, stay alive, don’t drink and drive PLEASE!!!

Love you all, goodbye 2019 and good riddance! JK, I guess it wasn’t ALL bad.

I have found an easy Autumn Keto dessert that would be perfect any time of day. I even eat it for breakfast some mornings!

It only has 2.8g of carbs, boasts 11g of fat, tastes creamy, delicious, and satisfies that pumpkin craving you surely have at this time of the year.

What is it? It’s called Mini Keto Pumpkin Cheesecakes and I adapted it from a recipe on Pinterest by Kasey Trenum’s blog.

It’s a very easy recipe made with cream cheese, canned pumpkin, egg, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, and Swerve sweetener.

I love that my silicone muffin liners make these so easy to pop right out after refrigeration, then I just top them with sugar-free whipped cream!

I halved the recipe which makes 6 tiny cheesecakes, plenty for sharing or hogging all to myself, lol.

If you don’t have whipped cream or don’t want to take the time to make any, Vanilla Bean Halo Top works pretty well too!

The fat content keeps you satisfied all morning or evening, whenever you decide to partake! This would also be a great filling for an almond flour crust.

The first time I tried this recipe, I hand mixed the ingredients. It was still delicious but not as creamy as the 2nd time when I whipped them. Y’all!!

16 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup Swerve sweetener

2eggs

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1T pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp vanilla

Now remember, I halved this recipe. The next step is to whip all the ingredients and pour into silicone lined muffin tins. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Refrigerate after cooling. Pop one out and top with your choice of low-carb topping and enjoy! 😋

https://medium.com/@kimsmyth/autumn-is-the-perfect-time-for-soup-e154d7377b21

Click on the above link for a tasty version of a keto fat bomb soup-originally published on Medium

What a difference my second attempt at Keto Bagels using Fathead dough was since I used Almond flour, which I didn’t have the first time!

I actually found a cheaper brand of almond flour at Aldi! A 1lb bag from Baker’s Corner, 6 carbs (per 1/4 cup), gluten free, cost $6.99!

On my first attempt seen here, I used flax and egg to sub for the absence of almond flour. I kept the rest of the recipe the same, yet they came out tiny but still tasty.

This time, I measured everything carefully, used almond flour, egg, cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, baking powder and followed the directions to the letter.

BOOM! These bagels came out of the oven beautifully browned, large, dense, almost like ciabatta instead of a bagel. The cheese also lends a sourdough like flavor.

If you are following a Keto diet (or lifestyle like me) and you’ve been missing bread, these bagels are just the ticket! I only eat a half at a time and I’m totally full.

Today I paired an egg cup with half a bagel, slathered in grass-fed butter and some sugar-free strawberry preserves I made on Monday. YUM!!

This time I used the recipe from Fit Mom Journey and maybe that made a difference too. Now, I don’t know if the macros are for a whole or half bagel but they are this:

292 calories, 25g of fat, 4.5 net carbs, 14 g of protein.

Let me know if you have given these a try or even would! Do you indulge in bread once in a while as long as you make it yourself?

I have other go-to breads as well, like 90 second Keto bread and more. Check out my Pinterest page for other great ideas!

This morning I watched a very important film called The Need to Grow and immediately went on a crusade to share it with the world.

It hit me so profoundly that I want to help in whatever small way that I can, so for me being a blogger, writer, and freelancer, my way is sharing the news.

Why should you care?

Do you know where your food comes from? Do you care whether the food you eat is poisoned or at least tainted by GMOs and pesticides? What about your kids and theirs?

Do you realize that if we keep going the way we are, we will run out of healthy soil and will not be able to farm at all???

I blogged about this over on my other blog Words on a Page and then I shared that blog on all of my social media channels (except Instagram) (only because I don’t know how yet)

I’m going to share it here too, just in case you don’t want to go visit my other blog-here is the link:

https://grow.foodrevolution.org/?orid=730769&opid=314&inf_contact_key=4ca7370c9436c36cdb7a422d3ad473fdd18a532c4142cb79caf2b269de1401fa

I have a head start at least if I plan to make some changes at home. I recycle. I grow indoor herbs and vegetables that can be moved outside for a starter garden.

I can make a vow here and now that you can help me be accountable for, I will try.

I have pets and other challenges, but if I can do a vertical garden, that will work well! Plus, my husband won’t have to mow around my garden.

Or, maybe I tell him my plan and he even HELPS me grow a garden. I mean, he has recently jumped on the “get healthy” bandwagon too!

He eats better, exercises almost every day, works out with weights, he has dropped from 206 to 177 in just three months!! I hate him (just kidding) but I AM jelly!!

Together, we can do our part to help change the planet by changing our thinking. Industrial farming is killing us. Monsanto knows this, yet they don’t stop their way of farming.

This film is the answer to the problem in the movie Idiocracy-unfortunately, it’s all coming true!! Go watch it again if you don’t believe me!

We can also start supporting our local farmer’s markets, stop shopping at Walmart for our produce, although that will be a challenge for me. I’d rather grow my own than convince the hubs to stop going to Walmart. 😉

Please take just one hour out of your day to watch this ground-breaking film, everyone has to eat, so everyone should be part of the solution.

Let me know your thoughts and ideas after you watch it please!!

Do you know what’s in your essential oil? Or where it comes from for that matter?

These are just two of the questions posed by a recent study done by Consumer Advocates, a national organization who strive to educate consumers on their rights.

Recently a spokesperson (Sam Klau) for the organization reached out to me to inform me of a new study they conducted on the safety, sourcing, and consumer education when it comes to a company’s commitment to transparency.

I have always been one to research a company before I use their product (especially essential oils) but not all consumers do.

It’s extremely important to know the quality, purity, and even the business practices of the company who’s oils you are consuming/using/buying.

Mr Klau had some nice things to say about my blog, particularly this post.

He would like me to share the report he shared with me with all of you, and I agreed. It’s a lengthy, yet informative report that any consumer who loves their essential oils should read.

After going over the report again, I found no reason why I should not share the company’s findings with all of you, they only want to educate and protect us consumers.

Here is what went into this report:

• 600+ hours of research
• 42 different sources were used
• 11 companies were vetted
• 21 features reviewed options
• 11 top pics

You might be surprised to see one of your favorites on the list, I know I was! Not naming any names, but one of the companies I have purchased from in the past showed up in the report as having one of their oils adulterated. (peppermint)

This was a shock to me, since as I said, I do my research on a company before I buy from them. Sometimes things get overlooked though. Like checking the testing reports.

I learned something else to: Therapeutic grade is a made up term. What?? Did you know that? That’s just one of the reasons I feel you need to check out this report.

It answers questions like: Do they practice safety? Do they all perform quality testing? Do they practice sustainable sourcing?

When a company tells me their oil is 100% pure, organic, quality essential oil, I need to be able to trust that. Some oils I don’t just diffuse, or use topically. This is extremely important!

Some oils are meant for aromatherapy only, I understand that. It should clearly state that on the label and the website. I used to think if an oil was therapeutic grade, that was the gold standard for safety and that meant ok for ingestion.

Of course, I told my doctors how I’d been using certain oils, like lemon and frankincense, yet not all doctors are trained in all things essential oils. Of course they were agreeable.

Another factor I’ve always considered is cost. If an E.O. is cheap, it’s not to be trusted for anything other than aromatherapy. Not always, and vice versa.

One more surprise in the report was that one of the major players in the essential oils game threatened to sue!! That gives one pause for sure!

Do me a favor. Read the report and let me know what you think. I would especially like to invite my friend Roxy to check it out, it’s brand new, you have not seen this yet!

Check the consumer report out here.