Tag Archives: giveaway

Cookbook (giveaway closed): Designed for One! (Diabetes-friendly)

(TO ENTER GIVEAWAY, JUST LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS POST BY 9am Central, Thursday 12/21)

Giveaway closed: winner announced–commenter #2–congratulations Tammy!

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All images and recipes in this post: ©2017 by the American Diabetes Association. Designed for One is available at ShopDiabetes.org, in bookstores nationwide, or by calling 1-800-232-6733. Food Photography: Mittera

Hiya hello, all y’all. I recently agreed to take a look at a newly-released cookbook called Designed for One! – 120 Diabetes-Friendly Dishes Just for You.

You may be asking, now why in the heck would you be interested in cooking for one? Last I recall you were popping babbies out right and left?

(that’s right–babbies)

Well. See, every now and then, on the rare occasion when I’m alone, cooking can be zen. Therapeutic-ky. Especially when it involves simple salads (which my kids are not capable of eating and/or will not eat) or avocado toast (does that count as cooking?). Anyway, I like the idea of being indulgent in that way–towards myself. Cooking a meal just to please me? Wow. Yes. (Now I just have to arrange to be alone for a night. Hmm. Maybe next decade.)

You also may be thinking, but you don’t have diabetes!

Maybe not. However, it’s clear that you don’t have to have diabetes to like the sound of Sweet Hot Chicken Thighs. Or the Chunky Mango Gelato from the healthier desserts section. Or the Knife-and-Fork Turkey-Corn Tortillas (just click for the printable recipe).

Tortillas

Here’s the deal (i.e. my unfettered opinion) on the cookbook:

+ There are mushrooms on the cover. Okay, I’ll admit this was a huge part of the initial draw for me. I LOVE MUSHROOMS. They’re a fungus, so yay! I know, that sentence makes no sense. But that sentence does segue us into one of the coolest things I learned from this cookbook, which is why my mushrooms get slimy. Apparently I shouldn’t store them in plastic! Huh. The writer recommends paper bags. Noted! (And thank you. I hate slimy mushrooms. They’re a real downer.)

+ Each recipe includes complete nutritional information (calories, calories from fat, cholesterol, sodium, etc.). Like, I’ve never seen so much nutritional information together on one recipe. So way to go, author Nancy Hughes, for doing a hella-lotta math. (Like that? ‘Hella-lotta’? Yeah, me too.)

– There aren’t a lot of pictures in the cookbook itself, so if you’re a super visual person, this may not be for you. But the pictures it does include are lovely!

– / + There aren’t long stories to go with each recipe. For someone like my husband who views recipes as a functional part of his life, this is perfect. For someone like me (used to reading the personal musings of Nigella Lawson who accompanies every recipe with a lavish paragraph or three), well, I could’ve used some more musings from the author about why they named their third dog Willison and why the game Parcheesi is called Parcheesi.

+ / – The recipes themselves are quite simple. I’m imagining that would make this book good for a novice cook or someone who simply doesn’t like to cook so much but feels they need to do it for budgetary or health reasons. This would not be the right book for your accomplished chef friend who trained in Italy and interned at El Bulli.

In conclusion: I would describe this cookbook as functional, not lavish.

I am personally drawn to this recipe for Slow-Cooker Chuck and Veggies (click for the printable recipe).

Chuck

Very drawn.

Very, very drawn.

Probably because of the mushrooms. Again.

Anyway, if you think you might like this cookbook or you have a friend you might want to gift it to, guess what? I’m giving one away! WHOOOPDEEDOOOO! Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve done a giveaway on this blog?

(don’t answer that question)

So! Leave a comment below. On Thursday December 21st, after 9am Central, I’ll use the random number generator to pick a comment, and whoever left it gets the cookbook shipped to them for free, badabing badaboom.

Please feel free to share this post with any friend you think might need this cookbook in their lives. And of course, you can always purchase it for yourselves or said friend on the Provider-Of-All-Things Online Emporium that is Amazon.com.

Good luck and I’ll announce the winner on Thursday!



GIVEAWAY–Red Gold tomato kit (winner announced)

Hello my lovelies! Happy Monday morning. I just hopped on the Random Number Generator. There are 25 distinct comments (not counting my replies, or duplicate commenters) and . . . Random number generator The winner is lucky #13, Phyllis Slavens! (my “kindred spirit in the squiggly line, heh heh). Congratulations Phyllis, and I’ll shoot you an email in a few to connect you to the Red Gold people sending your kit.

Thanks to everyone for commenting and participating! You guys are the bomb-diggity. You all got tomato kits in my heart. =)

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Hey guys! Red Gold sent me a lovely little kit with various flavors of diced and crushed tomatoes, a bright red apron and a wooden spoon (a nice wooden spoon too–thick and smooth and ready to stir some large pot of stew or something). They’re doing some promotions like crockpot giveaways (for 3 weeks starting Sept 17th) that sound pretty cool. So when they kindly offered to send the same kit to one of my readers, I was like, why not? Especially since they’re Indiana-based, and grow their tomatoes in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan. Go Midwest, go! (yes, we love the Midwest) Plus, everyone can use a can of diced tomatoes. If you need ideas, let me suggest this Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup, which I’m slated to make later on today (and I’m using one of my free cans of tomatoes from Red Gold). DSC_0097 Or this amazing, flavorful Pollo Alla Cacciatora. Mmmmm. It’s a great meal for freezing the leftovers, fyi. DSC_0074 Or one of my all-time favorite recipes, this Indian-style Chicen Curry. DSC_0181 This recipe will use up those crushed tomatoes for a good cause: your palate. Now I’m hungry. Anyway, if you’d like to receive the free Red Gold kit (and are located in the U.S.), just leave a comment below! You can say anything–like your favorite thing to make with tomatoes if you’d like to be theme-appropriate. Or a superhero sound like KAPOW. Or you can be a rebel and leave a single character, like + or =. Or, my favorite, the squiggly line: ~ (and does anyone know what that squiggly line is, and what function it serves?) I’ll draw a random number on Monday September 22nd and let you know who the lucky guy or gal is. I’ll contact the winner by email and Red Gold will send your treat in the mail. Good luck!