Sharing Recipes--Carrot Muffins

These muffins are an excellent source of Vitamin A and a good source of dietary fibre.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup natural wheat bran
1/2 cup oat bran
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter (or margarine)
1 1/2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup raisins

Procedure

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
  

• Combine flour, wheat and oat brans, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl.

• Blend in sugar until no lumps remain.

• In a separate bowl, beat together egg, milk and butter. Stir in carrots.

• Combine with dry ingredients.

• Add raisins. Stir until just moistened.

• Spoon into greased muffin tins.

• Bake for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Makes 8-10 muffins.

Dieting on a Budget

When reading labels, it is important to be aware of what each label really means. This is especially true for dieters looking for reduced calories and fat.

Calorie Reduced: This food has at least 25% less calories than the regular version.

Low Calorie: There are no more than 15 calories per serving.

Low Fat: There are no more than 3 grams of fat per serving. This does not always mean low calories.

Reduced Fat: This food has at least 25% less fat than the regular version.

Low Cholesterol: There are no more than 2 mg of cholesterol per serving. This food might still have a high total fat content.

Low in saturated fat: This food has 2 grams or less of saturated and trans fats combined per serving.

Sugar Free: This food is low in carbohydrates and calories.

Unsweetened or No Sugar Added: No sugar was added, but sugar may be found naturally in the food.

Source of fibre: There are 2 grams or more of fibre per serving.

Sodium free: There are less than 5 mg of sodium per serving.

Source: Health Canada

Keeping Your Idenity

When identity thieves go through the garbage of potential victims, the only tools they need are a pair of gloves and a flashlight. They wait until it is dark and then start looking for any documents that have not been shredded.

It is important to destroy (tear or shred) all personal information before discarding it. What you throw away can come back to haunt you.

Identity thieves are looking for...

Credit card receipts: Many businesses no longer print the entire credit card number on receipts, but some still do. Check your receipt very carefully. Do not leave it behind if it lists your credit card number.

Financial statements: Any statements that contain your account number and SIN must be shredded.

Preapproved credit card applications: An identity thief can retrieve these applications from your trash, send it in with the address changed, and received the new cards in your name, based on your credit. After receiving your card, he charges items to its maximum and then tosses the card. You are left with the bill.

Cut Clutter

According to Brooks Palmer, author of Clutter Busting, you can't organize until you toss the clutter. Here are some of his tips:

• Toss out anything that is broken, that can't be fixed, or that you won't take to be fixed. According to Palmer, broken things cause disorder in the home. They spread, like a crack in the windshield of a car that eventually spreads across the entire windshield.

• Limit your CDs or MP3 albums to fewer than a hundred. Keep only the music that you will actually listen to now.

• Toss anything that makes you feel that the past is more special than right now. That gives you the feeling that life will never be as good as it once was. I like the following statement: The past is as insignificant as old dishwater.

• If you find yourself defending the object because of how much it cost you, it's clutter.

• If it doesn't fit anymore, physically or psychologically, let it go.
  

Getting Pretty Healthy

In their book, Live a Little: Breaking the Rules Won't Break Your Health, Dr. Susan Love and Alice Domar take on the health police and provide women with more realistic wellness goals. The authors discuss many of the prescribed health "rules" that have very little scientific backing.

I found it refreshing to learn that Dr. Susan Love did not start a fitness program until age 50. She has no regrets regarding this late start; she spent her younger days doing research, working with breast cancer patients, writing books, and raising a family.

Dr. Love designed the following quiz to assess a woman's fitness level:

1. Are you able to walk for one mile in twenty minutes or less?
2. Can you jog a mile without stopping?
3. Can you stand on one foot and maintain your balance for thirty seconds?
4. Sit in a chair. Can you stand up without using your arms?
5. Can you lift and carry two grocery bags--one in each hand?

Anyone who is able to answer yes to every question demonstrates basic levels of cardiovascular fitness, strength, and balance. YOU ARE PRETTY HEALTHY!!

On a personal note...

I was able to answer yes to four of the above questions. I need to work on #2.