Used Items That Sell on Ebay - Part 1

Used Items That Sell on Ebay - Part 1 Did you know some "used items" sell better than "brand new items" on ebay? Well if you know what is hot, you could make a fortune. Now is the time to clean out that attic, basement, or garage. Maybe you could start going to yard and garage sales. Flea markets are another great place to find valuable used items that will sell well on ebay. Just about any used item sells on ebay. The trick about used items is; you have to know what sells the best. There are a select few of used items that are better than collector's items. People may be restoring that classic car or house. They may be looking on ebay for some rare items that will bring some character to their classic or antique collection. Just about any used items that are not made anymore, have a collector not far behind looking for it. Collectors are the main buyers of the unique used items I will tell you about in the next few days. That's why you can get so much money for each item.

First on the list is used "FM CONVERTERS". These sell for big money, depending on the model. Car collector's everywhere look for FM Converters. Lots of antique and classic cars only had am radios. Car collectors usually want to keep everything stock. With an FM converter they can still have a stock radio. If someone is looking for an FM Converter, they will pay on average .00-0.00 each. If you have a mint condition item, look to be payed more than 0.00 for your old FM converter you don't use anymore. You can still find these everywhere. The best part is, most people that have these, don't know what they are worth and usually don't care. They just want to get rid of them. Used "Metal Detectors" sell really well. Garret, Whites, and military detectors sell for the best money. You can find these for under .00 in most cases. Used metal detectors sell on ebay for 0.00- 00.00 each. Depending on the model, how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used "Reel to Reel Tape Players"sell well also. These are usually pieces of junk unless you are a reel to reel collector. You can find them everywhere really cheap. But on ebay, a vintage reel to reel tape player that works will sell for 0.00- 00.00. Depending on the model, how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used "Singer Sewing Machines" have a really good resale value. You can usually find a good singer at a .00 bargain. On ebay you could resell it for .00-0.00. Depending on the model, how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used "35mm SLR Cameras"sell great! Especially if you have the owners manual. These cameras are practically thrown away now, since technology hunters don't want used goods. The professionals and camera collectors swarm to these 35mm cameras though. They resell on ebay for 0.00-00.00 each. Depending on what accessories and extras it comes with. Condition doesn't seem to be important. I even see broken 35mm cameras being resold for big money. Used "Betty Crocker and Weight Watchers Books". These books bring in big turn around money. You can pick these up for under .00 and resell them on ebay for .00- 0.00 each. Depending on how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used vintage "Sears Wishbook Catalogs". Yes these catalogs are worth big money if you still have one. I see them at yardsales all the time for a dollar or two. They resell on ebay for .00 -0.00 each. Depending on how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used "Cake Decorating Books". Anything to do with cake decorating will sell really well on ebay. They resell on ebay for .00-0.00. Depending on the how old it is, and what condition it's in. Cake decorating wedding and yearbooks seem to sell the best. Used "Owner and Dealer Service Manuals for Cars". Most people that buy a used car don't get an owners manual. So they are very valuable to them. Also the collectors like to pay big money for the dealers service manuals. Be on the look out for these all the time. They always sell. They resell on ebay for .00-0.00 each. Depending on the model, how old it is, and what condition it's in. Used Items That Sell on Ebay - Part 1

Fresh Ideas for Outdoor Christmas Decorations

Fresh Ideas for Outdoor Christmas Decorations People often go for tours to other places to spend their Christmas vacation. The main theorize their tour is sometimes to see the extravagantly decorated houses and shops of population while this season. The embellishment includes sparkling lights, illuminated in green, colored lawns and Santa Claus, attractive train sets, and last but not the least, a gorgeous Christmas tree, either real or artificial.

The embellishment of a normal lawn in winter can turn it into a wonderland which may have in it a jolly snowman or the sight of a reindeer that merrily runs on the freshly fallen snow. A well decorated Christmas tree brings joy and happiness to population and the surroundings as well. Also, a beautifully organized house, both indoors and outdoors, is a great environment in which to spend the Christmas season, and to leave an impression on friends and family as well as yourself. So what can you do to make your Christmas decor better? Given below are few suggestions to help you out in your Christmas plans of outdoor decoration, thus manufacture the normal surroundings appear attractive and full of life, all geared up for a celebration of the family. Decorations for outdoors at Christmas are available in discrete sizes, styles and types, with or without lights. Once you speculation out to shop for these, you will find that there is a huge range of styles to make a choice from. But make sure that the embellishment is not overdone, which will make it look quite tacky. So the prominent thing is to get a permissible balance of decorations which gives out the feeling of the spirit of the festive season ahead. The actual challenge lies in the choice of permissible ornaments outdoor which would gel well with the neighborhood and surroundings. Most coarse and attractive outdoor decorations are the ones having animation like a scene of Christmas where St. Nicholas waves to population on a cart drawn by reindeer on the snow. Some other decorations in the shop contain a snowman that is ever-smiling, and there are all the time lots of pre-lit Santas to pick from. Also beloved are holographic decorations for the lawn, such as like Snoopy or the Charlie Brown, Snowman, Holly or a Bell, Santa Claus, or a 3-dimensional Christmas tree located in your lawn. The surface of the house can be made to look alive and attractive with permissible decoration, but if you are going for an elegant but an attractive look, here are some suggestions you will need to follow: Stick to one theme, and do not try to mix discrete themes. This will help in giving an attractive look to the surface of your house. So a flashy kind of embellishment should not be combined with something light. Then, if you pick a nativity scene, opt for conventional characters to make it look simple and lovable. If you go for a modern theme, get hold of the latest decors available in the shop to sell out the chances of clashing with neighbors' choices. A greeting message at your front gate or door is all the time a warm Christmas welcome. Fresh Ideas for Outdoor Christmas Decorations

favorite Christmas Songs for Kids

favorite Christmas Songs for Kids What do kids love most about Christmas? The gifts, of course! When Santa and the elves dream big, children explode with delight. But the holiday season is about more than gift giving, and kids celebrate Christmas in a range of ways. Chief among them are Christmas carols. There's no best way for kids to spread a dinky Yuletide cheer than singing "Joy to the World" at the top of their lungs. Thankfully for those of us who see the magic of the Yuletide season most clearly straight through the eyes of children, there are plentifulness of great kids carols to go around. Here, we'd like to gift you with the 10 kids Christmas songs we think are the best of the best, in no single order:

Joy to the World - Okay, we have to start with this one because we've already made a fuss over it. This song reminds us what Christmas is all about. Frosty the Snowman - What kid doesn't love to sing this song? There's no beating a white Christmas, and construction a snowman with mom and dad is as fun as it gets. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Without request the most beloved and endearing children's Christmas carol of all-time. Jingle Bells - "Dashing straight through the snow ..." Can you halt the next line? Of procedure you can, all the way to the chorus! And your kids can, too. This song is as catchy as they come. Here Comes Santa Claus - This song is filled with expectation and promise. Kids go to bed on Christmas Eve with its words in their heads ... "'cause Santa Claus comes tonight!" Here We Come A-Caroling - Festive and upbeat, this is de facto the quintessential caroling song. It even wishes a happy new year. What more could you want? Up on the Housetop - another song about Santa. Could the photo get any clearer? Santa's impending coming is right on worth singing about! The 12 Days of Christmas - idea we might forget this one, didn't you? Not a chance. Winter Wonderland - Christmas is magical no matter the weather. But let's face it, waking up to a Winter Wonderland on the big day de facto helps set the mood! O Christmas Tree - over America, elementary schools often celebrate the season before the holiday break with caroling or choirs. This song is on the set list approximately without fail. It pays homage to the very tree we meticulously decorate each December, the tree under which Santa leaves gifts for the kids who have been good. The Christmas Tree is an integral part of our tradition. How can we not sing about it? So there you have it, the 10 best kids Christmas songs ever written. How'd we do? We're sure we left off a few, but there are just too many great songs not to. favorite Christmas Songs for Kids

College Care Packages - A Prized Present From Home!

College Care Packages - A Prized Present From Home! With your college students are now comfortably settled in their dorms or off campus housing, you can breathe a sigh of relief. The move-in trauma of what to buy and what to bring is now a distant memory. As you sit back and enjoy the quiet, surely you will miss the fun and laughter that comes with kids in the house. On the other hand, while they may not be quick to admit it, your student will be missing home cooked meals, the privacy of their own room and yes, even Mom and Dad! So when you have a few spare hours, use them to send some fun and laughter to your college student. There is no better way to do this than a home-made Care Package. Care Packages are one of the most prized possessions on campus.

There are many websites that offer "pre-packaged" care boxes for college students. While easy to order, these can be very expensive. They also tend to be very generic in nature with items like cookies, popcorn, candy or coffee. As a mom of four, all past and present college students, I can tell you from experience that a "home made" care package will be the biggest hit. So what do you put into this creative concoction? First of all, start with a theme. Are they planning a winter or spring break trip? Is there a funny story they related about something that recently happened to them at school? Are they homesick? Are they complaining about the college food? Are they stressed out with studies? Any of these make a perfect starting point for a great college care package. One of the all time favorite care packages went to my son out at University of Michigan. He and his 13 roommates pooled their funds for a Big Screen television for their off campus house. It lasted about 10 days. Someone left the door unlocked and sure enough.. it was halfway to Detroit by the time they noticed it gone. Their quest and ultimate success at replacing their Big Screen became a "Big Screen Party In A Box" care package. In went movies, homemade t-shirts with a picture of their house and a tag line "Home of the Big Men with the Big Screen". Yes, sounds corny and a bit hokey, but this crew loved them! In addition, I baked cookies. Home-made cookies may be the nicest thing you can put into any care package. They are truly appreciated. If you want to make from scratch, that is great but I have found the best shortcut. Betty Crocker cookie mix in a pouch. You add butter, an egg, mix and bake for 18 minutes. There are all kinds of varieties available including chocolate chip, sugar, peanut butter and oatmeal. I would offer two pieces of advice: bake on parchment paper and once cooled individually wrap cookie. Then put them in a disposable plastic container and mail. Compare mailing costs. I usually use Federal Express Ground or the single rate boxes from the post office. So get ready and plan a care package to your college kid. They will appreciate and enjoy it. Carol shares some other fun and funny college care packages ideas that her own four enjoyed at Celebration Ideas Online College Care Packages - A Prized Present From Home!

Rock Cakes Recipe

Rock Cakes Recipe Rock cakes are very comparable to drop cakes. This type of cake is very easy to do. Imagine baking cookies, using two spoons to drop the soft dough into the prepared tray. Press the dough with a wet fork, if it is a little too stiff. Leave spaces in between the dough.

Rock cakes are famous because of its chunky and fruity buns. A lot of kids and grown - ups love its wonderful texture and sweet taste. Below is a simple recipe in making a rock cake. Ingredients: • 200 grams of Sultanas or raisins • 100 grams of margarine • 75 grams moist brown sugar • 200 grams of self raising flour • 1 egg • 1 teaspoon of mixed spice (optional Equipments: Oven Mixing bowl Knife for mixing Scales (optional) Baking Sheet Greaseproof paper Instructions: 1. Turn on the oven until it warms to 200 degrees Celsius 2. Mix 100 grams of margarine and the 200 grams of flour in a mixing bowl. Mix them until they look like bread crumbs. 3. Mix the other ingredients (200 grams of sultanas or raisins, 75 grams of moist sugar and egg.) 4. Prepare the baking tray with grease - proof paper. 5. Carefully arrange the dough balls (4 centimeters in diameter) on a tray. 6. Bake it for 15 to 25 minutes. 7. To check if it is cooked, insert a toothpick. The inside should be dry and the inside should not appear raw. 8. Allow it to cool until it hardens. Tips: • The original recipe of rock cake are used just a half as much of fruit as today. • Sultanas are usually cheaper than raisins. • Using cheap white sugar will make the cake less tasty. • When making dough balls, if the mixture is too dry, you can moisten the mixture with use of milk. • It can be topped with the used of glace cherry and coarse-grain sugar. • For some people, using hands is better than electric machines because machine mixer will throw the dry mixture rather than mixing it together. • Using electric blender is also good for mixing. You can also enhance the look of your cake by using cake decorating kits. Adding birthday cake decorations such as flowers, colored candies, chocolate sprinkles, grind-ed coconut and other edible cake decorating stuff will definitely make your cake attractive. Rock Cakes Recipe

Christmas Cookies Recipes - Chocolate Snowball Cookies

Christmas Cookies Recipes - Chocolate Snowball Cookies These delicious cookies feature chocolate chips and nuts.

3/4 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup sugar 1 egg 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup chopped nuts 1 cup chocolate chips Confectioners' sugar Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla; mix well. In an additional one bowl, consolidate the flour and salt; stir into creamed mixture. Fold in the nuts and chips. Roll into 1-inch balls. Place onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool slightly, then roll in confectioners' sugar. Makes 48 cookies. => Christmas Cookies Recipes: Cranberry Crispy Cookies Using quick bread mix makes these cookies a cinch to prepare. 1 (15.6 oz.) pkg. Cranberry quick bread mix 1/2 cup butter, melted 1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped 1 egg 1/2 cup dried cranberries Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, consolidate the bread mix, butter, walnuts and egg; mix well. Stir in the cranberries. Roll into 1 1/4-inch balls. Place cookies 3-inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten with a glass dipped in sugar. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Let cool. Makes 30 cookies. => Christmas Cookies Recipes: Frosted Ginger Cream Cookies An old-fashioned style cookie topped with creamy frosting. 1/4 cup shortening 1/2 cup sugar 1 egg 1/3 cup molasses 2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1/3 cup water Cookie Frosting Directions Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray. In a large bowl, cream together shortening and sugar. Beat in the egg and molasses. In an additional one bowl, consolidate the flour, ginger, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cloves; slowly add to creamed mixture, alternating with water (dough will be soft). Drop heaping teaspoonfuls 2-inches apart onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes or until tops are cracked. Let cool. Frost with Cookie Frosting. Cookie Frosting 1 1/2 ounces of cream cheese, softened 3 tablespoons butter, softened 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice Directions In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and enough lemon juice to create a spreadable consistency. Frost cookies. Makes 48 cookies. Christmas Cookies Recipes - Chocolate Snowball Cookies

Tasty Halloween Crafts Using Stencils For Cookie Decorating

Tasty Halloween Crafts Using Stencils For Cookie Decorating Here's a Halloween Crafts project that's not only fun, it's good to eat. You see, as a stencil designer, I'm always searching for new and creative ways to use stencils. And as a person who loves to eat (especially sweets), it just seemed natural to find a way to use stencils with food, right? So I drew up some scary Halloween stencils (a witch, a ghost, a cat, a bat, a skull and a spider) and went to work trying to figure out how to get the images onto a cookie.

Well, I told you how much I love food but now I have to admit that I'm no Betty Crocker. I can't tell you how many different ways I tried to transfer a perfect image from a stencil onto a cookie. I bet my husband and me each gained 20 pounds eating all the disasters. Not to mention all the money I spent at the grocery store and the local craft supply house. All of this only to find out that the easiest, least expensive and most obvious way was the best method of all. So, here it is - that is, how to decorate Halloween cookies with stencils. Oh yeah! Don't miss out on the hints and tips I've added at the bottom for some great creative ideas. Well, first you need to find a few stencil designs that will fit on cookies. There are many printable Halloween stencils on the internet. It's best to locate a stencil that is a single overlay design (that means it's finished with just one sheet or layer). You'll find a couple of designers have stencils made for cookies so they are the right size and proportion. Once you found the stencils that appeal to you all you have to do is print them out. If they are not the right size to fit on a cookie just resize them on copy machine and follow these next steps. Trace the stencils onto a sheet of stencil film such as acetate or mylar. Make sure the images have approximately 2 inches between them. Use a scissors to cut the traced drawings separate of each other with 1 inch of blank space surrounding them. Use a craft-knife to cut out the objects of each stencil. You have several options for craft-knives. I prefer to use an X-ACTO with a Fine Point Blade pictured here. Make sure your blade is sharp at all times or you won't get a good clean cut. I find it's easier to rotate the stencil so that you are always cutting with your wrist at a comfortable angle. Since you are working with food, wash your stencils really well and dry thoroughly. Bake cookies with your favorite recipe. Since I already admitted that I'm not a baker, I'll let you know that I used the boxed up ready to go version where you just need to add an egg. But if you are a skilled chef, go ahead and make your goodies from scratch. Sugar cookies work best because they have the smoothest surface after baking. A cookie with too much texture is not going to produce a good stenciled image. I like to slightly flatten the tops of the cookies right after they come out of the oven with a spatula. If the stencil can lay flat on the cookie you'll get a much better image than if it has to roll over rounded edges. Let the cookies cool. Prepare your "paint" by adding water to powdered sugar. You want to get a thick consistency that is very smooth. It doesn't take very much water. The mixture should not drip easily off the end of a spoon. Make colors by adding food coloring. For black, mix red, blue and green in equal number of drops. Place the stencil on top of the cookie. Use a finger to dab the sugar mixture into the stencil openings. Just like with a regular stencil, use a dabbing or up and down motion to dot the surface with color and not a rubbing back and forth which will encourage color seeping under the stencil edges. In stenciling, you always want to use a little paint so that it does not seep under the stencil. No difference here. The best tool is an index finger to lightly dab the confectioners' sugar and water mixture over the stencil opening. Make sure your finger is not dripping with the "paint." Carefully remove the stencil by pulling directly up. You don't want to drag the stencil over the wet color mixture which will smear the color. It might take a little practice but remember you get to eat the mistakes. Here are those hints and tips that I promised you: You may want to make a different size cookie than the normal 2-1/2 or 3 inch circle. No problem! Just take the paper copy and reduce or enlarge the size to fit the area you want to place the picture. Then move on to the tracing. This is great if you want to make a large cookie cake too! When you are cutting out the images for the stencils, don't throw away the parts that you cut away. They can be used to make negative images on the cookies. Of course, it's a bit trickey to remove the stencil piece after you have put the color all around it but with a little practice you can have this down to an art. And just think of the creative cookies you can come up with these new options. If you use a recipe for a highly textured cookie, like oatmeal or chocolate chip, you can put a base layer of powdered sugar and water to create a very smooth area and then stencil your image on that. Actually that can just add to how creative you can be with decorating cookies with stencils. For example, you can put a background of a black circle on top of the cookie behind a white ghost. Make sure that the first layer of color has dried thoroughly before adding your image. If you can't find mylar or acetate at your local craft supply store, try transparency films at an office supply house. Just make sure that the material will accept pen or ink so that you can trace on it and that it will be safe to use with food items. Also, you have a large number of suppliers of stencil films on line. So now you know how to stencil images on a cookie. You can make little cookie treats for all of you ghosts and goblins that come knocking on your door. Have fun this Halloween and Happy Stenciling! Tasty Halloween Crafts Using Stencils For Cookie Decorating

Christmas Fun for the Whole Family!

Christmas Fun for the Whole Family! Looking for some fun and unique ways to entertain this holiday season? Christmas is a holiday where families come together and spend time with one another, but often time children become bored with lack of stimulation. Keep the whole family happy by providing some great games and ideas for this holiday season, and here are a few ideas to get you started!

Create a scavenger hunt that's fun for both adults and children. Throw in holiday decorations and some unique toys and your children are sure to have a blast as they find Santa Claus and the snowman hidden in the Christmas tree. By placing toys into the scavenger hunt your kids will be extra excited to find these prices as a kind of early Christmas present. Best of all, set a prize at the end for when everyone wins so teamwork becomes a fun task as the whole family digs through this hunt. Create fun and exciting crafts. Many of us can recall as children making bird feeders from peanut butter and pine cones, why not create some of these fun crafts again with your children. Other fun crafts can be unique cookies themed like the holidays. Sugar cookies are a great way to allow your children to be creative and decorate, and can be shaped into snowflakes, snowmen, and other holiday themes. Christmas ornaments are a great craft that can be taken in many different directions. Popsicle sticks, foam balls, and glitter are just a few of the essentials. Glue is also a very important piece, but be sure that whatever glue you use is safe for children. Create snowflakes with the Popsicle sticks, and then sprinkle glitter on them to make them sparkle. Or create a Christmas photo frame using the Popsicle sticks and place a fun family picture inside. Foam balls are a create way to allow children to go wild with creativity by placing anything they want to decorate with onto the foam ball. Glitter, beads, foil shapes, stickers, and etc are just a few items that children can use to decorate with. Be sure to save this project for children a little bit older so they do not try to eat the small pieces. Other fun ideas include any outdoor activities. For those who happen to have snow outside, create a snowman with the whole family. Have your children choose which clothing items they would like to use to decorate their snowman friend. Scavenge in the backyard to find the perfect pieces to tie together and make the perfect snowman. Or play a fun game of tag or hide and seek with your child. There are plenty of inexpensive toys available to help make this holiday even greater, but the best way to make this holiday season the best it can be is just by spending it together with the whole family. It is sure to be a holiday your children won't soon forget! Christmas Fun for the Whole Family!

Super Chocolate Cookies

Super Chocolate Cookies Super Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients: ½-cup Walnuts, chopped 8-ounces Cream cheese, softened 1-teaspoon Vanilla 1-stick Butter, softened 1-large Egg 1-box (18¼-ounces) Chocolate cake mix 12-ounces Chocolate frosting ¼-cup Powdered sugar ¼-cup Sprinkles Instructions: Preheat oven to 350°. Beat Butter, vanilla, and cream cheese until smooth. Add egg; beat at medium speed until well blended. Add cake mix; beat at low speed for about 2 minutes or until combination is smooth; stir in chopped walnuts. Shape cookie dough into 1-inch balls and place 1-inch apart on cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 8 minutes, cookies will look under baked, but they are not. Let cookies stand on cookie sheets for 5 minutes; exchange to foil or wire racks to cool completely. Spoon 1 teaspoon of chocolate frosting and spread over cookie; sprinkle each cookie with powdered sugar and sprinkles. Makes about 4 dozen cookies Note: Sometimes to turn these up I substitute the vanilla with other passage such as strawberry extract. You can find this formula and many more at Cristie's Cookin. Be sure to submit your favorite formula for a opportunity to win a free "Gotcha Covered" apron. While you at it check out those unique spices, Ring It, Bling It and Zing It. Don't forget to check out "11.11.11" on Cristie's extra page. Super Chocolate Cookies

The amount 1 recipe for Great Cookies From Scratch

The amount 1 recipe for Great Cookies From Scratch The idea of great cookies from scratch is what brings people back to their kitchens this time of year. Even people that don't bake for the other eleven months of the year, somehow find themselves back in the kitchen for holiday cookie time.

Whether you have fond childhood memories of baking with Mom or Grandma, want to be sure of the ingredients that go into your cookies, or share time with your children, production cookies from scratch is a great way to perform all these things. You'll have more pride production your own cookies than naturally slicing the grocery cookie dough log. Creating your own cookie dough is quite simple, but it's not the right recipe that takes your cookies from fair to fantastic, it's the mixing recipe that does that. The great majority of cookies are made with a "creaming method". When you scholar the straightforward steps of this method, Any cookie recipe will turn out better. Steps for the creaming method: 1) portion all ingredients carefully - This is baking not cooking, and precise proportions are mandatory for arriving at consistently exquisite results. Be aware of the dissimilarity in the middle of weight and volume measurements, and have all your ingredients ready before starting the next steps. 2) Cream the fat and sugar - This is why it's called "the creaming method". Mixing fat and sugar together will add air to your holiday cookies. Air will give you the lightest, crunchiest cookies from scratch. 3) Add eggs - The protein in egg yolks not only act as an emulsifier, binding the regularly unmixable fat and liquid, but also give structure to cookies. This is the most leading step in your cooking production process and the egg Must be added very slowly to originate the emulsification. 4) Add any liquid - Many cookie recipes don't have any liquid in the formula, so you'll regularly be skipping this step. But, if the recipe calls for milk or cream, it's added after the eggs. 5) Sifted dry ingredients - Sifting flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, or seasonings together not only gives a consistent mixture, but also adds air, again giving you a lighter cookie 6) Chips, nuts, raisins - These items are added last because they just need to be mixed in. You don't want to break up all the pecans or chip your chocolate chips with over mixing Even the best cookies from scratch can still be ruined if you consequent the above procedure exactly. While mixing is the most leading part of production cookies, portioning and baking can be the destruction of well mixed cookie dough. Portioning cookies so that they are exactly the same size will allow them to cook consistently. This helps avoid the one cookie that's burned while an additional one is under-cooked on the same tray. Use an ice cream scoop or other portioning device that will perform exact duplicates of each cookie. Making your own cookies from scratch is very simple, and you can gain power over all cookie formulas by having the underlying command of the creaming method. The amount 1 recipe for Great Cookies From Scratch

Christmas Cakes

Christmas Cakes A primary Christmas cake can be light or dark. It can be made like a toady cake with a light frosting, or it can be moist and rich, loaded with a creamy colorful icing.It can be square, round, oblong or tiered, and it can even be in the form of cupcakes.

Different countries favor different Christmas Cakes. For example, in Scotland, the Scottish cherish the Whisky Dundee holiday cake. It is made with raisins and cherries. It is considered a fruitcake, but it isn't particularly rich or moist, and doesn't have to comprise nuts. The Japanese love to make a primary Christmas cake that is like and spongy. It is frosted with whipped cream and decorated with strawberries and chocolates and other holiday favorites. The Japanese serve a Christmas cake on Christmas Eve. A favorite Christmas cake in the states is the mincemeat cake. Vegetarians love this delectable, because it can be made with vegetarian mincemeat mixed with flour, eggs, etc. It can also be steamed to produce a Christmas pudding. Americans also pride themselves in novelty holiday cakes that are shaped like a Christmas tree, snowman or Santa Claus. These cakes are ordinarily made from a white, yellow or chocolate batter and preferred with colorful icings and candies. The British take pride in their rich yellow pound cake filled with nuts or fruits and topped off with lots of alcohol like brandy or rum that is mixed with sugar and water. These cakes stay fresh for months and are very favorite gift-giving items. As a matter of fact, if handled properly - these cakes can last as long as a year! Christmas Cakes

Christmas Craft Ideas - Rustic Christmas Tree Crafts to Make

Christmas Craft Ideas - Rustic Christmas Tree Crafts to Make Do you look for Christmas craft ideas every year? Try to rack your brain for some ideas for some Christmas tree crafts, or gifts to make?

This year, why not try development some recycled denim tree ornaments? These can come to be treasured memories and have a rustic, yet artistic flare to them. They also make great gifts for friends or Grandparents. This is how you make them: Find a pair of soft but worn out jeans, and trace two circles on them (the widest part of the leg works best). (using a jar lid or any size you want works) Sew the circles together with 1/2 inch seam allowance, but leave a small space for stuffing your denim ornament. Clip the seams every 1/4 inch or less, to make a fringe, with sharp scissors. Make a few and then wash them and then throw them in the dryer, this will originate soft white, fuzzy fringe, for that rustic effect. Stuff your denim ornament with polyester stuffing or something soft, and then sew the occasion shut, with a piece of decorative cord for hanging on the tree. Now the fun part, decorating. Depending on the age of your kids, get out the decorating supplies. These can be sparkles, rhinestones, embroidery, fabric paint, quilting.. Whatever you want. Denim makes a great canvas. Beading looks precisely good on here too. If you get started with these denim ornaments now, then your kids or yourself, will have the time to precisely let their artistic talents shine, before all the festivities begin. I have seen these thoroughly covered in sparkly beads, and they precisely shine with any Christmas lights. You now have a cherished, rustic, piece of art. You can't buy that at the reduction store! Denim is so versatile, especially the faded soft blue jeans. I find these work the best. Hope this inspires you to get creative with some Christmas craft ideas! Christmas Craft Ideas - Rustic Christmas Tree Crafts to Make

Southwestern Grilled Flank Steak - The Hit of Any Barbecue

Southwestern Grilled Flank Steak - The Hit of Any Barbecue I have tasted Tex-Mex food, California-Mex food, and food that masquerades as Southwestern food. What is Southwestern food, anyway?

The "Betty Crocker Southwest Cooking" book defines it as cuisine that originated in three American states, Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico. Many groups contributed to Southwestern food: Spanish missionaries, Americans headed westward, and Native American tribes. According to the cook book, "The birthplace of southwestern cuisine is a patchwork of mesa and mountain, semiarid with an unforgiving climate. Out of this stern land has come delicious food painted bright with bold sauces..." Cynthia Detterick-Pineda writes about this cuisine in "The Heart and Soul of Southwest Cooking," published on the What's Cooking America Website. Southwestern cooking originated in Mexico," says Detterick-Pineda, and it is based on common ingredients: avocados, beans, corn, chocolate, fish, peanuts, hot peppers (mainly jalapeno), potatoes, squash, tomatillos, tomatoes, vanilla, and small amounts of wild game. New Mexico added cilantro, hominy, long green chile peppers, red peppers, pine nuts, and squash, notes Detterick-Pineda. Tex-Mex cuisine has cowboy influences, such as sour cream, beef, cumin, and even olives. "Tex-Mex was fusion just waiting to happen," says Detterick-Pineda. California made its contribution to Southwestern cooking by adding fresh vegetables, fruits, and shredded meats. I like most Southwestern cooking, but am not a fan of hot peppers or cilantro. So I created this marinade for flank steak, which is one of the most versatile cuts of meat you can buy. Kids love this steak because of its sweetness. Adults love it because it is low fat and flavorful. Put Southwestern Grilled Flank Steak on your menu today. Serve with corn muffins and quinoa salad made with chopped avocados, scallions, tomatoes, cilantro (or flat-leaf parsley), and lemon-vinegar dressing. (Substitute rice or pasta for the quinoa, a grain from the Andes, if your grocery store doesn't have it. ) Now that's good eating! Ingredients 2-pound flank steak 2 tablespoons brown sugar 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves juice and zest of one lime 3 tablespoons extra light olive oil Method Using a sharp knife, score meat in a cross-hatch pattern on both sides. Be careful not to cut through the steak. Combine brown sugar, garlic, thyme, lime juice, lime zest, and olive oil in a plastic zipper bag. Add meat and marinate in refrigerator for three hours or more. Grill steak on a gas or charcoal grill (charcoal is best) until the meat is medium rare. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes before slicing on the diagonal. Makes 6-8 servings. Copyright 2009 by Harriet Hodgson Southwestern Grilled Flank Steak - The Hit of Any Barbecue

Are You on the Look Out for The Easiest Way to Bake a Cake? Why Not Settle For A Cake Mix?

Are You on the Look Out for The Easiest Way to Bake a Cake? Why Not Settle For A Cake Mix? A cake is a delicious baked sweet that just melts in your mouth and is one an all time favorite among both children and adults alike. In the earlier days, cakes were just limited to the traditional cup cake, tea cake and fruit cakes that were quite a laborious process to make. But today you will find that there are an unbelievable variety of cakes that are made from all kinds of exotic flavors imaginable and can be made any shape that you desire.

Another great advantage is that you can even prepare any kind of cake you need from the comfort of your home if you have the perfect recipe and the ingredients for it. If you are not inclined to make a cake from the very scratch, there are lip smacking pre packaged cake mixes that can be brought today from any supermarket today. The most popular brands of cake mixes are Betty Crocker and White Wings. Most of these ready to make cake mixes come with all the instructions necessary to make the perfect cake and you just require following them exactly to make the most delicious cake. They also come with easy to follow baking tips that will help you to dish out the most delectable concoctions. You can make cup cakes easily by baking them in cup cake tins lined with foil or paper. You can make sandwich cookies from these ready to make cake mixes by using these mixes as filling. The other varieties of cake mixes that are available today include carrot cakes in which you just require to add carrots, pineapple, nuts or whatever you need to them to transform them into mouth watering delicacies. In the same way an ordinary butter or yellow cake can easily be made into a pine apple upside down cake by adding pineapple slices and cherries to it. Hence by just making your imagination run wild, you can make use of these simple ready to mix cake recipes to bake the most unusual and tantalizing cakes that are sure to be an instant hit among your near and dear ones. The biggest benefit of these ready to mix cakes are that you do not have to spend much time preparing these cakes and their recipes are so simple to follow that even a small child can help you to mix the ingredients and bake it. So go ahead a purchase one of these cake mixes and see how effortlessly a tasty cake can be made in a jiffy. Are You on the Look Out for The Easiest Way to Bake a Cake? Why Not Settle For A Cake Mix?

How To Make Painted Christmas Cookies

Who doesn't love the smell of fresh baked Christmas cookies? Part of the fun of Christmas for many folks is baking and decorating Christmas cookies. If you like to decorate sugar cookies during the holidays then you may enjoy letting your inner artist come out this year. How about trying your hand at painting your Christmas cookies this year? While at first glance they may seem difficult to accomplish, painting Christmas cookies is easy enough for children to help with.

Christmas cookie paint is actually a simple mix of egg yolk, water, and food coloring. After you've rolled out the dough and cut the shape you want, just paint on some playful designs, and bake your cookies as always. A couple of techniques can be used to place the designs on the dough. You can paint freehand or take a smaller cookie cutter and gently imprint or press the design to paint. Making the paint is easy. Use one egg yolk for every two colors you plan on using. Add ¼ teaspoon water, and beat with a fork until smooth. Divide the yolk mixture into two cups and stir enough food coloring in to make your desired shades. Keep in mind that the paint will dry out fast, so keep it covered when you're not using it. Stir in a little water to keep the paint a consistency that you can work with. Easy Painted Christmas Cookies 1 cup butter, softened 1 cup sugar 2 eggs ¼ cup milk 2 tsp vanilla extract 4 cups flour 1 tsp baking powder ¾ tsp baking soda Egg Yolk Paint Cream butter at medium speed and gradually add sugar, beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each egg. Add milk and vanilla, and mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, and soda; add flour mixture to creamed mixture, stirring until blended. Your dough will be soft. Shape dough into 2 balls; wrap each in waxed paper or plastic wrap and chill for 4 hours. Work with half of dough at a time; store remainder in refrigerator. Roll dough to 1/8 inch thick on floured board or waxed paper; cut with 2 ½ to 3 inch cookie cutters and carefully transfer cut cookies to lightly greased cookie sheets. Paint various designs on cookies using a small art brush and our Egg Yolk Paint. Bake at 375F for 6-8 minutes; cook on wire rack. Makes about 5 dozen. Easy Egg Yolk Paint 1 egg, beaten ¼ tsp water Food coloring Combine egg yolk and water; stir well. Divide mixture evenly into 2 cups; tint as you desire with food coloring. Keep your paint covered until ready to use. If paint thickens, add a few drops of water and stir well. Makes about 1 ½ tablespoons. Prepare this recipe for every 2 colors of paint you want to use. Painting Christmas cookies is so much fun that you might decide to start a new family tradition. Create these pretty cookies to give away as special gifts or use as tree ornaments. This is a great holiday activity for older kids to make Christmas gifts for Mom and Dad too. If you decide to make painted Christmas cookies as ornaments, just cut a small hole in the top of the cookies before you bake them. Thread colorful cord or ribbon through the hole after the cookies have cooled. Have fun and use your imagination!

Mom's Big Book of Baking

Lauren Chattman has written a delightful new book called Mom's Big Book of Baking: 200 Simple,  Foolproof Family Favorites for BirthdayParties, Bake Sales, and More. Like many moms I have a very hectic schedule and to be totally truthful here, the kitchen is really not a safe or a friendly place for me.  I have discovered, however, that Lauren Chattman's baking recipes really are easy and even I can make them.

The book is divided into seven sections:  Beyond the Freezer Case: Homemade Pancakes and Waffles; Mom's Cafe: Muffins, Quick Breads, Biscuits and Scones; The Cookie Jar: Old Fashioned Cookies Mom's Way; Easy-Bake Oven: Keeping it Simple with Brownies and Bard; Mom's Apple Pie: No-Fail Pies, Tarts, Quiches, and Cobblers; Birthdays and Beyond: Cakes for All Occasions; and Yeast is Your Friend: Basic Bread and Pizza.  I love cake - I can't help myself.  But I don't like just any kind of cake.  It has to be yellow cake.  So I thought I would try making the classic yellow layer cake (or cupcakes) from the chapter on Birthdays and Beyond. I chose to make cupcakes rather than a cake because I felt more comfortable with my cupcake tins than I did with my cake pans. The recipe was so easy that I couldn't believe my luck.  No cupcake would go to a party without frosting so I topped off my freshly baked goods with vanilla birthday cake frosting. I just love a party! My friends could not believe my new found talent. I was feeling very confident in the dessert category so I decided to make my son some spiced apple and raisin turnovers form the chapter on Mom's Apple Pie.  The sweet pie dough recipe was easy to prepare as was the filling.  My kitchen smelled divine as the turnovers were baking.  The turnovers are a keeper. I invited my best friend (and her waffle maker) over for Sunday breakfast a few weeks ago so we could try out one of the waffle recipes from the Beyond the Freezer Case section of the book.  After much deliberation we choose gingerbread waffles.  I think I may have a new career here and my list of new friends is steadily growing. I plan to do a lot more baking in the coming weeks.  On my list to try are pan pizza dough, savory cornbread, oatmeal cookies, and instant homemade microwave brownies. I appreciated the time saving tips and techniques that were offered in each chapter as well as as the information on mail-order and online resource.  The only complaint I have about this book is that it did not contain color photos of the recipes - a feature I really appreciate since I am a real novice in the kitchen..  You can find this book at your local public library but you will probably want to buy a copy for your own collection. ISBN: 9781558323957

Identifying Dog Worms and their Symptoms

There are 5 different types of dog worms (internal parasites), which your dog can fall prey to. These are: heartworm, hookworm, roundworm, tapeworm and whipworm. As a dog owner, I recommend that you educate yourself on these worms in order to be able to recognize the symptoms if they should become evident in your dog.

Early worm detection is important because each type of dog worm requires a different form of treatment. You should also be aware of the fact that roundworm and hookworm are zoonotic, which means that these worms can be transmitted to humans. Some worm infestations may show little to no symptoms, whereas others can demonstrate severe symptoms, such as vomiting, diarrhea and weight loss. Some dog worms can be seen by the naked eye while some cannot, therefore it is a good idea to ask your vet to perform a stool test for dog worms once a year. Below you can find a list of common telltale symptoms of dog worm infestation, but keep in mind that these symptoms can also be a sign of a more serious problem. Either way, always consult a veterinarian whenever your dog is not "his usual self." Dull coat Weight loss Appetite loss Pot-bellied appearance Coughing Low energy level Diarrhea Vomiting ROUNDWORMS (Toxocara canis, Toxascaris leonina) There are two types of Roundworm: Toxocara canis and Toxascaris leonine. This is the most common type of dog worm, which affects the intestines and causes a pot-bellied appearance, mostly in puppies. There are a few ways puppies can become infected. Puppies are often infected before birth through the mother's uterus or through her milk. Puppies can also contract these worms through the ingestion of an infected animal (such as a rodent) or infected soil. Roundworm eggs can live in soil for many years. Once a puppy has ingested the infected soil, the eggs will hatch in his intestines, allowing the worms to live there and grow to adulthood. These adults will then produce more eggs. Roundworms may be found in your dog's stool or vomit. They can grow to about 7 inches in length and have a spaghetti-like appearance. If this type of infestation is not detected early and is allowed a chance to develop, a buildup of worms in the intestines can cause an obstruction which may result in death. The symptoms of a severe infestation are: pot-belly appearance, diarrhea, vomiting, dull coat and weight loss. Puppies should be dewormed every 2 weeks between 2 and 12 weeks of age, then monthly until he is 6 months old. Once your puppy has reached 6 months of age, he is less susceptible to contracting these worms but should continue yearly exams (or more often if considered high-risk). Because Roundworm can be transmitted to humans, it is important to promote good hygiene, such as washing your hands regularly. Transmission of this dog worm to humans is usually through infected soil, which may be in your backyard or front lawn. Because the eggs are sticky and can easily adhere to hands or clothing, make sure children (and adults) wash their hands after playing outside (especially at a park or playground), after playing with the dog and before it's time to eat. Treatment generally involves administering oral medication (dewormer) with follow-up fecal exams and a monthly heartworm medication. Try 1-800-PetMeds - America's Pet Health Resource Prevent your dog from contracting roundworms by cleaning up fecal matter from the backyard as often as possible. Also, administering a heartworm medication such as HeartGard - Prescription Heartworm medication for Dogs & Cats is a good preventive. Do not mix wormers and consult your vet before giving your dog any medication. And last, but not least, always remember annual exams. HOOKWORMS (Ancylostoma caninium) Like Roundworm, Hookworm harbors in the intestines and can also be transmitted to humans. Hookworms can affect a dog at any age. It is a small, thin worm that hooks on to the intestinal wall and sucks the blood from its victim, which cause anemia and perhaps death. Due to their sharp teeth, they also cause bleeding in the intestines. Hookworms are not visible by the naked eye, therefore should be diagnosed by a vet. As with roundworm, hookworms also live and grow to adulthood in the intestines. They can also be transmitted to pups while in the mother's uterus or through her breast milk. A dog infected with hookworm would experience bloody stool, anemia, weight loss, pale gums, diarrhea and low energy level. Skin irritation can be a sign of a severe infestation. Hookworms can be transmitted to humans by penetration of the skin, making it is possible for people to become infected simply by walking barefoot on infected soil. Hookworms, when transmitted to humans, can cause bleeding in the intestines along with abdominal pain and diarrhea. Treatment usually consists of oral medications (dewormer), follow-up fecal exams, intravenous therapy and, if necessary, a blood transfusion. Hookworm infestation can kill your pup before the worm is ever detected. This is why it is so important to keep up with veterinary visits and exams. TAPEWORMS (Dipylidium caninum) The tapeworm gets its name from its long, flat, tape-like appearance. It is yet another parasite that affects the intestines, and like the roundworm, can be seen by the naked eye. Broke pieces of this dog worm would be found in the dog's fecal matter, which give it a rice-like appearance. These pieces of worm, although broken, can be found (still moving) around the dog's anus, in his stool or in his bed. Common symptoms of severe tapeworm infestation are abdominal pain, nervousness, severe itching around the anus, vomiting and weight loss. Transmission to dogs is often caused by the ingestion of infected fleas. Although, humans are susceptible to being infected, a dog cannot transmit the dog worm to a human directly. Regular over-the-counter deworming medication is not effective in eliminating this type of dog worm. A prescription dewormer is administered orally or by injection (praziquantel or epsiprantel). Consult your vet. Try 1-800-PetMeds - America's Pet Health Resource WHIPWORMS (Trichuris vulpis) Whipworms are long, thin (whip-shaped) dog worms that live in the dog's colon and are not visible by the naked eye. They attach themselves to the intestinal walls and feed off of them which, in turn, causes intestinal bleeding. Common symptoms of whipworm infestation are anemia, weight loss, flatulence, diarrhea with blood or mucus in the stool and lack of energy. Although whipworms are the most difficult to eliminate among the families of dog worms, there is effective treatment available. Whipworm is most effectively treated with fenbendazole (panacur), but febantel can also be used. Prescription medications are usually more effective. The treatment lasts for up to 5 days and is repeated after 3 weeks. After this treatment is finished, consult your vet about recommending a heartworm medication (containing milbemycin oxime) as a prophylactic to future infestation. Try 1-800-PetMeds - America's Pet Health Resource Along with administering heartworm medication regularly, here are other ways to prevent reinfection: Remove feces from backyard every few days Clean yard with a safe cleaning agent (which kills worms) Have feces tested every 6 months (more often if previously infected) HEARTWORMS (Dirofilaria immitis) Heartworm, although highly preventable, has the potential to be fatal, if contracted and left untreated. Heartworm is spread by mosquitoes, mostly during the warm months when mosquitoes are most active. The mosquito becomes infected from biting dogs that carry the disease. These dog worms destroy the muscle and tissue of the heart, which can cause congestive heart failure and result in death. At this advanced stage, your dog would experience the typical signs of worms, such as pot-belly, coughing, lack of energy and dull coat. Unfortunately, there are no symptoms of this disease until it has progressed to an advanced stage. For this reason, it is important to start your dog on a heartworm preventative such as HeartGard - Prescription Heartworm medication for Dogs & Cats at 6 months of age (after the first stage deworming process is complete. Check with your vet). Prevention is the best medicine. General guidelines for dog worm prevention When walking your dog in a park, picking up his feces as a standard practice not only prevents soil contamination, but also prevents the spread of many other dog diseases. Regular visits to the vet and stool testing is a great way to prevent dog worms, as well as other illnesses. Twice-yearly worm testing is recommended. Make sure your dog is tested for worms before starting a heartworm preventative. High-risk dogs should be screened more often (check with your vet). Flea control is important because fleas are responsible for the spread of tapeworms. Most puppies find feces quite appetizing. Keep your dog away from feces: his own as well as others. This is the most common form of worm infestation. When cleaning your dog's area, such as his bed or crate, spray it with a strong saltwater solution and let dry. This aids in the prevention of worms. Before traveling with your dog to obscure destinations, consult your vet of the potential risks to your dog. Avoid exposing your dog to stray animals, birds and dead rodents, which often harbor immature tapeworms that can mature inside your dog. Contact your vet if your dog displays any symptoms after receiving worm medication. This information is NOT intended to replace the advice of a veterinarian, dog trainer or pet care professional.

Hungarian Goulash Crock Pot Recipe

With so many Hungarian Goulash recipes out there, how do you know what's authentic? Dumplings or not, stew or thicker, noodles or plain.

My husband spent a year abroad studying in Bonn, Germany and traveling all over Europe, so when he asked me to create an authentic Hungarian Goulash recipe I was a little timid. With a little bit of research and my crock pot, I came up with this recipe and held my breath while he took his first bite. He loved it! He claims it is as close to "true" Hungarian Goulash as he's ever tasted in the states. We served it over noodles, however traditionally it's thicker than a stew and is eaten by itself; no dumplings, no noodles. Ironically enough, a few months later a friend of ours made the same recipe (found on Natalie's Recipes) for their father who was also picky about his goulash having spent time in Budapest. More compliments reigned in; this truly was a close-to-authentic recipe. Beyond that, it's extremely easy and very tasty - enjoy! Crock pot Hungarian Goulash Ingredients: 3 medium onions, chopped 1 large green pepper, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 pounds beef stew meat or beef round steak cut into 1 inch pieces 1- 12 ounce can tomato paste 3 tsp paprika ¼ tsp black pepper 1- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained Spray crock pot with non-stick cooking spray. Add all ingredients, mix well. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high 3-4 hours. Serve with noodles. Note: Add another teaspoon or so of paprika if you'd like a little more spice.

Christmas Gift Ideas For Parents

Finding those excellent Christmas gift ideas can be challenging. You want the gift to say I am reasoning of you, I know what you like (this is not a generic re-gift) and you want the gift to impress, if only just a limited bit. Yet, when it comes to buying gifts for our parents, it can be challenging.

Most parents seem to have everything they want. Most parents also have enough money to buy what they want. Where does that leave us in the shopping department? Sometimes, it leaves us at a lost. But if we certainly think about those gifts before we go shopping, we can come up with some certainly lively presents that parents are sure to love. Here are a few examples to get you started. Hobbies: Does mom like to sew? Does dad like to fish or hunt? You may think they have all the tools for their favorite hobbies. But think, again. New equipment and new stuff are always advent onto the market. Buy dad that new lure and reel? Buy mom some new patterns or even a newer, fancier sewing machine with all the extras. Do not decree on buying more of the hobby products you know they all ready have. Food and other treats: Parents are like everybody else, they love to eat and they have their favorite treats. Why not check out the many gift baskets available both in shop and online (that can be delivered right to your door or your parents' door)? You can buy these food gift baskets that comprise many fine luxury items such as: dark chocolates, fine wines, epicurean cheeses and crackers. Plus, you add tempting breads, nuts, muffins, cookies and cakes to those baskets. Be sure the basket itself is nice. Mom may want to reuse it for decorating or storehouse purchases. Useful services: Does dad hate to mow? Is mom tired of washing those windows? You could hire a aid to come in and do those chores for mom and dad. They can be assigned to come as often as you can afford or as often as mom and dad prefers. Imagine the burden it will lift off all their shoulders to see the work being done, without them having to do it? Mini-vacations or trips to the day spa: Would dad enjoy a mini vacation, near a golf course? Would mom like a mini vacation in a day spa? With a limited bit of searching, you are sure to find both lively and relaxing treats for both of them. Imagine their delight of getting away and doing something that makes them happy. Do not worry about not having anything to wrap in a pretty box. You can always wrap the reservation tickets. Remember when it comes to buying Christmas gifts for your parents, certainly think about your parents and what they would like, not what they need or what is expected. If you do that, then the ideas should start flowing.

Facts About Bread

Bread is one of the oldest prepared foods, dating back to the Neolithic era, in one form or another, has been one of the principal forms of food for man from earliest times. It is one of the few things in the world that has remained as an important part of our lives throughout history.

It is a staple food prepared by baking dough of flour and water. Bread that has stiffened or dried past its prime is said to be stale. Kept at low temperatures, for example, in a refrigerator, will develop mold growth more slowly than bread kept at room temperature. When it is kept in warm, moist environments is prone to the growth of mold. It can be served at any temperature ranging from room temperature to hot. It can be dunked or dipped into a liquid (such as beef gravy, olive oil, or sardine pâté), topped with various spreads, both sweet and savory, or serve as the enclosure for the ubiquitous sandwich with any number of meats, cheeses, vegetables or condiments inside Bread made with bakers yeast is not sour because of the absence of the lactobacillus. Bread improvers are frequently used in the production of commercial breads to reduce the time that it takes to rise, and to improve the texture and volume. It is also a staple part of a healthy eating pattern as it is low in fat and one of the best sources of fibre, both leavened and unleavened, is mentioned in the Bible many times.

How To Throw The Best Italian Dinner Party Ever

You walk into an Italian Restaurant - the whole experience is just wonderful - the smells, the atmosphere and hopefully when your order is delivered - the food. The background noise is all a part of the experience - it's often at a higher frequency than most restaurants but it's all part of the fun.

Why not take this same experience back to your own home and create a more intimate and less busy Italian dinner party? A dinner where people can enjoy a more leisurely dining experience within the comfort of your own home. A night where you can share your favorite Italian recipes with people who are important to you - or maybe even try out some new recipes? Italian food never seems to lose its popularity. There's often a feeling of comfort and contentment attached to Italian food and the flavors are simply sensational. So, just how do you host a great Italian dinner party then? 1. Planning - In your planning, consider who you will invite and check the foods that they don't like or can't tolerate and set the date and time well in advance. 2. Invitations - Will you just invite your friends by sending them an email or can you do something a bit more creative with your invitation? You could attach a note to something very Italian. I saw a suggestion of sending the invitation attached to a small packet of biscotti or you could incorporate the colors of the Italian flag as the background (three vertical columns - green on the left, white in the middle and red on the left) on your invite. 3. Atmosphere - Do you want red and white checkered table cloths with chianti bottles as candle holders with wax dripping down the sides - just to give it that really authentic look? Or a plain white, red or green table cloth? Try to get hold of some background Italian music like some opera for example. Some of Italy's best singers generally have included Enrico Caruso, Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Mina and Claudio Villa. 4. Food - since Italians are renowned for taking great pleasure in their food, wine and the company of their friends dinners can often go on for hours. Italians see meals as a time to spend with family and friends instead of to gain immediate sustenance. The number of courses served can range from three to six courses (called portate) or sometimes more courses! You'll no doubt have some lovely smells permeating into the house before your guests arrive - you could also slowly bake some garlic bread in the oven so the smell is wafting through the house as your guests arrive. This will really let your guests know they've come to the right place! You could start with antipasto which literally means "before the meal". This is also the traditional first course of a formal Italian meal. Rather than hors devours offered on trays that guests enjoy before they are seated at the dinner table, antipasto is served at the table and signifies the beginning of your Italian meal together. An antipasto plate is usually placed at the center of the table. The antipasto dish doesn't even getting numbered as one of the courses.. it's just a given. Diners are given small plates on which to place their choices. Traditional choices can include cured meats (prosciuito, mortadella, smoked ham and salami), marinated vegetables, olives, peperoni (marinated small peppers - not the meat called peperoni) along with an assortment of cheeses (like provolone, bocconicini and mozzarella). The first course primo piatto (also referred to as simply primo) or minestra may consist of soup (minestroni perhaps?), pasta, gnocci, risotto or polenta - this should only be a small portion like a cup or so. This is a dish rich in carbohydrates. The second or main course is called secondo piatto or piatto di mezzo which usually consists or fish or meat. Traditionally veal, pork and chicken are the most commonly used meat, at least in the North. The side dish is called contorno and may consist of a salad or cooked vegetables. A traditional menu features salad along with the main course. The first dessert which consists of cheese and fruit is called Formaggio and frutta - the cheese and fruit is usually served together. Then it's onto Dolce - dessert such as cakes or cookies. You should also serve coffee/espresso known as Caffè. Finally, Digestivo or "digestives" which are liquors/liqueurs like grappa, amaro or limoncello - sometimes referred to as "coffee killer" or ammazzacaffe. All these dishes sound great and I imagine when people see the number of courses it may seem a bit daunting but you only need serve as many courses as you choose. I have discovered a great website hosting 3000 free recipes from around the world. Under Italian, I noticed they offered 217 recipes so I'm sure you can find all you need there.

How Many fat Should I Eat a Day?

The term "Calorie" has come to be very common as this is the quantum recommended by dietitians and nutritionists to cut body weight. Also, this is the term habitancy are more concerned about, to avoid obesity and other ill effects.

Most habitancy think that they consume less calories if they are not eating enough. But this is a wrong arrival as this lowers the metabolic rate and puts body into starvation mode. The ideal way is to assert your calories by eating right amount of extremely nutrient food. An active someone who exercises every day will burn more calories than the someone who is gradually active with less corporeal activities. Men, Women and Children have distinct daily calorie needs as there are distinct metabolisms, distinct heights, weight, age and gender for every human being. The current lifestyle also has an impact in the amount of healthy calorie intake. In general, Men need 2000 to 2500 calories and Women need 1500 to 2400 calories per day depending on their age levels, height and weight. There are many ways to analyse your daily calories needs. There are calorie calculators that help you to appraisal daily calorie needs based on gender, height, weight, age and action level. It is recommended to eat at least 1200 to 1500 calories per day if you want to lose weight, but this diet plan cannot be followed forever. You need to take balanced diet with enough calories to stay active and healthy. Men at the age group of 20 to 30 years who do less exercise would need almost 2400 calories per day whereas Women at the same age group, with the same type of workout routines would need around 2000 calories per day. Men of age group 31 to 50 with less corporeal action levels would need 2200 to 2300 calories per day while women of age group 31 to 50 with less corporeal action would need 1800 to 1900 calories per day. This calculation applies to children as well. Children of age group 2 to 3 years would need 1000 calories per day whereas children of age group 4 to 8 years would need 1100 to 1500 calories per day with less corporeal action levels. Young boys at the age group of 9 to 18 years require around 1800 to 3000 calories and girls require around 1800 to 2200 calories per day. Women above 50 years of age need 1600 to 1700 calories per day and Men above 50 years may need 2000 to 2200 calories per day with less corporeal action levels. Similarly, Men of age group 20 to 50 years with more corporeal action levels may need 2500 to 3000 calories per day and women may require 2000 to 2500 calories per day. Men above 50 years would need 2300 to 2800 calories and women would need 1800 to 2300 calories per day with more corporeal activities. Calorie Calculator There are many calorie calculators ready online to predict the daily calorie needs. Once you appraisal your calorie needs, result it for a week and start monitoring the changes to your body weight. Make adjustments in calorie intake as required so that you can assert your weight as you wish. Basal Metabolic Rate (Bmr) You need to suspect Bmr to shape out ho many calories you need per day. Bmr measures the amount of calories you need to assert your current weight with normal body processes. The very straightforward and basic formulae for calculating your Bmr is - just multiply your current body weight by 10. For example, if your current weight is 100 lbs, 1000 calories per day is the basal metabolic rate. Basal Metabolic Rate calculation does not consist of the quantum from corporeal action levels (based on exercise limits). You can use some other formulas like Harris - Benedict method and Katch-McArdle method to appraisal the Bmr that includes action levels. Exercise is an important factor that determines your daily calorie needs. If you are more physically active or if you do lot of exercise, your body needs slightly higher calorie levels. However, there are other factors like age, height and amount of body fat you have etc also plays a vital role in determining calorie needs. Maintain an action Diary You need to rate yourself by maintaining an action diary. You need to conclude if you are sedentary, gradually active or active. You are "sedentary" if there is not much corporeal action in your lifestyle or job. It may involve mostly sitting, standing etc. You are "lightly active" if you do very light walking. You are "Moderately active" if you do slightly more corporeal action than just walking. This may consist of doing some cleaning, some other work to be done manually. You are "Very active" if you do lot of work and more exercise. You are "Extremely active" if you are complicated in any sports, regular hard work outs etc. Keep a track of these distinct action levels in the diary. Set a target of two weeks and keep a detailed description of things you eat and drink in two weeks period. description all you corporeal activities, weight and update the diary every day with your routines. After 2 weeks, if your weight is the same when you started, you are on the right track and you are attractive the calories calculated by Bmr. If you have gained weight during the 2 weeks exercise, you need to do the vital changes in your diet plan. Balance your diet with healthy foods It is important to know what type of calories you eat every day. You need to allocate your daily calorie intake as follows: 1. Take 40% of protein rich food every day. You can get rich proteins from lean meat, fish, milk, eggs 2. Eat 40% carbohydrates that come from beans, peas, oats, lentils, yogurts etc. Do not go for items like sugar, beverages, cookies, pizza, bread, potatoes, rice, pasta etc 3. 20% of unsaturated or good fat is acceptable. You can eat nuts, seeds etc Take only Balanced diet with healthy calories and please do remember that calories are the only way to keep check in your weight. You need to alter the calorie intake to lose weight. Any diet plan without a clear distribution in the types of calories will not be of help. Pick a correct diet plan and conclude the daily calorie needs.

How To Throw A Wine and Cheese Party

A wine and cheese party can be a great way to get together with friends or for a special bridal or wedding shower, birthday party or other celebration. It be easy to put together with a minimum of work even if you don't know much about wine or cheese! You can throw together a simple but elegant party without a lot of fuss and have an interesting theme to boot.

You can setup your room in a couple different ways which really depends on how much room you have and the shape of your room or rooms. One way is to use a long buffet table against one wall with different sections. Another is to have several "stations" around the room by using little tables each with certain wines and their complimentary cheeses. You'll want to add some other foods too as man cannot live on wine and cheese alone! Decorations A wine and cheese party should be somewhat elegant but not too gaudy. You could have simple white tablecloths with white candles. Perhaps decorating the table with grapes and grape leaves or something seasonal such as fall leaves if the party is in the fall or holly, pine boughs and ornaments if it's at the holidays. A summer party might be cute with light floral bouquets. Fruit - especially grapes go great with wine and cheese so you could have a 3 tiered centerpiece or large antique bowl filled with grapes and other fruit on the tables too. If you choose one large table a big centerpiece would be a nice focal point, you could even use and old architectural urn filled with ice and wine bottles or a large tiered platter with various tidbits on it. You'll want to have labels for each cheese that states the name and general flavor - you can expand on that by adding the origin and maybe some history if you feel ambitious. Each section of cheese could have it's own cutting board and cutter - A cute idea would be to use the cheese boards that are made out of flattened wine bottles to cut the cheese on. Glasses and Plates You'll want to make sure to use the right type of wine glass with each wine. Red wine should be poured into a round ball shaped glass and white wine is more fluted but not as narrow as a champagne flute. Keep a bunch of each type of glass out so your guests can be sure to have the right glass at all times. For dishes you could get wine themed plates or go with an eclectic mix of little antique plates. Make sure you have plenty of little plates around to encourage quests to try small samples of cheese with each wine. What To Serve A wine and cheese party needs more than just wine and cheese! You'll also want to provide lots of interesting breads and crackers. Maybe some caviar? And don't forget dessert - a cheesecake would be in keeping with the theme but any dessert will do! And finally, some coffee might be in order after all that wine and please make sure that no one drives after having too much wine. Of course, you'll want to make sure you serve the right wine with the right cheese and in fact complimentary wine and cheese pairings can produce interesting and unusual tastes. Half the fun of a wine and cheese party is experimenting for yourself to see what new combinations you can come up with, but heres some tips to start you off: Wine And Cheese Party Pairing Tips - Wines usually go well with cheese that is from the same country or region - An acidic cheese usually goes well with acidic wines - Roquefort goes well with Port - Camembert, Cheddar and Brie go well with Cabernet and Champagne - Cream Cheese and White Zinfandel make a nice pair - Mix muenster with Beaujolais - Colby and Gouda go good with Reisling - Pair provolone with Chardonnay

Learn How Homemade Wax Sugar Waxing Recipe Can Help You Achieve Divinely Smooth Legs

There are many different homemade wax sugar waxing recipes and methods out there. This recipe is definitely one of the best recipes available because it is so simple to make and the results it achieves are great and most importantly... long lasting.

I've tried every home waxing kit available... I've spent countless hours pulling and applying the wax and ending up with irritated skin and not much to show for. I've tried shaving, and do I have to even mention the tediousness of the daily shaving routine. Sheesh! A friend shared this homemade wax sugar waxing recipe with me. I've tried it and never looked back. There are many variations of this homemade wax sugar waxing recipe out there. But, I prefer to keep it simple since it has consistently given me such great results. Homemade wax sugar waxing recipe You'll need: 2 cups of regular granulated sugar 1/4 cup of water (some people use distilled water, but tap water is just fine 1/4 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice (remove seeds). Technicalities A saucepan A plastic container or jar Dull knife Cotton strips (cut out an old t-shirt) Cooking thermometer. Preparation 1 Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. 2 Start with heating the mix up on low temperature, until the bubbles start showing up. 3 Using the thermometer, make sure the mix has reached 250F. When this happens, take it off and pour into the previously prepared container. Let the mix cool down. 4 Make sure the mix has cooled enough so it doesn't burn you. 5 Using the dull knife, spread the mix in the direction of hair growth. 6 Place the cotton strip, press with your fingers a bit and then pull in the direction opposite the hair growth. To wash off, use warm water and soap, that will do it. Homemade wax sugar waxing tips Make sure the hairs are 1/4 inch or so long. If too short, you won't be able to pull them out. This mix can be reused if you haven't used it all up the first time. Simply keep in the refrigerator and then reheat in the microwave when you want to use it. Finally, to help pull out the hairs more easily, take a shower beforehand and use a body scrub to remove extra dead skin that sugar might adhere to.

1200 Calorie Diet Menu and Meal Plan

A 1200 calorie diet is nutritionally adequate for most of the people for a healthy, safe and permanent weight loss. Starving your body with fewer calories will slow down your metabolism and consequently using up of the calories by the body will also get decreased. This will result in a tired and emaciated body and also the weight loss will not be as much as expected because the calories are still stacked up inside the body.

Following a daily diet of 1200 calories is shown to be nutrition rich to support a healthy body and also brings about the calorie deficit which eventually leads to weight loss. Of course, the actual calories that should be taken depends on a lot of factors such as age, gender, metabolic rate, body size and other medical conditions to name a few. 1200 calorie diet plan fits most of the people on average but it is necessary to confirm with a doctor or dietician before starting with the diet. How to choose the best 1200 calorie diet menu? The diet plan should be chosen in such a way that it strikes a proper balance of the macronutrients. The macronutrients include proteins, carbohydrates and fats. The calories that come from the macronutrients should be ideally distributed as follows: 15% of the calories should come from proteins, 55% of the calories should come from carbohydrates, 30% of the calories should come from fats and only less than 10% of the total calories should come from saturated forms of food. When the diet plan is composed of healthy, nutritious and wholesome food it will keep your food cravings in check and you will feel full for longer. Moreover there will not be any compromise to your health when you follow a diet that satisfies all the above conditions. A diet is followed to make us healthy, supple, strong and slim. Any proper diet should work to achieve all of these. Therefore make sure that you take nutritious food whose calories add up to 1200 or so. Sample 1200 diet plans: Below are two diet plans whose total calorific value comes around 1200. From this you can get an idea of how to construct your diet. Sample 1: Breakfast One whole wheat muffin with a spoon of peanut butter and half a banana. Mid-Morning Snack An apple and few almonds. Lunch 2 slices of whole wheat bread; 2 oz. low sodium turkey breast; 1 oz. cheese; a lettuce, an orange, a tomato and a spoon of mustard. Mid-afternoon snack 8 oz. low fat yoghurt Dinner 3 oz. skinless grilled, baked or boiled chicken breast. A cup of cooked broccoli and 2/3 of a cup of brown rice. Snack A cup of milk and two fat free fig cookies Sample 2: Breakfast A hard boiled egg, 2 slices of whole wheat bread smeared thinly with butter and a large slice of watermelon. Lunch 100gms of baked potato and baked beans and 100gms of reduce fat cottage cheese. Snack Muesli meal replacement bars. Dinner Pasta salad made with olive oil. Wash it down with tinned tuna in brine. Typically any 1200 calorie diet plan can be broken down into the following proportions: The breakfast is the most important meal of the day and makes up 300 calories of the entire 1200 calories. The mid-morning snack adds up to 100 calories, lunch to 300 calories and the mid-afternoon snack to 50 calories. Finally the dinner contributes to 450 calories of the total. Any nutrition rich diet plan that follows this breakdown can achieve good results in terms of weight loss. Snacks can be taken at any time of the day where you feel the need to snack. But timing is important for breakfast. Make sure that you finish you breakfast within an hour of the time you woke up at. For the rest of the day, timing is up to you and you can divide the calories as you want among the meals, but make sure that the total calories don't exceed 1200. Last but not least, wash down you meals with lots of water. Adequate amount of water is absolutely essential for maintaining the metabolism and for the healthy functioning of the body. Keeping your body well hydrated is an important factor that constitutes weight loss. Make it as a habit to drink at least eight glasses of water each day. It may look difficult at first, but once you start making conscious efforts it will no longer seem as hard as it was at first. A word of caution: Before you kick start on a diet, please catch up with your doctor or dietician and get expert advice on the meal plan that you have formulated. This is especially important for pregnant or breast feeding women. You don't want to follow some diet and weaken you body, so always ask for the doctor's opinions and then jump into your diet plan.

Sour Cream, Butter and Lemon Pound Cake

This Sour Cream, Butter and Lemon Pound Cake recipe goes back a couple of generations. It was my husband's grandmother's recipe for an old-fashioned Sour Cream, Butter and Lemon Pound Cake. My mother-in -law taught me how to make it. It's almost foolproof with its easy directions. (She nicknamed it her "One-step Pound Cake.") When it comes to good tasting cakes, this is a reliable show stopper! This cake has been served to many people from all over the world, and they all rave about it and it's addicting flavors.

I have a funny story to tell you about this cake. A major incident happened that became part of the "McGourty Folklore."This happened a month or so before my husband and I were married --when I was still getting "to know" my future family. One day while I was staying with his parents, in Aptos California making preparations for our upcoming wedding at the Santa Cruz Mission, I was helping my husband's mother with the cleaning of the household. I was finishing up my chores while she was busily making something for dinner. She realized that she needed to make a quick trip to the grocery store for some ingredients for that night's dinner. As she was leaving the house, she told me "Susie you're the only one that I can trust to take care of my cake, please take the cake out when the timer goes off." My father-in-law, who was very intimidating to me at the time and never seemed to crack a smile was sitting at the kitchen table talking with his closest friend (and brother-in-law) Uncle Jack. I finished up what I was doing and waited for the timer to go off. The timer went off; I got the hot pads, and opened the oven door. There I saw a cake in a tube pan that looked just like an Angel Food Cake. Quickly I asked my father-in-law where I could find an empty Coke bottle. He looked at me in bewilderment and asked what I needed a Coke bottle for? I said "there's an Angel Food Cake in the oven and it needs to be inverted" (which is standard for angel food cakes while they cool). So he motioned me toward the pantry. In the pantry, I found an awfully old and dusty Coke bottle. So I grabbed it and quickly washed it and inverted the heavy cake over the neck of the bottle. Now my husband-to-be had told me that his mother was a great cook, but try as she might, his mother just couldn't make an Angel Food Cake. From the "heaviness" of this cake I thought that it definitely wasn't a good Angel Food Cake! Then I started to leave the kitchen to go to see what my betrothed and his siblings were doing in the game room. All of a sudden, behind me there was a huge crash-bang-boom. I looked around and saw my father-in-law and Uncle Jack with big ear-to-ear "bunny rabbit smiles and laughter" on their faces as the cake and the bottle had fallen and split all over the counter and the floor. Then I heard running feet. I watched in horror as my future husband and his siblings sampled the fallen cake pieces on the counter as they picked up the remaining pieces on the floor. "Oh MY God" I screamed! No-no we've got to put that back together! No I'll make a new one!" What kind of Angel Food Cake is it?"  It wasn't an Angel Food Cake --far from it! It was this treasured recipe of his grandmother's Pound Cake! Boy ! Was I ever embarrassed!" There was one good thing about the "Pound Cake Incident" though. It really broke the ice with my father-in law. That's how I figured out that he was just "testing me" and trying to see how much gruff I would take from him. He was really a softy down deep. You'll love this cake! --It's so reliable! Not a Prima donna like a cheesecake! Your friends and family will love it! It serves AT LEAST ten to fifteen people. If you keep it refrigerated in a "cookie tin" it'll keep for weeks. It is most yummy served with tea or coffee. This cake tastes best made a day or two ahead of serving so the flavors intensify. Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 1 hour and 10 minutes MAKES 10 SERVINGS. Ingredients. (Best Results all ingredients should be at room temperature.) 1 Cup Unsalted softened butter 2 Cups Sugar 3 Extra-large Eggs , Lightly beaten 2-1/2 Cups All-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoons Salt 1/2 teaspoons Baking soda 1 teaspoons Lemon zest , (Grated lemon peel-generous amount) 1 teaspoons Vanilla extract , (generous) 1/2 teaspoons Nutmeg 1 Cup Sour Cream Powdered sugar , for dusting and presentation Preparation Directions. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. The oven rack should be in upper half of oven. Combine ingredients in a large mixer bowl in order of ingredients. Blend well, scraping up the bottom of the bowl to get all the ingredients dispersed well throughout the mixture. Set timer and beat the mixture THREE minutes at medium speed. Scrape well to make sure all ingredients are combined evenly. Pour into a greased (with Crisco)and floured tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees 60-to 70 minutes or until cake springs back when touched lightly in center. Cool the cake upright in pan for 15 minutes or so. After fifteen minutes cooling, carefully run a thin knife around the outer circumference of the tube pan, as well as around the inner tube itself. Rap the pan a couple of times on the counter. Then invert on a cake cooling rack for complete cooling. When cake is room temperature, lightly sprinkle some powder sugar over the cake for presentation. To place on serving plate, invert cake once to another plate, then again for final placement on the serving plate. Store in a  "cookie tin." Serving Suggestions. This is a wonderful cake to be served with coffee or tea!