Sometimes You Just Need a Puppy

Charlie Brown in His Sweater

This is Charlie Brown in his little sweater I made him out of an old sweater of mine. I was so cold that day. But since that day I have found out he loves snow. And have crocheted him a little coat that I will show you later.

Charlie is a Malshi that means his mamma was a Shih Tzu and his daddy a Maltese. They are like little stuffed animals with motors. Really. Absolutely adorable.

I'll send you another post soon on how he is doing.

Here is the pattern:

On The Keto Diet and My Triglycerides Are Crazy Low

Blueberry Zucchini Cake with Lemon Frosting

My Triglycerides are lower than they have ever been. 

Really, I'm not joking. 

I felt a little like a time bomb waiting to happen. 

How did I do this wonderful thing? 

By eating a Ketogenic Diet. 

It's Low Carb with a twist. 

And I love it!!

Of all of the Low Carb, Keto recipes that I have made 

this is really the best. Or close to the best. 

Sometimes you just need a little something sweet without breaking the bank. 

The carb bank that is. Everyone that tasted it loved it. 

You can go to Carolyn's web pages for more wonderful recipes. 

You won't be sorry. It's Here. 

And no you can't see or taste the zuchinni. 

I used a 9x13 inch baking pan and it worked great. 

I added a little extra lemon and zest because 

I love lemon. 

Blueberry Zucchini Cake with Lemon Frosting

Yield: 1 9-inch cake

Serving Size: 1/16th of cake

The best low carb cake of the summer! Zucchini, blueberries and lemon come together in a heavenly gluten-free, grain-free dessert. Inspired by I Am Baker

Ingredients

Cake:
• 3 cups shredded zucchini
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 cups almond flour
• 1/3 cup unflavoured whey protein powder (Low Carb)
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup Swerve Sweetener
• 1/2 tsp liquid stevia or Sucralose drops (my personal favorite) 
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
Lemon Frosting:
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
• 2 tbsp freshly grated lemon zest
• 3 to 4 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Garnish:
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries

Instructions

Cake:
1. Place zucchini in a sieve and sprinkle with salt. Toss to combine. Let drain 1 hour and then press on zucchini to release as much moisture as possible.
2. Preheat oven to 325F and grease 2 (two) 9-inch round cake pans very well. You can use 8 inch pans as well but your cake will need to bake a little longer. And if your pans are not very non-stick, you may want to line them with parchment paper and grease the parchment.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, whey protein, baking powder and salt.
4. In a large bowl, beat butter with sweetener(s) until well combined. Beat in eggs, lemon zest, zucchini and vanilla extract. Beat in almond flour mixture until well combined. (If your batter is quite dry, add 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk until it is a thick but spreadable batter).
5. Gently fold in blueberries. Divide batter between prepared pans and spread evenly to the edges. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and set on the top. Remove and let cool 10 minutes in pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frosting:
6. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Beat in sweetener until well combined, then beat in lemon zest.
7. Beat in 3 tbsp lemon juice. Add remaining tbsp if frosting is too thick.
8. Place first cake layer on a serving platter and spread the top with half of the frosting. Add second cake layer and spread with remaining frosting. Top with fresh blueberries.

Notes

Serves 16. Each serving has 9.73 g of carbs and 3.11 g of fiber. Total NET CARBS = 6.62 g.

Food energy: 310kcal Total fat: 26.35g Calories from fat: 237 Cholesterol: 81mg Carbohydrate: 9.73g Total dietary fiber: 3.11g Protein: 8.50g

Love, Grammy T.

A New Start No Matter How Old you Are

I am still enthralled by the Keto Diet that I have been studying about. There is a very touching video by Kristie, a lady that changed the way she eats and the way she looks. It is about her journey of being very chubby all her life and now at 45 she is finally wearing the clothes she has always wanted to wear. Her story is here and you should watch it if you also struggle with being heavy or just not feeling good. 

Kristie asked a lady that she went to church with to pray for her in her struggles with weight loss. She just couldn't do the things she wanted with her family being as heavy as she was. This lady not only said that she would pray for her but she also brought her the book that had changed her life. Now Kristie dedicates her life sharing how she now cooks for herself and for her family in her YouTube videos called "Cooking Keto with Kristie"

I have been eating this way for awhile now and I do have more energy and I am loosing weight also. There are so many names for eating this way and so many YouTube videos showing you how to cook this way that you can't go wrong trying it. 

We are all getting older all of the time and it isn't fun being old and tired and in pain. This way of eating helps to eliminate the tired and the pain part, the getting old part is just the way it is but we may as well make it as good as possible, not by taking pills etc. but by eating the way we should to feel better.  

I hope this post will give you the information that you need to make a new start no matter how old you are. 

Love, Grammy T.

Diet Cauliflower Tattie Mash

Cauliflower Tattie Mash

When we were in Ireland Tommy Tynan our bus driver/guide called mashed potatoes Tatties. In fact the Haggis we had in Scotland tasted delish on those tatties. Well I've been craving mashed potatoes but decided to do Cauliflower Tattie Mash instead. 

I had some left over taco meat so replaced Haggis with that and then I made my "Tatties".

Here is the recipe:

• 2 - bags of frozen cauliflower cooked until very tender in the microwave for about 6 minutes each bag.
• 4 Tbls. butter
• 4 tbls. grated cheese, I use Parmesan, Dubliner (in honor of Tommy) or sharp Cheddar. 
• 3 Tbls. of homemade ranch dressing that is made with heavy whipping cream and mayo.
• Pepper to taste, it already has lots of salt from the other ingredients but that is up to you.

Dump all of the above in your food processor and whip. Dump in a bowl and top with a big pat of butter. Walaaa you have it. 

So yummy, so filling and you are getting your veggies in the evening which helps with a good nights sleep. 

Enjoy. :) 

Love, Grammy T.

Diet Fudge Recipe

I've been living the love of the Keto diet now for a couple of weeks and have a few updates for you. 

1. Eat what you like. You will be more apt to succeed if you do and I found if I ate my favorite Keno friendly veggies at night with lots of butter and salt and pepper I had a good nights sleep. For those of you that haven't had a good nights sleep being on keto then that might be your answer too. 

2.I have lost 5 pounds, yeah me but think I could do even better if I don't go hog wild on the protein. So I have reset my macros (see the My Fitness Pal App for your phone) to be 15% protein, 10% carbs and 75% fat which means all things naturally fat like butter, coconut oil, bacon grease and olive oil. No corn oil type stuff. Did you know that the turkey growers tried to fatten up there turkeys in the 1940's with margarine and killed them? The turkey's that is. So don't kill yourself with that stuff. Do what the pioneers did and eat the butter and the bacon and the bacon grease. 

3. If I'm not hungry I don't eat. That simple. My daddy always said we eat to keep from getting hungry not just because we're hungry. But I'll take that up with him at a later date. So in the morning I am not hungry for hours so I drink my keto lemonade which is a little lemon juice, Himalayan salt and water. If I get a little hungry I make a bullet hot cocoa which is fun with whip cream, butter, cocoa powder, sweetner like splenda or stevia (not sugar) hot water and whipped to a froth. 

I'm going to give you another fun fat bomb recipe. I also am going to make these for my hubby who is a diabetic for Fathers Day. 

Fudgy Macadamia Chocolate Fat Bomb

 

Author: Vivica Menegaz

Ingredients

• 2 oz (58gr) Cocoa Butter (if you make a lot of chocolate this one is the most convenient)
• 2 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 Tbs Swerve
• 4 oz (112gr) Chopped macadamias (bulk is cheaper!)
• ¼ cup Heavy cream or coconut oil for dairy free option

Instructions

1. Melt cocoa butter in a small sauce pan in a bath of water. (I just use another slightly bigger sauce pan, half full with water)
2. Add cocoa powder to the sauce pan.
3. Now add the Swerve and mix well until all ingredients are well blended and melted.
4. Add macadamias and stir in well.
5. Add cream, mix well and bring back to temperature.
6. Now pour in molds or paper candy cups.
7. Let cool, then put in the fridge to harden.
8. Keeps at room temperature, with a slightly softer consistency than chocolate.

Have fun trying some of these recipes and let me know how you are doing on your own keto diet. 

Love, Grammy T.

One Of The Bests Of Keto Dieting

One of the funnest and yummy recipes that have tried are the Cream Cheese Pancakes (Low Carb and Gluten Free). My hubby and I both loved them. We had them with bacon and sugar free maple syrup. He happens to be diabetic so these recipes are good for him too. You can find the recipe here. 

One of the best websites is on the All Sweetener List for well just what it says - sweeteners.  It has a huge list of what is good and what is not good. A must see.  

One of the best websites on Keto Dieting is by Martina All You need To Know About Carbs. Go see her there you will love her. She is blonde and cute and a major brainiac when it come the Keto Diet. She has an app that makes life a lot simpler and cookbooks too. Here is her KetoDiet Buddy - Easy Way to Calculate Your Macros on a Ketogenic Diet.

One of the best All around websites with recipes that are gluten free and low carb is right here at I Breathe I'm Hungry. Ok, so how can you go wrong when you look at all of that great food to eat? 

Happy Ketoing everyone.

Love,
Grammy T. 
xoxoxo

PS:
I told you I'd be right back. And remember I told you I had three other things I'm excited about right now. Because I figure if I can't be excited about something 'shoot me now' . :)

Time For a Keto Diet

What have I been up to you ask. Well three or four things really. So I'll tell you all about them one at a time so as not to exhaust you. 

First off I am on a Keto Diet and I Love it!!! What is a the ketogenic diet? It is a high fat, moderate protein, low carb diet. It's a diet that causes ketones to be produced by the liver, shifting the body's metabolism away from glucose and towards fat utilization. It has been making my skin itch because of the liver thing but I can fix it quick by rinsing off in the shower. That works and I take milk thistle and dandelion root. And that is helping. I drink lot's of water like it is my job. I drink a hot drink called Pero with butter, coconut oil, heavy cream and no cal sweetner then whipped to a froth. Yumm and it makes me use the restroom regularly which is nice too. 

Lemon Cloud Pie Recipe

What is a Ketosis Diet good for? It's good for high triglycerides, 

fatty liver and a myriad of other ailments. 

The first time I got acquainted with high protein low carb diets was when I was pregnant with my second baby. The doctor said I was on the verge of having toxemia and that unless I went on the high protein, low carb diet he gave me he was going to put me in the hospital. So I obeyed him and I lost 10 pounds in a week. I'm sure it was a lot of water but still it kept me out of the hospital and I did really good on it until I delivered my baby girl. The second time was when I was pregnant with my fifth baby, yes I have lots of kids. I needed to loose the water weight and keep myself from the hospital again so I went on a low carb high protein diet and did really good and again lost 10 pounds in a week. After that I ate lots of egg and cheese omelettes with hot sauce for my two other pregnancies. That kept me faraway from toxemia because we need the extra protein when we are pregnant. Just like my ewes needed extra protein when they were about to lamb.  

I always did love sweets and those are not good for me. I found a few websites with lots of help and recipes etc. One is "I Breathe I'm Hungry". Look at this lemon pie which fits into my diet regime!!  Click the picture to get the recipe and she has lot's more.  

Another site is: 
Keto Diet App. And she has these killer Keto Bounty Bars. Check them out. 

Oh how many calories a day? I like to eat 800-1200 a day. that's all I need but I'm never hungry with this Kenosis way of eating. 

Well I think that is good for today. 

Love,
Grammy T.

Greek Yogurt And All It's Whey

My Homemade Greek Yogurt

I have started making my own Greek Yogurt and it is so yummy. It's uses are endless. It is so creamy and just right for breakfast with blueberries or other fruit and it can be used as sour cream in a myriad of recipes. But along with the creamy Greek Yogurt comes a lot of whey. And you mustn't just throw that away down the drain because it is not good for the fish that it would eventually come in contact with.

This is how I make my Greek yogurt:

I buy a gallon of vitamin D milk for $2.25 at Smith's in Utah.

My homemade double boiler.

I put the milk in a large pot and set that pot in another larger pot to make a double boiler. It heats faster that way and you don't get any scorch to the milk, which makes a grainier yogurt. 

I heat the milk to 180 degrees and then put it in my freezer covered until it comes back down to 110 degrees. 

At that point I can add my live culture which is about 3 Tablespoons of yogurt or 1/2 cup of the whey I saved from my last batch of yogurt. Or sometimes I mix the two and add that. I put my covered pot in the oven that has the light on so it stays at about 110 degrees and I wait for about 8 to 12 hours. I use 12 hours if I've shut the light off and it is a bit cooler in the oven. 

Remember don't jiggle it or stir it or anything like. I don't touch it for 12 hours.

Then I put it in a strainer covered with a thin dish cloth that I set in a larger bowl. I like to keep it higher than the bottom so it doesn't sit in the whey. I tried using cheesecloth doubled but it ran through it. It probably would have been fine if I would have tripled it. 

My tea-towel strainer.

I clip up my ends of the cloth with clothes pins and make sure they are folded to the inside or it will drip out on your counter or frig.  

I set it in the frig for a few hours and then I put it in containers and wha-la I have the yummiest Greek yogurt I've ever tasted. I saved my Greek yogurt containers that I had gotten at the store. 


The Brand that Costco sells is a good price but gave me a stomach ache so I knew it had some raw milk or cream added to it after the rest was cultured. If your lactose in tolerant the cultured yogurt won't bother you. 

The brand Greek God's Greek Yogurt didn't give me a stomach ache either. It was $4.50 at Walmart. 



But mine is $2.25 from my kitchen and gives me almost twice as much. Plus I have Whey. What to do with it all?

Whey for smoothies.

I figured that if you can buy powdered whey for shakes and smoothies I'd try my liquid whey. So I have used it in my smoothies and it works out great. It is loaded with proteins and minerals. 

One muscle builder guy said; "Whey is really rich in protein and contains nine amino acids that would help to gain muscle mass. " I'll pass on the muscle mass but it might be cuter than fat mass. :) In fact Cheese-makers have developed a lucrative business selling whey protein for use in body-building supplements and as a food ingredient. And Greek yogurt makers are eager to follow suit.

My Happy Plant

I diluted it and watered the plant on my front porch. It was looking a bit sad. Now it is a very happy healthy looking plant. 

I freeze it for use in the future.

It is fantastic in baked goods like bread, cupcakes and even pancakes. 

Now it's your turn. What do you use whey for. Any kind of whey. Just give us some ideas that have worked for you. 

Love,
Grammy T. 

Lo Carb Diet and Cheesy Biscuit copycats

Cheese Biscuits like Red Lobster's

So I didn't want to do it, that Lo Carb diet.  Now truth be told I'd been having hot red burning feet at night for awhile and knew what it meant. It usually means too much sugar in the blood. And I knew what I had to do. Also my stomach was puffing way out and was very uncomfortable. And I have high triglycerides and I felt like a big mess. 

But while looking at Facebook the other day I ran into a recipe for those Cheese Biscuits like they have at Red Lobster. 

You heard of the man that died because he ate 420 of these awesome biscuits. They are really good but not that good. Goodness!

Back to my story. On Facebook I went to the page of the girl with the recipe and I found a video about how she has lost 108 pounds from eating low carb.  And she also shows the most gorgeous recipes that are way over the top full of carbs for picnics and church socials. She's a very smart marketer because she sells weight loss pills too and has over 1,350,000 followers! 

Anyway back to her lo carb video's:

Shopping for Low Carb #2. Love the simplicity of it. This is the video that got me started. .

I love this frozen with 3 drops of doTerra lemon essential oil or lemon juice. Danny loves them with blueberries. A fun little one carb dessert. 

How to cook a low carb dinner.

I don't do Courtney's pills but I thank her for the big fat push that I need to get me back on the diet a doctor put me on when I was on my mission in Florida. And if you have trouble with diabetics this is for you also. 

How do I feel now after 5 days on the low carb? My feet don't burn anymore and my tummy is better and I don't feel like a mess anymore. :)

Now that I shared this awesomeness I can, 
Quilt On!


Love,
Grammy T. 

I Love Pattern Jam

Designed by me on Pattern Jam.

Have you heard of Pattern Jam?

 It is a really fun website that you can design 

quilts on. 

I chose the Argyle pattern so that I could enter a contest. 

You can enter the contest too if you want

 just go to Pattern Jam 

and go to their blog and 

walah you can enter. 

Love,

Grammy T.

Let's Make a Sleeve

One of the quilts I'll be hanging is from the 

Cottage Garden Collection 

by Riley Blake.

Mine is called 

"Cottage Garden Orange Peels"

Here is the back.

This quilt was quilted by me and Stacey Simmons

it is for my sister in law

 but the real show quilt is being quilted by 

Stacey Simmons and can be seen here at Stacey's Studio.

This is the certificate from MQG.
I didn't get one but bought my own fabric.

So now lets's make a hanging sleeve, a four inch quilt hanging sleeve to be exact. When quilts are hung at quilt shows they have to have a hanging sleeve on them. I have never made a sleeve until now and I really love the way that this video shows us how to do it. It is so easy when done this way.

Cut 81/2 inches by the width of your quilt top. So 81/2 by 60 as an example.
Now follow the instructions in the video and walaa you have a quilt sleeve.

Never fear my little Quilty's "If there is a will, there is a way."

Love,
Grammy T.

Remember When

Dyeing Easter Eggs with Onion Skins, Estonian style

Remember when I told you about these darling 

Easter Eggs died with onion skins. 

They really are so cute. 

I've had a lot of people tell me that they have tried them and 

loved the outcome. 

Let's try them again and let me know what you think. 

You can find all of the instructions with 

other Easter recipes on 

Nami-Nami's blog here. 

Happy Easter Week.

Love,

Grammy T.

#BFPTqal From The Book "Blocks From The Past"

These are blocks for the #BFPTqal challenge. 

The above are:

1. Duck and Duckling

2. Carrie Nation

3. Jacobs Ladder 

4. Cake Stand

5. Windblown Square

6. This And That

7. Friendship Album

The book we are using is on the right side at the top.

I have done two more but will show them next time. I did the Churn Dash Wrong. I will still use it in my son's quilt but I will make another Churn Dash the right way and show you the difference. 

I do love this challenge it has been fun and challenging for me. It makes me think of all of the quilts from the past in America that used these blocks. The pieces are little and use very little fabric. So I have used scrapes except for the black borders. 

Love,

Grammy T.

Click here for the Schedule and Calender for the #bfptqal.

Teach Yourself Blocks from the Past QAL or #BFPTqal or #NMQGsampler Challenge

"Teach Yourself Blocks from the Past"

I'm excited to be able to get started on this fun sampler Quilt Along. 

I'm a little behind but I will post my progress. 

You can join me in this so please do. 

This is how.

First off, get a copy of the book, 

"Teach Yourself Blocks from the Past" 

by Marie Henry.  

It is available from many online stores and 

a picture and link are at the

right of this post. 

Now follow the schedule below.

Here is the fabric I am thinking of using because 

I want this quilt to be for my son Tim. 

So it has to be guyish. 

I'm all about stash busting right now and am using 
only fabrics from my stash.

Do you think this looks guyish?

I am still quilting the "Scrappy Mess" I am making for my son Todd 

and because I quilt on a Bernina 550 

I quilt small in each block. 

Uggggh.

"Scrappy Mess Quilt"

Here are the official Nebo Modern Quilt Guild Sampler Challenge Guidelines.

#1 Make a sampler quilt over the next six months (January-June).  It can be any size you like, with as many blocks as you like (at least more than one).
#2  Bring your blocks in to share with the guild each month.
#3  Be BRAVE and have FUN!!!

Week 1 Jan 5 Intro to QAL and Schedule (Marion) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

Week 2 Jan 12 Fabric requirements (Natalie) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 3 January 19 p, 8,9,60 (Natalie) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 4 January 26 p.10, 11, 61 (Konda) moosequilts.com/blog

Week 5 February 2 p. 13,14,62 (Marion) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

Week 6 Feb 9 p. 15,16,63 (Machelle) cherrytreecottagequilts.blogspot.com

Week 7 February 16 p. 17,18,65 (April) april-makingendsmeet.blogspot.com

Week 8 February 23 p. 19,20,66 (Terry) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 9 March 2 p. 21,22,67 (Ginny) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

Week 10 March 9 p. 23,24,68 (Maggie) shortcookie.blogspot.com

Week 11 March 16 p. 25,26,69 (Emily) Simplegirlsimplelife.com

Week 12 March 23 p. 27,28,70 (Barbie) thequiltingmill.blogspot.com

Week 13 March 30 p. 29,30,72 (Tiffany) Sewinsomethin.blogspot.com

Week 14 April 6 p. 33,34,74 (Maggie) shortcookie.blogspot.com

Week 15 April 13 p. 35,36,75 (Natalie) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 16 April 20 p. 37,39,76 (Katie) ocouss.blogspot.com

Week 17 April 27 p. 40,41,77 (Marion) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

Week 18 May 4 p. 42,43,78 (Barbie) thequiltingmill.blogspot.com

Week 19 May 11 p. 44,45,79 (Konda) moosequilts.com/blog

Week 20 May 18 p. 46,47,80 (Machelle)  cherrytreecottagequilts.blogspot.com

Week 21 May 25 p. 48,49,81 (Stacy) Sewnicetocreate.blogspot.com

Week 22 June 1 p. 50,51,82 (Barbie) thequiltingmill.blogspot.com

Week 23 June 8 p. 53, 83, 91(Natalie) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 24 June 15 p. 55,84,92  (Tiffany) Sewinsomethin.blogspot.com

Week 25 June 22 p. 56, 86, 93 (Marion) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

Week 26 June 29 p. 87,88,94 (Katie) ocouss.blogspot.com

Week 27 July 6 Sashing and setting (Natalie) natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com

Week 28 July 13  Wrap up (Marion) myquiltdiet.blogspot.com

We can't wait to see your progress.  Be sure to tag your progress on Instagram with #BFTPqal and #NMQGsamplerCHALLENGE.

Love,
Grammy T.