Sylvia's Scenario

Appetizers don't get much easier than this one.  I've always loved putting Trader's Joe's seasoning called Everything but the Bagel Sesame on things like my eggs for breakfast and now here is another idea you can use when guests come over.   If you aren't familiar with this Trader Joe's product, it is a seasoning blend of sea salt, garlic, onion, sesame seeds, black sesame seeds and poppy seeds.  It makes everything taste like a bagel with everything on it.  People love this appetizer which is not too filling but instead very refreshing because of the cool cucumber.  The seasoning adds just enough kick with the cream cheese to get a reaction "Ohhh, these are good!"  You almost forget that you're biting into a cucumber instead of a bagel.  I mean, who doesn't like a bagel with everything on it?   I got this recipe from  Hannah Freeze, RD , so you know these are low carb and good for you.   The seasoning gives these that salty, flavorful taste in

 The grand finale of our July celebrations in our family was Lauren's birthday yesterday.  We celebrated  at our house out on the deck and had a very fun and  deliciously  good time. It's been non-stop around here since  Father's Day  when we had our first relatively large gathering at our house since the pandemic by inviting some friends over to celebrate with us. The rest of the celebrations have just been immediate family but it's been one-after-the other in July; Fourth of July, Nick's birthday, my birthday, our anniversary and now Lauren's birthday .  Last year, I made Lauren's favorite cake, the  Lemon Curd and White Chocolate Truffle Cake .  (The grandkids loved it!) I've made this a few times for Lauren's birthday, as well as for Easter, but this year I told Lauren I wanted to try a new recipe, an ice cream cake.  We've been having endless warm weather this summer so it was a perfect summer to try an ice cream cake so Triple-Chocolate Ic

Our third celebration of the month popped up over the weekend after my birthday on the 11th and Nick's birthday on the 8th.  I wrote about them here .  On Sunday, July 18th, we had our 40th anniversary.  We probably would have done something remarkable like take a fancy trip somewhere or take a cruise or go somewhere outstanding had it been normal times.  I don't feel like these are normal times even though the government has "opened up" everything again.  The cruise ships in Elliot Bay were all lined up this weekend to begin their cruises to Alaska again so things are trying to get back to normal.  We had to go down to the beach and see them because it was such an abnormal sight after a year of shut down.   I do not feel motivated to hop on a cruise ship just yet or to travel anywhere at this point.  Aside from covid still running rampant, I don't feel like going anywhere because this is the best time of the year to enjoy living in Seattle.  We moved back six yea

I made these little tasty morsels today to try to satisfy my sweet tooth.  I haven't been eating sugar lately and then suddenly last week, we celebrated two birthdays with birthday cake and now I crave sugar everyday.  Once I start, I can't stop!  So, I'm hoping these little treats will help me get back on track.  These are made with 72% dark chocolate that I buy at Trader Joe's so it's semi-healthy sugar. Dark chocolate that is over 70% cacao has less sugar and is rich in antioxidants, flavanols and minerals so if you're going to eat sugar, this is the healthiest kind to eat.  And it's delicious so it totally satisfies me.  This recipe is similar to the  Inside Out Almond Joy treats I made for Valentine's Day and they are very easy to make, too.  When I get off track on my eating, I get real off track.  This recipe is from  Hannah Freese, RD  and she emphasizes eating her meal plans 80% of the time.  But when I go off the meal plans, it's hard for

Our local grocery store often has specials that include aged top sirloin steak- buy one, get one free. We usually have these in the freezer and Bruce and I will then split one between us for dinner. We took a few of these out of the freezer when we had steak to celebrate Father's Day  this year. Of course, they aren't as great as t he special Waygu beef from Japan that we gave Nick on Father's Day but they were definitely the second best. You can't beat a good quality barbecued steak. However, we've changed it up a bit this summer and I'm trying new recipes with steak for variety and this steak recipe with Chimichurri sauce is a winner. Chimichurri sauce is a sauce that is very popular in Argentina and South America where it is used to accompany steak or used as a condiment for fish, chicken, lamb or even pasta.  You can consider it a lot like how we use  pesto  in our country.   I got this recipe from  Hannah Freese, RD  and the portion said 8 servings but Br