Sylvia's Scenario

I've been feeling like Tex-Mex food ever since I returned from my trip to Sedona last weekend.  My friend, Marge, and I took this trip as a restorative trip because of the loss of her mom and her husband recently.  It's been tough for her the past few months so we knew we needed to take this trip and we're so glad we did.  The Red Rock Country, where Sedona is located in Arizona, is known to have a very healing effect on people so that's why we headed there.  Nature is always good for the soul and the nature in Sedona is over the top.  The natural beauty is in every direction that you might look.  As if the natural beauty there wasn't enough, Sedona is also known for it's vortexes or spiritual "power spots".  This is where the energy of the life force of the earth is especially strong and they are all over the place in Sedona.  These are places that help you become more in touch with your feelings and find inner peace and solace.   There are ...

This is one of the best salmon recipes I've cooked in awhile.  I have a lot of salmon recipes on this blog but I think this is one of my favorites so far from   Hannah Freese, RD .   We actually had this recipe twice because I had so much of the sauce leftover so we saved it and then had it again with salmon a few days later.  And we still did not get tired of it.  It's the kind of recipe that you'll lick your plate to make sure you get all the sauce.  It is made from this Thai red curry paste so the recipe is very simple when you use this pre-made curry paste.                          I get it at Target, believe it or not.  I started doing online shopping at Target for a few items during "year one" of the pandemic.  I love shopping this way because all you do is walk into the store, go to the pick-up counter, show your I.D. and your bag is handed to you.  It is so easy.  N...

We are still having soup weather around here...rain, rain, rain.  Do you know there are six types of rain? Isn't rain just rain?  Oh no, not if you live in Seattle.  There was a whole article about it in the Sunday paper this week.  Just what we wanted to read about after a wonderful Hawaiian vacation.  UGH!  Anyway, the six types are drizzle, mist, sprinkles, "normal rain", downpours, and thunderstorms.  Isn't that just lovely and what you always wanted to know?  So, I go make myself another pot of soup for dinner and sit down to watch the drizzle, or is mist?  Maybe sprinkles?  I think it's rain.   This recipe is super easy and a perfect meal to let slowly cook away while its raining all day.  It is from  Hannah Freese, RD  and since she recommends cutting out "white carbs",  there is no bun in this cheeseburger.  Remember my  Cheeseburger Salad  from June?  When you are trying to avoid the ...

Since we've been home from Hawaii, it's been a sloooooooooooow process getting back into my regular eating routine by following  Hannah Freese, RD's  eating plan.  I was very proud of myself in Hawaii by sticking to the plan most the time.  I felt the best I've felt on a vacation in a long time, full of energy and very active swimming and going for daily walks with no aches or pains like I usually have.  I can tell my joint replacements are working well and I felt so strong and healthy in Hawaii  until I got covid.  Yep, I got it.  Darn it.  First, my sister and her husband tested positive and three days later I tested positive so I had to isolate for 5 days by not leaving our condo.  My sister and her husband both had coughs so they checked into a new condo to isolate.  Bruce, mysteriously never got it for some reason...lucky guy!  My brother and his wife were also there in another condo and they never got it, either.  Th...

One of the highlights of our trip to Hawaii was touring a vanilla bean farm in Paauilo, Hawaii on the Big Island of Hawaii. It was about 1-1/2 hours from Kailua-Kona where we always stay but it was a very scenic and enjoyable drive.  We have not been to Hawaii in 10 years since we went in 2011 for our 30th anniversary.  I wrote about that trip  here  and it's so good to be back.   We love it here.  Our trip overlapped with my sister and her husband  and also my brother and his wife.  We always go to our favorite beaches and snorkeling places, although when we first arrived, the beaches were closed because of high surf warnings so that was very exciting.  Instead, we watched the lifeguard have a busy day on the beach and then watched the surfers enjoy the rare 8 to 10 foot waves that evening while we ate dinner at a restaurant with the best view called Papa Kona .    . We also went to a seniors PGA golf tournament at  Hualalai G...