I find spice blends helpful in cooking low sodium foods for my husband. I like Tony Cachere's Salt Free blend and Penzey's Mural of Flavor along with its Adobo, the Singapore, and the Jerk. I also like Chef Paul Prudhomme's Magic Salt Free Seasoning. My favorite Chili powder blend is Grandma's, but it's becoming harder & harder for me to find. And I'm another who likes Sun curry powder. I found my favorite and most used blends quite by accident and in an unexpected store. I discovered several really good salt-free blends at Cost Plus World Market. I've been using their Chicago Chop & Steak blend for grilled meats. The Thai Spice blend is great sprinkled on Asian inspired dishes. I've used the Greek Mediterranean blend on roasted asparagus and chicken. I like it a lot better than Cavender's Salt Free Greek seasoning or Penzey's Salt Free Lamb seasoning. I've used the Garlic Pepper blend on all kinds of things, including last week's rib roast. The Cal Mex & the Fajitas blends are great for Mexican inspired dishes. The Jerk Chicken & Fish blend is tasty too. And the Key Lime blend has a spicy & tangy citrus kick to it. To tell the truth, I wasn't expecting much, but I'm really impressed with the flavors.

I'm home and I survived another holiday! We went to friends' in rural north San Diego county - we are both child-free couples so this has become a tradition. One more couple joined us, as they did last year. I was ordered to bring a delectable dessert - ME! Dessert! Hence the thread, blah-blah. What did I end up making? First I was going to do Nancy's pumpkin creme brulee. But the hostess said she was making smoky pumpkin soup. And it wasn't something I could easily make in advance, according to me. So I changed my mind and made Sharon's pears in port with stilton whipped cream, and a flourless chocolate cake with raspberry ganache. I also made mini pumpkin and walnut scones with a maple icing for the long weekend. And I brought a roquefort tort with cranberries and roasted hazelnuts, from Costco. When I got there, I found that there was a change - no smoky pumpkin soup. It was going to be pear soup! LOL. We had too much stuff, so I refrigerated the pears to eat another time during the weekend. They were delicious by the way - thank you Sharon! I bought a huge bottle of tawny port so I will be making these again for ourselves this winter. The flourless chocolate cake was served with a generous dollop of whipped cream and garnished with fresh raspberries. It was delicious too. It was too easy to make in advance and will be added to my limited dessert repertoire. The friends had a new 75-pound Pyrenees puppy (I had seen her earlier in the year when she was a lot smaller), and four egg-laying hens. Along with the existing Pyrenees, Retriever and four cats, it was a full house and I don't think I'll get the dog hair out of my clothes for a few washings, LOL!

My DH spent 10 days in Pari , in Tuscany, this past May. There is an institute there and the village is about 100 people. He had fabulous meals all cooked in a modest setting. It took 3 hrs each noon to eat and then he went for a long walk. He never gained a #. Giacomo is sure right about one thing...I have a great racing bike that can go very fast....but it is the motor...my body, that causes that to happen. You can sure have a fancy kitchen with all the bells and whistles but as he said it is the cook ...my DS1's kitchen at his restaurant is so so low on the scale of tech and efficient...but boy the meals that guy puts out...rivals anything you will get anywhere in the world. c

there's a Penzey's STORE not too far from me in Philly area. I'm SCARED TO DEATH to go there. have a feeling it would make Whole Paycheck... i mean Whole Foods look tame by comparison?? a few years back made several herb/spice blends as part of Christmas goodie basket gifts. could cut WAY back on salt in mixes. when you buy something like "lemon pepper" seasoning and first ingredient is SALT... what's with that?