hi cena, i feel for you! AND i have a really filling soup recipe that's great for this time of year. it's wonderful if you have leftover turkey, but if not, this is the time of year to find those huge turkey drumsticks in the meat section for cheap! now bear with me, i don't usually measure things out... TURKEY & LEEK SOUP Ingredients: * 2-3 Leeks, use both the white part and any green that isn't too tough * 2 whole turkey legs, skin and all or the carcass/bits and pieces of leftover turkey * 1 whole onion * 3 or so carrots * several stalks of celery * 1/2 pint of whipping cream * potatos--optional if you don't want too many carbs * optional: turkey drippings (absolutely! if you have some) * chicken stock, if necessary * kale, if you like (optional) this makes a big soup pot full chop and saute the veggies in olive oil until soft and then add in enough water to cover the two turkey legs or whatever bones and bits of leftover turkey you're using bring to boil and then simmer for at least 20-30 minutes, but definitely until the turkey legs are cooked through. strip meat from any bones and blend everything. put the mix back on the stove and add as much cream as you like--i add the whole half pint because i love it! salt & pepper to taste. add additional chicken stock or turkey drippings if you think the soup is too thick. you can add water if you don't have stock, but it may dilute the flavor. i like to simmer in some chopped kale to add texture, but it's not necessary. VOILA! serve with a dollop of sour cream or some cheese grated on top, if you're not counting calories. i made this soup for geoff's family right after thanksgiving (they were going to throw the turkey carcass out AND the drippings--blasphemy!). it was a big hit even though i think i added so much turkey that it overwhelmed the taste of leeks. maybe because i don't measure, but this soup always turns out different for me, texture-wise. i don't often add the potatos, but i have when i've had some i needed to use up. it really thickens up the soup, though, so be warned. this time of year, leeks should look their best in the supermarket AND kale (especially the lacinato variety) is especially sweet. at other times i've sauteed the veggies with various herbs in the first step, but i find the soup is hearty and flavorful enough without them. happy holidays, cena, and hope you make the switch to solids soon! -ming

Thanks Phyllis! Yes I have seen that idea as well as using a 5 gallon white plastic jug from laundry softener and cutting a hole, or a big white plastic basin. A lot of the success depends on the strength of the lamps you use outside to light up the inside of the container. And if you have a DSLR with a flash that can be tilted up towards the ceiling or behind, you can use an airline barf bag (excuse the term) slipped over the flash attachment to diffuse the light. I'm uploading these tutorials onto their own blog, at the rate one per week, with links to other interesting places and will also be adding some sections on using a DSLR: aperture and depth of field, understanding f stops, shutter speed, bracketing exposures and a little more. SharonCb

This evening I didn't cook, but my sons came to see me and together we went to see my parents. That is reason enough for them to come to town and spend time with me and my parents, but we planned to go to a new Thai restaurant for dinner and they serve sushi, which they were looking forward to having. But as plans go, the new place was closed for 3 days over the July 4th holiday, so we had to go to Plan B. I said that we would drive by another Thai place to see if they also had sushi and if not, then Plan C, yet another Asian Bistro place that served Thai dishes. Well, what luck! We were approaching the restaurant (second Thai place) and a couple of employees were there holding open the door inviting us into their Open House! Food and wine/beer, etc. all FREE! They did indeed have sushi also! We had lots of selections to choose from on their small buffet and enjoyed our meal very much. We had good service, a very hospitable staff and really nice decor. Their former place was just two doors down, but they decided it was much too big, so they had just re-opened at a smaller spot with a new name. Of course, we each left a large tip but we were able to try many dishes from their menu! What a treat!

There is a product that is like a non dairy whipped cream. Pastry Pride and Flavor Right are two brands. You whip it up like whipped cream but it has the consistency of icing. It tastes fine on it's own and is extremely low sugar and dairy free. You can flavor it with cocoa powders,pudding mix or custard mix. You can even mix cream cheese into it. I use it more for fillings ( makes a lovely custard) than I do icing since everyone loves my buttercream. But it does taste good and is extremely stable. It pipes well. You can freeze the unwhipped and even freeze it whipped. It can be left out at room temperature even in warm conditions for 24 hours and remain stable.It does tend to crust however after a longer time out. If I can't use buttercream for some reason I use it. It is excellent in hot weather. The only icing I can't stand is fondant. It looks good and you can look like an artist without too much practice creating fabulous "looking" cakes but I prefer not to have to chew my icing. LOL