Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world. Here's what I ate yesterday...

Breakfast: I made a batch of Ricotta Pancakes. I love these. It makes 8 so tomorrow's breakfast is super easy. If you loved Lemon Poppy Seed Cake or Muffins this breakfast is a must try.

Shelly's Lemon Poppy Seed Ricotta Pancakes

1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 Egg, beaten
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Lemon Pudding Mix, dry
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Vanilla Torani Syrup
3 Tablespoons Multigrain Pancake Mix
1 teaspoon Poppy Seeds

Mix all ingredients together. I use whole milk ricotta, if you use part skim, drain first. Spray pan with non-stick spray. Spoon a dollop of mixture in pan and pat flat. Cook on low till golden, flip, pat flat, cook till done. Serve each pancake with a drizzle of warm Sugar Free Orange Marmalade or delicious just plain. Makes 8 pancakes.

These can be frozen between slices of wax paper or kept in the fridge a day or 2 and reheated (nuke 25 seconds) for breakfast during the week. Surprising good cold too. Leftovers usually get some SF jam or almond butter smeared on them, wrapped in foil and they become a great breakfast-on-the-go.

More Eggface Pancakes
7 Protein Packed Breakfast On-The-Go Recipes

I ran a few errands. Mailed the latest Eggface winner's prize, stopped at Target and pit stop at Starbuck's (see snack.) I took a little walk. A storm was coming in and I was trying to beat the rain. I almost made it.

Lunch: Shelly's Chicken Avocado Tomato and Cheese Melt: I had some leftover grilled chicken breasts from dinner the night before I just topped them with some sliced avocado, sliced tomato and a piece of cheese and put it under the broiler to get all melty and gooey. Easy and yummy. Would be great on top of a salad but I ate it as is.

More Eggface Weight Loss Surgery Lunch Ideas

Dinner: I picked up some ground beef. I was planning taco salad but it was raining and a little chilly last night and salad didn't sound good to me anymore. Instead I made these and I am so glad I did. They will be in rotation here for awhile. Soooo good.

Shelly's Sicilian Meat and Ricotta Topped Pies

1/2 lb. Ground Beef (or Turkey or Pork)
1 Yellow Onion, diced
2-3 Green Onions, diced
8-10 Crimini Mushroom, chopped fine
2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1/4 cup Frozen Peas
1 teaspoon Oregano
dash of Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Savory Ricotta Topping

1/2 cup Cottage Cheese (small curd, 2%)
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 Egg
2 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Chives
1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
dash of Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Saute beef till no pink is seen, drain any excess fats, set aside. Saute onions and mushrooms till golden. Add all remaining base ingredients except peas (you don't want to smoosh them.) Mix and saute a few minutes till tomato paste (use the double concentrate stuff in a tube, not canned) is evenly distributed. Blend in peas.

Divide mixture equally in 6 ramekins till 3/4 full. Yes, you can make it in a Pyrex casserole dish too but I like the individual servings. Save any leftover meat in fridge for the delicious beginnings of breakfast the next day (in a frittata or mixed in scrambled eggs.)

In a mini food processor, blend topping ingredients till combined. Top each ramekin with the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with a little more Parmesan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, I like a little brown top so I put it under the broiler for a minute or 2 (watch them.)

Snacks: Lots of coffee including a 3 pump Sugar Free Vanilla, No Foam Soy Latte (my go-to) I got a heart "i" made me smile :)

and a hunk of Chocolate Mint Power Crunch Bar. I had 1/2-ish still in my purse from a couple of weeks ago when I went to the Obesity Action Coalition Strategic Planning Meeting, it was umm a little bashed up but edible. I snapped a pic of all the stuff I lug around. There's the bar in better days and a few other emergency snacks (Quest Cookie and Cream Bar, Tomato Basil Crunchy Beans, Crunchamame, a packet of Chike High Protein Iced Coffee, and I have to have my 3 hour mints to get rid of my bean and latte breath. You're welcome friends.)

I carry too much. I have to wear glasses so that's something extra. Ugh getting old sucks. I treated myself to a cute pair though. I have to have 2 things always when I fly (well besides my cellphone) my Chill Pill aromatherapy (this stuff works) and my special coin purse. No wonder I have a neck ache.

More Eggface Healthy Italian Recipes
More Days in my Pouch

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Eggface Ideas for the BIG GAME Pinterest Page

Check out my Ideas for the BIG GAME Pinterest Page for tons of recipes to enjoy as a part of a weight loss or post weight loss surgery diet and ideas for cheering on your favorite sports teams in a healthy way!

and check out my other Pinterest pages...

YWM2015 Room Block is OPEN and the San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter World Famous Tortilla Soup

The discounted room block at the Marriott Rivercenter the site of the Your Weight Matters National Convention, August 13-16 in San Antonio, Texas has officially opened. The hotel is lovely, right on the Riverwalk and a short walk from The Alamo. FYI: We always sell out the rooms so if you are planning on coming be sure to book your room soon. The committee has begun planning all the wonderful speakers, education, and fun for the weekend. If you want to get the info straight to your inbox as we release it, you can sign up for e-alerts.

I am proudly serving as the Convention Committee Chair this year and was able to tour the hotel the weekend before last. We held our annual Strategic Planning Meeting for the Obesity Action Coalition at the hotel. Most of the convention committee was in attendance so the committee could get a look at the space and how best to utilize it as we plan for our programs that weekend. I had checked out the location online and review after review mentioned, "you MUST TRY the soup," "Get the soup!" "The Tortilla Soup is fabulous." In the interest of research I had to have umm a few bowls over the weekend. Oh and they were right. Yum. Soooo good.

We are staying in San Antonio in the summer and while it will be toasty outside (hotels are always chilly inside, I needed a sweatshirt in the hotel in Phoenix in August) I believe the soup is on the menu all year. If you can't wait to try it, I found the recipe online, made some slight modifications for the home kitchen and it is spot on. It is a protein packed, super simple (less than 30 minutes from start to slurp) dinner for a chilly night. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I also hope we'll get hang out this summer together over a bowl of soup or the hotel does have an on-site Starbuck's so maybe an Iced Coffee.

Shelly's version of the San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter World Famous Tortilla Soup

1/2 large White Onion, sliced
3 medium Tomatoes, diced
2 cups of Chicken Stock
1 cup Picante Sauce
1 Cooked Chicken Breast, shredded (about 1/2-3/4 cup)
1/2 teaspoon Cumin
Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper
1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped
Sliced Avocado
Shredded Cheese

In a soup pot (I got to christen my Christmas present Le Creuset pot) saute onions till golden. Add tomatoes, stock, picante sauce (heat level to your taste, I used mild), salt, pepper, cumin, and most of the cilantro. Dice cooked chicken and add to broth. This is great to make the day after a baked chicken dinner, just toss an extra breast in the oven for this, with leftover Rotisserie chicken or if your supermarket deli department sells baked chicken breasts. Simmer 15-20 minutes. Add remaining cilantro a few minutes before serving.

Top each bowl of soup with sliced avocado and shredded cheese. I know you are wondering where are the tortillas in this Tortilla Soup?! I don't do chips, you won't miss them I promise. The hotel gives you them on the side to add (or not add) as you like. Makes 2 very generous sized bowls.

More Eggface Soups

Healthy Snacks for the Big Game

This post is in partnership with Blue Diamond Almonds

Snacks are a huge part of watching the Big Game. The typical football party snacks are a lot of deep fried fat and carbs. Here's a few healthier snacks to have while you cheer on your team (or the team you dislike the least) and still help you keep those month-old, healthy eating resolutions intact.

Shelly's Deviled Footballs

4 Hard-cooked Eggs
2 Tablespoons Greek Yogurt, plain
1 Tablespoon Store-bought Hummus
Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper
additional Green Onion for laces

Hard cook eggs. Cool. Remove yolks and mash with above ingredients. Spoon back into yolks. Add green onion football laces. Refrigerate up to one day ahead.

Shelly's Football Cheeseball

5 oz. Goat Cheese Log (Chèvre)
2 Tablespoons Real Bacon Bits (or crumbled cooked Bacon)
2 Green Onions, divided use
1/4 cup Blue Diamond Smokehouse Almonds, chopped

Finely chopped 1/2 of a green onion. Mix diced onion with bacon and crushed almonds on a large plate. Place the goat cheese log in the center of the plate. Roll the cheese around until it is coated with the nutty mixture.

Gently form cheese into a football shape. Slice the remaining green onion to add "football lace" detail.

Serve immediately with sliced cucumbers, celery, apple slices, carrots, or my Mum loves Blue Diamond Nut Thins or wrap and refrigerate the cheese ball until you are ready to serve it, up to several hours ahead.

Shelly's Roasted Cauliflower with Buffalo Yogurt Dip

1 head of Cauliflower, washed, drained and broken in florets
a Tablespoon of Olive Oil (or Olive Oil Non Stick Spray)
a sprinkle of Kosher Salt

Preheat oven to 425. Arrange florets on a baking sheet. Toss cauliflower florets in olive oil or spray with Pam, sprinkle with salt and bake for 20 minutes turning once during cooking. Serve hot with Buffalo Yogurt Dip.

Buffalo Yogurt Dip

4 oz. Greek Yogurt, plain
1 Tablespoon Blue Cheese, crumbled
1 Tablespoon (or more to taste) Hot Sauce (Frank's RedHot is traditional for wings but any you love)

Mix together till well combined.

My DIY Football Field Tray

Wooden Tray
AstroTurf/Artificial Grass (Lowes, Home Depot: Carpet Area)

Measure the inside of the tray. Cut the turf to size and place inside tray. You'll need good fabric cutting, heavy duty scissors. You could add white duct tape goal lines and numbers but I chose not to so I could reuse the tray for other uses (Easter, Summer BBQ's, etc.)

Referee Snack Bucket

Empty Metal Quart Can (Lowes, Home Depot: Paint Dept) or Recycled Coffee Can
Black and White Duct Tape

Alternate black tape and white tape stripes on the side of the can. The width of the stripes will depend on the size of the can but it's no biggie if it's slightly off (refs are usually slightly off) Shhh, just make that the back ;)

You could use your snack bucket for napkins, utensils, or I filled my snack bucket with Blue Diamond Almond 1.5 oz. packages in Smokehouse and Wasabi & Soy Sauce flavors. I have one of these almond packets in my carry-on every trip I take.

More Eggface Sports Food & Decoration Ideas
More Eggface Party Foods

This post is in partnership with Blue Diamond Almonds. For the purposes of this post and recipe development Blue Diamond Almonds provided me with products used. Thanks for the yummy nuts. Want to learn more about Blue Diamond Almonds great products and for more Game Changing Snacks LIKE their Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram and please tell them The World According to Eggface told you to stop by. Hope you give one of these healthy Game Day recipes and DIY decoration projects a try.

Eggface Comforting Care Package Giveaway

When I have a cold or flu it's really one of the only times I crave comfort carbs: something from my childhood (it's more about the comfort than the carbs) a bowl of egg pastina with freshly grated Parmesan and butter. Pasta is not a part of my post weight loss surgery life (my personal choice) and my sick day replacement of steamed zucchini (same toppings) with all of zucchini's nutrients: vitamin C, vitamin B6 and vitamin K is a healthier and equally comforting choice.

It started me thinking about comforting, healthy and useful items you could put together in a care package for a friend or family member or save for the next time the creeping crud comes creeping. Here's a few items I came up with and I made an extra set so...

It's Giveaway Time!

The Prize: Hopefully the great Celebrate Vitamins in included in this care package will keep you feeling 100% but if the creeping crud gets hold of you here's a few items to make it a little bit better...

Celebrate Vitamins Multivitamin Soft Chews (Orange), 60 ct.
Celebrate Vitamins Calcium Citrate Soft Chews (Caramel), 60 ct.
Celebrate Vitamins Iron + C (Grape) 30 ct.
Celebrate Vitamins Packet of High Protein Chicken Soup (27 grams of protein in each serving)
Celebrate Vitamins Packet of High Protein Tomato Soup (27 grams of protein in each serving)
Sistema Microwave Soup Bowl To Go
Celestial Seasonings Lemon Zinger Tea
Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice Tea
Ludens Sugar Free Wild Cherry Cough Drops
Kleenex
Cake Batter and Fruit Punch Chapstick
Word Search Book
Fuzzy Aloe Vera Socks (I love these)

How to Enter: 1.) LIKE The World According to Eggface AND Celebrate Vitamins Facebook Page 2.) COME BACK HERE and LEAVE A COMMENT ON THIS BLOG POST (Be sure to include your name and some email address where I can contact you if you are the winner) Scroll down to # of comments below to enter. That's it, easy peasy.

For fun: Tell me what comforts you when you are feeling sick.

For an extra chance to win:

* Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway: Hey everyone enter the @Eggface @CelebrateV Comforting Care Package Giveaway http://tinyurl.com/okhqk9z

Contest Period Ends: Sunday, January 25th, midnight (Pacific), sometime Monday, January 26th I'll draw a name using a random number generator and announce the winner here on the blog! I will also email the winner at the address provided. You'll have one week (7 days) to respond to my email or another winner will be chosen. Remember winners MUST be a Facebook follower (aka have LIKED) of the The World According to Eggface AND Celebrate Vitamins. One comment entry per person. Blog comments are moderated so there may be a slight delay (up to a few hours, especially at night if I'm sleeping Zzzz) in seeing your comment/entry post. Giveaway is open to anyone in the contiguous United States, 48 contiguous only (sorry it's a legal - international laws govern giveaways and money $ thing)

Good Luck!

Friday Five

A weekly round-up of tidbits, tips, products, ideas, news articles, random cool things from the weight, health, nutrition, food, fitness, weight loss surgery world...

1. Spotted these the other day on the shelf and I thought they would be great for those in the liquid phase pre-op or post weight loss surgery. Pacific Foods Organic Bone Broth has a lot more protein (approx. 9 grams of protein, 35-40 calories per 1 cup container) and frankly more flavor than plain chicken broth. They operate on our guts not our taste buds so something that tastes great is a bonus. I bought all the flavors: Turkey with Rosemary, Sage & Thyme, Chicken with Ginger, Chicken with Lemongrass and Original Chicken and have been sampling this week. I also love the packaging because you really don't want a whole lot at a time in those first few days post surgery and I love the twist cap closure. You can pour out a little in a microwave safe cup, warm and save the rest for later.

Good for post weight loss surgery traveling (road trips especially) as they are shelf-stable.

2. Another cool find this week were Earthbound Farms Smoothie Kickstart, no sugar added, fruit and veggie frozen medleys...

All you have to do is add milk or water and any other add-ins protein powder, sweeteners, cottage cheese or yogurt, etc. There are currently 2 medleys to choose from organic kale, blueberries, and strawberries or mango, peach, and carrot. There is enough fruits and veggies in the bag for several smoothies. They say the 8 oz. package will make 2 but I think it's more like 4-5. I barely put a dent in the bag for this one...

I just took a few of pieces of the Kale Berry Mix, some ice, a cup of milk, a scoop of Vanilla Protein Powder, a Tablespoon of Sugar Free Torani Vanilla Syrup and blended it. Yum. It's great to not have to clean kale (a very sandy veggie) and fresh strawberries have not been the greatest lately, frozen are usually picked at the ripest. I'll get them again.

More Eggface Protein Shakes and Smoothies

3. A few articles that crossed my radar this week that are worth a read...

Community rallies behind teen bullied on Facebook - She's beautiful and handled this all with great attitude and I know this has turned into a positive but lemme at those guys. 20 minutes. Grrr.
7 Tips to  Help You Drink More Water - So hard in the winter for me, unless it's hot & brown.
Showing what it takes to burn calories helps teens make healthier choices
Preschoolers Affected by Obesity May Slim Down With Head Start - as part of my degree work in Child and Family Development I volunteered for a semester at a Head Start. It's a great program in many ways.
Lack of Exercise Is a Bigger Risk Factor Than Obesity in Premature Death - Keep moving! "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe
Study suggests home cooking for a healthier diet  - we know this but love to see studies confirm it.
15 Things Nobody Tells You About Losing Weight

and honored to be part of this group: Agents of Change in Obesity

Follow me on Twitter @Eggface for more articles of interest in health, weight, nutrition, emotional health and body image realm and of course some yummy food tweets as well.

4. The discounted room block for #YWM2015 The Your Weight Matters National Convention opens on January 20th. Sign-up for e-alerts www.ywmconvention.com to get all the 411 in your inbox as it is released in the next few months: hotel info, registration information, speaker announcements, scholarship info (YES! the OAC has committed to fund the scholarship program again this year) I am proudly serving as the Convention Chair so I hope to meet many of you in person.

The hotel is lovely, right on the Riverwalk and a short walk to The Alamo. The Obesity Action Coalition annual Strategic Planning Meeting to set the goals and programs for the year was held there this past weekend and I was able to tour the site. You are going to love it.

and I made it over to The Alamo...

I think my attire will be slightly different in August at convention. I'll leave the scarf at home.

5. Heads up: January is such a dull month. We need a little fun! Check back on Sunday when another Eggface Giveaway will begin.

Post Weight Loss Surgery Menus: A day in my pouch

A day in my pouch is a series of blog posts to show what a typical daily menu looks like in my post weight loss surgery world. Here's what I ate yesterday...

Breakfast: Made a scrambled egg with salsa and a little sliced avocado.

More on my Weight Loss Surgery Breakfast Ideas Pinterest Page

Lunch: I bought a gorgeous cauliflower at the Farmer's Market on Saturday. I felt so bad for the farmer's in our area, that pretty snowfall the other day and several frosty nights destroyed some crops (Fuerte avocados and citrus especially.) 2014 was such a tough year with the drought and weeks of triple digit temperature. I respect those that continue to tough it out and grow our food.

Well that gorgeous cauliflower was turned into one of my favorite dinners the other night and the leftovers were lunch today (they heat up great!) If you are craving Italian food but don't want all the white carbs of pasta, make this. I had some mushrooms to use so I added those this time and I usually put fresh basil in but it froze in the snow so I added chopped green onion instead. It's a flexible recipe if you had a 1/4 of peas leftover you could add those. You could top with feta instead of mozzarella for a Greek spin.

Shelly's Cauliflower Pie

1 head of Cauliflower, cooked and mashed
1 Yellow Onion, chopped
3 Green Onions, diced
8-10 Mushrooms, sliced
3 Eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated (divided use)
1 Tablespoon Oregano
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Topping
Marinara Sauce (I use jarred - Rao's is my fav)
Shredded Mozzarella

Break up cauliflower florets (my cauliflower was medium to large but like I mentioned the recipe is forgiving and slight size variations and small additions won't matter) and cook in salted water till fork tender. Drain. Mash. Saute onions and mushrooms till golden. Mix remaining ingredients together (hold back 1 Tablespoon of the Parmesan.) Pour into a 8 x 11.5 x 2 (2 qt) Pyrex casserole dish that has been sprayed with Pam non-stick cooking spray. Top with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes and place under the broiler for 5 more minutes to brown. When done I cut the pie into squares (I get 8-10 squares from the pie.) You can eat it as is but I top each square with a Tablespoon of Marinara Sauce and cheese and it goes back under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese is golden and bubbly. Mmmm.

More Eggface Healthy Italian Favorite Recipes

Dinner:  Super quick and easy dinner. 15 minutes from start to eating: Shelly's Philly Cheesesteak Saute. So a super yummy meal like this makes me think about my pre weight loss surgery life versus now.

Pre-op I used to hit a Philly Cheesesteak joint after work sometimes. If you know Philly you will totally understand this order... I'd order the special... a footlong amorosa roll, whiz wit cheesesteak (whiz wit = globs of cheese whiz), it came with a ton of fries (I had them add cheese and grilled onions) and a can of Frank's Black Cherry Wishniak soda (and I'd drink something else at home.) Oh and a Tastycake or 2 for dessert. I was partial to the coffee cake ones and both would be eaten at some point in the night. This wasn't an all the time thing. I loved to cook pre-op so fast food wasn't really my thing but it happened often enough to do some damage for sure. Life now: this dinner gave me the great taste I love but in a sensible way. Bottom line: I can live like this forever. Dr. Yoni Freedhoff spoke at an event I attended and he said something that really resonated with me...

"Your best weight is whatever weight you reach when you're living the healthiest life you honestly enjoy." ~Dr. Yoni Freedhoff.

We can all suffer through something for a time but generally that results in the pendulum swinging the other way just as far. We are in this forever and forever is a long time to suffer. You have to love the post weight loss surgery life you create for yourself. If you don't... change something.

5 Things to Do With Cold Cuts

Snacks: Too much coffee as usual and I made a yummy Protein Shake in the afternoon. If you are craving chocolate this would fill the bill. So good.

Shelly's Ultimate Chocolate Protein Shake

1 cup Soy Milk (any milk will do)
1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder (I used Celebrate Vitamins Chocolate Milk ENS)
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Chocolate Torani Syrup
1 Tablespoon Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
a few Ice Cubes

Blend on high. Top with No Sugar Added Chocolate Homemade Whipped Cream and I added a few nonpareils cause I was feeling sassy ;)

Shelly's Homemade No Sugar Added Chocolate Whipped Cream

1 cup Whipping Cream
1 Tablespoon Sugar Free Torani Syrup (any flavor will do)
2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

Whisk till well combined. Fill whipping cream to the fill line of the whipper. Screw on the top. Insert the CO2 cartridge till it empties, unscrew that. Put the nozzle on, shake a few times and squirt away. It makes a ton, store it in the fridge for up to 10 days just give it another few shakes before squirting. Great on berries, shakes and smoothies, crepes.

More Protein Shakes and Smoothies
More Days in my pouch

Weight Loss Resolutions PSA

I remember making them every year. The commercials and ads in January for the latest and greatest method, book, potion, 6 disc DVD set, piece of equipment or gadget, would start and I would usually get sucked into 5 easy payments of something. If your resolutions were about your health and weight. Here's my PSA Public Service Announcement with some resources to hopefully help you avoid the scams and aim those wanting to get healthier in the right direction...

Remember that "dietary supplements" are not regulated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) so not only may they not live up to their claims and be a waste of your hard earned money some can and have caused serious harm. Beware of products claiming miracle weight loss, losing weight without healthy eating and regular exercise, statements like "you can eat all you want and still lose weight" or "lose weight forever." If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. Don't be sucked in by dramatic before and after pictures, unscrupulous companies often scan the internet for before and after pictures. I have had friends have their picture used, unbeknownst to them, to advertise a weight loss method they did not utilize.

More Tips from the FDA

Great video presentation by Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) Chairman, Ted Kyle, RPh, MBA, from last year's OAC's Your Weight Matters Convention: Frauds and Fads - Detecting Weight-loss Gimmicks


We are all unique. Our individual health concerns, health history, lifestyles must be taking in account when choosing a weight loss method. Team up with your health care provider to design a program suited to YOU and...

Know that the first weight loss method selected may not be the one for you. This does not make you a failure. Obesity is being more and more looked at as a chronic disease that requires lifelong treatment, there is no finish-line and no one-size-fits-all weight loss method or tool that works for everyone... for many of us it is combined therapies that are needed.

Failure isn't falling down. It's remaining where you have fallen.
Never give up!

Free Resources and Guides from the Obesity Action Coalition - including Understanding Your Weight Loss Options

The Your Weight Matters National Campaign that provides free resources and tips in English and Spanish for those concerned about their weight and health.

The National Your Weight Matters Convention for evidence based education, resources, support, friend making. Sign up for e-alerts to get all the 411 when registration opens and speakers are announced. I'll be there :)

and find more on My Links and Resources page.

Ultimately remember: we are not defined by a clothing size or number on a scale and those things provide no indication of an individual’s character, credentials, talents, leadership or contributions to society.  

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Thank you to all who entered The World According to Eggface 25,000 Facebook Fantastic Giveaway

The random generator has selected:

Shirley
Shirley.snover@xxxxx.com

Congratulations Shirley! You are the winner of the latest Eggface Giveaway! You win the Purple Nike Workout Bag filled with some of my favorite protein shakes, vitamins, products and more. You have mail!

Want to learn more about any of the contents of the giveaway above. Click here for more info and sources.

Not a winner this time... no worries another Eggface Giveaway is starting very soon! January is kind of a blah month we'll need to have some fun. Follow along on the Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and now Instagram for the latest eggciting announcements!

Happy New Year from Snowy Temecula!

Hope everyone is having a nice beginning to 2015. We rang in the new year with some tidbits and watched Ryan Seacrest. I always watch a little When Harry Met Sally. That's a tradition. Speaking of tradition... this was the best year ever for the annual New Year raisin toss. 11 out of 12 and technically the missed one made mouth contact, bounced off my front tooth and onto the floor but contact that has got to be worth something.

For those of you that don't know what the heck I'm talking about... every year it's my New Year's Eve tradition to toss 12 raisins. You toss the raisins one at a time at the stroke of midnight toward your wide open mouth. For every raisin that you get in your mouth that will be one month of good luck in the coming year. I've been doing this now for a few years. The first year raisin #1 SCORE right in the mouth, the second raisin BAM right in the eye. That was an interesting year. Last year I got in 8 out of 12. I blame those misses on unusually large and misshapen raisins, a lack of quality control in the raisin factory. This year, I went with Sun Maid California raisins, no skimping on quality and it worked out. So I'm calling it 11.25 out of 12. According to the raisin oracle it will be a great year!

The food: I made savory mini ricotta pancakes and topped them with smoked salmon (lox) and a dollop of dill Greek yogurt. Delicious and packed with protein. They were sort of like those fancy pants passed hors d'oeuvre blinis. Not a smoked salmon fan? You could top them with my bruschetta topping, chicken salad, tuna salad, guacamole, cheese, cold cuts.

Shelly's Savory Onion Mini Ricotta Pancakes

1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1 Egg, beaten
1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
3 Tablespoons Multigrain Pancake Mix
1 Green Onion, diced fine
1 Tablespoon Chives
1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
1/4 teaspoon Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Mix pancake ingredients together. Spray a non-stick pan with Pam. Spoon dollops of batter about 50 cent piece size for hors d'oeuvres. Makes about 14. You can of course make them larger but I like them about 2 bite size. Cook on low till bubbles appear, flip. Cook till done. I let them cool slightly. They firm up a bit. I topped them with smoked salmon (Lox) and a dollop of dill Greek yogurt sauce and a sprig of fresh dill.

Cook's Note: I used whole milk ricotta if you use part skim. Drain through a sieve lined with a coffee filter or cheese cloth for several hours or overnight in the fridge.

Shelly's Dill Greek Yogurt Sauce

1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, plain
1 teaspoon Dried Dill
a squeeze of Lemon Juice
Salt to taste
a few twists of Black Pepper to taste

Mix together. Leftovers can be refrigerated for a day or two.

More weight loss surgery friendly party foods on my Party Food Pinterest Page

I don't drink much. I will do champagne toasts but I forgot to get it and since I have a couple of sips and the rest goes flat and in the trash, it didn't seem worth it to make a special trip out for it. My New Year's toast was made with a cup of hot Spiced Chai Fit Frappe topped with no sugar added, homemade whipped cream perfect cold weather drink.

Oh get this... it was so cold on December 31st that it snowed! Super rare. I was jazzed. Huge fluffy gorgeous snowflakes falling from the sky. I went outside. I caught them on my tongue. I snapped a zillion blurry pictures, I made a snowman. I know, I know as an ex-NYer I shouldn't be impressed but it was very cool, a fun surprise.

Happy New Year! Wishing everyone good health, lots of laughter, and fun surprises in 2015. May this be our best year ever.



P.S. If you haven't thrown your name in the hat for the 25,000 Facebook Fan-tastic Giveaway be sure to do that, it ends Sunday.