And The KODAK 'Picture Perfect Low-Carb Holiday' Contest Winner Is...

The KODAK "Picture Perfect Low-Carb Holiday" Contest is now officially over and we have selected a winner of a FREE KODAK EASYSHARE 5300 All-in-One Printer for submitting an outstanding picture of a delicious low-carb holiday menu item.

This was such a difficult decision because there were MANY outstanding entries, including a juicy capon, a mouthwatering lemon meringue pie, a creamy chocolate pudding, a sensuous French silk pie, a quick and easy cranberry sauce, chocolate-coconut snowballs, and a luscious lemon pie.

But when it came down to choosing who the winner would be, the final decision made was to award it to SHARI W. from Tennessee for her amazing mini-quiches. CONGRATULATIONS, Shari! You just won that KODAK Printer all to yourself and I KNOW you will enjoy it immensely.

In case you missed it, here's the winning entry:


The vibrant and varied colors of this low-carb dish made it stick out

And here was Shari's description of her photo:

"These little Mini-Quiches are tasty and make the 'Picture Perfect' holiday appetizer. Simple ingredients and a simple recipe make for the most versatile of dishes. Remember simplicity is an added plus during the hectic time of the holidays. Just make your basic quiche mixture and then add your favorite veggies, meats, and extra spices to taste. A bonus with these quiches is not only are they 'low carb' but you get the added colors of Christmas on your table."

Special THANKS to everyone who entered this contest for sharing your delicious holiday dishes with all of us. I REALLY would have LOVED to given all of you the opportunity to own your own KODAK EASYSHARE 5300 All-in-One Printer, but alas I only had one to give away. But don't worry if you didn't win...there will be other contests in the near future here at the "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog (and you never know what may show up in your mailbox--HINT HINT!). :D

THANK YOU so much for your faithfulness to the mission of sharing the wonderfully healthy low-carb lifestyle with the masses! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Three Last Minute Photos With Recipes Submitted In 'Picture Perfect' Contest

The Kodak "Picture Perfect Low-Carb Holiday" contest is officially over and judging is currently underway to narrow down the field to three so that the grand prize of a FREE KODAK EASYSHARE 5300 All-In-One Printer can be awarded. GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERED!!!

As expected, there was quite a flurry of submissions on the final day of the contest on Friday as people who waited until the very last moment got theirs in just the nick of time. The winner will be announced on Monday, but I wanted you to see these final three entries because they all included with their gorgeous photos the recipe for how to make their low-carb holiday favorites.

In case you missed any of the previous five photos entered into the contest, you can access those here, here, here, and here. See the final three entries right now along with the recipe for each one. ENJOY and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Submitted by MARCI W. from California


"I love cranberry sauce, but they don't put sugar-free cranberry sauce in a can. Good thing it is so easy to make from scratch!"

LOW-CARB CRANBERRY SAUCE

1 bag cranberries
1 cup water
3/4 to 1 cup Splenda or other artificial sweetener

Cook until berries swell up and pop. (this will happen by the time it comes to a rolling boil) Mash and serve. 30 calories and 5 net carbs per 1/2 cup.

Submitted by REGINA W. from Missouri


"A festive addition to your holiday dessert table, the chocolate-coconut snowballs are the perfect sweet treat to offer those watching carbs because it's rich with fat and light on insulin/glucose-spiking carbohydrates!"

LOW-CARB CHOCOLATE-COCONUT SNOWBALLS

1-cup heavy cream
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (good quality)
1/4 cup splenda granular
1/4 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
4 teaspoons shredded, unsweetened coconut

Place heavy cream, cocoa powder, splenda and coconut extract in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer set to highest setting beat cream until whipped firmly. Slowly fold in 1/4 cup of coconut. Place bowl in refrigerator and allow to set up for 10-minutes.

Then transfer into 4 shallow serving bowls using a large spoon, rounding each to look like a snowball or use an ice cream scooper. Once each bowl has its "snowball" in it, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of shredded, unsweetened coconut on top to make it look like a snowball. You can use more cocoa and Splenda if you prefer more intense chocolate flavor or sweeter end result.

Makes 4 servings

Per Serving:
Total Carbohydrate 9g
Fiber 4g
Net Carbs 5g

Submitted by KATE W. from Canada


"I made this recipe by combining some awesome ideas from the Sweet Treats section at the Active Low Carber Forums. The base is a standard low-carb cheesecake crust, the cake is a slightly tweaked version of the incredibly Bawdy's Cheesecake, and the topping is a higher-fat version of NancyLC's Lemon Curd."

LUSCIOUS LOW-CARB LEMON CHEESECAKE

CRUST
1.5 cups almond flour (if you have other nuts you like, feel free to throw a few crushed ones in - macadamia nuts are great for this)
5 tbsp melted butter
5 tbsp granular Splenda

Line an 8x8 cake pan with greaseproof paper. The easiest way to get the paper to "stick" to the pan is to smear a little butter from the butter wrapper around the pan and press the paper into place.

Press the cheesecake crust mixture into the bottom of the pan, and pop in the oven for 10-15 mins, until the edges start turning golden brown. I find the pre-baking stops the base soaking up the cake batter and becoming soggy.

While the crust is baking, make the cheesecake filling.

FILLING
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract
Juice of one lemon
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup sugar-free vanilla syrup (or 1/2 cup of Splenda or equivalent sweetener)
16 ounces (2 packages) cream cheese (it's easier if the cream cheese is softened beforehand, and cut up into pieces ahead of time)
2 tbsp melted butter

Blend eggs, vanilla extract, lemon extract, lemon juice, sour cream, and vanilla syrup together until combined. Then add the cream cheese and butter.

I usually let the crust cool a while before pouring the batter on top. Then, I bake the cheesecake in my own improvised water bath. I plop the cake tin into a wok half-filled with water and then put the whole ensemble in the oven to cook. The water prevents the top of the cake from cracking.

Alternative methods: a pan of water placed below the oven shelf you use for the cheesecake. This isn't absolutely necessary, so if you feel intimidated by it or don't have the pans, don't worry about it - it just makes for a prettier overall result.

Turn the oven down to 325 degrees and bake for 35-40 minutes.

IMPORTANT: After the cooking time finishes, don't open the oven door. Just turn it off, otherwise the whoosh of cool air will crack your cake. Leave the cake in the turned-off oven for an hour (more if you can), before letting it cool at room temperature, and then moving to the refrigerator.

While the cheesecake is baking, it's time to make the topping.

TOPPING
Lemon zest from 2 lemons
Lemon juice from 2 lemons
3/4 cups of Splenda
2 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
6 Tbs of softened butter (optional)

Grate the zest of two lemons into a bowl (when you hit white, stop grating and move to the next section. Or, if you have a lemon zester, you're very lucky--are you reading this, Santa?). Add the juice of both lemons and stir in the Splenda. Now, add two whole eggs, plus two egg yolks, and stir everything up.

The next part is to very slowly cook the mixture so it turns to curd. Place your mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water, and keep the heat low to medium. If you cook it too fast, you'll get lemony scrambled eggs. (I always found this double-pan method intimidating, but give it a try, it's not as hard as it seems.) It should take around 10-15 mins to cook. Keep stirring so the heat moves through the mixture evenly. It should start thickening, and once it reaches a pudding-like consistency, remove it from the heat.

Add butter for a richer, creamier taste. It will melt and combine if you stir pieces of butter in immediately. This is optional, so you can skip it if you'd like to marginally lower the calories of the final product!

Put your lemon curd in a container and place cling wrap over the top so it's touching the mixture, otherwise a skin will form. Place in the refrigerator to cool and thicken. This can be used as a topping for more than just cheesecake--on low-carb yogurts, flax muffins and more. It tastes like an extremely intense lemon custard.

Once everything is cool, you can remove the cheesecake from the pan and spread the lemon curd over it. The result is a deliciously creamy, rich cheesecake with tangy lemon topping. This is pure heaven for lemon lovers.

Makes 14 good size slices, each one containing:

331 calories
31g fat
8.5 total carbs (7.5 net carbs)
6.6 g protein

STAY TUNED ON MONDAY TO FIND OUT WHO WON THE KODAK PRINTER!!!

Last Day For Kodak Contest, Low-Carb French Silk Pie Recipe Added

There's only a few more hours left in the Kodak "Picture Perfect Low-Carb Holiday" Contest, but you still have until MIDNIGHT TONIGHT to enter for your chance to win the KODAK EASYSHARE 5300 All-In-One Printer. If you've been dragging your feet, then what are you waiting for? This is a cool prize and I'd LOVE for YOU to try to win it.

Here's your competition so far:

- GAYLE O. from Oregon's Thanksgiving capons
- SHARI W. from Tennessee's mini-quiches
- CANDY B. from Hawaii's lemon meringue pie
- MARK M. from Tennessee's chocolate pudding

And now we have another one to add to the list:

Submitted by AMY D. from Illinois


This is my husband's favorite low-carb dessert and it's one I came up with on the spur of the moment one evening. I'll be making this for our family Christmas get-together this year.

Amy was nice enough to provide the recipe for this delectable dessert dish for the holiday season. This one looks REALLY good and I can't wait to try it for myself. ENJOY!

AMY'S LOW-CARB FRENCH SILK PIE

2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 of 1.4 oz package of sugar free instant Chocolate Pudding
2 teaspoons sugar free vanilla syrup (like DaVinci or Torani)
2 teaspoons sugar free chocolate syrup (like DaVinci or Torani)
1 teaspoon decaf instant coffee granules

In small bowl pour vanilla syrup and add coffee granules. Mix well and let sit while coffee dissolves.

Pour heavy whipping cream into a large bowl. With a mixer add chocolate syrup, coffee and vanilla mixture, and 1/2 package of instant pudding. Mix until smooth.

Pour into low-carb nut crust and refrigerate until well chilled. Garnish with home made sugar-free whipped cream and sugar-free chocolate shavings (preferably made from Chocoperfection, but can use any sugar-free chocolate bar).

NUT CRUST (adapted from Dana Carpender's 500 Low-Carb Recipes)

1 1/2 cups almonds (shaved works better than slivered or whole)
1/4 cup vanilla-flavored whey protein powder
4 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Put the almonds in a food processor with the S blade. Pulse until the nuts are ground to a medium-fine texture. Add the protein powder and butter and pulse to combine (will be crumbly).

Spray pie pan with nonstick cooking spray and press mixture firmly and evenly into pan.(Don't worry about building up the sides, it's just as good without them.)

Place the crust in a preheated oven on the bottom rack for 12 - 15 minutes until lightly brown and slightly pulling away from the sides of the pan. Remove crust from oven and cool while you make the filling.

Serves 8

Total carbs: 10g
Fiber: 3g
Net carbs: 7g per slice
Net carbs without the crust: 4g

DON'T FORGET TO GET YOUR PICTURE ENTERED BEFORE MIDNIGHT TONIGHT!!! Click here for all the details.

The Old Flipperoo Makes Pictures Look New

I'm gonna flip if my digital camera takes better pictures now

One of the very best investments I made last year was getting up real early on the day after Thanksgiving to buy a brand new digital camera. Although my Kodak Z760 Easyshare Digital Camera is over a year old, I still LOVE it as much as I did on the day I bought it. For anyone with a blog, it adds so much!

I've had some fun with my digital camera this year showing my "obese body," revealing for the first time my loose skin following my 180-pound weight loss, reacting to the various flavors of Sweetriot, and so much more! Yes, I'm a ham when it comes to being in and taking pictures and proudly so. :)

But with Christmastime this weekend and all of the millions of pictures that will be taken, did you know there was a neat little trick you can do to make them look even better? Especially those of you with a lot of "old people" (is there a better euphemism for this than "seniors?") among your yuletide clan, check this out!

According to this Yahoo story highlighting a tip from DigitalCameraU.com, all you need to do to take better pictures of your loved one's faces is TURN YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA UPSIDE DOWN! Say what?! Sounds strange, but there's a logical explanation that makes sense when you stop to think about it.

Think about where the flash is located on your camera--it's at the top, right? Well, when the light source comes from above, guess what that does to the pictures of those good-looking family members? Exactamundo! Shadows, wrinkles, and sometimes black eyes.

But not anymore!

Do the flipperoo with your camera this weekend and now the flash will produce light from below rather than above which will completely negate any of those issues with the flash above. Of course, it's awkward at first using your thumb rather than your index finger to take the photo, but you'll get the hang of it.

Why haven't camera companies thought of this before? Whose bright idea was it to put the flash at the top of the camera in the first place, hmmm? Sorry, I just think about these odd, senseless things sometimes.

If you still prefer to take pictures the conventional way (come on, where's your nonconformist spirit?! LOL!), one of the commenters at DigitalCameraU.com had a superb suggestion for you. Here's what he wrote:

"Use a small piece of white paper [over the flash] and it will disperse the flashed light in an equally pleasing manner."

Now there's an idea! Above all, have FUN taking photographs with your digital camera because you are making lasting memories with those kids, uncles, grandmas, and all the other precious people you call family. Isn't that what sharing time together at Christmas is REALLY all about?

Woeful CBS News Goes From Rather's Memogate To Couric's Weightgate

Did incoming CBS News anchorette Katie Couric drop 20 pounds instantly?

We're only days before CBS-TV will begin using former "Today" show host Katie Couric as the anchor of the CBS Evening News beginning on Tuesday, September 5, 2006 at 6:30pm EST. But, as you can see from the picture I posted at the top of this blog post, CBS is apparently trying to manipulate the image of their incoming perky star.

The picture on the left (Media Bistro featured a blurb about this along with the original picture at their web site on May 18th) is the one CBS used to pre-promote Couric back in May this year when she was gleefully announced as the replacement for long-time, yet heavily embattled CBS news anchor Dan Rather. You might recall that Rather was publicly scorned for his role in what has been referred to as Memogate (aka Rathergate) in 2004 when he tried to smear President George W. Bush's reelection bid with a fake story about the Republican president's service in the National Guard.

Well, now Couric seems to have her own scandal of sorts with what I am dubbing Weightgate because of what CBS has done with that same photo of her in the September 2006 issue of their publication called Watch! magazine, which has a circulation of about 400,000 copies that are distributed to CBS employees and on American Airlines flights.


CBS made Couric the cover story for September's Watch magazine

If you download this PDF version of the magazine, then you will see the newly doctored photo of Couric that is at the right at the top of this post.

Two of the EXACT same photos that are obviously VERY different!

HOW AND WHY WOULD THIS HAPPEN?

Well, according to this Washington Post story, it was the fault of "an overzealous employee in its publicity department" who got PhotoShop-happy to help improve Couric's physical appearance.

A CBS representative said neither CBS News management nor Katie Couric herself knew about the altered photograph. CBS News President Sean McManus even expressed to the New York Daily News that he was "surprised and disappointed" about this unfortunate mishap. In the end, though, both McManus and Couric laughed it off as a good joke.

"There is more of me to love," Couric remarked about her weight.


Katie Couric is starting off her career at CBS News with a bang

What are we to make of all this? Sure, CBS News and Couric say that they were oblivious to this seeming faux pas. But somebody HAD to know the picture was changed all for the sake of presenting Couric in a certain image that fits the mold of what Couric SHOULD look like. This goes back to the warped image of what a woman should be I have blogged about before. It's sickening that even someone as famous and recognizable as Katie Couric isn't good enough to just be herself, but that even she has to have a creative nip and tuck done with her picture. Can you imagine how that makes HER feel?

Sheez! How much more degrading can you get? "Oh, I'm sorry, Ms. Couric, you were WAY too fat in that original picture, so I just wanted to spruce it up and make you look, um, better!" The person that did this unbeknownst to anyone (HA! If you believe that, then I've got a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn, NY!) should be given his walking papers and publicly humiliated immediately for what he or she did. This is part of what's wrong with our society we live in.

Pretty soon, the expectation level of "the look" we are all supposed to have will become too unreasonable and unattainable if we aren't there already. Just ask this NBC actress about this issue after she was asked to lose weight after her pregnancy. It's inescapable in our culture and we need more people rejecting the notion that you have to weigh a certain amount or look a certain way to be accepted. That's just WRONG WRONG WRONG!

I heard CBS wanted to make Katie Couric's tenure in her anchor position a new, daring, and risk-taking adventure. But with Weightgate looming large over their heads right now, it certainly looks like more of the same from them (They don't call it "C"..."BS" for nothing).

Good luck to Katie in her new position, but she better watch that weight of hers or else CBS might be putting her on a diet soon. But then she could start livin' la vida low-carb! :D You're welcome to join us anytime, Katie!

Fighting The Crowds To Get A Great Deal

I did something today that goes against my better judgment, but I'm glad I did it. I engaged in that uniquely American tradition of going shopping on the day after Thanksgiving.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!

To some people, that's the absolute craziest thing in the world you could ever torture yourself with and to others they live for this one day of the year when THE sale happens and they have to make it a point to go to each and every store to find what they want at reduced prices. It's an interesting dichotomy that I enjoy watching people on both sides fight over every year.

Usually I am one of those who has eaten so much turkey that I am still in a self-induced state of tryptophanic hypnosis that I could sleep for days (and yesterday was no exception!). Shopping is the LAST thing on my mind...BUT!

This year I was on a mission because of some especially great offers by the giant box retailers. If you hate shopping (and I do with a passion!), then you would have to be a glutton for punishment to go through this.

Yet, out the door I went at 8am. No, I didn't get up at 3:30am so I could be the first in line waiting for the doors to open at 5am. I'm not THAT obsessed with it. The way I see it, if they want my business then they will stock enough of the item they are featuring in those sales flyers that make your Thanksgiving Day newspaper weigh 10 pounds heavier that will last them throughout the day on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

Imagine my surprise when I get to Target this morning and they are out of the only item I went there for. I parked in the next zip code just to walk in and be told they didn't have any more. Shoot! But at least I got in a pretty good cardio workout today walking from my car, dodging shopping carts, and weaving in and around people, people, people! :)

So when Target didn't have the one item I REALLY wanted, I decided to go to Wal-Mart and get their version of this same item. It was more expensive and fancy-schmansy than the one I was going to purchase at Target, but oh my goodness, this thing is awesome!

What is it? Check it out right here:



It's the Kodak Z760 Easyshare Digital Camera. This bad boy came out in May 2005 and is a very high-quality camera with a whopping 6 megapixels. If you don't know what that means, suffice it to say that the photos will be as pristine clear as they can possibly be.

Do you remember how good these pictures of the CarbSmart book signing were? They were beautiful because they were taken by a digital camera with 5 megapixels. This Z760has SIX! Whoa!

I am so excited about this little doo-hickey thingy (do you like my technical terminology there?) because it will allow me to share more photos with you, especially while I am out on my book tour for "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb." I can't wait to use it at my book signings this weekend in Virginia.

In fact, I am just a couple of hours away from my first book signing at noon today at Greenbrier Mall in Chesapeake, VA followed by another one this evening in Hampton, VA. Special thanks to Heaven & Earth for hosting me this weekend. I will also be visiting their store in the Kemps River Shopping Center in Virginia Beach, VA on Saturday at noon. I hope to see some of you there!

Enjoy this extended holiday weekend and eat up on that turkey. It's good protein and tastes oh so good when you dip it in some mayonnaise with cheese and wrap it up in a lettuce leaf. Mmm mmm good, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. But I digress.

Take care and we'll blog at you later! SEE YA!