I love this time of year. I love love love decorating the house and “decking the halls” with Christmas stuff!
I love listening to Christmas music, the smell of Christmas candles, going on “Christmas drives” and reading Christmas stories!
I LOVE the subtle glow of Christmas lights around the house and on the Christmas tree!
Looooove it!
Speaking of Christmas trees, I was a little OCD about ours this year.
I bought a few new ornaments and some pretty ribbon to add to the tree.
My boys thought I was crazy and said things like… “We have more ornaments on the tree than lights!” and “This is an art project, not a tree!”
Then, when I decided to break apart a grapevine wreath and add it in pieces to the tree (turned out pretty I might add), they thought I had completely lost it!
I had to laugh though because the whole time my one and only daughter kept saying, “It looks SOOOO beautiful mom!”
She also loved helping me decorate too.
Just another reminder that boys do not appreciate pretty things!
LOL!
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Also, while we decorate the house….I LOVE baking treats!
So, I thought I would share a fun healthy(ish) brownie recipe! Since I have a little addiction problem with treats, I found this recipe so I can have my cake and eat it too!
Miracle Low-Carb Brownies
(from about.com)
1/2 C. butter (1 stick)
2 cups powdered sweetener (erythritol is best, but you can also use Splenda, Truvia, etc.)
1 T vanilla
4 eggs
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tsp salt
4 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 cups flax seed meal (or almond flour or oat flour, whatever)
1 T baking powder
1/3 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup water
1 cup artificial sweetener (optional for more sweetness)
1 cup walnuts (optional)
Here’s the flax seed meal I used (found it at Wal-Mart):
And, you need to powder your sweetener or it will be grainy. To powder it, just stick it in the blender with a little cornstarch (1 tsp. or so) and blend it up!
It’s messy, but it works!
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9X13 pan.
1) Cream the butter until fluffy.
2) Add the powdered sweetener to the butter, then cream them together until fully combined (aim for a fluffy texture).
3) Add the vanilla and beat the eggs into the mixture, one at a time.
4) Add salt and cocoa, beat well.
5) Add chocolate, beat until fluffy.
6) Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well to combine.
7) Pour into a pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes until top springs back.
8) Cool, then cut into 32 squares.
Nutritional Analysis: Each brownie has 1 gram effective carbohydrate, plus 3 grams of fiber, 3 grams of protein, 10 grams of fat, and 107 calories.
I usually cut these up and put them in the freezer. Then, when I need a treat fix, I pull one out and eat it! Yum!
I love to top mine with a Tablespoon of natural peanut butter and banana slices. Sounds weird, but it is yum! It’s very filling too!
Enjoy!
The tree is beautiful! I’ve used the gold beads this year, next year think I’ll give the ribbons a try. 🙂
Thanks Jenzy! I love using ribbons on trees. Make sure you get the ones with wire in them…it makes it so pretty to shape them around the tree!!