Join Chef Gwen and Help Feed GA Families

Proverbs 22:9---A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.
Luke 3:11--- John answered, “The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.”

Everyone knows my passion is cooking because I am a chef . Additionally, I love the good times and laughter surrounding food. So can you imagine the sound of my heart dropping whenever I hear about children not getting enough to eat, if any food at all? It makes me really sad, and even angry. Instead of being upset, I’ve decided to up the ante on what I should already be doing, and that’s helping. I know I am only one person, but every recipe starts with one ingredient! So Gwen’s Gourmet, along with my PR representation, Fresh Touch Publicity and others have partnered with the non-profit organization, H.O.P.E. Family Resource Center, Inc to present the “Simply Giving Holiday Treat” for the purpose donating and raising money which will provide food for needy families in Georgia.

We’ve extended this invitation to the public, family, friends, clients, etc. We want everyone to remember that a little can go a long way. Just $5 can purchase a variety of food items! If you, your family, your organization, or your employer, etc. are interested in DONATING, please visit http://www.ftpublicity.com and click DONATE. Make sure you reference the “Simply Giving Project” in the notes section. A receipt acknowledging your donation will promptly arrive via email. We ask that your donations are received by Friday, December 16th.

Thanks in advance and be blessed!

Served Cold

There can be lots of hustle and bustle when having friends and family over to visit. Have you ever found yourself too busy to enjoy your company because you have other things that must be done to keep the party flowing?

I once had a client who decided to rid herself of at least one very important task/chore, and that was cooking. She hired me to cook for her luncheon and wanted every dish to be served cold. This way, when her guest arrived, her only responsibility would be serving the meal. No reheating.

On the menu:
Wild Alaskan Poached Lemon Salmon and a homemade Honey Mustard Sauce
Mixed baby green salad with blueberries, walnut and a homemade Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing Basil Corn Salad made with fresh cooked corn from the cob
Dill Orzo Pasta Salad with Lemon Zest

My client was very delighted to enjoy the company of her guest without having to labor over the needed preparations. While everyone was eating their cold meal, she received warm reviews about all of the food served!

The Picky Eater

One weekend, my husband and I were invited over to the home of a few friends for a potluck. I was asked to bring a potato salad. I prepared it, and when we arrived my husband carried the bowl inside telling a friend that he slaved in the kitchen over it. Hmm…I can't say that I remember it that way :-).

All of the food there was the great! This couple has a tradition where they grill fish that the husband catches. It was fabulous! While the guest sat eating in different areas of the house, a woman came to me and began telling me how much her husband enjoyed the potato salad. He’s an extremely picky eater, and yet he asked her to find out who made the dish and to get the recipe.

Needless to say, I was very encouraged to receive such high praise from a "picky eater".

SOHO 50

You've probably heard of the Freshman 20, which are the 20 pounds most students gain the first year of college. I am willing to bet, however, that you haven't heard of the SOHO 50; the 50 or so pounds most people gain the first year they move from a "regular" job to telecommuting or working from home. The fact that you may not have heard of the SOHO 50 doesn't mean that this phenomenon doesn't exist. It happened to me, and I have seen it happen to many business colleagues.

The reasons for this upward weight creep are obvious:
1. You expend less energy. When you work in a "regular" job, you expend extra energy getting ready for work, driving in traffic, even visiting co-workers and milling around the water cooler. By contrast, when you work from home, your commute may involve rolling out of bed and going from your bedroom to your office. Those of you who have your home office in your bedroom may have a 2-step commute.

2. Food is temptingly close. In most offices, your co-workers would give you the "side eye" if you spend all day munching. When you work from home, however, no one is there to see you indulge in treats and inhale last night's leftovers.

Some of you have incredible willpower, and just being aware of the SOHO 50 is enough to help you avoid it.
For the rest of us, however, here are a few tips to avoid the creep.

1. Put on some clothes, for Pete's sake! Yes, I know some of you can't wait for the freedom of walking around the house sans clothing, or spending all day in your pajamas. This is a very dangerous practice. Believe me - you will be shocked one day when you try to wear your regular clothes, only to find that they do not fit. Getting dressed every day not only helps you have a more serious attitude towards your work, it will help you monitor your weight.

2. Limit elastic waistbands to 1 day a week. Repeat after me: I am only allowed to wear pants that have a full elastic waistband one day a week. That means jogging pants are out. Wondering why? Re-read item # 1.

3. Jump around. Do you like music? Good. Every couple of hours, put on a playlist of your favorite high energy music and jump around. Since there's no one at home to see you, it doesn't really matter how you look. If you'd rather grab some fresh air, take a brisk 15 minute walk. These actions help keep your metabolism burning calories.

4. Outlaw most eating at your desk. Mindless eating piles on the pounds. Just as eating in front of the TV will make you fat, eating in front of the computer will do the same. Instead, have your meals in the kitchen. Limit your computer snacking to foods that have close to zero calories (water, raw vegetables, fruit, etc.).

5. Get out of the house. Make a plan to have tea or lunch with someone at least once a week. You can spend time with your former co-workers, potential clients, potential referral sources, and so forth. Getting out the house also forces you to wear "work" clothes, so that you can make sure they still fit.

6. Boost your activity level. Make it tougher for the pounds to latch on by taking exercise to the next level. If you are sedentary, start walking 20 minutes a day. If you are already consistently walking, add weight training, uphill walking or walk faster. The idea here is to find some way to burn the extra calories. Getting an exercise buddy may make sticking to exercising easier.

7. Get out of the house, Part 2: consider renting a co-working space. A co-working space is simply a collaborative space for business professionals. You pay one flat fee a month, and get to inhabit a cubicle or desk on a first-come first-serve basis. To find a space, search online for the term "co-working space" + your city.

About the author: Jackie Kiadii is the owner of Phoenix Computer Consultants, LLC, which specializes in teaching business professionals how to use technology to increase productivity and profitability. Her company provides computer training in Atlanta and online. Her courses include Microsoft software applications, Internet marketing, social media and email marketing. Get free software and Internet marketing tips by clicking here.

Busy Woman’s Confession

Being a busy woman trying to maintain sanity, home life and my business it becomes harder to stay healthy. It seems like the first thing I will slack on is taking care of my basic needs. Those needs include eating right, exercising and just making time for me.

I have read many different books with ideas on how to make sure, no matter where I am, that I have a healthy snack, but that doesn’t prepare the snack for me. It is not convenient to run into the grocery store when I need to be heading to an important meeting.

I had to find a way to fix this. I needed to create a system that made it easy for me to have a little nutrition no matter with me at all times.

Here is what I started:
Put fruit everywhere: I keep my favorite fruits (Oranges, apples, bananas, grapes, pineapple, blueberries) in the car, my purse and the office so that I always have them available.

Order power salads: Instead of ordering a major meal, I make sure I get my greens by ordering a salad with all the wonderful nutrition I need to keep going strong.

Smoothie time: I skip over Starbucks and head to the local smoothie shop for a better choice to power me up during the day.

Stroll: A lot of conference calls happen in the middle of the day, so I put on my headset and walk while listening a call. Most of them are recorded, so I can take notes later or simply record notes on my phone.

These simple changes keep me more energized, plus feeling like I am getting a hold on my health in the midst of a chaotic day.

I hope these quick tips that will make a difference in your day as well.

About the author: Ms. Carla Thorpe with Make It Happen Consulting. She is a major advocate for organization. Through her consulting, Ms. Thorpe has been able to help company’s start-up, evolve, give back to the community and display that anything is possible. We could all use a little help to reach our goals and Make It Happen Consulting offers the strategic support to create success. www.makeithappenc.com

Bitter-Sweet

Celebrating Black History Month

Michele Hoskins is an African-American owner and founder of Michele Foods, Inc., a multi-million dollar company that produces Honey Crème Syrup, Butter Pecan Syrup, and Maple Crème Syrup, Michele's Hoskins is also the author of Sweet Expectations: Michele Hoskins’ Recipe for Success.

Starting out as a divorced mother of three, with only her dreams and her great-grandmother’s recipe, Michele’s perseverance and eventual success serves as a model to any entrepreneur not to give up on their dreams. Her story, of which excerpts can be found at http://www.michelefoods.com/, is an encouragement to all who read it. Bitter beginnings can have sweet expectations.

Here’s a pancake recipe you can try with Michele’s Syrup

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 1/4 Vanilla Yogurt
1 egg
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the yogurt, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Ann Fudge

In February Black History Month is observed. The beginnings of this observance came about when Harvard-trained historian, Carter G. Woodson wanted to raise awareness of African-Americans’ contributions to civilization. Woodson and the organization he founded, the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), announced Negro History week in 1925.

“Carter G. Woodson believed that publishing scientific history would transform race relations by dispelling the wide-spread falsehoods about the achievements of Africans and peoples of African descent. He hoped that others would popularize the findings that he and other black intellectuals would publish in The
Journal of Negro History, which he established in 1916.” ~ The History of Black History Month http://www.asalh.org/blackhistorymonthorigins.html

I’d like to point out the success of one African-American as it relates to the food industry.

Ann Fudge grew up in Washington, D.C. After the riots following the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Ann became determined, and “wanted to do something that black people hadn't done before.”

She graduated from Simmons College in 1973 and worked in the human resources department of General Electric, before pursuing an MBA at Harvard Business School. After obtaining her MBA at Harvard in 1977, Mrs. Fudge spent nine years at General Mills, during which time her biggest accomplishment was marketing assistant for Honey Nut Cheerios. Today, it is one of the nation’s biggest cereal brands. From General Mills, Mrs. Fudge went to serve as president of the beverages, desserts and Post division, a $5 billion unit of Kraft Foods. At Kraft she mangaged many businesses including Maxwell House coffee, Gevalia kaffe, Kool Aid, Crystal Light, Post Cereals, Jell-O desserts, and Altoids.

In early 2010, Ann Fudge was named by President Obama to the bipartisan 18-member fiscal responsibility and reform commission. She has and currently continues to serve on boards of several for-profit and non-profit corporations.

Save Time And Money This Holiday Season

The holidays are a busy time of year. One way to save time and money is to PLAN meals. Coming home from a long day and staring at a near-empty refrigerator or at ingredients which could only be used in a weak attempt in a “What-izzit succotash” is usually not appealing and a call to the nearest pizza or Chinese food delivery becomes the go-to quick-and-easy solution. A lot of us realize intuitively that grocery shopping can be as expensive as eating out – that is, if we buy things we don’t need or over-purchase amounts and food goes to waste.

Here are some tips for time- and money-saving meal planning:
1. List things you like to eat. Open a Word document or get out a piece of paper and jot down brainstorm ideas for things you and your family like or would like to eat.
2. Remember the basics. Include as many vegetables (especially the green ones), fruits, and whole grains as possible. There is no need to have meat in every meal, and don’t forget about fish as an option.
3. Use what you have. Again, we don’t have to have to center every meal around meat. When planning, look in your pantry to see what you have and build around it.
4. Make use of the freezer and crock-pot. Invest in some good freezer-to-oven or freezer-to-microwave storage containers for leftovers to have at a later date. Have a busy evening planned? Plan a crock-pot meal to cook on low all day that will be warm and ready when you get home and on the way back out soon.
5. Make plans for leftover ingredients. If you won’t use all of an ingredient in a meal, plan a meal for later in the week with that/those ingredient(s).
6. Don’t underestimate the power of coupons. You can cut your shopping costs dramatically by remembering to check the Sunday paper and mail flyers for coupons and grocery sales.
7. Put it all together. Make a place (a computer document, recipe box, folder or binder with pockets) for all your new recipes and meal ideas. Like spontaneity? Put the week’s menu choices that you’ve shopped for on a whiteboard and pick one each day.