Receiving a diagnosis of diabetes usually means a change in lifestyle and diet.  If you are like me--I have a terrible sweet tooth!--I had this mental image of all things sweet and good disappearing from my diet.  Imagine my surprise to discover this is not true.  In fact, doctors and nutritionists recommend eating fresh fruit.  And there are many ways to make delicious diabetic desserts.  As with all foods, we diabetics have to watch our portions and even more so with sweets.  Do not make this cheesecake and eat it all before bedtime!  But incorporated into a healthy diet, you should be able to enjoy it.  With its sugar-free ingredients and fresh fruits, it is healthy and tasty enough for anyone!

DIABETIC'S LEMON CHEESECAKE

1 1/4 graham cracker crumbs*
1/4 cup Splenda granular
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 pkg (3-oz) sugar-free lemon gelatin mix
2/3 cup boiling water
2 bars (8-oz each) light cream cheese
6-oz. lite/firm silken tofu
grated rind of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup sugar-free frozen whipped topping, thawed
Fresh fruit of your choice, optional

In a small mixing bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, Splenda, and melted butter until mixed together well.  Using the back of a large spoon, press the mixture on the bottom and up the sides of an 8-inch springform pan.  Chill the crust for about ten minutes.

In a blender container mix the lemon gelatin mix and the hot water; slowly add in the cream cheese and the tofu.  Continue to mix until smooth.  Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and add the lemon rind, lemon juice and the thawed topping.  Pour into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.  Chill for 4 hours or more.  Before serving garnish with more whipped topping and fresh fruit/fruits of your choice, if desired.

*If you cannot use crumbs made from graham crackers, make your crumbs from sugar-free butter cookies or sugar-free vanilla wafers.

Serves 12.

Enjoy!

Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

 Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.
 
Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

WHY DO RICE KRISPIES SNAP, CRACKLE, POP?

Created similarly to popcorn, rice krispies are made by steamed rice (rice doesn’t have enough moisture in it before) being heated until the grain until the “pop” into crisped rice. thin and hollowed out walls, sealed areas inside where air pockets have formed. When cold milk is added the shift in temperatyure causes these weak walls to suddenly fracture and make the snap, crackle and pop

CARROTS WERE PURPLE, WHITE, RED AND YELLOW BEFORE ORANGE

Yes the lovely veggie was not always a bright and cheery orange colour. Centuries ago, as early as 900AD, in Afghanistan they were predominantly purple and yellow, with other colours appearing over the hundreds of years to follow as the carrot spread around the globe. It wasn’t until the 16th century that the orange carrot started to be cultivated in the Netherlands. A popular theory holds that the carrots were selectively bred to be orange to honour William of Orange, leader of the Dutch revolution against the Spanish, however there is no evidence to support this. Today you can still buy the other coloured varieties, though they’re far from the popularity of the orange version.

THE COLOUR ORANGE COMES FROM THE FRUIT

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Nurture versus nature? Orange the fruit or orange the colour? Well we can answer that last one for you! The word “orange” evolved from the Spanish word “naranja” which itself evolved from the Sanskrit for orange tree, “naranga”. Before the 16th century, in English the colour orange was in fact called “geoluhread” aka “yellow-red”, seriously, we were that original. So there you have it, until we found the orange fruit, orange was just a weird shade of yellow and red.

DINNER USED TO MEAN BREAKFAST

Fancy confusing your friends and family? The English word for dinner comes from the old French “disnar” which means to “break fast”. Traditionally dinner (AKA “breakfast”) was the first and largest meal of the day, eaten at noon. A lighter meal (supper) was eaten later in the day. People eventually started to regularly eat a meal before dinner but rather than call this meal dinner (which meant “break fast”) they started calling it the literal English name, “breakfast”! Meanwhile the biggest meal moved later in the day until eventually a lighter meal was eaten at noon (lunch) and the evening meal became lunch. So yes, you start your day with breakfast and end your day with breakfast.

THE WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE COFFEE COMES FROM POOP

Kopi Luwak are coffee beans that come from the poo of a palm civet, a cat sized mammal mostly found in southeast Asia. The animals eat coffee berries and the beans come out the other end, keeping their shape. The coffee retails for around $160 per pound, making it the world’s most bizarre and expensive coffee. The real question is: who discovered civet poop made great coffee?

Increase the wholesale price of milk in half-liter pack of four to six cents, the dairy industry due to cost and power

The calcium in milk prices will rise thirteen cents.

The senior officer of the Ministry of Commerce, Marios Drousiotis said the Competition and Consumer Protection initiated an investigation.

The executive secretary of the Pancyprian Association of Supermarkets, Andreas Hadjiadamou, said the supermarkets where you can absorb the increases.

Recorded an increase in prices for dairy products

The fact that a lemon contains more sugar than a strawberry, is another remarkable funny fact that is well spread around the internet. 
The acid within the lemon masks the sweetness of the sugar, at least that is the explanation.
To determine if this is true we first need to agree on how to compare the two, since a lemon is of course much bigger and heavier than one strawberry. 
To make a fair comparison we should look at the amount of sugar per, lets take the standard, 100gram.
Then we will see that a lemon contains 2.50g sugar per 100g, and a strawberry contains 5g sugar per 100g. Twice the amount of that of a lemon!
So we can safely conclude this fact is not true and debunked; A lemon does not contain more sugar than a strawberry
In fact, a strawberry contains twice as much sugar as a lemon.

Pasta Bake with Pancetta, Rosemary, and Ground Pork


 6 Servings

Ingredients:6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
9 ounces pancetta, cubed
18 ounces ground pork
2 tablespoons freshly chopped rosemary
1 x 14 ounce can cherry tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
2 3/4 cups (11 ounces) penne rigate
4 large eggs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1.In a large saucepan, heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil and sauté the onion and carrot for 5 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.

2.Add the pancetta with the ground pork and rosemary and cook, stirring continuously, until colored all over, about 5 minutes.

3.Pour in the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook over medium heat for an additional 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool to room temperature.

4.Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and add to the meat sauce. Stir well and let cool.

5.Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Break the eggs into the pan of cooled pasta and sauce, then add the grated Parmesan. Mix together.

6.Brush the remaining oil over the side and base of an 8 1/2-inch round nonstick baking dish with sides about 2 inches deep. Pour in the pasta mixture and spread out evenly.

7.Cook in the center of the preheated oven for 20 minutes until crispy and set.

8.Once cooked, let rest for 5 minute--it will be easier to cut and serve, as the layers will hold together. 

Serve hot or cold.Enjoy!!!

We all can use a new chicken recipe, can’t we? This one is bound to go into frequent rotation at your house, as it has at mine. It’s easy, it’s packed with galicky, lemony, punchy flavor, and I’ve never met a gyros sandwich I didn’t want to devour.

A gyros (say it yee-ros, and roll the r!) made from chicken is just genius! A blop of garlicky Tzatziki sauce, some chopped fresh summer tomatoes and red onion slices, all on a pita

Chicken GyrosIngredients:
Makes approximately 4

8 ounces nonfat plain yogurt 
3/4 cup peeled seeded and diced cucumber 
1 tablespoon finely chopped scallion 
2 garlic cloves, minced 
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast 
2 tablespoons lemon juice 
1 tablespoon snipped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano 
2 teaspoons olive oil 
4 lettuce leaves 
4 pita bread rounds (I get the whole, not the half with pockets) or 4 greek pita bread rounds 
1 medium tomato, sliced 
1 red onion, sliced 

Directions:

1 In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, cucumbers, scallions and half of the garlic. Cover and refrigerate. 

2 In another small bowl, stir together lemon juice, oregano, and the remaining garlic. Put lemon juice mixture in a ziplock bag with the chicken and let marinate for 10 minutes. 

3 Wrap pitas in tin foil and place in 350 degree oven for approximately 5 minutes. I just leave in the oven until the chicken is done cooking.

4 Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook until it is lightly browned on both sides and cooked through, about 10 to 15 minutes. **OR** Grill chicken breasts over open flame for about 4-5 minutes per side. We always grill the chicken and it turns out great. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and cut into thin 2-inch long strips. 

5 Place a lettuce leaf and a quarter of the chicken on each pita bread. Top each with a tomato slice and some sliced red onions and a quarter of the yogurt mixture. Fold each pita around its filling and wrap each with foil to secure. Serve immediately with a side of the yogurt sauce for dipping.


Enjoy!!!

If you are looking for a tasty way to beat the summer heat in Cyprus, the Raspberry Lemonade Yogurt Ice Pop is just the perfect treat LetsEat have a deep love and appreciation for all things lemon.  Whether its sweet treats, savory eats, household remedies or beauty treatments we are always happy to use lemon.  We always have a fruit basket full of lemons and a good portion of the year we are fortunate enough to have a few tree full of lemons.

As we was preparing these fabulously flavorful frozen treats, all we could think about was biting into one.  Savoring the layers of tart lemon juice and lemon zest and contrasting sweet raspberries perfectly combined with smooth and creamy protein packed yogurt.  We very carefully constructed each popsicle.  Took my time, I mean look at those raspberries, all with the end game in mind.  These were mine!  LetsEat doesn't care for popsicles that much and Munchkins palette isn't quite developed enough to really enjoy lemon yet.

Thankfully raspberries are on sale so we can really stock up on these ice pops.  Low calorie, healthy treat.  The perfect dessert for us to eat!

Raspberry Lemonade Yogurt Ice Pops
makes approximately 10 ice pops

¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoons lemon zest (zest of one lemon)
½ cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons juiced)
1 ½ cups plain yogurt
6 ounces fresh raspberries, cleaned (large ones cut in half)

Evenly distribute raspberries between ice pop molds.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine lemon zest and sugar.  Smash lemon zest with a fork until all sugar is coated in lemon.  Add lemon juice and yogurt.  Stir until well combined.

Pour into molds.  Cover with aluminum foil and add sticks.  Freeze for 4-24 hours.

Enjoy!!!

Here at the Let's Eat blog we have been truly gobsmacked by tales of the mashed potato vending machine.

Currently doing the rounds on the Internet, the above clip shows the mashed potato and gravy vending machine at work in a 7-Eleven store in Singapore where, apparently, the idea of buying a takeaway tub of mashed spuds is commonplace.

Robospud

Fair enough. Cultural differences and all that but those of us with long memories may recall the last time that mashed potatoes and machines got mixed up. Does the phrase ‘For mash get Smash’ ring any bells?

If you would rather a real chef made your food than have it assembled by a machine then LetsEat.com.cy  ticks all the right boxes.

An online service,LetsEat enables you to quickly find the takeaways in your local area; sort them by cuisine and browse their menus.

Once you have decided what you would like to eat, you can order your food, arrange for delivery or collection and pay for your meal – all online.

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