Hot Pants....

You know how a dog pants when it is hot.  It hangs it's tongue out of the side of it's mouth and just goes for it.  If he is a boxer dog, like the ones my family bred you'll know that they work up some dandy slobber on the sides of their mouth while it is panting.  And then comes the drool!

So why do I speak of dogs and panting today?  Because where I live the city has issued an extreme heat alert.  It is above 40 degrees celcius here and there is something I discovered.  When you can't open your mouth, letting the in-breath touch the back of your throat, hang your tongue out like a dog and exclaim "damn, it's hot!"  it feels MUCH MUCH hotter.  And so I discover the deprivation of panting on a hot day.  I went out for short walk and past a dog.  He was panting.  I was envious.  He can probably chew as well!

I must say though, through all of this I have discovered some amazing things you can make in the blender.  The blender is a very hand gizmo. Personally, I don't own one, other than my hand stick blender which I've had forever. But for the kinds of things I'm blending I need the stand up kind.  So I'm borrowing a friend.  I hope the motor holds out.  So far, no smoke.

I love beets. I love carrots. I love ginger. I love celery.  I enjoy cottage cheese.  Let me tell you...if you like this combination than throw it in the blender. Steam a cup of carrots, throw in a can of rosebud beets, some dried ginger (I usually use fresh but the chunks never blend and they get stuck in my wires),   a dash of cinnamon, some fresh grated nutmeg, 1/2 cup of cottage cheese and a little sweetener of your choice.  This is SOOOO good, either warm or cold.  Basically it's like a creamy borscht (without cabbage). Ginger has been a mainstay for me. I find it calming on my stomach.  And anything vanilla flavored as well.  I have three more Ensure (or Boost) drinks left. They are good for emergencies but it is a bit too much like living on milk shakes.  I some how believe that eating the food groups rather than a bottle of fake ingredients and some nutrients thrown in is better for the over all healing.  Plus, ounce per ounce those suckers are expensive. I'd rather graze on a whole blender full of real food than suck back two gulps of 250 calories.  Yes I know...you're all worried about me loosing more weight.  Me too. But there are healthier ways to get calories in.  Besides, the fear of up-chucking is always on my mind.  I don't want to. I don't want to choke.  I might throw up all over my hot pants!