“Thin” has long been a word that I associate with eating disorders, not athletics.

When I first started changing my eating habits, one of the biggest challenges I faced was understanding food labels at the grocery store.  

The first time I ate her piña colada cheesecake was to mark a very special occassion. I had just found out I was pregnant with my first baby. And my dear friend baked the celebratory cake. 

I retrieved that recipe today, with a heavy heart after learning that my friend recently passed. She just turned 43.

I love the idea of coming home to a ready-made dinner. So when I received a slow cooker from for Christmas last year, I was delighted with the prospects. For a month or two, I tried to slow cook everything – perhaps even cold cereal and turkey sandwiches. Sadly, I only hit upon a handful of winners before petering out. Then last weekend, I hit the trifecta of recipes: Spicy Brisket with Texas Caviar from Food & Wine.

I was in an all-day offsite yesterday, in which breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack was catered in. Breakfast consisted of huge pastries, filled with jam and cream cheese. Lunch was an all-you-can eat pasta bar with fried chicken parmesan. For the afternoon slump, which was bound to happen after all of those carbs, we had our choice of brownies, chocolate chip cookies or cheesy popcorn. 

Not only are these choices bad for my waistine, but my producivity as well. Research shows that what we eat impacts our job performance, mental clarity, energy and stamina.

What could be more Ottawa than skating along the Rideau Canal with a fresh BeaverTail resting in your wool mitten? Skating is a little risky for me now. But a BeaverTail? Always a welcome treat.

This weekend, I tinkered with my newest kitchen gadget and made a "Spanish BeaverTail." No, not with chorizo and manchego cheese. Although, I could be on to something.

I love to cook. I pride myself on having provided healthy, well balanced and varied meals for our family for thirty years. It rubbed off on my daughter. One of our favorite pastimes is shopping the San Francisco Farmers Markets on the weekend then coming back to create a great dinner - a reward for our "hunting and gathering."

Not so much my sons. In their early 30's, one seems to live on gummi bears and sushi, the other on pizza and Coke. Yuk.

What happened?  I  I involved my daughter more in the kitchen when they were growing up. It was a "girl" thing.

During my 18th summer, my sister Tina and I spent summer evenings on the lakeshore in the West Island of Montreal. We sat in the front of Dad's Oldsmobile with the radio playing Cyndi Lauper. In the glove box, along with the compass and tire gauge, were our vital implements: two metal spoons. One was for the pint of Baskin Robbins World Class Chocolate ice cream. The other was for the Sara Lee chocolate cake. The sugar orgy gave us enough fuel for a night of bar-hopping on Crescent Street.

Welcome to my first post of 2012. I hope the first week of the New Year has been kind and gentle. The Chinese Year of the Dragon promises excitement and intensity.

The perennial buzzwords of the season seem to be cleanse, purge and gym membership. A few friends are starting cleanses. Others are trying to kick sugar. My aunt in California is starting an exercise  program to shed the extra holiday pounds.

Enjoy Health This Flu Free Season

This is cold and flu season, and from where I’m sitting, it is going around- that nasty virus that clogs up your head and makes it feel like an elephant is sitting on your chest. Did you know that one of the number one ways to strengthen your immune system is with the right foods?  Follow these tips on how to help your body fight off infections this winter, and what you can do to help if you do end up sick.

Improve your immune system with the addition of these ....