Angel Food Ministries

I thought I would write and let everyone know that I have been ordering food every month from the Angel Food Ministries. It costs $30 for the basic packages and they usually have other available boxes ranging from $16 to $20. They are either grill boxes, or chicken or this month they even offered a fresh fruit and vegetable box. They come with a variety of food in them. Last month I was able to provide all the meat for my family except for fish and shrimp for $70 for the whole month. This month I paid $86 as I ordered the fresh fruit and vegetable box as well for an exta $16. I am excited about it, as we are able to eat steaks and ribs which we ordinarily would never be able to afford to eat.

this months menu was:
40oz. marie callenders family crock pot dinner(meat included)
1.5lb boneless pork filet
5lb breaded chicken chunks
1.5lb meaty beef ribs
28oz meatloaf and gravy
1lb beef fajitas
1lb fully cooked meatballs
1lb all meat hot dogs
1lb broccoli
1lb peas and carrots
28oz pasta sauce
1lb pasta
32oz borden 2%red.fat shelf stable milk
32oz hawaiian punch
12ct. corn tortillas
7oz blueberry muffin mix
1 dozen eggs
1 dessert item
all for $30.oo, with the purchase of this you may also purchase
July Special #1-1.5lb new york strip steaks(2x12oz), 2.5lb boneless netted boston butt roast, 2lb meaty beef ribs, 1lb mild italian sausage $20.00
July Special #2-1.5lb kansas city strips(2x12oz), 1.5lb ribeyes(2x12oz), 1.5lb bacon wrapped chicken filet(4x6oz) $20.00
July Special #3-10lb breaded chicken tenders $18.00
July Special #4-6 ears corn, 2lb carrots, 2lb yellow onions, 1 cello wrapped lettuce, 1 pineapple, 1lb strawberries, 1 seedless watermelon, 6 russet potatoes $16.00
They are even approved by the government to accept link cards!!

Grilled Chicken Legs with Lemon and Pepper

8 chicken legs with thigh
1/2C olive oil
1/3C fresh lemon juice
1T chopped fresh rosemary
1t salt
1/2t fresh ground pepper

Arrange chicken in shallow bowl or baking dish, whisk together remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Heat grill to medium-high heat. Place chicken on grill until browned on all sides(about 10 minutes) turning once or twice. If using gas grill reduce heat to low and cook 20 minutes.

I placed this in a glass baking dish and baked it for almost two hours at 350 instead of grilling. I also doubled the ingredients because it was barely enough to cover four chicken legs with thighs let alone 8. I did not use fresh rosemary because I didn't have any on hand, but it was still delicious even with dried rosemary. Yet another fabulous find from recipezaar.com #28279

Zesty Grilled Tilapia

6 6oz tilapia fillets
6 T olive oil
1T grated orange zest
6 T freshly squeezed orange juice
1 T grated fresh ginger
1 t hot sauce, to taste
1 t salt
fresh ground black pepper

Place fish in a large nonmetal dish, whisk together remaining ingredients, pour over the fish. Cover and marinate in the refridgerator for 30 to 60 minutes. Grill until fish just flakes when tested with a fork, about 5 minutes per side for each inch of thickness.

I marinated overnight. I also cooked the fish in a disposable foil pan on the grill, which made it easier to manage. Another wonderful try from recipezaar.com #291446

Grilled Bourbon Salmon

1/4C pineapple juice
2T soy sauce
2T brown sugar
1t bourbon
1/4t fresh cracked pepper
1/8t garlic powder
1/2 vegetable oil
1lb salmon fillets

Combine ingredients in a bowl. Remove skin from salmon. Place salmon in a glass dish side by side. Pour some of the marinade over(reserve some for basting while grilling) refridgerate for at least 1 hour a few hours will be even better. Drain and grill over med. -high about 5-7 minutes per side or until fish flakes-basting with the reserved marinade.

I used olive oil instead of vegetable oil and I combined my ingredients in a freezer bag and put it in the fridge overnight. I also think it would be okay to omit the bourbon if you so choose as it was only a teaspoon, and I couldn't taste it not even in the background.

This is also a find from recipezaar.com recipe#548

Tequila Lime Shrimp

Tequila Lime Grilled Shrimp
1/2C Olive Oil
1/3C freshly squeezed lime juice(i used the little plastic lime found in the produce section)
3T tequila
2T chopped garlic
2-3T chopped cilantro
18 jumbo shrimp, raw, deveined and shells removed

Combine ingredients and marinade shrimp for several hours or overnight. Grill 2-3 minutes per side. Serve hot or cold.
recipe #276009 from http://www.recipezaar.com/

I doubled this recipe and used two bags of the frozen cooked jumbo shrimp from aldi's. Still turned out terrific!! We will definately have this again and again.

For Heather

My best friend of nearly 25 years lost her dear "Bagaw" Sunday evening. My heart goes out to her. I hurt so much for her, I haven't lost any grandparents myself, but to think that we are only 30 years old my best friend just lost hers is terrifying. I hope that in this poem she might find peace for a moment. I love you with all my heart Heather!!! I am so sorry for your loss, call me anytime day or night no matter what you need, if only someone to listen I am always here, if you need my shoulder my van is always parked right outside.

. . . REMEMBER ME . . .

I never meant to leave you,

Could I have only stayed;

We would be going on in life,

With all the plans we made.

Now all the hopes and dreams we shared,

Are but sweet memories;

For you to tuck inside your heart,

Now when you remember me.

Remember all the good times,

And all the joy we shared;

Remember how you touched my life,

And how I really cared.

Think back on all the laughter,

And wipe away your tears;

You still have many miles to go,

And still have many years.

Don't look back....look forward,

This day is a brand new start;

And as you travel on in life,

You'll take a bit of my heart.

I never meant to leave you,

But still you'll not be alone;

For as long as my love lives in you,

I'll never really be gone.

Allison Chambers Coxsey

A scary thought

I have recently been hearing by word of mouth that artificial sweeteners are bad for us. I have read recently that they can cause cancer and obesity and a slew of other horrible things. Initially I was interested in it, as I have struggled to lose weight since I have gotten married and had children. I recently asked my doctor what I could do about decreasing my hunger. I honestly feel like I am always hungry even when I am miserably full, (which I shouldn't be anyways, this I realize) I have full on hunger pains and am miserable. His response was for me to drink more water. This is not going to work for me, I consume tons of water a day. Then one of my best friends Heather mentioned to me that she heard diet soda actually increased you hunger. So I did a little research on it. Now soda in general is not good for us, as I think we all know, however aspartame which is widely used in diet sodas of all types is horrible for us. It has been linked to everything you can think of, multiple types of cancers, depression, anxiety disorders, obesity, problems with diabetes, multiple sclerosis, lupus, attention deficit disorders and multiple other problems. On the internet just today here are a list of things I found to be associated with Aspartame


the initiation or aggravation of diabetes mellitus, hypoglycemia, convulsions, headache, depression, other psychiatric states, hyperthyroidism, hypertension and arthritis; the simulation of multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and lupus erythematosus; increasing aspartame addiction (12); an apparent causative role in brain tumors (10); a neurologic condition in overweight young women known as pseudotumor cerebri; and even the carpal tunnel syndrome (11).

Damage to the retina or optic nerves is largely due to methyl alcohol exposure. Unlike most animals, humans cannot efficiently metabolize it.
High concentrations of phenylalanine and aspartic acid occur in the brain after aspartame intake, unlike the modest levels of amino acids following conventional protein consumption.

Aspartame alters the function of major amino acid-derived neurotransmitters, especially in obese persons and after carbohydrate intake.
Phenylalanine stimulates the release of insulin and growth hormone.
The ambiguous signals to the satiety center following aspartame intake may result either in increased food consumption or severe anorexia.

Large amounts of the radioactive-carbon label from oral aspartame intake have been detected in DNA.

It causes headaches, dizziness, confusion, memory loss, severe drowsiness and slepiness, severe depression, extreme irratability, severe anxiety attacks, marked personality changes, severe insomnia, severe aggravation of phobias, shortness of breath, hypertension...high blood pressure which i have, nausea, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pain on swallowing, severe itching without a rash, severe lip and mouth reactions, hives, severe genital itching, rash or both, lubus erythematosus-type eruption, other rashes, marked thinning or loss of hair, aggravation of respiratory allergies, dual sensitivity to msg, paradoxic marked weight gain, marked weight loss, sever joint pains, fibromyalgia, leg and hand cramps, problems with diabetes, loss of control of bladder function, precipitation of clinical diabetes, aggravation or simulation of diabetic complications, hypoglycemia, menstrual changes, severe reduction or cessastion of periods, hyperthyroidism, frequent urination, intense thirst, bload, fluid retention and swelling, kidney stones
the age of onset of reactions ranged from infancy to 92 years most were in their 20s to 50s. Many reactors consumed prodigious amounts of aspartame, especially during hot weather. Conversely, some experienced convulsions, headache, or other severe symptoms after exposure to small amounts (e.g., chewing aspartame gum; placing an aspartame strip on the tongue; babies while breast-feeding as the mother drank an aspartame beverage). Nearly two-thirds of aspartame reactors experienced symptomatic improvement within two days after avoiding aspartame. With continued abstinence, their complaints generally disappeared.

Aspartame is likely to be found in any sweetener you put in your drink. Anything labeled 'diet' or 'sugar free', any gum or breath freshener, all will have aspartame as a sweetener. When the temperature of aspartame exceeds 30 degrees centigrade (86 F), which the body acomplishes quite quickly once it is ingested, the wood alcohol in it converts to formaldahyde (a poison used to preserve body parts) and then to formic acid which is even more toxic. Aspartame may cause miscarriage because it makes the body have an immune reaction to it, which can destroy the fetus.

Let me tell you the last part of this brought immediate tears to my eyes, as I have suffered from 5 miscarriages trying to conceive my two children. To think that something as simple as avoiding aspartame could have prevented that loss is in my book unacceptable.

Here are some of the websites I have gotten information from:

http://www.mercola.com/
http://www.medicinenet.com/

These are just my finds and results for Aspartame(Nutra Sweet & Equal) by the way, I have found harmful effects of saccharin(Sweet n low) as well as sucralose(Splenda). Some of which are similar to the effects of Aspartame.

All of this was enough for me to completely empty my kitchen and bathroom(some cold medicines and vitamins(even Flinstones) contain aspartame) of any and everything that contained aspartame or any artificial sweeteners.