Tasty Ways to Boost Your Immune System

Jan here, bringing news that is news to nobody! 

We're in the middle of a viral event, compounded by the annual flu and cold season.  No matter which virus is headed your way, it just makes sense to be prepared - both in keeping easy-to-heat-up-if-we're-under-the-weather soups on hand, and keeping our immune system in tip-top shape.

I shared these recipes a few years ago, and I thought now would be a good time to repeat them!

One thing, though. In this post, I talk about lactose-intolerance - a condition I had resigned myself to live with at that time. But I don't worry about it now. Why? I found that by slowly introducing dairy back into my diet, I was able to teach my body to digest it properly again. That experience makes me wonder if that method would help with other dietary sensitivities (not dietary allergies - that's a whole different ball game!) But since I don't have other sensitivities, I haven't been able to test my theory.

Anyway, here are some yummy treats that will make you WANT to boost your immune system!

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An Orange Smoothie for Cold and Flu Season

 Yes, it's here. Flu season.

It's that time of year when the sun hangs low in the southern sky and the cold temps make most of us want to stay inside.

Jan here, with some tips on how to avoid catching the flu...or to lessen its impact on your life.

1) Get your flu shot.

No, it isn't too late. And no, I haven't gotten mine yet. (And yes, I had the flu over Christmas!)

Ever since a younger, fitter, and healthier acquaintance died of complications from the flu a few years ago, I vowed I would get my flu shot every year. This year? I kept putting it off. Now that I'm finally healthy again, I'll be getting my flu shot this week.

I've heard (from reliable sources) that even if you catch the flu after getting a shot, your experience with the virus will be much less serious than if you hadn't gotten the shot. My hubby is the perfect example. He got his shot in the fall, but then came down with the flu in December...and he didn't even realize what he had until I came down with the same symptoms a week later, but more severe and longer lasting. He felt better after a few days. It took me nearly two weeks to feel like I could put two sentences together!


2) Wash your hands.

Your mom was right. Washing your hands is the best way to protect yourself from being infected with a virus like the flu.


3) Get enough rest.

Your immune system needs to be in tip-top shape, and sleep is number one in keeping it there.


4) Eat well to keep that immune system revved.

Orange juice anyone? How about a smoothie?


And here's where today's recipe comes in!

Just over a year ago, I shared a drink recipe that I love - my Winter Sunshine drink! Check out the recipe here: Jan's Winter Sunshine

I love this drink, but sometimes I want something a little...sweeter?...ice creamier?...filling?

This smoothie answers all of those cravings. I'm going to give you two separate recipes. One for normal folks, and one for those with some restrictions on their diet (voluntary or otherwise.)

Orange Julius-Style Smoothie

This recipe is for those who have no dietary restrictions. It was a favorite with my children when they were younger!

1 6-oz can frozen orange juice

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

10-12 ice cubes

Blend the first four ingredients in a blender. Add the ice cubes 2 or 3 at a time until well blended. Drink right away, or freeze and eat as sherbet.

{Update: I forgot to say that this makes about four servings. I'm sure some you were shuddering at the thought of 1/2 cup sugar in one serving!}

Easy-peasy, right?

Unless you want to avoid sugar and happen to be lactose-intolerant (a recent development...I blame age). Then, this smoothie is for you:

Orange Dreamsicle Smoothie

The original recipe for this is in the Trim Healthy Mama cookbook, but it calls for cottage cheese. The only dairy I can eat is yogurt, so I substituted a couple things, and came up with this delicious, protein-rich smoothie.

1 medium, or 2 small oranges, peeled and seeded

1/2 cup unsweetened almond or cashew milk

1/2 cup unsweetened plain Greek yogurt

3/4 teaspoon orange extract

3 teaspoons stevia/erithrytol blend (like Truvia)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Vitamin C powder

2 Tablespoons integral collagen, or 1 scoop whey protein powder

1 1/2 - 2 cups ice cubes

In a blender, blend the orange slices and almond milk until the orange is completely blended. Add the yogurt, orange extract, sweetener, salt, Vitamin C powder, and collagen (not the whey protein powder).

Blend until smooth.

Add the ice cubes, 2-3 at a time (or if you have a powerful blender like a Ninja or Vitamix, add them all at once) and blend until smooth.

If you use whey protein powder, add it now, and blend for an additional 10 seconds.

Pour it into a large glass (I use a 1 quart canning jar) and enjoy!

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Back to 2020! I hope you're all weathering the storm our country (and world) is going through right now. 

With Thanksgiving and Christmas approaching, it's important to remember to celebrate those holidays, even if the crowd around the table is smaller this year. There is a reason for both holidays beyond big meals and get-togethers, and I plan to let my Thanksgiving to God for His provisions and my celebration of Christ's birth take center stage this year. No matter what else is happening.

Next week we celebrate Thanksgiving! Are you ready?

Jan Drexler lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her husband and growing family. When she isn't writing, she loves hiking in the Hills or satisfying her cross stitch addiction.

You can find Jan on Facebook, Jan Drexler, author, or her website, Jan Drexler.com.

Penuche: Brown Sugar Fudge Perfect for Gifting!

Fudge for Christmas?

Sign me up!!!!

This is a recipe I developed myself and if you love a maple-tasting or brown-sugar fudge, then I think you will love this. Easy to make and it freezes beautifully and lasts well in a sealed container.... but this wasn't a big worry because it got eaten so quickly! So here it is, old-fashioned "Penuche" brown sugar fudge with newfangled ease.

I'm reposting this because I know that having a Simple Christmas is important for so many folks and the gift of fudge is wonderful! So we'll share some of our favorite fudge recipes during the next few weeks and this is one of mine... And look at baby Finn here! We did a Living Nativity and he was one year old. Just walking. So stinkin' cute! A wandering baby shepherd... be still my heart. 

A baby shepherd has been sighted! :) This is Finn, when he was one year old... He didn't quite make it into the Living Nativity picture. We decided he was a wandering shepherd... a nomad, mayhap?

I love fudge. I love stopping by places with signs bearing "FRESH FUDGE" because fudge-lovers know what that means: Old fudge just isn't as good.

So the trick with fudge (to me, anywho!!!) is to develop recipes that taste great... and keep tasting great!

This one is perfection. I used Maple Syrup with mine, but if you wanted a more "brown sugar" taste you could use molasses and just cut the amount in half because molasses is a much stronger flavor.

Basically I took the recipe from the small Fluff jar and played with it. Most often I find that if you have a good basic beginning, changing the elements might change the taste, but keep the quality. So that was the goal.

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

6 oz. evaporated milk (half a big can) Or if you're using a 5 oz can, add cream or whole milk to go to six ounces. That silly little extra ounce makes the fudge creamier and stay creamier longer. 

4 TBSP (1/2 stick) butter

3/4 tsp. salt

1 jar Marshmallow Fluff

1/2 cup real Maple Syrup (or use 2 TBSP molasses instead)

1 12 oz bag white chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts (if desired)

In large saucepan combine both sugars, milk, butter, salt, Fluff, syrup or molasses. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. (I like a medium-medium/high heat.) Don't worry if marshmallow gets golden... it's supposed to! Make sure you're stirring all edges of pan. 

Cook to soft ball stage (235° to 238 ° on a candy thermometer) 

To kick the thermometer to the curb, test fudge by drizzling a spoon full of fudge into a coffee cup half-filled with cold water. If the fudge schlurps together into a ball, but flattens when you remove it from cup, you're at "soft ball" stage! Go you!!!!

Add in the 12 oz of white chocolate chips and nuts if desired. Stir until all is melted together and pour into foil lined 13" x 9" pan. Cool completely before cutting.

This fudge is amazing. I keep it sealed in a cool room or in the freezer and it loses no quality even two weeks later.

Air "sugars" fudge, making it crusty and taste stale. Keep it sealed and cool.... and while refrigerators are great tools, if your kid leaves the fudge open in the fridge while helping themselves to a piece, then the fudge takes on the smell of the fridge...

So I usually keep it out of the fridge for my own sake because yes... I love fudge!!! This is two weeks later and as sweet and creamy as the day I made it... 

And here's a little catch-up from the farm! Punch and cookies for the kids who call this home before and after school:

And remember the living room floor project? Well, here are the before and after shots!

And a holiday BOOK GIVEAWAY, my friends just like I did on Petticoats and Pistols! A copy of "A Cowboy Christmas", my duo with the amazing Linda Goodnight wants to come live with  you OR a Kindle copy of "Christmas on the Frontier", three wonderful prairie Christmas romances. Because I do love romance, my friends!

Leave a comment about Christmas baking or candy-making and that will get your name into the Christmas Candy Dish!

Wishing you the merriest of Merry Christmases! 

Leave a comment below (or if Blogger gives you a hard time, then leave a comment on my facebook page Ruth Logan Herne....) and we'll count it! 

May God bless you... May the king of all that's good and holy shine upon you and yours and may your heart be healed from any sadness or grief... And may you feel God's love rain down upon you during this beautiful holy season... and all through 2017.

Multi-published, bestselling author Ruth Logan Herne has over two million books in print, and still pinches herself each day to make sure this is real... and it appears to be!

Visit her website ruthloganherne.com or friend her on facebook (Ruth Logan Herne) or  CLICK HERE follow her on Bookbub  She loves getting to know folks!

Christkindl at the Farm: All hands on deck

 We are hosting an outdoor Christkindl market this weekend to benefit the Sisters of St. Joseph. You've probably heard my story of how the sisters have inspired me for decades, from the time I was a bedwetting little girl from a very sad house to the wonderful mentors they were to my children at St. Lawrence School in the town next to ours. For years we've donated things to their annual Christmas sale, a fun gathering of people at the motherhouse which also houses a nursing home facility for aged nuns. This year, there is no sale. The motherhouse has been on lock-down for 8 months to protect the elderly sisters from Covid 19 but when we realized we were thwarted in one way, we invented another.

A market, held right here at the farm! 

So this Saturday from 10 until 3, we've invited a handful of vendors to come and be part of the market... and farm sales will go to the good Sisters of St. Joseph.  Now, don't get odded out about this first pic: It's actually Xavier coating chicken for our supper a few days ago, and he was so proud of his efforts! We were making our version of "Popeye" chicken, coated in cajun-seasoned crushed cornflakes. We aren't serving that on Saturday... :) But I had to give this nine-year-old a shout out. 

We've got over 60 jars of jam to sell this weekend: Sour Cherry, Triple Berry, Strawberry Rhubarb, Strawberry and a New One!!!!! BUMBLEBERRY! Today I'll put cute bows on top of the jars and we've got cord-handled bags to tuck them into, an instant Christmas gift that tastes good, too! 

The trees have finally dropped their leaves.... and we put the kids on leaf clean up because the trees surround the "horseshoe area" (a semi-circular driveway designates the horseshoe) and with all of our maples, locusts and catalpa trees, leaves are a reality! 

When I used to go to NYC on a regular basis, I loved to stumble (or seek out, let's be honest here) "Nuts 4 Nuts", street vendors who had little wagons where they made sugared nuts. Now that I can make sugared nuts at home (I've graduated from a double batch in a slow cooker, to a quadruple batch, 3 lbs. of nuts, in my 22 quart electric roaster.... 

Then Zach filled the 1 cup snack bags.... Beth found these cute stocking online through The Dollar Tree so I ordered a case... and The Mighty Finn slipped a bag of nuts into each stocking. For $6, folks can get an absolutely adorable homemade gift of deliciousness! And the stockings become ornaments! 

This is my lame attempt at being creative. I botched Mr. Snowman's cheek, so I had to white it out and have to re-draw his cheek line.... but how cute are these guys?

Nuts in egg white foam, the first step toward deliciousness. 

Mandy has been crazy busy making little wood round ornaments that we're selling for $3 or 2/$5... 

How about a gathering of Spindle Snowmen? 

A Cactus Rock Choir????? So much easier to grow than little cacti, these are hand-painted rocks spreading Good News of a baby king! 

And Gnome Roam! These gnomes, made from the tops of pickets from roadside fencing discards, are hidden all around the farmyard and the kids will go off, hunting for the elf-like fellows as well as fairy house hunts... with fairy houses sporting bits of Christmas cheer now! (Totally Mandy!)

So that's what we've been doing the past two weeks... I'm in charge of baking and jam making. The jam, as you see, is done.... and I start the baking later today. 

We'll have a hot chocolate and hot cider booth.... (well, a table, actually!) half-a-dozen tents set up (but no rain in the forecast, so we're happy about that!) and hopefully a good time had by all.

And yeah, we're already making plans and setting things in place for next year. Crushed stone for the parking lot area is coming today from our excavator friends the Crowleys and a new big shed will arrive late winter to be an inviting backdrop for our pumpkin displays next year...

And we need to come up with donuts because a fall farm should have fried cakes, but that will be a winter project. Right now?

We're looking forward to Saturday's event and to helping a group of women who sacrificed their lives in the service of others. Every time I watch "Call the Midwife" I'm reminded of all the wonderful women who've given so much to make the world a better place.

Wishing you all a great November weekend!

Multi-published author Ruth Logan Herne also owns a pumpkin farm in WNY... so she writes sweet stories in the dark of night and helps on the farm in the light of day. She is blessed to have the best of both worlds! Friend her on Facebook, visit her website ruthloganherne.com or email her at loganherne@gmail.com. She loves to hear from readers and other writers!

Autumn Chicken with Apples and Sweet Potatoes

 Mindy's not the only one who isn't cooking anything new. I'm actually getting bored enough with my own cooking that I've been looking at Ninja Foodi. Does anyone have any recommendations?

I was thinking I might use it to cook one of my favorite recipes like this one:

Autumn Chicken with Apples and Sweet Potatoes

Since last Saturday was the autumn equinox, I decided I'd be seasonal and make a healthy fall meal.

Here we go.  It was DELICIOUS!

First I coated chicken breasts with my favorite herb mix.

Then I cubed (more or less) some sweet potatoes and dumped them on top of the chicken.

Next was some chopped vidalia onion.





I let it cook a bit, then added in a mix of Granny Smith and Gala apples. The Granny Smith gave it a nice tartness.

I sealed it all in foil and parchment and baked.  (Apology: my oven is so unpredictable that I can't really offer times or temps, but you're all experienced enough cooks to figure out what works in your oven.)

The final verdict - YUM!

Ranch Life and a Cover Reveal - A Brother's Promise

There hasn't been a lot of cooking going on here at the ranch lately. Well, at least nothing you haven't seen before. However, the weather has been perfect for enjoying some walks.

Saturday, my companions and I set off into the woods to gather pine cones. I like to use a lot of nature in my holiday decorating, so it was a good excuse to wander about. And there may or may not have been some Christmas music playing on my phone.

That's when I saw it. Do you see it?

It may not be much, there's some golden fall color on that oak tree. And that makes me happy.

As we continued on our quest, my companions soon had a lead.

Why yes, I do believe. There were pinecones here.

Pinecones there. Pinecones everywhere!

Now I just have to add a little "snow" to them, but that's a job for another day.

Something else fun happened last week. I received the cover for my March release, A Brother's Promise.

Y'all, I love this story. It's so sweet and it's one of those that practically wrote itself. You're going to love little Sadie. Here's a little bit about A Brother's Promise. 

He didn’t realize he wanted a family… Until he suddenly became a single dad.

After his sister’s death, rancher Mick Ashford’s determined to ensure his orphaned niece, Sadie, feels at home. And accepting guidance from Christa Slocum is his first step. But just as Christa and Sadie begin to settle into Mick’s heart, Sadie’s paternal grandparents sue for custody. Now Mick must fight to keep them together…or risk losing the makeshift family he’s come to love.

A Brother's Promise is available for preorder here.

And now I'm working on a Christmas story for next year, so in my world, Christmas has already begun.

That's what's going on in my world. What's happening with you?

Award-winning author Mindy Obenhaus is passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. She lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, two sassy pups, countless cattle, deer and the occasional coyote, mountain lion or snake. When she's not writing, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren, cooking and watching copious amounts of the Hallmark Channel. Learn more at mindyobenhaus.com

Brazilian Bean Stew

Jan here with a delicious, savory dish. I can't believe I haven't shared this one yet!

I got this recipe from my son's friend, Eddie, who got it from his great-grandmother. Don't you love "hand me down" recipes?

As I was researching this recipe - just to give us a bit of background - I found that this is the national dish of Brazil! It's roots are a little iffy. Most people attribute it to the African slaves brought to Brazil in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, but there is some evidence that it originated in northern Portugal.

But wherever it was started, it has been made by people in Brazil for centuries.

Why is it so popular?

The biggest reason is because it's inexpensive. Beans and pork. Those are the main ingredients.

And then there's this: it's the most delicious bean stew (or soup) I've ever had.

This simple stew is traditionally made with Black Beans. The Portuguese name for it is Feijoada  (from feijao, which is Portuguese for bean.) But Eddie's version was made with white beans. Personal preference? Probably. I never asked him. But the white bean version is the one that has its roots in northern Portugal.

By the way, if you're wondering why the Portuguese names are so important: Portuguese is the language spoken in Brazil. 

This stew is perfect for using up leftovers! (Maybe that's another reason why it's so popular!)

Feijoada, or Brazilian Bean Stew

ingredients:

Beans (about 3 cups cooked)

Bacon, ham, smoked sausage (about 2 cups total) You can also use ham hocks, leftover ham from dinner, etc. Cut all of the meat into bite-size pieces.

1/4 cup diced onion

1 garlic clove, minced

3 bay leaves

4 cups broth - I used a combination of chicken and ham broth

pepper to taste (you won't need any more salt!)

If you are missing one of the ingredients, don't worry! This is a very forgiving recipe!

Dice and cook the bacon in a large stock pot over medium heat (I use my 8-quart.) When it's cooked most of the way, drain most of the grease, then add the diced onions. Cook and stir until the onions are soft, then add the garlic. When the garlic is fragrant, add the rest of the meat.

Let the meat cook until it's almost burned. You want it to be caramelized and delicious.

Add the broth, stirring and scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the pot.

(I pushed the meat and onions to the side to show you the browned bits on the bottom of the pan.)

Add the beans and bay leaves, then let the stew simmer and thicken. At this point, I put mine in my slow cooker so I could forget it for the rest of the afternoon.

Serve over rice, with a squeeze of lemon or lime juice on top. It's traditionally served with oranges on the side.

Seriously, this is a delicious dish! And so versatile! I used canned beans because I was short on time, but you can also cook dry beans from scratch. You can use black beans, or great northerns like I did, or even pinto or red beans.

The meat can be anything you have. I'd like to try it with chicken sometime.

Or leave out the meat! Use the flavorings to make a savory bean dish.

Enjoy!

In other news, our weather changed again. We had a lovely autumn week last week, but then yesterday the temperatures started plummeting. Now it feels like November again!

How are things at your house?

Jan Drexler has always been a "book girl" who still loves to spend time within the pages of her favorite books. She lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her dear husband of many years and their active, crazy dogs, Jack and Sam. You can learn more about Jan and her books on her website, www.JanDrexler.com.