Snacking

Good evening, everyone.  I hope you are doing well.  We still have snow on the ground and it's cold but at least the sun was shining today and it was glorious.  I am so ready for spring.  How about you?
So many of my close friends, relatives, and aquaintances (and Facebook buddies) have decided to try the low carb life lately, I have been inundated with questions.  How many carbs can I have a day?  What kind of fruits can I have?  What kind of vegetables?  What, you mean I can't have bananas?  I am happy so many are giving this a try, but I just hope they all realize, in my mind, it can't just be looked at like some fad diet.  In order to get the health benefits so many of us really need, it has to be a lifestyle change.  Diets usually have a beginning and an end.  People lose weight and then gradually drift back to their old ways and put the weight back on, only each time, studies show they put even more weight on.  It can be a vicious cycle, one that can ultimately cause more problems over time.  Why can't we just realize that fad diets and pills and the latest contraption may work in the short term but don't work in the long term.  People are living longer and longer.  Don't you want to be healthy for the rest of your life?  And remember, there is a difference in fit and healthy.  How many times have we read about athletes who are the ultimate example of fitness dropping dead because they weren't healthy?  Studies are showing again and again that the low carb lifestyle not only helps you lose weight, it is heart healthy, it lowers blood pressure, controls blood sugar, etc., etc.  The list of the health benefits of a low carb life continues to grow.  One study shows that it helps to control seizures!  Well, enough of that.  I want to share some of my snack ideas.
One of my favorite snacks has got to be cheese.  I like all kinds but my favorite has to be super sharp cheddar.  Lisa loves the prepackaged cheese sticks.  I prefer slicing it off a block.  During the summer, sometimes Lisa and I will even have two or three different kinds of cheese slices with strawberries and celery for a light supper.  Speaking of celery, I love to cut stalks into about four inch lengths and fill them with cream cheese and sometimes low carb peanut butter.  We also like pork rinds.  A lot.  Sometimes I'll fill a plate with pork rinds, cover them with shredded cheese and jalapenos, and throw them in the microwave until the cheese is melted and it's like nachos.    I also like to put shredded cheese on a plate and cover with pepperoni slices, put it in the microwave until the cheese is melted and crispy around the edge for a little mock pizza.  Take some salami slices and roll them around cream cheese.  Or, make a salami/cream cheese stack, alternating salami slices and cream cheese.  Make it about a half an inch tall and cut it into pie shapes.  Try pepperoni "chips".  Put pepperoni on a plate, cover with a paper towel, and microwave until bubbly.  Let them sit until they cool and you've got crispy pepperoni chips.  This works with parmesan as well, only use the oven for this one.  Make little piles of shredded parmesan on a baking sheet, stick it in the oven until it melts, let it cool until they are crispy.  These are so good.  Just remember, the snacks I've talked about above are not recipes.  I leave that to Lisa.  Most of these ideas are on the website.  Those that aren't, will be soon, so be sure to check back often.
Oh, and I have an update on Greg's dad.  He is out of the hospital and resting and recuperating at home.  Please continue to keep him in your prayers.
Thanks, again, for supporting my blog by stopping by occasionally, or even daily, to read my low carb ramblings.  Our newspaper interview is tomorrow, and while we are excited, we are a little nervous.  Be thinking about us at about 3:00 tomorrow afternoon.  See ya