Monday, August 31, 2009

HUNGRY GIRL SHOUT OUT

Have any of you heard of HUNGRY GIRL? HUNGRY GIRL is a free daily e-mail subscription service about healthy eating that launched in May 2004. Currently over 400,000 people receive the emails. Hungry Girl is on Facebook and Twitter with about 30,000 fans and growing constantly. The creator, Lisa Lillien, is a true marketing sensation. She’s known for her 200 Recipes Under 200 Calories. She’s on a mission to help people be successful in their diets with tasty food.

So, you ask, what’s a gal who’s writing The Cheese Shop Mysteries doing giving a shout out to someone who is helping all those people diet?

Well, get this!! I came up with a tasty treat that’s under 200 calories, made from bacon and shrimp and cheese. That’s right, cheese! The appetizer is melt-in-your-mouth delicious, if I do say so myself, and really pleased my taste-testers!

Oh, before I tempt you further, WE DO HAVE ANOTHER WEEKLY WINNER. Tune in because the winner will be announced later this week and it might be you!!!

Anyway, back to tasty treats. I’m calling this one:

BACON SHRIMP TALEGGIO KEBAB

Ingredients:

4 slices Apple- smoked bacon [I used Pederson’s Natural Farms]
6 Medium-sized cooked shrimp
12 half-inch cubes of Taleggio cheese
12 Toothpicks

Directions:

Fry up the bacon and cook crisply, but not so brittle it will break, then cut in thirds.
Slice the medium-sized shrimp in half, so you have a head and tail, 12 pieces in all.
Slice the Taleggio cheese in one-half-inch cubes

For each kebab, take a piece of the bacon, a piece of shrimp, and a piece of cheese.

Skewer with a toothpick while the bacon is still warm.

Hint: The cheese melts to perfection by the time you’re ready to serve a platter of these little goodies.

So, Hungry Girl and all of your fans, listen up. A person can diet and still have cheese! {I’m not sure Lisa a.k.a. Hungry Girl, ever said a dieter couldn’t eat cheese. I have to admit I haven’t reviewed all of her recipes.} But most people think that cheese is taboo on diets and it’s not.

And yes, you can eat JUST ONE.

“Moderation in all things.”

Know who said that? A fellow named Terence who was a comic playwright and dramatist during the Roman Republic 195 BC to 159 BC. Mark Twain, however, put a better spin on it and said, “All things in moderation, including moderation.”

So enjoy a good bite of cheese! It’ll make you smile.

***And don't forget to enter to win our weekly Mystery Lovers' Kitchen contest. The prize is a $25 gift certificate to the Williams-Sonoma kitchenware and gourmet food store. Just sign in to this blog and leave a comment or send an "Enter me!" e-mail with your first name and state to MysteryLoversKitchen@gmail.com

Say Cheese!

12 comments:

  1. Who knew? :) Seriously, though, look how much cheese the French eat and they're always slender and elegant.

    This looks delish!

    Elizabeth
    Mystery Writing is Murder

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bacon wrapped shrimp and you think we're going to eat just one? They do sound and look lovely. Yum!

    ReplyDelete
  3. These sound heavenly, Avery. One issue I'm having is that I can't find Taleggio cheese around here. My local grocery stores stock all sorts of cheeses, but not that one. Any suggestions?

    Julie

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mmmmm....bacon. You had me at bacon...Nice tribute to the Hungry Girl's 200. (I'm with Mark Twain, I have to say. Great quote.)

    ~Cleo
    author of The Coffeehouse Mysteries
    Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Free Coffee Drawing Today
    LIVE at 7 PM (Eastern Time)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ah, cheese. I like cheese. I treated myself today by adding some cheese to my salad. I have not tried Taleggio but, I think Whole Foods might have it. They have a decent cheese section and if you get a manager, they will order stuff for you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Avery, glad to see you having such a good time with cheese. Looking forward to the book!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I can't wait for the first book in your series, Avery! I love cheese so much that my co-workers call me a cheesehead. Every morning at 10 I indulge in a 60-calorie cheese stick for a snack. (I'd eat about 20 of them but I'm trying to keep my weight down) I never heard of Taleggio, though. Oh boy--a new cheese to try!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Um, bacon and cheese and shrimp? And 200 calories to boot? How can that go wrong? I'm with Linda - a new cheese to try!

    All the best, Avery/Daryl from Norma Huss who has to say she's anonymous.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Bacon, shrimp and cheese, three of my favorites. In my old age, bacon is better than chocolate, crazy. One of our local chinese restaurants serves bacon wrapped shrimp, wonderful, but I can't eat just one.
    Thanks for the info on Hungry Girl, I'll be checking it out.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I need to get back to eating healthier, so I am definitely going to stop by Hungry Girl.

    Looks like a winning combination in this recipe! I don't think anybody in my family would stop at one.

    ReplyDelete
  11. For all those who'd like a substitute for Taleggio, a Monterey Jack would do the trick. Much milder cheese, but it'd melt down the right way. Taleggio is a nutty, soft and easy melting cheese. You could also try Fontina.

    Best. From Avery!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sounds like a great dish, however, please be careful in promoting "Hungry Girl." Her dishes should not be referred to as "healthy", merely low calorie. If you investigate her recipes and ingredients further, you'll see she promotes way too much sugar, trans fat, and processed foods. I find her advise irresponsible.

    ReplyDelete