Make Healthy Restaurant Recipes at Home

By Chef Pablo

For some reason McDonalds is a huge motivator for eight year old little girls. I love to give my daughter a nice treat every once in a while. We're not a family that eats out more than once a week and usually it's something other than fast food. But, this time, my daughter wanted a Happy Meal and I was happy to take her. I've been doing very well with my eating lately, so I planned on making something at home.

As I pulled up to the menu board, I started thinking about how much I love some of the items they offer. I looked and saw "Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese." Mmmm, that used to be one of my favorites, but now that I'm working out and eating right I had to pass. That's when it struck me

What if I made that exact same burger at home, but I substituted some healthy alternatives? I've been doing up restaurant recipes for quite some time and I always try to duplicate exactly what the restaurants make. What if I reduced the cream in Outback Steakhouse's Walkabout Soup? What if I replaced the Italian sausage in Olive Gardens Zuppa Toscana Soup with turkey sausage? Could I make it into something healthy?

Of course, I know it's probably not going to taste EXACTLY the same, but I'm willing to sacrifice a little to save on the scale each morning. I also know Splenda isn't a duplicate for sugar and low fat cheese doesn't always melt exactly the same way regular cheese does, but that's OK.

I've put together a list of things you can do to change up your favorite top secret recipes to help them fit into a healthier lifestyle.

Drop the Fat - The next time you're buying eggs, look around the shelf and you'll probably see a low fat real egg substitute you can use for cook and baking. You'll find the same thing in the cheese section and the other parts of the dairy aisle.

Turkey Everything - It does seem like every kind of meat imaginable has a turkey based alternative these days. I don't know if anyone loves bacon as much as I do, but I've made the switch to turkey bacon. It's not exactly the same, but the payoff in my waistline is worth the sacrifice. Sausage, patties, bacon, ham and more is all available and make great replacements.

Low Fat Oil? - Well, it's not really low fat oil, but it does reduce the amount of oil you use. What is it? Spray on oil. It's the same oil you pour into a pan, but when you spray it you can coat a pan with considerably less oil than you would pouring. It can even be sprayed on food you would normally deep fry, but want to bake instead. It puts a nice crispy coating on the food.

Sugar Substitutes - Splenda is one of my favorite substitutes. Consider using it instead of sugar anytime you need it. It measures one for one with sugar, so you don't have to do any of the math. It's simple, easy and tastes pretty good.

Low fat cheese on the top of your copy cat Pizza Hut pizza isn't going to taste exactly the same. It's not. But, if staying in shape is important to you, it's worth a few minor modifications. If you follow the rest of the recipe correctly, you'll end up with a good substitute.

I have plenty of top secret recipes on my website that are waiting for your modifications. Don't be afraid to experiment a little and see what you come up with. You never know, you might end up liking the new healthy version better than the one at the restaurant.

About the Author:

Chef Pablo loves cooking. Whether it's his favorite restaurant recipes or authentic Mexican foods from his days growing up in San Diego, he's always excited to teach others how to please their guests in the kitchen with Outback Steakhouse recipes, The Olive Garden, The Cheesecake Factory or Red Lobster.

Clinique Cosmetics - Easy Removing Makeup Tips

By Kathy Summer

Women make up the most percentage in the buying market; ranging from fitness, hair, fashion, jewels, and of course, the make-up. Their physical appearance seems to be the ultimate manufacturers dream because of so many products to market and sell. Just the woman's face shows multitude of product potentials to offer; eye coloring, lipstick, blush-on, and many more, thus giving birth to the Makeup.

It is an important part of a woman's life which is almost like an important component of daily routine for other people. There are times that women ornament themselves in a much better manner during some special occasion like the wedding and parties and while there is no denying the importance of makeup, you should also remember to remove makeup in a safe way to keep your skin soft, supple and healthy.

It is necessary to remove makeup before going to bed so that your skin does not lose its natural charm. However, removing makeup is an art too and you need to follow some basic tips for it. Usually women indulge in a lot of eye makeup for that smoky, bold and captivating eye look. However, removing eye makeup is not as simple as it seem.

Think Mascaras are hard to remove? Then consider using Baby shampoo because unlike other removers which mascara usually resist, it is effective. Extra virgin olive oil is also helpful. Apply few drops on a cotton ball and softly massage the eye region to let go off waterproof mascaras. Never use harsh remover or solutions as most of them can dry out your skin. Instead go in for mild makeup removers and there are facial cleansers according to skin types. Baby oil is an effective way of removing all kinds of makeup in a safe and healthy way and its very easy to do.

Rule of the thumb: never go to bed with your makeup on as that can hamper your skins quality, softness and health; eventually making you look older than your age. Others claim that it made their skin rough and dull mainly due to the remnants of the chemicals that come with applying makeup. Scary isn't it?

About the Author:

This author loves writing articles about Discount Clinique Cosmetics Online and Buy Clinique Cosmetics Online.

Opening Newborn Baby Gifts is Not the Only Activity - Add Games

By Edie Mindell

Although traditional baby shower games never fail and are always a success, new baby shower games are emerging and spreading across the United States. These cool, unconventional activities are different than the classics but with all the fun and more. If you are aiming for a hip, edgier baby shower with a twist from the classic, all-American baby shower, include a few of these new, trendy games that are sure to be a hit at your shower.

The "Dirty Diaper" game is one of the most clever and unusual, yet surprisingly sweet games out there. For this game, fold white cloth napkins or square pieces of white fabric into small diapers. Inside one of these mini diapers, place an unwrapped Hersheys kiss or any other chocolate bonbon. Fasten all the diapers with a baby diaper safety pin.

When guests arrive to the baby shower, hand one mini baby diaper to each person. Tell the guests to keep them closed and to not open them until instructed to do so. Then, when the time comes for all your games and activities, tell your guests that one of them has a dirty diaper. Tell them to open the diapers all at once, and whoever has the "dirty diaper," or the chocolate bonbon inside of their diaper, wins a prize.

Another game with a meaning is the "umbilical cord." For this game, you will need two spools of string or yarn, and two spoons. Choose volunteers and set up two or more teams of about eight to ten people. Attach each spoon to the tip of each string or yarn. The point of the game is to pass the "umbilical cord" through all the members of each team, by passing the string in through the neck seam and out through the opening of the skirt of each team player. This is very humorous, as you can imagine. The first team that passes the cord through all of the members wins.

A game that is becoming increasingly popular among baby showers is "Guess Whos Baby Picture?" For this game, make sure to tell guests on the invitations, and remind them before the shower, to bring in a baby picture of themselves when they were infants. Number each picture and put them up on a big bulletin board. During the games and activities session of your baby shower, give each guest a paper and pens or pencils. Have each paper numbered with the amount of pictures posted on the bulletin board.

When the game begins, tell the guests to fill in the numbers on the paper with the names of the people who they believe correspond to the baby picture. For example, if I think that baby picture #1 corresponds to Katie, I would write "Katie" after the number one on my paper. The guest that has highest number of right answers wins the challenge. If there is more than one guest with the same highest number of right answers, issue a tiebreaker.

Remember, all of these new games started as an idea. Try to come up with a few clever, never before used games. Who knows, they could potentially become a hit by the end of the year!

About the Author:

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Unique Baby Gifts are Fun to Open at a Retro-themed Baby Shower

By Edie Mindell

A common trend today is to have different era-inspired, retro baby showers. These themes work great regardless of whether the baby is a boy, girl, or if the parents choose to not know the gender of the baby until the date of birth. Great decades from which to base your shower on are the roaring twenties, the rock-n-roll fifties, the hippie sixties, and of course, the unforgettable eighties. Do some research on each decade, and pick the one that you love the most, and that you think you can be the most creative with.

The twenties were a blast, and a twenties-themed shower will definitely be a blast, too. The music alone will have people dancing and smiling. Specify in the invitations for the gals to wear their most twenties-like dresses, and for the gents to wear a tidy suit. The more the outfits match what people wore in the twenties, the better. Award the person with the best costume. Decorate the room with big band and swing decorations. You can have toy musical instruments as centerpieces, and provide hats for the gents and twenties headbands for the ladies. Put on some great music, and make everyone get up and dance the Charleston!

The fifties is a great decade to pick for any party theme. On the invitations, tell the ladies to wear poodle skirts, and tell the guys to wear leather jackets, and tell all your guests to get ready for the best ice cream social ever! Play classic rock-n-roll in the background to set the mood to your fifties celebration, and decorate your party room with fifties inspired pictures and dcor.

Serve different types of ice cream with a variety of toppings, and have your guests each make their own sundaes! For a twist, also serve bananas for those that want to make their own banana split. Make or buy fun mini jukeboxes for centerpieces. For a fun game, have your guests partner up for a dance off, and award the best pair.

If you or any of your family members was a hippie back in the sixties, that might be the era of your choice. This theme is fun and easy to assemble. Decorate the whole area with hearts, happy faces, and music notes. Tell your guests to wear their bell-bottom jeans, and psychedelic tie-dye shirts. If you have an Afro wig in your closet, pull it out, because this sixties party is going to be groovy! Buy toy school buses and decorate them as they did in the sixties; these make great centerpieces. Dont forget to play some groovy tunes and dance, dance, dance!

For a cool eighties-themed baby shower, send out a funky invitation and tell your guests to wear their favorite retro outfits. For an easy outfit, wear leggings or tight jeans, and cut off the neckline of an old T-shirt. Wear a headband and pull your hair up to a side ponytail.

Cool eighties movies or old music records make great centerpiece bases. Decorate them with colorful dcor and candy, and youve got great, inexpensive pieces. For a fun activity, put on a Richard Simmons dance workout video, and award the best dancer. Remember, regardless of which era you pick for your baby shower, do your research and be as creative as you can!

About the Author:

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Dress Up Games For Your Kids: Fun And Free

By Vlad Stivenson

As everyone knows, while having a computer at home can be very useful, interesting, and fun, its only when you have internet connection that your computer really shines. An Internet connection gives you access to news, information, encyclopedias, social networks, jobs, and of course, games. If you have children and would like to give them something fun and safe to play with, why dont you try letting them play with some dress up games? Theyre free and widely available.

Children of both genders can enjoy these games. Girls will prefer characters such as Hanna Montana, or even Japanese ones, like Sakura Card Captors. On the other hand, boys tend to be more interested in the Power Rangers or the Dragon Ball characters. There are even games that appeal to both boys and girls. These games feature famous characters from popular shows, such as Drake and Josh, or Zack and Cody.

For parents who want a more educating experience for their children, there are some games that involve a bit of culture, such as dressing a virtual doll with typical attire from a specific region or country. If youre looking for something a bit more original, you can try those that involve dressing up a pet or animal. Many different dress up games are available online, like anime dress up games, barbie dress up games, bratz dress up games, celebrity games, baby dress up and many others. You can also find games related to cooking, if you dont like dress up and fashion games. All these dress up and cooking games are usually written in Flash and are completely free, so you can access them with your internet browser.

Of course, who says you cant play these games yourself? When video games came out, most people thought they were only meant for children, but nowadays people from all ages enjoy them. Maybe one of these games is what you need to distract your mind from day to day monotony. These games are very quick to load and play, so you can easily take a 5 or 10 minute break between a report and an e-mail to have fun changing Elvis Presleys clothing and instruments, or maybe giving Britney Spears the soul look that you think she desperately needs. And if you have a child, they will help you spend some quality time with him or her. Small children can practice forms, colors and hand to eye coordination, while older ones can pretend theyre stylists or fashion designers, at the same time that they develop their creativity and imagination.

How much does it cost? Nothing, its free. But most importantly, its safe. Your child will be playing something that doesnt have anything to do with shooting, killing, or any kind of violence, something very common in todays video games. There isnt any sex or risqu material either. On the other had, you wont have to give your credit card information over the Internet. With so many expensive and violent games out there, its nice to find something fun, safe, and free for you child to play with.

About the Author:

Vlad Stivenson, creator of numerous Dress Up games