Who says you have to feel guilty for having some dessert? I will always have a sweet tooth, so even though I am trying to eat better, I just can’t cut out the chocolate! I found a fabulous recipe in the March edition of Fitness Magazine (page 150), and it is a much healthier version of my favorite pie, which is French Silk. This recipe is for Chocolate Cheesecake, and the ingredients and recipe can be found below. So have your cake and eat it too! Makes 14 Servings ½ cup crushed graham crackers 2 tablespoons butter, melted 1 envelope unflavored gelatin ¾ cup fat-free milk 2 8-ounce packages reduced-fat cream cheese, softened 1 8-ounce package fat-free cream cheese, softened 8 ounces fat-free sour cream 1/3 cup sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled Chocolate curls 1. In a bowl, stir together the graham crackers and butter. Press the mixture into the bottom of an 8-inch spring form pan. Chill while preparing the filling. 2. In a saucepan, sprinkle the gelatin over the milk; let stand for 5 minutes. Stir over low heat until the gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat; cool for 15 minutes. 3. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Beat in the sour cream, sugar, and vanilla; gradually beat in the gelatin mixture. Divide the cream cheese mixture in half; gradually stir the melted chocolate into one half. 4. Spread half of the chocolate mixture on the crust. Spoon half of the remaining cream cheese mixture onto the chocolate mixture in small mounds; swirl them together with a butter knife. 5. Spread the remaining chocolate mixture on top. Spoon on the remaining cream cheese mixture, and swirl again. Cover; chill for 6 hours or until set. 6. Loosen the cake from the pan with a knife before removing the side of the pan. Cut the cake into wedges; top with chocolate swirls.
The Hills is finally coming to an end. After 6 seasons following the breakout show Laguna Beach, the reality/scripted MTV series will be shutting off the cameras. “We are lucky and honored to have worked with this cast and tell their stories for this long, and we are grateful to the many dedicated fans who have stuck with us over the years. We owe it to those fans, the cast and the show to go out on a high note. And this season will deliver on that goal in terms of drama, story, real emotion and an organic culmination of this saga,” says MTV’s President of Programming Tony DiSanto said in a statement. Season 6 begins airing episodes on April 27th, but right now the big question is if Lauren Conrad will return for the last episodes. After all, it began with Conrad being filmed during high school for Laguna Beach, then following her move to LA on The Hills. Will you be watching the series finale?
I can’t believe I’m finally saying this, but it seems that spring could be just around the corner! I thought we would never get past this dreadful winter, but now that I’ve actually seen the sun and have gotten my hopes up for decent weather, I want to take advantage. I have started taking walks outside around my work building during my breaks instead of sitting cooped up in the break room. I saw on Shape.com that they have posted a walking workout. Titled ‘The Walking Diet’ the article talks about how walking and/or hiking can help get you into summer shape. I have done the workout once so far, and I definitely recommend giving it a try if you can get outdoors! Head to Shape.com to view the complete workout.
Lately, I’ve been really upset with my pores. I never had an issue with acne until just recently, and one thing I’ve noticed that I have enlarged pores especially around my forehead and cheeks. I tried a few different remedies to see which worked the best, and I have to say I am really liking the Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Strips. Just twice a week, I stick the strips onto my forehead, nose, cheeks, and chin, and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Once stripping them off, I can see everything it took off- whiteheads, oil, dirt. It’s kind of disgusting really looking at the dirty strip, but I feel like they are really effective. And the oil on my face has significantly decreased after only 2 sessions with the strips. The best part for me is they are relatively inexpensive. I got a box with 8 strips for only $7.99 at the drugstore. The next product I am going to try is also from Biore, and is the Steam Activated Cleanser. The SteamActiv beads helps open the pores, better removing acne causing dirt and oil. Look for that review in a few weeks!
Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico and raised there, plus New Orleans and a bit in Scotland. She attended the Berklee College and received a Bachelor’s Degree in music, and went on to receive her Masters in journalism from Columbia University. After graduating, she began work as a staff writer for the Boston Globe and LA Times, and is now the author of six feisty novels, with two more to be released in 2010. Those titles are: The Dirty Girls Social Club, Dirty Girls on Top, Playing with Boys, Haters, Make Him Look Good, and The Husband Habit. Both The Dirty Girls Social Club and Haters are in development for a TV series. Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez was also once named one of the 25 “Most Influential” Hispanics in America by Time Magazine.
In My Mailbox: Week of March 21st Title: House Rules By: Jodi Picoult Received: From SheKnows.com for Review Synopsis: They tell me I'm lucky to have a son who's so verbal, who is blisteringly intelligent, who can take apart the broken microwave and have it working again an hour later. They think there is no greater hell than having a son who is locked in his own world, unaware that there's a wider one to explore. But try having a son who is locked in his own world, and still wants to make a connection. A son who tries to be like everyone else, but truly doesn't know how. Jacob Hunt is a teenage boy with Asperger's syndrome. He's hopeless at reading social cues or expressing himself well to others, and like many kids with AS, Jacob has a special focus on one subject — in his case, forensic analysis. He's always showing up at crime scenes, thanks to the police scanner he keeps in his room, and telling the cops what they need to do...and he's usually right. But then his town is rocked by a terrible murder and, for a change, the police come to Jacob with questions. All of the hallmark behaviors of Asperger's — not looking someone in the eye, stimulatory tics and twitches, flat affect — can look a lot like guilt to law enforcement personnel. Suddenly, Jacob and his family, who only want to fit in, feel the spotlight shining directly on them. For his mother, Emma, it's a brutal reminder of the intolerance and misunderstanding that always threaten her family. For his brother, Theo, it's another indication of why nothing is normal because of Jacob. And over this small family the soul-searing question looms: Did Jacobcommit murder? Emotionally powerful from beginning to end, House Rules looks at what it means to be different in our society, how autism affects a family, and how our legal system works well for people who communicate a certain way — and fails those who don't. Title: Bulletproof Mascara Author: Bethany Maines Received: From SheKnows.com Synopsis: When Nikki Lanier signs up as a cosmetics rep at Carrie Mae, it’s hardly her idea of a dream job. With a degree in linguistics and a hard-core workout regimen, the twenty-six-year-old redhead once had hopes for a real career. But unemployed and desperate to escape life at home with her nagging mother, she’ll try anything – even selling make-up to housewives. But soon, Nikki learns that the powder and lipstick are simply cover-up for The Carrie Mae Foundation: a secret organization of international espionage and high-tech mascara founded for the purpose of “helping women everywhere.” Whisked off to Thailand with her appointed partner, the legendary Carrie Mae agent Val Robinson, Nikki is soon in over her head. Between investigating the abduction of a human rights advocate, tracking down a murderous arms dealer, keeping up with her wildly dangerous new partner, and occasionally trying to have a dating life (with a hunk who may or may not be CIA), Nikki has to use all the courage and cosmetic technology she’s got to bring down the bad guys and get out alive. With the support of the colorful Carrie Mae crew, a handsome yet suspicious stranger, and her wickedly unpredictable partner, Nikki will overcome even the most harrowing obstacles – including incessant phone calls from her mother – or die trying. Title: Intimate Encounters Author: Sierra Michaels Received: From Sierra Michaels for Review Synopsis: Cali is a graduate student paying her way through school giving sensual massages to strange men at an apartment with several other girls, where she leads a double life and internally struggles with the job she has chosen, the friendships she has made, and the lies she must tell. At the university Cali is a star student trying to finish her master’s thesis on California archaeology. What the other students and professors must not know is that by night she makes money giving massages with a happy ending to strangers. At first, she truly enjoys working at the apartment, since it brings out the sensual side she lacks as a student. She forms a close friendship with two of the girls and a few of her regular customers, but struggles with the fact that she is doing something illegal, dangerous, and looked down upon in American society. Intimate Encounters (by Sierra Michaels) is a humorous and occasionally serious account of the inner workings of the sensual massage business and the unique and sometimes pathological characters that work at and visit the apartment, as well as Cali’s life and struggles as a graduate student in doubt about her chosen field and her future.
Bridie Clark was raised in West Hartford, Connecticut, and developed a love for reading and writing early on. She graduated from Harvard College, where she spent much of her time as an editor of The Harvard Crimson. After graduating, Clark worked as a book and magazine editor, and wrote articles for The New York Times, Vanity Fair, New York, Quest, and Elegant Bride. Bridie Clark has published two novels, Because She Can and The Overnight Socialite. She also co-wrote The Gawker Guide to Conquering All Media, and co-founded Blue State Coffee. Clark currently lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.
Annabelle Maestro is such a poor little rich girl. The breed from two of Hollywood’s hottest legends, Annabelle is living up life running a high priced call girl business with coke addict boyfriend, Frankie. When her mother is brutally murdered in her own home and her father is the main suspect, Annabelle is forced to fly home from New York to Los Angeles for the funeral. She is toted along by an old friend turned lawyer, Denver, who is struggling to defend the legendary Ralph Maestro in his wife’s murder, all while trying to find a suitable man. Denver’s best friend, Carolyn, has managed to get herself knocked up by the very married US senator she works for, and has now been kidnapped as part of the senator’s grand scheme. Poor Little Bitch Girl, the 26th best-seller from acclaimed writer Jackie Collins is another great. The scandal of Hollywood, the raunchy sex scenes, and the way each character entwines with another makes this a page turner until the end. The only problem I had was the big “scandal” wasn’t really that scandalous, if you follow the Tinseltown standards. But still another fabulous novel from Collins that will drag you into that selfish, all about me world, and make you not want to come back out.
