Scary Charts 08.03.24

Source: Have Wages Kept Up With Inflation?https://www.statista.com/chart/32428/inflation-and-wage-growth-in-the-united-states/

How do you stretch your grocery dollars? Shop the sales and shop at different stores. I have three stores in my rotation and my shopping list determines where I shop. I’ve always been a bargain hunter.

Wander the aisles and pay attention to sell by, best by, or expiration dates. Some grocery items are not selling quickly anymore. Other items are languishing on the shelves. I found a jar of organic blueberry fruit spread for $2.41. The other week I bought two one pound packages of ground turkey reduced to $1.00 apiece. $1.00 for a pound of ground meat! The sell by dates were one day after the purchase date and the meat went straight into the freezer. Wander because you never know what items have been deeply discounted.

Stock up when you find it on sale. My favorite brand of popcorn usually costs >$3.00 a bag. I saw this popcorn this morning on sale 3 bags for $5.00. Yeah, I bought three bags.

Speaking of sales, my local wine shop was offering 12% off a half case of wine the other day and 10% off two bottles of American whiskey.

Yup, stock up.

Corn Salad – Lessons From a Lifetime of Cooking #5

I have never made nor eaten corn salad. Until today. Time to make a short story long.

The Two Tiny Tornadoes and Their Mom came to the house this past weekend. Along with the toys, stuffies and other assorted things Tiny Humans pack on trips our favorite Okie DIL brought a bag full of fresh cucumbers from her parents’ backyard garden. So what do you do with a bunch of fresh cucumbers?

The Boss was reading The Oklahoman and came across a recipe for corn salad by blogger Chula King in an article in the Tallahassee Democrat. I couldn’t find a link to the article in my local digital newspaper so I went to the source.

https://pudgefactor.com/easy-fresh-corn-salad-summer-in-a-bowl/#recipe

This salad is so super simple and tasty we have immediately decided to include it in our regular summer salad rotation.

Check it out. We added feta cheese and used organic frozen corn instead of fresh. Otherwise we followed the recipe to a T.

And that’s how you eat up a bunch of fresh cucumbers.

(this is not an actual picture of the salad I made but an AI generated picture)

What Retirees Do With Their Time #1

Puff pastries.

The fresh strawberry moose is also made and chilling. Tonight, the tops get sliced off and a scoop of moose is delicately placed inside, top put back on, some sliced berries on the side.

Moose or mousse? Moose of coarse!

Here’s the basic puff pastry recipe from Betty https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/cream-puffs/

The moose recipe came from Grandma Beverly but we have no idea where she got it from.

And here’s a snap of Moose in Puff

How To Study Anything

Beans for Breakfast – 06.11.24

Lead author Yanni Papanikolaou and colleagues analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey’s What We Eat in America program to study how often U.S.-based adults consume beans. In their analyses, they focused on how often Americans consumed white and red kidney beans, black beans, chickpeas, and pinto beans. The researchers observed that adults who routinely consumed these beans had improved ratios of polyunsaturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and saturated fatty acids compared to those who did not consume beans. Those who ate beans also consumed 30% more fruits and 20% more vegetables. Higher Intake Of Beans Linked To More Nutritious Diet https://www.forbes.com/sites/anuradhavaranasi/2024/06/11/higher-intake-of-beans-linked-to-more-nutritious-diet/

Remember Research Reveals One Simple Habit That Promotes Longevity AND Provides Extra Income in Retirement.

I’ve expanded my collection of cookbooks in search of more bean recipes.

It’s bean a lot of fun.

Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer? Eat More Plants

In a cohort study of 2062 men diagnosed with nonmetastatic prostate cancer, individuals with the highest intake of plant foods in the overall plant-based diet index had lower risk of prostate cancer progression compared with those with the lowest intake.

JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(5):e249053. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.9053 Plant-Based Diets and Disease Progression in Men With Prostate Cancerhttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2818122?resultClick=24

Rice – The Electronic Sticky Note

Most of us buy, cook, and eat it frequently, but what actually is rice? It’s a starchy cereal grain that comes from a grass species called Oryza sativa (in the scientific world, rice is referred to as Oryza). What are the Benefits of Eating Rice? (Plus, Tasty Recipe Ideas) Rice is everywhere. https://vegnews.com/vegan-health-wellness/benefits-eating-rice-tasty-recipe-ideas

The only reason why I’ve made this post part of my world famous Electronic Sticky Note series is for the Vegan Spinach, Chickpea, and Lemon Pilaf recipe.

Of course I’ll forget about this reminder in a day or two.