I have had a long-standing difficulty with artificial sweeteners. They leave a bitter-metallic aftertaste in my mouth. And it can last for hours. I first mentioned it in one of my earliest posts. In spite of the aftertaste, I’ve tried to convert to diet soda. It didn’t work. I have identified sugar alcohols (maltitol, sorbitol, xylitol) as NOT producing a weird aftertaste for me, but have found no drinks that contain them. I think that has to do with the fact that sugar alcohols are not calorie-free, an in large quantities can cause diarrhea.
Then along came Pepsi Next. It had less calories, but not no calories. Did that mean it was sweetened with sugar alcohols? No. No, it wasn’t. It has a blend of sugar and aspartame (the blue packet) and sucralose (the yellow packet). I saw it in the checkout lane and decided to give it a try.
It does taste more like regular Pepsi, what with all the sugar in it, but it still has the metallic taste of artificial sweetener. Dang.
For the sake of my acid stomach, I have slowly reduced my soda drinking, and I’m doing pretty good. But it sure would be nice to have a reduced-calorie soda I could drink without that bitter aftertaste. Maybe some day. Maybe some day…
If you’re here just to read about the murphy bed, sorry. I didn’t work on it yesterday. I probably won’t be doing anything more to it until this weekend. All I have left is paint and door handles, but my job is proving to be an effective deterrent to any further progress. My regular posts are just about stuff that happens to me. Like this:
Last night for dinner, I went to a seafood carryout place. I really wanted some broiled fish. The place I usually go to for steamed shrimp or crabs is called Pappas, which used to be called Hale’s. I like their food. They have good, meaty cream of crab soup. Mmm… Anyway, while I was waiting for my food, I was perusing their chilled food display, and the name of their largest crab cake made me laugh. They had regular crab cakes, “colossal” crab cakes, and then there was the large one:
I wish my picture was at a better angle, because this crab cake was huge. And I think I know why they call it “Courage”. Years ago, I got a novelty-sized crab cake from a different place. They called it their “Pounder-Plus”. A friend dared me to eat it. It was a challenge. I almost couldn’t eat it all; crab cakes are rich. But I was successful, and the friend who dared me to eat it had to keep her promise and buy me the T-shirt the restaurant offered: “I ate the Pounder-Plus!” Ha!
But I won’t be doing that again anytime soon. I have lost my courage for such a crab cake challenge. I have tried to eat a pound of other things in one sitting. Beef – successful. Chocolate – unsuccessful. Steamed shrimp – successful. Have I done cheese? Hmmm…
I have settled into a new pattern for lunch. I still do two packets of Carnation (because it’s so quick and easy to pack and eat), but I also eat one apple and one banana. It seems to be enough to keep me from being hungry. Until around 4:30 or 5:00, when I desperately want to eat something.
When I was having those weird gum problems, I had to cut my apple because biting into it caused terrible pain. I was packing my daily apple slices in zip-close sandwich bags. But it seemed like such a waste. I would use each bag once, then throw it away. I ran out of bags the other day and was trying to figure out what to do.
As I searched through the kitchen, and stumbled across the Press-and-Seal. It seemed like a great alternative. It’s cheaper and it makes less trash.
And as a bonus, it can serve as a cutting surface for the slicer:
Back in January, I won a wine and cheese party at our school’s bingo night. The party was yesterday.
It was awesome! It was at a showroom for Kenwood Kitchens, Michele’s family’s business. They did an awesome job of arranging it. Thanks, Michele and everyone else! It was so fun!
At first I wasn’t sure I’d be able to fill up a party full of people, but in the end I had invited too many! There were some no-shows, so it turned out okay. I was nervous about being the only person who knew everyone there, but it was kind of fun. It made me feel important, and I never lacked for conversation.
A kitchen showroom is the perfect location for a party. People tend to gather in the kitchen at parties anyway, and a showroom has a ton of kitchens! Wandering around looking at all the amazing cabinet and countertop combinations was really fun. I liked the traditional-looking kitchen with marble countertops. I should have taken a picture, but I was having so much fun I forgot.
One of my bingo table partners, Melissa, was having her birthday yesterday. I brought cakes. She can’t have gluten, so I looked for a flourless recipe. I found a really easy one, and made it. I couldn’t believe how cakey it was. And it was so chocolatey.
There was a chef there, too. He was making hot appetizers. They were delicious! I especially loved the steak kabobs he made. They were so tender. He also made little cupcakes that had the most amazing topping on them. I mean, this topping is the best thing since Nutella. It’s Biscoff cookies ground up and made into a paste. I’ve only ever had Biscoff cookies while flying. It’s them or pretzels, and I usually choose them. This topping tasted just like them. And the chef told me where to get it. Awesome! Now I can eat cookies with a spoon.
After church, I happened to see someone eating bruschetta on TV. It looked delicious, so I went to my favorite Italian restaurant – Bertucci’s. As it turns out, they don’t have bruschetta right now. But I wasn’t too disappointed – it seems like bruschetta never tastes as good as it looks. What I got instead was caprise salad (a salad with tomatoes and fresh mozzarella). I have often gotten this with chicken, as they suggest on the menu. But this time, I asked for steak, because I really like their steak. I don’t know what cut they use, but the steak they top their salads with is some of the tenderest and tastiest I’ve had in Baltimore. It’s absolutely delicious! I always chew it with my eyes closed so I can focus more attention on how good it is.
