Just~One~Donna

My Bathroom Wall Cabinet Steal One of the things I love, love, love about shopping online is the access I have to a choice of products.  If you are a woman of a certain age, like me, you can remember the countless, unproductive hours you spent going from store to store in search of just the right end table, shoes, or gift for the bride-to-be. I've always tried to be a responsible shopper.  You can blame that on my New England Yankee heritage and my equally responsible mom and dad, but as a result, the designer labels you'll find at my house are few and far between.  With that said, I do like what I like, and when I get my mind set on something I am relentless until I find just what I want.  That's why I love Internet shopping.  It makes my search oh, so much easier. Hubby and I have been working on a remodel of our first-floor powder room.  I plan to share more about the remodeling in another post.  Today I want to share my search for a powder ...

My Healthy Egg Sandwich Have you started off the new year with a healthier attitude?  One of my favorite healthy breakfasts or lunches is an egg sandwich made with egg whites and a little cheese.  To control the calories from bread I like to use the whole grain sandwich thins that are widely available.  They only add 100 calories. Instead of separating the whites from yolks I bought a carton of egg whites from the grocery store.  I was happy to see the ingredient list on the carton: egg whites.  There were no additives and no preservatives.  Yay! This egg sandwich recipe contains 297 calories and 14 grams of fat, making it a smart option for breakfast or lunch. It is so simple, but tasty enough to feel like a treat. Healthy Egg Sandwich Serves 1 1 teaspoon canola oil 2 egg whites 1 tablespoon chopped onion 1 tablespoon chopped bell pepper 1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped 1 whole grain sandwich thin salt and pepper to taste Directions ...

Chicken and Stuffing As the weather gets colder and the days get shorter here in the Northeast I find myself migrating toward recipes that are comfy, cozy and homey.  Chicken and stuffing as a name for this recipe really doesn't do it justice.  The chicken is moist, tender and very flavorful because it is cooked on the bone.  The stuffing is moist and filled with the flavors of herbs, onion and celery.  Bringing the two together is the mushroom and wine sauce made from that old standby, cream of mushroom soup.  Don't judge me, now!  You know you have some in your pantry for dishes just like this one. The great thing about a recipe like this one besides its homey deliciousness is that it can easily be scaled to serve a few more, or many more.  It takes about 30 minutes to prepare and an hour to bake.  That means it won't work as a last minute weeknight dinner, but consider adding it to your menu rotation for the days when you have a little ex...

Appetizers, little bites, hors d'oeuvres, tapas, small plates, antipasto, canapes, whatever you might call the tasty morsels you eat before a meal, are my obsession lately.  I've been on a quest to find the five to ten appetizers that can be prepared in a flash, but pack that burst of flavor I look for in my before meal bites. A Baked Cheese Appetizer Greek Inspired Baked Cheese One appetizer I have been making lately is a baked cheese appetizer inspired by the Greek bouyiourdi , a mixture of tomatoes and Feta cheese.  Served with crackers or a crusty bread, this is a perfect winter appetizer enjoyed in front of a fire with a glass of wine.  It also transfers just as well, to your backyard patio, sitting around a fire-pit, enjoying a summer evening. This recipe is not meant to replicate bouyiourdi.  You can do that by searching the internet starting with the link above.  It is meant to inspire you to think about combinations of cheese and aromati...

Public access to most of our local beach area is blocked by the National Guard, but this weekend I was able to walk a two mile stretch of the beach to see the Hurricane Sandy impact. Those of you who read Just One Donna regularly know that I love the beach.  I feel very lucky to live so close to the ocean's beauty and can't imagine ever living too far away.  We, New Englanders, are used to storms and the resulting beach erosion. It seems to come with the territory.  We check our beaches at the end of each winter to see whether or not we lost a significant amount of our precious beachfront to Mother Nature's fury.  Sandy was much more than our usual nor'easter.  The media dubbed it a super storm.   A storm of that magnitude was bound to wreak havoc. Sadly, many of the homes and businesses in the area sustained significant damage or were destroyed by Sandy.  Assessment of the full extent of the damage is underway.  Toda...