Just~One~Donna

Chocolate Mug Cake Chocolate mug cake.  If you are like me you've seen recipes for mug cakes all over the blogosphere and have seen pictures of mug cakes posted on Pinterest.  If you are like me you thought, hmmm...Microwaved cake?  Five minutes?  Really? I wanted to test this concept but wasn't really in a big hurry to do so.  After all, skepticism is well known to me.  Last week, though, I had the urge for chocolate cake and with none in sight, I remembered chocolate mug cake.  Aha, I thought.  This was definitely my time to give microwaved mug cake a go.  The ingredients and method are simple enough.  Mix the dry ingredients with the wet.  Pop a cup into the microwave.  Set the timer for three minutes and before you know it you are eating chocolate cake! Donna's Chocolate Mug Cake Serves one Chocolate Mug Cake Ingredients 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons cocoa p...

An old fashioned, but favorite, side dish in our family is creamed spinach.  You don't see it very often on restaurant menus these days, unless you are dining at a steak house.  We don't have it very often on our home menu either, primarily because of the heavy cream in the recipe, but every once in a while it will sneak in.  Yummy Creamed Kale This week I got the urge to make creamed spinach...but not creamed spinach.  I had a couple of bunches of kale in the refrigerator and thought they might be a good substitute for the spinach in my creamed spinach recipe.  I was right.  Creamed kale is delicious and the kale has a bit more structure to it.  That's a texture difference we really liked in this dish. There were thumbs up all around the Just One Donna dinner table for this creamed kale recipe.  Try it.  You'll like it. Creamed Kale Creamed Kale Igredients Serves 4 as a side dish 2 bunches of kale, center stem remov...

After about a week of daily temperatures in the mid-40s here in southern New England we can finally see the ground.  The snow is not completely melted, but for the most part it is starting to feel like spring may actually come again this year. Still Some Snow in the Garden This past weekend Hubby, Sadie and I got out in the yard to see what we needed to get started on for our March gardening to do list.  This year we are faced with much more clean up than usual due to harsh winter weather, including the blizzard.  We've lost several trees in our yard. Cutting Down A Badly Damaged Tree That means task #1 on our March To Do List: Cut down the damaged trees .  Two trees in our front yard were so badly damaged by the snow and winds we had no choice but to cut them down.  They used to screen us from having to look at an unsightly utility pole.  Truth be told, we'd rather look at the unsightly utility pole than be without power.  They had to...

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 ...