Author: mylowcountryliving

Orange Chicken – Panda Express copycat recipe

I love Orange Chicken from Panda Express. It is like the crack cocaine of Chinese Food. I have looked for recipe’s as good as Panda Express and I am always disappointed. Finally I have developed my own recipe that is absolutely amazing. So, here it is for all of you to try.

Orange Chicken

(Panda Express copycat recipe)

Chicken part:

Ingredients: 

1 ½ pounds chicken thighs (de-boned)

1 egg

½ tsp black pepper

1 tsp soy sauce

1/4 cup corn starch

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1 tablespoons water

Sauce part:

Ingredients: 

¼ cup orange juice

½ cup brown sugar

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp chili garlic sauce

1 tbsp orange zest 

½ tbsp corn starch

1 tbsp cold water

Directions:

1.Cut up your chicken thighs into roughly 1 inch “bite size” pieces.

2.Mix the flour with the cut up chicken and mix so that all pieces are covered with flour.  Set this aside until later.

3.In a separate bowl mix together the egg, salt, black pepper, corn starch and water together. 

4.When well mixed you can add the chicken pieces into the mixture and cover the chicken pieces thoroughly with the coating. 

5. Heat a pan with 2 inches of oil on the stove.

6. While the oil heats mix together all the ingredients for your sauce and then pour into a sauce pan and sauté on low while we fry the chicken pieces. 

7. Carefully drop the chicken pieces into the oil and fry until golden brown. 

8.When all pieces of chicken are cooked add your chicken to your cooked sauce and mix the chicken into the sauce coating all pieces.

9.Serve over rice. 

You can garnish with chopped green onions and/or sesame seeds.

ENJOY!

I used Intermittent Fasting to reduce my A1C from 14+ to 5.9 in less than 6 months!

Just six months ago, I was in a diabetic crisis. Flashback to January 13, 2020, I was a type 2 diabetic with a blood glucose reading of 450. I went to the doctor, and he did an A1C test.  The results (see pic) came in as 14+. My doctor said I was on my way to needing insulin.  He immediately added a second medicine to reduce blood sugar and advised me to go on a low glycemic index diet, along with daily exercise. 

Less than two weeks later, on January 21, 2020, I woke up, and my eyes couldn’t focus on anything. I couldn’t read anything, and everything was a big blur, I couldn’t read any letter that wasn’t at least 2 feet tall. My wife rushed me to the ER, and they performed a series of tests and sent me home with a referral to an ophthalmologist. I saw the ophthalmologist a few days later, and he said the blood vessels in my eyes were under distress from diabetes. He asked how my A1C was, and I let him know that I had just had a 14+ test and added glipizide to my medications to help lower my A1C.  The addition of the glipizide and a new strict low glycemic index diet had helped bring my daily blood sugar test down from 450 to about 250.  Hearing this, he knew what was happening because he said he had seen it before.  Over time my eyes and the blood vessels had adjusted to the high levels of sugar in my blood.  That was constricting the blood vessels, and the sudden decrease in blood sugar was putting less pressure on the blood vessels.  The result is that my eyes were trying to adjust to this, and he thought if I continued to lower my A1C, my eyes would self adjust in about a month.  As a result of this wait and see (pun intended) approach, I had to call into work for a week because I still couldn’t see, and the ophthalmologist recommended not get any new glasses until I had another eye exam in a month.

The drastic change to my eyesight and my recent A1C test was the epic health scare that I needed to make real change in my life.  Over the next month, I searched for a way to create a healthy lifestyle and then discovered Dr. Jason Fung and the Intermittent Fasting lifestyle. That led me to Gin Stephens and Delay Don’t Deny. On April 5, 2020, I started Intermittent Fasting. Since then, I have lost nearly 30 pounds, my vision returned to normal, and I went back to my old glasses. My daily glucose levels now register between 89-110. On June 26, 2020, I went for a checkup, and my A1C was 5.9! (See pic). My doctor took me off glipizide, and the new goal is to get off metformin eventually. I return in October, intending to be 5.6 or below.  The last six months have been an incredible journey.  I have had some successes, but there is still a long way to go on this health journey.  I have proved to myself that I can lose weight and reverse my diabetes through Intermittent Fasting. This is not a diet for me. Instead, this is a new way of life.  It is the beginning of a new lifestyle.

How to make Chocolate Zucchini Bread

How to easily make homemade chocolate zucchini bread. This is a fresh take on the classic zucchini bread.

Ingredients: 

3 cups all purpose flour

¼ unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups white sugar

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips Optional – up to 1 cup chopped walnuts to sprinkle on top of loaf

This recipe makes 2 loaves using 9 x 5 bread pans, or 24 cupcakes/muffins/ or a combination of 1 loaf and 12 cupcake/muffins.

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Shred your zucchini using either a hand shredder or food processor. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix well, then add in your cocoa.
  4. In a separate bowl, combine sugar and eggs and blend together. Add oil and vanilla and beat mixture together. Stir in Zucchini to wet mixture.
  5. Combine dry ingredients into wet mixture and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips.
  6. Spoon into loaf pans and/or cupcake pan.
  7. Bake in preheated oven. Bread loaf pans should bake for 50-55 minutes and cupcake pans should bake for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. After baking let bread set in pans for 10 minutes before removing.

Bitty & Beau’s Coffee – When a cup of coffee is more than a cup of coffee.

This trip was more than a couple of cups of coffee. It was a re-affirmation that the world is still good and that we are all one world family who should support each other.

I recently was with my daughter and we were looking for a cup of coffee in the peninsula of Charleston and came across Bitty & Beau’s Coffee. I had heard about Bitty & Beau’s and their unique story and decided that I should give it a try.

Bitty & Beau’s originally opened in Wilmington, NC in 2016 and they opened up their Charleston shop in 2018. The owners of Bitty & Beau’s are Amy Wright and her husband. The Wright’s have four children, two of which have Down syndrome. The Wright’s were determined to create a better place for their children and others living in the world with disabilities. Knowing that over 80% of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are unemployed nationwide, the Wright’s decided they wanted to create a business that shows value, inclusion and acceptance of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and from that idea was born Bitty & Beau’s Coffee.

Four years later and Bitty & Beau’s now has four coffee shops in Wilmington NC, Charleston SC, Savannah GA and Annapolis MD. They currently employ 80 people with disabilities and have been featured on The Today Show, Rachael Ray, CNN, Harry, Good Morning America, Dr. Oz, HLN, People Magazine and Southern Living Magazine. In 2017 founder Amy Wrights was named a CNN Hero of the Year.

My trip to Bitty & Beau’s didn’t disappoint at all. The shop rivals any Starbucks and the staff was friendly and full of a contagious spirit of joy. There was a line to order and many patrons were taking selfies next to Bitty & Beau’s signs and checking out the various shirts, mugs, and other items for sale that go to support the cause of Bitty & Beau’s. Our order was prepared quickly and handed to us with a smile. This trip was more than a couple of cups of coffee. It was a re-affirmation that the world is still good and that we are all one world family who should support each other. Thank you Bitty & Beau’s for reminding me about this, and making my day brighter. I have found my new favorite coffee shop in Charleston.

Bitty & Beau’s is located at 159 Church Street, Charleston SC 28403.

You can get more information about Bitty & Beau’s from their website: https://www.bittyandbeauscoffee.com/

10 tips to successfully start Intermittent Fasting

Over the last 10 months I have lost 50 pounds. The first 30 pounds took me nearly 9 months to lose. The last 20 pounds only took me 45 days! The secret to my success for the last 20 pounds was Intermittent Fasting. Here are 10 easy tips to make Intermittent Fasting work for you. Learn how to be successful with your intermittent fasting, whether you want to lower your blood sugar, lose weight, work on lowering your blood pressure or cholesterol, or try to reverse diabetes.

  1. Know your reason for starting Intermittent Fasting. Are you doing this to lose weight, lower your blood sugar, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, or reverse diabetes? Whatever brought you to intermittent fasting, know the reason and work towards that goal.
  2. Do your research on Intermittent Fasting. Check with your physician to make sure that you are healthy enough to start a fasting regimen. If you have an eating disorder, are pregnant, or an adolescent then you should not be starting Intermittent Fasting. There are plenty of resources for you to go through. You can look it up on the internet, YouTube, books, and ebooks. Dr. Jason Fung is a great resource. You can google him, or look him up on YouTube. You can also read his books. His books are “The Obesity Code”, and “The Diabetes Code”. Another author to read is Gin Stephens. Her book “Delay, Don’t Deny” is a great resource. Other great resources are podcasts.
  3. Take pictures of yourself, take your measurements, and record other data such as blood pressure and blood glucose levels. These are handy to look back on as you go through you Intermittent Fasting journey.
  4. Select an Intermittent Fasting cycle. Popular cycles are 16:8, 18:6, 20:4, OMAD, and alternate day fasting.
  5. Tell other people about your Intermittent Fasting. One of the best ways to hold yourself accountable is to make sure that others know that you are doing this. It will help them understand why you may be going through a physical transformation and why you may not eat at the same times as they are.
  6. Do a clean fast. When in a fasting state do not drink anything with artificial flavoring or with real sugars, or artificial sweetener. Limit your beverages to water, black coffee, and unsweetened tea.
  7. Create a support system. Besides finding someone else who has done Intermittent Fasting you can also join online groups, Facebook groups, and listen to podcasts.
  8. Drink plenty of water. You don’t want to get dehydrated and your body needs plenty of water when fasting. Drinking water also helps to fend off hunger pains.
  9. Start with a family member or buddy. You can hold each other accountable or even compete with each other. It’s good to have someone to talk to about your successes and challenges with Intermittent Fasting.
  10. Persevere. When weight loss is slow or other results are slow and you are down about it go back and look at the pictures you took and review your numbers to see your successes. Give your body time to heal and don’t be afraid to change it up if you need to. Go ahead and switch to a new cycle such as go from 16:8 to 18:6 and see what type of difference that makes.

How to make homemade Hummus – Quick and Easy

Hummus is quick and easy to make with this recipe. Make your own hummus that is better tasting than the one you buy at the grocery store.

Ingredients: 

1 can chickpeas

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup tahini

1 small clove garlic

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon zaatar (optional)

1/2 teaspoon cumin

3 tablespoons water

paprika (garnishment for serving)

Directions:

First mix lemon juice and tahini in a blender or food processor until it is “whipped”.   

It is important to mix this first to get a smooth and creamy hummus. 

Combine the remaining ingredients and mix.

Add additional tablespoons of water until hummus reaches the desired consistency.

Pour into a bowl and serve. You can sprinkle paprika on top or garnish with more zaatar, or sesame seeds, and a small drizzle of olive oil.

How to make homemade banana bread

Banana bread is one of my favorite breads and its a great way to use up your bananas after they start to get brown spots on them.

Ingredients: 

3 ripe bananas

  2 eggs

  ½ cup shortening

  1 ¼ cup white sugar

  1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

  1 ¾ cup all purpose flour

  1 teaspoon baking soda

  ½ teaspoon salt

  ½ chopped walnuts 

Instructions: mix together the sugar and shortening and blended and forms little balls. Add in bananas and vanilla extract and continue to mix. In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda and salt together. Combine the flour mixture with the banana mixture and mix until all ingredients are blended together. Pour mixture into a greased and floured bread pan and sprinkle the walnuts on top. Bake at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour and 15 minutes. After baking let cool and remove from pan. Enjoy.

Dining review – The Salty Dog Cafe

Our main courses did not disappoint either. The highlights of our meal were the shrimp and grits, seafood pot pie, and the fresh catch of the day, which happened to be a marvelous swordfish.

This last Sunday was Mother’s Day, and both my wife and my elderly mom wanted out of the house after nearly two months of social distancing due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  The governor of South Carolina just eased social distancing restrictions last week, and this weekend was the first weekend that restaurants were allowed to be open, but only for outside and patio dining.  We decided that we wanted a water view if we were going to be dining outside and chose the Salty Dog Café on Seabrook Island. 

Of course, there was a wait when we arrived at 6:00 PM because every restaurant in Charleston that could have outdoor dining was packed for Mother’s Day. Still, we didn’t mind the wait as it gave us an excellent opportunity to walk around the picturesque Bohicket Marina. 

Once we were seated, we were immediately greeted by our server.  The server recommended several appetizers, which we were happy to order.  The two appetizers that we ordered were the hush puppies and pimento cheese dip.  Both were excellent.  The hush puppies were paired with sweet butter that complemented the hush puppies that were crispy on the outside and soft and tasty on the inside.  The pimento cheese dip came with carrot sticks, homemade pita chips, and homemade thick-cut kettle potato chips.  The pimento dip was savory with a robust mix of spices, but to be honest, I think that those kettle chips stole the show.  This appetizer is worth ordering just to try the kettle chips. 

Our main courses did not disappoint either. The highlights of our meal were the shrimp and grits, seafood pot pie, and the fresh catch of the day, which happened to be a marvelous swordfish. The shrimp and grits were served with creamy andouille sausage and bacon gravy. The gravy was a perfect complement to the stone-ground grits and sautéed shrimp. The seafood potpie contained shrimp, scallops, and fresh fish wrapped in a light but tasty puff pastry. Lastly, the swordfish was quite amazing. It was light and delicious. For those people, like my wife, that like fish that don’t have that overly “fishy” taste, this is for you. My wife, who is not a fan of fish, tasted it and said it was the best fish she had ever tasted. On this particular night, we were too full to look at the dessert menu but were pleasantly surprised when our server told us that the two moms’ in our group would receive a complimentary slice of red velvet cake for dessert. The red velvet cake was moist and delicious and well received by both my wife and my mother.

As great as our food and service was, the highlight of the dining experience was watching the sunset go down over the marina and the surprise visit that the diners had from a group of local dolphins who decided to show up at the dock just about 100 yards from our table.  We give this restaurant a thumbs up, and we will be returning to the Salty Dog Café in the near future.