HoldTheToast! by Dana Carpender

I've had another busy day. I went up to Indianapolis with my darling friend Virginia, to go to the consignment shops. I had a of clothes to get rid of. The trip was part success, part failure: On the one hand, the consignment shop only wanted about half my stuff, and they wanted me to take it all home, wash it all (it was clean to begin with) and iron it, then re-hang it, and drive the 90 minutes back there. I'm thinking eBay instead. On the other hand, I got a few really nice things, including a totally spiffy Panama hat I'm wearing this instant.

I love Tom Naughton, in a totally innocent, he's-happily-married, I'm-happily-married, but damn-I-love-his-work fangirl kinda way. You've got to read today's Fathead blog post about the USDA guidelines. And really, anything else Tom blogs about.

Years ago, somebody I know (looks innocently at the sky, whistling) stated, in print, that weighing one's self is a pretty lame way to judge how fat one is. One could go with the fit of one's clothes, or perhaps a tape measure.

The person who said that now weighs herself faithfully every single morning. Well, except when out of town. And I might buy a travel scale, though I still can't figure out how that would work on a cruise, what with the ship moving and all.

So the American Diabetes Association released the news this week that a new study suggests that red meat may increase the risk of developing diabetes. Have I panicked, and purged my freezer of all red meat? Hardly.

A reader who goes by Water Melts Fat asks:

But Dana: what's with this bit from Weil?

"there has been increasing evidence that added sweeteners in foods may contribute to heart disease. Sweeteners appear to lower levels of HDL cholesterol (the higher your HDL, the better) and raise triglycerides (the lower the better)."

Sweeteners are LC salvation. Must we give them up too? Are all sweeteners born equal (not Equal)? My favorite is a blend of cyclamate and saccharin.I thought they were just the victim of witch hunts.

I live in a lefty-trendy college town. I love the place -- it has the amenities of a city many times its size, with the charm, friendliness, and pace of a small town. But I do tire of the constant pressure from the large local vegetarian and vegan faction, telling me that not only am I killing myself by basing my diet on animal foods, I'm destroying the planet as well.

You may think I'm nuts, but these are really good. Try 'em before you make up your mind. If you're a chocolate-peanut fan, I'm betting you love 'em. And they take all of about 5 minutes to put together. The only reason they're not going in the new edition of 15 Minute Low-Carb Recipes is because there's no way to speed up the chilling time. Even in the freezer, they go past the 15 minute mark.

Wow. Dr. Andrew Weil, long-time celebrity doctor and health guru, has come out with the public statement that saturated fat, including animal fat, is not harmful in any way, but that rather the diseases of civilization, including diabetes and obesity, can be attributed to carbohydrate consumption.

Happy Birthday, America!

In honor of Independence Day, I thought I'd do a rundown of American foods. No, not fast food burgers and pizza, but rather those foods that are native to our nation, the foods the colonists might well have encountered for the very first time when they came to these shores. (Though some of them had already made it across the Atlantic, and started gaining popularity in Europe.) What foods are truly American?

You'll notice that one of our newest sponsors is Canada Pharmacy. I just wanted to mention that I've been doing business with Canada Pharmacy myself, ever since Armour thyroid became hard to get here in the States. They've been great; helpful, professional, and even expedited a shipment for me when I had to go out of town and was about to run out of thyroid. I'm very happy with Canada Pharmacy's service, and will continue to get my thyroid medication through them.

Strawberries are a low carb favorite, but I'm afraid there's some bad news. They've long topped the list of foods most heavily contaminated by pesticides, especially since, unlike, say, a banana or a melon, they have no peel or rind. But it may well get worse.

I've had a busy day, and it ain't over yet. I spent most of the day getting publicity photos taken -- that one to your left is eight years old, so it was about time. You'll see a new photo very soon. But, of course, getting the photos taken meant going to get a manicure (got a pedi while I was at it) and then to the salon for a wash and blow-dry. Then changing, and doing my makeup, and all that stuff, before I went to the studio.

Pumpkin Pudding

1/4 lb butter (1 stick)
1 14-ounces can pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
1/3 cup vanilla whey protein powder
5 eggs
1/2 cup erythritol
1/2 cup granular Splenda
1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses (or the darkest molasses you can get)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Set the butter to melt, either in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove. In the meanwhile, spray a 6-cup glass casserole with non-stick cooking spray.

So I'm at Kroger, picking up a few ingredients I needed to work on recipes today, and I see Women's World in the magazine rack at the checkout. Oprah is on the cover, and there's big headline reading "THE DIET OPRAH NEEDS! Lose 85 lbs on the plan that prevents diabetes! "I'm surprised she doesn't already have diabetes," reveals Bob Greene.. But this plan can lower her risk -- and yours -- 83%!"

I had to look, right?

So I threw the magazine in the cart, and ponied up my $1.79. The magazine is now sitting on my desk, open to the article about this diet.

Jimmy Moore posted a link on Facebook to this article, about how many people assume that "organic" on a food label somehow implies that the food is lower in calories than conventional foods, and therefore they are more likely to overeat that food. (Which, if that food is, oh, vegan soy patties or organic sandwich cookies, would be eating it at all.) Seemed like a cue to republish this column I wrote a few years back.