For years I have never liked drinking milk much. I drink about one glass per day on a good day. I have known for a long time that I don’t get nearly enough calcium. I tried taking supplements years ago, but never took more then one or two because I could not stand the taste.

The other day I was at Walmart shopping. I was in the pharmacy section actually looking for a certain type of chap stick that is found there. That is when I stumbled upon what is now my ultimate favorite calcium supplement.

I was checking out the vitamins to see if they had a new kind of calcium supplement that didn’t taste as horrible as the kind I had tried before. Calcium was not on my shopping list nor were any vitamins. This is when I found the perfect calcium supplement for me. It is; Jamieson Swiss milk chocolate soft calcium chews. Each chew has 650 mg of calcium! That is comparable to most other calcium supplements.

I was a little skeptical on how they would taste, but when pleasantly surprised that they taste pretty good.

There are 20 calories in each chew. Granted that is many more calories then in most other calcium supplements but the 20 extra calories are a small price to pay for a supplement that tastes (not just bearable but good!).

I will still have to try to drink my milk as I always do (for the vitamin D) and get as much sun shine for the vitamin D as well (since vitamin D aids in calcium absorption), but I think the added 650 mg of calcium will do my body a lot of good.

I have had real “grilled” cheese sandwiches a few times in my life (in my 20’s), and from those experiences eating them I can say that they are nothing like the baked (grilled) cheese sandwiches that I grew up with. Both kinds are very good, but in different ways.

Here are the not so grilled cheese sandwiches that I grew up with.

I made them with whole wheat sliced Italian bread, and low fat marble cheese. I baked them in the oven for about 4 minutes on 375 degrees F. Then I placed some garlic style sliced baby dill pickles on top. That is it. There are no sauces and no margarine or butter. The fat in a low fat cheese is enough to make the bread (not dry).

I think the not so grilled cheese sandwich is a good alternative to “real” grilled cheese sandwiches because real ones seem to have butter or margarine in them (meaning more calories).

The recipe intrigued me so I gave it a try. This was my first time making this type of pasta, and I must say, I love it! I will be making this recipe again. It was also a big hit with my mom. Enjoy!

Note: I did add a few things to the original recipe. This is the original recipe with my additions.

Tagliatelle with Green Sauce

10 oz baby spinach

3 oz watercress (remove thick stems)

1 cup frozen peas

1 pound fresh tagliatelle

3 tsp corn starch

1 cup no fat sour cream

4 tbsp dry flaked parsley

1 tbsp basil

Salt

Pepper

A few stalks of green onion minced

A small amount of minced chives

¼ cup water

A few shakes of red pepper flakes

A few shakes of garlic powder

Rinse the first two ingredients and place in a pot with only the water that remains on the leaves. Cover and cook on medium heat until the vegetables wilt (3-5 minutes). Add the peas and cook through. Drain the greens and save the liquid for later. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta in it according to package directions (about 8 minutes or until desired tenderness is reached). Drain, set aside covered. In the pot where the vegetables had been cooking blend the sour cream and corn starch into a paste. Add the ¼ cup water. Add the basil, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes. Stir on medium heat until bubbles start to form. Then add the greens, including the green onion and chives (as well as the spinach watercress mixture). Heat the sauce through. Drizzle all of the sauce over the pasta. Mix well.

I severed this with baked bbq chicken and it was lovely, with garlic bread on the side, and herb dip and vegetables for a few added vitamins.

Below is an image of the dinner (my dad’s plate). J