I know I am known for my baking prowess, but I can cook up a mean soup too! In honor of Women's Healthy Weight Day which is tomorrow, I'm whipping up some lentil soup. Ladies, this recipe is ridiculously easy, healthy and DELICIOUS! I'll make it today, and have enough for the whole family to last for a couple of days.

Sweetie Pie's Lentil Soup

2 cups dried lentils
8 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
1 can or box of diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 stalks of celery, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped or sliced in rounds
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp. dried oregano
1 Tbsp. dried basil
Salt & pepper to taste

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute onion, celery, carrot and spices in olive oil until the onion is transluscent. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.

2. Add tomatoes, lentils and stock and bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for 1 hour or so, until the lentils are tender. Add more liquid if needed.

Pair it with Goodie Two-Shoes Pinot Noir and a nice crusty whole grain bread.

Why I Love My Kindle Touch

I had for a lot things on my Christmas List this year, but the BEST gift I received promises to satisfy my inner geek AND my inner bookworm: The Kindle Touch. Why a Kindle Touch? Why not a Nook or a Kindle Fire... or for that matter, why not get an iPad? Well I’ll tell you.

I spend most days staring at one glowing screen after another. Whether its the television, my computer, phone, or even my iPod, if you see me, I’m probably staring at a screen. After a while, I get kind of tired of it. I want to sit back with a nice glass of wine and read a good book – you know, ACTIVELY use my brain. Ignite my imagination without the assistance of animated birds with attitude problems.

The iPad, then, is not the e-reader for me. For one thing, it is a glowing screen just like the rest. Plus, the iPad does so many things that it is pretty unlikely I will actually sit down and READ on the thing. I’ll get stuck arguing with angry birds, and then go to bed feeling like I wasted my brainpower.

Why do our gadgets have to do EVERYTHING, anyway?

I mean, explain to me why I need a Kindle Fire? It has a browser, books, movies, and apps... but I already have those capabilities on my phone. And if I wanted a tablet, why not go all out and get the iPad, which does everything, including photography and word processing? No, No, the Kindle Fire is much too much and not enough, all at the same time.

For me, the Kindle Touch is perfect. As far as I can tell, it is best at imitating actual books. With a 16-tone grayscale E-Ink screen, it looks and reads just like a book. The touch is great - reminds me of turning an actual page. And whereas actual books can be bulky and my fingers get dry from the pages, the Kindle Touch is sleek, light, and doesn’t dry out my skin. Plus, the Kindle Touch works with Wi-Fi (there is a 3G version, too) so you can download books from Amazon’s seemingly-endless library. It even beats out Barnes & Noble’s Nook Library, which is somewhat limited.

I think, in the world of gadgets the best pairing would be an iPad for all the movies, music, games, and apps I can handle and a Kindle Touch for my books. Oh, and of course a glass of wine – the perfect addition to any tablet. Just don’t spill!

Cheers! Sweet & Sassy