My husband and I have been invited to a friend's house out in the country for the Independence Day weekend, and I'm hoping all the above mentioned will be involved.

I was asked to bring a dessert, and I accepted with some mild trepidation. As a die-hard sugar addict, desserts have always been my specialty and something in which I had always taken pride... at least until I learned the nasty things sugar does to me and decided I no longer wanted to be addicted it!

The addictive side one this time, though, and I began searching my files for ooey-gooey dessert recipes. (Shoot, I have a lot!)

Yet, as I read through the required ingredients, the ooey-gooey desserts slowly lost their sexiness. "A cup and a half of sugar?  2 cups of white flour?  A tub of whipped topping?  14oz of sweetened condensed milk?  3 tbsp of corn syrup???  What?!"  I don't want to put any of those in my body!  Nor do I want to feed them to others, thank you very much!

This was a triumph for a sugar addict like me, but I wasn't reveling in it.  I actually let out a disappointed sigh.  Those once tempting desserts may look pretty on the outside, but they were filled with all sorts of nasties on the inside, nasties that wreak havoc upon my body and the way I feel.

I let out the sigh because I'm not ready to let go of my beloved desserts, seductive and harmful though they be.  I truly want to (actually need to!), but I'm not ready to cut ties.  However, at least I'm aware that my relationship with sugar isn't doing me any favors.  At least I said "No thank you" after learning what those desserts were really made of.  At least sweets are starting to lose their mojo.

You know, reading the ingredients list is something I should do more often, especially when I'm tempted by pretty packaging and luscious looking sweets.  Noting all the sugar, refined products, and chemicals I can't even pronounce may deter me from putting the alluring sweet in my mouth.  It's definitely worth the effort.

But now what to bring to the shindig???

A fruit salad.  That might work.

Yes, that's what I'll bring, with lots of red and blue berries!  Sweet and healthy, attractive and festive. That's sexy!

Photo credit: LittleMan

Originally posted 2008-07-02 08:00:32. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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