Well, here we are, already looking towards the end of November and the world is all upside down. This has had an impact on all aspects of our lives, from the mundane to the philosophical... what can we do but try to live a Good Life, keep ourselves strong and healthy so we can do the other things that are important. So, on that note, I'm sending out this long overdue Bulletin. It's a long one too, but please do scan through it, there's a lot of valuable information I've been saving up for you.

Firstly, many of you want to know what's up with the border situation. Well, I'm still at it (this LowCarb Distribution/Retailing thing) despite border issues, security increases affecting everything from air ship time and costs to time spent sitting in a Customs station with a fistful of paperwork, and agitating (uselessly) about ferry schedules, which of course wait for no woman.

Secondly, many are wondering about the current "shopping" cycle!
I'm working to first-week-in December delivery/shipping of orders, so this bulletin provides the information and the impetus to review the products available, think about what's wanted before the Holiday Season hits, and place your order by email or fax, within the next week. A week's plenty of time for you to think about it (I hope) and allows me to estimate the stock required and make the arrangements to get it to you before Christmas, right?

If you place an order within the next week from this date, and then send your confirmation cheque/money order within the following week, I will be able to ship your order in plenty of time for the holidays. Any orders that arrive or are confirmed later than that, I'll do my best, but can't "guarantee" the ship date. If the schedule holds, I'll be packing and shipping all orders (placed and confirmed as above) between December 4th and 8th.

In light of all that, I'm still carrying the 3 main lines of best-quality and truly low-carb products:
- LaTortilla Factory (low carb, low fat, all natural tortillas), available in Regular, Garlic&Herb and Regular Large.
- DaVinci Gourmet (sugar-, glycerine- and aspartame-free flavour syrups)
- and Expert Foods' (carb-, soy-, allergen-free "cook's helpers", extenders, mixes and soluble fiber supplements, all natural)

However, here's the really interesting news. For the holiday season especially and to gauge interest in expanding the product line more permanently, I'm expanding the 'inventory' a bit with some extras. See the Product News below!

Product News:

- new flavours (may be seasonal, promotional, subject to confirmation) in the DaVinci Syrup** line:
GingerBread
EggNog
Dulce De Leche (an intense caramelly flavour)
Peanut Butter (!)
For a fun selection of recipes (most are easily converted to sugarfree syrup), check out the
DaVinci Gourmet recipe database at
http://www.davincigourmet.com/page.php?page=33&
These flavours ARE listed on my Products webpage, though not all flavours will be available after the holiday season.
{a quick link direct to my Products webpage http://www3.telus.net/seadrakeHome/LCFEP.htm}

- great info and new (NOT on my Products webpage yet, available for this Holiday Season order cycle) products from the Expert Foods line:
not/Cereal { 22 servings, 5 oz, CA$24 }
" Makes lowcarb, grain-free hot cereals, or stretches a small amount of the high-carb kind into a satisfying bowlful as well as for a growing number of cooking uses. "
http://www.expertfoods.com/ThickenThin/notCereal.html <---- more info and uses
Cook-It-Up Pudding Mix: { 38 servings, 5 oz, CA$26 }
" Wise CHOice Cook-it-up Pudding Mix -- looks, tastes, feels and cooks like high-carb cooked pudding mixes, and can be easily adapted to use for old-fashioned homemade cooked puddings in our economical 38-serving size stand-up zipper pouch. Package has chocolate pudding recipe. Our lowcarb pudding mix is much like other cooked pudding mixes -- they all make wonderful comfort food -- but ours contains only a fraction of the carbs compared to other sugar-free mixes. Plus ours is the most adaptable mix on the market -- you can use it to make the old-fashioned puddings you remember, or use it with almost any diet. " http://www.expertfoods.com/WiseCHOice/Pudding.html

And a special note from Barbara Pollack of Expert Foods: " We are pleased to announce that our products ...are now manufactured under the supervision of Star-K Kosher Certification. "

Here's some more useful information about the Expert Foods products we've carried for some time:
not/Starch: "Thickens like cornstarch in gravies, sauces, and soups -- without the carbs -- and it's much easier to use. Also, use it to turn nuts, seeds, etc. into easy-to-make high-fiber crackers." http://www.expertfoods.com/ThickenThin/notStarch.html
not/Sugar: "Replace the thickness of sugar in syrups, shakes, etc. -- and in lowcarb baking and candy-making recipes too." http://www.expertfoods.com/ThickenThin/notSugar.html

For you kitchen fiends, like me, here's a direct link to many recipes (a few of which I've developed myself, shucks ). Note that some are just plain good lowcarb recipes shared by Barbara Pollack, not necessarily requiring the use of any of Expert Foods' product line!
Well worth having a look, especially at the featured (right now) Holiday Selections!
--> http://www.expertfoods.com/Recipes

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** Important note: during the winter months, it's strongly recommended to reduce the shipping time for any orders containing glass bottles of sugarfree syrups (i.e., spring for XpressPost versus Regular Post+Insurance) as the odds of freezing and exploding syrup bottles rises steeply with the number of days on the road, possibly sitting overnight in a freezing truck. The Canada Post insurance option generally does NOT cover freezing damage to bottles, but is loss only (no show) coverage. XpressPost is approximately 1/3 cheaper than private courier, according to Canada Post, so is generally quite affordable.
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Well, I thank you for reading this far { if you have! <grin> } and hope to hear from you soon.

Here's looking forward to a happy happy time with our friends and our family in the season ahead!

=== Judi