This year’s Mystery podcast, Murder As Plain As Vanilla, is set in a real place – The Hedges Inn in East Hampton, NY. Our excellent narrator, the lovely Lorraine Brooks, explained how the Hedges Inn was named after one of the Hamptons’ founding families who settled there in 1644.
Two hundred years later, the restored family home became a boarding house. Word quickly spread nationwide about Mrs. Hedges’s delicious New England cooking. Her outstanding reputation turned her home into a place where the elite liked to meet and eat.
When Mr. Divabetic’s arch-nemesis baking sensation Renata Whisk calls, offering a chance to participate in the Visions of Vanilla baking competition, he can’t refuse. After all, it’s an invitation to compete against culinary giants Best-Selling Cookbook Author Lily Frost, Green Thumb Gourment, Hazel Honeywell, and the Cannoli Countess and, most importantly, a chance to pay back his debt owed to his mother.
But before Max’s hands touch flour, he discovers the dead body of the Vanilla King of Madagascar lying in a bed of roses. As luck has it, Max is the last person to see the Vanilla King alive. Rumors start swirling about Max’s past involvement in legendary TV Chef Sweet Sally Buttercup’s untimely demise. To prove his innocence, he enlists his team, USA Today’s best-selling author Tonya Kappes, health educator MaryAnn Nicolay MEd, NDTR, and his mother, Mama Rose Marie.
But when another baker’s dead body is found near Max’s station, even his mother tastes a recipe for disaster. Could he be ladling out something lethal?
Now, armed with only Renata Whisk’s Puffed Pastry recipe, a rolling pin, and his team’s expertise in solving murders and dispersing diabetes health information, Max has no choice but to solve the mystery or at least die trying. To win the Visions Of Vanilla grand prize, it will be a fight to the death.
Co-Starring Lorraine Brooks, Catherine Schuller, Dave Jones, Seveda Williams, and Amparo Peterkin. Script Editor Wendy Radford. Producer, Leisa Chester Weir. Music from the Broadway Cast albums of Anything Goes courtesy of SONY Music.
We’re excited to announce Luther: Never Too Much, the feature-length documentary on Luther Vandross’s life and career, will premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Award-winning filmmaker Dawn Porter follows the iconic artist as he charted his course in becoming one of the most influential pop artists of all time.
“Like so many, I have always loved Luther’s music, but I had no idea of the breadth and scope of his artistry. I think people will be surprised at how much he accomplished in his tragically short life. It is a joy to be able to share his true story,” Dawn Porter told reporters at the time.
The eight-time Grammy award winner and our Divabetic inspiration, started his career as a backup singer for artists like Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, and David Bowie. By the 1970s, Vandross had catapulted into stardom with his chart-topping album, Never Too Much, the title single becoming a No.1 hit on the Billboard R&B charts.
Sadly, in 2003, at the age of 52, Luther Vandross suffered a stroke from mismanaged type 2 diabetes. Since that time, the nonprofit Divabetic has gone on to help thousands of people living with, at risk, and affected by diabetes stay on top of their self-care through podcasts, live events, and virtual programs.
For the first time, fans of the icon will gain access to never-before-seen footage that chronicles his rise to global stardom, his passion for the craft of music, and the personal struggles underlying it all.
Our friend, Connie Elder, offers our Divabetic community members a special discount on her popular PEAK 10 SKIN Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream.
Connie’s rescue cream is featured in this year’s Divabetic Gift Guide.
SAVE MY SOLE by PEAK 10 SKIN contains menthol and eucalyptus to relieve dryness, cracking, rough heels, and tension. Both of these ingredients emit a soothing aroma during application while providing a cooling and refreshing sensation on contact that immediately begins to ease irritation.
Pure, unrefined Shea Butter is infused into this healing formula due to its abundant nourishing benefits. The Shea Butter is packed with Vitamin E to lock in moisture and hydration for your depleted, dry skin and encourages the repair process. Coconut Oil is combined with Shea Butter to provide additional moisturizing and hydration. It helps to condition the thick bottom skin of the feet and produces more long-term results. Renew your distressed skin and reveal softer, smoother, happier feet!
Don’t miss Divabetic’s 10th Annual Mystery podcast, Murder Plain As Vanilla on Wednesday, December 13, 6 PM, EST.
When Mr. Divabetic’s arch-nemesis Renata Whisk invites him to enter the Visions of Vanilla baking competition, it’s an offer he can’t refuse. After all, he’ll compete against the culinary world’s giants, Best-Selling Cookbook Author Lily Frost, the Green Thumb Gourment, Hazel Honeywell, and the vivacious Cannoli Countess. But most importantly, if he wins the grand prize, he can finally be able to repay his mother.
It seems like he has nothing to lose whipping up one of Renata’s recipes until he discovers the dead body of Conrad Rivera, the Vanilla King of Madagascar, lying in the Hedges Inn’s bed of roses. Soon, rumors swirl about Max’s past involvement in legendary TV chef Sweet Sally Buttercup’s untimely demise at Central Park’s Gingerbread Man competition. To prove his innocence, he will need the help of USA Today’s best-selling author Tonya Kappes, health educator MaryAnn Nicolay MEd, NDTR, and his mother, Mama Rose Marie.
But when Hazel Honeywell’s dead body is found near Max’s station, even his mother defers tasting his newest recipe. Could it be as lethal as a cup of kale hot cocoa?
Now, armed with only Renata Whisk’s Puffed Pastry recipe, a rolling pin, and his team’s expertise in solving murders and dispersing diabetes health information, Max has no choice but to solve the mystery or at least die trying. To win the Visions Of Vanilla grand prize, it will be a fight to the death.
Listen on demand on Blog Talk Radio, iTunes, and Spotify.
Last night, our friend, Stacey Harris, the Diabetic Pastry Chef, demonstrated how to make her favorite recipe for Sugar-Free Gingerbread Cakes at Divabetic’s Holiday Sugarfree Baking Party on Zoom.
The Diabetic Pastry Chef’s Sugar-Free Gingerbread Cake Recipe
Ingredients
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar substitute of your choice
3/4 cup molasses
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsps baking powder
2 tsps ground ginger
1 1/2 tsps cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup boiling water
Directions
Grease an 8×8 inch pan, or grease a pan with 12 square cavities; set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat eggs until well combined. Add sugar substitute, molasses, and melted butter. Beat well.
In a separate bowl, sift together all dry ingredients.
Alternate adding the dry ingredients and boiling water into the batter, beating until each addition is combined and smooth and no large lumps remain. Pour into pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
You may want to sprinkle sugar-free confectioner’s erythritol on top of the cooled cake for decoration. Serve each slice of gingerbread with a dollop of whipped cream.
Stacey’s Notes: I used White Lily All-Purpose flour to make the cake light in texture. Feel free to mix your flours to decrease the carbs, but your cake will not be as light in texture. I also used Splenda Magic Baker as my sugar substitute (white or brown sugar can be used) in this recipe.
At the start of our Holiday Sugarfree Baking Party, GUIDE Beauty Founder and Makeup Artist Terri Bryant, who works with Selma Blair, shared how she found beauty in her health challenge.
At the height of her makeup artist career, Terri Bryant started to experience a loss of hand dexterity, leading to challenges applying makeup.
Eventually, she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. Empowered by knowledge and a life-long love of makeup, she created a new line of easy-to-use makeup applicators for mascara, eyeliner, and more for those of us who may be dealing with neuropathy in our hands.
Divavbetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller spotlighted her new jewelry line of heroic adornment, Power Pieces, created to help you shine your inner gifts.
At the end of our program, three of our favorite Divabetics, Arlene, Seveda, and Leola, won Raffle prizes (GUIDE Beauty products, Power Pieces, and a Divabetic Gift Box filled with our favorite gift ideas for 2023).
Our next free Divabetic Zoom party will be in February to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
The Diabetic Pastry Chef demonstrates her favorite sugar-free Gingerbread recipe on tonight’s Divabetic’s Sugarfree Baking Party on Zoom starting at 7 PM EST.
Stacey Harris, the Diabetic Pastry Chef, will also share how cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and cardamom can help add flavor to your baked goods.
Additionally, we’ll spotlight ways to sparkle during the holidays with Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller and GUIDE Beauty Founder and Makeup Artist Terri Bryant.
Recently, Catherine launched her heroic adornment jewelry line, recycling vintage comic books into beautifully crafted accessories.
GUIDE Beauty Founder Terri Byrant introduces us to a new mascara that’s easier to apply for people suffering from neuropathy in their hands or a lack of finger dexterity.
Tonight’s fabulous diabetes outreach program is totally free!!!
Diabetes doesn’t have to dim your sparkle during the holidays. We’re presenting a Holiday Sugarfree Baking Party on Thursday, November 30, 2023, at 7 PM, EST.
During this fun-filled BakingParty on Zoom, The Diabetic Pastry Chefprepares a Sugar–Free holiday dessert recipe and shares expert baking tips for substituting sugar substitutes in recipes.
Plus, Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller shares a sneak peek at Divabetic’s Gift Guide 2023. She showcases her new jewelry line, Power Pieces, made from upcycled comic books. These one-of-a-kind heroic adornments celebrate the inner power in all of us.
Win gifts courtesy of Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes’s Camper Cozy Mystery and Peak 10 Skin‘s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream during Mr. Divabetic’s random drawings. You must be present at our BakingParty to enter our gift drawings to win.
Over 150 people have participated in our past Divabetic Baking Parties on Zoom, so don’t miss out!
Register on Eventbrite. Register closes at 3 PM, EST.
There’s a good indication that murder might be part of the recipe when Nantucket’s ten-time reigning Baking Champion’s last name is ‘Coffin.’ Tune into Divabetic’s Mystery Podcast, Kill Me Madam.
This November, we’re sharing gift ideas to help you live life to the fullest in Divabetic’s Gift Guide.
Gift-giving can be stressful, especially when you’re shopping for someone’s wellness and are committed to finding the perfect present. We’ve rounded up our favorites from practical to “just because” for 2023 with exclusive discounts for you to enjoy. You’ll find many options we hope to infuse a little bit of joy or ease into your daily diabetes life. We sourced gift ideas from our community members, including people living with diabetes and professionals who work with people with type 1, type 2, and prediabetes.
Let us know what you think of our suggestions, and feel free to email me with your favorites, too —after all, you’re the expert on what will put a smile on your loved one’s face.
During this fun-filled Baking Party on Zoom, The Diabetic Pastry Chefprepares a holiday Sugar-Free Dessert recipe, demonstrates her favorite kitchen tools, and shares expert baking tips for substituting sugar substitutes and alternative flours in recipes.
Win a Splenda Baking Kit! Plus, gifts courtesy of Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes’s Camper Cozy Mystery and Peak 10 Skin‘s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream during Mr. Divabetic’s random drawings. You must be present at our Baking Party to enter our gift drawings to win.
Celebrate National Diabetes Awareness Month with us. Over 150 people have participated in our past Divabetic Baking Partieson Zoom, so don’t miss out!
The Holidays are full of surprises— especially after Mr. Divabetic gets a new job as the pastry chef at the St. Nicholas Nursing Home nestled in a cozy Christmas Village. But adjusting to life in a Christmas Village is not all sugarplums and candy canes. Especially when a cantankerous resident, a real-life Ebenezer Scrooge, named Mr. Pincher almost dies——shortly after eating one of Max’s peanut butter swirl brownies. Despite all of the ingredients for danger, Mr. Divabetic along with our team of amateur sleuths and his overly protective mother — set out to find the real culprit in the hopes that his name isn’t on a lethal naughty list.
Our story was inspired by Kevin Houdeshell’s tragic true-life story. Thanks to the Houdeshell family for their advocacy efforts on behalf of the Emergency Insulin Act of 2019 and the emergency prescription refill legislation. Known as Kevin’s or Howdy’s Law, it allows pharmacists to dispense an emergency supply of a chronic maintenance medication if the doctor cannot be reached – a common-sense act that could save a life.
Starring Max ‘Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek, USA Best Selling Author Tonya Kappes, Mama Rose Marie, Patricia Addie Gentle, Terri Seidman, MaryAnn Nicolay, Trisha Artman, Catherine Schuller, Chef Robert Lewis, Seveda Williams, and Wendy Radford. Special thanks to the Houdeshell family, and Pharmacist Mandy Reece. Original music by Ivan Hampden Jr., Celine Dion’s vocals courtesy of SONY Music. Produced by Leisa Chester Weir.
In the spirit of Scrooge’s awakening at the end of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, we encourage you to honor Christmas in your heart by living in the Past, The Present, and the Future. Try to embrace the Spirits of all Three and the lessons that they teach.
Diabetes doesn’t have to dim your sparkle during the holidays. We’re sharing great gift ideas to keep you and your loved ones happy and healthy in our upcoming Gift Guide, demonstrating sugar-free baking tips and style advice.
Join the happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic, at Divabetic free culinary diabetes baking party on Zoom with Stacey Harris, The Diabetic Pastry Chef on Thursday, November 30, 2023, at 7 PM, EST
During this fun-filled BakingParty on Zoom, The Diabetic Pastry Chefprepares a Sugar–Free Dessert recipe, demonstrates her favorite kitchen tools, and shares expert baking tips for substituting sugar substitutes and alternative flours in recipes.
Win gifts courtesy of Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes’s Camper Cozy Mystery and Peak 10 Skin‘s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream during Mr. Divabetic’s random drawings. You must be present at our BakingParty to enter our gift drawings to win.
“But you’ve got to have friends,” Bette Midler’s song lyrics helped push me through the creative challenges of making my Halloween displays. I’m not an artist or a crafter, so the struggle was real. Thankfully, two remarkable women, Sharon and Lauren, cheered me on along the way.
After I created my first display, The Amy Winehouse Twins, made of recycled bottles for Halloween last year, Sharon kept encouraging me to create more art. My insecurities helped me blow off her comments until Spring.
But her interest in my creativity wore me down until I asked myself, “Why not?” I experienced so much joy creating the Winehouse Twins and Angela ‘LAMB’ sbury, it was worth a try.
I found a cheap plastic duck mask in a box in my closet. At first, a Halloween duck display didn’t make sense to me. But then, the name Cruella DUCK Vil popped into my head.
Still, even after that light bulb went off, I wondered if I could make a duck display. My paper mache skills were considered shaky back in elementary school.
Thank goodness for YouTube craft videos! I didn’t need to know there are so many types of paper mache available, from clay to cement, but the step-by-step demonstrations helped. After several frustrating days (weeks!) of trying to smooth out the seams, I moved on to decorations.
This step presented a whole new set of problems. I had never used a glue gun before, and my handcrafting skills were laughable or nonexistent at best. I had this ‘brilliant’ idea to decorate my Duck displays with candy.
Shortly after purchasing a bunch of candy, I found out that most types of candy don’t adhere to glue, and if they do, the glue deteriorates them. It was a sticky, hot mess. Then, after creating a 20’s style flapper dress using red licorice for Cruella, a hungry rat got into my apartment and devoured it.
Count Duckula, Cruella Duck Vil, Bri-Duck of Frankenstein, and Duck Vader are made from recycled bottles, shoe boxes, and New York Times newspapers with old-fashioned paper mache (flower and water).
Count Duckula’s costume is covered in Tic Tacs, cake sprinkles, Red Hots, Black Licorice, Dollar Store eyes, Chocolate Baking Dots, Recycled Red and Black Cloth Grocery Bags, and a Child-Size Dracula wig.
Duck Vader’s costume is made from a child’s Darth Vader costume, Take-Out Container, Trash Bags, Packing Supplies, Black Licorice, and Orange Tic Tacs.
Cruella and the Bri-Duck of Frankenstein were the last displays I decorated. By this time, I had decided to forgo candy and use household items for decorations. Cruella’s dress is made of placemats and Swifters. Bri-Duck’s dress is made from coffee filters, paper plates, doilies, Amazon wigs, and mops.
Periodically, through my creative meltdowns, I’d bump into Sharon. Her timing was perfect! Sharon’s excitement about what I was creating (even though she didn’t know what it was) and my friend Lauren’s enthusiasm boosted my spirits.
Lauren helped me with my displays last year, too.
When you tell Lauren you want to climb a mountain, Lauren will ask you ‘How many steps?’ she won’t question why you should do it. I love that! She’s a wonderful friend who cheers you and begs you to go BIGGER!!
Which I did!
Kitty Litter is made from recycled materials. Single-use bottles, packing supplies, boxes, and the New York Times newspaper with old-fashioned paper mache. Her head is a $14 mask from Amazon. Her bustier is made from assorted candy, including Dots, Licorice, three-sizes of Gumballs, Skittles, Mike & Ikes, Circus Peanuts, Tic Tacs, Jelly Bellys, Good n’ Plenty, and Swedish Fish. Her fins are assorted foil muffin liners. Her skirt is made of multi-colored spaghetti licorice. Her tail is made of three sizes of marshmallows. Initially, I wanted to use multi-colored mini marshmallows like my Aunt Francis used to put her in Ambrosia salad, but I couldn’t find them anywhere!
The rest of the Kitty Litter display is a nod to the enormous amount of single-use plastics in our oceans. Collecting my single-use plastics, including water bottles, take-out food containers, cups, straws, and food packages over two months opened my eyes to the staggering amount of trash I contribute to the environmental crisis.
I hope this post encourages you to create art, especially if you’re doubtful about your skills, afraid of failure, or unsure where or how to start. I shared all of those thoughts, too. But even at my most challenging moments, I had a blast!
This little boy’s excitement made my adventures in crafting worthwhile!
The spirit and community of West 69th Street inspired me to create some kid-friendly decorations for Halloween and learn how to use a glue gun. Sadly, many fingertips were burned trying to clue the marshmallows to Kitty Littter’s tail.
