Grocery List for Week One Menu

Grocery List For Week One:

2 Rotisserie Chickens*	Whole dried red chiles (8-optional)	4 Oranges to juice 3/4c  & zest & peel
	Chipotles in adobo sauce	5 Limes
2.5 lbs boneless chicken breast or tenders	Balsamic Vinegar  2t	Fresh parsley  1T
3lbs beef eye round or bottom round roast	Marsala wine 1/2c	Fresh Cilantro ½ cup
1lb beef tenderloin, cut up	Hot Pepper Sauce 1t	Plum tomatoes 2
1 lb Cod fillet	Cooking Spray	Carrots
	FF or Lite Mayonnaise 1C	Onion 2.5
	Peanut oil 1T	Cabbage – 1 medium
Fat free Tomato-Basil pasta sauce  1 1/2cups	Vegetable oil	Medium Baking Potatos for fries – 1 per person
FF Chicken Broth  5 C*	Canola oil	8 new potatoes
FF Beef Broth 1/2C	Dijon mustard 3T	Pre-sliced mushrooms 1C
3 -15.8oz cans Great Northern Beans	White vinegar 6T	Fresh Ginger –about 2”
Egg noodles	Soy sauce ¼ c	Lettuce, tomato, cukes, onion, celery, carrots, etc for your salads for 3 meals
Angel Hair pasta	Minced garlic 4T	Green beans
		Broccoli
Italian Bread	Chili powder 1.5T	snow peas 3c
	Cumin 2T
	Cayenne pepper  ¼ t	Flour 2t
Egg	Oregano 2T	Dark brown sugar ½ c
Butter  2T	Ground cloves ½ t	Cornstarch 2T
Sour Cream 1C	Dried Basil 1t	Dry breadcrumbs 1/4c
1.5 oz fresh grated parmesan cheese	Bay leaves 3
1.5 oz shredded provolone cheese	Italian seasoning  ½ t	Brown Rice  1C
	Salt & Black Pepper	Basmati Rice 1c

Points Plus Menu - Week One

Store bought Rotisserie Chickens *, parsley new potatoes, green beans

Barbacoa Beef *, Cilantro Lime Rice, garden salad 

Chicken and White Bean Chili, garden salad,  Italian bread

Danica’s Steak and Shroons*, ‘buttered noodles’, snow peas

Orange Chicken, brown rice, broccoli

Baked Cod, oven fries, Creamy Coleslaw

Herbed Chicken Parmesan, angel hair pasta, side salad

                      

Notes:
* I buy two rotisserie chickens, one to use as leftovers in the Chicken and White Bean Chili, and I cook the bones from both, covered in water in my crockpot overnight and keep the broth it makes to also use for the chili, the orange chicken and freeze any that is left for another day/another recipe.
* Extra Barbacoa Beef can be served on a roll with coleslaw for one of your lunches the next day
* I used a full pound of beef for Danica's Steak and Shroons to make it serve 4
* All highlighted items are links to the recipe on my site!

Herbed Chicken Parmesan

Herbed Chicken Parmesan



Servings: 4   Points Plus: 8

1/3 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated & divided

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1 T fresh parsley, minced

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp salt, divided

1 large egg white, beaten

1 lb chicken breast or tenders

1 T butter

1 1/2 cups store-bought pasta sauce

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/3 cup provolone cheese, shredded

Combine 2 T of the Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, parsley, basil and 1/8 tsp of the salt in a pie plate or other shallow dish.  Dip each piece of chicken in egg white, then dredge in breadcrumb mixture.  Set aside. 

Over medium-high heat, melt butter in a non-stick pan.  Add chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until done and browned.  Remove from pan to a shallow baking pan or cookie sheet.  In same pan, put pasta sauce, vinegar, remaining salt and pepper and stir over medium-high heat until it bubbles.  Pour sauce over chicken.  Sprinkle remaining Parmesan cheese and provolone cheese over chicken and put under the broiler until the cheese melts.  Enjoy!

Creamy Coleslaw

Creamy Coleslaw



Servings: 8   Size: 3/4 cup   Points Plus: 2

1 medium sized head of green cabbage, finely shredded

2 medium carrots, grated

(or - buy 1 large bag of coleslaw mix already prepared)

1 cup lite mayonnaise

1 cup fat free sour cream

2 T Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce (if desired)

Combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper in a large bowl.  Add hot sauce if desired (sometimes I replace the hot sauce with 1 tsp celery seed for a change).  Pour dressing over the cabbage and carrots - or the prepared coleslaw mix - and toss to coat thoroughly.  Refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve.

Baked Cod

Baked Cod

Servings: 4    Points Plus: 3

1 lb Cod fillet

Old Bay Seasoning

Cooking Spray

Coat a baking dish with cooking spray.  Sprinkle Old Bay Seasoning generously on one side of the fillet.  Put seasoned side down in pan.  Sprinkle other side with seasoning, too.  Place in pre-heated 350degree oven for 25-30 minutes, until fish flakes with a fork and no longer has any translucent appearance in center.

Orange Chicken

Orange Chicken

Servings: 4    Points Plus: 9

3/4 cup fat free chicken broth
3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
1 1/2 tsp fresh grated orange zest
6 T white vinegar
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tsp minced garlic
1 T freshly grated ginger
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1.5 lbs boneless chicken breast or tenders cut into bite sized peices
5 tsp cornstarch
2 T water
4-8 small dried chilies (to taste)
1/4 cup small, thin strips of fresh orange peel
1 T peanut oil

Place chicken peices in a 1-gallon zipper lock bag; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the chicken broth, orange juice, zest, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and cayenne until sugar is fully dissolved. measure out 3/4 cup and pour into the bag to marinate the chicken. Put in refrigerator for 60 minutes.

In the meantime, bring the remaining orange juice mixture to a boil over high heat. In a small bowl, sitr together the cornstarch and water until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to hot boiling orange sauce, recuce heat to simmer, stirring occasionally unti the suace is thick - about 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the orange peel peices and dried chiles to taste.

In a large pan, heat peanut oil over medium- high heat. Saute chicken until browned and cooked thoroughly. Remove from heat. Add cooked chicken to pot of warm sauce and stir over medium heat until all is throughly heated through.



Chicken and White Bean Chili

Chicken and White Bean Chili

Servings: 8  Size: 1cup  Points Plus: 7

1 T canola oil

2 cups diced onions (about 2 medium)

1 1/2 T chili powder

1 T minced garlic

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp oregano

3-15.8 oz cans of Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained

4 cups fat-free, less sodium chicken broth

3 cups chopped, cooked chicken

1/2 cup diced, seeded plum tomatoes (1-2)

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 T fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Lime wedges to garnish with

Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat.  Add onion and saute for 10 minutes until tender and golden.  Add chili powder, garlic and cumin, continuing to cook for 2 minutes to bring out the smoky flavor of these herbs.  Add oregano, beans and broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and cook an additional 20 minutes.  Place 2 cups of the bean mixture into food processor or blender and process until smooth.  Return pureed mixture to pan.  Add the chicken and cook until heated through.  Remove from heat and add the diced tomato, chopped cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper.  Stir well.  Serve in bowls with a wedge of lime or two as a garnish.

Cilantro Lime Rice

Cilantro Lime Rice

Servings: 4   Size: 3/4 cup  Points Plus: 5

1 cup Basmati Rice

Juice of 1/2 lime

2 cups water

1 tsp Salt

3 T chopped fresh cilantro

4 tsp vegetable oil, divided

In a pot, bring water to boil.  Add rice, 1 tsp oil, and salt.  Boil on high until most of the water is absorbed - when the water level is at the top of the rice, reduce to low and cover.  Cook for an additional 12-15 minutes.  Turn off heat and leave covered for about 5 minutes.  In the meantime, combine chopped cilantro, lime juice, and remaining oil in a large bowl.  Add the rice and stir until completely mixed.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

Barbacoa Beef Recipe

Barbacoa Beef 

Servings: 9   Serving size: 4oz  Points plus: 4
Calories: 161.4  Fat: 5g  Protein: 24.9g  Carb: 2.8g  Fiber: 0.7g

3 lbs beef eye round or bottom round roast, all fat trimmed
3 tsp minced garlic
1/2 medium onion
1/2 lime, juiced
2-4 chipotles in adobo sauce
1 T ground cumin
1 T ground oregano
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 bay leaves
1 tsp vegetable oil
1-2 cups water

Put garlic, onion, lime juice, cumin, oregano, chipotle peppers & cloves into a blender or food processor.  Process until liquefied.  Trim all fat off meat and cut it into 4 or 5 large chunks. Season with Salt and Pepper and brown on high heat in a large pan with 1 tsp oil.  Put meat into slow cooker.  Add liquefied spices, bay leaves and 1 cup of water.  Set on low and let cook for about 7-8 hours OR cook on high for about 4-5 hours. There should be enough liquid to keep it moist, but keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't dry out the last hours of cooking, adding more if needed.

Once cooked and meat is tender, remove the meat and place in a dish, reserving the liquid and discarding the bay leaves.  Shred the meat with two forks.  Return the shredded meat to the cooker and add back some of the reserved liquid to moisten.  Adjust seasonings as desired - particularly the salt and cumin. Heat through and enjoy!

Note: the leftovers are great in a roll with some fresh coleslaw on top!

Asian Glazed Drumsticks

Sorry I missed posting yesterday - I am working hard on putting together a variety of recipes and menus for you and I am getting so close to start posting them, that I lost track of my day.  I even forgot to track what I ate yesterday on my WW e-Tools, but thank goodness for photos, I could put it all in my tracker today!

Yesterday started out with one of my favorite breakfasts again - the one I usually save for the weekends ;0)

2 Nutri-Grain Waffles, toasted (4pp), 1 Tbsp Blueberry Syrup (1pp), variety of berries (0pp) and fat free whipped cream (0pp)

Total points+ for breakfast = 5pp! Do you remember the handy little chart on page 60 of your WW Getting Started booklet?  It is really helpful to know your numbers ~ for my 29 pp per day, it suggests I break it down like this:

Breakfast - 5pp

Lunch - 8pp

Dinner - 11pp

Snack - 3pp

Snack -2pp

So I hit my target to start my day.  Keep in mind that this chart is just a general guideline to help you, but I find that for me, it really keeps me from getting so hungry I could eat everything in the fridge!  Remember those days on the old WW program?  I sure do!  That is one reason I'm loving this new program - I'm getting a real education in how to do it right.  So why not take a look at that chart again today and memorize what your target should be and how you should break it down, meal by meal?

We had a late lunch planned, so I DID have a snack, however a small one.  I just grabbed a peice of cheese from the office fridge for 1pp:

I had the Original Swiss, but the Garlic and Herb is really good, too.  Easy to buy, store, grab and go!

Lunch was a little tricky today.  I have been putting off going to the grocery store because I'm finding that my refrigerator is constantly filled to the brim on this program (is it just me, or are you finding the same thing?), so I want to try to empty it some.  Besides, I have to make room for all the food for my first week's menu I'm about to post, right?  With what was left in the fridge, I just didn't have the inspiration for what to take to work...so we decided to go out for lunch - nothing fancy - just let someone else do the work.  We went to our local McDonald's for a salad.  Mine was the Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken Breast...which they describe as:

Our hottest salad yet: fresh-grilled chicken, fresh mixed greens, oven-roasted tomatoes, fire-roasted corn, savory black beans, poblano peppers, shredded cheddar and jack cheeses, chili lime tortilla strips and a fresh-sliced lime wedge on the side.
They serve it with a nice southwestern dressing on the side - total pp for the entire thing = 11!  So I am over my 'target' points for lunch, but I'll look at it as my 8pp lunch and a 3pp snack rolled into one.  I really love this salad.  Chuck, on the other hand, had the Cesar Salad with a grilled chicken breast.  His points totalled 12, but he gets more to start with each day - so he was well within his target!  Sorry, no photos of lunch.

I already had plans for our dinner. I had a package of drumsticks defrosting, so I knew we wanted to have the Asian Glazed Drumsticks again.  This recipe was a real hit with the family - it smells incredible while its cooking and everyone makes their way into the kitchen to check it out and comment.  I love when that happens!  I cooked some brown rice and broccoli to have with it.

Asian Glazed Drumsticks (2 for 5pp), brown rice (1/2 cup for 3pp), broccoli (0pp)

Dinner total was 8pp for me - Chuck had a full cup of rice for a total of 10pp for dinner!  I again forgot to snap a shot of one of my favorite parts of dinner - the dessert!  While the sauce for the drumsticks was cooking down to a glaze, I cut up a fresh pineapple into a huge bowl of snacking goodness.  We were really full, and we had planned on watching a movie we got from Netflix (Wall Street), so we just took the bowl into the livingroom and 'grazed' on it instead of popcorn or pretzels.  The whole bowl was gone before the movie was ;0)

I am hoping to have another post later today, and perhaps my first weekly menu of dinners with a grocery list.  I don't plan to include breakfasts or lunches on the menu, because not everyone eats breakfast (although you should) and many people eat lunch 'out'...but I'll plan on doing something to inspire you for those meals in the weeks to come!

Homework: memorize your 'suggested daily Points Plus Targets breakdown by meals'.  You can do it - its only 6 numbers - your target #, 3 meals, and 2 snacks.  Got it?  If you need help determining your numbers, let me know.

Carrot Salad and more...

I had a request today for the recipe for my carrot salad.  You remember - the one I had yesterday for lunch?

I have to admit that I've been making it pretty much the same way my mom did for years, except that now with Weight Watchers I have begun measuring the points as I whip it up.  Basically, this is a great way to use up carrots that are just beginning to lose some of their crunch...or for bolstering up a meal with some low points plus and color.  To make my carrot salad, I took handfuls of baby carrots and chopped them in my mini food processor (I prefer to grate regular carrots, but all I had were the baby ones, and they are tricky to grate!  I would say I had about 1 cup of chopped carrots to start with.  To that I added 1/4 cup of regular raisins(3pp), although golden raisins are equally as good.  I added 4 Tbsp of Hellman's lite mayonnaise (4pp), one at a time, and stirred it until it was all moistened.  I seasoned it with a little salt and pepper to taste.  Put it back in the fridge for an hour or so until chilled through and flavors blend.  Its pretty basic and simple, but yummy.  Makes me think of my mom ;0)  The total points plus was 7 - and I split it with Chuck - but I took the 4 points because of all the 'tasting' I did to make sure it was seasoned enough.

Remember I started my day not feeling it...right?  It pretty much kept up that way all day long.  I didn't really even want to go out the door to work...but some days you gotta do what you gotta do.  Feeling pretty much uninspired, I grabbed some cheese, crackers, salsa, guacamole and baked Tostito's Scoops...I figured I'd just snack my points away today.

I really like this to munch on at my desk, anyways, since I don't need a fork and I don't have to lick my fingers when I'm done ;0)  I had 4 peices of cheese for 1pp each, and 8 Wheatables Nut Crisps for 2pp and a small bunch of grapes for 0pp.  You read it right - 8 crackers for 2points plus!  Tasty!!

They come in several flavors - just be sure to run the nutritional info through your points plus calculator because some flavors give you 9 crackers for 2points plus!  Oh, and Weight Watchers has put a calculator on their website for your convenience:

http://www.weightwatcher.com/calculator

All you need to calculate points plus is the protein grams, carbohydrates, total fat grams and the fiber - the calculator will tell you how many points per serving.

Have you tried cracker cuts yet?  Many companies are coming out with a variation of these - 30 slices of cheese in a pack - each slice is just 1pp!  Makes it easy to figure out how many you want on your plate.

I store mine on the refrigerator door where my butter tray used to be!  This was filling, so I totally skipped the chips, guacamole and salsa- they'll be there tomorrow!

We left the office late today and had a meeting to be at by 7:30...so there was little time for cooking dinner, but I had a pork tenderloin defrosted that solved that problem.

My camera does not have a great zoom, but up in the right hand corner of the label it says 30 minutes to cook!  So I put it the Teriyaki marinated pork in the oven, heated up some pre-cooked wild rice and

some frozen zucchini...and that was dinner.  We each had 3 oz of pork (3pp), 1/2 cup of wild rice (2pp) and 1 cup of zucchini (0pp) with a little butter spray and salt and pepper - and ran out the door as soon as we finished...no time for a photo of the finished product, sorry!  Part of the reason we had to leave so fast is that Chuck had to run by Fed Ex to sign for his new I-Phone 4 from Verizon.  He's playing with it as I type...and its after midnight!  Its getting late for me, so I'm headed to bed in hopes to feel more like a real day of points plus living when I wake up!

How was your day?

Just not feeling it today...

Just not feeling it?  Have you ever felt that way?  You were going strong on the new plan and all of a sudden its like someone hit the emergency brake?  You get up and try to fix breakfast and nothing appeals to you?  Can't find anything to take to work for lunch, either?

Its funny, but when I got up today and read Danica's comments on her blog - I thought perhaps we were having a 'blogger's flu day' - she's not feeling it, either ;0)  Here is what she had to say that really inspired this post:

Today was THAT day for me ~ nothing sounded good to eat and I definitely didn’t want to get out to exercise at all.   But, you know what I do on days like that???
I FAKE IT TIL I MAKE IT!!! In other words, I give myself permission to eat whatever even if it isn’t balanced or pretty and I MADE myself get out for a walk at lunch even if I knew it wouldn’t be my best one.  Eventually if you keep telling yourself all day that it’s WORTH IT and you go through the motions, you believe it and it somehow all works out.

Thanks, Danica!!  Did I ever tell you that I think you would make a wonderful Weight Watcher's Leader? You are so inspiring to me!!

So, I'm taking Danica's advice and going to FAKE IT!!  I really didn't feel like making breakfast, partly because I really wanted a soft boiled egg on toast - but I'm out of eggs!  So taking her advice, I searched my fridge and freezer for something "outside of the box" that could be an easy breakfast to swallow.  I chose to grab a delicious VitaTop CranBran muffin top(3pp), an orange (0pp) and to spike my coffee with a rich chocolate creamer (1pp).

Only 3pp each and come individually wrapped to take on the run!

This keeps me within the 5points plus target I try to maintain most days to stay on program and to keep me satisfied until lunchtime. If you have never tried VitaTops - I really recommend them - you'll find them in your grocer's freezer section near the frozen breakfast items.  I really love the chocolate ones with chocolate chips in them - for breakfast, lunch, snack...you name it - they are like dessert! I'm out of them now - but they'll have a spot on my blog soon enough.

Are you faking it today, too?  More on that later...

Monday 's Musing

Its been an overcast, but warm (40 degrees) day today - and we are all recovering from being up late after the Superbowl last night and from eating a little differently than our new normal.  So, we all have taken a gentle approach to our meals today.  I started out the day giving genuine thought to planning my meals - really I did.  I put all our eggs into a pot and boiled them for egg salad.  I took one out a little early and had it warm for breakfast along with some kiwi and cantaloupe that was really ripe and tasty!

Sometimes you just need to break away from your usual routine and have something out of the ordinary for a meal.  Believe it or not - this 2 pp breakfast held me until 1pm when I realized I was getting hungry.

So I stayed out of the ordinary for lunch, too...not because I planned to, but when I got to the office with my egg salad and carrot salad, I realized I forgot to pack the wraps to make sandwiches with...so I improvised with the romaine lettuce and look what I came up with!  Grapes and lettuce were 0pp, egg salad was 2.5pp, the olives were 1/2point and the carrot salad came to 4pp - so a 7points plus lunch.  I actually enjoyed eating the egg salad this way, and may do it again on purpose next time!

Dinner was supposed to be a nice teriyaki pork tenderloin...but we got home late and the guys had to leave in 45 minutes to play basketball - so instead we ate leftovers from last night - buffalo chicken meatballs, celery sticks, low fat ranch dip, Baked Tostitos Scoops with guacamole...and fruit for dessert if we feel like it. Nobody seems particularly hungry enough to care, so I'm going with it. I'm not even sure I understand how the guys are finding energy to play...but that gives me peace and quiet for a few hours ;0)

Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

BUFFALO CHICKEN MEATBALLS

INGREDIENTS:

1.25 lbs Extra Lean Chicken Breast (or can be done with ground turkey breast)

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

1/2 a small onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or minced

2-3 Tbsps of your favorite Hot Sauce plus 1 cup (separated)

Sea Salt & Pepper To Taste

1 1/2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Nonstick Spray

1 green onion, chopped, optional

INSTRUCTIONS:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees, lined a cookie sheet with foil and nonstick spray.
2.  Chop all your veggies and combine with the turkey, the 2-3 Tbsp. of hot sauce, sea salt and black pepper.
3.  Score your meat mixture into four and divide into 16 meatballs.  Place meatballs on the cookie sheet and set aside.
4.  Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat with Olive Oil.  Add meatballs and brown on each side, about 3-4 minutes per side.  Remove onto cookie sheet.
5.  Put 1/2 cup of hot sauce into a large bowl and add browned meatballs to coat, then put them back onto prepared cookie sheet and finish baking in the oven until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees, about 15-20 minutes.
6.  Remove from oven, toss into remaining 1/2 cup of hot sauce to coat, sprinkle with parsley and green onions.
7.  Enjoy as is or serve it up with Low-Fat Ranch, veggies and toothpicks.
Makes 16 meatballs, 4 meatballs per serving.
1PP each or 4PP per serving!

Superbowl Sunday is Here!

Remember I said I would have 63 points plus to use tonight?  That is only if I stick with my original plan to use 5 points for breakfast and 8 for lunch.  So how am I going to do that?  Let me show you:


Notice the coffee mug - Justin made that in school when he was 11 years old...he knew I liked tropical getaways!

 My breakfast started out as an omelet made with one egg, 1/4 cup of liquid egg whites, onion, green pepper and 1Tbsp of taco blended shredded cheese and one orange cut up to form my morning sunburst.  Unfortunately, I think the liquid egg whites went bad...so as good as it looked and smelled...there was an 'off taste' ...so I threw it all out and started over.  Ugh.  The omelet would have only cost me 4pp (2pp for the egg, 1pp for the egg whites, 1pp for the cheese, 0pp for the veggies)...but instead I fixed an egg on a toasted English muffin with a little ketchup (5pp)...so I'm still on plan.  Eggs for breakfast always keep me going strong right up to lunchtime.

Lunch came upon me by surprise...so I just grabbed a few slices of cheddar cheese (3pp) and 5 Wheatables Crackers (1pp)...that is OK - more points for later ;0)

So here they are...my new favorite way to eat Buffalo Chicken!  No gooey skin, no messy lips and fingers and no yukky bones sitting on my plate!  These Healthy and Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs (1pp each - and they were huge) were a really big hit.  I made 5pounds of ground chicken breast into these, and came home with 16meatballs leftover...exactly one pound of them.  Even folks who were not dieting were going back for more of them.

Trust me, the photo does not do these justice...they were large and not dry...nicely spicy but not so hot you couldn't taste any of the other foods.  I will make these again and again.  Thanks, Danica, for the recipe...I got it off of her blog: www.danicasdaily.com!!

I have not logged in my "meal" yet...but from the count I was recording in my head, I didn't use many of my Weekly Allowance Points!  I'll let you know tomorrow.  Hope your night was as fun as mine (us gals watched Secretariat upstairs, but came down for the half-time show and dessert).  What was your favorite commercial?

Try this new sauce on seafood!!

Yesterday I left you with the mission to check back to see what I fixed for dinner, mainly because I had 'sampled' food at the supermarket...and found a new "love".  The guy at the seafood counter had a sample station where he served shrimp, scallops, salmon and cod that was baked with sauces he was featuring.  I tried both sauces, and really liked them both...but only bought one of them because I already had a similar product to one of them at home.  So here is dinner:




I already had the Salmon fillets in my freezer, just waiting to be used.  The sauce on the left is the brand I sampled...Royal Asia's Thai Spicy Lemongrass Sauce. 

The bottle says it is good for marinades, dips and condiments.  It is all natural - sugar, water, fish sauce, vinegar, chili sauce, lemongrass, modified food starch, natural spices and flavors.  It has a wonderful combination of sweet and spice that really compliments the fish.  I loved it...now to try it for the family and see how they feel...

My seafood guy said they marinated their fish in the sauce for about 10 minutes, then baked it until the fish was cooked through.  So tonight, I fixed the salmon exactly as he suggested, using the baking instructions off the bag the salmon fillet came in.

I served it with some whole wheat pasta to which I added a bit of butter spray and seasonings, and cooked green beans tossed with some garlic and minced garlic.  7pp for the salmon, 1pp for the sauce, 4pp for the 4oz of pasta, 1pp for the olive oil and 0pp for the green beans - total dinner=13points plus!  Really filling dinner, too...I never felt like snacking all night long.  But how did the family react?  Chuck really liked it and said he'd like to have it again.  Justin?  No comment from him right away (which is good, because otherwise I'd hear about it, believe me)...but when prompted, he said it was really good and he'd eat it again. ;0)

Just a comment about the other sauce I sampled...the same company makes a sweet red chili sauce that is equally great.  Both sauces are not overly spicy, by the way - just perfectly seasoned.  I knew I had a bottle of a similar sauce that I wanted to use up before I bought anything else new...

This sweet red chili sauce is from "A Taste of Thai", and it also is a fabulous marinade for fish.  What I really love it for is a dipping sauce for fondue!!  Actually, both of these would be great fondue dippers!!

Now, for today - are you ready for the big game??  What game you say?  I'm with you...I'll be in another room with the gals watching a good movie ;0)  My Healthy and Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs are all made and now sit in the crock pot to warm them up for tonight.  They are spicy, and I'm taking a risk pre-making them and re-heating them...will they be too spicy and hot?  Only time will tell.  What I can tell you is that when I divided up the meatball mix into single size servings to form into balls...they were much larger than I expected from the photo!  You get one large meatball for just 1point+...so here's hoping they are not too hot!!  I'll take a photo of them once they are plated up...and I'll try to sneak some pictures from the rest of the food (recipes, too, if I can get them) later tonight!

SO - who are you rootin' for tonight??  Have you made your WW's 'game p-l-a-n' yet?  No matter -have a wonderful time and I'll update you on our night later!!

What I've learned during my first 10 weeks on WW...

I've been trying to be more mindful of the process this time around on Weight Watcher's.  I want to actually learn how to eat healthy, be satisfied and most important...make some new lifetime habits for myself.  I don't just want to take weight off only to put it all back on and more!!  Been there, done that.  Here are a few things I've begun to understand this time around:

1. I can lose weight and really be happy.
2. I am choosing a healthy lifestyle.
3. I have learned that when I slip up, I just need to refocus.
4. I can eat until I am satisfied and still lose weight. (still surprises me...I'm not starving and I'm not eating 'diet food')
6. I like how my clothes fit.
7. I don't need chips and dips to feel satisfied.
8. Margaritas and Mojitos are not my friends - never really were - but I didn't see that.
9. I can inspire people.
10. Tracking what I eat makes a big difference.
11. I can "wing-it" once in a while, but need to be "on program" most of the time.
12.  It pays to have a few "go-to" breakfasts, lunches and dinners that are quick, easy, and satisfying to fall back on.
13. Its always best to know what you can eat at restaurants BEFORE you go -
14. Many of the foods I now choose at a restaurant actually taste better than the things I used to order.
15. Planning meals keeps me from getting bored doing the same thing over and over again.


Now what I really want to learn and appreciate is how to incorporate some daily activities into my life that don't feel like "working out".  Anybody have some good advice or suggestions of what works for you?  Feel free to comment on this blog post...please!

I promised you lunch photos and I don't want to disappoint...Deli Thin Turkey Breast (6 slice -2pp), tomato slices (0pp), Lite Mayo (1Tbsp -1pp) on 2 slices of Whole Wheat bread (4pp)...total sandwich of goodness was only 7pp!! Add to that WW's Garden Veggie soup, which is usually "0"pp - but I added 1/4 cup of leftover brown rice and grains...making it a filling 1pp. 
But wait....there was more!


I made us some fresh Starbuck's Coffee and whipped up a couple of Lattes!!  Mmmmm.  Coffee (0pp), 1 cup of fat free milk (3pp) and 1 Tbsp of International Delight Coffee House Inspirations Breve Creme Dark Chocolate Creamer (1pp).  These huge cups of latte really filled our tummies with warmth and satisfaction -for just 4pp and guess what?...one of our "daily milk requirements" snuck painlessly into our diet.  Good for us!!

One last thing...when I ran to the store for the ground chicken breast for my meatballs...ShopRite was offering free samples.  Now, I'm not usually one to sample unless I see who's serving it up and how they handle it...and since starting WWs - I've avoided putting samples in my mouth altogether (they have points, too, you know)...but the guy at the fish counter was really enthusiastic about what he was offering...so I caved!  I have to report that I DID sample at his table...several things...and later will fix what I sampled for dinner.  I really think the family will love this...and the nutritional information was very encouraging.  Come back and check out photos of what I fix and of a new product that is a "keeper"!!

What are you planning for dinner?  Post me a comment and talk among yourselves!

My great weekend breakfast - waffles & berries!

Weekends ~ they need a special breakfast, don't they?  Some of my favorite offerings at a Sunday Brunch buffet are the hot waffles and an abundance of fresh berries!  Because I went to Sam's Club to buy stuff for the Superbowl, I took advantage of the trip and got some great buys on berries and fresh fruit!  My fridge is now home to a heap of strawberries, black berries, blue berries and raspberries and I'm one happy camper. 

I had just said to Chuck that I didn't want to get into a dieting 'rut' - and I was noticing that some foods were just more easy to gravitate to ~like bananas and grapes~ and I was beginning to get bored with them.  That, however, is not necessary with this program...so I don't want to do it!  My typical thing lately has been a bowl of fresh fruit on the kitchen counter to encourage healthy snacking...which it has...but the pretty grapes on the top of the heap always get first attention.  Face it, they are easy to grab a couple and pop them in your mouth all day long.  The bananas are a close second because they are so easy to grab and go - and like Chuck says, you always know what you are getting with a banana (unlike some fruit that may surprise you when you bite into them - they may be sour, dry on the inside, tasteless, etc).  I don't want to get bored with the go-to fruits, though.  So today it occurred to me that I should break it up a little and rinse a few of my berries and keep them in a small open bowl in the fridge to encourage nibbling on them sometimes, too (like its soooo hard to open one of those clamshells, grab a few and rinse, right?).  I'm willing to learn to do whatever it takes to form new habits and to make this a healthy lifestyle!

Look right there between my "0" points half and half and my 1point whipped cream, and sitting on top of my homemade salsa!  Yummy!

So back to breakfast: I indulged in two wonderful Nutrigrain Whole Wheat Waffles, toasted, with handfulls of fresh, mixed berries, a couple of shots of whipped cream and 1 Tbsp of pancake syrup.  Total points plus = 6!!  Wow, did that fill me up.  So much so that right now I can't even think about what to have for lunch...so you will just have to come back to find out what we chose...

I know some of you are wondering - how did we do at our WW meeting yesterday?
Chuck was down 2.8 lbs for a total of 31 pounds in just 9 weeks on program!  Wow...and he is looking so good!!  Me?  I was down 0.8 lbs for a total of 19.6 lbs.  So we are still pushing the numbers in the right direction.

One last photo and observation pertaining to the WW Points Plus program:

These 7 deer in my back yard this morning were searching for food.  I watched for a long time as they nibbled on dry bark, branches and twigs.  I can't imagine that they feel they have near the wonderful variety of colorful, flavorful foods that we have to choose from, nor are such good things easy to find for them to eat.  Yet they look pretty healthy to me!  Goes to show you can eat just about anything and have meat on your bones...but how much better we have it that we can feast with our eyes & our tastebuds to satisfaction and maintain just enough meat on our bones.  We really have so much to be grateful for...such an abundance...no need to be bored with our daily food.  If we are, we have no one to blame but ourselves.  So next time I get feeling a little bored or that searching for points-friendly foods is difficult and time consuming...remind me of this photo, will you?  Remind me to try new things...there is so much to choose from.

Have a great day everyone!  I'm off to buy some ground chicken breast to make my Healthy and Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs for tomorrow!!  Stay tuned for photos ;0)

Superbowl Sunday is right around the corner! Really - are you ready??!!

My mind is spinning with anticipation of the Superbowl party at the Brander's house this Sunday!  There is always a spread of fantastic foods -  and I'm not exactly sure whether the emphasis should be on the word spread or fantastic!!  Everybody brings something to share, so there is no telling exactly what temptations there will be.  There is one thing for sure, after about 10 weeks on the new Weight Watchers Points Plus program, I know there is a way to have a great time, enjoy some great food, and still manage to preserve the progress I've made to date...and that is my goal.  I don't expect to do it perfectly, but I do plan to P-L-A-N!!

To begin with, it helps alot to have very good friends who are on program with us.  It also helps to have very good friends who want to support you in any way they can.  I know that our hosts ~Phil and Renee, who are on program with us ~ plan to have points-friendly foods available.  Terry Brander also is on program, so I can count on her to think up something points - friendly, too.  Me?  I'm 'P-L-A-N-N-I-N-G' on bringing a new recipe that I got from my favorite food blogger, Danica @ DanicasDaily.com

Healthy and Spicy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs - 1pp each

I totally borrowed this photo from Danica, but will replace it with my own once they are made...just hope they look this good!!  Stay tuned!  Compared to a regular buffalo chicken wing for 3 points plus - I think its worth a try, don't you?  Use the recipe title above to link to her recipe!  I'll post photos after they are made ;0)
I also know Jackie will be making her famous fresh fruit salad - which is great for me because I LOVE fresh fruit, and it's all "0" points.  So I PLAN to eat lots of that!

I PLAN to not Drink my points away with sodas, juices or alcohol...well, maybe just a glass or two of wine (1pp for each ounce)...or better yet, add seltzer to my second glass of wine to make it last longer ;0)

Another PLAN is to utilize my 49 weekly allowance points (wap) ~something I try not to dip into except for special events.   I think the Superbowl qualifies!  So keeping in mind that the Superbowl party starts around 6pm, not only do I have my 49-WAPs, but I will have the points I usually use for my evening meal and snack - another 14 points!!  So I think staying on plan is definitely doable.  63 is MY magic number on Sunday!!  Some of you may have more points to begin with- but it doesn't matter - just KNOW what your number is before you go!!  So, the question is...what can a body eat?  Why not at least go 'armed with the knowledge" of what the points values are for your typical Superbowl foods?  These general values are taken from WW e-Tools, but they don't allow for variations between brands and preparation methods - so please use these as just a guide:

Buffalo Wings - 3 wings for 9 pp (some frozen varieties may be less, but if you don't know the exact brand - go with this)

Doritos - 12 for 4 pp (baked varieties are 15 for 3pp)

Planter's Deluxe Mixed Nuts - 1oz for 5pp

M & Ms - 1 oz milk chocolate variety for 4pp (wow - who knew?)

                  1 oz peanut variety for 4pp also!

Tortilla Chips - 12 for 4pp (baked varieties run approx 12-15 for 3pp)

***Salsa - 0pp***

Bean dip- 2Tbsp for 1 pp (generally, however I'd stay away from 7-layer dips that were made with full fat cheese, full fat sour cream, full fat bean dips, guacamole, etc - there's no telling how many points are in there!)

Potato Chips, regular - 14 for 4pp

French Onion Dip - 2Tbsp for 2pp

Potato Salad- 1/2 cup store bought for 4pp OR 1/2 cup homemade for 8pp!

Macaroni Salad - 1/2 cup for 7pp

Considering all the above, you see why you need to be prepared and have a PLAN!!  Try to put food on a plate before you eat it...don't hang around food and mindlessly keep putting stuff in your mouth ;0)  You can ask your host/hostess how things are made (with low fat, low cal ingredients,baked, etc?) - or if you can find them, check out the nutritional labels before putting food on your plate! 

And by all means - enjoy the game (or if you are like me, the chick flick in the other room)!!!

Black bean brownies for a snowy day!

BLACK BEAN BROWNIES!  

oven 350 degrees



1 box brownie mix ( any brand, approx 20 oz )

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1 15oz can of black beans

Put entire can of black beans in food processor or blender and add 1/4 can of cold water...then process until smooth.  Pour this mixture into a large bowl and stir in the dry ingredients until wet.  NO EGGS OR OIL NEEDED!!  If desired, stir in 1 cup of chopped walnuts.

Pour mixture into a 13x9" pan that has been greased on the bottom only.  Put into a pre-heated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.  Cool completely.  Cut into 20 equal squares.

2 points plus per square without nuts

3 points plus per square with nuts