Food Journal – Monday

Breakfast: Cereal – 4.5
1/2c. Fiber 1 Cereal, General Mills (0pts)
1/2c. Heart to Heart Cereal, Kashi (1pt)
1c. Puffs, Kashi (1pt)
2/3c. Skim Milk (1pts)
1 medium Banana (1.5pt)

Morning Snack: Granola bar – 2
Peanut butter Granola Bar, Kashi

Lunch: Veggie Lasagna – 8
Frozen Lasagna, SmartOnes (6pts)
Sugar Free Pudding Cup, Jello (1pt)
Pear (1pt)

Afternoon Snack: Kettle Korn – 1

Dinner: White Bean and Barley Risotto with Kabasa and Spinach – 10

Evening Snack: Pumpkin Whoppie Pie with Sugar free ice cream - 6

Total Points for the day: 32.5

Daily Activity Log
10 Minutes of jogging, 20 minutes brisk walk, 1o minutes crunches on exercise ball

Monday Weigh-In
Same

Beans n’ Cornbread

Beans n’ Cornbread

Strawberry Salad with Almonds and Fat Free Balsamic

or

as my husbands says “The food, my food eats”

I needed some comfort food tonight.  It’s Thursday and it’s the first night I’ve been home all week.  I’m so tired and cranky.  I’m off schedule (not diet wise) and I haven’t exercised all week.  Ick.

It’s been a classic bad week.  Monday we took a very sick friend to the ER and ended up staying for around 8 hours.  She’s better now.  She was treated at the same hospital my husbands Aunt is at.  She had breast cancer surgery last week and is still recovering.

Tuesday, my boss dropped a big bomb.  I work for a small church and tithing is down, so we are all getting our hours cut, even the Pastor.  Gulp.  Beans n’ Cornbread may be a staple at our house (they might could).

Tuesday, I also cut off all my hair.

Yesterday we found out that my husbands Aunt (who’s only 50) caught MRSA or a strep infection.  This is no good.  She had to have another surgery today.  It’s not looking super.

So yeah.  I need encouragement.  I also need a nap, a pedicure and chocolate cake (weight watchers, of course).

(Do you hear that tiny violin?)

Menu Plan Monday

Menu for the week:

Monday: Herb Focaccia Egg Sandwiches with Yogurt

Tuesday: Texas Road House with friends!

Wednesday: New England Turkey Burgers with “The Works” (Rachael Ray Recipe) & Green Salad

Thursday: Spring Panzanella Salad (I have to figure out a way to make this lighter…I think it can be done!)

Photo courtesy of Smitten Kitchen.com

Friday: Picnic at Portland Headlight: Baby Tomato and Herb Tabbouleh and 97% FF Hot dog

Herb Focaccia

for a 1 1/2 lb loaf

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 c. Water (80 – 90 degrees)
• 2 TBSP & 1 TSP
• 2.5 TBSP Italian Herbs
• 1.5 Salt
• 3c. Bread Flour
• 1.5 TSP Bread Machine Yeast

Place all ingredients, in the order listed, in the bread pan fitted with kneading paddle. Place the bread pan in the bread machine. Select dough cycle and size. Press start to mix, knead and rise. When cycle is completed remove dough from pan, punch to deflate and let rest 10 minutes before continuing.

INGREDIENTS FOR TOPPINGS:

• 3 TBSP Olive oil
• 3/4 TSP Kosher Salt
• 1/3c. Reduced Fat Parmesan Cheese
• Chopped Herbs

DIRECTIONS:

Brush cookie pan with olive oil (I use FF Olive Oil Spray) and sprinkle lightly with cornmeal. After dough has rested, roll out on a lightly floured surface to the appropriate size and place on prepared pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until about doubled in size about 40 to 50 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With oiled fingertips press indentations into the dough about 1inch apart. Drizzle lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle evenly with salt, cheese and herbs. Place in preheated oven and bake until deep golden and puffed with a crispy crust, about 10 to 20 minutes, depending on size.

Check out Organizing Junkie for more Menu’s!

Saturday Supper Recipes

Wheat Berry and Wild Rice Salad

Pesto Wheat Bread

Pot Roast with Veggies

Click “read more” for full recipes!

Saturday Supper

It’s a lazy Saturday ’round these parts. My husband and I took twenty screaming teenagers to a concert last night for youth group (Thousand Foot Krutch, Skillet!). It was great. Hot, but great. Loud and scream-y, but great. It was “neat” to hear Skillet again. Skillet was my very first CD purchase way back in 1996. Funny they are still so popular today. (I posted a few pictures here)

As a result of being up WAY past our bedtimes we slept through breakfast and have been lazing around the house. I’ve been cooking up a storm though. Tonight we will be having: Pot roast with veggies, Wheat Berry and Wild Rice Salad and Pesto Flax Wheat Bread.

The one tragic thing, is that our camera broke over the weekend. So pictures will be few for a few days until we can agree on the replacement (how many votes for a Canon Rebel! – ME!).

Recipes for “Saturday Supper” are on their way!

Click “read more” for Friday’s Food Journal!

Food Journal – Thursday

Breakfast – 6
1/2c. Puffed Cereal, Kashi (.5pts)
1/2c. Fiber 1 Cereal (0pts)
1/2c. Go Lean, Kashi (1pt)
1/2c. Heart to Heart, Kashi (1pt)
12g. Unsalted Organic Peanuts (1pt)
3/4c. Skim Milk (1.5pts)
Blackberry Pomegranate Tea (0pts)
16.9oz Water (0pts)
8oz Light Orange Juice, Tropicana (1pt)

Lunch – 8
3oz Leftover Diet Coke Chicken (4pts)
Whole Wheat Bun, Weight Watchers (2pts)
English Toffee Bar, Weight Watchers (2pts)
20oz. Sparkling water (0pts)

Snack – 2
Fruit Leather (1pt)
Light String Cheese, Frigo Head (1pt)

Dinner – 12
Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken, McDonalds (6pts)
Southwest Dressing, Newman’s Own (3pts)
Yogurt Parfait (3pts)
Diet Coke (0pts)

Evening Snack – 2
Giant Fudge Bar, Weight Watchers (2pts)

Total Points for the Day: 30

Daily Activity:
Shopped for 3 hours (walking?)

Organic Beef

I have a few weird (hereditary- thanks Mom!) things going on with my hormon- ies (think Big Fat Greek Wedding), so my doctor suggested that I switch to all organic meats.   She said the hormones injected into regular meat, mainly beef can cause things to go “out of wack”.  Has anyone done research on this, or made the leep to all things organic?  Do you notice a difference?  I want to hear your opinions.

Truthfully, I’m more than a little skeptical ( I get that from my husband) about the whole organic meat thing.  Is a farmer really not going to treat a sick animal just for the sake of being “organic”?  I don’t get it.

Is organic meat really safer?

Is it better for you?

Is it really worth the extra money?

Food Journal – Tuesday & Wednesday

TUESDAY
Breakfast – 5
1/2c. Fiber 1 cereal (0pts)
1/2c. Go Lean Crunch, Kashi (1pt)
1/2c. Heart to Heart, Kashi (1pt)
1c. Skim milk (2pts)
8oz. Light Orange juice, Tropicana (1pt)
1tsp Milled Flax Seed (0pts)
33oz Water (0pts)

Morning Snack – 2
Canned Pinnaple, no sugar (2pts)

Lunch – 12
1.5c. Tomato Soup, Campbell’s Healthy Choice (5pts)
35g. Elbow macaroni (2.5pts)
3/4c. Skim milk (1.5pts)
1 srv. Kashi TLC crackers (2pts)
1 sugar free Swirl pop (1pt)

Afternoon Snack – 1
Kettle Korn (1pt)

Dinner – 16.5
1c. Brown Rice (4pts)
1/2c. Black Beans (1pt)
1/2c. Frozen Corn (1pt)
2 Corn Tortillas, fat free, Mission (3pts)
1 Chicken breast, Perdu Perfect Portion (3pts)
1/8c. Ketcup (.5pts)
1/3c. Reduced Fat shredded Mexican cheese, Weight Watchers (2pts)
1 Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookie (2pts)

Evening Snack – 2
Cookies & Cream Ice Cream Bar, Weight Watchers (2pts)

Total Points for the day: 40

Daily Activity Log
Treadmill:  20 min brisk walk, 20 min jogging

 

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast – 7.5
Whole wheat bagel, Dunkin Donuts (6pts)
1oz Light cream cheese, Dunkin Donuts (1.5pt)
20oz Water (0pts)

Lunch – 8
6″ Subway Club on wheat (6pts)
Light mayonnaise (1pt)
Light Lays Chips (1pt)
Diet Coke

Afternoon Snack – 2.5
Light String Cheese, Frigo (1pt)
3 Hershey kisses (1.5pts)
20oz Water

Dinner – 11
6″ Subway Club on wheat (6pts)
Light mayonnaise (1pt)
1 srv. Baked lays (2pts)
Cookies & Cream ice cream bar (2)

Total Points for the day: 29

Daily Activity Log
1 hour walk OUTSIDE. It was glorious. I’m so glad spring is here!

The Great Peanut Butter Exhibition is…

happen’ over at Peanut Butter Boy. 

I decided to enter for 2 reasons:  1) because I love peanut butter and 2) because I desperately wanted to get out of watching the movie my DH brought home from the video store (The Water Horse, ugh). 

I didn’t really have a peanut butter cookie recipe in mind that was figure friendly, so I made one up.  Introducing:  Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies (with Crasins & Sunflower Seeds!).  Oh yes, the name is a little heavy, but the cookies aren’t.  They’re light, sweet, peanut butter-ey, and, well, fabulous at 2pts a piece. 

 

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 small banana, mashed
1/4 cup unpacked brown sugar
1/4 cup light butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup Hodgson Mill Milled flax seed
1/4 cup oat bran
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, I used Hershey’s Sugar Free Chips
2 Tbsp sunflower seeds

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix first 6 ingredients in a stand mixer until smooth.
2. Mix in dry ingredients and stir until smooth.
3. Fold in dried cranberries, chocolate chips and sunflower seeds.
4. Roll into balls and put on greased (Pam!) baked sheet.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes.  Do not over bake or they will be dry.

Makes 24 2-3″ cookies.
WWP: 2pts per cookie

LINKFEST:

Have WWP’s to spare?  Check out some of the decadent peanut butter cookies recipes I came across last night while trying to avoid the lockness monster.

Baking Bites has a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie recipe that brought a tear to my eye. 

Deborah over at Taste and Tell made some impressive Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies.  Oh, come to mama. 

In the mood for something spicy?  Try the Cayenne Peanut Butter Cookies over at Hot Sauce Blog.  Make sure your packin’ some Pepto though.

Living life gluten free?  Gluten Free Journey posted an enticing flour-less GF Peanut Butter Cookie.

Food Journal – Monday

Breakfast: Bagel -7.5

Whole Wheat Bagel, Dunkin Donuts (6pts)

Light Cream Cheese (1.5pts)

40oz. Water (0pts) – I was rather thirsty

Morning Snack – Granola Bar – 2

Cherry & Chocolate Granola bar, Kashi (2pts)

16.9oz Water

Lunch - Lentil Chili -8

1 srv. Lentil Chili (6pts)

Sugar Free Apple Sauce (1pt)

Tootsie Roll (1pt)

Afternoon Snack – Kettle Korn – 1

Dinner – Grilled Chicken Sandwich & Sweet Potato Fries – 11

Grilled Chicken, Perdu Perfect Portion (3pts)

Sweet Potato Fries (3pts)

Olive Oil (1pt)

Whole Wheat Hamburger bun (2pt)

Light Mayo (1pt)

Sugar free Swirl Pop (1pt)

Evening Snack – Peanut Butter Pumpkin Chocolate chip Cookies – 4

Total Points for the day: 32.5

Daily Activity Log

Zero.