Weigh In

I lost 1.8 lbs last week.
Jason lost 3 lbs last week

Still going.... :)

Corn Spoon Bread

I thought this was pretty good! I'm going to add it to our holiday line-up I think.

Triple-Corn Spoon Bread
Ingredients:
1 cup fat-free sour cream
3 tablespoons stick margarine, melted
1 large egg
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (15.25-ounce) can no-salt-added whole-kernel corn, undrained
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can no-salt-added cream-style corn
1 (8 1/2-ounce) package corn muffin mix
Cooking spray
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine first 3 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk. Stir in onion, corns, and muffin mix. Pour into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until pudding is set and lightly browned.

8 servings: 262 calories, 8.6 g fat, 1.6 g fiber

More favorite products

Most of us on the Weight Watchers program have a few products that make it much easier to stay on plan and not crave the bad stuff from our past. Here are a few of mine:

Jell-O Sugar-Free Pudding, Dark Chocolate: this is a new flavor in the refrigerated Jell-O puddings and it is AMAZING. I would never guess it was a "diet food" at all!

Skinny Cow Ice Cream: Yum!

Ball Park Turkey Franks, Whitewheat hot dog buns, and Wolf Brand Turkey Chili all combine to make a great tasting hot dog.

Kraft 2% cheeses, Hormel turkey pepperoni, and Kashi snacks are all other favorites that make life better while trying to eat healthier!

To Try: Italian Bean Soup

Italian Bean Soup

Ingredients:
3/4 c. cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
64 ounces of reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 tsp. olive oil
2 onions, diced
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
28 oz. can peeled tomatoes, drained and chopped, 1 c. juice reserved
3 zucchini, chopped
1 box frozen green beans
3 oz. small pasta
1/2 c. fresh basil, chopped
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
Preparation:
Combine beans, broth, salt, and pepper in a large pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions, carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir the veggie mixture into the bean mixture. Add tomatoes, reserved juice, zucchini, and green beans. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender (about 10 minutes). Add pasta and cook until tender. Stir in basil. Sprinkle each bowl with 1/2 T. Parmesan cheese when serving.

1 1/2 cups soup w/ 1/2 T cheese: 196 calories, 1 g. fat, and 8 g. fiber (3 points)

Does this box make me look fat?

To Try: Chicken Salad

Chicken Salad (with grapes and walnuts)

Ingredients:
1/2 c. plain fat-free yogurt
2 T. reduced-fat mayo
1 T. honey
1 tsp. apple-cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 c. chopped cooked chicken breast
1 1/2 c. seedless grapes, halved
1/4 c. chopped walnuts
Preparation:
Combine the first 8 ingredients in a large bowl. Add the chicken, grapes, and walnuts and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

3/4 cup: 277 calories, 11 g.fat, 1 g fiber (6 points)

To Try: Tomato, Avocado, and Black Bean Tacos

Tomato, Avocado, and Black Bean Tacos
Ingredients:
1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 T. taco seasoning
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 roma tomatoes, chopped
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas
2 c. shredded romaine lettuce
1/2 sm. avocado, diced
6 T. salsa
1/4 c. light sour cream
Preparation:
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Add onion and seasoning; cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the beans and tomatoes, toss to combine. Warm tortillas. Sprinkle 1/3 c. lettuce down middle of each tortilla; top with about 1/3 c. of bean mixture, 1/6th of avocado, 1 T. of salsa, and 2 tsp of sour cream. Fold tortillas and serve.

1 Taco: 202 calories, 7 g. fat, 6g. fiber (4 points)

To Try: Blueberry-Walnut Oatmeal

Blueberry-Walnut Oatmeal
Ingredients:
3 c. water
2 c. quick-cooking (not instant) oats
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. fat-free milk
1 1/2 c. fat-free Cool Whip
1 c. fresh or thawed frozen blueberries
1 T. chopped walnuts
Preparation:
Combine water, oats, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in milk; fold in whipped topping and blueberries. Sprinkle with walnuts.

4 servings, 1 cup each. 284 calories, 4 g. fat, 5 g. fiber (5 points)

These are a few of my favorite things...

One of our favorite breakfasts is making our own version of an McMuffin. I buy the Thomas 100-calorie English Muffins (100 cal, 5g fiber, 1g fat) and we top them with a Jimmy Dean turkey sausage patty and an egg. Yummy! A great breakfast for less than 250 calories.

Thursday Weigh-In

Thursdays are weigh-in days and here are the results:

I lost 2.8lbs last week.
Jason lost 4lbs last week

I think that is a great start on our renewed path to better health.

On the "To Try List"

This is one of the recipes on my list to try soon. It gets great reviews and sounds good to me. People recommend adding in some extra veggies like mushrooms and zucchini to bulk it up a little.

Bruschetta Chicken Bake
Ingredients:
1 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of visible fat and cut into bite size pieces
1 can (14.5 oz) diced Tomatoes, undrained
2 cloves of fresh garlic, chopped (or 1 tsp garlic powder)
2 T dried basil leaves or Italian seasoning
6 oz whole grain or wheat herbed stuffing mix
2/3 c water
1 c low-fat shredded Mozzarella cheese
Preparation:
Combine tomatoes, garlic, seasoning, stuffing mix, and water. In a baking dish, layer the cubes of chicken, followed by half of the stuffing mix, and half of the cheese. Repeat. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

PARMESAN CRUSTED TILAPIA
Ingredients:
3 - 4 tilapia fillets
1 T. lemon juice
1/4 c. bread crumbs salt
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese pepper
1 T. Italian seasoning olive oil
1 tsp. garlic powder
Preparation:
Thaw and wash tilapia fillets if frozen. Pat dry on paper towels. Combine breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder on a plate, mixing well. Pour the lemon juice on a different plate. Working one at a time, place a fillet on the plate with the lemon juice, sprinkle with desired amount of kosher salt, black pepper, and additional garlic powder. Turn the fillet over to coat the other side. Dredge fillet in the parmesan mixture, patting it all over to coat. Place in an oiled baking dish; repeat with remaining fillets. Sprinkle a little lemon juice over fillets and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Bake at 425° for about 20 minutes or until they easily flake with a fork and edges are browning.

We had these for dinner last night along with some parmesan rice and steamed veggies. Very filling meal and so good for you!

Sample Daily Plan

I wanted to post one of my daily meal plans. This is what I had to eat on Thursday. I actually didn't eat enough this day if you can believe that. I forgot how much more food you get when you eat things that are actually good for you!

Breakfast:
3/4 c. Total Cereal
1/2 c. blueberries
1 c. skim milk
1 cup coffee w/ Splenda, 1 T. sugar-free creamer

Lunch:
1 c. grapes
Sandwich (2 slices 100% Whole Wheat bread, 2 oz. ham, lettuce)
1 oz. Sun Chips

Dinner:
Pita Pizza (whole wheat pita, 1/4 c. tomato sauce, 5 low-fat pepperoni, 1 oz ham, 1/4 cup pineapple, red onion, and 1/8 c. low-fat cheese)
"fried" potatoes in 1 tsp. olive oil
1 c. steamed veggies

Snacks:
6 cups air popped popcorn
Fiber One Mocha Bar
1 c. skim milk

Corn and Black Bean Salsa

This is my new favorite recipe! It is so fresh tasting and goes great with Baked Tostitos Scoops.

CORN AND BLACK BEAN SALSA
Ingredients:
1/2 red onion, chopped
chopped fresh cilantro to taste
1 avocado, chopped
1/4 c. Newman's Own Parmesan and Roasted Garlic dressing
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans shoepeg corn, drained and rinsed
3 sm. Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients; chill until ready to serve.