The Crumbling Muffin Top

She went to the cupboard and...

2012-01-24T17:34:00.000-08:00

...the muffin dome was cracked and empty! Cracked because her children now did the dishes (erg but also, yeah!) and empty, cause she's not been baking because of other stuff going on. No reviews to do tonight.

I did have a pretty good week last week- losing 2.7 pounds at weigh-in and about halfway thru Christmas pounds. I only had a couple of workouts though and still need to get back to regular workouts. My goal for the week is to fit 3 workouts in before Saturday's weigh-in and to drink more water. Will let you know how that goes!

Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

2012-01-16T19:00:00.001-08:00

Ok. just typed a long post and lost it! argh!

I'll skip the parts about the gym and a culinary disaster (for another day!) and just share my 6 point salted caramel hot chocolate with you. It was delicious and well worth the points, but you could easily cut back on some of the points if you had to. It is a decadent chocolatey treat however!

My hot chocolate mix (pictured above) worked out to 3 pts plus. Next I added salted caramel syrup (which I found at Winner's, but you can find them at any coffee supply store) for 1 pt. It's 3 points if you use 2 tbsps, but 1 tbsp is 1 and it's still a lot (you could cut back there). I used my milk frother and 1/2 c of skim b/t my dd13's mug and mine (so 1 point), and then a drizzle of caramel sauce for 1 point (the amount again was small in terms of allowed serving size). Finally, for the salt, I used my big chunky kosher salt.

and about the salt, and things that make you go "hmmmm" -at Starbucks they are always running out of this part of the drink. Why? I ask you? seems like the last thing they'd run out of?

and on a final sidenote, my fun mug was a Christmas gift from a friend. Anyone else love True Blood? :) Have a great week everybody!

-- Post From My iPhone

New Cookbooks for a New Year

2012-01-10T19:51:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year ten days in! (better late than never?) Anyway, here's to your better health and fitness in 2012! Following that idea, I FINALLY made a New Year's resolution/pledge to my personal better health in 2012 (and my family's) by pledging to planning menus and trying new, healthy recipes. I aim to plan a number of recipes on Sunday of each week, attempt to better use what I have on hand (less waste in 2012!) and make a shopping list so that I don't have to make trips to the grocery store each day after work.

I did get a number of new cookbooks over the holidays that I plan to work from- besides my favourite magazine, Cooking Light and issues of Weight Watchers magazine. I have a couple other new cookbooks not pictured (am I a cookbook junkie or what, eh?), a new Clean Eating one from my sister given to me on my birthday in November and a healthy eating one by Canadian Living from our school library fundraiser.

I had a rather fattening Christmas holiday, making many of my recipes from Martha Stewart's holiday issue and this magazine from our liquor store (eep!):

Of my recipes that I planned this past Sunday, I made Potatoes, Leeks and Carrots in Parchment from Martha Stewart's Food Everyday Light (with the yellow cover above). I skipped the optional butter and the veggies were tender crisp and tasty anyway. My family ate most of it (saw some leek bits left behind) and it was very easy. The picture looks a little bland. It was prettier in real life! I didn't have any thyme (no joke there), so that would have added a little something, something to it, too, I'm sure. One serving worked out to 3 points plus.

I also made one crockpot recipe: Chicken Tortilla Soup from the Williams-Sonoma The New Slow Cooker Cookbook. I really enjoyed it, and even my dubious family liked it overall. Only dd11 was not enamored, though even she ate quite a bit of it. I cut back on the jalapeno pepper a little (using 1/2 of one as opposed to the 1-2 suggested) and I used fire-roasted tomatoes, instead of regular canned ones. I loved the addition of avocado (mmmmm...avocado!), but my family wouldn't try it or the cilantro (my picky dh influences my children with his dislike of certain foods, but our hamster also didn't like cilantro, so dd11 was influenced by him. True story! ;) )

I guesstimated the soup to be around 8-9 points plus with the avocado, corn and the shredded chicken. The chips are extra, of course!

Finally, from Cooking Light's new The Complete Quick Cook, I tried Pork Medallions with Port Wine-Dried Cherry Pan Sauce. It was delicious! So delicious that I forgot to take a picture of it! oops! I did snap the following pic while I was cooking it. I followed the recipe exactly, except that I used regular red wine (not sweet or port) and I cooked the pork medallions longer than suggested in the recipe. The instructions were a little vague for my liking in that regard, suggesting it done on "low temperature." I did it on medium.

My family liked it, too, though no one really gave the sauce a fair shot- dh said it "wasn't bad" but he'd already slathered his with his beloved HP sauce. lol. The sauce was delicous. Trust me! Well worth the 9 points for 4 medallians and 2 tbsp of delicious sauce. :)

Mac&Cheese Love

2011-09-28T19:26:00.001-07:00

Long time, no post again. Though offline, I have been staying on program- well, the last couple of weeks anyway! (After my summer that wasn't very ww friendly.) I feel so much better when I'm eating properly and working out.

Speaking of working out, I've recommitted to my gym membership and didn't sign up for boot camp (which moved out of my school). My goal is to try out each of the classes offered at the fancier gym of the local gym chain and do my other workouts- on days I don't have much time, at the crappy gym across the road from school. Tonight we worked out there: perfect for a good treadmill jog with time left to make supper.

Speaking of supper, I made the cover recipe from September's Cooking Light: "Creamy, Light Mac and Cheese." (10 points plus for 1 1/3 cup.) It was very good. I didn't modify the recipe at all, other than skipping the parsley at the end. I like the idea of adding butternut squash to the sauce- sneaky way to get some veggies in for my family of non-lovers of the orangey vegetable. With the sharpness of the 3 different cheeses and the tart yogurt, they never noticed the squash. Another nice aspect of the dish was the crunch on top- toasted panko, rather than potato chips, but still good. Overall, it was well worth the investment of points for a nice bowl of a favourite comfort food.

I had my mac with a serving of plain arugula (nice and peppery- good mixed with the cheesy pasta and a bit of salsa (sides with zero points, too!)

Hope everyone is having a good, healthy week.

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Summer of Fitness

2011-07-02T17:18:00.001-07:00

Long time no post, I am well aware! This year got busy with online courses (2) and general, regular life busy stuff.

School got out on Thursday and after doing poorly at my weigh-in again this morning- no surprise there- I'm recommitting myself to Weight Watchers and regular exercise. I didn't sign up for boot camp this summer, but instead plan to make use of my neglected, already paid for gym membership and involve my family in exercise, too. Dd13 is doing both soccer and baseball this summer and wants to do weight training and walk/runs (though hopefully where no one sees her with her mom). ;P

I plan to share our progress thru the summer here and hopefully catch up with many of my favourite healthy blogs. I will also try to review at least one Cooking Light or WW recipe a week. That's my goal anyway.

And speaking of my goal: I'm aiming to make it before Christmas: 139 toned pounds.

Wish me luck!

-- Post From My iPhone

10 point chicken

2011-03-01T14:48:00.000-08:00

But kinda worth it! Made this CL chicken parm recipe last night. Will post link later.

link later! much later! Sorry! Click here.

(online course done now...Janet will try to become a better blogger again!)

-- Post From My iPhone

Dusting off my blog

2011-02-27T16:32:00.001-08:00

...with a March 2011 Cooking Light recipe.

The November issue looks good! Hope that I can try a few recipes this month and share them. Anyway, pictured above, is Meyer Lemon Chicken Piccata (5 pts plus) with a side of fries from my beloved T-fal ActiFry (4 pts) and a salad (organic greens from Costco, 0 pts for them, 1pt for the homemade salad dressing.)

The chicken was very good and very easy to make. I just used the lemons that I already had in my fridge and because I shopped at Costco for this recipe, I omitted the parsley which they don't sell (at mine anyway). The capers I had in the fridge already (woo hoo!), but I cut down on the amount used since I didn't think my family would be jazzed about them. The recipe calls for pounding the chicken thin between pieces of plastic wrap, something I usually do with boneless chicken breasts anyway- though not to thin Piccata cutlet thickness.

The sauce for the chicken was really tasty and tart. I really liked it. dd10 wouldn't try it, dd13 liked it and dh, who likes his chicken dry didn't really try much. "I like my stuff dry," was his review, so 2/4 on the sauce from my family. (But can you really count someone's opinion who gives "dry" as his texture of choice?!? just saying. ;))

Well, I haven't posted for awhile, so I haven't shared that I'm down 25 pounds since starting in September. (as is my friend who joined with me.) I will add some bling to the site later to celebrate and share a picture of my Weight Watcher charm. (Yeah!) I'm taking an online course again, so my time is being spent online but not in weight loss blogging areas. *sigh* I'm going to try to catch up on my favourite blogs soon. Hope everyone is doing well.

-- Post From My iPhone

A Good Week

2011-01-20T18:33:00.001-08:00

...well, except for wiping out on the icy parking lot at my daughter's Glee class on Tuesday. That kind of cancelled out my will to exercise since Tuesday- having a sore neck, low back and (truth be told) sore backside. Ouch!

I did have a good Saturday weigh-in: down 2.6 and this week has been good food wise. I should be down further this Saturday. I've been tracking and feeling in control. Yeah for that! I have felt hungrier this week.

I tried a couple new recipes this week which were good. Chop 'Til You Drop Suey by the Looney Spoons ladies (featured on the Food Network) (6pts) was really tasty on Saturday night. I definitely would make it again. I had most of the ingredients and bought the veggies for it at a local grocers who specializes in local produce and has amazingly fresh stuff and interesting food finds. I didn't make their suggested side of Vegetable Fried Rice, due to time constraints and lack of frozen veggies, but rather served it with plain basmati rice.

I also made another slow cooker soup recipe: Parmigiano Pumpkin Soup with Frizzled Prosciutto from my favourite slow cooker recipe book, The Art of the Slow Cooker. To decrease the Weight Watcher points involved, I omitted the oil and used olive oil spray and used half of the half and half cream and topped the cup with skim milk. We don't have fat free half and half here in Canada. Next time I might try it with light cream- though Andrew Schloss recommends that you use at least 10% cream. I had unopened prosciutto left over from Christmas, but I think I'd skip that part next time or try a little bit of bacon. Didn't love the prosciutto enough to warrant the points. (not point worthy- or at least the type I had!)

Hope everyone had a good week! Stay off the ice (or keep your stick on the ice, as we say in Canada- for balance!) ;)

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Christmas cost a pound...

2011-01-12T21:12:00.001-08:00

I'll take it and run! I was up one at my weigh-in, but with all the Xmas bonbons I consumed, with only being up 1 (after my cleansing week on program after the holiday and before wi), I'm happy with that.
Wish I'd stayed on program during the holiday, of course, but maybe next year when I tell all our relatives to store the chocolate at their houses, I'll do better. It's a dream anyway.

In other news, I did some good workouts and recipes this week. I will upload the pictures now and then see if I can link recipes tomorrow? Have a great night everyone. Yawn. (exercise is tiring.)

Update with links: my chicken was by the Looney Spoons ladies. I've been watching their show on demand (we recently got the Cooking Channel- woo hoo!) I tried their "Faux Fried Chicken." It was very good and pretty easy @ 6pts. dd13 loved it best. ("Please make this recipe again, Mom and often!")

My soup was from my favourite slow cooker recipe book: Andrew Schloss' Art of the Slow Cooker. The soup was Curried Coconut Chicken Soup and really good. I found a blog with a review and the recipe here. I also lightened up the recipe to make it more point friendly (to 6 pts). I omitted the vegetable oil and used olive oil spray to grease the pan instead. I used low-sodium organic broth, 2 lemongrass stalks instead of the called for 3 (not for calories, it was what I had), light coconut milk, light peanut butter, and low sodium soy sauce. The soup is very flavourful. My dh really liked it (and he's not a curry guy) and though my girls were hesitant to try it, dd13 liked it in the end. I definitely plan to make it again!

-- Post From My iPhone

Sick but on program!

2011-01-05T18:43:00.001-08:00

Finally came down with the family's Christmas cold/ flu. Dd10 was sick too, so we stayed home from school together. In-between bouts of coughing I managed to track points for what I ate. Go me!

With the new PointsPlus program, I do find myself making better choices. smoothies are more attractive than ever with the free fruit and the reasonable points for low fat milk products. I had half a bagel instead of a whole one (bagels increased in the pointage) with my chicken noodle soup.

I thought I'd share a picture of my froth making machine I posted about yesterday. A lovely frothy chai latte is wonderful in-between bouts of hacking. I love my little machine that literally takes seconds to do its magic.

-- Post From My iPhone

Homemade delicious chai

2011-01-04T19:28:00.001-08:00

Well, kind of homemade in the preparation at home dept. My dh bought me a frother (sp?)(after I pointed it out and drew a map to the store!) for my bday in November. It's great for my fave Starbucks drink the Chai latte. With the Starbucks chai mix from the grocery store (2pts) and skim milk froth (1pt) it's not bad pts wise either! I want to try the London Fog one, too- another good latte. I'm addicted to the flavoured coffee creamer, but I think the skim milk froth would be a good change and a points friendly one, too!

As promised, here are a couple of recipes from the WeightWatchers New Complete Cookbook using the PointsPlus values.

When my sister sent us home with some left over ham on New Year's Day, I decided to look up a scalloped potatoes recipe to go with them. The binder has a 5 point one Scalloped Potatoes with Cheese. They were tasty and dh (not a potato guy) even asked for seconds- as did the girls. The recipe divides into 8 pieces, not huge, but enough.

I was rushing the cooking of the potatoes (almost 2 hours long for after work), so I kept the temperature at 350 for the whole cooking time. They browned up a bit in spots, but it all worked out. The two other changes I made were (1) they didn't have red potatoes at Costco, so I just bought honking big white ones from PEI there and (2) I never see fat free half and half in our stores (can you buy it in Canada anywhere?), so I used light half and half and skim milk, so pointswise, it worked out the same.

I also made the Slow Cooker Lasagna from the PointsPlus: Getting Started book. It counts for 11 points, but if I made it again, I might add another layer of the 3 lasagna noodles- separating the cheese section. I think it would firm it up a bit, too. I'd have to look up the points. It shouldn't add more than 1 point? Anyway, we all liked the lasagna, but the family told me they like my regular lasagna (a family party staple) better.

At my Christmas cocktail party, as I said before, I tried a number of starters from the Weight Watchers PointsPlus binder: Classic Guacamole (2), Baba Ghanoush (2), and Keema Samosas (2). They were all good, the Baba Ghanoush was my least favourite, but I think I used too much eggplant (mine was large), so I might try it again. I love Baba Ghanoush! The Samosas were my favourite. I accidently added a 1/2 tsp extra spice, so they were extra spicy (yee haw), but still really good. My dh is not a curry fan, though, so if I remake them another time, it will have to be a time when we have company! Perfect for starters anyway, right?

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Seasonal Eatings

2011-01-03T20:13:00.001-08:00

Ok. having major picture upload problems. Something went wonky in my iPhone blog app or in blogger itself (an update probably?) and all my pictures disappeared. oops.

Anyway, long time, no post! Hope everyone had a great holiday! Ours was good- but busy and quickly over. I tried a number of new Cooking Light recipes- basically using the November 2010 Holiday Special for all my Christmas day recipes. It was a busy day, and I didn't get ANY food close ups. oops again. My sister brought rolls, wonderful sweet potatoes and an amazingly delicious salad (spiced pecans anyone?), adding to the following CL recipes that I did: Orange-Buttermilk Dinner Rolls, Framboise Cranberry Sauce, Apple-Poblano Whole Roast Turkey, Brussels Sprouts Gratin, and Sausage and Sourdough Bread Stuffing. I liked everything very much. The dinner rolls were the only thing that didn't really work out- though mil said she liked them- part of the problem was dh accidently turning off the oven in the middle of things. argh. ;)

From the same CL issue, I also made Vanilla Cake with Italian Meringue Frosting twice: for boxing day at the inlaws and for New Year's Day at my sisters in Toronto. It was really good, too, with its marshmallowie icing, though a little too delicate and slidey (held by dd13 in the backseat, the top fell off) to make the trip to the big city. It looked a bit trashed, but still got thumbs up from those who ate it. The vanilla cake inside was so light and tasty. I made my own lemon curd (from a roasted chicken recipe from my Cooking Light binder) for it, since I didn't see it in the store and I'm pretty confident in making it quickly (since I've made it a bunch of times unlike the rest of the holiday recipes!)

In Weight Watcher's news, I have started on the new program after falling off the wagon over the holidays. (too many bonbons and 2 Saturday meetings cancelled due to holidays) I tried a number of appetizer recipes for a cocktail party that I had before Christmas and a couple of others recently from the New Complete Cookbook using the PointsPlus stats. I will share these tomorrow, since it's late after all my picture woes. I will also add points to the recipes above!

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas and all the best of health and fitness in the new year!

-- Post From My iPhone

Late Quickie Check-In

2010-10-20T21:30:00.001-07:00

I was hoping to post earlier...but you know life! Anyway, I'll just post a quick one with the HYC news and one crockpot ( my iPhone wants to call it "crackpot"- hee!) recipe.

First of all, I went to the show and ate very salty movie popcorn on Friday- right before my Saturday am weighin, ergo my loss this week: zero pounds. It's back down now again; so I think it was just water retention. I'm ok with slow weight loss (sticks off better?) but fast is more fun. Kwim?

I didn't workout as much as I should have, but when I did, I felt good. I still need to get to bed earlier (surprise!) and drink more water!

I do feel proud of doing a crockpot recipe from my fancy crackpot recipe book (art of the slow cooker) that I've shared a long time ago. I always feel proud when I do a cp recipe- like I'm super organized or something.'lol. Yes, I know there's someone out there that used one everyday for a year! Small steps for me!

I don't have the chicken cacciatore (the slow cooker recipe's) points yet: I'm having trouble logging on to ww for the recipe builder! Anyone else have trouble with that site? I'll post more dets tomorrow! I am supposed to be getting to bed earlier! Eh?

-- Post From My iPhone

Thankful for Thanksgiving

2010-10-12T19:50:00.001-07:00

I had a very nice Thanksgiving weekend! My mom visited from outside Montreal, and we had a birthday celebration for her on the Monday- and one for my sister, Laurie, on the Sunday. (Can you sense the danger: Thanksgiving AND cake!) Just the fact that I didn't eat myself to a state of feeling stuffed (like I always used to do on Thanksgiving), is definitely a cause for extra celebration! woo hoo!

I tried a few recipes over the weekend. For the Thanksgiving dinner at Laurie's, I brought a pumpkin pie from Cooking Light- Classic Pumpkin Pie (4pts) and a side dish from Healthy Cooking magazine, Cheddar Mashed Potatoes (4pts) from their Thanksgiving section. The pumpkin pie was really good, though I had to cook it a little longer than called for (after reading the reviews, I noticed that one person had discussed this.) The pie called for 12 servings which made for a pretty tiny piece, but it was enough, really, if one didn't gulp it down as usual. At least that's what I'm telling myself! ;) The pie was a big hit, especially with dd10.

I also made the Pumpkin Spice Bagels from Healthy Cooking (3pts) yesterday. Mine looked pretty pathetically shrunken (lol), but they were pretty tasty and I was pretty jazzed that I actually made bagels! I'm going to try them again and see if they go better. I don't own a bread machine, btw, but they have instructions for without (and with).

I also made an Angel Food cake for my mom's birthday. I cut it in half and put strawberries and a teeny bit of whipped cream (left over from the pumpkin pie recipe) in the middle. I'd like to experiment for other variations. I looked for a pumpkin version, but didn't find one.

...and finally, in terms of HYC check-in, I had another successful week at my Weight Watcher's weighin: I was down over 3 pounds again (3.4) for a loss over 10 pounds thus far and surpassing my 5 percent. woo hoo! I do need to pump up the exercise-I was better this week though. So far, I got out for a speed walking session with dd 13 on Monday, did boot camp today (Tuesday) and have a gym workout date with my friends tomorrow. Hope I can keep it up! Hope you all had a good week, too! :)

--Post From My iPhone

HYC Check in

2010-10-06T04:21:00.001-07:00

I thought I'd start doing the Tuesday check-ins again for the Healthy You Challenge. I'm having a few banner issues (had to take down my old "lost 20 pounds" one, since I found them again- sigh!) Anyway I'm going to leave my weight loss reflections for Tuesday (or Wednesday morning).

Anywhooooo. ;) I had a successful Saturday weighin: down 3 pounds- yeah! Some of that weight was last week's loss- where the scale didn't budge on wi morning, but I knew I'd lost. I'm down further now, but we'll see if it sticks till Saturday. (Don't trust those tricky reappearing pounds!) I should be at a 10 pound weight loss.

I survived our birthday month, avoided lots of party foods while having an occasional high points food in moderation. (Pictured: my salad share with my friend, Karin from the bday trip to TO.) I worked out at boot camp and once (eep!) at the gym. I need to get a few more of those in this week.

Hope everyone had a great week!

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Monday, Monday!

2010-10-04T20:05:00.001-07:00

Actually, it should be titled "Weekend! weekend!" since this post is about recipes that I tried on the weekend. Today, I had left over chicken tossed in some curly noodles and sauteed veggies. Tasty, but a tad boring to discuss. ;)

Anyway! On the weekend, I tried a couple of Cooking Light recipes from the new magazine (Oct. 2010). The first pictured is Greek-Style Skewers. (5pts) It was a really quick and easy recipe and everyone enjoyed it, except for dh who didn't like the garlic. The garlic does have a good bite in these, as you brush on the marinade AFTER the chicken is cooked. Interesting, I thought! I really loved the flavour. Also, there was a lot of the olive oil based marinade left in the bowl (how much can you brush on to cooked chicken? 3 tbsp is a lot!), so I think the point value might even be closer to 4 in the end, but I counted it as a 5.

Some changes I made: I didn't have fresh oregano (everyone else got their CL copy first, my grocery store was out!), so I used about a tsp of dried and I used grape tomatoes instead of cherry ones (as that's what Costco had). Shocker, I know! Oblong rather than round. It changed the taste completely! ;) I really liked the grilled tomatoes, btw. I haven't had them grilled for awhile. That's what's good about following a recipe, even an easy one like this, just getting out of the regular routine!

I also tried the cover recipe from this month's issue Peanut Butter Banana Bread. (4pts) This recipe dh could get behind, though dd10 didn't like it. It's a dense banana bread with a lovely peanut butter sugary glaze on the top. What's not to love? I always enjoyed the peanut butter and banana sandwich, so here's a chance for a flashback, right? I also have an overload of ripe bananas in the house (and my family only eats green tinged ones), so I might be trying some more banana recipes from this issue!

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Running (or Dancing) like the Wind

2010-09-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

Just watching the Britney episode of Glee. Loving the dancing in it. Doesn't it make you feel like dancing, too? OK, would probably throw out my back with those moves, but it gets you thinking about moving! That's a lot about what I love about step class (gotta get the club going at school again!)- the music! I like a dancy choreography and when it comes together in a fun 32 count pattern.

Working out goes hand in hand for me with eating more sensibly. I feel more active, I want to eat better foods...I sleep better...I've been a little negligent with my workouts lately, though, and want to get back on track with more regular workouts. Boot camp after school was very intense: we were doing sprinting drills. They're a bit uncomfortable, but it's still fun to see how far you can push yourself. Part of me holds back. I'll admit it. It's freeing to push through that fear. It also makes me want to challenge myself further- see if I can get back to some running.

...and I did get that new running holder for my iPhone, so there WILL be music. ;)

Surviving our Birthday Party Season with Cake and Lasagna

2010-09-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

(The best way to survive birthday season, imho.)

Both of my girls have September birthdays, and with the start up of school and extracurricular activities starting up, it always makes September a little crazy and not very low fat. Soooooo...it's good that I joined Weight Watchers in September, right? To at least make me try to stay on track. (Although at this point I still need to track Saturday and Sunday! Right after this!)

Today we had the family birthday. I made 2 desserts and 2 lasagnas: a Cooking Light version for each. The lasagna, Butternut Squash Lasagna (5pts), I found on the Cooking Light website and the Classic Angel Food Cake (3pts) from my Cooking Light Recipe binder.

The lasagna was good. You make two in 8x8 pans, with directions to freeze one. I cooked both, just in case we needed extra. I'll try to remember to take a picture tomorrow (when we are eating leftovers), as I forgot to today! I used the organic squash from our organic delivery and a ton of the small onions that keep piling up. (yeah! love using up stuff that sometimes gets wasted.)

The angel food cake was a hit. I served it with sliced strawberries and the choice of frozen yogurt (more ww friendly) and regular vanilla icecream.

My weigh-in was not as good this week- I was up .2! I wasn't too surprised because though I hadn't gone over flex or anything, my workouts were down due to party prep and I had had salt (popcorn) the night before during dd10's sleepover party. I can't beat myself up though since I didn't have the icecream cake OR the chips. I was down this week earlier, so I think it will show up on the scale next time. Unless I eat some of the chocolate peanut butter cupcakes dd10 and I made from the Martha Stewart cupcake recipe book this morning (dessert #2). So far, I'm holding strong. :)

Here comes the birthdays...

2010-09-21T15:37:00.001-07:00

First salad...

Later, cake! Wish me luck! (and my dd happy bday)!

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Chicks like Steak and Key Lime Pie

2010-09-19T19:42:00.000-07:00

I click on my pictures icon to upload food pictures and what do I see? This:

Gotta love my soon to be double digits girl: she loves taking pictures and editing them. Many make me laugh.

Ok, on to my actual weekend food pics.

I tried a couple recipes from the new (September 2010) Cooking Light this weekend: their Key Lime Pie (7 pts) and Grilled Steak with Mango Salsa (5pts) I enjoyed both or as my new group leader would say, they were point worthy.

Speaking of points, I was down a big 4.6 pounds! Woo Hoo! Gotta love week one on the program. Just saying.

Ok back to the recipes. I really enjoyed the steak. I bought the flank steak at the local butcher's where I always feel like I'm getting good quality meats. The rub in this recipe has an Indian spice flavour and the mango salsa works well with it: refreshing and fresh. I didn't let dh cook the steak way after the recommended time (he likes his steak super well done) so we all enjoyed it off the grill while I popped his piece into the microwave to brown up.

I didn't have the suggested Naan bread side- until tonight ironically (with grilled chicken) I love Naan bread, but we had some organic delivery potatoes to use up, so I made fries with my 1 tbsp using French fry maker- yeah! They were the best batch yet according to dh. Love my Mother's Day present.

The Key Lime pie recipe was pretty easy until I got to the meringue part! The recipe calls for a temp of 250 on a candy thermometer. I think it was a misprint cause mine just blackened right before reaching it. I tried turning down the burner the next time, but just couldn't get the temp up without the sugar water getting chunky. It turned out ok with the chunks getting whipped up into meringue but then the broiler was too hot after all that preheating and the tips got a little browned. Oops. lol.

I'd looked online for recipe reviews at the site, but the only one had no meringue issues. (Maybe they lacked a candy thermometer and didn't stress the 250?)

The pie was good in the end. To save points you could cut it into smaller pieces than the called for eight. It held together well in the cutting. 10 would be easy to do.

-- Post From My iPhone

Midnight Snacks

2010-09-17T21:58:00.000-07:00

Ok, not really- just posting this late. I'm actually a mixture of super tired and hungry this late on day 7 of my first week of WW. I should be sleeping as I have an 8am appt at the gym, followed by a meeting and weigh in.

I had a good week foodwise, though I only had 3 workouts: one gym trip and 2 boot camps. I need more cardio in my life again. This week I'll work on that!

Pictured:
one old recipe and one new: both from Cooking Light. The chocolate chip cookies are from the CL binder cookbook (One of their All Time Favorite recipes) and the soup I found online at the CL site. I will link them both tomorrow.

We all liked the cookies, though we agree that they are best hot from the oven when the chocolate is all melty. (2pts for one; 3 pts for 2) The soup was good, also- dd9 was the biggest fan with two bowls. I read the soup reviews before making and therefore added a 1/4 c of diced carrot. I also used lots of tomatoes from our garden. Yeah! Our tomatoes have had a very good year. I loved the creamy flavour added in with the tbsp of yogurt, too. (1 pt per serving)

-- Post From My iPhone

At least I get 25 points!

2010-09-15T14:24:00.000-07:00

I've never had so many WW points before. (So there is an upside to letting oneself go! ;))

No food pictures to share, I neglected to take a picture of my last batch of CL pumpkin muffins and they were quickly eaten, so I thought I share a pic of new 3 Month (yes, committing to a chunk of time- go me!) Journal holder. Our leader showed us hers saying that people won't be as curious about the journal, being covered up in the holder, so you can freely leave it about your workplace, or wherever. My friend and I were both thinking that this funky cover is totally eye-catching and does the opposite: drawing people's attention to it! LOL

But I like it and it makes me happy and sometimes little stuff like this makes you stay on track, right? At least that's what I tell myself. (and my husband when he's looking at the Visa bill. ;))

-- Post From My iPhone

You Know What I Ate this Summer...

2010-09-13T15:24:00.001-07:00

... The Sequel!

(pictured: some of our good summer eating. My 9yr. old edited the last and it made me laugh, so I included it. One of our friends went to Italy this summer and brought back noodles at the request of my 12 yr. old.)

Hello long lost blogging friends! Hope everyone had a nice summer!

I had a nice summer, and a nice spring, and a nice winter, etc. etc. stretching way back through lots of food and drinks consumed with little tracking, overly large portions and poor food choices. I know how to do this, but for some reason, I stopped and gradually gained and gained! And now I don't like looking at my summer none food pics! I look huge in them! :P (when did that happen?!)

So, I got a couple of friends to join me at Weight Watchers and I signed up on Saturday. We went to the gym first and then headed to the 10am WW meeting. I'm excited! I feel committed! I'm going to stay until goal this time (50 pounds- yikes!!) and try to earn lifetime. If you care to do it again with me, I'll be here.

The muffin is back. Time to crumble.

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A French Fry Machine for Mother's Day

2010-05-29T07:11:00.001-07:00

Yes, MIA once again! Hope my fellow weight loss bloggers are doing better than I! Sitting here with a sore back- aggravated by yesterday's boot camp- having missed this morning's run. Boo hoo! I hate a sore back.

In happier news, above is pictured my Mother's Day surprise gift: the French fry machine by T-fal that only needs a tbsp of oil to make delicious fries! I was fascinated by the machine when I heard a commercial and saw it at The Bay. I would stop by and look at it everytime we went to the mall (to my children's chagrin). It kept selling out in spite of its expensive price tag.

Anyway, turns out the girls showed it to Ken when they were M D shopping and Ken had some Bay points to put toward it, so they bought it for me. Quel nice surprise!

You can make up to 2 pds of fries at a time with 1 tbsp of oil. The machine takes up a bit of room, but the fries are so much like the real thing, it's definitely worth the cupboard reorganization. IMHO.

I'll have to work out the points and start tracking my eating in general, but that's another post!

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Easter dinner

2010-05-06T04:10:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the late Easter post. I tried a few recipes from the Cooking Light suggested menu for Easter ( will post links later). I've made other stuff too from this month's CL ( including a couple of icecream recipes )
and will try to catch up over this week. I'm trying to get back on track!

Exercise= good

Eating= not so good

-- Post From My iPhone

Fun to Eat, Hard to Say

2010-03-29T19:41:00.001-07:00

Sitting here feeling a bit hungry, since I actually stayed on track fairly well today. lol. I am not having a snack though- yeah me, but rather having my herbal tea solo. Next my goal is to go to bed promptly at 11. Still need to work on the sleep, as though I taught step at lunch, I bagged on the gym after work due to tiredness.

I made another recipe from the new Cooking Light, Spicy Chicken Shawarma. (9pts) It was pretty easy and very tasty- I love having Mid-Eastern fare once in awhile. I was thinking of having a fattoush salad (my fave) with it, but then it was quicker just to do Caesar. I got my children to try half a shawarma- they are not much for wraps like this, and then they had the rest dissembled in unsauced piles. dh and I enjoyed it, though he complained of the onion taste in his mouth later. har. I did get him to admit that I'm a good wife making him healthy dinner options and all, even with the bits he complains about like onion or garlic. ;)

Tomorrow I'm going to write out my plan and goals for June. I need to start working with a definite plan....and possibly a net.
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Fish in a Coconut Tree

2010-03-28T18:57:00.001-07:00

As Sunday is drawing to a close, I thought I might start off the week on the right track with a blog post. I'm going to get back on track this week (tracking my food and exercise, getting to bed before midnight and drinking more water. That's my plan thus far, anyway!) I'm not sure if I'll rejoin Weight Watchers- I've been contemplating it as my online membership is done, but I might go back to meetings if I can fit them into schedule. OR I might just go back to Sparks. Decisions, decisions!

In the stuff-I-actually-got-done dept., I tried a couple of new recipes from the new Cooking Light (April 2010) this weekend: Crispy Fish with Lemon Dill Sauce (5pts) and (not at the same time) Toasted Coconut Chocolate Chunk Cookies. (2pts) I will add links from my laptop after.

The fish was good overall. It's a source of mommy guilt that I don't prepare fish very often. I'd like to have it more often. It was a fight to get the kids to try this recipe- especially dd9, but dh and I both liked the mildness of the fish and the crispy panko coating. My favourite part though was, I have to admit, the tartar like Lemon Dill sauce. Delicous with the bits of dill pickle that I found in a HUGE bottle at Costco. (We'll be eating pickles for awhile!) I couldn't find fresh dill at the grocery though, so I used some dry. I'd like to do the recipe again with the fresh dill.

Finally, words cannot describe the deliciousness of the cookies. I'll definitely be making them again! They have just the right amount of "chewy" mixed in with the melted chocolate "gooey". Mmmmmm.... well worth the 2 points....ok, 6 points by the time they were cooling on the pan. Like I said, this week will be better!! ;)

Hope everyone has a good week! I'm going to be checking in more through the week (and catching up with people) and setting a goal for June.

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Oscar Night Lamb

2010-03-07T17:17:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a good week! Mine was pretty good, though I missed boot camp on Friday ( went to see the Raptors play basketball in TO ) and my run on Saturday am and, come to think of it, my trip to the gym on Thursday ( due to a hair appt ). I did teach step twice, made the gym once and boot camp on Tuesday. I still need to cut back on my extra snacking and start tracking. Maybe this week?!

I've tried a few things from the new Cooking Light (March 2010) including tonight's Roast Leg of Lamb with Chile-Garlic Sauce. I had it with roasted potatoes and Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas, and Olives. Everything was delicious! The lamb was so good and I loved, loved, loved the chile-garlic sauce. The sauce definitely has a bite to it. I had sambal oelek on hand already, so I didn't have to so any extra shopping for the recipe other than for the pound of lamb which I got at Whole Foods.

The roasted cauliflower I only had a few bites of, because truth be told, I forgot it in the oven. oops! lol. It was a little crispy, but still tasty. I really like the salty taste of the olives (not sure if I uses the right type, but figured it didn't matter all that much) with the crispy balls of chickpeas. Maybe they shouldn't have been that crispy? ;P They were good, though! I was drawn to trying this recipe since we keep getting califlower in the organic delivery. I eat it raw, but my family isn't that into it.

I think this week I'm going to make up a plan to work toward for the summer. This week I'm also going to try to (a) drink more water (b) get to sleep earlier and (c) not snack after 9pm. I'll lyk how it goes when (d) I blog more regularly! ;)

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Gold medal chili

2010-03-01T20:23:00.001-08:00

Okay, who else is missing the Olympics today? I was getting used to flipping on the TV to see what sport was on that night. One benefit to them being done will be the end (hopefully) of super late nights though. Darn that Vancouver time difference!

Sidenote: I was so happy that my mom, who always loved the Olympics, got to go and stay with my Van sis and catch some of the action. :)

I've been working out (in my own sporting news) pretty well these last couple of weeks. I have 2 boot camp sessions, 2 step classes, 2-3 gym sessions, 1 yoga class and 1 outside run on my schedule of late. I'm feeling pretty strong, but still need to cut back on evening snacks and track better.

I made past weeks Triple-Play Cinnamon Buns again this weekend- this time with raisins, which made them even better. The whole family loves this recipe.

On Sunday, the day of the Canadian golden hockey game, I made another recipe that I posted here before: Smoky Slow Cooker Chili. I love the feta cheese (my replacement in the recipe) and greens chopped on top. I also added bits of a ripe organic avocado that I had on hand.

Tonight I served it with Almond-Cranberry Corn Bread (also posted about previously) sans the cranberries. I also skipped the toasted almonds on top and the straining of the oil. Easy and so tasty. My junior chef (dd9) helped. My coffee grinder was having an issue grinding the semi frozen almonds, so the my almond meal had some crunch to it. (When baked it was perfect.) The corn bread made my family think of our favourite US breakfast spot: the Cracker Barrel. :)

Hope everyone had a good Monday, even missing the excitement of the Olympics. :)
-- Post From My iPhone

Family Day Crockpot Pork

2010-02-15T19:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Family Day (or Prez Day) to my fellow bloggers! We had a nice, low key one. I didn't even leave the house- good day! ;)

I did try a new recipe- the cover one from my forementioned special edition BH&G Ultimate Slow Cooker 2010. Barbecued Country-Style Ribs was the recipe- actually I followed in into the second suggested recipe Shredded Pork Sandwiches with Vinegar Slaw.

The recipe wasn't low fat, but it was quick and tasty. I couldn't find the boneless ribs required in the recipe, the butcher didn't know what they were and directed me to a boneless rib roast which I cut in chunks and used in its place.

I really liked it and my family all seemed to like it, too. Only dh and I had it on the kaiser rolls and only I added the coleslaw and sauce on top. (dh and his lack of sauce love) I'm going to look for lower fat crockpot alternatives next- maybe a chili? We've got the chill in the air for it!

Hot buns for Valentine's

2010-02-14T19:54:00.001-08:00

Happy Valentine's, everyone! Checking in from chocolate bonbon eating (and Olympic watching) central. We also went to a movie today (Valentine's Day: the movie on the day) and had movie popcorn with butter. (which always tastes good until you feel terrible after.)

In good healthier eating news, one of the treats that I made for my family today was from my Cooking Light recipe binder: Triple Play Cinnamon Rolls. (4pts) I will look for a link on my laptop after.

Anyway, I used the bday Kitchenaid mixer for the kneading part again, so they were pretty easy- though not a recipe for a week night with all the pauses between steps. I skipped the raisins because I didn't have any, plus my children aren't fans. I would like to add raisins next time (for at least half the roll anyway).

The rolls were liked by everyone in my family. Maybe we'll share with people other than the 4 of us tomorrow. The recipe makes 20 afterall. ( Though my end piece was a mini- as seen in the pic. Guess that one is a single pointer. Unlike my Laura Secord bonbons. ;))

-- Post From My iPhone

Using the tools...

2010-02-08T20:01:00.001-08:00

After missing last week's check-in post, thought I'd try to be better this week. We'll see how it goes.

Anyway, I have a few new tools, including my new iPhone- which I love, love, love! I took the food pics on my phone for easy upload. yee haw!

I also used a new attachment on my November-new KitchenAid stand mixer: the dough hook for the pictured Pumpkin-Cinnamon Streusel Buns from my Cooking Light recipe binder. (5pts)
The buns are really good! I've made them the last 2 weekends. Only dd12 wouldn't try them- turned off by the idea of the pumpkin. You really don't taste pumpkin, btw- not that I don't enjoy pumpkin. (says the pumpkin crazy lady!) They are fluffy and cinnamon-y- delicious. Well worth the points, I think.

The other two dishes pictured are from a Better Homes and Garden's special edition magazine I found on Slow Cooker recipes. The one I tried was Indian-spiced Chicken Thighs. It leads to left-overs and another recipe: Coconut Chicken and Couscous. I made it with pasta for the second night instead of the rice. (Trying to please my family since we'd had rice the night before and if the chicken wasn't enjoyed, they will always eat pasta without complaint.)

I really liked the slow cooker recipes; my family, not as much. Dh likes his chicken dry-argh! (sauce is not his favourite) and he complained about the curry flavour the second night. (We don't have curry very often.) dd9 doesn't like dark meat chicken since we usually have boneless chicken breasts.

Anyway, I enjoyed the Indian flavours and the coconut milk (I used light) mixed into the pasta and chicken bits, so I might do it again (after some time passes) with white meat instead- and halve the amount, so I'm not eating chicken thighs for lunch AND dinner.

-- Post From My iPhone

Tuesday Check In

2010-01-19T17:43:00.000-08:00

Ok. Missed a week somewhere. Oops!

I've had an okay last couple of weeks. I still need to work on my snacking- and get back to tracking my food.

I HAVE done pretty well with the exercising- boot camp, the gym and yoga starting back on Wednesdays. I'd like to get back to more consistent running, but I was feeling under the weather this weekend and yesterday and seem to have pulled my back again. It felt ok during boot camp tonight, so hopefully it recovers quickly. Our trainer has been pulling out the stops at Boot Camp- increasing the intensity to get results. He wants us to follow an eating plan also

I tried a few recipes over the last couple of weekends (as pictured above). From the new Cooking Light (Jan/Feb 2010) I made the Leek and Potato Soup (in the Jamie Oliver article) and Coconut Shrimp with Fiery Mango Sauce.

My husband and I enjoyed the shrimp though some of them were a little crispy! The suggested cooking time (2 1/2 mins on each side at medium high) was just too long on my stove top anyway. I cut the time down, turned down the temp, but they still cooked super fast. The sauce was tasty, too, though I couldn't find mango nectar and substituted with peach which they had. Also, I forgot to add the hot pepper, so it wasn't fiery! This recipe deserves a redo at some point though, so I'll try it a little spicier.

The chicken pictured was a Kung Pao Chicken recipe from the new issue of Shape magazine. It was enjoyable also. I really enjoy anything with sesame oil.

Hope everyone had a healthy last couple of weeks! with no back strain! :)

A New Year to be healthier!

2010-01-07T18:44:00.000-08:00

Long time no post, again. Hope everyone had a nice Christmas! I did. It was a family affair- pretty action packed and not very low fat, to say the least. During the 2 weeks of holidays, I did manage two gym workouts (one at which I fell off the treadmill- ouch! but that's another story), one book camp session with our trainer (at the gym we worked out this summer) and one skating session.

I didn't get everything I hope to do done over the holidays- like making our gingerbread cookie winter scene that I plan to do every year, but I did manage to use my Nigella Christmas cookbook for a number of recipes. I won't link them here- they aren't light recipes- but I will list the ones I did make- for my own amusement. lol. They are as follows: Party Parma Ham Bundles, Chocolate Peanut-Butter Cups, Ginger-Glazed Ham, Macaroni Cheese De Luxe, Spiced and Superjuicy Roast Turkey with Allspice Gravy, Redder than Red Cranberry Sauce, Gingerbread Stuffing, Christmas Sprouts, Sticky Gingerbread, Pumpkin Pancakes with Sticky Maple Pecans and lots of cocktails and mocktails. :)

I liked everything from her cookbook- probably my least favourite was the Pumpkin pancakes, though it might have just been the 'unusual' flavour, because I started to enjoy them more after the first taste. We'd also never brined a turkey before, and I really enjoyed the juicy result of the brining. My husband didn't love dragging a huge tub of turkey in brine to the basement fridge, but I think I'd get him to do it again next turkey. ;)

I also made the Pumpkin Ice cream Torte from Cooking Light again. We had it New Year's Day and it held it's own, even surrounded by more decadent options. I really like that recipe. Now the holidays are over, I also tried a couple of CL recipes for dinners. Last night I made Pan- Fried Chicken (6pts) from the Best of 2009 online article (originally from June's issue- a recipe that I'd meant to get to, but never did.) It was pretty time consuming in terms of time waiting for the chicken in coating to chill and then, later, to come to room temperature, but otherwise, it was really easy to put together. I really liked the flavour of the coating. It was even good cold for lunch the next day at work. The cinnamon flavour is especially tasty.

Being good and kinda bad at the same time. ;)

2009-12-15T18:42:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post for an HYC check in. I've been both good and bad this week! My weight isn't going down much (to say the least) what with all the holiday snacking I've been doing. We threw a Christmas party last Saturday. I made a number of items from the Nigella Christmas book I found at Winners (and love!) including 3 martini recipes and a chocolate peanut butter cup recipe. I also tried a couple of her non-alcoholic ones for our designated drivers.

I did make one healthy recipe at the party- a Cooking Light Pumpkin Ice cream Torte from the November issue, that I'd been wanting to try, but never got to- partially due to the fact that, though pretty easy, it's pretty lengthy in waiting (to freeze) parts. Anyway, I really liked the torte, as did the rest of my family and party guests.

I didn't have any allspice left, so that was omitted in my rendition and I used butterscotch sauce instead of caramel. I didn't take ANY pictures of food at my party being too busy making martinis and stuff. ;)

In terms of being "good," I have still been enjoying my boot camp at school and my new gym membership. Pictured above is my group post workout and stretching. Today we did a pretty cardio heavy workout: 7 laps of the fifth floor and then relay running under the clock around the circuit muscle work.

Hope everyone is enjoying these busy weeks prepping for the holidays (if you do that kind of thing!) I feel somewhat under pressure with a lengthy To-Do list. It's good to have a few good exercise sessions to distress, right? That's the "good" Janet talking, the bad one is thinking of Nigella's "Santa's Little Helper" cocktail that she didn't get to make at the party, that would probably make a very nice nightcap. ;)

Monday, Monday! with a side of banana apple crisp.

2009-11-30T19:07:00.000-08:00

Hey all! had a pretty good weekend, except for my knee bugging me: so no running! I feel like I over stretched it or something. My one-time running partner cancelled on me at the gym today and only one person showed up for step at lunch, so more rest for my over worked body again today. yeah! Hopefully, this week it feels better- especially, if I'm going to get some mileage down this coming month in preparation for our races to come.

I did try a new recipe tonight- using up more of my organic fruit backlog in the fridge: Banana-Coconut Apple Crisp from the Cooking Light site. (4pts per serving) I really liked it and had it with some leftover banana gelato- mmmmm..banana-y! I had to force myself to stop eating it. eep! It was an interesting, tangy and sweet mixture. I liked the chewy little bits of coconut in it and the surprising warm bites of banana flavour. Different from your usual apple crisp.

I incredibly had all the ingredients on hand without a separate trip to the grocery store and though I didn't have any OJ left, I did have a couple of huge organic oranges that I could juice. Woo hoo! love not sending stuff to the green bin untried.

Final side note: love my bday gift- the lovely red casserole dish pictured above- from one of my girlfriends. Love kitchen gifts that make me want to empty my crisper and make stuff. :)

white carrots in the HOWssssse!

2009-11-25T19:19:00.000-08:00

dd9 made me laugh tonight when I served the family some raw white carrots from our most recent organic delivery box. She leaned over to dd12 and said, "I can't wait to tell my friends about this one. They always love to hear about the weird stuff mom serves." lol. High praise indeed.

Anyway, a pretty rushed meal tonight, though I did zip up some pesto with some fresh organic basil, lemon, pecans, tomato, garlic and parmesan (in my new summer blender from the Shopping Network). I love pesto so. *sigh

So I missed reporting in for HYC yesterday. In brief, I'm trying to get my eating back on track. I've gained back a lot of my 20 pounds that I had lost. *sigh again* The summer was a tad rough on the waistline. Why do I let myself get so far off good portion sizes and healthy choices? I know I feel better when I'm eating in a healthier way. Anyway, all I can do now is get back on track!

My exercising has been going better than my eating. I've been doing boot camp twice a week through the summer and now the fall. I've started back to running with big plans for upcoming races, maybe even surpassing my longest race of 30K? We'll see how my body holds up. I've also been doing a bit of yoga- enjoying the lower key nature of it again. I think in the desire to lose weight and burn calories fast, sometimes we forget to work on things like stretching and thoughtful breathing.

Hope everyone else has been having a healthy fall. Try a white carrot! They're delicious!

Monday with the Muffin Top

2009-11-23T19:26:00.001-08:00

Ok. So I'm going to work on posting more regularly. I'm going to try to catch up on my favourite blogs. I'm going to step back from cyber-farming (curses to you Farmville)! I'm going to get back to HYC.

I have tried a number of recipes over the last few weeks. A few recent ones were motivated by my organic delivery. To use some of my backlog of apples, tonight I made Amaretto Apple Crisp from the Cooking Light site. (4pts) It was very good. dd9 and I were the only ones who had it though. (dd12 is a little under the weather today with a touch of the flu.) I happened to have an old bottle of Amaretto in my cupboard (xmas gift to dh from his sister- classic regift, perhaps?!? ;) and so I picked this crisp to do.

I also made Roasted Butternut Soup with Goat Cheese Toasts (well, without the toasts so far, though I DO enjoy goat cheese- subject of many prior posts.) The soup was pretty good and really used up a lot of items from my organic delivery (especially since I went to the trouble of making the vegetable stock), but I didn't love it to death and it was a lot of work. (Lots of dicing and peeling involved, let me tell you!) I found the flavour kind of sharp and really could taste the carrot over the butternut. I might not have put enough squash in it, perhaps. Anyway, still feeling proud and gloat-y from using up such a variety of organic delivery goods. Yeah non-wasteful-like-usual me!

Will check in tomorrow with a fitness update. Lots of running plans for the new year, if my bones and joints hold together. ;)

Bananas for Saturday

2009-10-17T20:15:00.000-07:00

I started the day off with a run/walk through the autumn colours of a local trail with a couple of friends. It was pretty brisk out this morning- officially my first run with layers, but I'm always glad that I went (even when my bed seems particularly inviting and cozy.) As one of my running partners said, it's best to get out there (running) now BEFORE it snows and we just won't want to start. I can make some serious excuses not to run when it's cold out (even though I live in Canada and should be snow-hardy. ;)) We've promised ourselves that we will do an 8K race in January to ensure winter running. We'll *see how that goes. (*refer to previous comment about excuses)

After running today, I tried a new muffin recipe: Banana Spice Muffins from the Cooking Light site, taking a brief break from pumpkin- until tomorrow anyway. I had all the ingredients for these, except for a marginal shortage of ground allspice (which I topped up with cinnamon) and no ricotta cheese. I replaced the ricotta with light cream cheese after reading the recipe's review section. I used a bit less cream cheese than the called for 1/3 cup of ricotta (one of the recipe reviewers used 2 tbsp to replace it). I'd like to try them again with the ricotta to see how they compare.

sidenote: I usually like to stay really close to a recipe's ingredients, especially the first few times making it. (Never was "a pinch of this" and a "pinch of that" kind of baker- though I really admire people who can do that with success.)

Anyway, the muffins were good and they made the house smell good, too, which hopefully masked the general untidiness. ;)

This afternoon- when I wasn't tidying- I finally found a store that had Sigg bottles in stock so we could trade our old ones in. (The store where I bought our old (toxic ;)) ones has been out of stock for weeks.) Our new replacements have such cute designs, but it did make me sad to replace my lovely bottle from Laurie that I shared on here awhile back. *sniffle*

Here's hoping that our new bottles help me to remember to actually take my water with me to work.

Pumpkin crazy!

2009-10-15T17:21:00.000-07:00

There's definitely a feeling of fall in the air lately! Ok, today it was more like winter. I'm so not ready. Brrrr...

Anyway, autumn makes me want to roast stuff (we had roast chicken, veggies and warmed Naan bread for dinner). We've also been partaking in a number of pumpkin - the classic autumn veg (fruit?)- items lately.

We've done a couple of batches of pumpkin muffins: the Pumpkin Pie Muffin ones (I'll add links after posting as I can't from my Touch) and the Pumpkin Muffin recipe from my Cooking Light Complete binder.

Today we enjoyed a pumpkin pie made with a real pie pumpkin from my organic delivery. A totally new step for me, I messed up on the prep of the pumpkin- following a good site online, I switched over to the recipe Gingersnap Pumpkin Pie (6pts) on the CL site and forgot about the last step in the pumpkin prep: the draining. In my defence, it didn't look overly moist, but I guess that sucker can hold a lot of water! Rushed cooking is not a good idea with a new recipe apparently.

Anyway, the pie was still tasty, in spite of not setting well. The crust was really tasty. I used Dare Simple Pleasures Cookies- Spice Snaps for a relatively low fat option. I bet Pantry cookies would be good with it, too. (side note: when we were kids, following my mother's lead, we used to butter our Pantry gingersnaps. Tasty: yes. Especially low fat: not really. ;) )

Finally in pumpkin news, on the weekend, a couple of girlfriends and I went to Whole Foods and I had the most delicious pumpkin gelato. It was so good, it's got me thinking about getting an icecream machine. You can do gelato in one, right? Course, that might be a little like buying a deep fryer.

-- Post From My iPhone

Does it count that I've been posting in my head?

2009-10-12T07:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know, my skunk hat still fits. and my camera is apparently not working well.

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadian blogging friends! (and future Thanksgiving wishes to the ones across the border) :)

We had an amazing Thanksgiving dinner at my sister, Laurie's. I made a couple of sides. (Yeah for having Thanksgiving at someone else's house!) Overall the dinner was healthy, other than having double dessert. eep. (We brought pumpkin pie from our local bakery and Laurie's dh made chocolate peanut butter cupcakes for Laurie's birthday. Had to eat one to be polite, right?) Laurie also sent us home with some turkey, so we can have delicious sandwiches and whatnot today! Turkey: the best left over in the entire world. Just saying.

Want some sweet potatoes with your cardamom? One of the sides I brought to Laurie's yesterday was Coconut-Cardamom Sweet Potatoes (2pts) from the new (Nov/Dec 2009) issue of Clean Eating. It sounded really good and I had all the ingredients (other than sweet potatoes) on hand, AND it was easy to prep and bring to put in Laurie's oven after the turkey came out.

I knew there was a problem with the dish though, as soon as I added the 2 tsp of cardamom to the potatoes: cardamom was all I could smell (and later taste). At Laurie's we even added steamed squash and a bit of butter to the dish, but it still was pretty cardamomy. I liked it ok, Laurie said the same (I was too embarrassed to look closely at everyone else's plates), but I'd definitely cut it down to one tsp of the spicy stuff- or less.

Maybe the 2 tsp was a typo? the 1 and "/" was missing from in front of the 2? Possibly!

Anyway the recipe is as follows (in brief). I'm off to boot camp this afternoon to work off the double dessert. Happy Thanksgiving Monday! :)

Coconut-Cardamom Sweet Potatoes

5 med sweet potatoes (I used yams- same thing, right?)

3/4 c light coconut milk

2 tsp ground cardamom (danger! danger! use less!)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/3 c unsalted pecan halves, chopped

Preheat oven 325 F. Boil (chopped up) potatoes for about 10 mins. Drain. With an electric mixer, on medium mix everything except the pecans together until smooth. Put mixture in 9x9 in baking dish. Sprinkle with pecans and bake for 45-50 mins- until edges are slightly browned. Cool for 10 mins before serving.

per 1/2c serving: 100 cals; fat 3.5g; fiber 2g

wearing the skunk hat

2009-08-09T20:27:00.000-07:00

Hey blogging friends! Sorry I've been mia! summer, you know. I'm wearing the skunk hat (and skunk jumper in size XL ;)). I'm going to get back into a more regular routine soon. I have been doing the boot camp thing (tomorrow morning is our next session), but my running has slid off the regular routine.

(These pics are from our cottage rental which was filled with stuffed and displayed wildlife, including this intriguing skunk hat. :P I wouldn't put it on my head, of course, so my skunk hat wearing is all figurative.)

My 200th Post

2009-07-17T20:56:00.000-07:00

...which would be way more exciting if I'd been posting regularly! eep! Still, I'll give myself a tiny "woo hoo" and try to get back to posting and reading my favourite blogs more regularly...and make the next 200 really count. (I should be to goal by then, right?!) ;P

Anyway, I'll be better- well, once I'm back from my cottage holiday which we're going on tomorrow. LOL We go with my sisters and their families and my mom, so it's a lot of fun. One of my sisters lives in Vancouver with her dh and two young sons, so we don't get to see them very often.

I'm packing my workout gear, btw, and taking a couple of Cooking Light recipes with ingredients. My sisters and their husbands all like to be active, and my Toronto sister is a pretty fast runner, so I should be able to get a couple of good run-walks in. (to counteract all the heavy eating and drinking, I'm sure?) ;)

Besides enjoying my boot camp sessions (Monday, Wednesday and Thursday), I've tried a few new CL recipes. Firstly, we keep getting zucchini in our organic delivery box and besides having it grilled on the bbq, I did a Zucchini Bread recipe from the Cooking Light site. Well, the recipe makes enough for 2 loaves, so I made a loaf (not pictured) and a batch of muffins. My neighbour and I really liked them, but my family wouldn't try them once they learned that they had zucchini in them. sheesh! I really liked the lemon flavour. After reading the reviews, I increased the baking soda slightly and added more cinnamon. I'd definitely make them again.

I also (on the recommendation of my chum, Karin) made a kale recipe from the organic delivery people. They claim it tastes like french fries- and I say, it kind of does! dh liked it, too. (The tots wouldn't really try much.) Karin's son said that the people making the claim had never tried french fries. lol. Anyway, it really is tasty. The trick is to get the kale REALLY crisp, so it's crackly and not bendy. Enjoy your Krispy Kale fries! (or as dh had the tots saying, Krispy Kelp.) ;)

Crispy Kale - Kale Recipes By Stephanie Gallagher, About.com

Kale recipes aren't normally on the top of most parents lists when they're looking for vegetables the kids will like. But I urge you to try this crispy kale. It is really extraordinary. Although the kale is roasted, not fried, it becomes crispy and salty, almost like french fries. This kale recipe is incredibly healthy, too. It boasts a whopping 309% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 201% vitamin C, 14% calcium, 10% iron, 3 grams of protein, 2 grams of fiber, and it only has 112 calories and 1 gram of saturated fat per serving!

Ingredients:

• 6-8 cups chopped fresh kale, hard stems removed

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil

• 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt or sea salt

Preparation:

Place a rack on the lowest shelf of your oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Spread kale out on a sturdy baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and apple cider vinegar. Toss to coat completely.

Place on the lowest rack of the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and stir so that kale can get crispy all over.

Bake another 8 to 12 minutes or until kale is crispy. It should be just lightly browned and crispy to the touch. If kale still bends, rather than crackles, when you touch it, it isn't done yet. Return it to the oven. Turn down the heat if it is getting too brown. Continue cooking until crispy. 10. Remove from oven, and sprinkle with sea salt (Maldon sea salt makes it taste fantastic) and serve immediately.

Week One of Summer

2009-07-04T17:54:00.000-07:00

Yes, I've been missing in action for a bit. Sorry! I've missed you, my weightloss blogging friends. And to make matters worse, usually when I'm not around here posting and checking in, it's because I'm out being B.A.D.- bad, as in, eating wildly, not drinking water (but calorie laden cocktails at parties instead) and not exercising. June is always a super busy month for me and often "the busy" leads to poor food decisions. Well, with my boot camp, at least I've been exercising. I'm starting to feel stronger, though my muscles are buried under more muffin top again. ;P

We spent our first week of summer with a summer bug- dd11 got it first on her first day of holiday, passed it to dd8 a couple of days later and now I'm stuffed up and exhausted. Also bringing me down, one of my co-workers had a health related incident while driving and ended up killing 3 people. I can stop thinking about this sad turn of events and how someone's life can change so suddenly. :( So sad all around.

Anyway, I'm pledging to make this a summer of fit- as opposed to fat. Going to turn things around from here on out. The girls are feeling better. Boot camp's first week sessions were great in the new yoga studio where our trainer found a place for us this summer. (Plus it's beside Starbucks: low fat Chai after strenuous workout!) My delivery of organic vegetables this week brought lots of summery greens.

Pictured is my bagel from yesterday with Cooking Light pesto made with fresh organic basil and tomatoes. Love summer's offerings. I'm going to try to get back to centering my eating around what I get in the delivery. I've got a number of unread magazines and cookbooks to check out. I'll try to share some of my new finds with you all, too.

Happy July 4th to my American friends, btw! Hope it was festive and yet healthy, too! :)

Weekend Eats

2009-06-14T19:14:00.001-07:00

I had a nice weekend. Got a couple of workouts in (boot camp and a run/walk Saturday morning). I've got to get back on program better though. I get out of the zone when I'm (a) tired or (b) stressed or (c) busy and June with all its activities has plenty of all three.

I did manage to try a number of new recipes this weekend in spite of the "busy." Saturday we fired up the grill and I tried another recipe from Williams-Sonoma's Essentials of Grilling borrowed from the library. I made "Souvlakia" (lamb) with a side of Tzatziki. It's served with warm pita, sliced tomato and onion. I was the only one who tucked the souvlakia inside the pita with the tzatziki and toppings. It was tasty! I heart pocket sandwich meals. The family doesn't know what they're missing.

Tonight's BBQ meal was one I've done and blogged about before: Cedar-Planked Salmon with Barbecue Spice Rub. dd8 helped me mix the rub and rub it on the salmon. She didn't enjoy the rubbing part in the end- too unexpectedly "sandy" for her. Another "rub," dh left the salmon unattended too long and came back to the plank on fire, but though a bit singed around the edges, it was still delicious. (and dh took all the applause on it, what with blowing out the cedar plank fire and taking the fish off the BBQ and all. ;)) We had the salmon with rice, broccoli and/or greens and avocado. I had my salad with Renee's Asian dressing, which seemed to compliment the salmon perfectly with it's sesame flavour.

Finally, I finally got around to using up my organic box rhubarb and making the Raspberry-Rhubarb Pie (5 points) from the new Cooking Light (June 2009). It was a pretty quick recipe to make (we made it pretty much while the salmon was cooking), with the cool already made for you- just-unroll-it crust! Anyway, dd8 and I really liked the pie. dd11 decided she wouldn't like it before hand, but did try a little and dh was too full from the salmon so his review is on standby. I really liked the almond taste in the topping (which is a crumbly mixture, avoiding the need for a crust on top- which includes some slivered almonds and almond extract: very nice!)

The one downside to my dessert tonight was the lack of vanilla ice cream. I thought we had some on hand (of the low fat vanilla yogurt variety, of course), but we didn't, so we had it with a bit of cool whip. I think a scoop of vanilla ice cream would have put it over the top of deliciousness.

Guess what Janet's planning on buying on the way home from work tomorrow? ;)

Summer Organics and Balsamic Pork

2009-06-10T20:30:00.001-07:00

Yes, I've been missing in action for awhile: missed 2 checkins, even forgot to weigh in this a.m. Oops! I'll just say, June is busy. Summer is coming fast though!

Hope everyone has been doing better than I with staying on track. I've been gaining pounds rather than shedding, but I have been building some muscle keeping up with my exercise: boot camp and running. I ran a hilly 5K race yesterday. I felt good. My back has been cooperating, too. Yeah!

I haven't tried any new recipes lately- well until today! :) We didn't have any extra activities (other than a trip to the library), so I tried a new recipe from the new Clean Eating magazine: Balsamic-Marinated Pork Chops & Grilled Peaches.

The chops were very tasty and easy. Even dh, our non-pork lover, liked it. My peaches weren't ripe enough (I just bought them after work), so I'd really like to try it again with juicy, ripe local peaches when they are in season. Mmmmmm...

Yesterday was my first summer organic box, and I was excited that I got some rubarb. I'm going to try the rubarb raspberry pie from the new Cooking Light, possibly tomorrow. I'll try to post in a timely fashion if I do. :)
-- Post From My iPhone

HYC + Summer Salads

2009-05-25T20:45:00.001-07:00

HYC check in: I had another good week exercisewise. I even ran walked a 10K which I haven't done for quite a while. (with my sweet friend and brand new and still shiney and enthused running partner Karin. :)) My step group got their fancy new workout shirts that look great and most of them are excited about possibly making an exercise video next week. FUN! Bootcamp has been great- working in muscle work 2x a week.

My eating did not go that well though! I started off the week fine- even reflected in the scale dipping down to a new low, but then I squashed it by going to a party with my old running group- go figure! Why? Chinese food, apps, cocktails, chocolate dipped strawberries served at a mansion like house. Eeeee! :P I'm so weak at times, esp when faced with treats, weakened by cocktails.

So anyway, now I think my weight will be back to where it was last week: no loss. I'd say this week will be better, and it will be except I'm going to a scrapbook convention: lots of sitting around and American Super Sizes. *sigh* Say a little prayer for the muffin top...may it crumble and not Super Size before summer.

My picture above is a salad using my organic greens from this week. Don't you love the colours of summer? :)

Hope you all had a great week! Happy Memorial Day if you celebrated it today- hope it was skinny! (unlike all my holidays)

-- Post From My iPhone

Sunday BBQ

2009-05-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

Why does weekend pass so quickly? Why? *quiet sobbing* Okay, I'm over that and moving on...

We had a nice one. My sister, Laurie, husband and our nephew came out for the afternoon. The girls practiced baseball (baseball has started: a sure sign of summer) with Uncle Rich and dad, while I made the marinade for the chicken. Later I went to a local farm for strawberries with Laurie. Love most things "summer"!

The marinade recipes for the chicken and the flank steak came from Williams-Sonoma's "Essentials of Grilling" that I borrowed from the library this week. The chicken was "Citrus-and-Honey Chicken Breasts." The steak was "Ginger-Soy Flank Steak with Grilled Green Onions." Both were very enjoyable. :) The chicken has a definite citrusy flavour. It reminded me of the Cooking Light chicken brochette recipe that we tried a few weeks ago. I loved the flavours of the flank steak marinade also. with the soy sauce and sesame oil and ginger. mmmm...

The dinner was capped off with some homemade ice cream made by Laurie in her ice cream maker: vanilla with dark chocolate and almonds. It was very, very good. Laurie says that she cuts back on the fattening ingredients where possible, but we'll just count it high and move on- adding a side of low-point strawberries. ;)

Hope you all had enjoyable weekends! (Happy Memorial Day tomorrow to my American blogging friends!) Here are the recipes in brief as I couldn't find them on line. I haven't calculated the points yet, but they seem pretty low. :)

Citrus-and-Honey Chicken Breasts

zest and juice from orange, lemon and lime

3 tbsp chives I used some of my newly planted garden herbs from Costco!

1 tbsp fresh mint

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp wildflower honey I used regular honey

Marinate 6 boneless (pounded flat) chicken breasts in a glass dish (after reserving 2 tbsp of the marinade for basting) for at least an hour up to 4 hours. Remove from fridge the last 30 minutes and add sliced lemon, orange and lime to the marinade the last 15 minutes. Discard marinade and grill.

The chicken grills for 4-6 mins per side over med.-high heat; the fruit for 1 min per side. Baste with the reserved marinade.

Ginger-Soy Flank Steak with Grilled Green Onions

1/2 c soy sauce

2 tbsp veg oil (I used canola)

1 tsp Asian sesame oil

2 tbsp packed golden brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp grated fresh ginger (My organic ginger has kept well wrapped at room temp.)

1 flank steak (625-750 g)

12 green onions (I used my organic spring garlic)

1 tsp veg oil (I didn't use. Just grilled my garlic as is. Missed this oil part. :P)

Mix marinade. Marinate steak for 20-30 mins at room temp and discard marinade. Grill 4-5 mins per side. Grill onions 3-4 mins. Serve steak on a bed of grilled onion. (Mine are just pictured in part. There was more steak not shown and it was more well done than it looks here. Dh likes well done meat: have to supervise him or he'll burn it all. lol.)

adding fish to the diet

2009-05-20T18:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Hump Day once again. Another busy day of rushing- though it was one of my two weekly days without exercise. (Hard to tell, what with the rushing. :P)

Anyway, one of my goals is to add more fish to our diet, and not just the battered stuff that we like best, of course. Anyway, driving back from my after school appt, I stopped in to Costco and bought some tilapia. I used a recipe in the new Cooking Light (May 2009) to prepare it: Snapper with Basil-Mint Sauce." (5 points) I happened to have mint and lime in my fridge and basil on my cupboard (see post from yesterday. ;)) so I was good to go without another trip to the store. Anyway, dd8 ate at a friend's house (ironically, they were having fish, too, so yeah! lol), but the three of us remaining liked the recipe.

I really, really loved the sauce. It has a delicious minty-pesto flavour. As mentioned, I used tilapia instead of the red snapper, after googling it as a possible replacement. The tilapia is very mild. Even dd11 enjoyed it, saying it was like salmon (her idea of the ideal fish). LOL Overall, I'd definitely do this recipe again.

My side salad has some light Renee's Caesar, my dd's favourite. Our organic shipment this week was very good, so I'll have lots of good greens this week. Not pictured, we also had our usual raw carrots. Oh, well, small steps of dietary change.

HYC garden fresh promises

2009-05-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

Another week, improved muscle tone and better fitting clothes, but probably no weight lost. Why? Didn't track again this week (though I pay for the right to), didn't drink enough water and ate too large portion sizes in the snacking dept (due to the non-tracking issue). So, in summary, not a horrible week, I'm starting to feel a lot fitter, but I need to make further changes to get the scale moving in the right direction again.

My back is feeling a lot better: Yeah! Only modified 1 thing in boot camp tonight. (the full sit up: I'm afraid of ripping apart my back on the first jolt up) :P

No recipe to share tonight- had a very delicious egg sandwich for dinner tonight with lots of garden fresh toppings and light mayo. Mmmmm... Anyway, I thought I'd share a tip from my organic delivery people, instead, that made a world of difference to the quality of my fresh basil.

The basil we get in the delivery comes with the roots attached. I was finding that the basil would still turn black pretty quickly if I didn't use it right away. Well, one week, the veggie experts told us not to put the basil in the fridge- it's too cold, but rather, put it on the kitchen counter in some water. I took their advice and my basil lasts perfectly, right till I need to use it, even a couple weeks later! Sidenote: It also makes the kitchen smell garden fresh. :)

-- Post From My iPhone

Strawberry Layer cake for our Marie :)

2009-05-18T18:57:00.001-07:00

Hope all my Canadian friends had a great Victoria Day weekend. (and everyone else had a great weekend + Monday!) We had a nice long weekend, complete with a birthday dinner for our friend and chief babysitter, Marie, who turned 83 on Sunday.

Our German neighbour from when we lived in our first home, has stayed a part of our family with lots of emergency babysitting/ stand-in grand mothering. If only I'm half as fit as Marie when I'm 83, I will have lived a very fit life! She has her aches and pains- badly broke her arm a few years back which put an end to a regular fitness regime (she had started as part of a university hospital study), BUT even that didn't really hold her back. She stuck to all her physio exercises, of course, and probably surprised most of her doctors. She's always on the go, driving her friends to appointments, organizing groups to plays, doing her gardening, keeping her house as neat as a pin.

Yes, a lot of it is beyond our control: ie good genes, but I think even more of it is a good attitude. Marie would say, "Just Do It!" (ok, not her words, but summing up her non-whining attitude.)

Anyway, for Marie's bday celebration I made the Strawberry Layer Cake from the May 2009 issue of Cooking Light. The cake was a hit with the crowd (except for dd11 who wouldn't try it). With the pureed cup and a bit of strawberries mixed in the batter, it really has this fresh jam taste to it. The cream cheese icing is really good on it, too. It will cost you some points at 8 pts for a piece, but it's worth it. (Marie would tell you that.)

Speaking of 8, I got out today for an over 8K walk/run. It was a bit cool out, but sunny- perfect for running.

Just Do It! plus, have cake now and again. :)

Long Weekend Muffins

2009-05-17T08:30:00.001-07:00

Happy Victoria Day weekend, if they have that in your world! I was going to post yesterday, but was out late seeing Star Trek (fun movie!) and then the family computer was taking forever to upload pics. Ugh!

Anyway, the week was pretty much back on track. My back has been good overall. Did Tuesday and Fridays boot camp and taught step on Monday and Thursday. Didn't run on Wednesday (dd's baseball and chiro), but got out on the Monday and yesterday. Yesterday we ran over 7K on my favourite route: down a wooded walkway to the escarpment stairs, up (way up!) and then along the mountain brow (sidewalk, grass, gravel, road and trail) to a lovely wooded trail down and through a golf course area. We're on our way to our June 5K! Where do you guys like to run?

Yesterday I made some muffins from the library-borrowed Cook's Illustrated "The Best Light Recipe." I really liked them and would definitely do them again. The base recipe is for "Blueberrry Muffins," but (not having blueberries) I used their adaptations for "Cranberry and Orange Muffins"

The muffins are quite large! (and 6 pts) You could definitely make more than 12 of these. I didn't have enough cranberries, (about half called for) and besides adding more next time, I think I might not cut them up as called for. They remind me of the Mmmm Muffin and those always had big cranberries.

I will link the recipe later-can't do it on my Touch. I also hope to try the blueberry ones later I bought blueberries: woo hoo! But that's another post.

Hope you all have a nice rest of your weekend, with fireworks, too- even if you didn't get Monday off from a queen. :)

Updated with recipe:

Cranberry and Orange Muffins

1 ½ cups dried cranberries
2/3 cup orange juice
2 tsp orange zest
1 cup plus 1 tbsp sugar
2 cups, plus 1 tbsp flour
1 cup cake flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 ½ cup plain low-fat yogurt

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray.

Mix cranberries and orange juice in microwave-safe bowl with cover. Heat about 1 min in micro until juice is bubbling. Let stand 5 minutes and then strain and discard juice.

Process sugar with 2 tsp orange zest, about 10 seconds.

Whisk together 2 c flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ¼ c of sugar in med bowl; set aside.

3 In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and ¾ c sugar together, beating until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each one. Beat in the lemon juice, grated lemon peel and vanilla.

4 Reduce speed to low. Beat in one third of the dry ingredients until just incorporated. Beat in one third of the yogurt. Beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients. Beat in a second third of the yogurt. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients and then the remaining yogurt. Do not over beat. Toss berries in tbsp of flour and fold into batter.

5. Distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups. Sprinkle with remaining tbsp of sugar. Bake until muffins are golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.

-- Post From My iPhone

Happy, Happy Anniversary to Me... Blog!

2009-05-11T19:13:00.000-07:00

Okay, kind of anti climatic since I missed my actual blog anniversary (May 3rd), ummm...by MORE than a few days, but still "woo hoo!" been blogging for a year now. It's been an interesting year- for me anyway. I definitely tried more recipes (one of my goals), exercised more now and again (with a few stalls), ate more fruits and vegetables (esp with my organic veggie delivery), fell off the wagon a number of times ("events" seem to be my downfall) and got to know many of you much better through reading YOUR blogs. In terms of success: I lost 20 pounds this year. Not quite the 40 I'd hoped for, but I'm still working on it. I know that my smaller sized clothes (from my stash) fit me much better and I definitely feel like I'm treating my body better. :)

Sorry I've been mia this week AND missed my HYC check in. Had a rough week after pulling my back on Monday night. I've been enjoying my sessions with my new and shiny chiropractor, though. I'm a new believer in being pulled like a pretzel. ;) I did my first run- walk tonight since being injured. I also did step at lunch, too. So far, so good. We signed up for that 5K in June, so I want to keep up on the training.

I had a nice Mother's Day, but had a few too many fatty foods. I find it upsets my stomach now. Like the underlying Weight Watcher principal: moderation is the key. Sometimes I go a little crazy, but I know it doesn't make me feel great in the end. So I should work on having less of those crazy eating sessions this coming year, eh?

In recipe news, I tried a few. One was from "The Best Light Recipe" from the editors of Cook's Illustrated. I found it at the library and knowing my gf's love of Cook's Illustrated magazine, I checked it out right away. It looks like it has a lot of good recipes. The chicken pictured above has a "Honey, Mustard and Garlic Wet Rub" (1 point) on it from the book. The ingredients are as follows:

1 tbsp veg oil

3 garlic cloves minced

2 tsp honey

2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tsp fresh rosemary

1 tsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 salt

The asparagus recipe I found in another cookbook- super fast: basically sprinkled with garlic powder and roasted. It also called for slivered almonds, but I didn't have any, so I skipped them.

Hope you all had a very nice Mother's Day! This is one of my beautiful M's D cards, definitely the best gift of all (even next to my fancy new Ipod docking station/alarm clock). :)

Celebrate Spring! (with some cake!)

2009-05-03T19:19:00.000-07:00

Had a nice, low key kind of Sunday with a family dinner at the end with grandma, Aunt Karen and cousin, Michael. I did get out biking earlier in the day for the first time this spring with dd11. :) Our neighbourhood is pretty hilly, and I'm not great on the bike gears, so got the heart pumping a few times.

We had BBQ chicken (very good simply marinated in olive oil, lemon juice and zest, garlic, oregano and salt and pepper), grilled Naan bread, salad (mixed greens Mache mix, avocado, blackberries, goat cheese, lemon juice and olive oil), and raw baby carrots. The best, of course, was the chocolaty dessert. From the Celebrate Spring! article in the latest Healthy Cooking by Taste of Home, dd and I made the Chocolate Raspberry Torte. (6 pts) It got rave reviews from the company.

The cake called for raspberries on top of the cake, but I couldn't find any at the couple of stores I went to, but the strawberries looked pretty good. To make the four layers, you have to cut the double slabs in two. It was a little crumbly (cake was probably a little too warm), but overall not too difficult. The filling is a mixture of light cream cheese, icing sugar and seedless raspberry jam. You can also sprinkle the top with icing sugar, along with the fruit, the idea is to save calories on icing. You don't really miss it. The fruit makes it quite delicious.

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

Greek Food BBQ-style and Remembering Dad

2009-05-02T19:25:00.000-07:00

I'm writing this still super full from dinner. We ate kind of late, and had antipasto (from a visit to Whole Foods today) before we did our BBQ (plus, had a couple of rum frozen cocktails: wild Saturday night and all: mil, Ken and I, yee haw! ;)). Luckily, I had some exercise today (though probably not enough to cover tonight's feast).

We met at 8am in the parking lot of a local golf course, ran down a path to some escarpment stairs which we then climbed (flights and flights of them) and then ran across with mountain brow to a woody trail and ran-walked down those. It was about 8.5 K in total. It was the perfect temp for running, too- sunny, but coolish.

Tonight I tried a couple of new recipes: we had Greek Lamb Chops (5 pts) and Feta Mashed Potatoes (2 pts) from the Cooking Light. The lamb chops were easy and tasty. We did them on the BBQ instead of the broiler. The feta potatoes were good, too. They did involve unhooking my beater from the mixer stand, but otherwise, they were pretty easy. I should have crumbled the feta a bit more- some spoonfuls got more than others. (mil and dd liked them more than dh, who, as a rule, isn't crazy about potatoes anyway.) I also tried some Designer Fries (roasted sweet potatoes) and Chili Dip (sour cream, lime zest and chili powder) from an LCBO (liquor store) flier that came in the newspaper today.

And about my dad...today would have been his birthday and this is the first May 2nd we've had without him. We were all thinking of him today and miss him, always.

Zucchini with a Squeeze of Lemon

2009-05-01T20:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday, almost Saturday, Blogland. Had a day of a lot of sitting around in meetings- with a brief 10 min walk in the sun to lunch. A gf had a whole group of us co-worker/ friends to lunch in between the meetings. I brought Lemon-Glazed Zucchini Quick Bread from my Cookin Light Complete.

I was able to use 2 organic zucchini and 2 organic lemons. It got good reviews at lunch even amid some way more decadent desserts.
I like the sweet lemon coating: a mix of icing sugar and lemon juice. I skipped the butter and didn't really miss it.

Sidenote: Ken said he's never had zucchini bread. I was shocked. I thought it was part of everyone's childhood. I know my mom used up a lot of endless zucchini with bread recipes! (slathered in butter in the end) :)

Tomorrow we're going for a 8am run. Should go to bed now. Night.

p.s. edited to add recipe...I couldn't find it on the Cooking Light site, but I found it typed out on someone else's site. (Thanks Jerry!)

Lemon-Glazed Zucchini Quick Bread
(from the All-New Complete Cooking Light Cookboook)

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup finely shredded zucchini
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbls grated lemon rind
1 large egg
cooking spray
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
2 Tbls fresh lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, level with knife.
Combine flour and next 6 ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture.
Combine zucchini, milk, oil, rind, and egg in a bowl; add the flour mixture. Stir just until moist.

3. Spoon batter into an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray (or muffin tins, half baking time). Bake at 350 for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack.

4. Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice; stir with a whisk. Drizzle over loaf.

-- Post From My iPhone

Tuesday check-in and a new find share

2009-04-28T18:30:00.000-07:00

No picture, no recipe, but a workout to share and a salad dressing find...and a check-in, too. :)

I had a good week this week. I tried a few recipes, and even better, had a number of good workouts and signed up for a local 5K race in June. I feel like I'm in the zone. kwim? I still have a few things to work out: better (er some!) tracking, more water (as usual) and more sleep. My weight is on the downward trend again- at least 1 pound down. I hope it sticks.

My boot camp tonight was a great workout. We were kicked out of the gym (due to a team practice), so we did it in the hallway on the fifth floor. Well first we ran the stairs. We ran up and down the stairs adding a flight each time, working up to the fifth. (exhausting! Our stairs are pretty brutal.) Next we all did a stairwell circuit of mat work (push ups, sit ups, planks) and cardio (double stairs and stair runs) in pairs.

Our next circuit set in the main hallway on the fifth was split in two: half the group on sets of arm exercises, and half on legs. Our trainer, Brian sets up the stations down one of the halls on the fifth. Afterwards we did a couple laps of the hall (our school hallways are conveniently large squares.)

Today was also organic veggie (and fruit!) pick up. I'm still loving working these into our week. Tonight I had some mixed greens with a bit of my new, favourite dressing that I found at the Whole Foods Store last week: The Best Dressed: Caesar (no anchovies). Want to see what it looks like? Click here for a closer look. Hope everyone had a great week!

Chili on a not chilly day!

2009-04-27T21:16:00.001-07:00

Just a quick post before getting some much needed sleep (as boot camp is tomorrow). Had a chai latte after our 6K run walk tonight and I'm thinking that it's why I'm not super tired. Next time, a decaf! We're hoping to run at least 3 x week to prep for our 5K in June. Next run, Wednesday.

I crazily prepped a slow cooker chili this morning before work- the CL one I'd made before: Smoky Slow Cooker Chili, for those of you interested. It's the one with the scary ham hock in it for flavour- eek. This time I had beer on hand and in spite of the added morning chaos, it was deliciously worth it in the end- the chili, not the beer, though that can be enjoyable, too.

I replaced their impossible to find Mexican (?) cheese with feta for the final touch, used my green-onion- like garlic instead of cilantro and served it on chopped lettuce with a side of Baked! tortilla chips. Very nice. :)

Sweet caffeine free dreams, blogland!

-- Post From My iPhone

Sunday Sweet: Uncle Walter, the Crisp, and using Stuff

2009-04-26T19:32:00.000-07:00

A bit cooler out today, but still sunshiney. I had a nice day overall- getting stuff done and trying a few recipes using up stuff from my full fridge. I made the classic banana loaf from my Cooking Light Complete using up some browning bananas.

I also was happy to use some of the miso I bought at Whole Foods the other day, in making Vegetable Donburi over Seasoned Rice. (6pts- 1 c mixture; 1 cup of rice) I was also able to use up organic shiitake mushrooms (I used way less than called for- since I didn't have 6 cups), ginger, green onions, carrot and garlic. It was good, but only dh and I would truly try it. It looked quite different to my dds. They judge food on looks. :P

I also made the Peanut Brittle Apple Crisp that I found on the Cooking Light site. (using the Chipotle Peanut Brittle from yesterday) It was really good. I will edit this post to link it. Not sure how to do it from my Touch. The recipe calls for frozen yogurt. I used Chapman's low fat vanilla. Delicious! (and used up 8 organic apples!) I used small ramekins to make the small servings (1/3 c crisp+ 1/2 c frozen yogurt- 6pts)

Finally, I thought I'd take some lines to honour my sweet Uncle Walter who passed away this week. At 96, he lived a pretty healthy life, running into more troubled times in recent years as his past as a prisoner of war in Hong Kong during WWII came back to haunt his thoughts and memories.

He'd always been a very quiet and gentle man as long as I've known him, but the changes on his memories brought back those sad times to the forefront. As a kid I never heard him speak of those times, he didn't want to remember them, but my parents told me of his having to eat whatever crawled across his cell- grasshoppers- is what stuck with me as a child. I think he got to work in the kitchens later and he survived.

I didn't get to see him in recent years, but my sister Susie lives close to him (in Vancouver) and my mom is visiting these past weeks, so that was good. My thoughts are with my Aunt Jeanie, my dad's eldest sister and Uncle Walter's wife.

Goodbye, Uncle Walter- you were always a good uncle, always ready with a hug. Hard to imagine that you're gone.

-- Post From My iPhone

dining by moonlight (with rain and lightning and metal skewers)

2009-04-25T19:41:00.000-07:00

Definitely a lovely day today. Stepping out of the house just before 9 this morning, I had to turn back and leave my running jacket. It was crazy warm out there.

Anyway I went for an almost 8K run/ walk with a friend. We're actually hoping to do a 5K race in June. It's good to have a goal. :)

We ate SO late tonight! Our activities went late into the afternoon and then the rain storm put a damper on our BBQ plans. We decided to go ahead later- in spite of a drizzling rain and occasional burst of lightning. Poor dh. metal skewers and all. :P

Another reason the dinner was late was because Mediterranean Grilled Chicken Kebabs (5 pts) marinates in Pomegranate-Orange Dressing which calls for Pomegranate Molasses and it's apparently really hard to find, but easy to make, if not a little time consuming!

Anyway, the chicken kebabs are really, really good. I had a backpile of organic oranges and this recipe uses a cup of their juice and 2 on the kebabs. I really don't use chicken thighs in recipes- we always got for boneless breasts instead. I liked the moistness of the darker meat in these. I'll have to do them again.

Finally, I was also planning to make a peanut-brittle-using-apple-crisp recipe that I found on the Cooking Light site, but in searching for peanut brittle at the grocery store AND the dollar store (next to the grocery store) for the brittle, to no avail, I decided to make brittle. I found a recipe in the new May 2009 Cooking Light for Chipotle Peanut Brittle. (3 pts: 1 oz) (The recipe doesn't seem to be posted yet- so no link.*updated with link*) I don't think I've made peanut brittle before, but this was pretty easy to make and very tasty. (dh really liked it, too.) I was going to leave out the chipotle altogether, but then I only used 1/2. It's still pretty spicy. Should make the apple crisp interesting. I'll let you know.

Salmon, Rice and Greens

2009-04-23T19:26:00.000-07:00

Had a pretty good day with a bit of slightly interrupted exercise and one new recipe- or a couple if you count the Cooking Light chocolate sauce (not pictured :)) that I made while watching Grey's Anatomy and had on some low-fat chocolate Chapman's frozen yogurt. mmmm...chocolaty.

About my interrupted so kinda brief exercise: the school I teach at is very multicultural and a couple of the Muslim girls in the class are strict on there being no males in our gym, since they are in gym clothes. We hold our class in the Girl's Gym, but in our busy school, sometimes people stroll along or get curious or have some job to do. Anyway, the head of boy's phys ed suddenly took a supply shipment from Toronto in the middle of our class, so we had to wait (and in some cases, hide) while they (slowly! ie, teenage helpers :P) walked boxes across our gym floor. sheesh. Pretty good workout otherwise though! :)

The salmon recipe that I tried tonight was from the new (April 2009) issue of Cooking Light: Salmon with Maple-Lemon Glaze. (7 points) It was tasty. My greens look pretty green- with green pepper and celery (all from my organic delivery), but I did also have some orange: raw carrots (not pictured). They also have a new low-fat Caesar dressing on them- the greens, I mean, from the Whole Foods store- their brand. It was very tasty.

One of my gfs and I did an after supper run to Whole Foods in a town near us. She'd downloaded a coupon from Oprah for a cute little Whole Foods bag. Kinda like a small part of an Oprah giveaway show? no? Thanks anyway Oprah! I really like it. ;)

HYC checkin, the good, the bad and the salty

2009-04-21T19:23:00.000-07:00

Hey HYCers! Hope everyone had a good week!

(The Bad) I think I'm like Kristin, up a pound again. (Can I say I'm a latecomer to it, but kinda getting hooked on The Biggest Loser.)

Official weigh-in isn't until tomorrow, and even though the boot camp (the good) was really good tonight, its goodness has been counteracted by my snackiness through the week and by (the salty) my dinner of movie popcorn at the Hannah Montana movie.

Strangely, I feel like I'm back on track though. I had some good workouts this week: always the key to my weight loss and my staying in the zone- the zone where I feel in control and make better choices.

Also, the Easter chocolate is now pretty much out of the house. Hop along little chocolaty bunny with your jelly bean droppings.

Sweet and Spicy

2009-04-20T20:01:00.001-07:00

Well Monday is just about done like dinner, so I thought I'd share mine. Well, part of it anyway- and the groovy spices I found at Winner's.

I don't always buy food items at Winner's (due to possible freshness questions, but these were dated and well sealed.) I've been looking for fire roasted tomatoes for awhile, so this shaker of dried ones is part of the way there.

I thought the Jamie Oliver spices looked good (plus cute in their little containers). LOL not sure how to use Bird's Eye chilis (any tips?) but they-again- look adorable. Is Janet a shopper or what? Anyway, I've come across a number of recipes lately calling for whole herbs crushed, so this JO stash is good for attempting that.

Finally, for the sweet, I had a sweet and sweaty step class today at lunch with lots of super teens (and one sweet teacher friend) and I tried a new sweet potato recipe. The recipe using up my last 4 organic sweet potatoes (I halved the recipe) was Cooking Light's Brown Sugar Glazed Sweet Potato Wedges. Delicious! Crazily I'm the only one who <3 's sweet potatoes. More for me? ;)

-- Post From My iPhone

Sunny Weekend Suppers

2009-04-19T18:46:00.000-07:00

What a nice, sunny weekend- well in Southern Ontario, anyway! Saturday was especially warm. (no jacket required) Today was still really sunny, but with a bit of a chilly breeze. Still perfect for walking though and a gf and I got out for a 5.6K hike through the hills of the conservation area. We didn't run at all, kept up a good pace, and some of the steep parts of the path really get your heart pounding- so a good work out none the less.

No one in my family was interested in walking, in part because both my girls had sleepovers last night with very late nights. (a Brownies' sleepover and then the older siblings had one, too. :))

I tried a few recipes from the new Cooking Light magazine (April 2009) this weekend. Cilantro-Lime Chicken with Avocado Salsa (6pts) was from the "make it Fast & Fresh" article and- ergo, very fresh and very fast. I made a couple of changes: parsley for cilantro and lemon for the lime- using what I had in my fridge. I love homemade salsa. It always makes you question the purchase of store bought stuff.

I also tried a couple of side veggie recipes from the "Take a field trip" article- showcasing local fare growing in fields across America-er, North America, that is. :) My fridge has quite a few organic veggies left in it, so this article "spoke" to me, if you kwim. I did the Soy-Sesame Kale recipe (1 pt) and the Linguine with Arugula Pesto. (6pts) I liked both. I did the Kale with the Swiss Chard that I got. I really enjoy recipes with the flavour of sesame oil and soy sauce. dh said he never had Swiss chard or kale growing up. I'm going to have to question mil about that! Seems impossible!

The linguine was good, too, though I found it a little mild in taste. Maybe my PC arugula that I got at Fortinos today wasn't fresh enough? (I'm getting used to "very fresh" from our organic delivery: not pre-washed and usually with soil attached to the bottom.) or maybe I didn't add enough garlic?

Speaking of garlic, I had my first delivery of organic garlic. It was a different way to get a garlic taste in things. It looks like a green onion. Not sure if I used it "correctly". I'll have to google it if I get it again.

a most excellent dinner :)

2009-04-16T19:01:00.001-07:00

In an attempt to use up some of the organic fruits and veggies that are currently filling my fridge, I tried a number of new Cooking Light recipes tonight. Roasted Chicken with Lemon Curd (6pts- 3 oz and lemon) was super delicious- if a little time consuming for a week night. Luckily it was so nice out, that the girls played outside for a bit longer than usual and I was able to get the clean-up mainly done while it was cooking.

It really was easy to make- and- except for the chicken- I had all the ingredients on hand (yeah), including the 4 lemons I used for the Lemon Curd, plus the two more for the roasting.

side note of extra details from Janet's life: I had bought extra lemons, to go along with the organic ones, in case I decided to make a lemon meringue for Easter. I bought it instead and made the chocolate dessert- ergo a stash o' lemons.

Anyway, the Lemon Curd is a separate step, but very delicious. It actually tastes like lemon meringue pie- almost like I made the pie after all, eh? ok. not quite. Not sure what I'm going to use the left-over lemon curd on- ice cream? What does one use curd on? In this recipe, it's a glaze over the chicken. Love the roasted lemons in this, too. You serve each plate with half a lemon. I squeezed mine over my chicken. It was almost creamy seeming. mmm... The chicken was moist and delicious- lightly flavoured with lemon, garlic and rosemary. Probably most of you roast chickens all the time. I have to admit that it's something I often buy to save time rushing home from work- so this was very exciting for me. (and so much better than store bought, eh?)

In my organic veggie delivery, it's often the potatoes that seem to go soft before I can use them (and so I waste them). Tonight I used mine (woo hoo!) when I made Potato Gratin with Goat Cheese and Garlic. (4pts- 2/3c) I think I might have made this recipe before- lol- not sure, but they were surely delicious. Can anything with goat cheese NOT be delicious? I say "no." Again, the recipe was pretty easy, other than the peeling of the potatoes. I was happy that I used my potatoes- a five or six red ones- before they sprouted. (Just a couple of sweet potatoes left now!)

Finally, I made a carrot dish: Carrot Coins with Maple-Balsamic Browned Butter. (1pt- 3/4c) It was really good, too. You steam the carrot coins first and then basically toss them in a browned butter mixture. I had two bags of carrots left-over: my sister snuck over her own bag of carrots for Easter instead of using mine. Sneaky devil. ;)

Anyway, thumbs up from everyone on the chicken. Dh and I both really liked the veggies.

In exercise news, I had my step class at lunch today. I downloaded new music (love new music!) and had a couple of new students come to the class who were enthusiastic: very fun. :) Tomorrow is boot camp- should get to bed early in preparation. Tonight I felt sore from Tuesday's class.

A brief HYC check in

2009-04-14T21:27:00.001-07:00

Just a late night quickie so I actually check in kind of on time! I was downloading music for my step class online (for the first time) and it was taking me longer than I thought.
( So kind of fitness related.)

We had our first boot camp session after work today. Our favourite instructor is back from fireman school in Texas and was willing to train us at our school. Love it! Tough, but good. We're going to do a Biggest Loser kind of thing- complete with weigh-ins and measurements. We'll have to do percentages cause we have a least one skinny mini.

As for scale news currently, I need to clear out the left-over chocolate and jelly bellies from Easter or my belly will be jelly. I expect to be up at least 2 pounds tomorrow. Oh well! Back on track tomorrow with more water and exercise. Hope you all had a nice Easter!

-- Post From My iPhone

Happy Easter from Chocolate Central

2009-04-12T18:10:00.000-07:00

...the bunnies are winning. Hypnotized by some beady candy eyes, I'm eating more of the delicious creamy stuff than planned. I can resist the cheap waxy bunnies, but the good stuff from a local chocolate place (love you Walkers Chocolate!) AND the delicious bag my sister brought from a flashy TO store, pretty irresistible.

side note: Laurie also brought me a tasty looking bag of tea: Coconut Cream Chai. A bunch of my favourite flavours together. I'll lyk how it is. Had a lot of caffeine today to offset the extreme tiredness of a very late night. That bunny needs a sidekick in the delivery department.

We had a nice Easter dinner. I did a couple of Martha recipes : Ham with Whole-Grain Mustard and Apricot Glaze and Roasted Potatoes with rosemary and garlic (with a side of sweet potatoes on the same pan- had a few sweet potatoes leftover from my organic delivery.) I also did the Anna Olson side salad with a tasty greens variety instead of the usual arugula and goat cheese instead of feta. I hadn't had goat cheese in awhile and one of my gfs was talking about it lately and I was reminded of my gc lurve. My sister Laurie did a Bon Appetit glazed carrot recipe that was very good, too. She did a funky foil covered steaming thing in the cookie sheet pan. I love Laurie and her fancy cooking ways. :)

Remember my plan to do some Cooking Light recipes? Well...my Cooking Light recipe (singular!) was one of my desserts. I picked up a lemon meringue pie (and rolls) from our amazing local bakery), so I decided to do a chocolate recipe. Individual Chocolate Mousse Cakes were delicious and found in my Cooking Light Complete binder, but you can find it here. We had ours with Half-the-fat Haagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream. Chocolate and creamy, 4 worth-it points and cute ramekin sized, they're the perfect end to an Easter dinner...

(...with a side of Easter chocolate eggs, of course- I told you: hypnotized!) ;)

Hope you all had a very sweet and tasty Easter. Tomorrow, we work out!

Easter prep and a long walk in the woods

2009-04-10T20:13:00.000-07:00

Hey all! Happy Good Friday! We had an enjoyable day off work. We had a relaxed morning (though dd woke us up around 6 am crawling in). I caught up on some blog reading, made muffins (the Pumpkin Pie Spice ones again) and tidied (for Easter company coming).

In making the muffins, I realized, just as I was putting them into the oven, that I forgot to put in the vanilla. ugh! don't you hate that? assuming it happens to anyone else other than me? I had to scoop all the batter out (luckily this batter is NOT runny in the least), stir in the vanilla and re-spoon into the cleaned muffin tins. We ate them steaming hot from the oven, so it was all worth it in the end. ;)

In my other "fitness" news, I got my friend Karin to come with me on a walk through the conservation area near us. I turned on my Nike Ipod app sensor thingy and we ended up walking almost 5 K. The best part (worst part?) of the conservation area trails is that they are super hilly, so good quad work in there, too. It was a beautiful day to be outside- rather than on my basement treadmill. Something about the sunny spring weather to lift the spirits, eh?

Still have to do my menu planning for Easter dinner. Tomorrow, I guess, I plan AND shop.

Have a nice Easter, everyone! Watch out for those beady eyed chocolate bunnies...they can bite back! ;) (I plan to bite one first- just one bite though, possibly two.)

Scale Shocker

2009-04-08T14:04:00.001-07:00

Ok, not soooo shocking! Just down 3 pounds from my last recorded weight a week ago on the online ww tracker.

Funny how just last night on the Biggest Loser, a 3 pound loss seemed like really bad news? LOL It's all relative, eh?

My cute model is my nephew who was telling us about the toy alligator he got on his trip to Mexico. (and not being surprised about my big 3 pound loss.)

Happy Hump Day, weight loss chums! Hope all your weigh ins this week are surprising in a good way, too.

-- Post From My iPhone

Tuesday's Italian Tomato Tart (and checkin' in!)

2009-04-07T17:47:00.000-07:00

Well, actually I made this Italian Tomato Tart from the new April 2009 Cooking Light, last night, ie Monday, but I had left-overs for lunch- so it was kind of Tuesday's tomato tart- for alliteration and all. :)

It was pretty easy and very tasty. It would have been even easier, but instead of the called-for commercial pesto, I made some. I had basil left from my organic delivery and so I made the Cooking Light classic pesto from my Cooking Light Complete Recipe binder. I made just half a recipe (since I just had one basil bunch) and refrained from chopping basil for the top since my children would not have liked a scattering of green on top.

Okay, my children didn't like it even without the scattering of green, but dh and I gave it a big thumbs up. It's actually a recipe that takes awhile to make though- cooking time wise- so maybe try it on the weekend, if your week nights are rushed. I changed up the tomato a little, too, since I had left-over organic grape tomatoes and one vine one. I bought a single (called for) plum and the plum WAS the easiest to work with and the best for this recipe. (so go "plum" if it works for you.)

Finally, I enjoyed the rice/pesto crust of this tart. dh didn't even notice the pesto flavour. Score one for team pesto.

In check-in news, I'm down a couple of pounds so far this week. Easter is a danger zone ahead, but we're holding Easter dinner at our house, so I have a little control over the meal anyway. I will be looking up Cooking Light recipes. (or a crock pot ham one? ;))

In exercise news, we're starting a new workout program after work at our school with our favourite personal trainer from boot camp. Yeah! I'm excited to start back in with a boot camp type workout since we never did make a final gym decision. Best of all, no time to get comfortable home on the couch, forming excuses as to why not to exercise. This is right after work. woo hoo!

Banana Loaf and Chocolate Chicken Chili Soup

2009-04-06T17:58:00.001-07:00

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Happy Monday ( if there is such a thing in your world. ) My day has been busy and long seeming, but no step at lunch (conflicts with volleyball and illness), so no workout YET. I'm feeling bad now with this cold though ( dizzy symptom added to the unattractive rest) so I might take the night off.

On the weekend I did a couple of recipes: one my classic banana bread one from Cooking Light Complete. I've only done it as muffins, but with my new, crazy looking red "pan", I decided to try it as a loaf. The family really liked it this way. Dh said he preferred it as a loaf.

I liked it, too, but the loaf makes me want butter on it even more. Crazy? I think of pre-buttered slices at teas and events: inch thick at that. It makes me want butter. Anywhooo! Moving on....

I did another crock pot recipe from The Art of the Slow Cooker: Chocolate Chicken Chili Soup. It was yet another good one. His ingredients are always so flavourful. There is a little prep work, but nothing too onerous.
I only had to buy the chicken for it. The rest I had on hand. It works out to 6 points and 6 servings. I served it with baked tortilla scoops and/or crusty bread. I really enjoyed it. My family were fixated on the chocolate part and complained about that flavour (shouldn't have told them that part) LOL I don't think they would have noticed it otherwise.

Recipe in brief:

2 pounds of boneless chicken (cut into 1/2 in pieces)
Cook chicken in non-stick pan-- med high in tbsp of veg oil
About 3 mins. Put in slow cooker.
1 onion
Add onion to pan and sauté 2 mins
4 garlic cloves
1 tsp cumin, oregano, thyme, salt
2 tsp chili powder (I did 1 tsp)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp flour
Add garlic and above spices. Cook 1 min.
1 1/2 c chicken broth
1 can (15oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (15oz) white beans, rinsed + drained
Add broth + tomatoes. Stir, boil, thicken
Add to cooker with beans.
Cook 3-4 hours high
Or 6-8 hours low
1 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
Stir in until melts -2 mins
Cilantro garnish (I skippped)

-- Post From My iPhone

A Trial Post

2009-04-04T19:39:00.001-07:00

Happy Saturday night in blogland! I've been off line for the last few days, but thought I'd post a quickie testing out a new app from my touch. Hope to catch up on more blog reading before the weekend is over AND hope I have a recipe to share on my blog, too.

I made muffins this morning- before getting together with friends for coffee and chatting-but while tasty, not low fat (and made in a rush- so no pic).

The ladies in this pic ( I'm in the pink in the middle) all signed up for the Plan B organic veg delivery and we often share posts and recipes over facebook. I love the support of friends (like my blogging friends, too) on this quest for better health through good food and exercise! I need all the help I can get. So I thank you for all of yours, too.

-- Post From My iPhone

Sugar

2009-03-31T19:12:00.000-07:00

Hey blogging friends! I don't have a recipe to share for my check-in post. All I made today, other than my parsnip soup at lunch and my delicious scrambled egg wrap for dinner (with an Anna Olson blackberry salad on the side) were cookies that I made for my children and dh from Anna Olson's NON- dietary cookbook Sugar.

Sugar was one of the books that I picked up at the library in a fit of Anna Olson recipe love. It might not have been such a good idea. I'll have to hold strong if I make anything else from it. My excuse: dd REALLY wanted chocolate chip cookies for a lunch snack and had been reading the cookbook. I could have made our Cooking Light oatmeal ones again- the kids ask for that recipe, but I was curious about how an Olson "sweet" recipe would be- since she's "known" more for desserts. I guess I coulda GUESSED that they would be pretty darn good. *sigh*

But I do have a NSV concerning them: I only ate one. Can I get a woo hoo? I deserve a woo hoo. The chocolate is all gooey and warm in each bite. (and not to point fingers, but dh had 3.) :P

Should I even say that everyone in the family gave them a big thumbs up? Was there a doubt? LOL. Why are there no picky eaters when chocolate is involved?

Anyway, in better healthy blogger mode, I thought I'd share a new snack find (that maybe everyone already knows about) I found at Costco: the Praeventia bars. My favourite flavour is Cranberry & Pomegranate with Red Wine Extract. The bars have a lot of healthy ingredients in them and I love the bottom coating of dark chocolate. I also enjoy that they come in two mini bars- makes it seem like more, don't you think? Anyway, I think they are well worth their 2 points.

In check-in news, my weight has held the same this week- well, it has actually gone done a tiny little bit (unofficially). I'm good with that since I was kind of snacky this week. For some reason I haven't been doing my online tracking very well the last couple of weeks. Tomorrow I'm going to start fresh for the week, tracking my food. It really makes a difference for me.

Hope everyone had a good week!

Roast Parsnip Soup

2009-03-30T19:19:00.000-07:00

...Roast Parsnip Soup with Honeyed Hazelnuts and Brandy Creme Fraiche, that is! Continuing on the theme of using up organic veggies from my delivery. The recipe is from Inn on the Twenty and wasn't too complicated- other than the pain of pureeing with my mini food processor and the mess of straining. (I lost a lot of soup in spillage!) I didn't make any "Brandy Creme Fraiche" but did the suggested replacement of sour cream (which I had on hand). I used light- naturally. ;)

The recipe called for a pound and a half of parsnips, I only had 3 small ones, so after much internal debate I augmented with the single huge organic turnip I got in my box. I toyed with using the crazy purple carrots from the box, but thought they would change the soup's colour, too much, so I risked the turnip. (I actually like turnip raw, too, and nibbled a bit while I was chopping it up.)

Anyway, the soup tasted good in spite of the turnip, I'll have to try it again with straight parsnips if I get parsnips again. You roast the parsnips (and turnip!) in 350 oven for 20 mins before adding them to the soup pot.

The soup also has 1 onion, 1 celery stalk, (cook those in the pot for 5 mins first in and then add:) 1 garlic clove, (cook another min and then add:) 1/2 c white wine, 6 c stock (I used the organic store bought, though this recipe book has a really tasty sounding stock recipe), 1 tsp fresh thyme and 1 tsp sage. Simmer the soup with the roasted parsnips for about 20-30. (I simmered for much longer, due to timing issues.)

I skipped the optional whipping cream, but did caramelize the hazelnuts in honey. You heat the nuts for 10 mins at 325, take them out and cool them, toss in 1 tbsp of honey, and put back in oven for another 5 or so.

The soup is pretty tasty. Who knew that parsnips could be enjoyable? I really liked the sour cream stirred in and the flavour added by the sage and thyme mixed into the organic chicken stock. (like a turkey dinner in soup form! :)) I worked it out to about 4 points for a bowl.

Hope everyone had a good Monday! Step class was cancelled today so I didn't get my lunch hour workout in. I'll have to head to bed so I'm more motivated to workout tomorrow!

Race Day and an Organic Dinner

2009-03-29T17:42:00.000-07:00

Today was the oldest North American road race: the Around the Bay 30K Road Race and it poured. Kudos to all those who RAN ANYWAY, including our friend and running partner, Dana- pictured here about the 20K mark and still smiling. I was chatting and holding a Tim Horton's coffee when she appeared suddenly in front of us, so I took this jogging beside her, struggling with a coffee (got coffee up my nose at one point) and the camera. She was still happy and smiling. Watching this race always makes me want to do it again. Gotta cut down on the excuses (like bad weather: I've become a wimp!) and just do it. kwim?

I really enjoyed tonight's dinner, which was pretty much entirely shaped by the remaining veggies in my organic delivery. I had a number of things to use up. Firstly, I tried the crockpot beet recipe in my new cookbook from Montreal: art of the Slow Cooker. This is the second recipe I tried from it and so far it's 2 for 2 in tasty recipes. Tonight's Slow-Roasted Beets with Walnut Gremolata (2 pts a serving) was very flavourful and really not too tricky either. I wore plastic gloves for the beet preparation this time: no purple pinkies. The beets were tender and firm with the orange zesty walnut gremolata sprinkled over top. mmmm...Beets aren't something I'd want every day, but if you're going to have them, this recipe is the way to go.

Slow-Roasted Beets recipe in brief: After scrubbing the beets (I used 4 oversized organic ones), you heat them in the micro for 8 mins to soften so you can peel the skins off. Next you slice them into quarters once cooled down (I cut mine in more pieces since they were jumbo large) and put them in the crock. Toss with 1/4c orange juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, quartered garlic clove, salt and pepper. Cook 2-3 hours on high. The walnut gremolata part is made separately and sprinkled over the cooked beets. (gremolata: toasted 1/2c walnut pieces, orange zest from 1/2 orange, 1 tsp chopped parsley.) 6 servings, 2 pts. each

I also made a couple of recipes from a public library cookbook. (I went a little crazy in ordering cookbooks at the library while I was waiting for dd. I currently have a huge stack! ) Inn on the Twenty Cookbook is a compilation of recipes by Anna (of In the Kitchen) and Michael Olson served at their restaurant in Ontario. With just a quick skim, I saw so many recipes that I'd like to try.

I did a modified version of their Warm Mushroom Salad with Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette. (In that I completely skipped the tomato part, being without any sundried tomatoes.) Using the small bag of shiitake mushrooms I had left from my organic box, the salad was delicious. Who would have that a dressingless salad except for a mushroom concoction would be so tasty? As the only mushroom lover in the house, though, I was the only one who really ate it. It was so good though!

Mushroom Salad summary: In a med skillet, over med-high heat, I sauteed 1 tbsp of diced onion (didn't have shallots) in a bit of olive oil for 1 min. Next I added sliced shiitake mushrooms (it called for 1 pound, I had around 1/4 of that- under 100g), fresh thyme and a minced garlic clove. After the mushrooms were softened, I stirred in a tbsp of balsamic vinegar, sprinkled with salt and pepper and cooked for just a couple of mins more. The Olsons use a salad green mix, I used the watercress and arugula that I had from my delivery. Loved it! You should try it!

Finally, on my dinner plate, I roughly followed one of the potato recipes from the same book- basically potatoes tossed in olive oil and fresh rosemary AND did a chicken recipe from the new Clean Eating. (May/June 2009) Spice Islands Marinated Chicken served with a fresh mix of island fruit. It was very tasty, too. The only change I made was to use some of my light Coconut milk mixed with water (1/2 and 1/2) for the coconut water which I couldn't find.

Hope everyone has a good week, full of exercises without excuses- even under pouring rain.

Mac and Cheese with a Secret Ingredient

2009-03-25T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hey all. Got thru my official weigh-in day only being up 0.6 from my last official wi, so not too bad considering!

For dinner tonight, I made this mac and cheese dish- Macaroni and Four Cheeses, to be exact, from the EatSmart magazine (with Ellie Krieger). I TRIED to follow the recipe exactly, but couldn't find frozen squash anywhere- even after calling around to places. Anyway, since I'd bought all the cheeses, I thought I'd try replacing it with canned pumpkin that I had on hand.

It actually was pretty good- after the first surprising taste, I couldn't really taste the pumpkin. I also replaced the bread crumbs with crushed Baked! Lays (which I thought were on my grocery list for THIS recipe, but apparently not). To possibly balance out the extra points from this, all my cheeses were of the lower fat variety. The rest of the recipe I followed exactly.

Both my girls liked it after trying. Younger dd actually had seconds. Dh thought it was something they might serve in prison. LOL. Can't win them all.

I had my serving with some medium salsa and it was very tasty. The mac and cheese has a bit of a kick to it, itself. ( Cayenne pepper strikes again.)

You get 2 cups for 8 points- quite generous, eh?

In veggie news, our organic delivery finally arrived last night- after being a no show for supper time. Tonight my veggie side was a delicious salad blend. Not sure what all the whispy bits were, but some had a radishy and peppery bite. Love that. Had it with my Asian Sesame blend. Tasty!

Dh, on the other hand, said he was looking for dandelions in it- mumbling something about the lawn mower bag. *sigh* ;P

Checking in after March Break madness

2009-03-24T18:13:00.000-07:00

Time for the HYC check in after my week sliding off into the March Break of Cake with a side of ice cream. So far, it doesn't look like the damage is too, too bad. This morning I was up a pound from my last official weigh in. Unfortunately, I'd lost another unofficially after the wi (so I'm up a couple from where I COULD be), but it's ok. I'm back on track now. Hopefully. My mom lives in a different province. (Just kidding Mom!) :)

Things I need to work on week: more glasses of water (I've been really neglecting the H20)and more consistent exercise. Hopefully I can work off my March break this week.

Finally pictured above: the flax waffles my sister sweetly made for us when we stayed over in Toronto before heading to Montreal. Aren't they pretty? and I'm touched that she went for the healthier waffle recipe. They were very tasty, too. and weren't served with ice cream. ;)

Spaghetti and Meatballs Cooking Light Style

2009-03-23T20:00:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I pretty much always buy spaghetti sauce, BUT in the effort to try a new recipe and add more protein to our evening meal (cause we usually have it plain with the only protein coming from cheese), and to also use up a cup of my excess organic onions that are sprouting into green onion trees, I looked up a Spaghetti and Meatball recipe on Cooking Light and made it last night.

Overall, I really liked it and would make it again. The sauce is actually pretty spicy and a little too hot for my girls. My younger dd liked the meat balls the best, but next time I wouldn't put them in the sauce- she likes things separated (and worked hard to wipe the sauce off her meatballs with her napkin.) She likes sauces the most in the family, ironically, but nothing can touch or run into each other. Dh didn't like the runniness of the homemade sauce or the onions. He also likes his meatballs more burnt. (LOL) Anyway, personally, I thought the meatballs were perfectly cooked following the CL directions. I prefer them non-rubbery and non-blackened. But that's just me! :P Elder dd liked the spaghetti with the sauce, but found it spicy and only ate one and a half of the meatballs- though she claimed to like them ok.

In terms of modifications, I did the recipe as is except I didn't mix the sauce into the noodles. (Esp. for younger dd with her desire for sauce on the side.) I guess next time I make these, I'd also cut back on the onion (although it was good to use some up!) and on the red pepper flakes in the sauce for the peeps. A dish of 3/4 cup of the pasta mixture with 1/2 cup sauce, and 3 meatballs will cost you 9 points.

In exercise news, I did end up run-walking on the treadmill before bed yesterday. (Guilt made me work it in, so yeah for having you guys- my exercise consciences!) I taught a step class at lunch today, so I'm 2/2 on the exercise this week. I'll have to keep this streak going.

March Break Mmmmmmuffins

2009-03-22T09:51:00.001-07:00

Something old, something new...as March Break dwindles away. *sniffle* This morning eldest dd (for a change) and I remade the Pumpkin Pie muffins little dd and I made a few posts ago. (Look below for recipe, if you are so inclined.) This time I left out the pumpkin seeds cause I plan to freeze the ones we don't eat today for the girls' lunches and they didn't love the seeds.

The other muffins I made on Saturday before my shopping trip with one of my gfs. On said trip, I bought a new Lululemon outfit. It was pricey, but we'll say it's a reward for my over 20 pound loss. and move on, ok? Now I'll have to workout today for sure. I'm currently wearing it as I type this- it's comfy even for lounging and eating muffins. Preferable, even?

I bought black Boogie Pants in capri length and a tank top in bright yellow with polka dots. I liked this one in particular because it has a pocket for an Ipod and I'm still without a holder for my Touch. I usually put it on the exercise machine somewhere, but it always seems precarious on our home treadmill. I'll lyk how the Touch fits it when I work out later: making a promise here. I gotta make my Nike mini me on this blog active again, too. It kind of depresses me when it gets so lazy looking. Like I'm bringing it down with me. :P

Anyway, back to muffins: the Saturday muffins were from the online Cooking Light recipe stash. These Morning Glory Muffins used up a couple cups of my organic carrots and one cup of my many organic apples. Woo hoo! There's actually a ton of ingredients in them, but I had everything on hand except the pecans and the apple butter. I PLANNED to make another crock pot of apple butter- using up some more of my excess apples, but didn't get around to it, so I used store bought apple sauce instead. I also skipped the raisins in the hopes my children would like them, but it didn't work. So far it's just me, dh and my shopping gf who've liked them. I really liked them. dh of the "I prefer a dry muffin" was forced into trying one, but then ate two. (He's still going on about the moistness of the Anna Olson Banana Bran muffins, btw. lol)

I will definitely make these again. I might try replacing the raisins with dried cranberries next time OR 1/2 c of chocolate chips- which someone did in the recipe reviews. The recipe makes quite a few muffins (24), so I plan to freeze some for lunches to take for work *sob* lunches. Each Morning Glory muffin will cost you 3 points. The Pumpkin Pie ones are 4.

Slow-Cooked Teriyaki Chicken and the Movies

2009-03-20T19:32:00.000-07:00

Just back from taking the girls and friends to the Witch Mountain movie (pretty fun and strangely violent for a kid movie) and now we are waiting until midnight to go and pick up our copy of Twilight. woo hoo. (Ya, we could wait until morning, but it's much more exciting to truck out in the middle of the night to Blockbuster, right? and dd has her Twilight t-shirt on, so we're pretty much ready to rock! :))

Anyway, before the movie action, I made a recipe from my new slow cooker recipe book from my March Break travels: "Art of the Slow Cooker" by Andrew Schloss. The book was a little pricey (almost $30. Canadian), but I was drawn to the recipes in it: fresh ingredients and beautiful pictures. Right away there were a few that I knew I'd try (and not just read about, like I sometimes do.)

The one I tried tonight Slow-Cooked Teriyaki Chicken was excellent. The instructions seemed a little cumbersome: broiling the chicken AFTER the 2 hours in the slow cooker, but it was easy to take out the chicken (not too much liquid) and then heat up the liquid in a pan. I served it with rice and the sauce was really tasty with the rice. We had a side of the arugula salad (from Anna Olson's book) and crusty bread. Everyone liked the chicken. I was the biggest lover of the sauce. Definitely a keeper!

Now off to pick up the copy of our vampire movie! Night all! :)

Slow-Cooked Teriyaki Chicken

1 tbsp vegetable oil

4 pds skinless chicken thighs (about 8), bone in (or you can use breasts- which I did)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp grated ginger root (learned you store it at room temp with foil over cut bits!)

1/4 c plus 1 +1/2 tbsp water

1/3 c soy sauce

1/4 c sherry or apple juice (I used apple cider)

1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

2 tbsp dark molasses

3 tbsp honey

2 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp dark sesame oil

2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced

Heat oil in large skillet over high. Brown chicken 3 mins per side. Put in (5-6 quart) crock pot.

Add garlic and ginger to skillet over med-high heat. Cook about 30 secs. Add 1/4 c water and scrape up bottom bits. Add soy, sherry, rice wine, vinegar, molasses, honey and stir. Pour over chicken, cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, until chicken cooked thru. (I used chicken breasts, so cooked for 2 hours. Temp is supposed to be 165 F on meat therm, if you like to check.)

Preheat boiler to high, remove chicken to broiler tray and broil for 2 mins on each side. While chicken is broiling, add liquid from crock pot to a skillet and bring to a boil over med-high heat. Dissolve cornstarch in 1 + 1/2 tsbp of water and add to sauce. Stir until thickened about 1 min. Arrange chicken on a platter, spoon sauce over. Drizzle with sesame oil and sprinkle with scallions.

Hello from Montreal!

2009-03-17T07:26:00.000-07:00

Just a quick check-in. I'm typing from my parents' old computer. I have no recipes to share: just a report that my mother has been over feeding me! Cake and ice cream 2 nights in a row. What? I'm a grown woman who could turn down cake and ice cream? Really? :P

What happens to my healthy eating when I'm away from my regular controlled environment? I hit the pause button. *sigh* Well, I'm still doing better (cake and ice cream aside) then I would have done in the past. I'm still making better choices overall and turning down somethings. Like this morning, I turned down my mother's muffin offer since I'd already eaten my bowl of cereal. That's a small victory, right? I have some ability to turn down food. Even stuff with chocolate in it. (They were banana bran chocolate chip muffins.)

I have no recipes to share, as I said, but I did buy a new, delightful looking crock pot recipe book with some healthy looking recipes to try. I'll have to input them all into the online ww recipe tracker though, as there are no nutritional values given in it. Shouldn't it be like stuff we buy in the grocery store? everything labelled? with cals, fat and fiber at least? Just sayin'!

I also have no pictures to share. I did bring my camera, but didn't think you'd want to see a picture of my large piece of chocolate cake with ice cream. Anyway, I found this old picture my dad scanned I guess. It's of my cousin, Tracey and I at my dad's old homestead on the Gaspe coast. It cracks me up because my sweet Aunt Dot was so over-protective (and guess which one of us turned out to be the wild child? irony, eh?). My cousin is COVERED in a towel, while I'm totally not and probably getting soaked. Love my mother- even though she feeds me cake!

Hope you all are having a good week! I think I regained the amount I HAD been down during this past week, but that's ok. I'll do better when I'm home again.

Cranberry Orange Scones

2009-03-14T08:52:00.000-07:00

Actually got out to my morning (chilly!) stair workout with my running partner. We didn't do them a ton *coughtwotimes* and we only did the steep golf course hill ONCE, BUT, hey! I got out and did a little, right? while the rest of the family were pretty much lounging or sleeping (not pointin' fingers, but just sayin') .

I should mention that these stairs go up the side of a mountain, just in case you think they were super short or anything. I WAS huffing and puffing greatly. In the boot camp days, though, you'd do them like 6 times? 8 times? When I called dh from Starbucks (mmmm...Chai latte!) afterwards to see if he wanted a coffee, he was all surprised "I thought you were running?" so it all was pretty short. LOL Probably 30 mins in total of exercise. (but again, please refer to paragraph one)

So, anyway, with this workout under my belt, I enjoyed my chai and then went home to make cranberry orange scones from the Anna Olson cookbook (which I have to take back today, someone requested it at the library- annoyingly pushy fellow patrons!) I might actually buy my own copy. I lurve this cookbook- truly! It's so pretty.

Hope everyone is having a nice start of March Break- if it's MB in your world. We're off to Toronto today to stay over at my sister's (should be some good eating there. Should have had a longer workout and less scone! eep!) Then tomorrow we're off to Montreal to visit my mom for a few days. I'm going to try to report in there and stay on plan. We'll see how it goes. I was down another pound this morning and I'm seeing some ab definition from all this weight work we're doing with our gym testing. :)

Cranberry Orange Scones

1 1/2c flour my flour container currently has a combo whole wheat and reg flour mix- probably lowered the points? but I just counted all-purpose flour in the tracker

3 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp orange zest I used the zest from one orange. It made less that 1 tbsp clumped.

1/4 tsp fine salt I used reg table salt

6 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces and chilled You could cut down on butter?

1/2 c half and half cream (plus, extra for brushing)

2/3c dried cranberries This was a lot o' cranberries. You could cut down.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease baking sheet.

Mix first 5 in bowl. Cut the butter into dry mixture until it resembles a coarse meal. Add cream and mix to form dough and then add cranberries.

Roll dough out 3 times on floured surface. (This is Anna's trick for a flaky scone.) Roll into a 1 inch thick disc and cut surface into 6 pieces. Place on baking sheet and brush with extra cream. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until tops are nicely browned.

6 servings, 7 points each. I know! high points! BUT delicious. :)

Cornflaked Chicken Fingers and One Day to Freedom

2009-03-12T17:33:00.000-07:00

...the freedom that is March Break that is. woo hoo!

Didn't make anything today- went to the nicer gym tonight (we might pick this one if we get a good deal.) I did the elliptical, the bike and the treadmill. No weights tonight, since we did them yesterday. They do have nice weight machines. One thing we noticed was that while it LOOKS like they have a ton of treadmills, we couldn't get 2 together that actually worked (that didn't have people on them) and there were quite a few free. Not sure if this was typical. Many had an emergency button (or something) error message. Any gym members familiar with this?

Anyway, after our workout we did a drive-thru takeout: veggie burgers for me and the dh (or Lick's Nature Burgers for those who know that chain). Love their burgers: you can buy them at the grocery store, too, though I haven't for a long while. It's funny how you get in the habit of buying certain foods and then kind of out of habit. I'm like that anyway. Alternating in cravings.

Yesterday, though, I tried another recipe from the fine Cooking EatSmart magazine: Crispy Chicken Fingers with Honey-Mustard Sauce. I found the recipe here, though they don't credit the magazine (that I can see anyway).

The chicken fingers were good. They are- as their description- pretty mild. If you like a spicier recipe, you might want to jazz them up a bit. The mustard sauce, which I forgot to take a pic of, was only tried by me (dh ate alone after we were all at our various activities) and so I wasn't there to spoon it onto his plate, he skipped it. He's not really a sauce guy, but I think he would have liked it.

Happy almost Friday before March Break! :)

Planning Meals around Fruits and Vegetables

2009-03-10T19:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, first let me admit that I can't say that I'm the greatest on getting all the fruits and vegetables that I should all the time, BUT I'm getting better. woo hoo! One thing that is helping me (besides my ww online tracker with the fruits and veggie check off box which makes me feel guilty when I don't fill it-but then I carry on!) is my organic veggie weekly order.

I'm going into my second month of getting the order (after placing it online), and I have to say that it really has improved the variety of veggies and fruits that I eat AND I'm finding that I plan more recipes around the veggies that I'm given. Love that! The organic box is like a little challenge each week to- the goal: to waste less from the box. So far I'm doing pretty well.

I also love the fact that some of my friends have signed up for deliveries and share some of their recipes with me, too. One of my friends and I have incorporated a walk/run into our pickup time.

(Couldn't do it tonight: too cold and rainy.)

Anyway, luckily for my goal to get to bed earlier tonight, I actually found the new coleslaw recipe I tried tonight online. Cooking Light is definitely the best magazine to review, with its wealth of online recipes. (Thanks CL!) My Tuesday pickup came with a cabbage, so I tried Tangy Mustard Coleslaw to go along with our Tuesday Tacos. (I have to admit, for this one, the tacos came first! lol)

Ken and I liked the slaw the most. It was a little too tangy for the chillens. It's tart! but for a mere 1 point per serving, tart is good...

...as are produce orders.

Think of it like paying for a personal trainer, but for your food. Well worth the cost if you can swing it. :)

Sleep tight!

Makin' Muffins with My Sidekick Chef

2009-03-09T19:31:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to get to bed earlier tonight, but here I am at 11 pm just posting. Time flies when it's your "free" evening time, eh? Anyway, thought I'd share some pics of a new muffin recipe that we tried tonight. These Pumpkin Pie Muffins are from EatSmart from the publishers of fine Cooking. I came across it at Costco and thought it looked good. It's actually like buying a recipe book- almost- in price: it retails at $11. Isn't that more book than magazine? I guess not nowadays. (ok, now I sound like an old timer. LOL) Anyway, it was a bit cheaper at Costco than retail at least.

The recipes in it are the creation of Ellie Krieger (not sure if she did all of them) who writes, "I believe that luscious and healthy can be used in the same sentence." I like that! I'm trying to live more fully with healthy, but interesting foods. That's my goal anyway.

Anyway, the muffins are really good. Very dark and moist- like gingerbread almost? or, I guess, Pumpkin Pie. We made them kind of late- by the time we were done, so dd and I just split one, since it was actually after her bedtime. (I need to get her her own apron. She used to have one, but she out grew it. I took a pic cause her floured shirt looked cute to me.)

Anyway, my assistant chef picked off the pumpkin seeds, but gave them a big thumbs up (and wants them in her lunch bag tomorrow.) They will cost you 4 points a piece if you are a ww girl. Not too bad for a big, luscious (and yet healthy!) muffin.

In early (for me) HYC check in news, I was actually down a couple of pounds (unofficially) this morning. I had a pretty good week: same old story: need to exercise more consistently and need to drink more water. Also, need to get to bed earlier! like now! Hope you all had a good week! :)

Here's the nuts and bolts of the recipe in brief as I couldn't find it online. lmk if you have any questions. I left out extra description, as usual.

Pumpkin Pie Muffins

1 c flour
1 c whole wheat flour (or whole-grain pastry) I used a combo flour mixture
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp nutmeg
3/4 c packed dark brown sugar I only had light for 1/2 c and then a brown Splenda mix
3 tbsp unsulfured molasses
1/4 c canola oil I used vegetable oil since we were out
2 eggs
1 c pumpkin
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 c buttermilk
1/4 c unsalted raw pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven 400 F. Coat muffin pan with cooking spray.

In med bowl, whisk flours, baking soda, salt and spices. In large bowl, whisk sugar, molasses, oil and eggs- adding one at a time. Whisk in pumpkin and vanilla.

Alternate adding flour mix and buttermilk. Whisking. Does all this whisking earn APs?

Bake for 20 mins until toothpick comes out clean. :)

Makes 12 muffins 205 cals, 7 g fat- 1 sat, 2 g fiber

Anna's Banana Bran Muffins

2009-03-08T18:26:00.000-07:00

Sorry to any Twitter friends who saw this muffin pic already today! I only took one...and didn't take a pic of the crock pot lasagna, since I shared it already. (I did cut on hour off the cooking time this time, btw. The lasagna's top and side was a bit dark last time. My crock pot is new and shiny and extra HOT apparently. So that's a new tidbit for your crock pot notes.)

Anyway, back to the muffins from In the Kitchen with Anna, dh and I were the only ones who gave the muffins a fair try today. Both the girls nibbled and then gently expressed their dismay (yelled, spit stuff out: Miss Manners would have been pleased.) Bran muffins are new to them. They are not really fair or openminded reviewers. (I need a new review staff!) ;)

Ken and I both liked them. Ken is used to a "drier" muffin- he likes all things dry and/or crispy and muffins are, apparently, no exception. Anna Olson is going for moist with these: she has you soak the bran in buttermilk for 15 mins for extra moistness. I enjoy a moist muffin, but found them really banana-y. My bananas were uber ripe: blacken shapes in the fridge, but seemed fine unpeeled. I also used 3 for the 1 and 1/2 c (the recipe said it could be 2 or 3 bananas), so maybe with less ripe and less mashed bananas? I would recommend them though- if you enjoy a moist and banana rich muffin which is quite large for a mere 4 points. I'm packing one for lunch tomorrow. :)

Here is the recipe in brief. lmk if you try them and whether your personal reviewers like them!

Best Banana Bran Muffins

1 1/2c wheat bran

1 c buttermilk

1 1/2c mashed banana

2/3 c light brown sugar, packed

2 eggs

1/4 c vegetable oil

1 1/2c flour

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 c raisins I skipped for my children. Next time I'll add them. :)

Preheat oven 350 and grease 12 muffin tin.

In a small bowl blend bran and buttermilk. Let sit 15 mins.

In a large bowl whisk banana, sugar, eggs and oil. Add bran mixture.

In another bowl stir flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add to batter, stirring until just combined. Spoon into muffin tin. Bake 20-25 mins until top springs back. Makes 12 muffins (4 points without raisins :))

a dusty gym and a delicious dinner

2009-03-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

The gym we checked out this morning really was a dismal place, but my friend and I had a fun time anyway. It was really a blast from the past: some of the equipment was exactly the same as from our days at the YMCA in the early 90s. (Possibly the exact machines- they were pretty old.) We also accidentally walked into and left our stuff in the men's change room. har. The door was open and no one gave us a tour and I thought that the first change room was the ladies. lol. LUCKILY (or unluckily? ;)) there was just one dressed man in there when we went back to get our stuff AND we'd both worn our workout clothes there (mine covered by a pair of jeans since it was coolish in the morning.) He guarded the door for us while we ran and got our stuff.

Anyway, this gym still has the projected floor plans in all their glory on the wall, but it doesn't look like any of the renos will take place though the management is still saying that it's starting shortly (April). I guess they've been saying - this for years.

So, we're still undecided about which gym we will join- if any. This gym has a parking pass and my friend works downtown. The other gym is super fancy- recently renovated- (guess we shouldn't have gone there first, eh?) but has no parking and we're not sure what kind of a deal we can get. AND then there's always boot camp again. They are offering a deal, too.

Anyway, I have been enjoying doing weights and the cardio machines at the gyms. Neither seem to offer many classes- well, the fancy one definitely has more. The rundown one's aerobic room is a wreck with bits of equipment scattered about and a big hole in the wall. "Ghetto" as my friend summed up. :P BUT we could still get a workout there...though we might be depressed during it. ;) decisions, decisions...

I made two more recipes tonight from In the Kitchen with Anna: Sweet Potato with Onion & Pumpkin Seeds and Arugula with Avocado, Blackberry & Feta. They were both very good. I went to our local butcher to find steaks (as suggested by Olson to go with the arugula side ). Anyway, when I got there, I found the Berkshire (heritage meat) pork chops that the liquor store recipe called for last week. Soooooooo...I did the pork recipe again. It was even better this time. :)

Sweet Potato with Onion & Pumpkin Seeds

3 Tbsp olive oil I used 2

2 c sliced onion I chopped mine and mine darkened too quickly (but tasted good!)

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1 1/2 lb sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 1/2 in, diced I only a pound

salt & pepper

2 Tbsp lemon juice

1 /2 c unsalted pumpkin seeds, toasted

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a med, heavy-bottomed pan, heat oil over med heat and saute onions and thyme until onions are caramelized, about 40 mins. Toss with potato in a baking dish and roast for 30 mins. Remove from oven and toss in lemon juice and seeds.

(6 servings/ 4 points)

Arugula with Avocado, Blackberry & Feta

c arugula, washed and trimmed

1 avocado (sliced)

1/2 pint of blackberries

1/2 c crumbled feta I used 1/4 cup of light feta

juice of 1 lime

good quality olive oil I used 2 tsp

salt & pepper

Arrange salad ingredients. Sprinkle salad with lime juice and olive oil. Season lightly.

(6 servings, 2 points)

Chickpea, Chard & Potato Soup with Rosemary & Lemon

2009-03-05T17:27:00.000-08:00

Made a delicious soup tonight after my workout (pat! pat!) It was so good. :) Had it with half a crusty roll left over from last night (with a little bit of light butter). mmmmm...

On our Tuesday library run, one of the cookbooks I picked up was one I preordered : In the Kitchen with Anna. It's a lovely book with stories behind each recipe, techniques and a description of the taste. It also has a number of recipes I want to try. It's funny when I first flipped open it it fell to this recipe (to which I thought "Great! I have chard in my organic box.") and then to a sweet potato recipe with pumpkin seeds (which I also have- no extra shopping! Don't you love that?"). Co-inky-dink!

Anyway, I really love this soup. You should try it. It's 3 points for a bowl. (Recipe to follow)

In exercise news, I actually exercised twice today: I taught step at lunch break AND I had a 20 minute run on my treadmill. I love my Touch and my Nike Ipod program: music helps make me forget my suffering and at the end, Lance Armstrong's voice came on to congratulate me for breaking a personal record. First the man is twittering me all the time, and now this. huh. He must be drawn to my crumbling muffin top (that we athletes naturally boast of), right? ;)

Chickpea, Chard & Potato Soup with Rosemary & Lemon

2 Tbsp oilve oil
1 c diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
5 c chicken stock (I used a combo of chicken and veg PC organic no fat stock)
6 sliced white mini potatoes
1 can (14oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 bunch Swiss chard
salt & pepper
2 Tbsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley, for garnish (I skipped this)

Heat oil in pot over med heat. Saute onion 5 mins (til translucent). Add garlic, lemon zest and rosemary and stir for a min. Add chicken stock and potatoes, cover pot loosely and bring to simmer. Lower heat and simmer till potatoes are tender, 20 mins. Stir in chickpeas.

Wash chard and separate stems from leaves. Chop stems into 1 in pieces. Add to soup. Simmer 5 mins. Chop leaves and add to soup, now leaving pot uncovered and simmering until chard wilted, about 3 mins. Season to taste.

Before serving stir in lemon juice. Top bowls with chopped parsley. Serves 6.

Checking In with Tool Time

2009-03-03T19:03:00.000-08:00

Hey HYC check-in people! Why am I always the late check-in girl? Well, tonight it was because I was making a Hi-lari-ous comic for your enjoyment. har. (Hope you can read it- it's kind of small looking here!) Didn't have a recipe to share: I did make a WW chicken recipe yesterday- but it was just so-so. Soooooo...thought I'd share my two new kitchen tools in comic form. Crazy? Kinda!

How is this diet related? Don't you find having the right tools makes it more likely that one might be inspired to try some new recipes? For me, keeping my interest level up with new recipes keeps me on track better (and makes me want to stay in and cook instead of going out.) In Canada we have a store called Homesense, where you can find all kinds of cool kitchen gadgets for super cheap. I love shopping for kitchen stuff, though you couldn't tell from my prehistoric veggie peeler and broken garlic press.

(Just ask my TO sister who rolls her eyes are our super cheap cutting knives, for example- lol- and apartment day's cheese grater: which she replaced at Christmas time. It's ok to get kitchen stuff from your sister- who shops at better stores than you, but don't get any ideas, Ken!)

(isn't my pink veggie peeler cute?)

In check-in news, I had a pretty good week overall. I was kind of snacky this week- feeling more hungry than usual. I even had some french fries at one point (though I ordered a salad for myself and then swiped the fries off my children's plates. :P) I should have also worked out more: a few of my workouts got cancelled. So this week, I'm going to work on my water (again) and scheduling more frequent workouts. Hope you all had a good week! :)

Liquor Store Recipes hic!

2009-03-02T18:34:00.000-08:00

Our province's liquor store, er- monopoly? (the LCBO) has a seasonal glossy magazine called Food & Drink. It is very popular and it's hard to get a copy if you don't frequent the liquor store (so SOMETIMES I miss it- since you have to go home sometime, eh? ;)). Anyway, this weekend I tried a couple from the Winter 2009 issue. Unfortunately, they aren't online yet, though you can check out some of their OTHER recipes here. The ones I tried are below.

We all liked the Cider-Braised Ontario Pork Chops with Apples and Garlic. I really loved the apples with the chops. I was the only one who really did- or who actually tried the apples with the pork. My family isn't big on sauces and extras. No one wanted to try pressing out the garlic (except me!) either. I grew up loving apple sauce with pork chops, so I'm always a little disappointed when my kids won't give it a try! (The garlic non-love, I can live with- as long as they don't complain about ME trying it. ;))

The other dish involved the ancient grain, quinoa, in Quinoa with Tomatoes, Parmesan & Basil. I've never tried quinoa and thought it was very tasty, though the dish didn't turn out perfectly. It really had too much liquid. I think it needed to simmer longer- and I kept it in for longer than called for, but the rest of the dinner was getting cold or over cooked, so eventually I just cut my losses and served it. So, I would add to the simmering time below OR boil it a little longer. Maybe I cut THAT too short? Anyway, it didn't fluff very well. lol. I DO want to try it again- it really did taste good, if it was a little unappetizing looking. It was definitely a do-again.

Cider-Braised Ontario Pork Chops with Apples and Garlic

4 Berkshire pork chops, 1″ thick I just got reg loin chops :)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1-2 tbsp. olive oil
1 head garlic, broken into cloves unpeeled
1 c. hard dry cider I used reg cider
2 cooking apples, cored
12 fresh sage leaves

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Pat pork chops dry and season with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan over med-high brown pork chops 2-3 mins per side.

3. While the chops are browning, place the garlic cloves in a small sauce pan, pour in cider, and bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer for 4 mins.

4. Cut each apple crosswise into 4 slices. I used an extra apple that I cut "wrong" :)

5. Place the apple slices in a baking dish and then place the browned chops on top. Remove the frying pan from heat and pour in the garlic and cider, stirring to deglaze the pan. Pour this mixture over the chops; there should be just enough liquid to cover the bottom of the dish. Top the chops with sage and bake for 30-40 mins. or until the juices from the pork chops run clear.

6. Serve each chops with two apple slices, sage and garlic. Spoon over the liquid.

To squeeze the garlic out of the skin just press with your fork. (or NOT if you are a member of my family!)
(6 points per serving)

Quinoa with Tomatoes, Parmesan & Basil

1 c quinoa

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic minced

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 c vegetable stock

4 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1/4 c frshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 c thinly sliced fresh basil

Shaved Parmesan cheese (for garnish)

1. Rinse quinoa in a sieve, stirring. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat oil in saucepan over med heat. Add onion and saute for 3 mins or until starting to soften. Add garlic, pinch of salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and saute for 1 min. Add stock and bring to boil, scraping up any bits.

3. Stir in quinoa and return to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 15 mins. or until quinoa is tender and liquid is absorbed. 15 mins wasn't long enough. Mine still had a lot of liquid even with extra time. I should have boiled it longer maybe? Remove from heat and sprinkle tomatoes on top. Cover and let stand 5 mins.

4. Gently stir in tomatoes, the grated Parmesan, and half of the basil with a fork, fluffing as you stir. Season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with shaved Parmesan and remaining basil.

(3 points per serving)

A Cleansing Chocolate Break

2009-03-01T20:02:00.000-08:00

(you reading this, Cammy? This ones for you! ;))

Here's a late (much later than I'd hoped!) night- my computer is driving me crazy it's so uber slow- chocolate share. Today Morgie and I made Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip and Pecan Cookies from the Cooking Light site. We skipped the pecan part- so (a) my kids could take them in their school lunch box and (b) they would actually eat them and (c) I don't think I actually have pecans on hand.

Anyway, the cookies were very tasty. Like all cookies, these probably taste best hot from the oven, but even cooled down, they are crispy, but still very good. Thumbs up all round in our house. You get 3 dozen cookies from this recipe and mine worked out just one cookie short of that number. yeah!

For the last batch, I was out of cookie sheets (dd is using one currently for one of her "crafts" and I only own 3), so I decided to use one of my muffin tins. Have you ever tried this? It made for adorable, perfectly round, uniform sized cookies. (except the ones I mangled from dropping them onto the cutting board from the muffin tin.) Anyway, it's probably an old baking trick, but I thought it was cool- maybe it was just my happiness from the chocolate baking smells making the kitchen seem such a clever little place?

The other thing I liked about this recipe, was the use of the mini chocolate chips- which I had on hand from making Devin Alexander's recipes. She loves them, too. It really makes it seem like you have more chocolate in using the minis: they end up all over the cookies: more fair to all cookie eaters.

side note: the recipe called for parchment paper and like the pecans, I'm all out. I skipped it and just sprayed everything. The cookies baked fine. I'm learning to watch the really dark, non-stick cookie sheet: the cookies on it cook too fast and burn the bottoms a bit. Next time, I'll use my other muffin tin instead. See my kitchen really is a clever, happy place. ;)

Each of these cookies will cost you 2 points. :)

Sleepy on a Saturday :)

2009-02-28T07:45:00.000-08:00

*Yawn* Stayed up too late last night. Just didn't feel sleepy, though I was exhausted. Doesn't make sense, does it? Anyway, bright light of sun thru thin curtains and chatty dh (who wanted to tell me about his interesting SAS book facts- lol) woke me up early. Gotta get thicker curtains. Not sure what I can do about the chatty dh though. It's good that he reads and it's cute when he gets excited about stuff. Plus, I gave him the book for Christmas, so it's nice he's enjoying my gift and all (especially since at the time of giving it, he stressed about it being too expensive: hard cover, new title). :)

Since my last post, I tried a couple of new recipes. My organic veggie box is definitely shaping (and encouraging more of) my recipe choices, btw. Firstly, I tried a Martha Stewart pesto one to use up some of my basil and fresh spinach from this week: Fettuccine with Parsley Pesto and Walnuts. The pesto ACTUALLY called for parsley, but since I had 2 pretty bunches of basil, I used those instead. I also cut back on the walnuts and didn't sprinkle any on top. I also used bow tie noodles instead of fettuccine. (This recipe was a last minute decision. Can you tell?)

My spinach leaves look HUGE compared to hers because while I was making this dish, I was also prepping a plain version for dh, so my spinach didn't get tossed in until the noodles were cooled down: ergo, little wiltage. (If I could only train dh to like pesto!)

I cut the recipe in half for 2 servings and after the picture, added some shrimp. The recipe isn't actually low in points (11 using all her ingredients anyway). It was, like all things Martha that I've tried: very tasty!

Yesterday, using up more organic produce I made the Cooking Light Maple-Walnut Apple Crisp ( 4 pts) and this new vinaigrette from my organic veggie box company (they send recipes with their emails sometimes): Fresh Lemon Vinaigrette. It was very delicious and tart! :)

FRESH LEMON VINAIGRETTE (foodreference.com)
Ingredients

€ 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

€ 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

€ 1 clove garlic, pressed

€ 1/4 teaspoon salt

€ 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

€ 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions Whisk together first 5 ingredients. Gradually add oil in a slow, steady stream, whisking until blended. (If desired, prepare ahead by storing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature and whisk before serving.)

Have a great Saturday, healthy bloggers! I'm hoping to get in a little exercise. Being tired kills my desire to sweat a lot. Maybe a nap first?

Weigh-In Wednesday

2009-02-25T19:38:00.000-08:00

Another 3.4 down for a total of 20 pounds- as totaled by my ww online weight tracker. (Notice my new HYC bling.) This means I did make it back to my summer low point weight and into the 150s.

Hope my fellow Weigh-In Wednesday bloggers had a good day, too.

Checking in with Chops

2009-02-24T18:48:00.000-08:00

HYC check in time... I had a good week. I got in a little exercise (have to make it more regular though), checked out one of the gyms we are considering and tried a few recipes. btw, I have way too much reading material on my ottoman: a ton of new recipe magazines (cooking magazine junkie in the howww-sse) and cookbooks from the public library. I need more free time! How about you?

I am down this week- currently between 2-3 pounds. woo hoo! My official wi day is not until tomorrow though and so that might not stick. I am very close to my low from the summer, before I fell into a bin o' pizza and poutine in Quebec. It's funny how easy weight goes on- as opposed to the coming off- not in the funny "Ha! Ha!" sense- more in the" Boo hoo!" arena. BUT I haven't been suffering too much (as in I've been enjoying what I'm eating), and though it has been slow going at times, I do feel stronger and healthier with sprouting muscles and everything (to offset the creaking bones).

Finally, last night I tried another recipe from the new Clean Eating: One Skillet Lamb Chops. They were super delicious. Sometimes you just feel like a chop, right? :) The ones pictured in the magazine were thinner (and prettier) than the ones I found at Costco (from New Zealand). I left mine in the pan for longer than the recipe called for because of that and then, later, microwaved my younger daughter's too red chop bits. We're more of a medium well family (or very well done- ie, burnt, in dh's case.)

The chops looked quite small, but one really was enough. It just shows you how the typical portion size in restaurants is really too big. Anyway, here's the recipe, typed out by moi for your amusement.

One-Skillet Lamb Chops

4 med or 6 small 3/4 inch thick lamb loin chops (1-1 1/4 lb) fat trimmed I used 5 of mine.

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 unsweetened apple juice

1/4 c low-sodium beef broth

1 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 firm ripe pear, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4 in slices I missed the "peeled" part. Oops!

3/4 tsp fresh rosemary, thyme or combo chopped

Sprinkle lamb with salt and pepper. Cook over med-high about 2 1/2 mins per side for med rare or 4 mins per side for med. Keep warm.

Discard any fat from skillet and return to med heat. Add apple juice, broth, vinegar and pear to skillet. Cook 2-3 mins until liquid is reduced by half. I reduced mine to barely anything, but luckily I was the only one who really wanted some. lol. Sometimes picky is GOOD. Remove from heat and stir in herbs.

Serve lamb topped with pears and pan sauce. 5 points per serving (4 1/2 oz of lamb, 1/4 pear and 2 tbsp sauce)

The Best Broccoli Ever

2009-02-22T20:59:00.000-08:00

Monday did roll around PDQ, eh? Anywhooo...I did manage to fit in 1 20 min. run/walk on the treadmill yesterday and tried a couple of new recipes last night. I did this broccoli recipe recommended by the amazing (and funny) Dietgirl. She linked it from The Amateur Gourmet's blog who was inspired by a Barefoot Countessa recipe. 6 degrees of diet blog separation. ;)

I should start by saying that I'm really am not a cooked broccoli fan. I steam it for the rest of the family- who will actually eat this vegetable without complaint, but I prefer it raw. I LOVED this recipe though. It really is delicious. I limited the olive oil in it, but I did (unlike the Amateur Gourmet) try it with the pine nuts (love pine nuts!) though I cut those down, too, and also used the basil (which I had left over from my organic box.)

dh enjoyed it, too, going back for 2nds and 3rds. My children, on the other hand, will have to grow to love it. They didn't enjoy it *sigh* proving for once and for all that I have the pickiest children in Canada and possibly, North America. ;) So much for the Amateur Gourmet's friend's comment "If parents made this broccoli for their kids, kids wouldn't hate broccoli. They'd beg for it." He hasn't met mine. ;P BUT that being said, it really, really was the best broccoli I ever ate. For the tots, I will stick with steamed for awhile.

The Best Broccoli Evah! (originally from the Barefoot Countessa)

Preheat the oven to 425.

4 to 5 pounds of broccoli cut into florets I used half a pre-washed HUGE bag from Costco

5 Tbs olive oil I used less than 2

1 1/2 tsps kosher salt I used sea salt. It was a little too chunky. Led to random bits of salt.

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

4 garlic cloves peeled and sliced

1 1/2 TBSP of olive oil I used less

3 TBSP toasted pinenuts

1/3 C shredded parmesan cheese

Put the clean and dry broccoli on a cookie sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Now toss the sliced garlic in too.

Roast in the oven 20 to 25 minutes. The broccoli should be tender crisp and the tips starting to brown. Take the broccoli out and zest a lemon over the broccoli and then squeeze the juice over it. Toss in 1.5 TBSP more olive oil, 3 TBSP toasted pine nuts and 1/3 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. and 2 TBSP of julienned fresh basil.

Jambalaya- fun to Eat and fun to Say!

2009-02-21T19:13:00.000-08:00

...and Asian Chicken-Soba Noodle Salad.

Hey bloggers! Happy Saturday night! no movie night with dh, afterall, but a fun day cropping and a tasty meal of Jambalaya and wine once home. So it's all good! :)

Menus 2 and 3 from Clean Eating's "Meal Multiplication" were both tasty and recommended to you by moi. With mil over this weekend, I had another NON-PICKY diner to taste test the recipes, and she liked both, too. Yeah! love dining visitors. :o)

Anyway, if you read my last post, from the Roasted Chicken with Cherry BBQ sauce & toasted almonds, came the next 2 recipes. Firstly, yesterday night we had Asian Chicken-Soba Noodle Salad. It was pretty easy to whip together, though I left it late and had the family waiting at the table, enjoying their rolls. I liked it quite a bit. It was a light, tasty meal. I enjoy sesame oil dishes like this. The family, usually not as much, though the dh didn't complain, so it was a winner to that extent. The kids picked out what they liked and ate it, slowly. as per usual.

I got home quite late after my crop- it was quite productive: 11 Disney vacation pages later- woo hoo! Eventually, I'll be done our Disney vacation pictures from 2 years ago... and so I just made the Jambalaya for two: mil and me. (The family had ordered pizza earlier.)

Anyway, the Jambalaya was pretty easy to whip together (though mil was impressed and said she would have personally just had "toast" after coming in late.) It was pretty tasty. I really liked it- as did mil. I liked the brown rice more than I thought I would, too. I'm usually a basmati rice girl. The mixture tasted spicy and fresh. :)

Here are the two recipes. I couldn't find them online, so I typed them up "in brief." Enjoy. :)

Asian Chicken-Soba Noodle Salad

8 oz soba noodles

1 c snow peas

4 cooked chicken breasts (from Roasted Chicken recipe)

1/3 c scallions

1/4 cilantro, chopped

1/2 reduced sodium chicken broth

2 tbsp lime juice

1 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

sea salt and pepper to taste

1/2 c dry roasted cashews

Cook soba noodles according to package. Add snow peas last 30 seconds. Drain and put in large bowl. Add chicken, scallions, cilantro and toss.

Whisk broth, lime juice, soy sauce and sesame oil. Add noodle mixture. Toss. Sprinkle cashews over top just before serving.
(8 points per serving- 4 servings per batch :))

Jambalaya

1 c long grain brown rice

2 tsp olive oil

1 each green and red bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1/2 white onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp salt-free Cajun or Creole seasoning

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 c reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 cooked chicken breast (from recipe), cubed

1/2 lb med shrimp

1/4c parsley chopped

sea salt and pepper, to taste

Cook rice according to directions.

Heat oil in wok over med-heat. Cook peppers, onion, garlic (3 mins). Stir in seasoning. Add broth and chicken and heat to simmer. Stir in seasoning. Add shrimp and cook 2 min. Add rice and cook 1 min more.
Remove from heat and stir in parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
(4 servings- 6 points a serving)

Clean Eating on a Friday Night

2009-02-20T14:07:00.000-08:00

TGIF! Don't you love Friday night? :) The weekend laid out, lengthy seeming in front of you? It's like you have amnesia every Friday night about how fast the two weekend days actually go. Like a little child, you're all innocent and hopeful- planning to do such minor activities as reorganizing your home, having moving family time adventures and getting in a little fitness while planning and prepping menus for the week. At least I usually get dressed in the morning- oh, ok, by early afternoon. ;) (kidding! dh would never let me sleep in THAT long. :P) Anywhooo...

Thought I'd share my meal from last night- which carries on to a meal for Friday night and then Saturday, too. After reading about Clean Eating magazine on some of my favourite blogs AND hearing about it from friends in real life, too, I thought I'd pick up a copy. Roasted Chicken with Cherry Barbecue Sauce & Toasted Almonds is from the current March/April 2009 issue and a part of the article, "Meal Multiplication." The roasted chicken goes into 3 different meals (love that!) Tonight's dish (which I'm going to prep as soon as I post this) is Asian Chicken-Soba Noodle Salad. I will share a review tomorrow.

The roasted chicken was very tasty. I will post the recipe following this and make some notes about ingredients missing, etc. Overall, I was in a super rush to make it as I got to the grocery store late (grounded at home with my little pox patient), so my almonds don't look that browned and my potato side wasn't ready in time for dinner- so I just served quick noodles with it. and my salad looks very "unchopped". It all tasted very good together though. A serving will cost you 9 points, but that is with 1 oz of almonds and 3 oz of the sauce. I misread that part and put almonds all over the dish (and so didn't eat an oz of them).

Roasted Chicken with Cherry Barbecue Sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

olive oil cooking spray
1 cup(s) no-sugar cherry preserves or cherry jam I used regular cherry jam.
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4c low-sodium tomato sauce
2 tbp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp liquid smoke I couldn't find this at the store
1 tsp cumin
10 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 5 oz each)
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste

1. Preheat Oven to 400. Coat a large roasting pan with cooking spray.

2. In a medium saucepan, whisk together cherry preserves, vinegar, tomato sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke and cumin. Set saucepan over med-high heat and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.

3. Meanwhile, arrange chicken in one layer in prepared pan and season the tops with salt and pepper to taste. Pour sauce over chicken. Roast chicken 25-30 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.

4. Toast almonds in a small, dry skillet over med-heat for 2-3 minutes. Serve 4 chicken breast halves with almonds sprinkled over top. I put mine over the whole dish by accident. Reserve remaining 6 breasts for the next two recipes!

Patient Number 2 and a Secret Smoothie Ingredient

2009-02-19T07:53:00.000-08:00

In spite of paying for vaccines when they were little, daughter number two has now come down with the pox! Poor sweetie is upset to miss school, told her friend (who said she wished SHE had chicken pox) to bring home LOTS of homework. lol. That'll change by high school, this I'm sure. So, I'm grounded today (and home from high school), hoping I can bring in reinforcements next week at least. It's hard when your family is spread across the country (and across other countries): long distance reinforcements don't work that well.

Anyway, I made the patient a smoothie and I thought I'd share with you all our new, favourite secret smoothie ingredient: low fat coconut milk. It comes from a prior share from Devin Alexander's The Most Decadent Diet Ever- now overdue, btw, due to our missing our library visit due to what we thought was the flu (aka the chicken pox). oops!

Anyway, for this smoothie, I used 1/2 cup of the coconut milk, 1/2 c skim, 1 banana, 1 c (or so) of frozen strawberries, and 1 container of low-fat yogurt. Today I had to use a DanActive Cranberry-Raspberry drink cause I didn't make it to the grocery store yesterday and I'm out of yogurt.

The drinks are really good, btw. I bought them at Costco after a taste test there and both kids really like them in lunches.

I don't like to use the artificially sweetened yogurt with the kids (as Devin does in her recipe). The drink adds 13g of sugar, but with the coconut milk and the yogurt, you don't need to add extra sugar to get a non-sour smoothie. The other day, I also made this with my unsweetened plain yogurt instead of the little container of sweetened, flavoured stuff. It still tasted sweet enough for me.

This smoothie is usually 4 points if you use 2 individual containers of no-real sugar added yogurt and 2 cups of the strawberries (and pour it into 2 servings). :)

Taco Salad times two- with a side of nutty (Kale) Stew

2009-02-17T18:47:00.000-08:00

Thought I'd try another Eat, Shrink & Be Merry recipe this long weekend past, so I made Na-cho Ordinary Taco Salad on Monday. The salad works out to 6 points. It was tasty, but quite spicy. I think I might take out the jalapeno- or part of it (it calls for a "large" one) when I make it again. It was a little too hot for the tots. I liked that it had black beans and corn in it- both of which I had in my cupboard (yeah!), but at first it seemed strange not to heat them up before putting them on the salad. Anyway, they tasted good-even cold- in the salad.

sidenote: the picture I took of the salad was of one of my daughters' salads- so it had less on it than I had on mine. I tucked into mine right away- forgetting to take a picture. Her's was pretty untouched looking for awhile. lol. So picture a salad with more stuff on it. :P

I used the leftovers from the Taco salad in a version of a soft taco tonight. I really liked it in the tortilla wrap.

Tonight was my organic veggie pick up, so I tried to use a few remaining leftovers I had from last weeks box. I'd meant to use the kale on the weekend, and got a recipe from my sister, African Pineapple Peanut Stew, but ran out of time to make it. Anyway, I made it tonight and had it as a veggie side. It wasn't low cal- 6 points with its 1/2c of peanut butter (we use the Kraft Light stuff, at least), but it was very tasty and I think you could cut back on the pb to lessen the points. Sadly, but not surprisingly, I was the only one who liked it in the family. Our portions were pretty smallish, too, so the serving shown was probably closer to 4 points?

and in HYC check-in details: as I posted on the weekend, I had a kind of high points week with some extra Valentine's eating. I did do a 7+km walk /run on Monday- woo hoo! but I haven't been consistent enough. This week I'm going to try to drink more water and get out there and do some more runs so my little Nike mini me doesn't mock me like it does when I don't run. Paddleball? sheesh!

Skating and Soup: Family Day Extravaganza

2009-02-16T07:53:00.000-08:00

Well, I have to finish this post and THEN the Extravaganza may start. Oh! and get the kids out of their pjs and dressed, too. :P Anyway, what better way to spend Family Day then get a little family activity it, eh? My bod desperately needs some activity, too and way less food. This weekend has been very nice, but kind of food-filled. Not reckless eating, mostly healthy stuff, but over the normal points eating.

Anyway, I made a new soup last night from Eat, Shrink & Be Merry: Gourdian Angel, a pumpkin, carrot, apple soup. It was very, VERY delicious. I loved it. We had it with those million dollar ACE bakery crackers. mmmmm...!

Bad News: none of my children liked it, dh included. :P

dh wasn't fussy on one of the spices in it: maybe the curry? the cumin? the garlic? The man is super hard to cook for in general, so don't like his review dissuade you from trying it, if you were considering it. har. As for my children, they ate a surprising amount of it- for them- so I think we're going to work on more soups (and flavours) like this. dh got on board with the whole "good for you" thing, when I brought it up. He likes to go on about stuff like broccoli and blueberries to them when we're eating them. So, maybe I can fit this soup in again on that angle, cause it really is tasty. Think they'll enjoy a bowl after skating? I'll have chicken noodle on standby just. in. case.

Have a nice, healthy food and exercise filled day- hopefully, like us! :)