Banana Bread

This is my sister's recipe for banana bread. I made some today and simply substituted light butter for regular. I couldn't taste a difference and was amazed at how low the points plus were per serving. I have never really baked with the light butter before and now I am definitely going to try it more.




Banana bread

2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. light butter
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 c. mashed overripe bananas (5 lg. bananas)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9x5 inch loaf pan.

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture just until moistened. Pour batter into pan.

Bake 350 degrees for 60-65 mins.

Cool for 10 mins.

Enjoy!!

12 servings = 4 pp each

recipe courtesy of Kelly

Toll House Cookie Recipe

Ok, I know this isn't my usual healthy-tasty type recipe but I couldn't come up with anything and so I figured I would a) go with what I know and b) go with what I love.

These cookies were a huge staple in my house BWW (before Weight Watchers). Nothing else could make me smile like the sight, smell, taste, sound (my kids come running every time they hear the mixer thinking I am making cookies) of these cookies. Personally I prefer them in bar form, slightly undercooked and oh-so-ushy-gushy. That is our name for them - ushy-gushy bars (it's a family thing).

However, when I started WW and began the trek toward healthier eating, I realized I needed to stay far away from this recipe I could recite in my sleep. I have really done SO well in avoiding them. I think I've made them maybe 3 times since last Easter. Most recently was last week in order to use up some margarine that was expiring soon. Oh, and to make my kids happy. ;)

While I was making the cookies, I decided I would figure out the points plus value for a cookie. They are only 3 points plus per cookie which surprised me. I thought they would be way worse for some reason. So I could cautiously partake and not feel too guilty. I thought I would pass on this huge fountain of knowledge with you. I believe knowledge is power and gives you the ability to make smarter choices. :)

I also scooped all of the dough into balls and froze most of them. Genius! Now, I can make a dozen or so at a time and no one can go overboard with their cookie fix (like me). I didn't really lighten up the recipe besides cutting the amount of chocolate chips in half but I've always done that. No one needs that many chocolate chips in their cookies. I don't add the nuts either.

Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large egg
1/2 (12 ounce) package NESTLE® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.

Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Gradually beat in flour mixture.

Stir in morsels.

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.


My scoop produced 1.1 oz dough balls. Each cookie = 3 points plus


Enjoy! Oh, and try the ushy-gushy bars! You won't regret it. Mmm-mmm!

Busy Day Stew

Pretend it's Thursday. I know I'm trying to. I need one more day in this week.

I came across this recipe in Women's World magazine. It looked good and thought I would try it. It wasn't too bad in the points department either and it was easy to put together, too.

Busy Day Stew

1 1/2 lbs boneless cubed stewing beef, trimmed
2 Tbs. flour
2 Tbs. oil
1 env. (1 oz) onion soup mix, from 2 oz pkg
2 1/4 cups canned tomatoes with juice
4 carrots, cut into chunks
4 potatoes, cut into chunks
1 1/2 cups frozen peas

In plastic food storage bag, shake beef cubes with flour until meat is well coated. In large pot, heat oil on medium-high heat. Add beef, in batches, and saute until browned, removing as it browns. Return all beef cubes with accumulated juices to pot.

Combine soup mix and 1 cup water. Pour over beef. Bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook slowly until beef is almost tender, 40 minutes to 1 hour, 15 minutes. I needed to add more water.

Add tomatoes, carrots, and potatoes. (I also added more water because the original recipe didn't call for potatoes. This potato-loving girl couldn't imagine beef stew without them. ;); bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until vegetables and meat are tender, 25-35 minutes. Add peas during last 5 minutes of cooking. If mixture becomes too thick, add extra water.

1/6th of recipe is 9 points plus. (without potatoes 7 points plus)

Brownie Cookies

These are the yummiest, easiest cookies that I've had in a long while!

Brownie Cookies

1 box Pillsbury Dark Chocolate Chunk cookie mix
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
3 T water
1 egg

Mix all together. It takes a little bit to mix in all of the dry mix but it will all turn into a soft dough.

The box says to form cookies with a teaspoon but I say Bah! Double it! It made 18 slightly larger cookies.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 10 mins. I slightly undercooked mine and they turned out fudgy delicious! I left them on the hot pan for several minutes until they were completely set.

These cookies tasted just like fudge brownies - so good! I didn't try it but I bet you could spread the dough in an 8 or 9 inch pan and bake them like brownies. Next time I will try that!

1 cookie (1/18th of recipe) = 3 points plus

Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This is seriously the best soup you will ever eat. (We are planning on serving it at REFRESH - yum!)

I wasn't feeling well a couple of years ago and my dear friend, Stephanie, blessed my family with a meal of this soup. She blessed my life further by giving me the recipe. (Thanks, Stephanie!)

I was a little scared to figure out the points for this recipe. Anything that tastes this good, must be awful for you, I thought.

Well, I am happy to say that I lightened the recipe up a little and found out that it is not high in points at all!! Even better, it is just as delicious the healthier way as the original was.

Make it, try it, LOVE it, too!

Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

6 cups chicken broth (I used Swanson's)
2 cups water
9 oz cooked, boneless chicken breasts, small cubes
1 1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 small onion, chopped
1 6 oz package Uncle Ben's quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup flour
1/2 cup light butter (Land O Lakes makes it in sticks)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cup whole milk

1. Open rice, pull out seasoning packet and set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, and flour. Set aside.

3. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water, chicken, carrots, and onion. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice. Cover and remove from heat.
4. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux (it will be very dry).

5. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.

6. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

8 oz = 5 points plus


-photo courtesy of Kelly :)

What I Ate

So, how did you do? Thanksgiving went well for me. I had my plan and pretty much stuck to it.

I dished up my food and was somewhat disappointed at the little amount on my plate but I felt so good later that I didn't pig out and make decisions I would regret.

No matter how your Thanksgiving went, it is in the past. You can't change anything that happened but you can decide to make good decisions today.

This next month is going to be tough and full of temptations but just take one day at a time and make a plan. No matter what, determine to make better choices this year than you did last year. It's all in the baby steps.

What I Ate on Thanksgiving:

Breakfast
8 - cinnamon roll with icing (oh, yes, I did)

Snack
1 - WW string cheese
0 - banana, strawberries, raspberries

Lupper (we ate around 3:00 pm)
1 - punch (recipe coming soon)
4 - 4 oz turkey
3 - gravy
4 - stuffing
3 - mashed potatoes
0 - green beans

Dessert
6 - 2 pieces of pumpkiny pie

You can see where my priorities were but that's what I chose. :) It's all about the choices ... That's what makes it work in real life.

What I Ate

As I mentioned last week, being prepared and thinking ahead really helps in those "help, I'm hungry NOW!" situations.  I keep a stock of snacks on hand and in my purse for those times when I want to reach for a candy bar or bag of chips or anything within reach.

Without much fuss, I can eat one of these snacks and calm the hunger raging inside or just tide me over until the next meal.

Snacks are a necessary part of dieting.  When you wait too long between meals, your empty stomach can take over your head causing you to overeat or choose unwisely at mealtime.  So, snack away!  Don't feel guilty if you are choosing healthy, low-point foods.

Here is my list of low-point, yummy, go-to snacks:

*fruit (you can't go wrong with 0 points plus)
*Special K 90 calorie fiber bars - 2 pp (chocolate and chocolate pretzel are my favorites)
*Kellogg's caramel coconut fudge fiber bars - 3 pp (think Caramel Delites girl scout cookies - yum!)
*100 calorie PopSecret kettle corn - 3 pp
*10 Special K multigrain crackers with a WW string cheese - 3 pp
*10 Snack Factory garlic parmesan pretzel crisps - 3 pp
*14 baked tortilla chips with salsa - 3 pp
*yogurt - 4 pp (I eat the non-diet variety but it is worth every point in my book)
*1/2 cup cottage cheese with raspberries or pineapple or canned sugar free peaches - 3 pp


A day of What I Ate:

Breakfast
5 - 2 frozen waffles with strawberries and cool whip free

Snack
2 - fiber bar

Lunch
5 - Smart Ones fiesta quesadilla 
3 - 14 baked tortilla chips and salsa

Snack
0 - apple

Dinner
13 Cousin's cheesesteak sub

Dessert
3 - Skinny Cow Heavenly Crisp peanut butter candy bar

What I Ate

This week I thought I would give you a quick overview of how WW works and little things I do that make it easier for me.

When you go to WW, they weigh you (big surprise) and then give you your points plus daily number depending on your weight, height, and age. This number is how many points plus you should eat in a day. (Eating less doesn't encourage weight loss; in fact, usually it slows it down.) In addition to your daily points, everyone is given 49 extra weekly points to use how they want during the week. It is your choice to use these points, if you want. You can also earn extra points by being active. They give you a chart to use to figure that out. (That definitely encourages exercise!) Every food has a points plus value and you can buy a nifty calculator to figure out this value using protein, carbohydrate, fat, and fiber information off of the packaging. All fruits and most vegetables are 0 points plus (Hallelujah!).

That is pretty much it in a nutshell.

As for myself, I try to never use my weekly points. Just knowing that they are there, oddly, is enough to keep me satisfied. But tell me I'm restricted and then that's all I think about. You can definitely use the extra points, but you will lose the weight at a slower pace. For now, my desire to drop weight quicker has outweighed my hunger or cravings. That may change.

Also, when I do exercise (I'm trying to be better at that!), I don't typically give myself extra points. Once again, my goal is to lose weight as quickly as possible. Besides, I'm not doing all that much physically, so I can't really justify it. Someday, maybe ...

I stick to my daily points target and try to eat all of my points everyday. It's not that hard to do, but there are just some days where the points really stretch and I find myself not eating them all up. Those days are few.

One other thing I try to do concerning my points is to keep myself in a similar rhythm everyday. I eat about 4 points of food for breakfast, about 8 for lunch, and leave about 12-15 for dinner (and dessert - can't forget dessert!) with some snacks in between. I am not able to do this everyday but it helps on most days to keep me on track and remembering how much I have eaten and what I have left. I started out tracking on my iPod (WW has a great app) but now just track in my head. (I'm a numbers person so this isn't all that hard, but staying with the same pattern everyday helps a lot, too.) Otherwise, I would be the type of person who eats 75% of her points for breakfast without realizing and then I would basically starve the rest of the day. I need to pace myself.

I also try not to eat past 7:00 pm. There are occasionally days when I end up eating a late supper but I really try to cut myself off by 7:00 pm. Most days I have my little dessert after dinner and that is like my grand finale for the day. After that, I know I am done eating for the day (and what a way to finish - yum!)

Planning is really the key. Have a plan of attack. Know what make really great low point snacks and keep them in the house, or wherever you are, to eat when you need something. Snack. Don't let yourself get too hungry or you will binge when you get the chance. Eat a little now to keep yourself from eating a lot later. Find meals that you like and are lower in points and keep the ingredients in the house for those days when it's 6:00 pm and you're thinking "what are we going to eat?" It will save you from the drive-thru.

I'd better stop or I will be all out of incredible insight (yeah, right) come next week.

Just know that YOU CAN DO IT! If I can, seriously, anyone can. I believe in you, now believe in yourself.


Here is a day of What I Ate:

Breakfast
3 1 cup regular Cheerios with strawberries and bananas sliced on top
1 1/2 cup skim milk

Snack

Lunch
5 Smart Ones mini cheeseburger
3 10 Pretzel Crisps
1 single serving cauliflower with cheese sauce

Snack
0 apple
1 WW string cheese

Dinner
10 4 Stuffed Shells
3 New York ciabatta garlic bread with cheese

Dessert
4 Pumpkin bar (recipe coming soon!!)