If you’ve checked in on this blog within the past few months, I’m sure you’ve noticed that I am absent.  I am expecting a baby in May, so I’ve obviously been taking a break from Weight Watchers.  I am, however, eagerly awaiting jumping back onto the WW train, because I started this pregnancy off heavier than I needed to be, and am dying to get myself back in shape.  I wish I could say that I’ve eaten oh so healthy during this pregnancy, but I can’t lie.  I’ve tried, but I know I will have plenty of weight to lose once the baby comes.  So, until then, keep plugging away at eating healthy and being active, and I’ll catch up with you all in June (at least, that’s my hope)!

I discovered a great way to enjoy a regular cup of coffee! And, it really felt like I was drinking a cappucinno. I added a small amount of non-dairy creamer (powder kind) and then put a dollop of fat-free Cool Whip on top. The Cool Whip melted and made a froth over the top of my coffee. And, the best part……….0 points!

This awesome picture is not my own. I got it from here. Doesn’t this cup and saucer just make you want to go get a cup of coffee?!

Some friends and I have started freezer cooking, and this is one of the dishes we made. If you choose to freeze, you can place in a gallon size freezer bag. Thaw, place in a casserole dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake according to instructions.

1/2 c. chopped carrot

1/2 c. chopped red sweet pepper (I used the tri-color frozen pepper strips)

1/4 c. sliced green onions (2)

1 T. butter

1 10.75 oz. can condensed cream of chicken soup (I used low-fat)

1 9 oz. package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and cut up

1 1/2 c. chopped, cooked chicken

1 c. cooked wild rice or long grain rice

1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 c. milk

2 T. dry sherry

2 slices bacon, crisp-cooked, drained, and crumbled

3 T. grated parmesan cheese

1. In a large skillet cook carrot, sweet pepper, and green onions in hot butter until crisp-tender. Remove from heat and stir in chicken soup, artichoke hearts, chicken, rice, mozzarella cheese, milk, sherry, and bacon. Transfer to a 2-quart rectangular baking dish. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

2. Bake, covered, in a 350 degree oven for 20 min. Uncover and bake 20 min. more or until bubbly. Let stand 10 min. before serving.

Makes 6 servings. 5 points/serving. (My whole family loved this and it is very filling. Big servings, too, which is always good!)

Taken from “Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book”

1 pkg. white angel food cake mix, prepared.

2 c. boiling water

1 pkg. sugar free raspberry flavored gelatin

Two 10 oz. pkgs. frozen raspberries, thawed

Two 6 oz. containers fat-free, light raspberry yogurt

Fat Free Cool Whip

Tear cake into 3/4 in. pieces. I only used 1/2 of the cake. Pour boiling water on gelatin in large bowl/ stir until gelatin is dissolved. Add raspberries. Refrigerate gelatin mixture about 15 min. or until thickened, but not set. Layer half each of the cake pieces, gelatin mixture and yogurt in a 3 qt. glass bowl (can be smaller if you use only half of the cake); repeat, finishing with the yogurt as the top layer. Spread cool whip over the top and refrigerate at least 2 hours, until firm. 16 servings.

Well, I lied the last time I posted.  I told you I would be posting my food journal the next day, and well, I didn’t.  Truth is, I became discouraged on Tuesday because by the time 3:00 hit, I only had 4 points left for the day.  I realized that I really needed to go to the store and buy some low point lunch options, so that’s what I did, and Wednesday went much better.  I bought some Morningstar veggie burgers (2 pts. each) and some frozen veggies.  Part of the problem on Tuesday was that I chose an afternoon snack that was NOT filling.  I basically wasted points on a McDonald’s iced coffee, when I should have eaten something with some substance.  The other problem is that I have been swimming (lap swimming) more this week, so my metabolism is up.  It is a good thing that I’m swimming more, but I just need to find the balance.  Counting points is like a balancing act with me.  I have to find the most filling foods with the lowest points possible and eat before I feel myself getting hungry.  I’ll keep you posted!

Well, I have to confess that I have not tracked my points since Friday afternoon.  However, I did much better this weekend than I normally do.  I made wiser choices about what I chose to ate and didn’t go crazy, like I tend to do on the weekends when I don’t track points.  And, I had some flex points saved up from the week, so that lessened my guilt about indulging in pizza.  Saturday, I knew I would be eating pizza with friends, so I limited my points for the day.  I offered to bring the dessert, which gave me the freedom to choose a healthy alternative to brownies, which are my weakness.  I made raspberry trifle, and it was awesome!  I’m back on track today, keeping up with my points, and I’ll be posting them here tonight.  I have to say that posting my eating habits for the world to see really has helped me out!

I’m not even sure where I got this recipe. But, I put it into the Weight Watchers recipe builder on e-tools to be sure the points were correct, and they were.

Ingredients:

1/4 c. of skim milk

2 T. cocoa

2 T. sugar

1/4 c. crunchy peanut butter

1 c. rolled oats

Place all ingredients except the oats into a saucepan and stir on low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and add the oats. Cool for a few minutes. Then, roll into teaspoon size balls and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet. Place in freezer to flash freeze and then store in a bag in the freezer.

Makes approx. 25. 1 point each.

I made up my own stuffed pepper recipe yesterday. And, I have my handy Weight Watcher e-tools to utilize, so I was able to enter the ingredients and servings into the recipe builder and discovered that my stuffed peppers were only 4 points. Here’s the recipe:

4 points per serving. Serves 6.
Ingredients:

6 bell peppers

1 cup Mushrooms, diced

Onion, chopped

1 box of Spicy Thai rice (from Aldi), prepared

1 lb. lean ground turkey

Instructions:

Brown the turkey with onion and mushrooms. Drain. Mix in the prepared rice. Cut the tops off of the peppers, cleaning out the inside. Then place in boiling water for about 3 minutes. Remove from water and stuff the peppers with filling. Place in a round casserole dish and pour in enough water to cover the bottom. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 min.

I only used 4 bell peppers and froze a quart size bag full of filling. I prepared the meal the day before, so the heating time took longer than 20 minutes because they were cold when placed in oven.

Breakfast:

Healthy Life cinnamon bun- 2 pts.

1 c. milk- 2 pts.

Lunch:

Morningstar black bean burger on Healthy Life bun- 3 pts.

carrots- 0 pts.

Snack:

PB&J on lite wheat bread- 3 pts.

Dinner:

Stuffed Pepper- 4 pts.

Broccoli (from Trader Joe’s in a special sauce)- 1 pt.

Snack:

Smoothie- 3 pts. (I left out the banana)

2 Oatmeal Chocolate freezer thingys- 2 pts.

Total Points-20 Flex Points used- 0!

And, I went swimming today, so today was a good day.

Trader Joe’s is so awesome!  I’ve discovered some great frozen meals recently, and they are so much more filling than the typical Weight Watcher frozen meals available in grocery stores.  I ate Chicken Vindaloo (curry based) tonight for dinner and it was awesome.  I mixed a serving of cooked spinach in with the meal and loved it.  This meal gave me so much more for my points than other frozen meals I’ve bought in the past.  Total points: 6!