tj's test kitchen

Lighter Cooking Light Recipe!

2012-01-27T06:30:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Sean and I were meal planning. I also like to call it cleaning out the magazine pile! lol I gave him a stack of magazines and he picked out a couple of dishes. He also said, “can you please make something that I pick out this week.” making me feel a little bad. Ya see the thing is that Sean ALWAYS picks out pasta. lol This time it was no different. Mushroom lasagna was his choice. Yes, it was from an issue of Cooking Light, but it was a creamy sauce and according to the stats listed was going to be one of those small portion- high PointsPlus meals. Sigh.

For those of you who know me, and have followed my blog for any length of time- you know that I like more bang for my buck! I enjoy sitting down to a large portion. Call me greedy, but I do. So when it comes to a pasta dish that I know I wont be able to have a nice size portion of, I normally pass.

I wanted to make Sean a happy camper so I set off to make the recipe he picked out LIGHTER! Yes, a Lighter Cooking Light Recipe!

THIS IS THE ORIGINAL RECIPE-

MY CHANGES ARE IN RED

From Cooking Light Magazine

Mushroom Lasagna
Ingredients

1 cup boiling water
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms –I skipped this ingredient entirely. never used it before.
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided- 1 teaspoon
1 1/4 cups chopped shallots (about 4)
1 (8-ounce) package presliced cremini mushrooms
1 (4-ounce) package presliced exotic mushroom blend- I used white mushrooms and added another 4 oz. to make up for not using the porcini’s
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves, minced and divided
1/2 cup white wine
1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese- 3 light laughing cow wedges-original flavor
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives, divided
3 cups 2% reduced-fat milk, divided- Fat Free Milk
1 1/10 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1/4 cup)
Cooking spray
9 no-boil lasagna noodles- 4 ounces Whole Wheat
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese- 1 TB just sprinkled on the top

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Combine 1 cup boiling water and porcini. Cover and let stand 30 minutes; strain mixture through a cheesecloth-lined sieve over a bowl, reserving liquid and mushrooms. I skipped this step- did not (have these mushrooms.

3. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan(I left out the oil on this step); swirl to coat. Add shallots to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Add cremini and exotic mushrooms(or white, like I used), 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; sauté 6 minutes or until mushrooms are browned. Add thyme and 3 garlic cloves; sauté 1 minute. Stir in wine; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute or until liquid almost evaporates, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Remove from heat; stir in cream cheese- or add Laughing cow like me! and 1 tablespoon chives. Add reserved porcini mushrooms.skipped

4. Heat a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon (I used 1 teaspoon)oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add remaining 3 garlic cloves to pan; sauté 30 seconds. Add the reserved porcini liquid(SKIPPED THIS) , 2 3/4 cups milk, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper; bring to a boil. Combine remaining 1/4 cup milk and flour in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Add flour mixture to milk mixture, and simmer 2 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly with a whisk.

5. Spoon 1/2 cup sauce into an 11 x 7-inch glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray, and top with 3 noodles. Spread half of mushroom mixture over noodles. Repeat layers, ending with remaining sauce. Sprinkle cheese over top. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until golden. Top with remaining 1 tablespoon chopped chives.(I didn’t have more chives- so I topped with fresh Italian parsley)

**I also decided to make these in smaller stoneware serving pieces.

Are ya ready for the stats?

Ok well this original recipe serves 6 for 10 PointsPlus.

My version: Serves 4 at 9 PointsPlus each! Whoohoo! High five for lightened up recipes!

Just goes to show you that SIMPLE changes can equal BIG changes. Just a few swaps of ingredients made this dish lower in PointsPlus and a heartier serving size. We enjoyed this dish with a simple side salad. Oh and I must say, it was quite tasty too! Good choice Sean!

Do you lighten up already lightened up dishes too? I was kinda shocked that the small changes I made had that much of an effect on the nutritional stats on this dish. I loved making it even healthier!

Have a great day everyone!

BYE!

GUEST POST! Cheesecake Factory recipe re-created at home!

2012-01-25T16:22:00.001-08:00

Hello! The other day I got a text from my friend Tina telling me that she had re-created a dish that we ordered out. I sent her a text back that she needed to do a guest post for me! I love making meals at home that I enjoy out at restaurants and LOVE when my friends and family try it out too! Great job Tina!

You might remember Tina was my date to our 20th High School reunion just this past October! Whoohoo!

Take it away Tina!

Hello Everyone!

My name is Tina, I am TJ's long time childhood friend. First let me begin by saying TJ is one of my best friends. She truly has been through all of my life's up and downs and has stood by and supported me even when she didn't always agree with my choices. I am so proud of her and all that she has achieved in all areas of her life (plus its nice having a friend that cooks as well as she does).

I have struggled with my weight my entire life. I was a fat kid, fat teenager, fat young adult, fat through pregnancy...yada yada yada. At age 32 I decided to take a radical approach to weight loss and had a Gastric Bypass surgery. I am not here to advocate this choice for anyone, it was just the right choice for me. I was very successful and lost over 135 lbs very fast. Due to hard work and dedication I have kept off the majority of that weight.

Its been five and half years and I still struggle everyday with food....I Love it...everything about it. I have learned so much about food and nutrition throughout this this time. But the most important thing I tell myself everyday is "I am worth it". I still struggle with about 25 lbs but I guess most of us do.

TJ has taught me so much about "food swapping" you know... swapping bad stuff for the good healthy stuff. Might sound boring but its really fun and challenging.

A few weeks ago TJ and I went to lunch for her Birthday...BTW She's getting OLD! LOL I love to tease her because she is one month older than me!We went to The Cheesecake Factory. I know it sounds like calorie and point overload right? Not for us! We went straight for the lighter menu-didn't even look at the regular menu. That's a really good tip! Why temp yourself! We chose to share a Mexican chicken salad thing (it was good) and a flat bread...this was amazing! I re-created it for lunch yesterday and wanted to share my recipe with you all.

Gorgonzola and Pear Flat bread

**FAKE Cheesecake Factory RECIPE!**
serves 1

(added to the recipe builder- 6 PointsPlus)

1-Trader Joe's whole wheat Pita
1-T Gorgonzola cheese
1-T chopped walnuts
5-6 pieces of thinly sliced pear (less than 1/4 of the pear)
10-15 spinach leaves (Cheesecake factory used arugula..I didn't have any so I used spinach)

Preheat oven to 375. Put all the spinach leaves of first. Place the pear slices on. then sprinkle the cheese and walnut. bake 10-12 min.

I really enjoyed this, next time I would do a little less pear and maybe a little more cheese!

Never Give up! Happy eating and weight loss to you all.

Tina

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus,Cheesecake Factory,Food Swap,Healthy recipes at home,Lighten up meals at home

Creamy (but no cream!) Cauliflower & Roasted Garlic Soup

2012-01-22T13:46:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! I opened my spare fridge today and 3 heads of cauliflower were staring at me. I picked them up last week because they were on sale and I never thought of anything to make with them. Today I tackled them! I think it turned out pretty well!

TADA!

Thanks Mom for the set of cute ceramic crocks! They are adorable and the perfect size for a cup of soup!

Not only is this recipe DELICIOUS, but it is also VERY Weight Watcher friendly! I added everything to the Recipe Builder on E-tools and I was SHOCKED at how LOW in PointsPlus this one is!

Without further delay…

Creamy (but no cream!) Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup

Makes 14 cups of soup-

1 cup servings for 2PP, or 2 cup servings for 3PP

INGREDIENTS

3 heads of cauliflower, cut into pieces- mine were medium sized
8 Cups low sodium vegetable, or chicken broth
1 cup diced onions
3-4 whole bulbs of garlic, or about 15 cloves of already roasted garlic
1 15 ounce can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Salt and Pepper to taste

First off get that garlic roasting. Cut the bulbs in half and put them in foil. I roasted the bulbs for 45 minutes at 400 degrees. Let them cool and pick out the garlic cloves. If they are too mushy just give the bulb a squeeze- but make sure they are cooled off! Just place garlic aside for now.

In a small sauté pan sprayed with PAM add onions and cook until translucent; 4-5 min. Set aside.

In a large stock pot add the chopped up cauliflower. IMPORTANT- Add enough broth to just cover the cauliflower. If you don’t need all 8 cups just use what you need. This MIGHT alter the amount of cups your batch of soup makes.

Bring broth and cauliflower to a boil; cover, and lower heat. As soon as the cauliflower is soft- shut off the burner and let cool.

In a blender, I used my Vita-Mix- add in roasted garlic, cooked onions, and the drained garbanzo beans. Ladle in 2 scoops of broth from the cooked cauliflower pot. BLEND WELL! Add blended mix to another large stock pot. In batches; ladle in cauliflower & broth and blend until all mixture is in second stock pot.

Taste soup- and add salt or pepper to taste.

I think this would be delicious with a nice hunk of crusty bread! Plus with soup this low in PointsPlus- you can totally splurge on the bread! Whoohoo!

Off to eat a bowl!
BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus,PointsPlus 2012,Creamy(but no cream!) Cauliflower & Roasted Garlic Soup,Cauliflower soup,Healthy Cooking,Healthy Recipes,Soup ideas

NACHO NIGHT!

2012-01-17T08:04:00.001-08:00

Hello! Before I share my NACHO NIGHT with you I cooked over the weekend with my Mom and we decided to make THIS recipe I saw over at Gina’s blog Skinnytaste last week. Result- It was delicious! I pretty much followed directions to this cabbage casserole- we left out the cheese and it still tasted delicious! Both my Mom and I loved it! Here’s a couple of shots from last Saturday:

Did I mention it’s super EASY and a Low PointsPlus meal too? Go check out the recipe! YUM!

I shared this picture on Sunday through Twitter and Facebook. After I get home from shopping I like to prepare all of my fruits and vegetables so I can grab snacks when I need one.

That prep is how I threw this snack together for Sean and I while he was watching football-

A little Fage0% with ranch dip seasoning mixed in makes a tasty dip!

I made a trip over to my favorite health food store- Harvest House! Check out the BIN SECTION!

I could spend hours looking around in this store…but I got there with 40 min to close! AAahhh!

Tea Anyone? WOW!

This was the reason I took a trip a few towns away…1 PointsPlus bread- or 2 for 2 PointsPlus!! WOW! Check out those STATS! The store sold it in the freezer section and so that is where I am keeping my loaf.

Panini’s for lunch the next day to TEST out the bread! YES PLEASE!

2 slices of bread, turkey, cranberry, spinach, and low fat pesto made the tastiest lunch!

My bread looked a little small next to Sean’s sandwich but I did enjoy the bread! It was good and crisped up nicely on my George Forman.

We tried these Alexia fries to go with our lunch- 24 fries are 3 Pointsplus. We enjoyed them- I thought they tasted like FRESH fries!

Ok ok….NACHOS!

MMmmm so YES it is possible to make this, eat this, enjoy this, AND still be on plan! With the toppings I used and the portion I ate it was about 12 pointsplus.

These EXTRA THIN corn tortillas help! I like to bake my own chips. Yes, it takes a little extra time- but I can make as little or as much as I want with NO bag of chips in my pantry whispering to me every day. lol

4 tortillas for 4 PointsPlus- Cut, sprayed with PAM, sprinkled with a little salt, and baked at 400 degrees for about 7 minutes; or until browned.

We added 2%cheese, black beans, tomatoes, green onions, avocado, (tamed) jalapenos, and sour cream to make our night a NACHO NIGHT! OLE!

You can add whatever toppings you like on your nachos- that’s half the FUN of cooking at home! The other half…well that would be eating it and not feeling guilty, or sick! ENJOY!

I guess I had more to share with you than Nachos huh? I kinda feel like this was a rambling post. But I hope that I gave you some ideas!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,Pointsplus2012,Nachos,Mexican Food,Julian Bakery Bread,Panini,Cooking at home.

Leftover Re-Invented Lunch

2012-01-13T14:59:00.001-08:00

Happy Friday (the 13th!) Everyone! I had a great pool workout, gobbled up some yogurt, and ran out the door to go to my Weight Watcher meeting today. I was down .8 Something is better than nothing right? I must admit to moving kinda slow this week- my damn back is just not happy. But I am proud of myself for tracking all week and moving as much as I did. GO ME!

Before I left this morning I took out a small container from the freezer and a baggie with 2 ounces of chicken breast meat in it. The container had less than a cup of Butternut Squash Chickpea Red Lentil Stew so I planned on adding a few things to it to make it my Leftover Re-Invented Lunch!

Adding 2 ounce of chicken, a couple of Tablespoons of frozen corn, and a little cayenne powder to the pot as I heated it up made the perfect lunch! I almost tossed in some chopped fresh spinach too- So many ideas!

Just goes to show you that saving not quite a full portion of leftovers is a good idea after all!

Hey so how does that picture look?? I was getting really tired of taking pictures in low dull lighting around here so last week I Googled how to built a light box and it brought me to THIS LINK.

EASY to build-I loved the step by step instructions! But mine did end up costing a little more than they had spent. I bought everything at Lowes, but had the box in my garage! Oh and the tape, plus the tissue paper!Bargain! lol Anyway Here is my set up-

Yes it is on the floor! haha! I needed to clamp the lights up higher than the box. It works, I just need to lay on the floor to take the pictures!

I think the lighting is much better! I also love that I can change out the “placemat” or scrap piece of fabric I got at the local fabric store. Oh and I gotta say that MOST of my pictures are taken with my iPhone4s. Nothing fancy…but I think they look pretty good! Whatcha think??

Hope everyone has a fun weekend! I am making a NEW recipe with my Mom tomorrow that I saw online. I will be sure to snap some pictures & share it with you soon! I know it’s a BIG football weekend so I know I will be making some sort of FAKE version of a BAD for us food. Maybe pita pizzas or Nachos?? humm I guess I will ask the football fan of the house what he feels like!

Bye guys!

Technorati Tags: weight watchers,pointsplus,Butternut squash chickpea red lentil stew,Leftover ideas,photography,iPhone4s,Light box

Checking in….

2012-01-12T07:20:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! Happy Thursday…or as I call it, “The day before Weigh-In!” lol I had a great week! TRACKMASTER I WAS! (remember THIS post? lol) I think I managed my PointsPlus well over the last week and I am hoping to see a loss at tomorrow morning’s meeting/weigh in!

Yesterday I made a double batch of Crock Pot Cajun Red Beans to take to Sean’s family for dinner. This is a great meal for a crowd, or make a single batch to enjoy! We served it over brown rice and had a nice big salad with it for a great dinner.

I wanted to also say THANK YOU for so many nice emails and comments on my last post. It was nice to see that you guys like all of my crazy food ideas! lol Sometimes I think my choices are a little ~~weird, strange, stupid, boring……~~…..ok just ODD! But I guess posts filled with EATS are just what you guys like to see!

So how are YOU doing this week? Have you been tracking? Are you a TRACKMASTER? DId you try any NEW EATS this week that helped you stay OP? Let me know! I love new ideas!

This morning I read a blog post from Tony, who bogs over at The Anti-Jared. Tony is an amazing success story! Losing over 200 pounds! I love how dedicated he is to his life, family, and his healthy lifestyle. Truly an inspiration! Well today’s post from Tony was a shout out to one of my blogging buddies Suzi Storm. Once you go READ TONY’S POST you might be saying, “hey that girl looks familiar” because you just might have seen her on the new Weight Watcher’s Believe commercials.

Yep…a whole lotta inspiration is out there!

Have a great day everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weightwatchers,pointsplus2012,pointsplus,Crock pot recipies,Cajun red beans,Red Beans.

Whole Bunch Of EATS!

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hey guys! I wanted to share some EATS with ya! I know coming up with NEW meal ideas can be difficult so I thought I would share some favorites of mine!

This is a breakfast idea-

3/4 C egg beaters (2)

1 Light Laughing Cow cheese wedge (1)

handful of fresh spinach

I sprayed a non-stick pan with PAM and tossed in the egg beaters- a little pepper & then added the spinach. When I added the cooked eggs to my bowl I stirred in the cheese wedge. It was tasty! Nice & cream with the cheese- and all for just 3PP! YUM!

Lunch- or dinner!

A standard mixed green salad with tomatoes & garbanzo beans- but the real star is the dressing! I love this Caesar! It’s a must try for a lower fat & PointsPlus option out there! 2 Tablespoons +2 PP

This snack hit the spot! Cuties & roasted almonds! YUM!

We love a BLTA night around here! This time it was REAL bacon! I normally use Trader Joe’s peppered turkey bacon. I must say that I missed the peppery flavor of the TJ’s brand!

We decided to have these Alexia Sweet Potato puffs as our side. I think we both would rather have sweet potato fries next time. These we just OK :-/

mmmm blta goodness!

Another breakfast idea! I had this 2X over the past few days.

1 C Fage 0% greek yogurt (3)

cereal- granola mix (3)

blueberries

** This version did not keep me full very long

So just to give it a try, next time I ate this combo I decided to mix in some protein powder to help fill me up a little more. Yep! Totally worked! Just one scoop for 1 PP did the trick! I get this brand at Trader Joe’s for about $9 a can.

Ahhhhh my favorite WEIRD SALADS!

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you will see my post pictures of this salad A LOT! lol

Garbanzo beans, cottage cheese, grated parmesan cheese, snap peas, & shredded carrots! Topped with dry roasted sun flower seeds too! YUM!

Before mixing it up…and after!

Breakfast OR Lunch idea!

2 slices Fat Free Multigrain bread-toasted (3)

1 egg + 1 egg white (2)

3 slices Canadian Bacon(1)

Fruit on the side

Here is a NEW recipe for ya!

Tj’s Pho At Home!

Get yourself any and all vegetables that you love to eat!

In my bowl- ( I split this pile & served 2)

Mushrooms- sliced

1 small zucchini- sliced

shredded carrots

bok choy

sugar peas

green onions

bean sprouts

small piece of ginger-sliced up.

Ok so I got these packets of rice noodle soups- but instead of using the dry packets of broth that they come with I used my chicken bouillon & tossed in the sliced ginger & boiled for about 20 minutes to flavor the broth.

You could totally buy a box of rice noodles and portion them out- those packets of soup were on sale so I decided to get them since it was cheaper than the box of noodles! 4 PointsPlus worth of noodles all set to go!

I put the mushrooms & zucchini in a bowl- these take the longest to cook so I kept them separated from the rest of the veggie pile.

All the other vegetables waiting to take a broth bath!

I tossed the mushrooms & zucchini in first- cooked for about 4 minutes. Noodles were up next! These cook FAST! The package said 3 minutes but I think 2 worked just fine! So 1 minute into cooking I added in the rest of the vegetables and stirred it all up!

The last thing I did was throw in the green onions & give the pot one final stir….

All set ready to EAT! The noodles came in at 4PP and I gave myself an additional PP for the broth. Totally filling and delicious meal for 5 PointsPlus!

Topped with a LITTLE squirt of HOT!

YUM! Perfect LOW PointsPlus Soup for a cold Winter evening!

YUM!

I didn’t like it…. can ya tell? lol

Once again I made a dish that I like getting out- but never really know exactly how it is cooked. When I make things at home it is SO much easier for me to figure out how many PointsPlus the recipe is, and not to mention how much easier it is to stay on track!

What do you cook at home to help you stay on plan? My list is LONG! lol I wanna hear what you make!

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus,Pho Rice Noodle Soup,Breakfast Ideas,Lunch ideas,Bacon

I got crabby

2012-01-05T08:26:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone! I haven’t been cooking much this new year but I wanted to share some pics with ya!

It is crab season around here! Which is reason for celebration on it’s own in my book! lol But, I also like to celebrate my birthday by getting CRABBY!

(insert pic w/excited “I’m gonna eat crab soon!” face!) lol

On Tuesday Sean took me to one of our favorite restaurants and I must admit to never ordering anything but CRAB when I go! We don’t go that often so I never want to try anything else!

The lighting was so bad in the restaurant! No I did not go to Jamaica and get a bad sun burn. haha! But how come Sean looks good in this lighting? lol Men!

Do you like my bib? They get you ready to dig in!

Holy crab deliciousness! It is 8am here and as I type I am salivating! lol I apologize in advance for the FOOD PORN!

All good things must come to an end….

Sean and his pasta w/ bolognese sauce. He made sure to get some crab too!

Plus a lil tiramisu treat to end the celebrations…

It was a wonderful way to turn 39….I think I will celebrate #39 again next year too.

Bye

Tid-Bits

2012-01-02T08:49:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! Happy New Year to everyone! We have been busy the past few days with family get togethers.
Saturday was a Christmas/Sean’s Uncle Birthday/ New Year/ Sean’s Grandma doing better party! We did not manage to stay awake until midnight but celebrated at 9pm since I was born in New York Yeah we cheated a little! .lol

Then yesterday we celebrated my Dad’s birthday with my parents. My Mom made spaghetti with her cook all damn day sauce (that I have yet to learn!) It’s filled with Italian sausage, and the best meatballs ever! I always bring my own pasta (2.5 ounces-Fiber Gourmet) to make up for the fact that I NEED to eat 2 of the meatballs. My mom doesn’t make them too big so I guess I don’t need to feel TOO guilty.

I brought ceviche with us both days and man does everyone gobble that up! Including us! YUM!

Red Pepper Sauce Ceviche
1/2 cup chopped onion
6 cups water
3/4 cup fresh lime juice, divided
1 pound medium shrimp
1 cup chopped peeled cucumber
1/2 cup Red Pepper Spread-Trader Joe’s
1/4 C ketchup
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (I used parsley since I do not like cilantro)
2-3 dashes hot sauce (or as much as you want to use!)
Bring 6 cups water and 1/4 cup juice to a boil. Add shrimp; cook 3 minutes or until done. Drain and rinse with cold water; peel shrimp removing tails . I roughly chopped the shrimp I used because they were large and I wanted them to fit nicely on chips. Place the shrimp in the fridge to chill while you finish the recipe.
To make the sauce: Add remaining lemon juice and 1/2 a cup of the Red Pepper Sauce to a blender to smooth it out a bit. Add in the hot sauce and ketchup too.
Chop the onion & cucumber and place in a large bowl. Add in the chilled shrimp and blended sauce to the bowl; cover and chill until you are ready to serve. Tastes great with tortilla chips !
-----------------------------
I made a batch of soup too this past week! Creamy Broccoli Soup, Minus The Cream! (click link to see recipe!) I love this soup & I also love how low in PointsPlus it is!

**do ya use Instagram?? I love it! Find me on it if you use it! tjstestkitchen

Sean and I made some pizza rolls last week too. We went old school and used the reduced fat crescent rolls for this one. I love when Weight Watcher math fools me, but in a good way!
1=3…2=6….and just when you think 3 will = 9 it tells ya 8! Whoohooo!
I used about 1/2 ounce of low fat mozzarella in each roll and 3 slices of turkey pepperoni in each roll. Baked them according to the directions on the package. EASY DINNER! I had 3 rolls for 11 PointsPlus and had a tasty side salad to go with them. YUM!

Today Sean is off from work and the pool is closed so we are off to get our sneakers on to go bike riding! Then a little pre-birthday celebrations are going to take place…since Tuesday birthday’s are no fun! lol Can’t wait to spend the day with Sean today! Off to unplug!

Bye guys!

Technorati Tags: Weightwatchers,Pointsplus2012,pizza rolls,Cream of broccoli soup,Ceviche

Cooking With TJ- Fake Chow Mein At Home

2011-12-29T12:53:00.001-08:00

Many of you have asked…
Here I am cooking! It’s EASY & delicious!
Fake Chow Mein at home!
WARNING- I filmed this video from my iPhone4s alone, so it is a little BLAIR WITCH-LIKE! lol Sorry!
ENJOY!

*UPDATE* I quickly dumped in my bowl of veggies and left out what everything was. Can ya tell I was nervous & it was my first time? lol SORRY & thanks for reminding me to post about what I used Beth! :)

In my big ass bowl:
Broccoli slaw! I love this stuff! It's so great in this dish because it's NOODLE-LIKE!
Shredded carrots- just because I LOVE them!
Snow peas- I just cut them into pieces

-the last item in my bowl was the noodles which I get in the refrigerated section (by the produce) at my local grocery store. I usually split the package with Sean for dinner but this time divided it up into 4 servings and bulked up the vegetables for a healthier lunch.

I pretty much added whatever I had in my fridge! I think bean sprouts would be good, of and those bamboo shoots that come in a can too. Anything works! :)

Technorati Tags: Cooking Video,WeightWatchers,PointsPlus2012,CHOW MEIN

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T14:09:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone! Since I know I will be swamped the next few days I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

I will be cooking Christmas dinner and I decided to make home made gnocchi. If you remember that Danica and I worked on a recipe together a while back- Baked Ricotta Gnocchi with 2 Cheeses and Walnuts. Well I am altering it a little, but looking forward to a fantastic dinner! **CLICK HERE FOR THE ORIGINAL RECIPE **

I wish everyone a warm & safe holiday!

Tracey

OH! I almost forgot! I was down 1.8 today at my Weight Watchers meeting! That is -4.4 in 3 weeks :) I am really proud of myself for doing so well when I haven't been feeling so well. Sometimes I use food to comfort myself and then all I do is regret it. That right there is a NSV for me! :)

Who else is rocking the new PointsPlus2012 plan?? SHARE AWAY MY FRIENDS! :)

Quinoa Casserole with Broccoli & Cannellini Beans

2011-12-21T17:09:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! I am addicted to finding recipe ideas on Pinterest and when I saw THIS RECIPE I knew I had to make it! I also knew I wanted to lighten it up, and make it more of a full meal, and I think I did ok!

Quinoa Casserole with Broccoli & Cannellini Beans

Serves 6 1 C = 6 PP

(Original recipe HERE)

1 Can Cream Soup- I used cream of celery 98% FF

1 Can cannellini beans- or white kidney beans

1 Cup 2% Colby-Jack Cheese

1 Tablespoon light mayo

1 Tablespoon FF Milk

1 Tablespoon water

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 Cups cooked broccoli florets

Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese- to add to top of casserole

**1 1/2 Cups cooked quinoa**

To make Quinoa-

3/4 C uncooked quinoa- Rinsed very well!!

1 &1/2 C water

1/4 teaspoon salt.

Bring to a boil; then cover and simmer on low for about 20 minutes; until water is absorbed. Done!

In a large mixing bowl add soup, colby-jack cheese, milk, water, mayo, pepper, broccoli, beans, and mix well. When quinoa is finished cooking stir that in too.

Place mixture in a shallow baking dish and top with parmesan cheese. Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees. I turned on the broiler at the end to brown the top a little to make it pretty.

I just dipped my fork in for TASTE TEST PURPOSES…and YUM! I love it! I think adding the beans for was a good idea for me to make it feel like a main dish. I will be serving it with a simple side salad for a delicious dinner tonight! I can’t wait!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus2012,Healthy Cooking,Quinoa,Casserole,Broccoli

Weight Watcher’s Scanner

2011-12-19T15:15:00.001-08:00

Hi guys! Has anyone been using the new Weight Watcher’s scanner app? What is it exactly? Well…it’s a cool app for iPhone & Android users-you also need to pay for e-tools with Weight Watchers. All ya do is scan the barcodes on packages and boxes of the foods you already have in your home- or ones that you might be wanting to get as you are in the store shopping.

First off let me say this is just my opinion on the app- I do not work for WW or was I asked to take part in a review.

I was excited when the app became available last week and I got busy scanning! I did my yogurt, string cheese, salad dressings, and I thought I’d take a few pics to share with you my cottage cheese scan.

Ya see the black app titled WW SCANNER? Well that is it! Right there next to my WW Mobile app!

This app is really easy to use! I love a user friendly tool! Open the app up…..

Select SCAN at the bottom of the menu and this screen comes up-

Get your item ready to be scanned out….

Hover the camera of you phone over the barcode and you will see it focus on the numbers & lines.

Then you hear a SNAP…. like it took a picture…or maybe that’s just on my iPhone? lol THEN….
TADA!
The PointsPlus value appears before you!

It gets saved in your HISTORY-

Or you can add it to your FAVORITES list that automatically syncs with WW mobile and e-tools! Love this!

They also have a SHOPPING LIST! But my list is empty right now…

You can see from this screen that you can TRACK THIS ITEM-

and then another menu offers a few options-

EDIT SERVING SIZE is something that I find handy in this app! What if I don’t want a 1 Cup serving of cottage cheese for 3 PP? Well ya just adjust the wheel to make it whatever size you want to have! Here I selected 1/2 C for 1 PP!

Once ya hit DONE you can hit ADD TO TRACKER! EASY!

This app also has the PointsPlus CALCULATOR built in too so you don’t need to switch to the WW Mobile app to use it.

So for me this is a handy app to use occasionally. I really don’t have a lot of foods that have barcodes on it to scan but I think about the yogurt section at the grocery store for this being an easier way to find a low PointsPlus option! lol

Previously I used another version not WW related and found it to be less accurate than this one. Not everything I scanned was in this system…I think a carton of Egg Beaters came back a mystery, but ya can’t expect every item to be listed.

So have you been scanning? What do you think?
Happy scanning!
BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus2012,Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner,Barcode scanner app,iPhone4s Scanner app

The Bad Baker Returns!

2011-12-14T15:42:00.001-08:00

I gave myself the title BAD BAKER a while back and I’m serious…if I’m not closely monitored in the kitchen while I bake things can go horribly wrong. I honestly think it’s OK…I can live with the fact that I cook well, yet bake bad. lol

So when I want to bring a treat to a dinner party I rely on GOOGLE (yes, I Google) to help me find something EASY!

BEHOLD the two…yes 2! Ingredient cake:

oohh…. tasty!

Ok ok…so I made a glaze and threw on some toasted almond slices, but the cake is really only 2 ingredients! whoohooo

Pumpkin Cake

1 box yellow cake mix

1 can pure pumpkin

With a hand mixer; mix cake mix and pumpkin together until smooth. Pour into an 8x8 Pyrex dish sprayed with Pam. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Added into the Weight Watchers Recipe Builder

24 slices are 2 PP each-- sans the glaze & almonds.

*optional glaze- mix juice from a fresh squeezed orange with cinnamon and powdered sugar until thick. No I don’t measure- I just mix till thick.

ENJOY!

tj the bad baker

Technorati Tags: Pumpkin cake,2 ingredient cake,Weight Watchers,PointsPlus2012

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

2011-12-13T13:43:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! The folks over at Kikkoman sent me a package of Panko breadcrumbs and Kara-Age seasoning mix to try out. Kikkoman was at the FoodBuzz Tasting Pavilion and of course I said YES to be able to cook with and sample their products.

Since I am more familiar with Panko I decided to use that one first. Actually I still need to decided what to make with the other product. I plan on checking out the Kikkoman web site to see all of the recipe ideas they they have. It’s a great web site- go check it out!

Now on to my recipe!

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Serves 6

6 PointsPlus per Serving

Ingredients:

2 Medium sized eggplants

1 28oz can Low Fat Marinara Sauce

1 1/2 C Egg Beaters

1 C Panko Breadcrumbs

1 teaspoon Italian seasonings

2 oz. light mozzarella cheese

1 oz. grated parmesan cheese

Fresh cracked pepper

The first step I always do when cooking with eggplant is to slice it, sprinkle it with salt, and let it sweat out a little bit in a colander over my sink. Helps it get rid of some water and also get any bitters out.

Then mix the Panko with the Italian seasonings. You can also add in fresh cracked pepper if you like at this time. Place this mix in a shallow dish- large enough to be able to dip your eggplant rounds into.

Add the Egg Beaters to a shallow bowl- also large enough to dunk your eggplant rounds into.

Dip the eggplant into the egg beaters- then the Panko to coat; Placing on a baking sheet as you go. I filled 2 large baking sheets.

When the rounds are all coated place in oven at 400degrees for 15 minutes each side- or until slightly browned.

Next I placed a layer of Marinara sauce in a deep baking dish then layered on the eggplant rounds- sprinkled with mozzarella, and parmesan cheese. Topped that layer off with more sauce and kept repeating until my baking dish was full. I did have 2 eggplant rounds remaining…guess I could use a larger dish! lol

Then I covered the baking dish tightly with foil and popped it in the oven at 400degrees for an hour.

You can serve it as is or make a little pasta to go with it for a full meal.

**I used very little cheese- so if you enjoy this dish a little cheesier, feel free to adjust it!

This came out really well! I am a HUGE eggplant parmesan fan so I was leery about making this BAKED version but I gotta say I didn’t miss the fried step to this dish at all! YUM!

BACK UPDATE! I am doing much better today! I was able to go to the pool to walk laps! Baby steps! I missed doing my full water workout- but I need to start out slowly. I know with having arthritis that sitting (or laying) down in bed for 5 days is NOT a good thing. I feel so stiff!! SO I gotta start at scratch and just get the therapy from that pool that I need. Thanks for all the well wishes guys! I appreciate it!

Hope everyone has a great day!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus2012,Kikkoman,Panko,Baked Eggplant Parmesan,Italian Food,Healthy Cooking

#PointsPlus2012- My 1st Weigh In!

2011-12-12T12:54:00.001-08:00

Hi guys! I had a bit of bad luck last week when I bent down to tie my shoe and couldn’t stand back up! My darn back was spasming so bad that I had a hard time talking. After a pointless doctor visit I decided to go to the ER and they were able to do trigger point injections to ease the spasms. Boy do I know how to have fun right? lol I’m slowly getting better and will be happy when I can cook for myself and also be able to walk around better!
All of that excitement was why I didn’t get around to a post on Friday about my weigh in. Well I am very happy to report that I was down 1.6 for my first PointsPlus2012 weigh in! Yipeeee I knew that I wanted to have a good week and I did fine with the adjustment to 26 daily PointsPlus rather than 29.
I was happy to have all of the NEW handouts too! I’m so geeky when it comes to being able to see it all in front of me. lol I was only able to go to WI since my back was so bad, but next week I will stay for the meeting.
I took a few pictures for you guys of what I was given.
Everything was tucked away in the little pouch-

The weekly handout was in there too…along with great tips on how to make the most of the new plan.

I think the main focus for the 2012 PointsPlus program is to show people how FLEXIBLE the plan can be. It really can work for anyone. You make it what you want it to be!

The MEET the PoinstPlus2012 book was in there…I liked this page filled with YUMMY foods that are all plan friendly and total in at 26!

This book is cool…it helps you along the way. Helps you set small goal, tracking tips…

Plus I like that it had ANSWERS to questions that I know I have been wondering about. Makes me feel less alone in my battles!

This was a good idea- The PowerStart Tracker will be very helpful to NEW people as well as people who might need some new food ideas on the plan. Gives you meal ideas with the PointsPlus all set and ready to go! SO Helpful!

Also got a new little pocket guide. I actually like that its less clunky than the last one I had. lol

Some people were concerned that they went and chaged all of the PointsPlus values again…yes some items have changed. Some for the worse…
LIGHT BEER- Then 3, Now 4
ALMONDS 23- Then 4, Now 5

BUT some for the BEST!
WINE- Then 4, Now 3
Baked Beans- Then 8, Now 5
hehe

For me not a lot has changed on this new plan. I will continue to eat healthier and choose less processed foods through out my day. I think eating whole foods OR POWER FOODS as Weight Watchers refers to them has made this plan successful. I also think making those choices has made me feel less deprived. I shed a tear over losing those 3 daily pointsplus last week but I can honestly say that I had a GREAT week on plan, even dipped into my weekly 49 and still had a loss of 1.6!

Have you gone to your first PointsPlus 2012 weigh in yet? Share your success with me, tell me all about it!
Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,PointsPlus2012,Weigh In

The Tale Of Two Breakfasts

2011-12-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

Hello! I thought I would discuss the most important meal of the day…..BREAKFAST!

I pretty much wake up HUNGRY. I have since I was a little girl…sorry Mom. hehe I find that with trying to limit my carb intake I am constantly trying to adjust my meals to make a balanced day.

For example if I know pasta will be a part of dinner I try to skip or limit my breakfast and lunch carbs. So for example I might use a corn tortilla with my egg whites instead of a light English Muffin. Or pick a salad for lunch instead of a sandwich.

I always ALWAYS add in fruit to my AM meal because I LOVE it and why yes, because it’s ZERO PointsPlus! I find it helps me balance out the meal and keeps me full longer too! BONUS!

So this week I wanted to eat a breakfast that I know is good for me. Behold- The Fage 0% Bowl!

1 C Fage 0%, 1 TB Low Fat Granola, Handful of Berries. This bowl comes in at 4 Pointsplus. However I am not usually satisfied after eating it.

Growing up I loved to cook breakfast for my family and I was known for THE TRACEY SPECIAL! I used any bread we had, ham, or bacon, and cheese! I would serve doubles upon request and to this day I still love my breakfast sandwich!

Just today I ate this version…

Double Fiber English Muffin, 2 egg whites, 1slice of ham, 1 slice of 2% cheese. YUM! I’m drooling now just thinking about eating it. lol This combo is 6 PointsPlus (although technically I could of had 3 egg whites for 1 PP so if ya wanna say 5 I wouldn’t mind! lol) Hands down The Tracey Special kept me satisfied longer.

Other breakfast ideas for me include the Morningstar soy sausage patties. They are packed with protein and I love the taste of them too. Plus they make a great addition to the breakfast sandwich! In the winter I like my BAKED OATMEAL and also like Bob’s Red Mill 8 grain hot cereal. On a HOT Summer morning I turn to a green smoothie to keep me going.

What do you like for breakfast? Do you pick things that satisfy you or just go with whatever you feel like eating that morning?

I hope everyone has a great day!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Breakfast Ideas,Weight Watchers,Pointsplus,Low Carb

Test Kitchen Blunder

2011-12-06T09:05:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! Thanks for all of the comments yesterday! I loved that you all chimed in and I am grateful that I am not alone in my struggles. I appreciate the supportive comments too! THANKS! I will let ya know how Friday’s weigh in goes as well as all of the new plan info that will be discussed.

Now on to the title of my post….

I’m not good at following directions. lol I also blame the fact that I woke up at 5 am and decided to start cooking before I started my 2nd cup of coffee! hehe

I made an old favorite Weight Watcher recipe- Spicy Black Bean Soup (click HERE for the recipe link) I love this soup! Not only do ya get a hearty 1 1/2 cups per serving but it’s only 4 PointsPlus per serving! WOW!

If you clicked on the recipe link already you might notice how you can see the chunkiness of the soup. Actually see the beans…. well mine…

Not so much! It looks like a chocolate pudding if ya ask me. But it tastes good! lol

What I did was forget that one of the cans of black beans DO NOT get added to the blender. Ooopps!

Oh well ya can’t always be a show off in the kitchen right? lol Do you ever have a kitchen blunder? Come on, share your boo-boo’s with me so I can feel better about my mistake. lo

Had another great day on plan yesterday! I ate 27 PointsPlus for the day using just one extra weekly. I feel great about the food choices I ate, and today I am all set to have a great day too! I made sure I made this soup to help me out so I can have EASY lunches for the rest of the week. I might head out to get an avocado to add in some toppings to the soup since it’s such a low PointsPlus meal! YUM!

PLAN AND YOU WILL SUCCEED!

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,Spicy Black Bean Soup,Pointsplus

Weight Watchers 2012 PointsPlus Plan

2011-12-05T11:29:00.001-08:00

Technorati Tags: Weight Watchers,2012 PointsPlus

Hey everyone! I think I sat down to write a post Weight Watcher related about a thousand times over the last few months. I think now is a good time to chat about it mostly because of the NEW improved program Weight Watchers just unveiled.

My weight loss came to a screeching halt with the last program change. I loved the idea behind the program, loved the fact that I did not need to count fruit, just watch portions of them, and I loved the flexibility the plan gave me. The plan changed my thoughts on carbs entirely. Limiting them became a new (HARD) habit for me. I started to listen to my body more than ever- something very NEW to me and I enjoyed getting to know what foods made me feel better, and kept me full longer.

I guess it was my fault for not speaking to anyone about the reasons why I was stuck for almost a year. When I started to get a little frustrated for the lack of scale luv, I slowly stopped tracking. I was aware of my food choices and mentally took note, but nothing compares to actually keeping a food journal.

Little but little I started gaining weight. Each week stepping on that scale, still paying for my monthly Weight Watchers membership, but not really participating in the plan. I would always say next week….then for whatever reason I would never track. I had stayed hovering the 160 mark for a year and now I find myself at 170. No, it’s not terrible. No, it’s not the end of the world. But, for me it’s not where I want to be. I was happier at 160…I know it’s just a matter of 10 pounds…but those 10 pounds make a difference for me. I also want to add 5 more pounds to that loss and get to goal!

Now…The new 2012 PointsPlus plan! I go to my meetings on Friday’s- so the full scoop on this plan will be discussed this coming Friday. Since they gave all of the updated info already online, I was able to read about it last Friday. My leader did tell us a little bit since she knew most of us would be needing some sort of explanation as to why we were shorted daily points. lol

So yeah- I had 3 PointsPlus removed from my dailies. Am I ok with that? HELL YES! If it helps me get to goal- SURE! Do I miss that 3…YEP! lol I always get use to what is given to me and I did have to plan accordingly to make sure I was satisfied throughout my day. Now do not panic! If you were losing with those additional 3 dailies, keep on going! You can add them back in. The plan is flexible!

Today is day 4 for me…fully ON PLAN. TRACKING 100%, and I will be looking forward to getting on the scale this coming Friday. I am also looking forward to hearing more about the plan in person- at the meeting. I really love the meeting aspect of Weight Watchers and I know that part helps me the most!

I’m not sure why I put off talking about ME for so long but I guess I know everyone struggles and I wanted to share where I am at. I know I can get through this. I also know I need to work at keeping my weight and food issues under control. It’s seriously a battle, but I am a FIGHTER!

If you want to read about the new 2011 PointsPlus Weight Watcher plan CLICK HERE!

I hope everyone has a great day!
BYE!

Duncan Hines Coupon WINNERS!

2011-12-02T13:04:00.001-08:00

Hello! The winners of the 3 sets of coupons are:

Anna, JC, & Renee!!

If you guys can please email me your address I will send out the coupons ASAP! :)
tjbooboo@gmail.com
Congratulations & happy baking!

Hope everyone has a happy Friday! BYE!

Butternut squash, Chickpea, Red Lentil Stew=YUM

2011-11-29T07:00:00.000-08:00

Hey I came across this recipe a while back and thought it would be perfect for a cold Winters day. I decided that I had to test it out today. Boy am I glad that I did! Even Sean loved it! It was a HUGE HIT and I only changed one little ingredient….well the main one. lol I didn’t have pumpkin so I used butternut squash and WOW it came out so good! This is a MUST try and it is so easy to toss in the crock pot too! I set it on HIGH for 5 hours and the whole house smelled delicious!

I need to add it to the Weight Watchers recipe builder- since I changed the ingredients and left off the toppings, but from the stats at 7 PointsPlus a serving it sure doesn’t seem like a bad meal to enjoy for us Weight Watcher peeps!

Here is the original recipe from Better Homes and Gardens-

Pumpkin (or Butternut squash!) Chickpea Red Lentil Stew

Ingredients

1pound pie pumpkin or winter squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes

1-15 ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained3medium carrots, sliced 1/2 inch thick
1-cup chopped onion (1 large)
1-cup red lentils, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1tablespoon grated fresh ginger

1tablespoon lime juice
1teaspoon ground cumin
1/4teaspoon salt
1/4teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4teaspoon ground black pepper
4cups chicken or vegetable broth
1/4cup chopped peanuts
2tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Plain nonfat yogurt (optional)

directions
1. In a 3-1/2- to 4-quart slow cooker, combine pumpkin, chickpeas, carrots, onion, lentils, tomato paste, ginger, lime juice, cumin, salt, turmeric, and pepper. Pour broth over all in cooker.
2. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours. Top each serving with peanuts, cilantro, and if desired, yogurt.

Makes 6 (1-1/3 cup) servings.

nutrition facts (Pumpkin, Chickpea, and Red Lentil Stew)
Servings Per Recipe 6, Calories 275, Protein (gm) 14, Carbohydrate (gm) 46, Fat, total (gm) 4, Cholesterol (mg) 2, Saturated fat (gm) 1, Monosaturated fat (gm) 2, Polyunsaturated fat (gm) 1, Dietary Fiber, total (gm) 10, Sugar, total (gm) 8, Vitamin A (IU) 89, Vitamin C (mg) 15, Thiamin (mg) 0, Riboflavin (mg) 0, Niacin (mg) 4, Pyridoxine (Vit. B6) (mg) 0, Folate (µg) 81, Sodium (mg) 1027, Potassium (mg) 795, Calcium (DV %) 81, Iron (DV %) 3, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ya gotta make this! I actually liked it better without the toppings- so I skipped the yogurt, peanuts, and the cilantro(yuck!) lol

I love finding new recipes that everyone loves!

Have you made anything NEW recently that you and your family have declared NEW favorites? Please share!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Butternut squash,Chickpeas,Stew,Pointsplus,Weight Watchers,Red Lentils,Butternut squash chickpea red lentil stew,winter recipes

Duncan Hines Giveaway!

2011-11-28T17:21:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone! As part of the Foodbuzz Taste makers Program I received coupons to create a delicious dessert idea from Duncan Hines & Comstock-Wilderness. This was a tough job to have! lol Not only make something but test it out too! Would you also like some coupons?

Because the people over at Duncan Hines were very generous and gave me LOTS of coupons! Whoohoo!

I decided to just mix a box of Duncan Hines Devils Food cake mix, a can of Comstock light cherry pie filling, and 6 ounces of sparkling water (mine was pomegranate flavored) -- yes that is all I added. DO not follow the directions on the cake mix box! :)

I sprayed an 8x8 Pyrex dish with PAM and baked the dessert for 60 minutes at 350 degrees- or until toothpick comes out semi- clean out of the center of the cake.

The result was an extremely moist cake! WOW! I added the recipe to the Weight Watchers recipe builder and 20 servings are only 3 Pointsplus each. The hard part was cutting this cake into 20 servings because of how moist it was! I think it would have been great with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream too!

Ok so now are you ready to get your coupons? Yes I said COUPONS. I have 6 coupons so I will be randomly selecting 3 winners to get 2 coupon each! WOW!
How do you enter?
How about 3 ways??!!
1- Just leave me a comment! SIMPLE!
Want another entry?
2- Blog about this giveaway.
Still want more?
3- TWEET about this giveaway OR post about it on Facebook!
**Just leave separate comments for me about what you did to spread the word about this giveaway. Piece of cake right? hehe
**Since the coupons will be my responsibility to mail out I am limiting this giveaway to US residents only.
Winners will be selected using Random.org on Friday Dec 2nd.
Thanks for entering! Can’t wait to see what you bake up! Good luck!

Technorati Tags: Duncan Hines,Comstock-Wilderness,Diet Soda Cake,Givaway,Coupons

Nasoya Coupon Winners!

2011-11-25T12:38:00.001-08:00

Hi guys! Hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving! Today I am decorating for CHRISTMAS! It's my favorite thing to do on black Friday! hehe

The two winners of the Nasoya coupons are:

Lyndsay at Thinspiration & Janece!! WHOOHOO If both of you will please email me your mailing info I will send the coupons right out! tjbooboo@gmail.com

Congrats guys!

:)

Best Eats in Maui!

2011-11-23T12:00:00.000-08:00

This post is FILLED with yummy food pictures. This is a warning and a confession at the same time. lol With that being said- ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK and NO, I did not track a single pointsplus all week. I ate, I enjoyed, and I am back to reality this week.

At the Westin Villas they have a few restaurants. We had booked our vacation using Costco and had a credit at this place for a 3 course dinner. I had no idea what to expect and I think both Sean and I were surprised at just how good it was.

Cheers!

Up first were the appetizers! We shared plates so we could try a little of everything.

Shrimp risotto-

Steamed clams-

Main entrees- Filet

Gnocchi with lobster-

Then it was dessert time but we had to get it togo! We were so STUFFED! lol

We stopped at a small little cafe that I can not for the life of me remember the name of but they were very friendly and the food was tasty! Sean said this was the BEST BURGER EVER and I got a BS(spinach)TA wrap that was fantastic!

Can I just tell ya how much I love these little stands on the sides of the road!

SHAVED ICE!! I made the mistake of ordering the LARGE my first time. It was larger than my head! lol

Ever use YELP? Well that site was so helpful to us this past week! We loved reading everyone's favorite choices from the menus and even seeing the pictures of the food in advance! Especially helpful when the place doesn't have a web site! If you ever need help finding a place by $$, nearby, type of food, highest rated, or even open now- Yelp is a great help to get you some yummy eats! :)

Okazuya was one of those places that you can't judge a book (or restaurant in this case) by it's cover...or strip mall. There was only a small bar to sit at to eat or tables outside and I gotta say I wish this place would open up near me. I WANT MORE!

Mahi Mahi with lemon caper sauce...wow, just WOW! Ya know I don't eat fish right? Well now I am HOOKED!

Steak...cooked to perfection & melt in your mouth delicious! Oh my goodness I am drooling as I type! huh

More shaved ice...loll

The Luau we went to was fun but the darkness was not a good place to take pictures :( SO I snapped a pic of the menu to share.

The food was good- served family style. We had a fun table of people and the funniest part- the couple sitting next to us was SEAN & TRACEY TOO! lol What are the chances of that?? The show was really great! The Westin put on a terrific luau!

Gazebo Restaraunt in Lahaina was a last minute Yelp look up and boy it did not disappoint!

It was decorated so festive!

I ordered the fried rice with egg....this is a HALF order! lol I made a pretty big dent in it. :)

I can't remember exactly what Sean ordered....burger patties with grilled onions...

but this is how happy is was after his first bite. loll

Again at the Villas we hit another one of the restaurants to take in happy hour.

sweet potato fries

coconut shrimp

Beef satay

everything was delicious....even my Blue Hawaii! :) Cheers!

Ok so after we went on a road trip adventure we got HUNGRY! YELP helped again... We just hit the search button in the area we happen to be at and VIOLA!

Yes, this is a truck. As is a truck on the side of the road. I think this might have been my favorite meal all week! Geste Shrimp Truck was THE BOMB! Small simple menu that was BIG on flavor and quality!

Sean got the hot dog plate....

I had to get the Hawaiian scampi!

Sean was obviously unhappy with his selection. Haha! Ever HUNGRY and in Kahului GO FIND THAT TRUCK!

Got butter? Noo...I'm kidding I didn't eat this beach crab, but I did drool a little bit when I saw him scurry away on the beach. LOL

That just about does it....If you made it to the end without needing to wipe your chin off congratulations. lol I had a hard time just writing about all of the yumminess. :)

Bye :)

Nasoya Giveaway!

2011-11-22T18:52:00.001-08:00

Hey guys! I was contacted by the folks over at Nasoya to try out something from their line of foods and I was also given a couple of extra coupons to pass along to you as well! I decided on the tofu BUT they make other great items too! Noodles, won ton wrappers, and even hummus! Please check out their web site and come back to tell me what product you would like to try out. I will pick TWO winners on Friday 11/25 using random.org

I tried out the NEW Tofu Plus that is fortified with vitamins. It was good! I used my BAKED TOFU recipe and then sliced it up to add to stir fry. Both Sean and I loved it! It's nice that the tofu has the added nutrients if you are on a meat free diet. Helps you get in the extra good stuff that we all need!

SO whatcha think....wanna FREE coupon? :)

Back from Maui!

2011-11-21T18:09:00.001-08:00

Hello Everyone!! Well what can I say about such a relaxing week? WOW, just wow. Let's just say Sean and I needed this vacation BAD. We did lots of NOTHING, which is exactly what we needed. We loved deciding between, pool, beach, or driving around to explore the island without a care in the world. It was a wonderful vacation and I am so grateful to have been able to go away to such a beautiful place. Maui will be on our RETURN SOON list! :)

Back to reality, home. Clothes ALL cleaned and put away...but now very tired from getting things done on my first day home. So I thought I would just share a few pics (just a few- but we took 600!) with you and promise to get a post ready with all of the AMAZING food we ate very soon!

Aloha! :)

World Wide Pizza Party #PizzaPartyin5 @ArtisanBreadin5 @ZoeBakes.com

2011-11-15T06:30:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone! I really wanted to share this post with you (even though we are on vacation in Maui-stay tuned for a post all about our trip!) so I decided to schedule this to post on WORD WIDE PIZZA PARTY DAY! How could I miss out on such a festive day right?!

Sean and I did participate (just a little early) but I gotta tell you the dough we made was SO EASY & DELICIOUS! YUM! A couple of weekends ago when I attended FoodBuzz I was given this cookbook: Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day. I knew I would be whipping up a dinner for us soon!

While I was at FoodBuzz I also got to sample this great Fire Side Chat beer from 21st Amendment brewery and knew I had to get Sean to taste it too! They see it at our local Whole Foods! Score! Ya can't have pizza without beer right? :)

mmmm Winter Spiced!

Ok so back to the pizza party! I said this recipe was EASY....so easy that I will no longer be scared to make my own dough ever again! lol This is saying something coming from the girl who calls herself a BAD BAKER! lol

The recipe we decided to use for our first dough-GO was the one they called: Crisp-Yet-Tender Pizza Dough Even Closer to the Style of Naples on page 71 of the cookbook. I had my math wiz Sean help me divide the recipe by 4 so we only made what we needed for the day. The recipe says that you can use the dough for up to 14 days Or store in the freezer for up to 3 weeks, so maybe next time a larger mix will be needed. :)

Here are the measurements for our ONE pizza:

Lukewarm Water- Almost 1 Cup
Granulated Yeast- 3/4 teaspoon
Kosher Salt- 1 teaspoon
Bleached All Purpose Flour- 2 Cups

Mix yeast, salt, and water in a large bowl. Mix in flour without kneading, using a spoon. If you want to use a food processor with dough attachment or a stand mixer with paddle, you can. If not (and the way I did it, by hand) you will need to use your hands to mix in all of the flour well.

Cover- not airtight and allow to rest room temperature until the dough rises and collapses. About 2 hours.

rest little dough ball, rest

The dough can be used immediately after it's first rise (like I did) but it will be easier to handle if cold.

I just used a little flour on my hands and pretty much hand stretched this guy out. I drizzled and little bit of olive oil on my cookie sheet and laid my square-ish dough canvas down. Sean helped me "decorate" and off into the oven it went for only about 14 minutes at 425 degrees.

Out came the most delicious crust... it was soft inside and crispy on the outside! Perfect pizza! YUM!

I had fun making the dough from scratch! I can't wait to create something else from the cookbook too! I enjoyed the Pizza Party thanks to the Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day cookbook! :)

Foodbuzz 2011 Day 2 re-cap

2011-11-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

Hey there! Ok so back to the Foodbuzz festival for day 2 of FUN! WIth a little learning thrown in too! Danica and I headed into the city again and it was a great day!

We picked out 2 sessions that looked interesting and got there a bit early to sit in on the end of another session. But before we sat down the food called our name....

Holy moley breakfast buffet! The lineup was HUGE! We were told that a LIGHT buffet would be served but WOW! Check out this spread!

Wonderfully fresh fruit salad and a spicy as hell cheddar pepper thing that was just not that good. :-/ oh well ya can't win them all right? lol

This was the panel at the session that we did not select, but it was interesting and all about taking your blog to the next level. These ladies were pretty big time foodies and I felt like a peon. lol

Next up was a discussion called DSLR free zone. I loved it....learned a whole lot about how to take better pictures using my point and shoot and my iPhone which I already know can take awesome shots!

The second session we chose was all about Social Networking. Not only was it informative but very funny!

Us food bloggers were in need of some FOOD...so the Tasting Pavilion was where we headed!

Danica waiting at the Metreon for the tasting pavilion to OPEN OPEN OPEN! :)

Beautiful day!

All lined up and ready to TASTE!

One more city shot...

Ohh the doors opened! Off to the first table! PEARS! They were delicious!

My 1st time eating and enjoying a Frog Hollow Farm Pear!

So many vendors!

This creme brûlée was DELICIOUS! I tasted the vanilla and I wanted to grab the entire cup! WOW! The guy said it is sold at Whole Foods...must look for it!

A little bunny bar in my tummy....

SO many small bites....

This Dippin Sauce was so good! They gave us a bottle and I can't wait to use it and give a rave review!

Alaska Seafood made us fantastic recipes to try out! This was by far my favorite sampling of the day!

I loved it all!! I wanted seconds!

OOH I got all excited to see Judy's breadsticks there! I love their breads, crackers, and well...breadsticks! :)

whole lotta Judy's luv.... lol

mmm Jarlsberg cheese!

This beer from 21st Amendment brewery was one of the ones I tasted the night before. Really tasty beer and LOCAL too!

oohh the Alexia area...more of that area soon....

Mission Mini cupcakes! I must admit to taking a mini bite and tossing the rest. I really didn't care for it.

A little walnut in my life is a good thing.....

especially when served like this! YUM!

A whole lotta Godiva in our lives! Man were they generous too! I have loads of goodies from them!

I had never tried this popcorn before.... I picked a flavor to try out but have not opened it yet.

Ok ok so back to the Alexia area! Remember yesterday I said I had something special happen to me?? Well...deep breath- I GOT TO MEET TYLER FLORENCE! OMG! We got lucky and were right there when he came out and they set up a small table and said he would be signing a limited amount of cookbooks! OMG! So let me back track a little...Sean knows Tyler is my chef boyfriend and way back in the day (pre Sean) I had pictures of Tyler on my parents fridge. lol SO this was very exciting for me! :)

Here I was all paparazzi like and snapping pics!

ooh side of the face.... lol

ooh he took his jacket off...

All of a sudden he say down right in front of us to start signing!

Danica getting her copy of his cookbook and it was at this point that I started to feel like I was gonna pass out. lol No, I'm not kidding I was THAT nervous!

CUTE PICTURE! :)

Ok so Danica played paparazzi for me and snapped away...I had no clue she was taking these and I was just trying to make sure I was breathing. HAHA

So he asked my name and I couldn't talk...I think I mumbled Tracey with an E and then pointed to my badge for him to see the correct spelling of my name.

Then I got paparazzi like and asked him to take a CHEESY shot with me. See my mouth saying CHEESY? Good job capturing the moment Danica!!

Me taking the shot...

My CHEESY SHOT WITH TYLER OMG!

and then this is my reaction after CHEESY shot! lol Sean was cracking up when I showed him these pics!

I had to compose myself....

Then Danica took one last picture of my boyfriend Tyler and I.

I actually had to step outside because I was so excited and overheated from my experience. HAHA

As time passed we needed to sample more tasty bites... New sweet potato bites from Alexia. So so...Im not sure I would buy them.

This brand of cheese was delicious!

YUM!

Hey we both have grey fleece on! :)

Loads of vendors and lots of great EATS!

I loved this tea! I will be looking for it soon!

Nicely sweetened with honey....such great flavor! I liked the green tea the best!

Oh look MORE SUCCULENTS!

This wall was BEAUTIFUL!

Danica and I decided to skip the dinner. There was a 3 hour time between the tasting and the dinner and we were little tired from all the walking around...ok maybe just me, but I was happy to be headed home since it started raining as we were leaving.

Back home to check out my LOOT!

:) I will always remember my 2 minutes with Tyler. :)

I gotta get shopping to pick up my freebies with all of the coupons I recieved!

oohh cocktail anyone?

help with the dishes...

I mentioned before that Godiva was generous....This bag was loaded with coffee & chocolate!

*Sean stole this small little gold box from me....he loves his chocolate!

$2 off Godiva Coffee! Anyone interested in a coupon please email me. I have 4 or 5 of them! tjbooboo@gmail.com

Cool recipe card for making delicious coffee treats!

I love reusable bags and this one was cute!

popcorn!

cookboook!

mmm dippin sauce!

Olive juice....the paper that came with it said for dirty martinis. I've never had one before!!

bars!

Kikkoman coupon!

Alexia bag and coupons too!

Oh man what a FUN filled weekend we had! Super big thanks to Danica for telling me all about such a wonderful festival to attend and for driving us to SF each day! Also to Foodbuzz for an amazing line up of sponsors who were very friendly and generous with us! THANKS!

That was a LONG post! LOADS of pictures but I really wanted to share them all with you guys! Especially the ones where I got to meet my chef crush! lol :)

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Foodbuzz 2011 Day 1 re-cap

2011-11-07T07:30:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I was busy over the weekend EATING! I got to sample LOTS of yummy EATS and I loved it! The FoodBuzz Festival was held in San Francisco and Danica of Danica's Daily and I decided to drive into the city for the FUN!

First stop was real fast to get our badges and LOOT bags! I will share more of what was in my bag soon. Next we were off to the Welcome reception sponsored by Sabra hummus...yum!

A little menu of tid-bits to come!

We walked into the room to find platters out & ready!

I loved how FRESH these veggie were! SO good!

The hummus line up!

Beer & wine....

ooh look succulents! <3

crispy chick peas & pita chips to get our dip on!

my tasting plate...

I took a bite of these chicken salad things. :-/ Not a fan. But the best part of this was I didn't have to eat it if I didn't like it...so I didn't!

Cute picture of Danica and I :)

Fabulous local bloggers Melissa and Marlene

Another fab local girl.. Annelies!

Oh wait...more EATS? OK! :)

Dinner was at the same place ...just up a floor! Drinks were ready...

Menu for the awards dinner....

People were HUNGRY!

Two chef stations were set up with small plates to be served.

Scallops getting plated...

This is the pan seared scallop dish with grapes, capers, wood roasted cauliflower, baby parsnip puree (looked just like mashed potatoes!) and verjus. (not sure what that is? lol) I loved this dish!

Next up to try was the Pork belly....I cut a piece off and decided it wasn't for me. it was all fat and I don't do all fat on my meat. lol

This next line up was a buffet inspired by comfort food. Fellow bloggers created the recipes and it was a great way to try some tasty food!

A little mac & cheese, chicken, potato broccoli soup, & my favorite meatloaf muffins w/ whipped pecorino cheese. Delicious! Looks like a big plate, but the only thing I took more than a bit of was the meatloaf muffin. I ate that all up!

The last station was good too! I skipped the fish dishes,....

But gave a try to everything else! That is a lentil salad in the to-go box. It was tasty! Again bites of it all but I did eat all of the raviolis!

Check these out! Housemade Beet Ravioli! I really loved these! Great flavor and I didn't mind that they stained my lips pinkish red! lol

ooh look more succulents...in the bathroom! lol

Ok so we were FULL and believe it or not the dessert menu did not tempt us to stay. Since we knew we had about a 40 minute drive home (plus the fact that we had to come back in the morning) we decided to call it a night and get some rest.

Day 2 was a lot of FUN with a HUGE surprise for me so make sure you come back to see my DAY 2 re-cap! :)

Have a great day everyone BYE! :)

Trick or Treat?

2011-11-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a SPOOKY Halloween! Sean and I decided to celebrate on Sunday by carving our pumpkins! Before I met Sean he had never carved one before!!! I love that he gets all excited to do it each year!

I played scooper...

Then Sean saw a cool picture on the safety knife I bought and wanted to carve that design, but I told him I didn't get the stencils that they sell and before I knew it he had drew the design free hand on the pumpkin! I had no idea he was that artistic! lol

He got busy carving!

Look how excited he is!! lol

Stop to pose for pics....

Oh and eat some roasted seeds!

This is my pumpkin. I do the same kinda carving each year. lol Its a classic look!!

This is Sean's! Ya gotta see how it looks lit up!!

Then it was time to watch the 49ers game. Sean bought me a tee shirt so I could cheer along with him. I'm not a huge football fan but since he loves it I try. lol

I was also busy in the kitchen making the ZERO points plus Weight Watchers soup (but I added chicken!) so that I could have lunches ready for myself this week. I love being ready to eat a points plus friendly meal!

I doubled this recipe so I had plenty for the week! :)

ZERO POINTS PLUS SOUP

3 cups chicken broth
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups chopped cabbage
1/2 yellow onion
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup broccoli floretts
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
salt & pepper

Directions:

1
Spray pot with non stick cooking spray sauté onions, carrots, celery, and garlic for 5 minutes.
2
Add broth, Tomato paste, cabbage, broccoli, basil, oregano and Salt & Pepper to taste.
3
Simmer for a about 5-10 minutes until all vegetables are tender then add the zuccini and simmer for another 5 or so minutes.

** I steamed 3 chicken breasts after I made the soup to add some protein to my lunches. I just shredded it up after it cooked then threw it into the soup.

Then we hit the trail on our bikes!!

Sean kept yelling at me to be careful as I was snapping pictures as I rode. lol

The sun was just starting to set and the weather was amazing!

oohhh

This is one of my favorite pictures! So beautiful!

All the way at the end.....

The river was like glass...so still!!

a fellow biker offered to snap our picture. :)

headed back...

One last pic of Sean :)

Since it was dark Sean informed me it was time to light the pumpkins!!! Look how cool his looks lit up!! SCARY!!!

FitBloggin Meet up! Napa River Trail walk & Pizza Party!

2011-10-31T11:30:00.001-07:00

*testing out some blogging software. Pics are going to be all crazy sizes. Sorry in advance! lol

------------------------

Hey guys! Saturday was the Fitbloggin meet up I hosted and we had a great time! The weather could not have been better for a walk along the river trail! I actually got a little burnt! lol

We got back after our hour long walk and we were all HUNGRY! Pizza making began!

Great group of blogger friends!

oohh pizza party!

We also had a salad bar! Loads of low points plus toppings and a ton of dressings too!

Mine all cooked & read to eat! I made 2 and went halfsies. :) hehe

It was such a fun day! Thanks to everyone for coming on over & bringing your favorite toppings!

Ok so if you haven't noticed all of my pictures are different sizes and the spacing is WONKY! lol I am praying that this post publishes. lol I am TESTING out the Mac software MarsEdit and seeing if I like it. I am so addicted to my Mac that when I need to bust out the bulky laptop and add my pics to it I cringe! I would love to find blogging software that I like to use on my Mac. Does anyone have any tips for me? I know I can run Windows with additional software (that is pricy) and go back to Windows Live Writer, but I was hoping for a cheaper choice. Got any ideas send them my way! :)

I am looking forward to passing out candy tonight!!! This is our first Halloween in our home and it will be the first year that we get trick or treaters!! We never lived anywhere that the kids came to before! :) We are excited! I also took pics of our pumpkins so I will share those with you guy too. :) FUN!

I am off to plan some tasty on plan dinners for the week! Hope everyone has a GREAT day!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Where have I been?

2011-10-28T16:15:00.001-07:00

Where have I been?

Well, this could turn into a bit of a downer post. In attempt to remain as up-beat as possible I am going to just say if you or anyone you are close with deal with chronic pain, just be patient with them. I tend to hibernate when my pain level gets bad...and I guess that is what I did. I am sorry and thankful for those of you who sent emails, texts, & tweets to me with concern. It was not my intention to have stayed away for as long as I did, but I can not control what day(s) I will or won’t be up to doing things. Even sitting and typing.

Now....let's catch up shall we!

I had a good couple of weeks as far as being on plan is concerned. That is a far cry from past hibernation. lol I tend to eat my way through my house when I am not feeling well. Through this journey I have learned that is not a wise thing to do.

I attended my 20th High School reunion last weekend! I can not believe it’s been that long! I was a little unsure if I wanted to go but my friend Tina asked me to be her date and I knew I would have a fun time if we were together! So off we went and can I tell you I FELT FABULOUS! Tina helped pick out my dress and I got so many compliments. I look way better now than I did in high school and I was proud of myself for going.

A whole lotta fun! SO glad I was able to attend!

The Foodbuzz festival is coming up soon! Anyone making their way into San Francisco for it? Danica and I are going together and since it is my 1st one I am excited! PLUS my chef boyfriend TYLER FLORENCE will be there! I already got told by Sean to behave myself. lol He’s no fun! lol

I also made sure to take time for ME the past couple of weeks. Unplugging technology is a huge part of this for me. I like to make sure when Sean gets home at night we spend the evenings together. It just makes me happy. The therapy pool that I go to is a huge part of my day as well. When I exercise in that water I feel better so I make sure I get my butt in there. I have also tried to relax through mediation and focusing on deep breathing. Silly, but I find myself not breathing normally when my pain is bad. I tend to hold my breath and tense up...making things worse. Just breathe!

A FUN Saturday is all planned! I am hosting a local FitBloggin meet up at my house. We are going to go for a walk along the Napa River Trail then it's back to my Test Kitchen for a pizza & salad making party! I am looking forward to seeing everyone and enjoying the day! I will be sure to take pictures and share with you all next week. I just saw today that the next Fitbloggin conference is booked for September 2012. I wonder if my generous sponsor (that would be Sean!) will be just as generous as last year. hehe

Does anyone get the Whole Living magazine? Well I flipped though it real fast a few days ago and 3 recipes stood out to me and I already made 2 of them!! Both were delicious and I barely made ANY changes...which is so unlike me! lol

Yes I am taking pics of the recipe to post for you guys. lol Cheater!

This was delicious….mine looked pretty too!

We had grilled chicken apple sausages with this for a tasty dinner.

Next up was yummy too!

Now for mine…

YUM!

I used these light cheese raviolis to make it a PointsPlus friendly meal.

Ya gotta try these….they were really EASY & yummy meals.

Ok guys….I think that catches us up. Again I appreciated the care & concern from you all! It means a lot to me that you care! Going to get some more thinsg done for tomorrows local FitBloggin meet up and then rest a little & wait for my DATE to come home to take me to dinner.

Enjoy your evening everyone!

BYE

Smarty Pants!

2011-10-10T15:08:00.001-07:00

Man I can’t fool you guys! lol You guessed right!

I had such a fun weekend but it went by WAY TOO FAST! Ugh why does it have to happen like that huh?

So this was kinda cool….anyone watch that show Master Chef?

Well we love it over here! I also kinda have a crush on Joe Bastianich. Don’t ask. lol

Well ok…so we were up at Oxbow Market in Napa over the weekend & I kept looking at a guy and knew I recognized him from somewhere. I was thinking gym, some store, or restaurant?? THEN, I saw a lady I knew too….I was so confused that I didn’t know where I knew them from!! Then Sean looked over at me and tilted his head towards them and I said, “yeah…where do we know them from?” when he said, “MASTER CHEF!” He couldn’t believe that I didn’t put 2 & 2 together! lol Anyway it was Adrien & Alejandra! I was SHY and did not go over to say HELLO but, I did tweet about seeing them and Alejandra tweeted back & said I should have! AAHHH I need to step outta my box more lol :)

So it was fun to have seen them and also get the tweet!

I am in a delivery window prison right now. We are having our Tempur-Pedic Cloud Supreme delivered today and the window is 1-9….yeah 1-9 PM! WOW! I feel stuck, but I guess it’s good that is raining?? lol

Hope everyone has a great evening! I’m hoping to be in bed early…since I woke up at 4:30 because our old bed is a hunk of JUNK. Do you own a Tempur-Pedic? Do ya like it? I’ve gotten a lot of people saying that they LOVE theirs. I hope I feel the same way!

BYE!

*all images were found on Google

Friday Favorites

2011-10-07T14:47:00.001-07:00

This Friday Favorites is a guessing game! This is one of my favorite foods…..

Ok so the little TREATS have been picked off and cooked…so this is just the stalk. Do you know what it is?

Go on….gimme your guesses! Come back Monday to see if you are correct!

Another FAVORITE I have been enjoying lately are these little onions.

They are great on salads! I love them, but must admit to needing to watch my portions with them! I MUST measure these so I don’t over do it…I could eat the entire bag!

On the weight loss front: I cracked down this week and really got back to the basics of Weight Watchers. Tracking, measuring, & weighing EVERYTHING! That being said I was down 2.2 lbs. I was thrilled with my results for a week that I worked so hard at. Not only did I exercise at the pool for 1 hour 5X this past week I also rode my bike 3X and walked a little more too. Whoohoo

Happy Friday everyone! Hope you all have a great weekend!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: FRIDAY FAVORITES

Mini Strawberry Cream Cheese Puffs

2011-10-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

Hi guys! I like to bring a sweet treat over to Sean’s parents when I go so I got this idea from searching on Pinterest! Yeah, I love that site…I am officially hooked! Great ideas for food, home, and lots of cool pictures!

The original recipe was for a full sized version, but I decided to make it my own by making a mini version.

Mini Strawberry Cream Cheese Puffs!

Makes 36 Puffs

1 for 2 Pointsplus or 2 for 3. Gotta love that crazy Weight Watcher math! lol

Here are the exact ingredients that I used…

1/2 brick of 1/3 less fat cream cheese

2 pkg. Reduced fat crescent rolls (the 8 pack size)

1/2 a jar (13 Tablespoons) Reduced Sugar Strawberry Jam

I unrolled the triangles and then cut them in 1/2 so that I had 16 triangles from one package.

I placed the triangles in a mini muffin tin

And loaded them up! A little bit of cream cheese & a dollop of jam in each “well”

Then I folded the corners up and over

Like cute little bundles of yumminess!

Then I placed them in the oven for about 12 minutes at 350 degrees…..

Whoopsie daisy! Ok so they got a little messy…and leaked out some of the jam. Humm maybe they are less Pointsplus now? lol

But after I took them out of the muffin tins, let them cool and sprinkled them with a little powdered sugar they really looked good!

Being the official taste tester of my Test Kitchen I had to try one…

Yep…Tasty! TJ approved! Plus I loved how EASY these were to make! Can’t wait to share them with Sean’s family!

I like to call myself a CHEATER BAKER. lol I always try to take the easy way out when it comes to baking. If there is a way to mess up a baking recipe I can do it…so I like to cheat! Are you the same way or are you a master baker? I think it has something to do with needing to be EXACT with measurements. lol I dunno…but it is just NOT my specialty. Oh well!

Hope everyone has a great day!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Dessert,Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls,Cream Cheese,Strawberry,Mini Strawberry Cream Cheese Puffs,Weight Watchers,PointsPlus

Pasta With Creamy Pumpkin Sauce

2011-10-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

Hi guys! I didn’t really need to cook last night but I decided to whip this little dish up and I really think it turned out to be a tasty meal! It was super filling! Oh and did I mention EASY?

Pasta With Creamy Pumpkin Sauce

Makes One serving

7 PointsPlus

Ingredients:

3oz. Fiber Gourmet Pasta (6PointsPlus) you can use any pasta you like, I just prefer FG. I find it more filling with the added fiber. Which reminds me I need to buy more!

1/2 C canned pumpkin (0 Pointsplus- Bargain!)

1/4 C diced yellow onion

2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese. (1 PointsPlus)

Approx. 1/2 C pasta water

Pepper to taste- I like LOTS!

PAM

Add pumpkin, pepper, & parmesan to a pot large enough to also be able to add your cooked pasta in; set aside. In a small sauté pan sprayed with PAM; add onion & cook through. Cook pasta in salted water. Scoop up the cooked pasta and add to the pumpkin mix. Save the pasta water and add about 1/2 C to the pumpkin & pasta. Mix well and add extra water if needed to get a creamy consistency. Serve with more fresh parmesan on top for additional pointsplus is ya wanna. Enjoy!

Mmmm look at the way the sauce sticks to the pasta…so creamy & delicious!

Simple, quick, & EASY is what I like! PLUS the added bonus of it being healthy is enough to make me wanna do cartwheels in my kitchen!

Ok ok…so what are you making with your canned pumpkin? Spill it! Tell me all your pumpkin secrets! hehe

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Pasta,Pasta with creamy pumpkin sauce,canned pumpkin,pumpkin,fall food ideas,Weight Watchers,Pointsplus

I needed a chicken!

2011-10-04T08:03:00.001-07:00

Last week I was out running errands and I honestly thought about just grabbing a meal out. I was SO hungry and I knew I needed to eat, but I really wanted to make something healthy.

That is where those $5 Costco rotisserie chickens come in handy! First of all what a DEAL! Ya can’t beat it! Plus they are really good! I love how tender the meat is. It just falls off the bone.

I did peel back the skin & grab a drumstick to munch on as soon as I walked in the house but I had plans for 3 ounces of the white meat that I burned my hands picking off.

I had leftover salad stuff already chopped up. Reduced fat cheese all ready to sprinkle. Handy tortilla strips that they now sell over by the salad toppings- YUM! A few dashes of Tabasco and a tablespoon of light sour cream. I did wish that I had an avocado! Boo!

Viola! My Mexican Chicken Salad!

It was delicious and at 7 Pointsplus a better bargain than I could have gotten on the go at a (dare I say it) FAST FOOD place! Bravo to me!

When you are on the go and need to eat what do you do? I know I could have gotten a salad at Wendy’s…but when I walk in to those places the last thing I want is a salad. Reason enough for me to stay away. lol

Do you buy rotisserie chickens? What do you like to do with it? Any creative recipes? Please share!

Today I am headed to the class at the pool! This makes me happy to feel up to the workout. I love being in that water!

Off to eat breakfast and get my suit on! Oh speaking of suits- Lands End has some great deals on bathing suits right now! I ordered tons of mix & match tops & bottoms at great prices! Spreading the word!

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Hibernation

2011-10-03T19:33:00.001-07:00

That is what I tend to do when I don’t feel well. For some reason my pain level has been UP, which makes me wanna keep to myself. I have been going to the pool because well… it helps me, but I’ve been skipping the exercise classes that I enjoy. I don’t have any rhyme or reason for the increase in discomfort but know that I just need to give in and rest when faced with it.

Enough about that.

Last week I posted a Pumpkin Pie Green smoothie on Facebook that I enjoyed. Today after my pool workout I was HUNGRY! So I made it again and added MORE pumpkin! It was delicious!

Pumpkin Pie Green Smoothie

1 C Almond Breeze

1/2 C pumpkin

2 C Organic spinach

1 frozen banana

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

a few ice cubes

All set to blend!

YUM! It was so PUMPKIN-Y (this should totally be a word!) lol

Dinner time rolled around quickly and I had everything on hand to make some black bean enchiladas- OLE!

Here’s some pictures of a few ingredients I had-

Ever try this brand enchilada sauce? Well this was my first go…and I really liked it!

These are the only corn tortillas I buy these days. You get 2 tortillas for 2 PointsPlus! Deal!

Ok so I had no real recipe…no instructions, just went with it!

Black Bean & Cheese Enchiladas

Serves 4 @ 6PointsPlus each

20oz black beans

8 corn tortillas

4oz reduced fat cheese

4oz diced green chiles

16oz Jar enchilada sauce

Heat tortillas- stove top style over gas range until soft & edges are browned, place aside. Rinse & drain beans, mix in green chilies & a little enchilada sauce. Place a scoop of beans in a tortilla- add a sprinkle of cheese & roll edges together. Place in 8X8 pyrex dish. Continue rolling the tortillas and then dump enchilada sauce over the top- adding cheese to the top. Cover & bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve with spanish rice or a nice salad.

Ok so not such a pretty picture of my two enchiladas on my plate, but in my defense the tortillas are EXTRA THIN & I guess they break easily. lol

Now off to the couch….a little TV time too. Hey anyone enjoying any NEW tv shows? We watched Tera Nova last week and can’t wait for it tonight! Oh and PanAm is a good one! What are you hooked on already this new season?

Have a great night everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Green Smoothie,Pumpkin Pie Green Smoothie,Smoothie,Pumpkin,Black bean enchiladas,Mexican Food

Do It Yourself Taco Seasoning

2011-09-27T07:00:00.000-07:00

Yeah I know it is easy to go and get those single serve sized packs of taco seasoning at the grocery store. But, did you know that you can save money & make a healthier version at home? I didn’t…I needed a push. Or a friend to tell me so. Danica and I were at a warehouse type store and as we past the HUGE containers of spices we had a light bulb moment! Let’s make a HUGE batch of taco seasoning and split it!

OK!

Costco Sized Taco Seasoning

(This is the site Danica found the idea from originally www.veggieterrain.blogspot.com)

4 1/2 cups Chili Powder
2 1/4 cups Cumin
1 1/2 cups sea salt
3/4 cup black pepper
3/4 cup paprika
1/3 cup dried oregano flakes
1/3 cup onion powder
1/3 cup garlic powder
1/3 cup crushed red pepper flakes

Toss to combine mashing up any clumps of seasoning. Store in an air tight container for up to 2 years. Add it to anything you need Mexican seasoning for! Tacos, soups, bean, dips or combine with ranch & sour cream (or Greek yogurt!) for a tasty southwestern dip.

Since you really only use a couple of tablespoons at a time this is going to last me a while…or maybe not seeing how often I like to cook Mexican dishes at home! hehe

Go on and make it! It’s easy & you may never go back to buying those little pouches again!

Have a great day everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Taco Seasoning,Homemade Taco Seasoning,Mexican,Spices

Fitbloggin Breakfast Summit!

2011-09-26T11:41:00.001-07:00

Wow! That was a FUN weekend! Went by too fast but it really was jam packed with good times!

Started out bright and early with a BART ride into San Francisco on Saturday. This was Danica’s FIRST time on BART! Look how excited she is! hehe

The reason for waking up at 5am was to join in on the Fitblogger’s Breakfast Summit meeting!

Special thank you to Attune Foods and Annelies for making this possible for us.

We got cool swag bag! Lots of coupons for great products and a tee too!

It was time to eat….I was STARVING so I filled my bowl with raspberries, blueberries, strawberries & 2 pieces of banana. I topped it all off with some Erewhon Strawberry Crisp cereal & soy milk for a tasty AM meal!

With my cereal & coffee in hand it was time to sit in for the discussion on the importance of breakfast with RD Jae Berman. This was a great chat about how to make the most out of what you eat in the morning. We also talked about snacks and making sure our workouts are fueled correctly too. Jae did a great job helping answer everyone’s questions.

Ok so in the meeting room at Attunes they have old advertisements on the walls…this one cracked me up! Laxative breakfast food! YUM! haha

This was a fun way to meet NEW bloggers & be able to re-connect with the ones I previously had met! It was great meeting everyone!

Group shot!

Cool views from the office…Transamerica building. Can’t really see the pointy top with the heavy fog. lol

It was out of the Attunes office and off to walk to the Ferry Building for the amazing farmers market they have. A little fog didn’t stop us….

WOW… it was a BIG market! Loaded with people too!

I loved all of the BRIGHT colors…

Ohhh pretty!

No photoshop was used in the REDNESS of these tomatoes! lol They were SUPER RED!

I got all excited when I saw the English Peas!

I bought a bag and fought Sean all weekend with sharing them. lol I still have about 1/2 of the bag for snack!

I loved the sign… Little nuggets of heaven!

Succulents are my THING so I got all excited when I saw this display. Danica’s picture of me cracked me up…I look like bigfoot or something!

ooh honey yum!!

What’s Up Doc?

Fall was in the air….so pretty!

Oh BIGFOOT AGAIN! lol Annelies too!

Ok so we kinda all got separated as we wandered around the market so it was hard to say goodbye to everyone But I know Danica & I were getting HUNGRY and decided to head back to grab lunch. We stopped off at one of my favorite Chinese restaurants in Walnut Creek.

They have great lunch specials even on the weekend!

Salad…

Hot & Sour soup

Then Danica & I decided to share our entrees

Eggplant with a YUMMY Garlic sauce.

This is my go to dish…Chicken with Mixed vegetables. It is in a light garlic wine sauce…so good! It was nice to share the two! Great flavor combos!

Sunday rolled around FAST and we woke up and decided to get out on our bikes before the rain came. We went on the trail right in front of our house.

Can ya tell I was scared taking this picture? lol It’s my 1st time taking pics & riding bikes at the same time. lol Sean kept telling me to be careful. haha

All the way at the end of the trail….The Napa River.

Bike geeks…

Sean helped me cook dinner last night… Chickpea tacos! I mostly followed Veggie Terrains recipe found HERE!

They were good…I asked Sean what he thought and he said, “they are kinda like fish tacos, minus the fish.” lol I felt the same way…kinda like they were missing something. Meat! oh yeah, it was the meat! hehe

Now I want a BIG steak to make up for my vegetarian day yesterday. lol I actually need to sit to plan out a few meals this week.

Anyone making a NEW recipe this week??

Ever try that Chickpea Taco recipe? What did you think?

Ok off to plan dinners! Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Fitbloggin,Breakfast Summit,Attune Foods,San Francisco

Friday Favorites

2011-09-23T17:40:00.001-07:00

Hi guys! Happy Friday! Remember the NEW (as of last week) tradition of Friday Favorites around here? Well if not, you can go HERE to refresh your memory. lol

Today’s Friday Favorite is soup….

Not just ANY soup….soup made by a friend!

*Soup & picture courtesy of Danica of Danica’s Daily

She gave me a container of this Butternut squash soup that she made and let me tell you…THIS IS DELICIOUS!!! You must CLICK HERE to get this recipe. It will be a new Fall FRIDAY Favorite of yours too! I guarantee it! Little does she know that next time I know that she will be making this I will be over at her house with my spoon in hand! hehe

Tomorrow Danica and I are headed to a Fitbloggin meetup in San Francisco! I packed my camera and plan on telling you guys all about all the fun!

Have a great evening everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: FRIDAY FAVORITES,Butternut squash soup

Food Shocker

2011-09-21T16:36:00.001-07:00

When you are DYING for an old favorite….what do you do? Well back in the day I would run out & stuff my face with whatever that craving was, without giving a hoot (yes, I said hoot) about how bad that food was for me.

These days I try my best to satisfy those cravings my making the foods at home…healthier!

I told my Mom that I was DYING for a patty melt sandwich! Between her fridge & mine we had all we needed to make this classic diner dish!

Lean Ground beef…check! Mine had a 3 ounce patty.
Rye bread
Grilled onions(used PAM, no oil!)
Cheese
Light mayo-ketchup mix AKA special sauce
ICBINB (I can’t believe its not butter! Spray version)

Ok so I formed the patties, and cooked them in a frying pan, stove top. Then I took a slice of rye bread & added 1 Babybel light cheese wheel on my sandwich- grated. YEP, these lil cheeses work great! Melt so nice too! Onions were added, then topped with a second piece of bread. Take the ICBINB spray & spray the sandwich & it gets a few min on a George Forman grill to crisp, or you could add it to a fry pan!

The result……

OMG YUMMINESS! Oh, & only for 9 Pointsplus compared to the SHOCKING 27 Pointsplus that Weight Watchers online gave me when I looked this sandwich up at a local restaurant. WOW! What a HUGE savings!

So now tell me ….what you like to make at home to save calories/Pointsplus/MONEY?? Yeah this was cheaper to make at home! I know there has to be plenty more bargain Pointsplusers (LOL) out there!

Hope everyone had a great day!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Patty Melt,Hamburger,Pointsplus,Weight Watchers

Vita-Mix!

2011-09-19T06:30:00.000-07:00

On Friday I heard some commotion at the front door. Well not really, but from living here for a while I have learned that the UPS men just drop and run. No door bell ringing round these parts. lol So I heard something and as Danica and I were finishing up our amazing lunch (more on that in a second!) I shouted out, “What was that?” Very well knowing that I had precious cargo coming to me soon.

See How happy a box makes me! lol

I have lots of recipes to learn! This book is HUGE & packed with so many great, EASY, & healthy ideas!

I Got the 48 oz “under the counter” version and I love it! Just the right size. I also found a home made quilted cover for it on E-Bay that matches my kitchen nicely.

As soon as I get well stocked with fruits & veggies I will need to get creative and share my new Vita-Mix recipes with you all! Stay tuned!

Ok so back to our AMAZING lunch!

Danica and I combined our pantry & refrigerators and made up this delicious combo. Mexican Inspired Sweet Potato Skins! OLE! **Click that link to head on over to Danica’s Daily to see the recipe for this tasty idea!

We also tried a NEW salad dressing that I found at Fresh & Easy. Danica has pictures of that too…go see!

Cooking with friends or family is always more fun! So I suggest you find a friend, or grab your family & get to cooking!

Tomorrow I am going to share a FOOD SHOCKER with you all and of course my way to lighten it up!

Have a great day everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Vita-Mix,Mexican Food,Sweet Potatoes,Potato Skins

Blog Roll

2011-09-17T07:01:00.001-07:00

I followed a few fellow bloggers & decided to remove my blog roll for a while due to malware warnings popping up all over the place.

I am slowly making plans to re-do my blog and hopefully when I do I can bring my blog roll back to life because I love LINK LUV and know that a lot of people do too!

Stay safe out there fellow bloggers!

Happy Saturday!

Friday Favorites

2011-09-16T06:35:00.000-07:00

Hi guys! I thought I would start a new tradition over here! I have a lot of things that I say, “oh I gotta share that on my blog!” but I sometimes forget. I thought if I made a sharing day (yes, just like back in kindergarten) I would remember! Starting today off with my first ever-

FRIDAY FAVORITES!

I also want you to participate! Each Friday make sure to come over & leave a comment about your favorites too! Join in the FUN! Do you like this idea & want to join in via your own blog? Feel free! Let’s share the idea with some link love! If you decided to join me, leave me a comment- with your blog link so your Friday Favorites can be shared too!

To start off my NEW tradition I’m going to share my love of WEIRD SALADS.

I love creamy dressing…but I also love vinegar based ones too! So here are two of my weird salads, one courtesy of my Mom, who also is a weird salad lover. It runs in the family. lol

I think the topping part of a salad is much more FUN than the lettuce part, so I think that is how I got started on these ideas.

This is my CREAMY version-

I use really whatever I have at home in my fridge, but I always NEED shredded carrots. This one is mixed up already: carrots, snap peas, red cabbage, garbanzo beans, cottage cheese,shredded parmesan cheese & sunflower seeds.

This version is pre-mixed!

Cottage cheese, blue cheese crumbles, sunflower seeds, garbanzo beans, carrots, cabbage, & cucumbers.

Here is the WEIRD salad I ate last weekend with my Mom- pinto beans, beets, green & black olives, celery, red cabbage & loaded with red wine vinegar! YUM!

This a NEW found love….

Not sure why it took me so long to get hooked on this tabasco, but YUM! I love the slightly spicy & very vinegary flavor of this! Totally hooked!

Well that’s my 1st FRIDAY FAVORITES! whoohoo!

Now you share one, two, or a dozen of what you consider to be your favorites!

Happy Friday Everyone!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: FRIDAY FAVORITES,Weird Salads,Cottage Cheese,Tabasco

Leftover Chicken Idea!

2011-09-15T07:25:00.000-07:00

I always need leftover ideas so here is a winner that I came up with last night.

Sean’s Mom gave me leftover grilled chicken kabob so I diced up 4oz. I looked in my fridge and I had some leftover peppers & onions from my fajita dinner. Some fresh spinach & frozen brown rice were also involved in the creation.

I added 1 teaspoon olive oil to a fry pan, tossed in the spinach, & added a sprinkle of salt & pepper. Then I threw in everything else & sprinkled it with garlic powder. Simple, EASY, & OMG Tasty! This made a HUGE bowl and it was only 9 PointsPlus.

Just goes to show you that leftovers can be EXCITING!

Do you have an EXCITING leftover creation that you enjoy? Share the link, recipe, or idea! I’d love to hear about it!

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Chicken Recipes,Leftover Ideas,Peppers,Onions,Weight Watchers,PointsPlus

I always feel like…

2011-09-14T05:00:00.000-07:00

MEXICAN FOOD!

Seriously I could eat it just about any day of the week! So once again I did! haha This time I decided to make fajitas. I used this great marinade by Frontera that I saw at my local grocery store.

I used a flat iron steak and it was so delicious & tender I can’t wait to make it again. So lean and no visible fat to trim. I loved it. The Weight Watchers site lists it at 3oz for 5 pointsplus.

The package says to make this in a skillet but who am I to follow directions. haha I marinated the steak just about all day and grilled it for a few minutes on each side until medium rare. Ahead of time, I cooked the bell peppers, poblano peppers, & onions in large skillet with PAM until caramelized.

After I sliced the steak up, I made sure the drippings from the meat was added to the peppers & onions. I think next time reserving some of the marinade to add to the skillet would be good but I really liked to put the steak on the grill as opposed to cooking in inside stovetop.

I ate this on the Mission Extra Thin corn tortillas with nothing else! The flavor was so good that it didn’t need any other toppings!

I can’t wait to make this again! The steak was only about $5 for the package and it was more than enough for the two of us. I loved it!

Do you have a favorite type of food that you can eat over & over? Does your family like it too or do they

complain about your need for repeats? I also really love pizza and could eat it pretty much anytime….oh also BLT’s, I could also eat sushi whenever….lol I’m not picky!

Hope everyone has a great day!

BYE!

Technorati Tags: Mexican Food,Fajitas,Frontera,Fajita Marinade,Steak recipes

Chorizo Virgin

2011-09-13T13:19:00.001-07:00

Nope, never had it before…can’t say that the full fat version ever really appealed to me. When Sean picked out what to make for dinner the other night and he yelled out CHORIZO! I cringed and made a face. lol Then I remembered reading that Sheryl AKA “Bitchcakes” bought a soy version! Yippee to a lower PointsPlus & a WAY healthier for us version!

Thankfully Sean is a real trooper and immediately said YES to trying this out.

2oz for 3 PointsPlus!

We got all of our Chorizo & Egg Taco toppings ready to go!

-Sautéed bell peppers & onions

-red & napa cabbage

-diced green onions

-diced tomatoes

- not pictured yet…cheese! Sean asked for it after I snapped a pic!

The soyrizo is already cooked so all you really need to do it heat it up. I crumbled it into a fry pan sprayed with PAM to do so. EASY!

We used the Mission EXTRA THIN corn tortillas & piled on the goodies!

It was really delicious! I thought the Soyrizo tasted good & it had a little kick of heat to it. I asked Sean if it tasted like the real thing and he said yes. We both really enjoyed it and I was able to only use 1/2 of the pack so I froze some for another meal. OLE!

Has anyone else tried Soyrizo? Were you already a chorizo lover & switched?

Anyone else notice how beautiful the sunsets have been lately? This is from our porch…man I love where we live!

Have a great day everyone! BYE!

Technorati Tags: Soyrizo tacos,Mexican Food,Sunset,Weight Watchers,Pointsplus

Chicken Italian Sausage & Vegetable Stew

2011-09-09T17:49:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone Happy Friday! I started my day with a great water workout at the pool, went to my weekly Weight Watchers meeting (down .2) and then got together with Danica for lunch. What a great Friday already huh? Well I wanted to share a recipe that I made the other day so I quickly entered it into the WW recipe builder and was happy to see that it was such a low points plus meal!

I really had no plan, just a lot of vegetables so I came up with this tasty meal to either serve over pasta OR even on it’s own like I enjoyed. I did sprinkle mine with parmesan cheese for extra pointsplus! YUM!

Chicken Italian Sausage & Vegetable Stew

serves 12

1 1/2 Cup servings

4 Points Plus

1 package Chicken Italian Sausage (I buy mine at Trader Joe’s

2 28 ounce cans Trader Joe’s Low Fat Marinara sauce

2 cups diced zucchini

2 cups diced & peeled eggplant

2 cups fresh green beans

3 diced cloves of garlic

Fresh pepper to taste

Remove casings from sausage & crumble into a large pot. Cook until browned. In same pot add garlic, brown slightly. No need to add oil since you have a little drippings from cooking the sausage.

Then dump everything else in the pot…yes, everything! Sauce too! EASY! Cover & cook on medium-low heat, stir occasionally. I let this cook for about an hour or until the vegetables are soft.

Serve over pasta OR even spaghetti squash!

ENJOY!

I have a container in the freezer for a rainy day and a big container to take to my parents. I am blaming my Mom’s Italian side of the family for my not being able to cook normal sized meals. lol Guess there are worse family issues to have right?

Off to grab dinner with Sean! Hope everyone has a great evening! Happy Friday! Gotta love a short week!

Technorati Tags: How to cook Italian food,Italian Sausage,sausage,Marinara sauce,PointsPlus,Weight Watchers,Homemade Italian dinner

Tahoe FUN!

2011-09-07T17:50:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone! I was gone for the LONG weekend holiday and I just sat down at the computer to upload pictures. I had to share a few with you all because they are so beautiful!

I had not been to Tahoe since I was a kid so I was blown away with how amazing the lake really is.

WOW!

This guy was WOW too. lol

We hit the beach so Sean & his Uncle could be brave & get in the cold water. Not me, I sat in the shade. hehe

The OMG views… I think I said OMG all weekend. lol

ALL ABOARD! We hopped on the Tahoe Queen and spend a couple of hours touring the lake. It was really amazing and a great way to see the sites.

The $4 Margaritas were tasty! lol

We had a lot of fun but all good things must come to an end. No I didn’t track, weight, or measure, but I certainly did pick and chose what I wanted to splurge on. I had fun & I am not worried about it.

Back to the extra vegetable days sans the margaritas! hehe Ya gotta live right?

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Back to the kitchen for me! I will share tonight’s dinner with you soon!

BYE!