What's on the menu

I have nothing else to write about so I might as well just write about food! I'm going to try start using codes to help track myself (besides the WW tracker). SF means simply filling which means its "allowed." Everything else I will have to add towards my weekly point allowance

And OK. Fine. I'll say it. I haven't been to weight watchers since 2/5. That's really bad. I definitely have some sort of "excuse" for every week (well, last week I really did have an excuse) but now its getting out of control. I MUST go next Wednesday and face the scale no matter what!

Today's menu

Breakfast
-2 Egg "muffins" (Totally stole and then modified this recipe from Danica's Daily)  SF
-Banana SF

Snack
-Banana SF
-WW cheese twists (I got them as free sample, they were gross, not eating them again) 2pts

Lunch
-Whole wheat pasta w/ homemade tomato sauce SF
-Light string cheese (the WW one are the best out of all of them) SF
-Mixed greens with light italian dressing SF


Post lunch Snack
-Grapes SF
-Pita chips 3pts

Pre-din Snack
-Natures Valley sweet N salty bar 4pts
-Grapes SF


Dinner
-Whole wheat pasta with chicken chivalad (is that even a word??) SF + 5pts
-Mixed greens with light italian dressing SF

Post-Din snack
0% fage with honey and lowfat granola SF + 2pts

Not perfect but not terrible. This day would look great if I cut the pita chips &  granola, and had some sort of healthier chicken. Although ground meat is allowed on Simply Filling, but I'm sure it was not 100% chicken breast.

Egg "muffin" recipe

Ingredients (pretty much can be used with any amount of eggs or veggies, but this is what I used)
-6 eggs
-Chopped: zucchini, spinach, orange peppers
-Fat free feta (about a table spoon)
-Fat free half & half

Directions:
-Beat eggs. Add a splash of half & half
-Saute veggies until tender
-Wait a minute or so until veggies are not piping hot, mix into raw eggs.
-Stir in some feta, salt, and pepper
-Spray muffin tins with PAM
-Pour egg mixture into tins, this recipe makes 7 muffins
-Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes

Catch up

Whenever I have one of these catch up posts I just let the pictures in my phone do the talking. So here we go.

The snow has been absolutely crazy this winter. It seems to have warmed up a bit but sadly, we're expecting more tomorrow. I found this picture on one of Brooklyn blogs I follow. Its on the corner of my block, 6th ave in the early 1900s. So cool right!

Valentine's day weekend I visited Alex in DC. We had so much fun and I have a million yelp reviews to write. Here was one of my favorite stops on our private White House tour - the press briefing room! It was way smaller in real life than I had imagined.

And here's us being tourists.

Cheese plate from my favorite eating adventure of the weekend, Le Diplomate.

Two of the best desserts I've ever had, Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee and Profiteroles with dark chocolate sauce.

My last DC breakfast, in good old Corner Bakery. I was the only one who didn't get a cheesy breakfast sandwich. Not sure how much healthier my choice was, but it looks healthier!

I recently discovered original shredded wheat! They come in these huge squares and are 100% whole wheat with no added sugar, perfectly allowed on Simply Filling. I love breaking it up with Fage 0% yogurt and a bit of honey.

So my Totes boots were terrible, after 3 wears the bottom cracked open and my feet were soaked. It was so bad in DC that I had to take a taxi back to the hotel and get my riding boots, and then proceed to wear them through rain and snow all week long. My feet are still in pain :-( Luckily they come with a 60 day warranty and DSW just said to bring them to the store. Until I get around to doing that... I've ordered these from Zappos. There was one pair left in a size 8 so I'm hoping they are good!

Marie

I'm not really ready to write about this, but if I don't write something then my blog will be stuck on February 12th forever.

I'm so lucky to have been blessed with the most kindest, loving, selfless woman as my grandmother for the past 29 years. I am forever touched by her love, as is everyone who was graced by her presence. I love you Grandma.

Weird Cravings, Snow, & Snowboots

My appetite has been SO strange lately. I've basically been craving anything that ISN'T meat... sometimes hot and sometimes cold. Basically, the only things that have been appetizing to me are:

Breakfast:
Oatmeal

Lunch:
Raw veggies
Hummus
Fruit
Bread (not sliced, something like a pita or crusty loaf)

Dinner:
Raw veggies
Hummus
Bread
Pasta

Snacks:
Nuts
Dark chocolate
Salt

Here was my dinner last night:

I really don't know what's going on or why I'm experiencing this meat repulsion, but its definitely not good for my healthy eating. The good thing is that I'm not eating A LOT, I'm just not necessarily eating right. I'm really hoping this ends soon.

I bought snow boots two weeks ago basically on impulse because I don't have any, and its snowed like a thousand freaking times this winter. My requirements were:
- Under $50
- Free shipping
- Waterproof
- Warm
- Black or gray
- Short (ankle or mid calf boots)
- Good reviews

I wound up ordering these from DSW.com

I liked them A LOT the first day I wore them, but now they are surprising too big. It seems like they've stretched out or something. Also, weirdly, it feels like the left shoe is higher up than the right shoe. I don't know if my feet are just super sensitive or something. Other than that, I would have highly recommended them, because they do the job for a very low price.

OK. And enough with the snow already!!! My car is seriously taking a beating. I don't mind snow but I do mind traveling in it. So please, Mr. De Blasio, if you are going to continue to put NYC in a state of emergency and NOT plow the roads in Brooklyn... then cancel school!!!!!!

Ramblings

Yesterday I had an urge to go shipping at Old Navy and wound up spending $113!!!! In all I bought: black skinny jeans, 3 sweaters, 3 tank tops,a me sweatpants. Not bad, right??? I'm not so happy with the size of my pants. I was hoping WW would at least bring me back to an 8, if not a comfortable 10. I know sizes doesn't really matter, but let's be honest, it does. The good news is that a 12 is very comfortable, while a 10 is just a little too tight. They're also "super skinny" jeans so who knows! I looked good and felt good trying on all the clothes. 

Last night I made an excellent pasta dish just by combining some random ingredients in my kitchen.

Lean turkey sausage

Fresh red peppers

Fresh basil

Canned Crushed tomatoes

Tomato paste

Whole wheat pasta

First, I chopped the red peppers and sautéed them in olive oil with garlic powder, onion powder, and red pepper flakes. 

Then, I peeled the sausages out of their casing (I hate doing this but also HATE eating sausages with the casing on). I browned the sausage with the peppers and broke it up into chunks with a spoon.

As it was browning, I added some tomato paste and a little bit of crushed tomatoes. Once it seemed cooked through I drained the pot (Oil? Sausage juice? Who knows) and then added the rest of the crushed tomatoes.

While it was simmering, I boiled a box of whole wheat pasta. When it was done, I added the pasta to the sauce and... That's it! It made about 6-7 servings so I have lots left over for the week. No pics - but it looked something like this with less green and more red:

This morning I finished "The Lowland" by Jhumpa Lahiri. She may be my favorite author... As everytime I read one of her books I find myself stunned and unable to do anything but think. She does such an amazing job writing about loss, it's as if I could feel the sadness of the characters deep inside my bones. I must be a little over emotional though. When I finished this book this morning, I spent ten minutes crying in the bathroom thinking about what my life would be like without Marvin. I think he gets really scared when I get like this... But I can't help it. I haven't been able to escape that panicky feeling about losing someone I love since I was 5 years old.

To end in a more uplifting way, I'm about to finally go to Scottadito Toscano Osteria's bottomless brunch. For $19.95 you get an entree and unlimited champagne or mimosas. Supposedly they have an Italian twist on Eggs Benedict, served with prosciutto instead of ham. I can't wait to try it!

Fabulous Friday

I love Fridays so much - no matter what happens at work, how hard the day is, how bad the weather is, how sick I feel... there's one thing that remains constant: I can sleep late tomorrow.

Fortunately the weather isn't really that bad.. just cold. Today is a pretty easy work day because the kids are taking an assessment. I feel fine, except for this stubborn cold I have that won't go away. Either way.. I can still sleep late tomorrow :-)

So since January 8th I have been steadily losing weight (good thing)... but literally ounces at a time. Its not that Weight Watchers isn't working... its more like I'm not really following the rules. I find that I'm just too lazy to track points, and therefore am I eating too much. With weight watchers, I can eat anything... and I'm eating about 95% real food anyway. Its just small things I won't track. In the moment I feel like "eh, its probably only one point." But what I'm not taking into consideration is how much it adds up to in a day. For example, in a given day.. I WON'T track

-my coffee (half & half & sugar) 2pts
-lowfat granola that I add to my yogurt 2-3pts
-Brown sugar in the oatmeal 1pt
-lowfat cheese & dressing on salad 2 pts
-piece of chocolate after dinner 2-3pts
-glass of wine/beer 4-8pts
-hummus 2pts

If I actually did track those things, it would be an additional 15-22 points a day!!!! That is crazy considering my daily limit is 26 points.

So for past week or so I've been using the "simply filling" technique instead of tracking points. Simply Filling basically goes like this. I can eat as much as I want from the following "power foods." (see list at the bottom). I still track, but since I changed my technique to simply filling, any power food automatically registers as zero points. I still have 49 WEEKLY points to use for foods that aren't on the list... and the phone app keeps track of this weekly so that I don't have to.

This seems to have been working for me. For example, last night I had some brown rice with my chicken... which I normally wouldn't eat since a half cup of brown rice is 3-4 points. After dinner, I almost ALWAYS need a snack and last night, I didn't want one. I'm guessing this was due to the brown rice filling me up more than normal.

This always goes really well with me and Marvin's "real food" journey. It basically forces me NOT to eat any packaged foods.


OK- SPOILER ALERT! If you still haven't watched TBL finale then scroll down to the bottom.



Onto other things - I really can't stop thinking about TBL finale. I loved Rachel so much the entire time and thought she was cool. At the finale I literally felt sick to my stomach. I didn't know if maybe I was just being too judgmental, but the twitter uproar (including official statements from Jill, Bob & Dolvett) showed me that I wasn't overreacting. It is really sad and unfortunate that Rachel, most likely, is worse off than she started (health & mental wise). And I'm still not sure how I feel about the show, for basically supporting anorexia.

Power foods

Fruits

• All fresh, frozen, or canned without added sugar
• Fruit canned in its own juice (drained)
• Mixed fruits with no added sugar

Vegetables

• Most fresh, frozen or canned without added sugar or oil
• Potatoes — white, red, sweet

Lean proteins 

• Beef, chicken, lamb, pork, turkey, veal: lean, trimmed, all skin removed (see food list for specific cuts and grinds)
• Dried beans
• Dried peas
• Eggs: Whole, whites, and fat-free substitute
• Game meats
• Lentils
• Meat substitutes, including tofu and vegetarian burgers
• Most fish and shellfish: fresh, frozen, and canned
• Organ meats from beef, lamb, pork, veal, and poultry

Whole grains

• Brown and wild rice
• Hot cereals, cooked — without added sugar, dried fruits, or nuts
• Pasta, whole-wheat or other whole-grain varieties
• Popcorn, air-popped, or 94% fat-free microwave-popped
• Whole-grain, ready-to-eat cereals without added sugar, dried fruits or nuts, and with 4g of fiber or more per serving
• Whole-grains such as: barley, buckwheat, bulgur, cornmeal (polenta) whole-wheat couscous, quinoa

Non-Fat Dairy and Dairy Substitutes

• Fat-free cheeses, including fat-free cottage cheese
• Fat-free milk and beverages made with fat-free milk, such as cappuccino or latte, as long as it’s sugar-free
• Yogurt, fat-free, plain or flavored with artificial sweetener
• Fat-free sour cream
• Soy products, unflavored and plain, such as:
• Calcium-fortified soy milk
• Unflavored soy milk
• Fat-free soy cheese
• Plain soy yogurt

Plus

• Light breads, english muffins and hotdog/hamburger rolls
• Soups (broth, onion, and some broth- and tomato-based vegetable soups)
• Sugar-free gelatin

Healthy oils

Include 2 tsp each day without counting PointsPlus values. Use your weekly PointsPlusAllowance for any additional oil. 

• Olive oil
• Canola oil
• Safflower oil
• Sunflower oil
• Flaxseed oil

What's not included on the Power Foods list

• Processed meats, such as:
• Hot dogs
• Sausages
• Luncheon meats (other than fat-free)
• Fish or shellfish, canned, or packed in oil
• Meats, poultry or fish with breading or added fat
• Dried fruits
• Fruit juices
• Vegetable juices
• Vegetables prepared with ingredients that are not Weight Watchers Power Foods, (for example, corn in butter sauce, dried tomatoes packed in oil)
• French fries
• Avocados
• Sweet pickles
• Plantains
• Olives

Homemade pizza!

Tonight was my first time making homemade pizza!!! It was so easy and sooooo good... I feel like I never want to get pizza delivery again!

I used a simple 100% whole wheat pizza recipe from Comfort Cooking. I used this flour because it was the only one with unbleached available at the grocery store. 

I just doubled the recipe so we could have some dough leftover to freeze. http://www.thecomfortofcooking.com/2013/05/100-whole-wheat-pizza-dough.html

Here's our journey in photos!

No mixer... So mixing the flour by hand. 

Marvin working it.

My first time kneading dough!

It was so fun :)

Before rising

After rising... Crazy!

First pie in the oven

Marvin's personal "deep dish"

First pie done! Homemade marinara, fresh tomatoes, part skim mozz, & Parmesan

And some fresh basil :)

2nd pie - same as above but with pepperoni

Cutting the first slice

And eating it!!