Surprise!

I went to lunch today with a friend.  I had a coupon for Camille's Sidewalk Cafe here in Lancaster.  I found out that their menu is on Weight Watchers' e-tools.

I looked and sure enough...there it was.

I also learned that they are a franchise with locations across the country.  The food is fresh and tasty.  If you live near a Camille's, stop in.  Check out your e-tools!

Camille's Sidewalk Cafe

Cuties are in season!

Cuties, or clementines, are in season and delicious.  Just picked up a bag of them at Walmart.  Great snacks for kids for school, because they are easy to peel, nutritious, and hydrating.

Enjoy!

Here is the link to Sun Pacific's website!

Cuties

Corned Beef and Cabbage...and no blarney!

This turned out really well.  The corned beef was already seasoned, so that helped.  This is my first time making it myself.  

As I said yesterday, the girl at TJ's said they just sauteed it.  I drizzled a little olive oil in the fry pan.  I cut up the potatoes and dropped them in.  Potatoes take longer, so I let them cook for a bit.  I stirred them around so they wouldn't burn.  I put a lid over the pan after I poured in a cup of water.  When the potatoes were hot, but still hard, I poured in a cup of chicken broth, then added the corned beef.  I had cut it up in about 1 oz. chunks (easier to count the points that way).  I let that cook until the potatoes were tender, but not done.  I cut up the cabbage and put it on top.  The cabbage steamed atop the corned beef and potatoes under the lid.

The meat melted in our mouths, the potatoes were perfect, and the cabbage was al dente!  I just added a bit of salt and pepper to mine.

There were 3 potatoes and the corned beef was 1lb. 7oz.  The entire skillet was 35 points.  There are about 7 servings in the pan.  Of course, you cannot load up on just meat or just potatoes and get the right point value!  I made sure I had more cabbage than anything, then equal parts of meat and potatoes.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day Alert!

I haven't posted in the past few weeks, because I have been super busy and have not felt inspired.  Inspiration has returned!

Trader Joe's has yummy corned beef brisket.  Brisket is normally very fatty, so I would never even consider it as a viable WW choice because I wouldn't want to spend the points.  Well, this brisket is only 1 WWP+ for an ounce!!!!!!!!!!!!  It is also fully cooked, so it really is just heat and eat.

I asked the girl at the sampling station at my TJ's how she prepares it.  I know you can make it in a crock pot or stock pot.  Anyway, she said that they saute it in olive oil with potato and cabbage.  I am going to do that for tomorrow.  I will post how it turned out!

If you haven't bought your brisket yet, I highly recommend this one!

Staying on Program While Recovering from Stomach Flu

This is the first time I have been violently ill while on Weight Watchers.  When I say violently, I mean violently.  I will spare you the gory details.  Feel free to imagine, if you like.  I used some of the skills I learned through having colds while on the program.

First of all, while you are in the throes of illness, stay hydrated and keep something in your stomach like a bit of dry toast or some crackers.  Gives your body something to work with and keeps you from becoming completely dehydrated.  I sipped water until I could manage diet ginger ale.

On the second day, at which time the violence calmed to just weakness and lots of rest, I continued with the ginger ale and toast.  Whole wheat toast can be too much for your system, so I ate whole grain white bread which gives you more of the fiber, less points, but is still easy on your stomach.  Depending on the brand, you can eat 2 slices for 3 points.  That's a lot of toast!

Toward the end of the day, I decided soup would be good.  A can of Campbell's tomato soup or chicken noodle soup is only 5 points for the ENTIRE can.  If sodium is a concern, get the lower sodium kind.  While Progresso soups already have WW Points on them, they can still cost you about the same amount per can and tend to be chunkier and harder to digest.

On the third day - day two of recovery - I added Jello.  The sugar free 0 point Jello is soothing and is a power food.  I continued with soup and a few crackers.  Late in the day, I re-introduced my Greek yogurt with fruit.

I will say that the upside of all this was that I lost 5 pounds in that one day of illness.  Once I was rehydrated, I only gained back a portion of 1 pound.

As you can guess, I won't post any pictures with this blog post.  There aren't any, but you wouldn't want to see them anyway!

Comfort Food!

For 8 points+ for 1/8 of this casserole, you can enjoy a filling comfort food.  This is a Weight Watcher recipe that I have made for my family, potlucks at church, and to take to families who need meals provided.  Everyone loves it and it is easy to make.  You can also freeze it for lunches during the week.

Baked Ziti with Turkey Sausage

I have a hard time finding whole wheat ziti, so I use penne pasta.  It works just as well.

Ingredients:

3/4 pound(s) uncooked turkey sausage(s), spicy-variety, casings removed  

1 medium uncooked onion(s), chopped  

1 medium green pepper(s), chopped  

28 oz canned diced tomatoes  

10 oz frozen green peas, thawed  

2 Tbsp canned tomato paste  

1 tsp dried oregano  

1 tsp dried basil  

1/2 tsp dried thyme  

1/2 tsp fennel seed  

1/2 tsp table salt, or to taste  

1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground  

 12 oz uncooked whole-wheat pasta, ziti, cooked according to package directions  

6 oz shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese   

Directions:

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F.

Crumble the sausage meat into a large saucepan and brown over medium heat, stirring often, about 4 minutes.

Drain off any fat, then add the onion and bell pepper. Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes, peas, tomato paste, oregano, basil, thyme, fennel seeds, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat and cook uncovered 5 minutes, stirring often.

Stir in the cooked pasta and half the cheese. Spread evenly into a 9- X 13-inch baking pan. Top evenly with the remaining cheese.

Bake until the cheese has melted and the casserole is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes at room temperature before slicing into 8 pieces. Yields 1 piece per serving.

Chips 'n Dip!

BRAVO for this dip!  If you love spinach dip, but hate counting the points, I have the answer to your snacking prayers.  <<Insert drumroll here>>

I have been eating this with carrot chips making this my new party dip.  Serve it with bell peppers, carrots, or your favorite chip (if you want to count the points).  Now...besides the flavor...guess why it earned a bravo?  ONE WWpt+ for 2 Tablespoons!!!!  Amazing!  You can eat 1/2 cup for only 4 points!  The Greek yogurt gives you more protein and more calcium!  It is available at Trader Joe's!

I have a recipe for a satisfying comfort food to share with you in my next post.  Stay tuned!!!