It's that time of year when good food is abundant and temptation is in full swing. The holiday season from the end of November all the way through December is rough, especially if will power is not a strong point. I have a game plan.
Turkey is always a foregone conclusion, and now that turkey breast is zero points, I am super excited. It' my second favorite part of the turkey. My number one favorite part is the skin, which I am avoiding this year. My kidlet will be quite happy to have it! What should I do about sides? Dessert? I know I am probably going over my daily points, but I have no intention of totally blowing my diet.
Sweet potato has always been on my holiday menu. I prefer a sweet preparation to savory, of course, but my traditional sweet potato souffle is not waistline friendly. I am going to modify this Sweet Potato Casserole recipe, substituting some of the sugar, cutting back on the butter, and adding a little splash of lemon juice for a bright, light note. 2/3 of a cup comes up to 8 points of yum.
For cranberry sauce, which in my family is a must, I am making one that my mom will especially love. This simple Naturally Sweetened Cranberry Sauce is a whole bean sauce that I never would have eaten as a kid, because I liked the overly sweet, overly-processed canned jellied sauce. That's the one my daughter and husband still prefer, so they can have it. My mother and I will enjoy this lovely, natural one for a mere 2 points per serving.
No Thanksgiving meal should be without deep greens of some type. My mother loves brussels sprouts, while my daughter and husband adore collard greens. While I intend to make greens for my hubby and kidlet, I am going to make the sprouts for my mother and myself. I have always loved these tiny green "cabbages". These Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Mustard Dressing will add a beautiful punch of flavor without bacon, butter, or extra salt. A 2/3 cup serving clocks in at 3 points.
Finally, no holiday dinner ever was complete without pie. Traditionally, my family enjoys sweet potato pie, mostly because it is my preference, but I love a good pumpkin pie, too! Pumpkin pie also happens to be one of my mother's favorites, as she's never been as keen on sweet potatoes, and since I decided to make sweet potato casserole, I'd rather hit up a nice can of pumpkin anyway. For me, it is vital that dessert is lightened up considerably. To do that, I've decided on these Individual Crustless Pumpkin Pies. At 9 points, these little custards are both crustless and single-serve, a win-win situation!
Thanksgiving dinner will cost me a grand total of 22 points. That's pretty decent. There will be so much flavor and visual appeal, I won't miss the high-fat, super sugary Thankgivings of years gone by. Also, I can freeze the extra portions of pumpkin pie, if there are any, for Christmas or snack attacks when I can afford them!
For the days following Thanksgiving, I'll be leaning heavily on the WW Zero points list. Guess who is going to be eating turkey for five days straight? Yep. This girl. I'll eat everything but the pumpkin pies for the whole weekend, because I'm working four days straight. I'll miss my family, but that's nursing: no such thing as holidays!
There is also another things about holiday meals: no judgement. Holidays are a time of celebration and joy, eating the things we rarely do, and enjoying the company of the ones we love the most. Thanksgiving in particular is exactly what it says it is - a time of thanksgiving for the abundance available to us. Thankfulness for friends, family, hearth, and home. This Thanksgiving, I choose to be thankful to work with people that cannot be at home, that cannot partake in the family feasting or the gathering of loved ones. For that night, the nurses of the 5th floor will be their family. It's humbling, to say the least.
It's a week early, but from the Blocky Family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving. Now go get your grub on!
Friday, November 16, 2018
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Changing Things Up
For roughly 7 weeks, I've had a revolving menu, but I've stuck with some of the same basic dishes, such as Taco Soup, which is insanely easy to put together, and quinoa salad, which is refreshing and light. I've had many meatless dishes and stuck almost exclusively to ground turkey, chicken breast, and fish as my meats. However, I really feel it's time to switch things up. This past week, I found myself wanting to just skip a meal here and there, not because I don't like the meals, but because eating the very same things or variations of them for weeks on end can get boring. I don't want to feel like I'm in a rut.
Enter some requirements. The meals have to be filling. They have to have good flavor. Acidity is a plus for me. They also have to be somewhat budget friendly. For a soup, I have decided to make Chicken and White Bean Soup, making a few tweaks. Since I've never had leeks, but I'm not super picky, I'll keep those in, but I want to add garlic and mushrooms. For salad, I am thinking along the lines of Chickpea Tuna Salad. I'll just make the chickpea and tuna mixture, pack it into jars, and top with the arugula and then feta to help reduce the chance of the arugula becoming a wet, soggy mass that is inedible.
Since those two meals are only going to cost me 5 points total on WW Freestyle, I have to eat something a bit higher in points to make my goal of at least 13 to 23 points each day. I like that idea! It means I can have a meal that is 9 points or higher, or I can have a nice snack other than fruit or yogurt.
I have decided on a variation of HelloFresh's Grilled Mediterranean Steak. The final count, after deciding to use couscous rather than bulgur, comes to 13 points. Perfect! Not only will I get that fresh, spicy, mouth-watering acidic flavor, but I'll also have a beautiful piece of beef! That's something I can get behind AND I will still have a total of 5 to 10 points if I really want something extra. If not, I get a rollover of 4 points each day toward Thanksgiving.
I can't think of anything better than guilt-free rollovers for Thanksgiving. Except, maybe, Christmas dinner!
Enter some requirements. The meals have to be filling. They have to have good flavor. Acidity is a plus for me. They also have to be somewhat budget friendly. For a soup, I have decided to make Chicken and White Bean Soup, making a few tweaks. Since I've never had leeks, but I'm not super picky, I'll keep those in, but I want to add garlic and mushrooms. For salad, I am thinking along the lines of Chickpea Tuna Salad. I'll just make the chickpea and tuna mixture, pack it into jars, and top with the arugula and then feta to help reduce the chance of the arugula becoming a wet, soggy mass that is inedible.
Since those two meals are only going to cost me 5 points total on WW Freestyle, I have to eat something a bit higher in points to make my goal of at least 13 to 23 points each day. I like that idea! It means I can have a meal that is 9 points or higher, or I can have a nice snack other than fruit or yogurt.
I have decided on a variation of HelloFresh's Grilled Mediterranean Steak. The final count, after deciding to use couscous rather than bulgur, comes to 13 points. Perfect! Not only will I get that fresh, spicy, mouth-watering acidic flavor, but I'll also have a beautiful piece of beef! That's something I can get behind AND I will still have a total of 5 to 10 points if I really want something extra. If not, I get a rollover of 4 points each day toward Thanksgiving.
I can't think of anything better than guilt-free rollovers for Thanksgiving. Except, maybe, Christmas dinner!
Saturday, November 10, 2018
Because Not Everyone Is Alike
It's funny, but people get offended by all sorts of things. Or, maybe instead of funny, it's just sad. scrolling through one of my Facebook Weight Watchers groups, I often see the same questions or variations of them asked again and again.
"I just started WW, and I love bread. What can I have instead?"
"I really like fried foods. How can I substitute them?"
"Chocolate is my favorite sweet treat. How can I fit it in?"
Those are some examples. One post caught my eye. An angry one, lashing out at folks for asking that question. The more I read of the OP's words, the more incensed I got. They stated unequivocally that WW is about a lifestyle change and asking what to substitute things with was defeating the purpose. That people needed to do their research instead of asking the same questions over and over. I was totally floored. Then came the venomous support of the OP's post. It got downright ugly. I was speechless and hurting for the new folks that may have been pushed away from the group, afraid to ask basic questions at the risk of being filleted by an over zealous WW follower that appeared to have zero patience, tolerance, or understanding. I mean, if you have nothing to offer to someone that is asking a question, regardless of the fact they are asking the same one you've seen a hundred times, why is it so hard to just scroll on?
I do a lot of research, and I also ask a lot of questions. I try to stay away from toxic people that would rather cut people than help them. I guess that's because I have the tolerance and the patience to answer other people's questions, or the wisdom to simply keep scrolling. I would rather see someone do WW badly with support than to push them away from it completely.
Anyone that asks a question is willing to learn something. Learning that their questions are not welcome is a bitter blow to someone just starting out on WW, or any weight loss plan, actually. Support is critical for success. It may be amusing to be a smart-ass, but those are real people with very real feelings asking a question that they'd really like to know the answer to. If you happen to be a member of any WW group, and you see someone being toxic, it's a nice thing to answer their questions without even batting an eye at how rude some people can be. Just because some people (yes I am using that word a lot - people) including myself view this as a way of eating for life, it's not like that for everyone. For some, it's simply a stepping stone to feeling healthier, or they'd like to fit into that perfect wedding dress, or even lose some weight prior to a major event in their life.
I tend to do much thinking and plodding alone on my own. It would be a lot more fun with a group of folks that can feel free in asking whatever the heck they want without fearing a tongue-lashing. Anyway, enough of that.
Last night, while working, I came to a realization. It struck me hard. Without intending to, I am changing my mindset in a very interesting way that will help me make this stick pretty much for life. Instead of trying to find substitutes for my favorite foods, I am searching for new ones. New recipes, spices, dressings, and regional cuisines. I am not trying to find a healthier way to eat food that resembles fried chicken, for example, but I am trying to find healthy, easy to cook meals that I won't mind throwing together again and again.
One such recipe by far is Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad. Out of six weeks of being on the plan, I've made it at least five times, each time making four jars. I've made a variation of Taco Soup for five of those six weeks, relearning to love beans. I've also made the best chicken soup I have ever tasted: Avgolemono Soup.
I am the least picky eater in my house, but I am picky to a degree. I've started avoiding beef and pork, preferring chicken, turkey, and fish instead, as they are on the WW Zero Points List. Do I miss beef and pork? Of course I do! I don't intend to never eat them. I just plan to eat them very rarely. My mind is always ticking when I come across a particularly interesting meal, thinking on ways to lighten it up and make it healthier, as well as pondering on if I would enjoy eating it for several days in a row.
Portion control is also becoming a bigger deal to me. Sure, fruit is considered to be free, but if I eat all I want, the natural sugars will add up, hitting my calorie count hard. Beans, too, one of my major staples at the moment, can also pack a huge punch in calories if I eat too many. Therefore, I have started paying attention to having only a scoop of Taco Soup rather than a soup bowl full. Have you ever considered the size of one of those deeply rounded soup bowls? Generally, I stick to a cup to a cup and a half now. I carefully portion my fat free yogurt, which is something I eat nearly every day, either by itself, mixed into a simple dessert, or as a great alternative to sour cream. (It also makes a totally delicious salad dressing when mixed with a bit of salsa or Rotel Tomatoes with Chilies!) I also carefully eyeball that snack bag of grapes, and limit myself to an apple and maybe two mandarin oranges a day rather than eating all I would like to.
I am not the me I would like to be in a year. I am, however, learning to eat healthier, make better choices, and break the narrow minded view of a diet that I have always had. It's a terrific start, if I do say so myself!
"I just started WW, and I love bread. What can I have instead?"
"I really like fried foods. How can I substitute them?"
"Chocolate is my favorite sweet treat. How can I fit it in?"
Those are some examples. One post caught my eye. An angry one, lashing out at folks for asking that question. The more I read of the OP's words, the more incensed I got. They stated unequivocally that WW is about a lifestyle change and asking what to substitute things with was defeating the purpose. That people needed to do their research instead of asking the same questions over and over. I was totally floored. Then came the venomous support of the OP's post. It got downright ugly. I was speechless and hurting for the new folks that may have been pushed away from the group, afraid to ask basic questions at the risk of being filleted by an over zealous WW follower that appeared to have zero patience, tolerance, or understanding. I mean, if you have nothing to offer to someone that is asking a question, regardless of the fact they are asking the same one you've seen a hundred times, why is it so hard to just scroll on?
I do a lot of research, and I also ask a lot of questions. I try to stay away from toxic people that would rather cut people than help them. I guess that's because I have the tolerance and the patience to answer other people's questions, or the wisdom to simply keep scrolling. I would rather see someone do WW badly with support than to push them away from it completely.
Anyone that asks a question is willing to learn something. Learning that their questions are not welcome is a bitter blow to someone just starting out on WW, or any weight loss plan, actually. Support is critical for success. It may be amusing to be a smart-ass, but those are real people with very real feelings asking a question that they'd really like to know the answer to. If you happen to be a member of any WW group, and you see someone being toxic, it's a nice thing to answer their questions without even batting an eye at how rude some people can be. Just because some people (yes I am using that word a lot - people) including myself view this as a way of eating for life, it's not like that for everyone. For some, it's simply a stepping stone to feeling healthier, or they'd like to fit into that perfect wedding dress, or even lose some weight prior to a major event in their life.
I tend to do much thinking and plodding alone on my own. It would be a lot more fun with a group of folks that can feel free in asking whatever the heck they want without fearing a tongue-lashing. Anyway, enough of that.
Last night, while working, I came to a realization. It struck me hard. Without intending to, I am changing my mindset in a very interesting way that will help me make this stick pretty much for life. Instead of trying to find substitutes for my favorite foods, I am searching for new ones. New recipes, spices, dressings, and regional cuisines. I am not trying to find a healthier way to eat food that resembles fried chicken, for example, but I am trying to find healthy, easy to cook meals that I won't mind throwing together again and again.
One such recipe by far is Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad. Out of six weeks of being on the plan, I've made it at least five times, each time making four jars. I've made a variation of Taco Soup for five of those six weeks, relearning to love beans. I've also made the best chicken soup I have ever tasted: Avgolemono Soup.
I am the least picky eater in my house, but I am picky to a degree. I've started avoiding beef and pork, preferring chicken, turkey, and fish instead, as they are on the WW Zero Points List. Do I miss beef and pork? Of course I do! I don't intend to never eat them. I just plan to eat them very rarely. My mind is always ticking when I come across a particularly interesting meal, thinking on ways to lighten it up and make it healthier, as well as pondering on if I would enjoy eating it for several days in a row.
Portion control is also becoming a bigger deal to me. Sure, fruit is considered to be free, but if I eat all I want, the natural sugars will add up, hitting my calorie count hard. Beans, too, one of my major staples at the moment, can also pack a huge punch in calories if I eat too many. Therefore, I have started paying attention to having only a scoop of Taco Soup rather than a soup bowl full. Have you ever considered the size of one of those deeply rounded soup bowls? Generally, I stick to a cup to a cup and a half now. I carefully portion my fat free yogurt, which is something I eat nearly every day, either by itself, mixed into a simple dessert, or as a great alternative to sour cream. (It also makes a totally delicious salad dressing when mixed with a bit of salsa or Rotel Tomatoes with Chilies!) I also carefully eyeball that snack bag of grapes, and limit myself to an apple and maybe two mandarin oranges a day rather than eating all I would like to.
I am not the me I would like to be in a year. I am, however, learning to eat healthier, make better choices, and break the narrow minded view of a diet that I have always had. It's a terrific start, if I do say so myself!
Friday, November 9, 2018
Falling and Getting Back Up
It's been an interesting, guilt-inducing couple of weeks. I've been way off the Weight Watchers wagon, somewhere out in the woods, throwing kindling on it while snacking my way through chocolate, fried festival foods, and fat-laden restaurant delights. Yes, I have even fallen so low as to have not weighed in, either. Frankly, I am worried about how much damage I have done to the 8 measly pounds I'd lost.
Time to stop worrying and just put on my big girl panties.
I knew two of the dishes I already wanted. One, a big pot of taco soup, the other my standard quinoa salad. It may soon be time to retire that dish for a bit so I don't get tired of it, or find an interesting new variation. The last dish took some thinking. Last night I'd asked my husband to pick up some mushrooms and a couple of zucchini, thinking I'd make fish with roasted veggies on the side. I decided instead to make a farro dish for the first time. I also cooked my quinoa in chicken broth for the first time... But I digress.
My local Walmart doesn't have bulgar, but I recalled while making my shopping list that they they do carry farro. I've been nothing this go round on Weight Watchers if not adventurous. I did a quick Google search on healthy farro recipes and found one I liked. Warm Farro Salad fit a few criteria. It looked simple with less than ten ingredients. It was therefore budget friendly. It also did not require more than one unknown ingredient: the farro itself. My closest Walmart has been letting me down recently, not stocking in ome of my favorite things, or discontinuing them altogether, but they had the farro! They also had a really nice Wild and Brown Rice blend I can't wait to try.
Meal prep tonight took a little longer than I anticipated. Hubby had washed a few of the dishes and called it good. I had to finish cleaning the kitchen so I could dirty it and clean it again. I can't even say enough how much I loathe having to clean the kitchen so it can be clean when I cook, but that's another story. I got right down to business, cooking the quinoa and the taco soup immediately. While the quinoa cooled, I made the farro.
I didn't want those luscious baby portobello mushrooms and zucchini to go to waste, so I cleaned, sliced and roasted the mushrooms and then put them in with the farro when it was halfway through cooking. I drizzled extra lemon juice over the kale/spinach mixture I bought and added more than just a "pinch" of black pepper. I then roasted the zucchini while I finished the farro dish, and added them to the side. I'm set through Monday night for food. I am hoping I'll have a couple of days after the weekend to regroup and do more meal prep!
In the meantime, it may be time to find an accountability partner. I sure could use the extra boost of encouragement, and someone to talk me down during a snack attack or through a moment of weakness...
Time to stop worrying and just put on my big girl panties.
I knew two of the dishes I already wanted. One, a big pot of taco soup, the other my standard quinoa salad. It may soon be time to retire that dish for a bit so I don't get tired of it, or find an interesting new variation. The last dish took some thinking. Last night I'd asked my husband to pick up some mushrooms and a couple of zucchini, thinking I'd make fish with roasted veggies on the side. I decided instead to make a farro dish for the first time. I also cooked my quinoa in chicken broth for the first time... But I digress.
My local Walmart doesn't have bulgar, but I recalled while making my shopping list that they they do carry farro. I've been nothing this go round on Weight Watchers if not adventurous. I did a quick Google search on healthy farro recipes and found one I liked. Warm Farro Salad fit a few criteria. It looked simple with less than ten ingredients. It was therefore budget friendly. It also did not require more than one unknown ingredient: the farro itself. My closest Walmart has been letting me down recently, not stocking in ome of my favorite things, or discontinuing them altogether, but they had the farro! They also had a really nice Wild and Brown Rice blend I can't wait to try.
Meal prep tonight took a little longer than I anticipated. Hubby had washed a few of the dishes and called it good. I had to finish cleaning the kitchen so I could dirty it and clean it again. I can't even say enough how much I loathe having to clean the kitchen so it can be clean when I cook, but that's another story. I got right down to business, cooking the quinoa and the taco soup immediately. While the quinoa cooled, I made the farro.
 |
| A bowl of delicious, creamy and "bitey" deliciousnes! |
I didn't want those luscious baby portobello mushrooms and zucchini to go to waste, so I cleaned, sliced and roasted the mushrooms and then put them in with the farro when it was halfway through cooking. I drizzled extra lemon juice over the kale/spinach mixture I bought and added more than just a "pinch" of black pepper. I then roasted the zucchini while I finished the farro dish, and added them to the side. I'm set through Monday night for food. I am hoping I'll have a couple of days after the weekend to regroup and do more meal prep!
In the meantime, it may be time to find an accountability partner. I sure could use the extra boost of encouragement, and someone to talk me down during a snack attack or through a moment of weakness...
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