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OMG......to those who know me, it is no secret that I have a major sweet tooth!!! Losing weight, while still getting to have some yummilicious sweets is why I have been successful with Weight Watchers in the past. Nothing is off limits. So long as you "count" it. Sure, you could eat all of your 23 points before noon if you want to. And I have. But learning how to maximize points, so that you don't get hungry, and still get to have some sweets is my idea of a weight loss program. And for my friend and partner in crime, Maryrose, leaving enough points for her beer or wine is of utmost importance!! Unfortunately for me, to veer off of this program results in weight gain, as I have learned in this past two years. Today I made the Chocolate and Peanut Butter Bread Pudding from one of the new Hungry Girl cookbooks I bought the other day. I have been reading these like novels, as I do many of the cookbooks I have. This pudding, while not exactly a knock off of the bread puddings I savored while in New Orleans, would qualify as a good cousin to those rich and decadent bread puddings that I so enjoyed while working my way through The French Quarter.
I don't know where time goes? I have been so busy lately that I don't know whether I am coming or going. Usually, I am extremely organized. Just ask anyone who knows me. Disgustingly so......as in having my spice drawer alphabetized, and my pantry neat and orderly, with soup stacked with soup, and tomatoes with tomatoes, and so on. I wake early, and as soon as my feet hit the floor, I have the bed made and am starting the first load of laundry within a few minutes of waking up. The big joke in my family is that everyone only needed one pair of underwear because at night when the laundry was put in the hamper, I often times had the days dirty clothes washed, dryed, folded and put back away before the next morning. So the underwear wound up back on the top of the stack, and I had to rotate so the rest would be worn too! However....nowadays...not so much. I am biz-Z!!!! And the holidays have snuck up on me all of a sudden like!!!!
We are going to our oldest daughter, Genny's for Thanksgiving. She was going to be cooking her first turkey, and I was going to teach her how. But, she has been sick, her family has been sick, we have been sick, and no one feels like spending a day in the kitchen. Sooooo, yesterday morning, Greg and I went to Polly's for breakfast and ordered the whole feast! We did it last year too, but at Marie Callender's. So we will do a shoot out and see who's is best. We are all making some of our own favorite dishes as well. But looking forward to a more relaxing day, without having to tend to a large meal in the kitchen.
The following pictures are quite random, and have no correlation to this post whatsoever. But I have been wanting to try a couple things I have seen in bloggy land. Making my own laundry soap. And making an ornament wreath. The bow is not what I will use on the wreath. I had a little bit of gold and a small red piece, and I just twisted it up and stuck it on there til I can go get some Christmas ribbon. You get the idea though.
Last night I made a Weight Watcher chicken dish. It was so tender and flavorful, one would never have known it was so low in calories and points. I made it here at home, and we brought the dinner over to Gennifer's house so we could celebrate Claire's 1st Birthday, so none of this is plated.
Oven roasted brussel sprouts with crisp bacon added. See my OV GLOVE? If you don't have one...GET one!!! I cut up half a pound of bacon into small lengthwise pieces. Fry it up on medium/high heat, but here's the twist. This little hint makes frying bacon SO much easier, and almost no splattering this way. Put your bacon in the pan, and add about a cup or so of water to the pan. The bacon will bounce around in that hot water and bacon grease, frying up so much more evenly, more crisp, and without spitting and spattering all over the place. I still use a splatter screen, but it isn't necessary. Drain bacon on paper towels. I only used a small amount of this to top the brussel sprouts, and froze the rest for salads and other things.
Today, our little Claire turned 1! I just can't believe how fast a year has gone. In fact, how fast all of the years have gone! Seems like yesterday that our girls were babies. And then when they got to school age, along came little brother Drew. And "our" baby will be 21 in a few weeks. But...back to Claire. Genny and Jake decided to skip on a big party for Claire. She will never have missed it, and it made it much less stressful for them. Plus, seems that someone has been sick constantly lately in their family. And in ours too. So tonight we went over to wish our little Claire Bear a Happy 1st Birthday. She was so cute. Taking a few steps here and there, but not yet toddling all over. She liked her new toys, and so did big sis Hannah. Geeps and Gamma love you Claire! Happy Birthday!
This afternoon I went out to look at some houses with Erika and Jeremy and Noah. When we got home, it was cold, breezy and dinner time. Greg pulled up just after we did, and I had enough of the Beef Barley Soup for one more go round. I put it on to heat and made the Red Lobster Cheese and Garlic Biscuits to go with.
The soup was even better second go round, and the biscuits were heavenly. If you like Red Lobster biscuits, you will love these.
2 Cups Bisquik
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup melted butter
2 tsp garlic powder
Mix first three ingredients until dough forms. Scoop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake in 450 degree oven for 8-10 min. Don't let them become over brown. For my oven, 8 minutes is perfect. While in oven, melt butter, and stir in garlic. When biscuits come out of oven, brush melted butter and garlic onto biscuit tops. Enjoy!
For the LIFE of me, I cannot figure out why I keep getting these shadows on my pictures. Mainly when taking them in the kitchen under direct lighting. I have tried changing the angle I shoot, and every which way, but still, I get shadows!!! I have tried everything, and I can't seem to escape it! Greg thought it might be my camera strap hanging down, but it isn't that. Any ideas anyone?
Regarding recipes...I am afraid they will be changing up a bit now. I am biting the bullet and heading myself back to Weight Watchers tomorrow. I remember when I lost all that weight a few years back, I thought I would lose the joy in cooking. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that I rather enjoyed the challenge of making our favorite foods more healthy and figure friendly. I got out of my good habits, and realize that I will forever have to watch my weight, so this seems to be the best way to keep it off. I love the program, and it works. I have also been back to the park early in the morning, 3 days a week for brisk walking, and it sure feels good. So start looking for some of my favorite lo fat, healthy recipes from now on. And, maybe an occasional blast from the past too. You gotta live, right?
Today was finally a cool and breezy, Autumn feeling day. The perfect kind of day for a pot of soup. This is a recipe I got from a quilt shop years ago. I have changed it up a wee bit, and I make this hearty, comforting soup often. The ingredients are all shown above, with the exception of the stew beef that I had already browned and had simmering on the stove in my Dutch Oven. I began by browning 1.5 pounds of stew meat in a bit of olive oil, and then once brown, toss in a couple bay leaves, and about 2 tsp of Vegit seasoning and let simmer for about an hour with lid on. In another pan, saute one brown onion, several cloves of minced garlic, and 3-4 carrots til soft, about 3-5 min. Add this to meat and then add 4 cans of beef broth, 1 large can of diced stewed tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste, and let this simmer on low for a couple of hours. About 2 hours before serving, add 1 cup pearl barley and replace lid and continue to simmer until barley is done. Also, add the zest of one whole orange to soup pot. Just before serving, saute a pound of mushrooms in 3/4 stick of butter. When soft, add about 1/2 cup full bodied red wine, reduce slightly and add to soup pot. Garnish with fresh parsley and enjoy! I meant to get more pics of cooking, but wound up taking this to Gennifer and Jake's and finished cooking it there and then had dinner with them.
In my hectic week I forgot to post a favorite cooking tool. For this week, I am featuring a favorite tool called a microplane. I love to zest oranges and other citrus into dishes with this tool. It is also useful for grating whole nutmeg, and ginger and many other things. GREAT tool. I have a small hand held one too that I love for nutmeg! I ALWAYS use whole nutmeg, and grate it myself. The flavor is amazing!
PS Usually I like to use low sodium beef broth, but Stater's only had their store brand. But the low sodium is way better, I think.
Bon Appetit!
