Seasoned Scrambled Eggs

Seasoned Scrambled Eggs 6 pts

Ingredients

4 egg whites
3 eggs
2 tablespoons reduced-fat ranch salad dressing
2 teaspoons spicy brown mustard
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon canola oil
1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

In a bowl, whisk together the egg whites and eggs. Stir in the salad dressing, mustard, parsley and garlic powder. In a nonstick skillet, cook egg mixture in oil over medium heat for 2 minutes or until eggs are set and cheese is melted. Serve immediately. Yield: 2 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (1 cup) equals 251 calories, 16 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 331 mg cholesterol, 496 mg sodium, 4 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 21 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 1-1/2 fat.

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Made April 2nd. I cut the recipe in half and split it among three people so the point value was only 2 compared to the 6 of the original recipe. I only used 1 egg white and 2 eggs.

I enjoyed the flavor, but Jared didn't care for it much. It certainly was different.

I served the eggs with Waffled French Toast.

Waffled French Toast

Waffled French Toast 4 pts

Ingredients

1 egg
1 egg white
1/4 cup fat-free milk
4 slices whole wheat or white bread
1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
1/4 cup reduced-calorie pancake syrup

Directions

In a shallow dish, beat the egg, egg white and milk. Dip bread into egg mixture, coating both sides. Bake in a preheated waffle iron according to manufacturer's directions until golden brown.

For sauce, in a bowl, crush the strawberries; stir in the pancake syrup. Serve French toast with the strawberry sauce. Yield: 2 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (2 pieces French toast with 6 tablespoons sauce) equals 261 calories, 5 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 107 mg cholesterol, 401 mg sodium, 45 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 11 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 2-1/2 starch, 1 lean meat, 1/2 fruit.

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Made April 2nd. I used 2 slices of Nature's Own 7 Grain bread (wouldn't recommend it), 2 slices of Whole Wheat bread (much better), and 1 slice of white bread (there was enough of the mix to make one more slice).

I really liked the simplicity of the recipe. I enjoy making french toast because it's so quick and easy, so waffling it adds a unique texture. The strawberry syrup was ok too.

Because I used three different types of breads, the point value came to 4. It might be different depending on the types of bread being used. 100% whole wheat is going to yield the lowest amount of points though.

I served the waffles with Seasoned Scrambled Eggs.

Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Butter

Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Butter, 1 pt for 2 TB

Ingredients

3/4 cup unsweetened apple cider or juice
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
6 medium apples, peeled and quartered (3 pounds)

Directions

Place the apple juice, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a blender; cover and process until blended. Adding 3-4 apple pieces at a time, cover and process until smooth.
Pour into a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook over low heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Uncover and cook 1 to 1-1/2 hours longer or until thickened. Store in airtight containers in the refrigerator. Yield: 2 cups.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (2 tablespoons) equals 66 calories, trace fat (trace saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 1 mg sodium, 17 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, trace protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 1 fruit.

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Made April 1st. I scored today at the grocery store - 6 cameo apples (almost exactly 3 lbs) for 99 cents. Today was the day to try my hand at this recipe!!

My blender had a hard time chopping all the apples, so I ended up removing some of the mix into the sauce pan until I could get all the apples blended in. The final yield was 2 pints plus about 4 oz.

The mix was pretty thick as it was, so I'm not sure at what point "heat until thickened" is. I took it off the heat when it started forming small peaks. The end result tastes a lot like applesauce. I'm not sure what the difference is between applesauce and apple butter, but I do like the flavor. I mentioned it on facebook, and my sister in law made this comment:

Actually, the difference is cooking time and spices. Apple butter is almost always fairly heavily flavored with cinnamon and maybe cloves and such, and is also cooked down to a much thicker texture. You can either do it on the stovetop (which requires a lot of extra stirring so it doesn't scorch), or you can put it in a big pan in the oven and cook it a low heat, stirring on occasion.

Chili Stuffed Potato

Chili Stuffed Potato, 5 pts

Ingredients

4 large baking potatoes (about 2 pounds)
1 can (15 ounces) vegetarian chili with beans
1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend
1 cup chopped seeded fresh tomatoes
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

Directions

Scrub and pierce the potatoes; place on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 12-14 minutes or until tender, turning once.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, heat chili. With a sharp knife, cut an "X" in each potato; fluff with a fork. Spoon chili over each potato; sprinkle with cheese. Top with tomatoes, sour cream and cilantro. Yield: 4 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (1 stuffed potato with toppings) equals 354 calories, 4 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 10 mg cholesterol, 466 mg sodium, 66 g carbohydrate, 9 g fiber, 15 g protein.

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Made April 1st. I bought Wolf brand chili with beans made from turkey. I looked for a vegan version and didn't ever see one. Maybe I'd have to go to a specialty store. I don't know. The potato was ok. The chili was a little more spicy than I'd have liked, but Jared seemed to enjoy it.

I didn't use the large baking potatoes either, so the points might be a little higher if you do. I weighed mine and it was only a 2 pt potato. I'm sure a baking potato would have been twice that at least.

Feta-Spinach Melts

Feta-Spinach Melts p.30, 2 points

Ingredients

3 packages (6 ounces each) fresh baby spinach, chopped
1 teaspoon water
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise
3 tablespoons fat-free sour cream
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
20 slices French baguette (1/2 inch thick)

Directions

In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine spinach and water. Cover and microwave on high for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted, stirring twice; drain and squeeze dry. Add the feta cheese, tomato, onion, mayonnaise, sour cream, garlic, salt and dill weed; set aside.

Arrange bread on a baking sheet. Broil 4 in. from the heat for 1-2 minutes or until lightly toasted. Spread each with about 1 tablespoonful spinach mixture. Broil 3-4 minutes longer or until heated through. Yield: 10 servings.


Nutritional Analysis: Two slices equals 100 calories, 3 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 8 mg cholesterol, 400 mg sodium, 15 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 4 g protein.
Diabetic Exchanges: 1 starch, 1/2 fat.

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Made March 31st. Absolutely delicious!! And a big hit at the dinner party I took it too.

My Variations:
*Bunched spinach instead of the baby spinach. It worked really well. It made a little more work for me because I had to wash the spinach and trim the stems off, but it was worth it since I only paid 50 cents per bunch and it just took 2 bunches.
*roma tomato because that was I had.
*French bread instead of baguette. I seriously debated whether or not I should go ahead and buy the baguette bread, but really this worked fine.

Chocolate Strawberry Delight

Chocolate Strawberry Delight, 3 points

Ingredients:

5 Ritz Whole Wheat Crackers
1/2 c. chocolate pudding (low-fat)
2 or 3 medium strawberries, sliced
2 TB Reddi-Whip Topping

Directions:
Layer the crackers in a bowl forming a crust, then layer pudding, strawberries and topping. Savor!

Yield: 1 serving

*****

Made March 29th. I came up with this beauty. YUM! YUM! YUM!! I wish I had a better picture, but the battery died in my camera right after I snapped this one.

Diaper Update

In case someone out there is just dying to know what's going on in the diaper world (because that's what Moms talk about all the time, right?), here's an update:

After two days of bad experiences in public, I went back to putting Aaron in a diaper with making a few trips to the bathroom here and there. And I was right about potty training and piano lessons not mixing. Monday afternoon Aaron told me he needed to go potty (during a piano lesson). Jared was in the bathroom too, so I figured it would be ok because Jared is usually really good about helping him out when he needs it. Unfortunately it didn't work out quite so nicely and the poor little girl got traumatized by Aaron's lack of modesty. In fact, I rather think Aaron fed off her covered eyes and cries of embarrassment. ah boys. Proud of their parts.

Our bribe for Aaron is candy. So, every day I have this conversation with him:

Aaron: I'm hungry for candy.
Me: Well, if you want candy, what do you need to do?
Aaron: Potty in the toilet, get candy!!
Me: That's right. If you want to get candy you need to go potty in the toilet.
Aaron: Need to go potty. Get candy!!

It works like a charm, I tell you. Although, funny thing is he went potty 4 times the other day and never did get any of his candy. We got distracted in the process of getting dressed again and never remembered to reap the reward.

And the Fat came back.... couldn't stay away

WW weigh in = 166 (which really stinks when you consider I was 164.7 yesterday). I'm feeling it though. Isn't it odd that I can feel the change in fat? I can feel it in my arms, thighs and waist - of course, all the places that my fat tends to collect. Exercise is such an important of weight loss for me. Well, exercise and portion control together are the dynamic duo, but I have stayed within my point limits (I had 28 of my weekly points left), but I still gained. The difference is that I am not exercising consistently or in a way that pushes my body.

My exercise group has kind of peetered/altered. One partner has 'retired' and the other is ready to get back into exercising, but isn't interested in P90X. Last week we walked 3 miles, but it just isn't the same. I'm at a point where I'd rather spend my mornings being productive around the house or whatever too. So, exercise is becoming a challenge.

I'm right at the halfway point in my weight loss. I'm down 15 with 15 to go. I can't stop now!! Just for some motivation, this was me last week: