I'm back at Weight Watchers. 'Nuff said, right? When I was in WW before (two times) I did very well. Now I'm not trying to jinx myself or anything, but I lost around fifty pounds both times. Once I quit because money got tight and WW became an extra. The other time I quit because I got pregnant. Know what happened? Each time I started I weighed about the same. What I weighed when I first joined is the same amount I weighed when I re-joined the second time. That's also within ten pounds of what my starting weight is this time. This time I'm ten pounds less than the two previous times so I guess I got sick of my clothes not fitting a little sooner this time. What I'm getting at is this: I am very good at counting points, exercising, and all that stuff...when I am a meeting attending member. When I "count my points on my own" I gain the weight all back. That is not something that works for me. If I take the money I spend each week going out to lunch and add it up I'm more than paying for my weekly meetings. Plus I found out that my insurance company will reimburse me up to $150 a year for my WW meetings. Sweetness.

I'm going to post pictures and recipes of dinners if it's something I think you'd be interested in...plus it's an easy way for me to catalog the dinners I've figured out the points for. So to help out my fellow WW members (and myself) here goes the first one:

Chicken with Cherry Salsa, Sweet Potato Fries, and Asparagus

First, I forgot to take the picture until I had started eating...so picture another piece of chicken on there. I had two (because I actually just took one breast and split it thickness-wise so they'd cook quicker).

The chicken (after I split each breast) was super simple. Each side got salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Place in a skillet that's preheated on medium with about 2T. EVOO. They only take about 5 minutes on each side. If you're using a regular sized chicken breast then it's going to take longer...probably about 10-12 minutes on each side. I like to feel like I have a large quantity of food, and two small pieces seems like more than one big piece.

The sweet potato fries are peeled and cut sweet potatoes that I sprayed with cooking spray and sprinkled with cinnamon and nutmeg. No exact measurements or anything...just sprinkle until they look nicely coated and toss them on a cookie sheet. They'll bake at 400 for 20 minutes.

The asparagus gets drizzled with EVOO and three to four cloves of sliced garlic on top. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper and roast in the 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.

I saved the cherry salsa for last because it was so freaking delicious and I always save the best for last. I made the salsa earlier today and popped it in the fridge to let it marinate and chill and then put about a tablespoon or so on each piece of chicken. I was a little hesitant to try it because I don't like hot stuff and it called for jalapenos...trust me when I say that this is super awesomely yummy. The original recipe for the salsa said you could dip chips in it, but I can't vouch for whether that's good or not.

Cherry Salsa
2 Cups Bing Cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped
1/4 Cup Cherry Preserves
Juice of a Half a Lime
1/4 of a Red Onion, finely chopped
1/2 of a Jalapeno Pepper, finely chopped

I chopped everything in my mini chopper. I did the cherries by themselves and just pulsed them so they weren't too small. Store in an airtight container.

WW POINTS: 8
Serving: Two small pieces of chicken (3 ounces), 2T. salsa, 1 Cup Potatoes, 8-10 Asparagus Spears.

Posted by Courtney at 6:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

EBTKS? What the hell is that? It's an acronym I made up...for the purpose of shortening this entry's title. EBTKS means Everything But The Kitchen Sink. This morning I made pasta salad. I know what you're thinking. Who cares, right? Everyone makes pasta salad, huh? I rarely feel daring enough to experiment with a recipe...let alone try and make my own recipe. This morning, however? I was so adventurous that I not only created my own recipe...I also skipped a shower and have little intention of taking one before 4pm. Oh yeah, and I'm wearing yesterday's socks. You got me...I was joking about the socks...they're fresh.

The recipe for pasta salad is flexible. There are few things that you shouldn't put in pasta salad. Jelly, for example. Other than that you can add pretty much whatever you like...or whatever you need to use up. But not eggs...even if they are close to the expiration date. And I'd probably stay away from Spaghetti Os...I'm fairly certain that wouldn't be good. Seriously, the point I'm trying to make is this: YOU CAN'T SCREW UP PASTA SALAD. That should be comforting to even the beginning cooks. I used some things I had on hand...things that Larry and I like. That's a pretty important detail...use things that you like...and eliminate things you don't like. We don't eat tomatoes, so we don't have them. I don't like black olives, and since I'm the cook, we don't have black olives in our pasta salad. Without further delay...

EBTKS Pasta Salad

1 box wheat pasta, cooked
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium cucumber, seeded and chopped
1 medium red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 bunch asparagus, boiled 2-3 minutes and plunged into cold water to stop cooking
1 cup frozen peas
16 oz. Kraft Free Zesty Italian
Salt, Pepper, and Garlic Powder to taste

A few notes

I boiled the asparagus in a large pan but with a small amount of water. I then filled the same pan with water for the pasta after the asparagus was finished. This helped to keep my cleanup a snap. I actually only dirtied one pan and lid, one knife, and one spoon. Not bad!

While the pasta was cooking I chopped all of the veggies. The asparagus was very coarsely chopped into 1" pieces. The cucumber and red pepper were coarsely chopped. The onion was finely chopped.

I used a cooking onion because it's what I had on hand. To tone down the onion a little, since it wasn't an eating type of onion, I microwaved it in a little olive oil for about a minute. Then I chilled it in the fridge. If you use a shallot or red onion you could leave it raw.

I didn't thaw the peas. They'll thaw in the fridge.

I only used a little over half the bottle of dressing. It looked pretty wet, but pasta can sure absorb the liquid. I'll probably end up adding another quarter of the bottle tomorrow before serving. You can eyeball the dressing...once it sits overnight you may need to add more.

When taste testing I sprinkled a little Parmesan cheese over the top. It tasted fine, but I think I'd prefer it without.

Like I said, it's whatever you like. Add and subtract as you wish.

Today, my challenge to you: Be Daring...Be Adventurous...Be In Your Pjs until 4pm...

Posted by Courtney at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)