Clearing the Cobwebs

Looks like I need to dust off the cobwebs...whew!  Sorry for the lull but I needed to recover from last weekend!  I have been choosing to "nap" (sleeping for 15-45 minutes) during the kids' "naptime" (which is pretty much a joke these days) rather than blog.  Now, I am back and raring to go...and I will post the recipes that I promised!


Here are some things I am diggin' these days: 1. Skinny Cow Ice Cream - they come in cute little portioned cups and they have some serious yumminess going on.  They are only 2 points!!  I have tried 3 of the four flavors: Chocolate Brownie, Dulce de Leche, and Strawberry Cheesecake...I couldn't find Caramel Cone.  2. Freaking Pistachios...can you say addictive?  I don't know if it is the fact that you get an activity and a snack in one or if they are just that wonderful, but I <3 pistachios!!  You have to watch the portion size - just like any nut.  They are 4 pts. for a 1/2 cup with shells and 1/4 cup w/out shells.  3. True Lemon, Lime, and Orange.  You can find them in the sweetener area in most grocery stores, but they actually have no sweetener in them.  They are pure 100% crystallized lemon, lime, and orange.  I love to put it in my water to give it an extra boost of flavor.  The orange is my favorite, but they are all good.  Secret tip (shhh) - go to their website www.truelemon.com for free samples - YAY!  4. SILK Light Chocolate Soy Milk...I swear to you if you have never tried soy milk (or juice as someone pointed out to me) THIS is your ticket in!  My kids drink the Vanilla version and love it...the Very Vanilla is really yummy too, but has a tad too much sugar.  In fact, I even like the plain organic SILK as well.  I use it in any recipe where I would use milk.  Can't even tell the difference.  Now, to drink it straight, the plain does taste like, well, soy beans - duh....good thing I like edamame!


This week I realized once again just how important it is to plan ahead.  My girls had a birthday party last Sunday and as per my request, my mother-in-law helped me by making some delightful lemon blossoms (little mini muffin-looking treats with a lemon glaze...mmmm....) for the tea party portion of the day.  Anyway, my first tip off should have been that it was a Paula Deen recipe, but I proceeded to eat 4 of them...assuming (you know what they say...) that they were 1-2 points a piece.  After all,  I allotted for them.  Curiosity got the best of me the next day and I looked up the recipe and typed it into recipe builder on the WW site.  *Cough, Cough, Choke, Sputter*  They were 5 points a piece!!!  In one fell swoop I had eaten through most of my extra weekly points.  Instead of saying oh well, and giving up, I tightened my belt and really got serious and decided that I was going to do my very best the rest of the week.  I exercised 4 out of the 5 days that were left in the week...thanks in part to my girls for begging to "do the new dance" (my Zumba DVD) everyday and thanks to my hubby for walking the mall with me since it rained all week.  The result?  I lost 2 pounds!  ;)  That brings my total to 38 pounds lost forever!  Here is a picture of the festivities (my girls are the two in the middle in case you don't know):

The moral of the story?  I think it is OK to genuinely mess up from time to time.  It won't make or break you.  However, it is always best to plan ahead and know your points before the food hits your mouth!  ;)

Here is one recipe I promised.  These muffins are 5 points a piece but are full-sized rather than their evil counter-parts noted above.  They are from a recipe I found on www.goveg.com  I think I would like to add some oatmeal next time or walnuts, but they are great just like this:

Chocolate-Banana Muffins

3 ripe bananas

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 cup of raw cane sugar (I use Florida Crystals)

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mash the bananas then add oil and sugar.  Mix well.  Sift the flour, salt, baking soda, and chocolate chips together and add to the banana mixture.  Mix just until the flour is blended - do not over mix.  Pour into muffin pans and bake at 350 until toothpick come out clean (15-20 minutes).

And here is the hands-down best pancake recipe EVER.  I am not a fan of large dense pancakes.  These are delicate and are almost akin to a thick crepe consistency.  They are great!  The recipe is in Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution cookbook as well as on his website www.jamieoliver.com

Jamie Oliver's Pancakes

1 egg, preferably free-range or organic

1 cup plain flour

1 cup milk (I used vanilla soy milk)

1 tsp. baking powder

pinch of sea salt

2 T butter

Crack your egg in a large mixing bowl.  Add your flour, milk, baking powder, and a pinch of sea salt.  Whisk everything together until you've got a lovely, smooth batter.  Put a large frying pan on medium heat and add half the butter.  Use a ladle (I used a 1/2 cup to measure mine) to spoon the batter into the pan.  (The pancakes are about the size of a small saucer and the recipe makes 8 pancakes total)  *At this point, I added a small handful of fresh blueberries to each pancake.  Cook for 1-2 minutes and use a spatula to flip them over when they start to brown on the bottom and get little bubbles on the top.  When cooked on both sides, transfer to a plate, carefully wipe the pan clean with paper towels, add the rest of the butter, and start again.  

I served mine with a small dollop of honey Greek Yogurt (www.greekgodsyogurt.com) and a small drizzle of maple syrup.  They were perfection on a plate.

Go forth and EAT!!